Laee Mookh: from this place to
Jingsha Ghat is scarcely an hour's walk. The day's journey occupied
about five hours inclusive of stoppages: the distance is probably about
twelve miles. I came to the determination of returning, owing to the
known difficulty of the route pursued by Wilcox, and the impossibility of
making a collection of grain. The Tapan Gam, or Lord of the Koond,
particularly insisted on the impossibility of ordinary coolies going this
way, and as he offered men to bring up grain from the plains, I at once
acceded to his proposal of making a granary in his village. This man had
no delicacy in asking for presents: he at once said, "You must give gold,
silver, and every thing in the calendar of presents to the Deo," meaning
himself. As I found it impracticable to satisfy him, I sent him off with
a small present, promising more when he should have amassed the grain.
His brother, a tall, stout, and much more useful man, (as he does not
refuse to carry loads,) on seeing me rub salt on a bird's skin, remarked,
"What poor devils we are! Bird's skins with salt supply the Sahibs with
food, while we can't get a morsel." They promised to take me all over
the country, and to be my slaves, if I would point out to them where salt
is to be found.

[The Deo-Panee as it enters the Khoond: p28.jpg]

I saw nothing particular in the woods. I picked up the fruit of a
Magnolia and Castanea, and observed an arborescent Leea. Some of the
timber is fine. A large Acrotirchea abounds between Laee and the Koond,
as well as Chloranthus. Near the Laee a climber, the base of whose stem
is elephantopoid and enormous considering the slender stem, is abundant.
I could not get any of the leaves. At the Koond, Buddleia Neemda, a
Prunus, etc. occur. Caelogyne polleniis 4 obovatis, faciebus
incumbentibus complanates materie pulverea, mediocri. Dundoons are
rather troublesome; they are flies, and nearly as large as an ordinary
house fly: their proboscis is large, and leaves spots of extravasated
blood where they bite, nearly of the size of an ordinary pin's head.

_Oct_. _27th_.--My people brought me in a beautiful snake, _Coluber_
_porphyraceus_, ventre albo, caeterum pulchre coccineo-badio, capite
lineis nigris tribus quarum centralis brevior, dorso lineis nigris duabus
postea gradatim evanescentibus, lineis circularibus minus conspicuis,
iridibus carneis. {29a}

_Oct_. _28th_.--Yesterday evening two elephants arrived with g