1859.] on the determination of the heights of Mountains. 315 



So with the Himmalayan Mass. Its attraction on points outside 

 the mass is shown (within certain limits) to be inversely as the dis- 

 tance from a given fixed line. But when we take a station within 

 the mountain region this law must cease, and some other one come 

 into operation. I have not the means of ascertaining what that 

 law is. But, whatever it may be, it seems probable that it will be 

 much the same as we pass in among the Kashmir Mountains, as it 

 is in passing in among the Darjeeling Mountains. But the dis- 

 tance of the newly-discovered Mountain near Kashmir is about 

 270 miles from the foot of the hills, whereas Mount Everest is only 

 about 100 miles. This circumstance must of itself give a great 

 advantage to the Kashmir heights over those of the east end of 

 the range. 



11. In the above calculations I have considered the effect of the 

 attraction of the Mountain Mass lying on the north of India. It 

 is possible, that other causes may exist which either increase or 

 moderate this effect. When any such cause is found its influence 

 should be ascertained. One cause, besides the attraction of the 

 north, lies in the deficiency of matter in the vast ocean lying on 

 the south of India. This operates in two ways : (1) by affecting 

 the plumb-line and producing effects similar to those I have been 

 considering : and (2) by changing the sea-level at the Sandheads 

 and also at the mouths of the Indus, that is, at the commencement 

 of each of the two series of stations I have supposed to connect 

 the sea with the Mountains in question. In this latter effect also 

 the mountains give their aid. 



The first of these causes will, as in the case of Mountain-attrac- 

 tion, make the height of Kashmir greater than the Survey makes 

 it relatively to the east end of the range ; while the effect of the 

 second is doubtful. I have shown in a Paper read in December last 

 before the Royal Society (see Proceedings, No. 34j, p. 599), that 

 the sea-level at the mouths of the Indus is very probably about 500 

 feet higher than at Cape Comorin owing to this cause. But how 

 much higher it is at the Sandheads than at Cape Comorin, I did 

 not in that calculation determine, as it was not required for the 

 purposes of the paper. I should imagine that it would be very 

 much the same as at the mouths of the Indus, as the Sandheads 



