292 Beeords of the Geological Survey of India. [vOL. xl. 
waters but whether they were deposited by rivers or in lake basins I will leave 
undecided. 
I must still I’efer briefly to another group of beds not included in the Gond- 
wana system, which also appears to have been formed in inland basins. These 
are the Lameta beds which were originally united by J. G. Medlicott rrith lower 
deposits, but which were shown by W. T. Blanford to be the probable fresh- 
W'ater equivalent of tho Bagh beds. They show the following section at the 
Lameta GhAf^ near Jubbulpoor: At the base lie dark violet or greenish shales, then 
follows loose greenish sandstone, then concretionary limestone, and finally sandy 
silicious lime.stone that foiuns the most characteristic memlrer of the group. 
These silicious limestones are to be seen under the basalt at many places in South 
Rewah and along the lower course of the Nerbudda, but their horiziontal extension 
is always very small.* They were also shown by Blanford to occur in the neigh¬ 
bourhood of Nagpur,^ and appear also elsewhere in the Godavari basin under 
the basaltic flows. These beds have hitherto yielded hardly anything beside 
badly preserved reptilian bones. 
In the western part of the Khasi hills are coal beds® belonging to the cre¬ 
taceous period, which may perhaps there also indicate fresh-water deposits of 
that period. 
With the commencement of the tertiary era the geography of the land changes 
somewhat. Marine beds appear again south of the first crystalline axis of the 
Himalayas, for the first time since the palaeozoic era. They are nummulitic 
formations of great thickness which follow the south foot of the mountains, but 
which extend but a short distance eastward beyond the Sutlej. Wynne has 
already several times pointed out the great pctrographical difference between the 
nummulitic beds in the Himalaya and those out.side of it, but no .sufficient expla¬ 
nation has yet been offered for this. The Himalayan deposits of the eocene 
period are remarkable for thick series of dark shales (which often appear meta¬ 
morphosed into true clay-slates) and grey limestones, the whole system being 
poor in fossils. These pass upward into bright red sandstones which only in 
part still appear to be of marine origin, and which may perhaps be preferably 
assigned to the oligocene. The nummulitic beds which are thus developed have, 
together with the red sandstones, been recently distinguished as the Siimur 
group.® This facies is found westward of the Jumna along the whole south edge 
' W. T. Blanford, Mem. Gcol. Surv. of India, IX, p, 322, says expressly : Not a single marine 
fossil lias been found tlirongliont the great plant-bearing series from the Talcliir to the Rajinahals, 
and I cannot help thinking it most probable that all were river deposits ; the Talchirs might be 
lacustrine, etc. 
® J. G. Medlicott: Mem. Gcol. Surv. of India, II, p. 196. See also H. B. Medlicott : Records 
Geol. Snrv. of India, V, p. 115. 
® W. T. Blanford : Mem. Geol. Surv. of India, IV. 
'* VV. T. Blanford : Mem. Geol. Surv. of India, IX, p. 315. 
* Oldham : Mem. Geol. Surv. of India, I. 
“ Medlicott: Records Geol. Surv. of India, IX. 
