154 Mr. Fraser's Journey from Delhi to Bombaj/. 



basis of the whole country to the Nurbuddah, and far beyond it to the south- 

 ward*. 



From this point to Jam-ghat, on tlie extremity of the table-land of Malwa, 

 and on the descent to the Nurbuddah, the geological nature of the country 

 suffers little or no alteration in appearance or in reality. Extensive gentle 

 undulations, of no considerable height, are divided from each other by small 

 water-courseSj which for most part of the year retain a certain quantity of 

 running water. These heights are sometimes covered with the deep black 

 mould universal in Malwa and several of the elevated countries that occupy 

 this plateau : sometimes we find a hard dark and stony soil, denoting that at 

 no great depth below the rock the same black basalt is to be found. Around 

 Neemuck, and for some distance to the south and eastward, red ironstone is 

 found, occupying some of the low rounded hills that occasionally occur, as well 

 as the extensive undulating downs which form the country. Compact lime- 

 stone, containing sparry iron ore, is used in building; and the greenish-grey 

 limestone, already mentioned, is found in several places in the vicinity, and is 

 used in various ways. 



The same description applies to the country south from Neemuck to Per- 

 taubgurh, and from thence to Deola, a fort on the brow of the hills overlooking 

 the jungle that stretches towards Goojerat. The hills are far from lofty, and 

 the fall to the westward is either uniform, or broken into various descents by 

 a gradation of hills. 



We then proceeded eastward, by Mundussor, to the banks of the Chumbul 

 at Aorah-ghat, through a country precisely similar ; small hills of black basalt^ 

 with their level stratiform tops, occasionally rising out of the ground. The 

 river runs in a bed of black basalt, about sixty feet deep from the surrounding 

 country. The surface of this rock, when exposed, appears to be split into hexa- 

 gonal pieces approaching the columnar form ; but no columns are to be found. 

 The whole rock is much tinged with iron. Agate-like pebbles, and other 

 forms of quartz, are scattered thickly all about ; and we now began to find 

 geodes of quartz, which afterwards occurred in great abundance. 



The banks of all the considerable streams in this part of the country were 

 composed of a very fine light-coloured grey clay, in great depth, which rested 

 upon the basalt, instead of the black mould or red gravel constituting the soil 

 of the country already described. 



About four miles to the eastward of Aorah-ghat there is a range of hills, 



* The specimen of this rock, sent with this paper, was obtained from a well sunk about twenty- 

 five feet below the surface, in which there had been eighteen feet of this stone already blasted 

 through. 



