houses, I must not omit to add, that in them all the fleas (pulex irritans) swarm to a degree unequalled, perhaps, in any country of the world-not excepting Northern Persia, where I had hitherto considered the finest breeds to exist. There, however, it is possible to keep them at bay, by a certain species of grass peculiar to that country, and well known to all the natives:-but here, no such "sacred grass" exists, although the people speak of the wild caper, and a root which when pounded, and dissolved in water, scares them away. I have often tried it without the slightest degree of success. The most seasoned of the natives even, suffer from them in some measure, but their flesh does not swell much. They are extremely greedy, and if the body of one that is sucking, is cut in half, it still appears to suck, and the blood flows from where it was severed in two. Night and day they are equally annoying:-it is in vain to lie down at any prescribed hour, for unless the house is cleaner than the Madras servants will ever keep it-little sleep can be obtained, and in the morning the face is often rendered frightful to look at, and the limbs

covered with blood. As Captain Harkness in his account of these hills, lays such a stress upon the absence of the musquito and white ant (two great pests I admit), he ought at the same time to have remembered that there is no law of nature which prevents the voracious flea from approaching the crest of the Neilgherry mountains. I have often fancied that those persons invariably suffered most from the musquito, who were least temperate in their diet, and that the water drinkers (a rare species in this country) were exempted from their attacks. This idea, however, does not hold good in reference to the assaults of the unwearied flea-there is nothing for it but to submit.

Our misfortune in being unhoused, was a source of great regret to me, for I lost several good geological specimens which I had collected about the surrounding country. These consisted chiefly of granite, gneiss, crystallized quartz, bloodstone, greenstone, pudding stone, indurated clay, &c. &c.

In regard to the gold which has been found scattered throughout the soil of the valleys, or contained in the deposits of mountain torrents-I should

say (judging from the specimens which I have seen) that it would never pay the expenses of extricating it from the ore, either by amalgamation, or by smelting. Great quantities of this precious metal have lately been found by Lieutenant Nicolson of the Madras Infantry, in the neighbourhood of the shafts which were sunk by Tippoo Sultaun near Neelamboor;* and it was once supposed that a rich lode had been discovered in the precipitous

* I have just heard that after Lieutenant Nicolson had extracted a considerable quantity of gold, Mr. Clementson, the principal collector of the district, (for reasons best known to himself) declared to his employers that this clever young officer was mad-and he was speedily ordered to rejoin his regiment! Unfortunately, there is a class of pretenders in various departments of the service, who are obstinately reluctant to acknowledge merit where it exists; and who titter, "Eh eh!" and point the finger whenever any one endeavours to start out of their ranks, even for the purpose of doing them, or the Government, good. One would almost suppose that the first attempt by an individual to do'a clever action, is felt as a personal insult by all the rest, or as a design to do them some injury. "For him to set himself up! what is he, forsooth? a fellow not able to do so and so-a forward fool!" Or, perhaps, "Poor creature-led away by vanity, he has published a book,-an awful piece of trash, of course -he is much to be pitied for exposing himself in such a way. Silly young man!" or, possibly:-" Great vapouring fellow! What could put it into his head that he could astonish the natives -more fit for a cooley than any thing else; put him into the treadmill, he would have strength enough to continue turning it: but for a fellow like that to pretend to do so and so he ought to be sent to the lunatic asylum!"

sides of Dodabetta. Major Ross of the Madras Engineers possesses some good specimens of the ore, which is contained in embedded grains, but not rich; and Major Little of the Bombay European Regiment, who dug into the sides of this mountain at its western extremity, imagined that the ore was exuberant,* and that the difficulties which attend the removal of its treasure were comparatively few-but I conclude from the poor specimens he permitted me to examine, (they would not even have borne the expenses of raising) that he discovered his error -for, assuming he is a most skilful gold-finder, and that he had persevered in his labours; he must soon have found the difficulties so numerous that his progress would have been checked by all kinds of obstacles, and his ultimate success a matter of the greatest uncertainty. It is an old saying among miners, that the man who works a mine of gold, will certainly be ruined; while he, who opens one of copper, is sure to gain. The truth is, veins

* I examined the spot where he had been quarrying, and broke specimens from many different parts. The ore is mostly in union with sandstone and clay, and the soil is very retentive of moisture.

seldom become very prolific, at a less depth than one hundred and fifty feet at least-the upper parts being filled with various substances; chiefly the detritus of the surrounding hills: the same lode at various depths, and in passing through various strata, differs most materially in its contents.

Several Madras officers also, have reported that gold is to be found in considerable quantities all over the Neilgherry Hills, but more particularly at the base of the Khoondah ridges of mountain in the Wynaud district, washed down by the brooks, or nullas, which run in that direction. Now, as minute particles of this ore are sprinkled over most parts of India, so in many instances a few may combine by the law of aggregate attraction, and thus excite notice without any chemical procedure. But to infer from such a discovery, that "considerable quantities" of this precious metal must, as a matter of course, be found throughout the soil whence these brooks have chanced to convey golden sand, or even small fragments, would only lead to speculative adventure: for even in the richest regions of native gold, it has not unfrequently been