INDIA 203 season the fall of rain is in Bengal from 50 to 80 in. The N. E. monsoon begins about the middle of October, and brings rain from the bay of Bengal, which falls in torrents on the Coromandel coast until the middle or end of December, during which period the opposite coast of the peninsula enjoys fair weather and northerly breezes. From December to June is the dry season, during which little rain falls. The great plain of the Ganges is a rich, black, alluvial mould. In some parts of Bengal ex- tensive tracts of clayey soil are found. In the Punjaub a black fertile soil prevails, which to the southwest in Sinde and Guzerat becomes sandy. On the table land of Malwa the soil is a deep, rich, black mould. On the great northern table land it is generally a fertile loam on a substratum of rock. On the Malabar coast a red clay soil is found. On the Coro- mandel coast the soil is mostly sandy from the sea to the foot of the Ghauts. A complete ge- ological survey of India was commenced 22 years ago, and is still in progress. Coal, iron, and salt are the most important and abundant mineral products. The principal coal fields are in the valley of the river Dammooda, N. W. of Calcutta, where they occupy an area of 1,500 sq. m. Of 497,000 tons of coal mined in India in 1868, 493,000 tons were obtained from the Raniganj bed in this district. Other coal- bearing localities are Chota Nagpore, South Rewah, and the upper Sone valley, where seams are known to exist, although they have never been thoroughly explored ; the Nerbudda val- ley and the Satpoora hills in central India ; and the sandstone region which forms the basin of the Godavery and its affluents the Pranhita and Wurdah. Coal of good quality is also found in the Cossyah hills, and in the wild and dense- ly timbered tracts of eastern Assam. The average proportion of fixed carbon in Indian coal is 52 per cent., and there is from 10 to 30 per cent, of ash. Iron is widely distributed throughout the country, the sources of supply being red hematite, magnetic, specular, and clay ores, and surface deposits. It has been manufactured in India for centuries. Salt is procured, in immense quantities and of remark- able purity, from the salt range of the Pun- jaub. In India the amount of salt consumed bears a greater proportion to other articles of food than in any other country in the world. Gold is found in the gravel of streams, but on- ly in small quantities. It occurs in the north- western Himalaya districts, where silver asso- ciated with lead is also found, and in Chota Nagpore, Assam, the valley of the Godavery, and many other parts. Lead is obtained from the same portion of the Himalaya, and there is a considerable yield of copper in Gurwhal, Nepaul, and Sikkim, and near Sing- bhoom in Bengal. Antimony occurs abun- dantly in northern India, and cobalt in small quantities near Jeypoor in Rajpootana. There are valuable tin mines in British Burmah, and petroleum has been discovered in the Pegu dis- trict of that province, as well as in some parts of the Punjaub. Among the gems found in India are the diamond, ruby, topaz, beryl, car- nelian, and garnet. The yield of Indian dia- monds has largely diminished, but some are still obtained in the Central Provinces and in southern India. Beautiful agates are exported from Guzerat. The characteristics of Indian vegetation vary with the zones of elevation. The flora of the mountain region of the north corresponds closely with that of Europe. This section is the home of the pine and other coni- fers. No species of pine is native to the peninsula, but on the mountains of British Bur- mah grow forests of the pinus Khasiana. Along the foot of the Himalaya range from Sikkim to Assam is found the ficus elastica, which yields caoutchouc. Below the conifer- ous forests are tracts of bamboo, whence mil- lions of bamboos are annually exported down the Ganges. Here also grows the saul (shorea robusta), second in value only to the teak among the timber trees of India. There are extensive teak forests on the trap formations of the highlands of central India. In Sinde and the Punjaub, the babul (acacia Ardbica) and a leafless caper shrub (capparu aphylla) cover broad belts of country. A large proportion of the timber growth of the Northwest Provinces consists of the deodar tre, from which rail- way sleepers are made. The sissu is another important Indian timber tree. There are plan- tations of sandalwood in Mysore, and the valu- able ironwood tree occurs in the Burmese com- missionership of Aracan. The Indian govern- ment maintains a thorough system of forest conservancy. Among the characteristic forms of vegetation are the celebrated banian tree and the sacred peepul (Jicu religioia). The palm family is represented by the cocoanut and betelnut. Rice is the staple cereal pro- duction of the plains, which also yield cotton, sugar cane, indigo, jute, and opium. Maize, millet, peas, beans, and many varieties of grain peculiar to the country are also raised. Wheat and barley are cultivated on the higher grounds. There are extensive tea gardens in Assam and the mountainous districts of the north, and the cultivation of coffee is carried on among the hills of southern India. The cinchona plant was introduced into India from South America in 1860, and has been grown with great success among the Neilgherries, and in other sections. Pepper is produced in Mala- bar. The fruits of the temperate zone are found in the elevated regions, while those of the tropics, prominent among which is the mango, grow in the lower and warmer parts of the coun- try. In the geographical distribution of ani- mals, the fauna of India belongs to the zoological province including southern Asia and the west- ern portion of the Indian archipelago. Ten species oifelidce are found 8. of the Himalaya, including the lion, tiger, leopard, cheetah, and the true cats (F. cat-us). The Indian lion is characterized by a very short mane. Of all
