B86 VREDENBURG: SKETCH OF BALUCHISTAN DESERT. 



weakened springs still continued depositing calcareous tufa in which 

 blocks detached from the escarpments of the older formation became 

 imbedded. At the present day there still issues a small spring which 

 forms incrustations of rather pure common salt which is collected by 

 the inhabitants of neighbouring districts. 



A pale-coloured variety of this travertine acquires on weathering 

 a smooth translucent surface, giving it the appearance of pale yellow 

 wax, which is very pleasing to the eye. The weathered pieces are 

 collected, and without being carved in any manner, they are largely 

 used for the decoration of tombs. North- of Jhuli this variety is 

 obtained principally from the newer deposits. The fractured surface 

 has a disappointing appearance : beneath the wax-coloured weathered 

 surface the rock is nearly white and so coarsely crystalline that it 

 is too brittle for any decorative purpose. The older deposits consist 

 of a rock which, on weathering, assumes an unattractive brown colour, 

 but which on fracture is found to be a very beautiful material. The 

 carbonate of lime is of a delicate green colour, veined and banded 

 with portions stained with iron, showing that the springs were 

 also ferruginous in their earlier stages. The material is sufficiently 

 tough to be obtained in fairly large pieces, and would form a very 

 ornamental " onyx marble." 



At Tozgi the rock is pure white and coarsely 



Deposits at Tozgi. 



crystalline. 



Mr. Holland has drawn attention to the fact previously noticed 

 by Dr. G. E. T. Aitchison that this rock consists of alternating 

 layers of calcite and aragonite. 1 Some specimens collected at Koh- 

 i-Malik-Si£h (page 88) consist entirely of fibrous aragonite. 



Mr. Blanford has mentioned the occurrence of similar rocks in 

 Persia. 2 



Parallel between the Western Malay and the Eastern 



Iranian Region. 

 In India there is a complete absence of any undoubted instance 

 of a recent volcanic eruption, both in the peninsular and in the 



1 Rec. Geol. Surv. Ind., Vol XXX, p. 129. 



2 Eastern Persia, Vol II, p. 485. 



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