THE INDIAN PENINSULA 169

of the Western Ocean, whilst deep-shadowed mists steal
upwards over the western edge of the cliffs and stream
across the rounded slopes of the plateau, one realises that
Sispara has a right to the rank in beauty which Turner
save it.

Vast as is the amount of literature on the subject of India generally,
it is not difficult to select standard works which may be quoted as
authoritative. First and foremost is Sir W. Hunter's magnificent compilation,
 “ The Gazetteer of India.” Vol. VI., which deals with the
physiography of India as a whole, is a model of generally concise and
always lucid information. Sir John Strachey’s “ India” also treats of
the physical aspects of the peninsula area, and gives us a picturesque
conception of the plains of lower Bengal. Articles by Sir W. Hunter
and Sir Alfred Lyall in the Ency, Brif., and by Sir Lepel Griffin in the
Asiatic Quarterly Review, will also be found to add something to the
general view of the chief geographical features of the continent. For
reference to the process of geological evolution, Oldham is again the
authority quoted. But the continent of India, equally with its borderrand,
 has only recently been accurately surveyed, and the records of the
indian Survey Department, with contributions from surveyors to the
periodicals of the Royal Geographical Society, are the latest support for
‘he views expressed in this chapter, which are mainly the result of per-:anal
 observation.