490 Coal Beds in the Namsang Nago Hills. [June, 



thither with a view of reporting on the practicability of supplying coal 

 from thence for the use of the Government Steamers coming monthly to 

 Assam. 



2. I am having a survey made of the road or path from Nazeerah 



to the coal beds from which a map will be drawn up and furnished to 



you, I trust in a fortnight. I beg to note in the margin, the distances 



in detail from Nazeerah to the coal 

 From Nazeerah to the foot of the ., ,. _ 



hill, 10 1 - miles, beds; the first distance is along a 



From thence to coal de- Droac [ road which has been long near- 



pot on the Dikhoo . ° ° 



river, 3£ do. lected but by repairs may be made a 



F Tds, the . nC . 6 . *. .T! 23* do. vei 7 S ood roa(L The second distance 

 From Nazeerah to coal is a foot-path over low hills and may 



be made a tolerably good road at a' 



moderate expense. The last portion of 2f miles is the most difficult 



part of the whole, being over a hill about 1800 feet high with two or 



three steep ascents. A coolie cannot take more than two light loads 



from the coal beds to the coal depot in the course of a day. 



3. Respecting the transport of the coal by water, I beg to state that 

 the difficulty lies only near and under the hills where the rapids are 

 numerous. But as boats of the largest size during the rainy reason can 

 proceed up the Dikhoo to the first rapid and as canoes of 15 or 20 

 maunds in the dry season, and of 100 maunds in the rainy season, can 

 be taken over the rapids to the coal depot, I see nothing to prevent the 

 conveyance of coal by water to Gowahatty. I came down in a canoe of 

 20 maunds over most of the rapids without any danger or difficulty. 

 I did not see all the rapids, but those that I came over appeared to 

 consist entirely of loose stone of various sizes ; by removing which, or 

 turning them into weirs, the navigation of the river would be considera- 

 bly improved. 



4. The bed of the coal that is now being worked by the Contractor's 

 men, crops out on the brow of a hill about 1400 feet high, and is situated 

 on the right side of the Namseesoo valley, down which flows a mountain 

 torrent called the Namseesoo Nuddee. It is considerably elevated above 

 the bed of the torrent. The thickness of the coal-bed strata is about 10 

 feet, of which the pure coal bed is from 3 to 4 feet. The remainder, con- 

 sisting of black powder and soil interspersed with lumps of iron pyrites 

 —the dip of the bed is about 36° and the direction 40 S. W. and N. E. 



