1836.] 



Neelgherries and Kvondahs. 



261 



stratified, the strata being composed of the iron ore, alternating, con- 

 formably, with others of pure laminar hornblende, in a state of decom- 

 position in some of the masses. But, an appearance worth noting is 

 that the hornblende, in decomposing, maintains its form and splendour, 

 but it has changed colour from black to golden, the texture having be- 

 come crumbly (No. 44). 



Descending along the new road, w T ithin a hundred yards of the public 

 bungalow we see, to the left, and close to the road, two large masses 

 of a black looking rock overlaying some strata of a white one. This 

 is the locality, where the common garnets assume the granular form, and 

 resemble cnlophonite. The diagram (Plate 7, fig. 2) gives an idea of the 

 position and configuration of these masses ; which I will describe sepa- 

 rately according to their situation from the lowermost to the uppermost. 



After having removed two or three feet of earth from the foot of the 

 rock, we see that the lowest is hornblende rock, having a little 

 felspar, but no garnets, and a few grains of quartz (No. 45). All the 

 uncovered portion of the mass is evidently unstratified, and, although 

 the mass itself does not contain garnets, it is traversed by a vein, or 

 probably, part of the block itself, which contains some of them, re- 

 sembling hornblende porphyry with garnets (No. 46). 



The strata overlaying this lowest rock are those which contain the 

 colophonite, being formed of greenish hard hornblende, and numerous 

 granular garnets. This lower stratum of colophonite rock is extremely 

 hard and heavy, having not much hornblende and the garnets not 

 being so granular as in the upper one, but rather foliated (No. 47). 



The stratum over this, is not so compact, and the hornblende is 

 greenish and decomposing ; but, the colophonite is better developed 

 (No. 48). The upper stratum assumes the compactness and hardness 

 of the lowermost (No. 49). Above there is another thin stratum, not 

 extending all the length of the others, and different in composition 

 from them all, being of a granitic rock, without garnets or hornblende, 

 mica replacing them both (No. 50). This is succeeded by a stratum of 

 whitish rock, different from all the others, being a felspar vein, or rather 

 stratum, in a state of decomposition, with a few grains of hornblende 

 in the same condition; and, here and there, some grains of quartz; 

 plates of mica are not rarely met with (No. 51). This last mentioned 

 stratum is conformable to that of the colophonitic rock, but it has not 

 the numerous fissures, with which all the above mentioned strata are 

 split, perpendicularly to their seams. Although the line of demarca- 

 tion between the felspathic and colophonitic strata, be decided and 

 well marked, yet the lower portion of the felspathic rock imbeds some 

 oblong or angular pieces of the colophonitic rock. With regard to 

 the dimensions of all these strata, the three of the colophonite may 

 have five feet thickness, that of the felspathic rock hardly two. 



