136 COLLECTING EXPEDITION TO BATANG PADANG. 
on with profit. Though at the same time it is evident that only 
the best of the land can be now worked, and that therefore 
the State is the loser of a great deal of revenue, as land which 
has had all the best parts of it worked out will not pay to 
re-open and will probably be unworked for many years to come. 
With the exception of the first two miles, which has in great 
part a laterite subsoil, lithologically identical with the expo- 
sure on the road to Kamunting near Drummond's house, 
the land the whole way along the track from Tapa to Chen- 
dariang is of splendid quality and admirably suited for any 
low country cultivation. <A great part of this land is covered 
with forest (rzméa), and only a small part with d/uka. The 
Chendariang valley above Naga Bharu is well suited to wet 
padi cultivation, and there are now in existence some consi- 
derable dendangs, which as there is an abundant supply 
of water and level land, may be enlarged to a great extent 
without much trouble. 
Before leaving the mines, I looked over the heaps of mining 
metal, and found a few interesting mineralogical specimens, 
and on returning collected a good many botanical specimens. 
At one place along the road the telegraph line was hanging 
near the ground and touching a small sapling and at about 
60 feet distance it was attached to an insulator fastened to 
the trunk of atree. Running up the sapling and along the 
wire to the distant tree, were hundreds of red-ants (keringa) 
carrying green caterpillars each about one inch long; six or 
eight ants to one caterpillar. The caterpillars were very 
numerous, and all of one species. 
On the 23rd I was all day shifting plants that were dry 
into Chinese paper and tying them up ready to pack up in 
boxes. 
I did not collect any more plants, as my object was to get 
as large a stock of empty paper to take up the hill again as 
possible, because the hill plants are more likely to be unknown 
than those of the plains. 
From this date to the 2nd of August, I continued drying 
botanical specimens and transferring them into Chinese paper 
when dry enough, and dried and packed up the bird-skins. 
