402 MINERALOGICAL DESCRIPTION OF THE ISLAND OF BANKA. 
brown oxide of iron of different shades, the surface was covered with 
a yellow oehreous crust.* 
The country from the stockade of Jebus to the district of the 
mines is waving and uneven, but as it is completely covered with 
wood and vegetables it is difficult to form an opinion of the relative 
height of the intervening' hills, which may more properly be called 
risings. I noted thirteen in succession on this tract. 
In the descent after the first rising', large rocks of red-iron-stone 
projected from the surface, or were dispersed in large fragments on 
the road : The fracture is very various; in some fragments it is me¬ 
tallic, in others oehreous or mixed: those of the former (the metallic 
fracture) are of a dark brown colour, stratified or cellular, the exca¬ 
vations exhibiting a dark shining surface as resembling a substance 
which has undergone a fusion and has suddenly cooled: the oehreous 
fracture is generally porous and the colour intensely red. Both are 
a rich Iron ore, and their analysis and accurate description will be 
given in the sequel. 
The nine following vallies exhibited similar appearance: The Red- 
Sron-stone in great variety; and sand, apparently of different colours, 
from the clayey particles that are accidentally mixed with it: several 
of them transmit rivulets, others bear the marks of an accumulation 
of water after rains. 
In the ascent after leaving the tenth valley the road crosses a very 
extensive layer of sand-stone. The colour, in general, is light blue 
or inclining to grey ; some parts are covered with a yellowish ochr- 
eous crust. It is divided or separated by rightlined fissures which 
appear on the surface in delicate lines or streaks crossing each other 
in various directions: when struck, it separates at these lines, in 
fragments of every variety of configuration, with fiat sides and sharp 
angles, forming squares, lozenges, pyramids and oblique parallelo¬ 
grams in endless variety. The adhesion of its particles, in its na¬ 
tural situation, is not strong and many portions are friable, by dry- 
* The disintegrated ironmasked rocks of the Peninsula are extremely 
deceptive in this respect, often appearing like water worn grayel, volcanic 
lapilli, &c.— Ed. 
