THE THAR AND TARKAR DISTRICT. 258 



and it was considered that in an average year about 4.000 maunds 

 were collected. Since 1877 the collecting of chaniho from the 

 Sanghar and Khipro dhands was farmed out. and an auction was 

 held every year for the right to extract chaniho over the period of 

 one year from August to July. The prices realised for this right were 

 as follows : — 



Year Rs. 



1894-95 1,925 



1895-96 1,925 



1890-97 7,000 



1897-98 4,050 



1898-99 . 2,700 



In January 1899 the Chief Collector of Customs in Karachi ordered 

 the Special Salt Inspector in Sind to tour the Thar and Parkar dis- 

 trict and to report on the state of the salt deposits, etc., there. 



On the 30th March 189*). the Special Salt Inspector reported 

 that some of the kharo 1 and phuU (efflorescence) removed from the 

 dhands could be used as common salt, and he requested that the 

 deposits of the chief chaniho producing dhand of Thai* and Parkar, 

 — a dhand named Dabhiwari in the Khipro taluqa — might be tested, 

 whereupon the high percentage of chloride would become apparent. 



He explains in a subsequent letter that kharo and chaniho are 

 synommious terms both indicating a hard crystalline deposit from 

 a concentrated bittern, while the term phuli denotes a soft powdery 

 efflorescence. 



Three samples of chaniho and phuU were now sent to the Chemical 

 Examiner in Bombay. These samples presumably cam? from Dab- 

 hiwari. On analysis they were announced to contain 84 per cent., 

 53 per cent., and 43 per cent, of Nad, respectively, the remainder 

 being C0 3 and SO v with bases Na, K. and Mg. 



As soon as it became apparent that the excise duty on salt was 

 likely to be evaded by the traders in this very impure chaniho who 

 sold an article purporting to be soda, but in reality largely salt, 

 the matter was energetically taken up by the Salt Department. 

 The chaniho sold in Karachi bazaar was now analysed, but the two 

 •specimens sent to the Chemical Analyst showed only 5 and 3 per 

 cent, of NaCl respectively. Probably these specimens were from 

 Khairpur. 



1 Tbo tonus kharo and chaniho aic flynonymous, both signifying trona. 



