Records of the Geological Surrey of India. 
[vol. it. 
30 
and baking into symmetrical blocks. But 1 am satisfied that much may be made out of 
the dust and dead-small coal, now wasted. The peculiar conditions of the field render it 
compulsory that all this should be brought to bank so that the only expenses to be incurred 
are in the actual manufacture. It would surely be more profitable to reduce a larger portion 
of this waste into the state of good useful fuel than to allow it to take fire and burn itself 
to a heap of ashes. 
Mr. Fryar’s attention was also given to the utilization of the small coal and dust for the 
production of coke, and with considerable success. 
During the past year, a circular was addressed to the proprietors of collieries from this 
office, urging on their consideration the vast importance of'maintaining proper under-ground 
plans, pointing out very briefly the advantages to be derived from such. And L was much 
gratified to find from the replies received from every one of the large proprietors that they not 
only saw the advantages to be gained, but were determined to secure them. Careful plans 
are now being made of most of the mines in the Ranigunj field; plans of the workings in the 
Kurhurbaree field will be commenced as soon as the workings there commence under the East 
Indian Railway Company, and will be maintained. In the Nerbudda plans are kept. I look 
upon this as a most gratifying progress for a year or two. The largest coal proprietors in the 
Itaniguuj field have not only engaged a qualified mining surveyor, hut they have ordered all 
their assistants to pass ail examination in the use of the surveying compass, &c.. and have 
secured attention to this study by giving an increase of Es. 50 per month to the salaries of 
those who may pass. The same Company has also given an excellent example of progress by 
ordering one of their own servants, and who, by their permission only, is also examiner of 
steam-ship boilers under the Government of Bengal (Mr. Walker), to proceed each half-year 
to their works to examine carefully and report upon, in detail, the condition, work, duty, 
aud capabilities of every one of their steam engines ; this report to bo submitted previously 
to each half-yearly meeting of the Company. 
Madras.' —In Madras Presidency, Mr. Foote was absent on medical certificate during 
the greater part of the year. He only returned late in October. The remainder of the party, 
Mr. C. Oldham and Mr. King, commenced the season's work north of Ghooty, and marching 
up to Kurnool, surveyed, as they passed along, a sufficient breadth of country outside of the 
boundary line of the Kuddapah rocks, to ascertain the non-existence of any outliers of those 
rocks in that neighbourhood, and to obtain a good general idea of the character of that area 
of metamorphie rocks. It proved to be chiefly an area of granitoid gneiss, with a few trap- 
dykes, and some runs of fault-breccia; the prevalent directions of these being west-north-west, 
with variation to north-west, and east-north-east, with a variation to north-east. 
From Kurnool, the Surveyors passed across the hills to the east, by the Muntavalpass. 
Mr. King separated from Mr. Oldham at Doopaud, from which he moved northwards, carry¬ 
ing on his examination in connection with the survey of the previous season. Mr. Oldham 
proceeded to the Kistna district to join the Superintendent. 
Mr. King rejoined Mr. Oldham in the middle of February, and working first through 
the Vinueonda talnq, they then passed into the Paluad, and carried their geological lines up 
to the Kistna River. Parts of this country are very difficult of access, wide areas quite unin¬ 
habited, without roads and without any means of obtaining needful supplies. Much of the 
geological structure is also intricate, and the district is at the same time very unhealthy. 
The temperature during the past year was unusually high in April and May, and repeated 
attacks of fever prevented the officers of the survey from carrying on their examination with 
their usual vigour. They continued, however, at work until the beginning of June, when 
Mr. King was compelled to proceed to station. Mr. Oldham went northwards and crossed 
the Kistna, hoping to he able to complete a detailed survey of the Juggiapett country. A 
part of this only could he accomplished, for the early and heavy' break of the monsoon 
compelled him also to leave the field about the middle of June. 
During the autumn Mr. Oldham delivered at the Civil Engineering College in Madras 
a course of lectures on Geology. These were attended, and with marked regularity, by a 
larger number of the general public than on previous occasions, while the engineering class 
was also very attentive and interested in the subject. 
