338 



Geological Formation of the Himalayan Mountains. [Aprii 



consisting of the usual ingredients, united in the usual proportions ; 

 garnets, schorl, kyanite, carbonate of lime, green quartz, and hyacinth, 

 are the most ordinary imbedded minerals. A speck, of native gold has 

 "been found in a specimen from one of the granite veins." — Gleaaingi 

 of Science, v, 3, p. 2G8. 



Gneiss is found in many of the PasRcs, associated with chlorite an 1 

 hornblende schists, as well as quartz rock, sometimes passing into mica- 

 ceous schist; it is often found in the vicinity of grani'e, but is S-'):)! 

 succeeded by micaceous schist, and this sometimes becoming talcose. 

 The strata in general dip to the N.E., but great irregularities exist, an 1 

 many instances are seen of their dipping in an opposite direction, but 

 only to a limited extent. 



Unstratified Rocks. — Trap-rocks, though frequently met with in 

 fragments, were not until lately, recognized as forming a remarkable 

 feature in the structure of the Himalayas. They were noticed by Capt, 

 Herbert, and compared by him to Greenstone, as the schist in the 

 descent to Klialsee, which he calls a Protean green slate, passing into a 

 rock like greenstone. He also observe.^, that a trap-like rock is found 

 in the vicinity of Bheemtal, and mentions a " Toadstone, of which the 

 original mass is doubtless to be detected." But a vein of greenstona 

 was discovered by Dr. Falconer in the neighbourhood of Mussooree, 

 and the presence of trap-rocks has since been detected in numerous 

 situations. Previous to this, the elevatory force was supposed to de- 

 pend upon granite, which is revealed at the surface in so many places 

 in Kemaon, and was supposed to be concealed under the surface to the 

 westward of the Ganges, and raised to a great elevation only at the 

 Choor Mountain. Hot springs abound in the Himalayas, and evidences 

 of recent volcanic action were observed by Mr. Vigne in Cashmere, and 

 have been seen by Dr. Falconer. 



The igneous rocks. Dr. F. says, which have been found in the outer 

 tracts, are of the green trap series, and are very generally met with in 

 dykes, intersecting and rising through the regular strata, which are in 

 all directions fractured or comminuted, and the limestone broken up 

 into masses. The Mussooree vein is composed in some places princi- 

 pally of compact white felspar and pyroxene, and in others chiefly of 

 hornblende, and may be traced for half-a-mile in a direction nearly 

 parallel to the range of the mountains. Trap is also met with in one 

 of the ascents to Mussooree, in the bed of the Jumna, and in the neigh- 

 bourhood of Khalsee, and therefore abundantly displayed even within a 

 limited extent. Mr. Everest mentions having crossed three different 

 masses of greenstone in his journey from Mussooree to Gungotri: first, 



