sam. The district consists
almost entirely of hills, only a very small portion lying in the
plains. The slope of the hills on the southern side is very steep
until a table-land is met with at an elevation of about 4,000 feet at
Cherrapunji. Higher up there is another plateau at Mawphlang. This is
the highest portion of the hills, some villages being found at as high
an elevation as close on 6,000 feet above see level. Fifteen miles to
the east of Mawphlang, and in the same range, is situated the civil
station of Shillong, at an average elevation of about 4,900 feet. The
elevation of the Shillong Peak, the highest hill in the district, is
6,450 feet above sea level. On the northern side of the hills are two
plateaux, one between 1,000 and 2,000 feet below the level of Shillong,
and another at an elevation of about 2,000 feet above sea level. In
general features all these plateaux are much alike, and consist of a
succession of undulating downs, broken here and there by the valleys
of the larger hill streams. In the higher ranges, where the hills have
been denuded of forest, the country is covered with short grass, which
becomes longer and more rank in the lower elevations. This denudation
of forest has been largely due to the wood being used by the Khasis for
fuel for iron smelting in days gone by. The Government, however, has
taken steps to protect the remaining forests from further spoliation. A
remarkable feature is the presence of numerous sacred groves situated
generally just below the brows of the hills. In these woods are to
be found principally oak and rhododendron trees. The fir-tree (Pinus
Khasia) is first met with on the road from Gauhati to Shillong, at
Umsning, at an elevation of about 2,500 feet. In the neighbourhood
of Shillong the fir grows profusely, but the finest fir-trees are
to be seen in the Jowai sub-division. In the vicinity of Nongpoh is
observed the beautiful _nahor_ or _nageswar_, the iron-wood tree. The
latter is also to be found on the southern slopes of the hills in
the Jowai sub-division. There are some _sal_ forests to the west and
south of Nongpoh, where the _sal_ trees are almost as large as those
to be found in the Garo Hills. Between Shillong and Jowai there are
forests of oak, the country being beautifully wooded. Chestnuts and
birches are also fairly common. The low hills on the northern and
western sides of the district are clad with dense forests of bamboo,
of which there are many va