SECTION II. 
MINER,ALOGICAL DESCRIPTION OF THE ISLAND,* 
After the foregoing geographical description of Bdnka, I pro¬ 
ceed to a connected narrative of the mineralogical appearances, re¬ 
marks and facts, in order to explain the constitution of the mines 
and to throw some light on the geological history of the island, re¬ 
serving the most obvious conclusions and reflexions until the obser¬ 
vations made in different parts of the island have been detailed, and 
may be taken into one point of view. 
But, for the purpose of elucidating the following descriptions, it 
is necessary to premise some remarks or positions of a general na¬ 
ture. 
1. The direction of the island (see the geographical account) is 
from north-west, (o south-east: in this direction it follows, not only 
the neighbouring island of Sumatra and the peninsula of Malaka, but 
the large chain of the Asiatic mountains one of the various branches 
ot which terminates in Ceylon, while another after having traversed 
Arracan, Pegu, Malaka and probably Sumatra, sends off an inferior 
range through Banka and Billiton where it may be considered to 
disappear and terminate.^ 
2. It is not only in the direction of its course that Banka follows 
the large Asiatic ranges of mountains,—the elevated parts of the is¬ 
land, or those which are entitled to be called mountains or hills, 
have the same constitution as the great chain above mentioned, they 
are composed principally of granite. 
3. Next to these, which must be considered as the primitive 
parts of Banka, we meet with a species of rock, which for the sake 
of distinction I have named Ited-Iron-stone. It is very extensive- 
* We beg to cal! the attention of all our readers who are interested in 
our Settlements on the Malay Peninsula to the extreme importance of this 
part, of the Report. So great is the resemblance of Banka to the southern 
countries of the Peninsula that there is hardly a page of the mineralogical 
description which may not be applied to some parts of the latter.— Ed. 
i See Sketch of the Physical Geography and Geology of the Malay Pe¬ 
ninsula, ante p. 89-93, also vol. i, p. 2-4,— Ed, 
