yZ FOOTE : GEOLOGY OF MADURA AND TINNEVELLY DISTRICTS. 



the peak of Mahendragiri and its magnificent twin cliffs ^ in the centre. 

 l*Jowhei'e else have I seen a landscape in which pnre and intense red 

 forms such bold contrasts to the green of the mid-distance and the 

 varying blue tints of the back ground and sky. It must be seen to be 

 realised. The red sand of the teris is of a very vivid colour in general, 

 especially when seen in bright sunlight at a moderate distance. On 

 this occasion the sands in the foreground could only have been represent- 

 ed by shades of subdued scarlet, those in the mid-distance by slightly 

 paler scarlet with a dash of rose madder. The whole scene was one of 

 extraordinary brilliancy and beauty.^ 



The Ittamoli or Sathan Kulam teri is, though not quite the largest, 

 Ittamoli or Sathan certainly the finest and most picturesque of all 

 Kulma ten. ^^le teris. It is also (I believe) the highest, having 



an elevation of 219 feet at the Great Trigonometrical Station in its centre. 

 Its superficial extent cannot be much less than 20 square miles ; so there is 

 abundant room for the display of all the peculiarities of seolian formation. 

 The movements of the sand would appear to be more active here than 

 in any of the other teris. Certainly at the time of my visit to its 

 highest part I noticed many more freshly-formed drifts than in any of 

 the other teris. The sand waves on the higher parts of the teri do not 

 average more than, if so much as, 20 feet in height, and are far from 

 regular in shape or direction of advance; the distribution of the 

 sand in falling over being evidently much affected by eddies in the 

 wind. 



I have already mentioned above (page 63) that I was unable to find 

 the inlier of marine limestone mentioned and mapped by Bishop 

 Caldwell, which was doubtless covered by one of the sand waves I 

 saw. The approximate locality for that inlier to be found at is not very 



1 These two splendid clifEs which are bare faces of grneiss 1,800 to 2,000 feet in sheer 

 heights are really the cast end of a great spur, but as seen from the cast seem part of 

 Mahendragiri itself. 



2 In the hope of getting a sketch of this very reui:irkahle landscape, I re-visited it iu 

 the beginnnig of this year, but the weather was unpropitious aud dull, and the mountains 

 showed very faintly ; so half the charm of the view was gone. 



( 92 ) 



