﻿Vol. 
  53.3 
  Off 
  KOCKS 
  FEOil 
  THE 
  BALUCHISTAN 
  BOEDER. 
  293 
  

  

  The 
  Koh-i-Sultan 
  mountains 
  deserve 
  a 
  few 
  remarks, 
  owing 
  to 
  the 
  

   curious 
  and 
  grotesque 
  shapes 
  of 
  their 
  high 
  peaks, 
  which 
  remind 
  one 
  

   irresistibly 
  of 
  Gothic 
  cathedrals 
  and 
  churches. 
  Here, 
  too, 
  we 
  find 
  a 
  

   high 
  natural 
  pillar 
  which, 
  as 
  seen 
  at 
  a 
  distance 
  from 
  the 
  plains 
  below, 
  

   looks 
  like 
  an 
  artificial 
  monolith 
  on 
  the 
  crest-line 
  of 
  the 
  range. 
  On 
  

   approaching 
  it, 
  we 
  found 
  that 
  it 
  was 
  a 
  huge 
  natural 
  pillar 
  of 
  

   stupendous 
  size, 
  made 
  up 
  of 
  volcanic 
  agglomerate. 
  Erom 
  the 
  width 
  

   of 
  the 
  base, 
  which 
  is 
  over 
  100 
  yards 
  in 
  diameter, 
  I 
  calculate 
  that 
  

   its 
  height 
  must 
  be 
  over 
  800 
  feet. 
  Deep 
  fissures 
  down 
  its 
  sides, 
  

   caused 
  no 
  doubt 
  by 
  the 
  action 
  of 
  rain, 
  give 
  it 
  a 
  fluted 
  appearance 
  

   from 
  a 
  distance. 
  (See 
  fig. 
  2, 
  p. 
  294.) 
  

  

  So 
  much 
  for 
  the 
  general 
  character 
  of 
  the 
  country. 
  In 
  considering 
  

   the 
  present 
  condition 
  of 
  its 
  surface 
  and 
  the 
  geological 
  and 
  othematural 
  

   phenomena 
  to 
  be 
  found 
  there, 
  it 
  is 
  advisable 
  to 
  note 
  carefully 
  the 
  

   natural 
  agents 
  which 
  are 
  at 
  work 
  in 
  that 
  region 
  with 
  a 
  force 
  and 
  

   activity 
  unknown 
  in 
  most 
  other 
  countries. 
  Eirst 
  of 
  all, 
  we 
  have 
  

   the 
  agency 
  of 
  water, 
  which 
  is 
  a 
  more 
  particularly 
  destructive 
  agent 
  

   here 
  precisely 
  because 
  this 
  part 
  of 
  Baluchistan 
  is 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  driest 
  

   countries 
  in 
  the 
  world. 
  Rain 
  comes 
  but 
  seldom, 
  but 
  when 
  it 
  comes 
  

   it 
  pours 
  with 
  great 
  violence, 
  and 
  from 
  the 
  absence 
  of 
  vegetation 
  or 
  

   surface-soil, 
  it 
  rushes 
  off 
  the 
  mountain-sides 
  in 
  huge 
  torrents. 
  The 
  

   high- 
  water 
  marks 
  in 
  the 
  dry 
  torrent-beds 
  and 
  the 
  large 
  rounded 
  

   boulders 
  piled 
  one 
  upon 
  another 
  in 
  those 
  beds 
  show 
  with 
  what 
  

   volume 
  and 
  force 
  those 
  torrents 
  come 
  down. 
  

  

  Then 
  we 
  have 
  the 
  wind. 
  I 
  have 
  never 
  travelled 
  in 
  a 
  country 
  

   where 
  strong 
  winds 
  are 
  so 
  frequent 
  and 
  continued. 
  There 
  is 
  one 
  

   wind 
  alone 
  which 
  blows 
  there 
  with 
  hurricane 
  violence 
  continuously 
  

  

  and 
  sal 
  ammoniac 
  were, 
  however, 
  extracted 
  from 
  the 
  edge 
  of 
  one 
  of 
  these 
  

   apertures. 
  

  

  Capt. 
  Sykes 
  has 
  paid 
  several 
  visits 
  to 
  the 
  burning 
  petroleum-springs 
  at 
  

   Baku, 
  on 
  the 
  western 
  shore 
  of 
  the 
  Caspian 
  Sea, 
  and 
  be 
  is 
  satisfied 
  that 
  the 
  heat, 
  

   smoke, 
  and 
  flames 
  on 
  the 
  summit 
  of 
  the 
  Koh-i-Taftan 
  were 
  not 
  due 
  to 
  petroleum. 
  

   There 
  was 
  no 
  smell 
  of 
  petroleum, 
  nor 
  was 
  the 
  smoke 
  dark 
  and 
  carbonaceous. 
  

  

  As 
  the 
  summit 
  of 
  the 
  Koh-i-Taftan 
  is 
  still 
  thickly 
  covered 
  with 
  fine 
  ash, 
  this 
  

   volcano 
  must 
  have 
  been 
  active 
  during 
  a 
  recent 
  geological 
  period 
  ; 
  but 
  as 
  no 
  

   very 
  fresh 
  lava-streams 
  appear 
  to 
  have 
  been 
  observed 
  on 
  the 
  way 
  up 
  the 
  

   mountain, 
  it 
  is 
  not 
  probable 
  that 
  the 
  volcano 
  has 
  been 
  active 
  during 
  the 
  lifetime 
  

   of 
  the 
  present 
  generation. 
  The 
  authors 
  infer 
  from 
  Captain 
  Sykes's 
  observations 
  

   that 
  the 
  volcano 
  is 
  now 
  in 
  the 
  solfataric 
  stage 
  of 
  its 
  existence. 
  The 
  flames 
  seen 
  

   were 
  probably 
  due 
  to 
  the 
  emission 
  of 
  hydrogen 
  sulphide 
  (H 
  2 
  S), 
  a 
  very 
  common 
  

   and 
  inflammable 
  product 
  of 
  solfataric 
  action. 
  

  

  Capt. 
  Sykes 
  brought 
  home 
  with 
  him 
  a 
  specimen 
  of 
  lava 
  found 
  in 
  situ 
  on 
  

   the 
  Koh-i-Taftan, 
  and 
  this 
  proves, 
  on 
  examination 
  under 
  the 
  microscope, 
  to 
  

   be 
  a 
  vesicular 
  hornblende-andesite. 
  The 
  hornblende 
  belongs 
  to 
  the 
  ortho- 
  

   rhombic 
  group, 
  and 
  is 
  identical 
  with 
  the 
  very 
  peculiar 
  red-brown 
  and 
  

   brilliantly 
  dichroic 
  variety 
  of 
  anthophyllite 
  described 
  in 
  Part 
  II. 
  of 
  this 
  paper. 
  

   It 
  is 
  very 
  abundant 
  in 
  the 
  Koh-i-Taftan 
  slice. 
  Augite 
  is 
  also 
  sparsely 
  present 
  

   in 
  it, 
  but 
  there 
  is 
  no 
  olivine. 
  Magnetite 
  and 
  ferrite 
  also 
  occur. 
  The 
  antho- 
  

   phyllite 
  has 
  strongly 
  marked 
  resorption 
  -bands, 
  and 
  it 
  is 
  undoubtedly 
  an 
  original 
  

   mineral. 
  It 
  is 
  interesting 
  to 
  note 
  that 
  this 
  peculiar 
  mineral 
  is 
  a 
  characteristic 
  

   constituent 
  of 
  the 
  lava 
  of 
  the 
  Persian 
  volcano 
  Koh-i-Taftan 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  of 
  some 
  of 
  

   the 
  somewhat 
  older 
  lavas 
  of 
  Baluchistan 
  described 
  in 
  this 
  paper. 
  — 
  May 
  15th, 
  

   1897.] 
  V 
  f 
  

  

  