﻿Vol. 
  53.] 
  SUPERFICIAL 
  DEPOSITS 
  IN 
  CUTCH. 
  243 
  

  

  by 
  the 
  Indus 
  and 
  other 
  rivers, 
  but 
  from 
  the 
  neighbourhood 
  of 
  their 
  

   mouths 
  this 
  has 
  been 
  blown 
  about 
  in 
  an 
  easterly 
  and 
  northerly 
  

   direction, 
  and 
  has 
  thus 
  afforded 
  a 
  constantly 
  renewed 
  source 
  of 
  

   fresh 
  fertility. 
  

  

  Discussion. 
  

  

  Dr. 
  W. 
  T. 
  Blanford 
  expressed 
  his 
  satisfaction 
  that 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  

   peculiar 
  formations 
  of 
  Western 
  India 
  had 
  been 
  examined 
  by 
  an 
  

   English 
  geologist 
  of 
  experience. 
  Indian 
  geologists 
  appreciated 
  the 
  

   value 
  of 
  independent 
  criticism. 
  Taking 
  the 
  deposits, 
  which 
  varied 
  

   greatly 
  in 
  geological 
  age, 
  in 
  the 
  order 
  in 
  which 
  they 
  had 
  been 
  

   treated 
  by 
  the 
  Author, 
  the 
  speaker 
  said 
  that 
  his 
  own 
  knowledge 
  

   of 
  the 
  subrecent 
  concrete, 
  the 
  Miliolite 
  of 
  Dr. 
  Carter, 
  was 
  small, 
  

   but 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  the 
  rock 
  was 
  said 
  to 
  be 
  so 
  calcareous 
  that 
  it 
  

   was 
  in 
  many 
  places 
  burnt 
  into 
  lime 
  was 
  difficult 
  to 
  reconcile 
  with 
  

   a 
  purely 
  seolian 
  origin. 
  The 
  deposits 
  described 
  by 
  the 
  Author 
  as 
  

   boulder-beds 
  doubtless 
  belonged 
  to 
  the 
  subaerial 
  accumulations 
  so 
  

   enormously 
  developed 
  in 
  Central 
  Asia, 
  Cutch 
  being 
  on 
  the 
  edge 
  of 
  

   the 
  great 
  dry 
  region 
  in 
  which 
  disintegration 
  is 
  in 
  excess 
  of 
  trans- 
  

   porting 
  power, 
  and 
  the 
  rainfall 
  only 
  suffices 
  to 
  carry 
  detritus, 
  

   including 
  boulders, 
  to 
  a 
  lower 
  level, 
  not 
  to 
  wash 
  it 
  down 
  to 
  the 
  sea. 
  

   With 
  the 
  so-called 
  quartzite-reefs 
  the 
  speaker 
  was 
  unacquainted. 
  

   The 
  infratrappean 
  grits 
  were 
  possibly 
  part 
  of 
  a 
  similar 
  formation 
  

   occurring 
  at 
  the 
  base 
  of 
  the 
  Deccan 
  traps 
  throughout 
  the 
  Nerbudda 
  

   valley 
  and 
  elsewhere, 
  and 
  known 
  as 
  Lameta 
  Beds. 
  These 
  often 
  

   contained 
  small 
  rolled 
  quartz-pebbles. 
  The 
  laterites 
  of 
  Cutch 
  were 
  

   principally 
  of 
  Eocene 
  age, 
  but 
  it 
  was 
  very 
  probable 
  that 
  lateritic 
  

   deposits 
  of 
  more 
  recent 
  origin 
  also 
  occurred. 
  Some 
  of 
  the 
  peculiarities 
  

   of 
  the 
  rock 
  were 
  that 
  the 
  two 
  principal 
  types 
  — 
  that 
  supposed 
  to 
  be 
  

   due, 
  in 
  part 
  at 
  least, 
  to 
  alteration 
  of 
  other 
  rocks, 
  and 
  that 
  which 
  was 
  

   unquestionably 
  of 
  detrital 
  origin 
  — 
  were 
  remarkably 
  similar, 
  and 
  

   that 
  the 
  rock 
  is 
  easily 
  reconsolidated 
  from 
  the 
  detritus 
  of 
  an 
  earlier 
  

   laterite. 
  The 
  Kan 
  must 
  formerly 
  have 
  been 
  much 
  deeper, 
  and 
  

   according 
  to 
  tradition 
  was 
  navigable 
  ; 
  but 
  as 
  late 
  as 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  

   Alexander 
  the 
  Great 
  the 
  Indus 
  flowed 
  into 
  the 
  western 
  part, 
  and 
  

   silt 
  must 
  have 
  been 
  deposited 
  with 
  great 
  rapidity. 
  Even 
  now 
  

   silt-laden 
  water 
  from 
  the 
  sea 
  is 
  driven 
  up 
  the 
  channels 
  on 
  both 
  sides 
  

   of 
  Cutch 
  in 
  the 
  south-west 
  monsoon, 
  and 
  from 
  this 
  and 
  other 
  causes 
  

   deposits 
  take 
  place 
  constantly. 
  The 
  high 
  elevation 
  of 
  the 
  Ean 
  

   alluvium 
  near 
  the 
  land-area 
  of 
  Cutch 
  may 
  be 
  due 
  to 
  rainwash. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  E. 
  A. 
  Martin 
  regretted 
  that 
  he 
  could 
  not 
  quite 
  understand 
  

   how 
  the 
  quartzite-reefs 
  could 
  have 
  been 
  formed 
  in 
  the 
  manner 
  sug- 
  

   gested. 
  It 
  seemed 
  to 
  him 
  that 
  if 
  this 
  pseudo-stratified 
  rock 
  were 
  

   formed 
  by 
  the 
  action 
  of 
  the 
  prevalent 
  south-westerly 
  winds, 
  there 
  

   would 
  not 
  be 
  that 
  thinning-out 
  arrangement 
  on 
  the 
  north-east 
  and 
  

   east 
  which 
  the 
  diagram 
  appeared 
  to 
  show. 
  If, 
  however, 
  the 
  occa- 
  

   sional 
  winds 
  from 
  the 
  opposite 
  direction 
  were 
  also 
  to 
  be 
  taken 
  into 
  

   account, 
  the 
  force 
  of 
  the 
  theory 
  was 
  more 
  apparent, 
  and 
  then 
  the 
  

   prevalence 
  of 
  one 
  wind 
  more 
  than 
  another 
  would 
  be 
  shown 
  by 
  the 
  

   north-easterly 
  trend 
  of 
  the 
  apices 
  of 
  the 
  beds 
  where 
  the 
  dovetailing 
  

   took 
  place. 
  

  

  