12 Geological Notes on the Khasi Hills. [No. 1, 



the village of Maokerasi, inhabited by a people of the Langam tribe, 

 is built on a low knoll, rising above the plateau on the edge of the 

 steep scarp that marks the sudden commencement of the gorge we 

 had just come up. No streams find their way over this northern cliff, 

 and the slope of the strata being south, the water issues from below 

 and must have gradually caused the cliff and gorge to eat back far from 

 the valley of the Urn Blay. 



From Maokerasi towards Nongkulang, is at first seen the tabular 

 sandstone, which dips at a low angle from the edge of the northern 

 scarp (see Sec. A, Plate III,) up to the stream that flows along the 

 base of the Nongkulang ridge. This sheet of rock is so hard, that 

 denudation appears to have made little or no impress on it, and the 

 streams which cross its surface have scarcely cut into it at all, in fact, 

 in many instances they flow irregularly and widely over its surface. 

 At half a mile further on we crossed the main stream flowing westward, 

 full of Melanics and Paludomi ; the forest commenced immediately on 

 the left bank and, I found, with it we had suddenly entered upon lime- 

 stone rocks full of Nummulites. This was rather a surprise, as I had 

 not expected to find them on the northern face of this ridge.* 



We now began to ascend the Nongkulang hill through a very great 

 thickness of the nummulitic limestone series, certainly 300 feet, if not 

 more of it ; this rock ended rather abruptly, and was succeeded by 

 sandy ferruginous strata, some of the beds being very nodular, continu- 

 ing to the crest of the ridge. Near the highest level of the limestone 

 rocks occurred one very marked bed containing Nummulites (about five 

 feet thick) of very large diameter and perfect form ; the stratum was 

 horizontal and curiously weathered by the action of damp and water. 

 The upper sandstone series was found to be rich in fossils well pre- 

 served ; there must be several beds of these parted by non-fossiliferous, 

 light friable shales, and by less fossiliferous sandy beds. Turritella, 

 Neritina, Gyprea and a Trochus, were common forms, besides a few 

 Echini and numerous Bivalves. I made a good collection of these, a | 

 hazy day intervening when survey work was stopped ; yet owing to 



* I may here add, for the information of shell collectors, that this spot is a 

 most productive one. Landshells were most plentiful, and in great variety. 

 I added a large number to my collection in a few minutes, many of which have 

 since turned out to be new species. It was just their favorite spot, a dense 

 damp forest, black vegetable mould and limestone rock. 



