POONA DIVISION OF THE ARMY.
29
of the cantonment. The hills beyond the river present the same undulating appearance,
running west to east, they form the front boundary of the basin in which the cantonment of
Seroor is situated.
Geological formation.—Trap rock of two distinct varieties, obtains chiefly, one is a tough
hard dark bluish stone, excellently adapted for building, and most durable ; the other variety
of the same formation is a gray or brownish soft stone, friable and extremely soft and unresist
-ing, so that it is useless for building, and crumbles and breaks down on exposure. I have also
seen specimens of rock crystal and granite. In water courses, and on the banks of the river,
carbonate of lime is found in abundance from which chunam is formed, but I have not heard
that minerals have been found in the neighbourhood of Seroor. The soil is chiefly composed
of the debris of trap rock, either it is black sand mixed with loam, or au unmixed hard morr
-hum or gravel, as most frequently happens, hard bound disintegrated trap, which, at a distance of
only a few inches from the surface, seems as hard and impenetrable as any stone, into which
even the roots of trees and shrubs cannot gain admission. Thus trees are rare in Seroor and
are almost limited to the compounds or other places which have been prepared for their rece
p-tion. For want of soil, vegetation does not thrive in Seroor, and in camp limits few grasses
even grow spontaneously ; and certainly no rank unwholesome vegetation is to be found in
camp. A hard stunted spiny grass grows out of its morrhum bed in the rains, but dries up
and withers in October ; it is so dry and innutritious that famished cattle wont eat it, and the
spines of it, to which the seeds are attached, are so hard, dry and sharp, that at once they
become immoveably fixed in the legs of animals which move in it. Towards the end of
October it is burned, not because it is unhealthy, but because it is so inconvenient and irrita
-ting as to render it almost impassable both to men and animals.
The Poona Horse lines were built 20 years ago out of Regimental funds at a cost of
Rs. 1,00,100, they occupy an excellent site on sloping dry ground, which, from its nature, must
be almost impervious to rain, and a damp subsoil cannot exist, so that noxious emanations from
this source do not proceed, the soil being almost completely composed of morrhum. In some
places bare rock crops up, and in other parts, there is a covering of a few inches only of this
morrhum of gravel. This retains moisture imperfectly and parts with it most readily ;
and surface drains and the natural slope of the ground secure for the lines a very perfect
system of drainage and carry off the rains as they fall. The lines occupy a space of ground
in breadth 417 yards and in width 214 yards ; they consist of 8 rows (parallel) running
S. W. by N. E., and are thus placed at right angles to the prevailing winds which obtain
throughout the year—thus the lines are excellently well ventilated. The lines are
arranged in pairs and the space between them is the picket ground of the horses whose owners
occupy the lines ; the horses stand in lines 12 yards in front of the houses, and behind the
lines is an enclosed space, which is sub-divided into private enclosures for the use of the families.
Tattoos are picketed and sometimes buffaloes in this enclosure, and the sowars bathe and wash
in it ; it is also frequented by the families for purposes of nature. The sowars entertain
sweepers to keep these enclosures clean, and their conservancy is satisfactory. In front of each
l i ne i s a row of trees (neem and bani an chi efl y), but thei r growth i s stunted from the nature of the
ground or want of soil rather; they, however, afford a certain amount of shelter. The picket
ground or space between each row of houses in front is 41 yards in width, and between each
line of horses is a street 10 yards wide. The horses are picketed in the open air, their stalls
are kept clean, the urine is drained off, the litter removed daily in the morning and damp
bedding dried, so that an offensive smell is rarely experienced when the weather is dry ; but
after rain, the wet litter gives off an unpleasant odour. At such times I have recommended
the removal of the litter from the lines and the bedding being dried on the plain. In front of
each row of houses, two drains have been made parallel to the lines, one of these in front of
the houses carries off rain water, the other behind the horses carries off urine and drain water from
the horses' stalls, these suffice to keep the lines clean and dry. Between each pair of lines a
8 s