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Imperial Gazetteer of India, v. 23, p. 298.

298 THANA DISTRICT leaves. Much of the forest is chiefly valuable as supplying grazing, the income derived from fodder and grazing in 1903-4 being Rs. 11,ooo. Thana is destitute of workable minerals. The laterite which caps many of the highest hills, such as Prabal and Mahuli, bears traces of iron, and where charcoal has been burnt lumps of clay resem bling iron slag may be found. The water in many springs also shows signs; of iron. But iron ore is nowhere found in paying quantities. The only other mineral of which there are traces is sulphur, found in ;the hot springs at Vajrabai in Bhiwandi. Next to agriculture, the making of salt is the most important in- dustry of the District. There are 99 salt-works with an out-turn in 1903-4 of a,3oo,ooo maunds, yielding a revenue of Trade and 53 lakhs. The salt-workers are chiefly Agris. Thana communications. salt is made by the solar evaporation of sea-water. Ordinary brass-work and pottery are important industries. Hand-loom weaving by Portuguese or native Christians, who made cotton cloth, including the particular striped variety known. as Thana cloth, is now practically extinct. The Musalmans of Thana and Bhiwandi weave silk and cotton goods, but the industry suffers from proximity to the Bombay mills. There are at Kurla two spinning and weaving mills, owned by public companies, with 81,ooo spindles and 1,715 looms, which produce 1 r,ooo,ooo lb. of yarn and nearly 5,000,000 lb. of cloth for the Indian and foreign markets. During 1904 the average number of daily workers was 4,502. There is also a bone-mill which employs loo hands and manufactures bone manure. Of other in- dustries the cleaning of agave fibre and the manufacture of paint may be mentioned, while a large number of people are employed in lime-burning and brick-making. From the earliest historical times there has always been an ocean trade to the coast of Thana and caravan traffic through the Ghat passes. Since the establishment of railway communication with the interior, the roads and tracks of the District have carried only local traffic, which is still considerable. The chief articles of export are rice, salt, wood, lime, and dried fish. Cotton cloth, grain, tobacco, coco nuts, sugar, and molasses are the chief articles of import. The annual value of the sea-borne trade of the ports in 1903-4 was : imports 55 lakhs, and exports 57 laklls. The leading traders are Konkani Musalmans, Gujarati and local Vanis, and Bhatias. Numerous, fairs are held in the District. Along the sea-coast, and up the creeks, sailing vessels and canoes form a ready means of communication. In three directions the Dis- trict is crossed by railways. To the north, the line of the Bombay, Baroda, and Central India Railway skirts the coast for a total dis tance of 95 miles. East and west, the Great Indian Peninsula Railway