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diff --git a/old/old/11873-8.txt b/old/old/11873-8.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..734276a --- /dev/null +++ b/old/old/11873-8.txt @@ -0,0 +1,9754 @@ +The Project Gutenberg eBook, A Holiday in the Happy Valley with Pen and +Pencil, by T. R. Swinburne + + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + + + + +Title: A Holiday in the Happy Valley with Pen and Pencil + +Author: T. R. Swinburne + +Release Date: April 2, 2004 [eBook #11873] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 + + +***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A HOLIDAY IN THE HAPPY VALLEY WITH +PEN AND PENCIL*** + + +E-text prepared by Internet Archive Million Book Project, Allen Siddle, +and Project Gutenberg Distributed Proofreaders + + + +A HOLIDAY IN THE HAPPY VALLEY WITH PEN AND PENCIL + +BY + +T. R. SWINBURNE + +MAJOR (LATE) R.M.A. + +WITH 24 COLOURED ILLUSTRATIONS + +1907 + + + + + + +[ILLUSTRATION: THE JHELUM AT SRINAGAR] + + + + "_Over the great windy waters, and over the clear crested summits, + Unto the sea and the sky, and unto the perfecter earth, + Come, let us go_!" + + + + +I DEDICATE THIS BOOK + +TO + +"JANE" + + + +PREFACE + +I observe that it is customary to begin a book by an Introduction, Preface, +or Foreword. In the good old days of the eighteenth century this generally +took the form of a burst of grovelling adoration aimed at some most noble +or otherwise highly important person. This fulsome fawning on the great +was later changed into propitiation of the British public, and unknown +authors revelled in excuses for publishing their earlier efforts. + +But now that every one has written a book, or is about to do so, I feel +that my apologies are rather due to the public for not having rushed into +print before. I have really spared it because I had nothing in particular +to write about, and I confess I am somewhat doubtful as to whether I am +even now justified in invoking the kind offices of a publisher with a view +to bringing forth this literary mouse in due form! + +No admiring (if partial) relatives have hung upon my lips as I read them +my journal, imploring me with tears in their eyes to waste not an instant, +but give to a longing world this literary treasure. I have no illusions as +regards my literary powers, and I do not imagine that I shall depose the +gifted author of _Eöthen_ from his pride of place. + +I claim, however, the merit of truth. The journal was written day by day, +and the sketches were all done on the spot; and if this account--bald and +inadequate as I know it to be--of a very happy time spent in rambling +among some of the finest scenery of this lovely earth, may induce any one +to betake himself to Kashmir, he will achieve something worth living for, +and I shall not have spilt ink in vain. + + + +CONTENTS + +CHAPTER + + I. INTRODUCTORY + + II. THE VOYAGE OUT + + III. KARACHI TO ABBOTABAD + + IV. ABBOTABAD TO SRINAGAR + + V. FIRST IMPRESSIONS OF SRINAGAR + + VI. OUR FIRST CAMP + + VII. BACK TO SRINAGAR + +VIII. THE LOLAB + + IX. SRINAGAR AGAIN + + X. THE LIDAR VALLEY + + XI. GANGABAL + + XII. GULMARG + +XIII. THE FLOOD + + XIV. THE MACHIPURA + + XV. DELHI AND AGRA + + XVI. UDAIPUR + + + +LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS + +THE JHELUM AT SRINAGAR (Frontispiece) + +A SOLUTION OF CONTINUITY + +A SRINAGAR BYE-WAY--EARLY SPRING + +ON THE JHELUM--EARLY SPRING + +THE BUND SRINAGAR--EARLY SPRING + +THE DAL + +IN THE NISHAT BAGH + +THE PIR PANJAL FROM ALSU--MORNING + +ON THE DAL--SUNSET + +NATIVE BOATS + +PANDRETTAN + +KOLAHOI + +LIDARWAT + +THE RAMPARTS OF KASHMIR + +GANGABAL + +HARAMOK + +A TARN ABOVE TRONKOL + +ON THE CIRCULAR ROAD, GULMARG + +IN SRINAGAR--TWILIGHT + +SRINAGAR FLOODED + +HARI PARBAT--EVENING + +NANGA PARBAT FROM KITARDAJI + +MIXED BATHING (UDAIPUR) + +UDAIPUR + +MAP OF KASHMIR + + + +A HOLIDAY IN THE HAPPY VALLEY + + +CHAPTER I + +INTRODUCTION + +A journey to Kashmir now--in these days of cheap and rapid locomotion--is +in nowise serious. It takes time, I grant you, but to any one with a few +months to spare--and there are many in that happy position--there can be +few pleasanter ways of spending a summer holiday. + +It would be as well to start from England not later than the middle of +March, as the Red Sea and the Sind Desert begin to warm up uncomfortably +in spring. Srinagar would then be reached fairly early in April, and the +visitor should arrange, if possible, to remain in the country until the +middle of October. We had to leave just as the gorgeous autumn colouring +was beginning to blaze in the woods, and the first duck were wheeling over +the Wular Lake. + +The climate of Kashmir is fairly similar to that of many parts of Southern +Europe. There is a good deal of snow in the valley in winter. Spring is +charming, the brilliant days only varied by frequent thunderstorms--which, +however, are almost invariable in keeping their pyrotechnics till about +five in the afternoon. July and August are hot and steamy in the valley, +and it is necessary to seek one of the cool "Margs" which form ideal +camping-grounds on all the lofty mountain slopes which surround the valley. + +Gulmarg is the most frequented and amusing resort in summer of the English +colony and contingent from the broiling plains of the Punjab. Here the +happy fugitive from the sweltering heat of the lower regions will find a +climate as glorious as the scenery. He can enjoy the best of polo and golf, +and, if he be not a misogynist, he will vary the 'daily round' with +picnics and scrambles on foot or on horseback, in exploring the endless +beauty of the place, coming home to his hut or tent as the sun sinks +behind the great pines that screen the Rampur Road, to wind up the happy +day with a cheery dinner and game of bridge. But if Gulmarg does not +appeal to him, let him go with his camping outfit to Sonamarg or +Pahlgam--he will find neither polo nor golf nor the gay little society of +Gulmarg, but he will find equally charming scenery and, perhaps, a drier +climate--for it must in fairness be admitted that Gulmarg is a rainy +place. Likewise his pocket will benefit, as his expenses will surely be +less, and he will still find neighbours dotted about in white tents under +the pine trees. + +Towards the middle of September the exodus from the high 'Margs' takes +place--many returning sadly to Pindi and Sealkote--others merely to +Srinagar, while those who yearn after Bara Singh and Bear, decamp quietly +for their selected nullahs, to be in readiness for the opening of the +autumn season. + +Thus, from April to October, a more or less perfect climate may be +obtained by watching the mercury in the thermometer, and rising or +descending the mountain slopes in direct ratio with it. + +It is quite unnecessary to take out a large and expensive wardrobe. Thin +garments for the Red Sea and Indian Ocean, such as one wears in a fine +English summer, and for Kashmir the same sort of things that one would +take up to Scotland. For men--knickerbockers and flannel shirts--and for +ladies, short tweed skirts and some flannel blouses. The native tailors in +Srinagar are clever and cheap, and will copy an English shooting suit in +fairly good material for about eleven rupees, or 14s. 8d.! One pair of +strong shooting boots (plentifully studded with aluminium nails) is enough. +For all mountain work, the invaluable but uncomfortable grass shoes must +be worn, and both my wife and I invariably wore the native chaplies for +ordinary marching. Foot-gear for golf, tennis, and general service at +Srinagar and Gulmarg must be laid in, according to the traveller's fancy, +in England. + +Underwear to suit both hot and cold weather should be purchased at +home--not on any account omitting cholera belts. + +Shirts and collars should be taken freely, as it is well to remember that +the native washerman--the well-abused "Dobie"--has a marvellous skill in +producing a saw-like rim to the starched collar and cuff of the newest +shirt; while the elegant and delicate lace and embroidery, with which the +fair are wont to embellish their underwear, take strange and unforeseen +patterns at the hands of the skilled workmen. It is surprising what an +effect can be obtained by tying up the neck and sleeves of a garment, +inserting a few smooth pebbles from the brook, and then banging the moist +bundle on the bank! + +The arrangement of clothing for the voyage is rather complicated, as it +will probably be necessary to wear warm things while crossing Europe, and +possibly even until Egypt is reached. Then an assortment of summer +flannels, sufficient to last as far as India, must be available. We were +unable to get any washing done from the date we left London, on the 22nd +of February, until we reached Rawal Pindi, on the 21st March. Capacious +canvas kit-bags are excellent things for cramming with grist for the +dobie's mill. + +In arranging for luggage, it should be borne in mind that large trunks and +dress boxes are inadmissible. From Pindi to Srinagar everything must be +transported by wheeled conveyance, and, in Kashmir itself, all luggage +must be selected with a view to its adaptability to the backs of coolies +or ponies. In Srinagar one can buy native trunks--or yakdans--which are +cheap, strong, and portable; and the covered creels or "kiltas" serve +admirably for the stowage of kitchen utensils, food, and oddments. + +The following list may prove useful to any one who has not already been +"east of Suez," and who may therefore not be too proud to profit by +another's experience:-- + + 1. "Compactum" camp-bed with case, and fitted with sockets to take +mosquito netting. + + 2. Campaigning bedding-bag in Willesden canvas, with bedding complete. + + 3. Waterproof sheet. + + 4. Indiarubber bath. + +If shooting in the higher mountains is anticipated, a Wolseley +sleeping-bag should be taken. + + 5. Small stable-lantern. + + 6. Rug or plaid--light and warm. + + 7. Half-a-dozen towels. + + 8. Deck chair (with name painted on it). + +We had also a couple of Roorkhee chairs, and found them most useful. + + 9. A couple of compressed cane cabin trunks. + + 9_a_. The "Ranelagh Pack" is a most useful form of "luggage." + + 10. Camp kit-bag. + + 11. Soiled-linen bag, with square mouth, large size. This is an +excellent "general service" bag, and invaluable for holding boots, &c. + + 12. Large "brief-bag," most useful for stowing guide-books, flasks, +binoculars, biscuits, and such like, that one wants when travelling, and +never knows where to put. Our "yellow bag" carried even tea things, and +was greatly beloved. Like the leather bottèl in its later stage, "it +served to put hinges and odd things in"! + + 13. Luncheon basket, fitted according to the number of the party. + +The above articles can all be bought at the Army and Navy Stores. + + 14. A light canvas box, fitted as a dressing-case. + +Ours were made, according to our own wishes and possessions, by Williams, +of 41 Bond Street. The innumerable glass bottles, so highly prized by the +makers of dressing-cases, should be strictly limited in number. They are +exceedingly heavy, and, as the dressing-case should be carried by its +owner, the less it weighs the more he (or she) will esteem it. + + 15. A set of aluminium cooking-utensils is much to be recommended. They +can easily be sold on leaving Kashmir for, at least, their cost price. + + 16. Pocket flask. This may be of aluminium also, although personally I +dislike a metal flask. + + 17. Umbrella--strong, but cheap, as it is sure to be lost or stolen. +There are few things your native loves more than a nice umbrella, unless +it be + + 18. A knife fitted with corkscrew and screwdriver; therefore take two, +and try to keep one carefully locked up. + + 19. Pair of good field-glasses. + +I took a stalking telescope, but it was useless to my shikari, who always +borrowed my wife's binoculars until she lost them--or he stole them! + + 20. Hats. It is obviously a matter of taste what hats a man should take. +The glossy silk may repose with the frock-coat till its owner returns to +find it hopelessly out of date, its brim being a thought too curly, or its +top impossibly wide; but the "bowler" or Homburg hat will serve his turn +according to his fancy, until, at Aden, he invests in a hideous, but shady +"topee," for one-third of the price he would pay in London; and this will +be his only wear, before sunset, until he again reaches a temperate +climate. Ladies, who are rightly more particular as to the appearance of +even so unlovely a thing as a sola topee, would do well, perhaps, to buy +theirs before starting. Really becoming pith helmets seem very scarce in +the East! + +After sunset, or under awnings, any sort of cap may be worn. + + 21. Shirts and collars are obviously matters of taste. A good supply of +white shirts and collars must be taken to cope with the destruction and +loss which may be expected at the hands of the dobie. Flannel shirts can +be made easily enough from English models in Srinagar. + + 22. Under-garments should be of Indian gauze for hot weather, with a +supply of thicker articles for camping in the hills. + +Cholera belts should on no account be omitted. + + 23. Socks, according to taste--very few knickerbocker stockings need be +taken, as putties are cheap and usual in Srinagar. + + 24. Ties--the white ones of the cheap sort that can be thrown away after +use, with a light heart. Handkerchiefs, and a few pairs of white gloves. + + 25. Sleeping-suits, both thick for camp work and light for hot weather, +should be taken. + + 26. Dress suit and dinner-jacket. + + 27. Knickerbocker or knee-breeches, which can be copied in Kashmir by the +native tailor. + +Riding-breeches are not in the least necessary unless the traveller +contemplates any special riding expedition. Ordinary shooting +continuations do quite well for all the mounted work the tourist is likely +to do. A pair of stohwasser gaiters may be taken, but even they are not +necessary, neither is a saddle. + +A lady, however, should take out a short riding-skirt, or habit, and a +side-saddle. + + 28. A tweed suit of medium warmth for travelling, and a couple of flannel +suits, will bring the wearer to Srinagar, where he can increase his stock +at a ridiculously low price--about 22 rupees or £1, 9s. 4d. per suit. + + 29. Boots. Here, again, the wayfarer is at full liberty to please +himself. A pair of strong shooting-boots, with plenty of spare laces and, +say, a hundred aluminium nails, is a _sine quâ non_. A pair of rubbers, or +what are known as "gouties" in Swiss winter circles, are not to be +despised. Otherwise, boots, shoes, slippers, and pumps, according to taste. + +30. A large "regulation" waterproof, a rain-coat or Burberry, and a warm +greatcoat will all be required. + +It is hard to give definite advice to a lady as to the details of her +outfit. Let her conform in a general way to the instructions given above, +always remembering that both Srinagar and Gulmarg are gay and festive +places, where she will dine and dance, and have ample opportunity for +displaying a well-chosen wardrobe. + +Let her also take heed that she leaves the family diamonds at home. The +gentle Kashmiri is an inveterate and skilful thief, and the less jewellery +she can make up her mind to "do with," the more at ease will her mind be. +But if she must needs copy the lady of whom we read, that + + "Rich and rare were the gems she wore," + +then why not line the jewel-case--or rather the secret bag, which she will +sew into some mysterious garment--with the diamonds of Gophir and the +pearls of Rome? + +If the intending visitor to Kashmir be a sportsman who has already had +experience in big-game shooting, he will not need any advice from me +(which, indeed, he would utterly disdain) as to the lethal weapons which +should form his battery; but if the wayfarer be a humble performer who has +never slain anything more formidable than a wary old stag, or more +nerve-shattering than a meteoric cock pheasant rising clamorously from +behind a turnip, he may not be too proud to learn that he will find an +ordinary "fowling piece" the most useful weapon which he can take with +him. If his gun is not choked, he should be provided with a dozen or more +ball cartridge for bear. + +If the pursuit of markhor and ibex is contemplated, a small-bore rifle +will be required, but a heavy express is wanted to stop a bear. I had a +"Mannlicher" and an ordinary shot-gun, with a few ball cartridges for the +latter. + +Duty has to be paid on taking firearms into India, and this may be +refunded on leaving the country. This is not always done, however, as I +found to my cost, my application for a refund being refused on the quibble +that my guns were taken back to England by a friend, although I was able +to prove their identity. + +It is not necessary to take a large number of rifle cartridges out, as it +is exceedingly unlikely that the tyro will be able to shoot all the beasts +allowed him by his game licence.[1] Smooth-bore cartridges of fair quality +can be bought in Srinagar, and I certainly do not consider it worth the +trouble and expense to convey them out from England. + +To the amateur artist I would say: Be well supplied with brushes and +paper--the latter sealed in tin for passage through the Red Sea and India. +Colours, and indeed all materials can he got from Treacher & Co., Bombay, +and also from the branch of the Army and Navy Stores there. + +Paper is, however, difficult to get in good condition, being frequently +spoilt by mildew. + +It is almost impossible to get anything satisfactory in the way of +painting materials in Kashmir itself; therefore I say: Be well supplied +before leaving home. + +Finally, a small stock of medicines should certainly be taken, not +omitting a copious supply of quinine (best in powder form for this +purpose), and also of strong peppermint or something of the sort, to give +to the native servants and others who are always falling sick of a fever +or complaining of an internal pain, which is generally quite cured by a +dose of peppermint. + +Neither Jane nor I love guide-books; we found however, in Kashmir, the +little book written by Dr. Neve an invaluable companion;[2] while Murray's +_Guide to India_ afforded much useful information when wandering in that +country. + +The best book on Kashmir that I know is Sir Walter Lawrence's _Valley of +Kashmir_. + +Any one going out as we did, absolutely ignorant of the language, should +certainly take an elementary phrase-book or something of the sort to study +on the voyage. We forgot to do this, and had infinite trouble afterwards +in getting what we wanted, and lost much time in acquiring the rudimentary +knowledge of Hindustani which enabled us to worry along with our native +servants, &c. No mere "globe-trotter" need attempt to learn any Kashmiri, +as Hindustani is "understanded of the people" as a rule, and the tradesmen +in Srinagar know quite as much English as is good for them. + + +[1] See Appendix 1. + +[2] _The Tourist's Guide to Kashmir, Ladakh, Skardo, &c._, edited by + Arthur Neve, F.R.G.S. + + + +CHAPTER II + +THE VOYAGE OUT + +It seems extraordinary to me that every day throughout the winter, crowds +of people should throng the railway stations whence they can hurry south +in search of warmth and sunshine, and yet London remains apparently as +full as ever! We plunged into a seething mass of outward-bound humanity at +Victoria Station on the 22nd of February, and, having wrestled our way +into the Continental express, were whirled across the sad and sodden +country to Dover amidst hundreds of our shivering fellow-countrymen. + +Truly we are beyond measure conservative in our railway discomforts. With +a bitter easterly wind searching out the chinks of door and window, we sat +shivering in our unwarmed compartment--unwarmed, I say, in spite of the +clumsy tin of quickly-cooled hot water procured by favour--and a +gratuity--from a porter! + +The Channel showed even more disagreeable than usual. A grey, cold sky, +with swift-flying clouds from the east hung over a grey, cold sea, the +waves showing their wicked white teeth under the lash of the strong wind. +The patient lightship off the pier was swinging drearily as we throbbed +past into the gust-swept open and set our bows for the unseen coast of +France. + +The tumult of passengers was speedily reduced to a limp and inert swarm of +cold, wet, and sea-sick humanity. + +The cold and miserable weather clung to us long. In Paris it snowed +heavily, and I was constrained to betake myself in a cab--"chauffé," it is +needless to remark--to seek out a kindly dentist, the bitter east wind +having sought out and found a weak spot wherein to implant an abscess. + +At Bâle it was freezing, but clear and bright, and a good breakfast and a +breath of clean, fresh air was truly enjoyable after the overheated +sleeping-car in which we had come from Paris. + +It may seem unreasonable to grumble at the overheating of the "Sleeper" +after abusing the under-heating of our British railways. Surely, though, +there is a golden mean? I wish neither to be frozen nor boiled, and there +can be no doubt but that the heating of most Continental trains is +excellent, the power of application being left to the traveller. + +The journey by the St. Gotthard was delightful, the day brilliant, and the +frost keen, while we watched the fleeting panorama of icebound peaks and +snow-powdered pines from the cushions of our comfortable carriage. + +The glory of winter left us as we left the Swiss mountains and dropped +down into the fertile flats of Northern Italy, and at Milan all was raw +chilliness and mud. + +Nothing can well be more depressing than wet and cheerless weather in a +land obviously intended for sunshine. + +We slept at Milan, and the next day set forth in heavy rain towards Venice. +The miserable ranks of distorted and pollarded trees stood sadly in pools +of yellow-stained water, or stuck out of heaps of half-melted and +uncleanly snow. + +No colour; no life anywhere, excepting an occasional peasant plodding +along a muddy road, sheltering himself under the characteristic flat and +bony umbrella of the country. + +At Peschiera we had promise of better things. The weather cleared somewhat, +revealing ranges of white-clad hills around Garda.... But, alas! at Verona +it rained as hard as ever, and we made our way from the railway station at +Venice, cowering in the coffin-like cabin of a damp and extremely draughty +gondola, while cold flurries of an Alpine-born wind swept across the Grand +Canal. + +Sunshine is absolutely necessary to bring out the real beauty of Italy. +This is particularly the case in Venice, where light and life are required +to dispel the feeling of sadness so sure to creep over one amid the signs +of long-past grandeur and decaying magnificence. + +On a grey and wintry day one is chiefly impressed by the dank chilliness +of the palaces on the Grand Canal, whose feet lie lapped in slimy water; +the lovely tracery of whose windows shows ragged and broken, whose stately +guest-chambers are in the sordid occupation of the dealer in false +antiques, and whose motto might be "Ichabod," for their glory has departed. + +It is five-and-twenty years since I was last in Venice, and I can truly +say that it has not improved in that long time. The loss of the great +Campanile of St. Mark is not compensated for by the gain of the penny +steamer which frets and fusses its prosaic way along the Grand Canal, or +blurts its noisome smoke in the very face of the Palace of the Doges. + +Well! A steady downpour is dispiriting at any time, excepting when one is +snugly at home with plenty to do, and it is particularly so to the unlucky +traveller who has to live through half-a-dozen long hours intervening +between arrival at and departure from Venice on a cold, dull, wintry +afternoon. + +The sombre gondola writhed its sinuous course and deposited us all forlorn +in the near neighbourhood of the Piazza San Marco. Splashing our way +across, and pushing through the crowd of greedy fat pigeons, we entered +the world-famous church. I know my Ruskin, and I feel that I should be +lost in wonder and admiration--I am not. + +The gloom--rich golden gloom if you will--of the interior oppresses me; it +is cavernous. A service is being held in one of the transepts, and the +congregation seems noisier and less devout than I could have believed +possible. My thoughts fly far to where, on its solitary hill, the noble +pile of Chartres soars majestic, its heaven-piercing spires dominating the +wide plain of La Beauce. In fancy I enter by the splendid north door and +find myself in the pillared dimness softly lighted by the great window in +the west. This seems to me to be the greatest achievement of the Christian +architect, noble alike in conception and in execution. + +There is no means of procuring a cold more certain than lingering too long +in a cold and vault-like church or picture gallery, so we adjourned to the +Palazzo Daniele, now a mere hotel, where we browsed on the +literature--chiefly cosmopolitan newspapers--until it was time to start +for Trieste. + +The journey is not an attractive one, as we seemed to be perpetually +worried by Custom-house authorities and inquisitive ticket-collectors! If +possible, the wary traveller should so time his sojourn at Venice as to +allow him to go to Trieste by steamer. The Hôtel de la Ville at Trieste is +not quite excellent, but 'twill serve, and we were remarkably glad to +reach it, somewhere about midnight, having left Milan soon after seven in +the morning! + +Trieste itself is rather an engaging town; at least so it seemed to us +when we awakened to a fresh, bright morning, a blue-and-white sky overhead, +and a copious allowance of yellow mud under foot! + +There were various final purchases to be made. Our deck chairs were with +the heavy luggage, which the passenger by Austrian Lloyd only gets at Port +Saïd, as it is sent from London by sea; so a deck chair had to be got, +also a stock of light literature wherewith to beguile the long sea hours. + +A visit to our ship--the _Marie Valerie_--showed her to be a +comfortable-looking vessel of some 4500 tons. She was busily engaged in +taking in a large cargo, principally for Japan, and she showed no signs of +an early departure. Her nominal hour for starting was 4 P.M., but the +captain told us that he should not sail until next morning. So we +descended to examine our cabin, and found it to be large and airy, but +totally deficient in the matter of drawers or lockers. + +Well! we shall have to keep everything in cabin trunks, and "live in our +boxes" for the next three weeks. + +There was cabin accommodation for twenty passengers, but at dinner we +mustered but nine. This is, of course, the season when all right-minded +folks are coming home from India, and we never expected to find a crowd; +still, nine individuals scattered abroad over the wide decks make but a +poor show. + +The first meal on board a big steamer is always interesting. Every one is +quietly "taking stock" of his, or her, neighbours, and forming estimates +of their social value, which are generally entirely upset by after +experience. + +Of our fellow-passengers there were only five whose presence affected us +in any way. A young Austrian, Herr Otto Frantz, with his wife, going out +as first secretary of legation to Tokio; Major Twining, R.E., and his wife; +and Miss Lungley, a cosmopolitan lady, who makes Kashmir her headquarters +and Rome her _annexe_. + +We became acquainted with each other sooner than might have been expected, +by reason of an exploit of the stewardess--a gibbering idiot. The night +was cold, so several of the ladies, following an evil custom, sent forth +from their cabins those vile inventions called hot bottles. Only two came +back..., and then the fun began. The stewardess, who speaks no known +tongue, played "hunt the slipper" for the missing bottles through all the +cabins, whence she was shot out by the enraged inhabitants until she was +reduced to absolute imbecility, and the harassed stewards to gesticular +despair. + +The missing articles were, I believe, finally discovered and routed out of +an unoccupied bed, where they had been laid and forgotten by the +addle-pated lady, and peace reigned. + +We sailed from Trieste early on the morning of the 28th of February, and +steamed leisurely on our way. The Austrian Lloyd's "unaccelerated" +steamers are not too active in their movements, being wont to travel at +purely "economical speed," and so we were given an excellent view of some +of the Ionian Islands, steaming through the Ithaca channel, with the +snow-tipped peak of Cephalonia close on our starboard hand. + +Then, leaving the far white hills of the Albanian coast to fade into the +blue mists, we sped + + "Over the sea past Crete," + +until the tall lighthouse of Port Saïd rose on the horizon, followed by +the spars of much shipping, and the roofs of the houses dotted apparently +over the waters of the Mediterranean. At length the low mudbanks which +represent the two continents of Africa and Asia spread their dull monotony +on either hand, and the good ship sat quietly down for a happy day's +coaling. + +Port Saïd has grown out of all knowledge since I first made its +acquaintance in 1877. It was then a cluster of evil-looking shanties, the +abode of the scum of the Levant, who waxed fat by the profits of the +gambling hells and the sale of pornographic photographs. It has now donned +the outwardly respectable look of middle age; it has laid itself out in +streets; the gambling dens have disappeared, and the robbers have betaken +themselves to the sale of the worst class of Japanese and Indian "curios," +ostrich feathers from East Africa, and tobacco in all its forms. + +Port Saïd has undoubtedly improved, but still it is not a nice place, and +we were unfeignedly glad to repair on board the _Marie Valerie_ as soon as +we noted the cessation of the black coaly cloud, through the murkiness of +which a chattering stream of gnome-like figures passed their burthens of +"Cardiff" into the bowels of the ship. + +Port Saïd was cold, and Suez was cold, and we started down the Red Sea +followed by a strong north wind, which kept us clad in greatcoats for a +day or two, and, as we got down into wider waters, obliged us to keep our +ports closed. + +An object-lesson on the subject of closed ports was given in our cabin, +where the fair chatelaine was reclining in her berth reading, fanned by +the genial air which floated in at the open port,--a truculent Red Sea +billow, meeting a slight roll of the ship, entered the cabin in an +unbroken fall on the lady's head. A damp tigress flew out through the door, +wildly demanding the steward, a set of dry bedding, and the instant +execution of the captain, the officer of the watch, and the man at the +wheel! + +How dull we should be without these little incidents! + +A hoopoe took deck, or rather rigging, passage for a while, and evoked the +greatest interest. Stalking glasses and binoculars were levelled at the +unconcerned fowl, who sat by the "cathead" with perfect composure, and +preened himself after his long flight. + +The striking of "four bells" just under his beak unnerved him somewhat, +and he departed in a great fuss and pother. + +Our roomy decks afford many quiet corners in which to read or doze, and +now that the weather is rapidly warming up we spend many hours in these +peaceful pastimes, varied by an occasional constitutional--none of your +fisherman's walks, "three steps and overboard"--but a good, clear tramp, +unimpeded by the innumerable deck-chairs, protruding feet, and ubiquitous +children which cover all free space on board a P. & O. + +Then comes dinner, followed by a rubber of bridge, and so to bed. + +On Saturday the 11th we passed the group of islands commonly known as the +Twelve Apostles. + +First, a tiny rock, rising lonely from the blue--brilliantly blue--waves; +then a yellow crag of sandstone, looking like a haystack; and then a whole +group of wild and fantastic islands, evidently of volcanic origin, and +varying in rough peaks and abrupt cliffs of the strangest +colours--brick-red, purple-black, grey, and yellow--utterly bare and +desolate: + + "Nor tree, nor shrub, nor plant, nor flower, + Nor aught of vegetative power, + The weary eye may ken," + + +save only the white lighthouse, which, perched on its arid hill, serves to +emphasise the desolation of earth and sky. + +The Red Sea is remarkably well supplied with lighthouses; and, considering +the narrowness of the channel in parts, the strong and variable currents, +and the innumerable islands and shoals, the supply does no more than equal +the demand. + +I cannot imagine a more grievous death in life than the existence of a +lighthouse-keeper in the Red Sea! + +_Sunday, 12th_.--We passed through the Gate of Tears this morning--the +dismal, flat, and unprofitable island of Perim being scanned by me from +the bathroom port, while exchanging an atmosphere of sticky salt air for +an unrefreshing dip in sticky salt water. + +The hoopoe is again with us; in fact I do not think he really left the +ship, but simply sought a secluded perch, secure from prying observation. +He reappeared upon the port stay, and proceeded to preen himself and +observe the ship's course. He is evidently bound for Aden, casting glances +of quiet unconcern on Perim and the coast of Araby the blest. + +Towards sunset we passed the fantastic peaks of little Aden, and, drawing +up to Steamer Point, cast anchor under the "Barren Rocks of Aden." + +_Monday, 13th_.--We had a shocking time last night. All ports closed for +coaling left us gasping, whilst a fiendish din arose from the bowels of +the ship, whence cargo was being extracted. The stifling air, reeking with +damp, developed in the early morning a steady rain, which dripped +mournfully on the grimy decks. Rain in Aden! We are told on the best +authority that this is most unusual. + +Aden, to the passing stranger, shows few attractions. We went on shore +when the rain showed signs of ceasing, and after buying a few odds and +ends, such as a pith hat and some cigarettes, we betook ourselves to the +principal hotel, where an excessively bad breakfast was served to us, +after which we were not sorry to shake the mud of Aden off our feet, so we +chartered a shore boat amid a fearful clamour for extra pay and backshish, +and set forth to rejoin our ship, now swept and garnished, and showing +little trace of the coal she had swallowed. + +_Monday, 20th_.--We reached Karachi yesterday morning after a quiet, calm, +and utterly uneventful passage across the Indian Ocean. + +It was never hot--merely calm, grey, and even showery, our only +excitements being an occasional school of porpoises or the sight of a +passing tramp steamer. + +Some time before leaving England I had written to my old friend General +Woon, commanding the troops at Abbotabad, asking him to provide me with a +servant capable of dry-nursing a pair of Babes in the Wood throughout +their sojourn in a strange land. The General promised to supply us with +such an one, who, he said, would rob us to a certain extent himself, but +would take good care that nobody else did so! + +Immediately, then, upon our arrival in Karachi roads, a dark and swarthy +person, with a black beard and gleaming white teeth, appeared on board, +and reported himself as Sabz Ali, our servant and our master! + +His knowledge of English "as she is spoke" was scanty and of strange +quality, but his masterful methods of dealing with the boatmen and +Custom-house subordinates inspired us with awe and a blind confidence that +he could--and would--pull us through. + +There was no difficulty at the Custom-house until it transpired that I +wanted to take three firearms into the country. This appeared to be a most +unusual and reprehensible desire, and my statement that one weapon was a +rifle which I was taking charge of for a friend did not improve the +situation. It being Sunday, the principal authorities were sunning +themselves in their back parlours, and the thing in charge (called a Baboo, +I understand) became exceedingly fussy, and desired that the guns should +be unpacked and exhibited lest they should be of service pattern. This was +simple, as far as my battery was concerned, and I promptly laid bare the +beauties of my Mannlicher and ancient 12-bore; but, alas! Mrs. Smithson's +rifle was soldered like a sardine into a strong tin case, and no +cold-chisel or screwdriver was forthcoming. + +Messengers were sent forth to seek the needful instruments, while I +proceeded to cut another Gordian knot.... An acquaintance of mine, hearing +that I was coming to India, suggested that I should take charge of a +parcel for a friend of hers, who wanted to send it to her fiancé in Bombay. +As all the heavy baggage was sent from London to join us at Port Saïd, I +had not seen the "parcel," and, finding no case or box addressed to any +one but myself, I had to select one that seemed most likely to be right, +and forward that. + +At last the needful appliances were got and the rifle unpacked; but, +although it proved to be (as I had said) a large-bore Express, the Baboo +refused, like a very Pharaoh, to let it go, and I, after a two-hour +vexatious delay, paid the duty on my own guns, and, leaving a note for the +chief Customs official, explaining the case and begging him to send the +rifle on forthwith, packed myself--hot, hungry, and angry--into a "gharri," +and set forth to the Devon Place Hotel, whither the rest of the party had +preceded me. + +I have gone into this little episode somewhat at length in order to +impress upon the voyager to India the necessity for limiting the number of +firearms or getting a friend to father the extra ones through the +Customs--a perfectly simple matter had one foreseen the difficulty. Also +the danger of taking parcels for friends--of which more anon![1] + +The Devon Place Hotel may be the best in Karachi, but it is pretty bad.... +I am told that all Indian hotels are bad--still, the breakfast was a +considerable improvement on the _Marie Valerie_, and we sallied forth as +giants refreshed to have a look at Karachi and do a little shopping. It +being Sunday, the banks were closed, but a kindly shopman cashed me a +cheque for twenty pounds in the most confiding manner, and enabled us to +get the few odds and ends we wanted before going up country--among them a +couple of "resais" or quilted cotton wraps and a sola topee for Jane. + +Karachi did not strike us as being a particularly interesting town, but +that may be to a great extent because we did not see the best part of it. +On landing at Kiamari we had only driven along a hot and glaring mole, +bordered by swamps and slimy-looking flats for some two miles. Then, on +reaching the city proper, a dusty road, bordered by somewhat +suburban-looking houses, brought us to the Devon Place Hotel, near the +Frere station. After breakfast we merely drove into the bazaars to shop +before betaking ourselves to the station, in good time for the 6.30 train. + +Passengers--at least first-class passengers--were not numerous, and Major +Twining and I had no difficulty in securing two compartments--one for our +wives and one for ourselves. + +An Indian first-class carriage is roomy, but bare, being arranged with a +view to heat rather than cold Two long seats run "fore and aft" on either +side, and upon them your servant makes your bed at night. Two upper berths +can be let down in case of a crowd. At the end of each compartment is a +small toilet-room. + +It was unexpectedly chilly at night, and Twining and I were glad to roll +ourselves up in as many rugs and "resais" as we could persuade the ladies +to leave to us. + + +[1] A big deal case which we unpacked at Srinagar proved to contain a + "life-sized" work-table. The package holding our camp beds and bedding, + having a humbler aspect, had been sent to Bombay and cost as a world + of worry and expense to recover! + + + +CHAPTER III + +KARACHI TO ABBOTABAD + +This morning we awoke to find ourselves rattling and shaking our way +through the Sind Desert--an interminable waste of sand, barren and +thirsty-looking, covered with a patchy scrub of yellowish and grey-purple +bushes. + +I can well imagine how hatefully hot it can be here, but to-day it has +been merely pleasantly warm. + +Jane and I were deeply interested in the novel scenes we passed through, +which, while new and strange to us, were yet made familiar by what we had +read and heard. The quiet-eyed cattle, with their queer humps, were just +what we expected to see in the dusty landscape. The chattering crowds in +the wayside stations, their bright-coloured garments flaunting in the +white sunlight--the fruit-sellers, the water-carriers, were all as though +they had stepped out of the pages of _Kim_--that most excellent of Indian +stories. + +And so all day we rattled and shook through the Sind Desert in the hot +sunlight till the dust lay thick upon us, and our eyes grew tired of +watching the flying landscape. + +In the afternoon we reached Samasata junction, where the Twinings parted +company with us, being bound for Faridkot. + +Sorry were we to lose such charming companions, especially as now indeed +we become as Babes in the Wood, knowing nothing of the land, its customs, +or its language! + +Henceforward, Sabz Ali shall be our sheet-anchor, and I think he will not +fail us. His English is truly remarkable, so much so that I regret to say +I have more than once supposed him to be talking Hindustani when he was +discoursing in my own mother-tongue. But he certainly is extraordinarily +sharp in taking up what I and the "Mem-sahib" say. + +He presented to me to-day a remarkable letter, of which the following is +an exact copy. I presume it is a sort of statement as to his general +duties:-- + +"_To the_ MAGER SAHIB. + + "Sir,--I beg to say that General 'Oon Sahib send me to you. He + order me that the arrangement of Mager Sahib do. + + "To give pice to porter kuli this is my work. This is usefull to + you. + + "You give him many pice. + + "Your work is order and to do it my work. You give me Rupee at + once. Then I will write it on my book, from which you will see it + is right or wrong. Now I am going to Cashmir with you and + Cashmiree are thief. + + "If you will give me one man other it will usefull to you. I ask + one cloth. All Sahib give cloth to Servant on going to Cashmir. + + "If will give cloth then all men say that this Sahib is good. I am + fear from General 'Oon Sahib. It is order to give cloth. + + "I can do all work of cook and bearer. I wish that you will happy + on me, also your lady, and say to General 'Oon Sahib that this + man is good and honest man. + + "I have servant to many Sahib. + + "I have more certificate. + + "You are rich man and king. I am poor man. I will take two annas + allowance per day in Cashmir, you will do who you wish. + + "I wish that you and lady will happy on me. This is begging you + will.--I remain, Sir, your most obedient Servant, + +"SABAZ ALI, _Bearer_." + +_Wednesday, March_ 22.--We slept again in the train on Monday night, and +arrived in Lahore about 6 o'clock yesterday morning. + +We had been advised to tub and dress in the waiting-rooms at the station, +as we had a break of some six hours before going on to Pindi; but, upon +investigation, Jane found her waiting-room already fully occupied by an +uninviting company of Chi-chis (Eurasians), and several men--their +husbands and brothers presumably--were sleeping the sleep of the just in +mine, so we left all our luggage stacked on the platform under the eye of +Sabz Ali, and hurried off to Nedou's Hotel. Ye gods! What a cold drive it +was, and how bitterly we regretted that we had not brought our wraps from +their bundle. + +I was fearfully afraid that Jane would get a chill--an evil always to be +specially guarded against in a tropical climate, but a very hot tub and a +good breakfast averted all calamity, and we set forth in a funny little +trap to inspect Lahore. + +This is the first large and thoroughly Indian city that we have +seen--Karachi being merely a thriving modern seaport and garrison +town--and we set to work to see what we could in the limited time at our +disposal. We whisked along a road--bumpy withal in parts, and somewhat +dusty, but broad. On either hand rose substantial stone mansions, half +hidden by trees and flowering shrubs. Many of these fine-looking buildings +were shops. I was impressed by their importance, for they were quite what +would be described by an auctioneer or agent as "most desirable family +mansions, approached by a carriage drive ... standing within their own +beautifully wooded and secluded grounds in an excellent residential +neighbourhood," &c. &c. + +Anon we whirled round a corner, and plunged into the seething life of the +native city. The road was crammed with an apparently impenetrable crowd of +men and beasts, the latter--water-buffaloes, humpy cattle, and +donkeys--strolling about and getting in everybody's way with perfect +nonchalance, while men in strange raiment of gaudy hue pursued their +lawful occupations with much clamour. The variety of smells--all bad--was +quite remarkable. + +We could only go at a walk, as the streets were very narrow and the +inhabitants thereof--particularly the cows--seemed very deaf and difficult +to arouse to a sense of the need for making room, though our good driver +yelled himself hoarse and employed language which I feel sure was highly +flavoured. Our progress was a succession of marvellous escapes for human +toes and bovine shoulders, but our "helmsman steered us through," and we +emerged from the kaleidoscopic labyrinth into the open space before the +Fort of Lahore, whose pinkish brick walls and ponderous bastions rose +above us. + +The last thing I would desire would be to usurp in any way the functions +of grave Mr. Murray or well-informed Herr Baedeker, but there are certain +points to which I will draw attention, and which it seems to me very +necessary to keep in mind. + +To the ordinary traveller in the Punjab and Northern India no buildings +are more attractive, no ruins more interesting, than those of the Mogul +dynasty, and the rule of the Mogul princes marks the high-water limit of +Indian magnificence. It was but for a short time, too, that the highest +level of grandeur was maintained. + +For generations the Moguls had poured in intermittent hordes into Northern +India, but it was only in 1556 that Akbar, by defeating the Pathans at +Panipat, laid India at his feet. Following up his success he overthrew the +Rajputs, and extended his dominion from Afghanistan to Benares. Having +conquered the country as a great warrior, he proceeded to rule it as a +noble statesman, being "one of the few sovereigns entitled to the +appellation both of Great and Good, and the only one of Mohammedan race +whose mind appears to have arisen so far above all the illiberal +prejudices of that fanatical religion in which he was educated, as to be +capable of forming a plan worthy of a monarch who loved his people and was +solicitous to render them happy."[1] This "plan" was to study the religion, +laws, and institutions of his Hindu subjects in order that he might govern +as far as possible in conformity with Hindu usage. The Emperor Akbar was +the first of the Mogul monarchs who was a great architect. The city of +Fattepur Sikri being raised by him as a stately dwelling-place until want +of water and the unhealthiness of the locality caused him to move into +Agra, leaving the whole city of Fattepur Sikri to the owls and jackals, +and later to the admiration of the Sahib logue. + +A palace in Lahore, the fort at Allahabad, and much lovely work in the +city of Agra testify to the creative genius of that contemporary of our +own Good Queen Bess, the first "Great" Mogul. Jehangir, his son and +successor, has left few buildings of note, but his grandson, Shah Jehan, +was undoubtedly the most splendid builder of the Mogul Mohammedan period. +To him Delhi owes its stately palace and vast mosque--the Jama Masjid--and +Agra would be famous for its wonderful palace of dark red stone and +fretted marble, even without that masterpiece of Mohammedan inspiration, +the world-famed Taj Mahal. The brief period of supreme magnificence came +to an end with the last of the "Great" Moguls--Aurungzeb, died in +1707--having only blazed in fullest glory for some century and a half, but +leaving behind it some of the noblest works of man. + +It seemed somehow very curious, as we drove up through the stately +entrance of the Hathi Paon, or Elephant Gate of the fort, to be saluted +with a "present arms" by British Tommies clad in unobtrusive khaki, and to +reflect that we are the inheritors of the fallen grandeur of the Mogul +Emperors; that we in our turn, on many a hard-fought field, asserted our +power to conquer; and that since then we have (I trust) so far followed +the sound principles of Akbar as to keep by justice and wise rule the +broad lands with their teeming millions in a state of peace and security +unknown before in India. + +Opposite the entrance rise the walls of the Palace of Akbar, curiously +decorated with brilliant blue mosaics of animals and arabesques. + +We visited the armoury--a remarkably fine collection of weapons--not the +least interesting being those taken from the Sikhs and French in the +earlier part of the last century. Opposite the armoury, and across a small +beautifully-paved court, were the private apartments of Shah Jehan. They +reminded me very much of the Alhambra, only, instead of the honeycomb +vaulted ceilings, and arches decorated in stucco by the Moors, the Eastern +architect inlaid his ceilings with an extraordinary incrustation of glass, +usually silvered on the back, but also frequently coloured, and giving a +strange effect of mother-o'-pearl inlay, bordering on tawdriness when +examined in detail. + +It is possible that this coloured glass actually had its intended effect +of inlaid jewels, and that the gem-encrusted walls, so enthusiastically +described by Tavernier and others, as almost matching the peacock throne +itself, may have been but imitation. + +Many of the pilasters were, however, very beautiful--of white marble +inlaid with flower patterns of coloured stones--while the arched window +openings were filled in with creamy tracery of fair white marble. + +Leaving the fort after an all too short visit, we crossed to the great +mosque built by Aurungzeb. Ascending--from a garden bright with flowers +and blossoming trees--a flight of broad steps, we found ourselves at the +end of a rectangular enclosure, at each corner of which stood a red column +not altogether unlike a factory chimney. In the centre was a circular +basin, very wide, and full of clear water, while in front, three white +marble domes rose like great pearls gleaming against the cloudless blue. +The mosque itself is built of red--dark red--sandstone, decorated with +floral designs in white marble. + +We climbed one of the minarets, and had a view of the city at our feet, +and the green and fertile plains stretching dim into the shimmering haze +beyond the Ravee River. + +Then back to the hotel through the teeming alleys and down to the +station--the road, that we had found so bitterly cold in the early morning, +now a blaze of sunlight, where the dust stirred up by the shuffling feet +of the wayfarers quivered in the heat, and the shadows of men and beasts +lay short and black beneath them. + +We were not sorry to seek coolness in the bare railway carriage, and let +the fresh wind fan us as we sat by the open window and watched the flat, +monotonous landscape sliding past. + +The journey from Lahore to Rawal Pindi is not a very long one--only about +170 miles, or less than the distance from London to York; but an Indian +train being more leisurely in its movement than the Great Northern Express, +gave us ample time to contemplate the frequent little villages--all very +much alike--all provided with a noisy population, among which dogs and +children were extremely prevalent; the level plains, broken here and there +by clumps of unfamiliar trees, and inhabited by scattered herds of water +buffaloes, cattle, and under-sized sheep, all busily engaged in picking up +a precarious livelihood, chiefly roast straw, as far as one could see! + +We had grown so accustomed to the monotony of the plains, that when we +suddenly became aware of a faint blue line of mountains paling to snow, +where they melted into the sky, the Himalayas came upon us almost with a +shock of surprise. + +As we drew nearer, the rampart of mountains that guards India on the north, +took form and substance, until at Jhelum we fairly left the plain and +began to ascend the lower foothills. + +Between Jhelum and Rawal Pindi the line runs through a country that can +best be described by that much abused word "weird." Originally a +succession of clayey plateaux, the erosion of water has worn and +honeycombed a tortuous maze of abrupt clefts and ravines, leaving in many +cases mere shafts and pinnacles, whose fantastic tops stand level with the +surrounding country. The sun set while we were still winding through a +labyrinth of peaks and pits, and the effect of the contrasting red gold +lights and purple shadows in this strange confused landscape was a thing +to be remembered. + +We rolled and bumped into Pindi at 8 P.M., having travelled nearly 1000 +miles during our two days and nights in the train. + +Our friends the Smithsons were on the platform waiting to receive us and +welcome us as strangers and pilgrims in an unknown land. They have only +remained here to meet us, and they proceed to Kashmir to-morrow, sleeping +in a carriage in the quiet backwater of a siding, to save themselves the +worry of a desperately early start to-morrow morning. + +The direct route into Kashmir by Murree is impassable, the snow being +still deep owing to a very late spring following a severe winter. This +will oblige us to go round by Abbotabad, so I wired to my friend General +Woon to warn him that we propose to invade his peaceful home. + +_Sunday, March 26._--We stayed a couple of days at Pindi, in order to make +arrangements for transporting ourselves and our luggage into Kashmir. The +journey can be made _viâ_ Murree in about a couple of days by mail tonga, +but it is a joyless and horribly wearing mode of travel. The tonga, a +two-wheeled cart covered by an arched canvas hood and drawn by two +half-broken horses, holds a couple of passengers comfortably, who sit +behind and stare at the flying white ribbon of road for long, long hours, +while the driver urges his wild career. The horses are changed every ten +miles or so, and horrible and blood-curdling tales are extant of the +villainy and wrong-headedness of some of these tonga ponies, how they jib +for sheer pleasure, and leap over the low parapet that guards them from +the precipice merely to vex the helpless traveller. When we suggested that +to sit facing the past might be conducive to a sort of sea-sickness and +certainly to headache, and that a total absence of view was to be +deprecated, it was impressed upon us that if the horses darted over the +"khud," we could slip out suddenly and easily, leaving the driver and the +ponies to be dashed to pieces by themselves! This appeared sound, but, +upon inquiry I could not hear that any accident had ever happened to any +traveller going into Kashmir by tonga. + +Besides the tonga, there are other modes of going into Kashmir. For +instance, the sluggish bullock-cart--safe, deliberate, and affording ample +leisure for admiring the scenery; the light native cart, or ekka, +consisting of a somewhat small body screened by a wide white hood, and +capable of holding far more luggage than would at first sight seem +possible, and drawn by a scraggy-looking but much enduring little horse +tied up by a wild and complicated system of harness (chiefly consisting of +bits of old rope) between a pair of odd V-shaped shafts. + +Finally, there is the landau--a civilised and luxurious method of +conveyance which greatly appealed to us. We decided upon chartering a +landau for ourselves and servant, and two ekkas to carry the heavy baggage. + +Mr. de Mars, the landlord of the hotel, was most obliging in helping us to +arrange for our journey, promising to provide us with carriage and ekkas +for a sum which did not seem to me to be at all exorbitant. + +I soon found, however, that the worthy Sabz Ali did not at all approve of +the arrangement. It was extremely hard to find out by means of his scant +English what he proposed to do; but I decided that here was an excellent +opportunity of finding out what he was good for, so we determined to give +him his head, and let him make his own arrangements. + +A smile broke over his swarthy face for a moment, and he disappeared, +coming back shortly afterwards just as the already ordered ekkas made +their appearance. + +These he promptly dismissed--much to the vexation of Mr. de Mars; but I +explained to him that I intended to see if my man was really to be +depended upon as an organiser, and that I should allow him to work upon +his own lines. + +We had arranged to sleep in a carriage drawn into a siding at the station, +to avoid a very early start next morning. So after dinner we strolled down +towards our bedroom to find our henchman on the platform, full of zeal and +energy. I found out (with difficulty) that he proposed to go on to Hassan +Abdal with the luggage that night by goods train; that we should find him +there next morning, and that all would be right. So he departed, and we +rolled ourselves up in our "resais," and wondered how it would all turn +out. + +On Friday morning we rattled out of Rawal Pindi about seven, and slowly +wound through a rather stony and uninteresting country, until we arrived +at the end of our railway journey about ten o'clock, and scrambled out at +the little roadside station. + +Our excellent factotum, Sabz Ali, awaited us with a capacious landau, and +informed us that the heavy baggage had gone on in the ekkas. So we set +forth at once on our 42-mile drive to Abbotabad without "reposing for a +time in the rich valley of Hussun Abdaul, which had always been a +favourite resting-place of the Emperors in their annual migrations to +Cashmere" (_Lalla Rookh_). + +The landau, though roomy and comfortable, was, like Una's lion, a "most +unhasty beast," and we rolled quite slowly and deliberately over a +distinctly uninteresting plain for about twenty miles, until we came to +Haripur, a pretty village enclosed in a perfect mass of fruit trees in +full bloom. + +Here we changed horses, and lunched at the dâk bungalow--a first and +favourable experience of that useful institution. The dâk bungalow +generally consists of a simple wooden building containing a dining-room +and several bedrooms opening on to a verandah, which usually runs round +three sides of the house. The furniture is strong and simple, consisting +of tables, bedsteads, and some long chairs. A khansamah or cook provides +food and liquor at a fixed and reasonable rate. + +Travellers are only permitted to remain for twenty-four hours if the rooms +are wanted, each person paying one rupee (1s. 4d.) for a night, or half +that amount for a mere day halt. + +The khansamah would appear to be the only functionary in residence until +the hour of departure draws near, when a whole party of +underlings--chowkidars, bheesties, and sweepers--appear from nowhere in +particular; and the lordly traveller, having presented them with about +twopence apiece, rolls off along the dusty white road, leaving the +khansamah and his myrmidons salaaming on the verandah. + +We made the mistake of over-tipping at first in India, not realising that +a couple of annas out here go as far as a shilling at home; but it is a +mistake which should be rectified as soon as possible, for you get no +credit for lavishness, but are merely regarded as a first-class idiot. No +sane man would ever expend two annas where one would do! + +On leaving Haripur the road began to ascend a little, and at the village +of Sultanpur we entered a valley, through which a shrunken stream ran, and +which we crossed more than once. + +Then a long ascent of about eleven miles brought us near our destination. + +It had been threatening rain all the afternoon, and now the weather made +its threat good, and the rain fell in earnest. It grew dark, too; and, +finally, not having had any reply to my telegram to General Woon, we did +not know whether we were expected or not. + +Sabz Ali, however, had no doubts on the matter. We were approaching his +own particular country, and whether "Gen'l 'Oon Sahib" was there to +entertain us or not, _he_ was; and so it was "alright." + +Our poor horses were done to a turn, a heavy landau with five people in it, +as well as a fair amount of luggage, being no trifle to drag up so long +and steep a hill. So we had to walk up the last rise to the General's +house in the dark and rain, mildly cheered, however, by finding the two +ekkas just arrived with the baggage. + +A most hearty greeting from my old friend and his charming wife awaited us, +and after a hasty toilet and an excellent dinner we felt at peace with all +the world. + +Both yesterday (Saturday) and to-day it has been cold and disagreeable. +The past winter, I am told, has been a very severe one, and the melancholy +brown skeletons of all the eucalyptus trees in the place show the dismal +results of the frost. + +This forenoon the day darkened, and a very severe thunderstorm broke. So +dark was it at lunch that candles had to be lighted in haste, and even now +(4 P.M.) I can barely see to write. + +_Thursday, March_ 30.--Monday was showery, and Tuesday decidedly wet; but, +in spite of the hospitable blandishments of our kind hosts, we were most +anxious to get on, as, having arranged with the Smithsons to go into the +Astor district to shoot, it was most important to reach Srinagar before +the first of April--the day upon which the shooting passes were to be +issued to sportsmen in rotation of application. Knowing that only ten +passes were to be given for Astor, and that several men were ahead of me, +I felt that we were running it somewhat fine to leave only three days for +the journey. + +General Woon, who knew Kashmir well, did his very best to dissuade us from +attempting the passes into Astor, reading to us gloomy extracts from his +journal, and pointing out that it was no fit country for a lady in early +spring. + +He did much to shake our enthusiasm, but still I felt we must do our best +to "keep tryst" with the Smithsons. So, on Tuesday, we sent on the heavy +luggage in two ekkas which Sabz Ali had procured, the two others being +only hired from Hassan Abdal to Abbotabad. + +Sabz Ali had pointed out that, although he himself was a wonderful man, +and could do almost, if not quite, everything, a second servant would be +greatly to our (and his) advantage. So, acting on my permission, he +engaged one Ayata--a gentle person of a sheep-like disposition, who did +everything he was told, and nothing that he was told not to, during our +sojourn in Kashmir. + + +[1] Robertson's _India_, Appendix. + + + +CHAPTER IV + +ABBOTABAD TO SRINAGAR + +Dismal tidings came in of floods and storms on the Hassan Abdal road. The +river had swollen, and both men and beasts had been swept away while +trying to cross. Undeterred, however, by such news, even when backed by +warnings and persuasions from our friends, we set forth in the rain +yesterday morning. The prospect was not cheerful--a grey veil of cloud lay +over all the surrounding hills, here and there deepening into dark and +angry thunder-clouds. The road was desperately heavy, but the General had +most kindly sent on a pair of mules ahead, and, with another pair in the +shafts, our own nags took a holiday as far as Manserah. + +The weather grew worse. It rained very heavily and thundered with great +vigour, and as we straggled up the deeply-muddied slope to the dâk +bungalow at Manserah we felt somewhat low; but we did not in the least +realise what was before us! + +Our road had lain through fairly level plains, with low cuttings here and +there, where the saturated soil was already beginning to give way and fall +upon the road in untidy heaps; but this did not foreshadow what might +occur later. + +At Manserah we met Hill and Hunt, two young gunners, _en route_ for Astor. +They left in a tonga soon after we arrived, and we did not expect to see +their speedier outfit again. + +Being pressed for time, we only had a cup of cocoa, and then hastened on +our dismal career. + +The road grew steeper, winding over some low hills, but we could not see +very much, as the whirling cloud masses blotted out all the view. +By-and-by it bent towards a pine-clad hill, and began to ascend steeply. +By this time we were very wet, as we had to walk up the hills to ease the +horses. The scene was extraordinary, as the great thunder-clouds boiled up +and over us--tawny yellow, and even orange in the lights, and dull and +solid lead colour in the depths. The distance was invisible, but gleams +now and again revealed, through the drifts of rain, wide stretches of +cultivated land lying below us, and a ragged forest of pines piercing the +mist above. + +Dripping, we walked by our wet horses up to the top of the pass, hoping +for a swift and easy descent on the farther side to Ghari Habibullah, +where we intended to sleep, as we had given up all idea of being able to +get on to Domel. + +Presently the horses were pulled up sharply as a ton or two of rock and +earth came crashing upon the road in front of us. + +More fallen masses encumbering the way farther on made us feel rather +anxious, until, on rounding a corner, we found the whole road barred by a +huge mass of rock and soil. + +It was blowing hard, the stormy wind striking chill and bleak through the +bending pines; it was raining in torrents; it was 5 P.M., and we were +still some six miles from the haven where we would be; so, after a short +and utterly ineffectual attempt to get the carriage past the obstacle, +Jane and I set off to walk down the hill and seek help. + +It was exciting, as we had to dodge the rock-falls and run past the +shaky-looking places! At a turn of the road we came upon the gunners' +tonga, embedded in a mud-slide. The occupants had had an escape from total +wreck, as one of the ponies had swerved over the khud, but the other saved +the situation by lying down in the mud! Hunt had gone off into the +landscape to try for a village and help, while Hill remained to wrestle +with the tonga, which, however, remained obstinately immovable. We could +do nothing to mend matters, so we fled on, meeting Hunt, with a few +natives and a shovel, on his way back to the scene of action. + +After an hour and a half of very anxious work, we emerged at dusk from the +wood, hoping our troubles were over. We could dimly see, and hear, through +the mist a stream below us; but, alas! no bridge was visible. I +commandeered a man from the first hut we came to, and tried by signs to +make him understand that he was to carry the lady across the river; but, +luckily, just as we reached the bank of what was a very nasty-looking +stream in full spate, the liberated tonga overtook us, and Jane was +bundled into it, while we three men waded. The stream was strong and up to +our knees, and level with the tonga floor, and the horses getting +frightened began to jib. Hill seized one by the head, and Jane was safely +drawn to shore and sent on her way under guidance of the driver, while we +tramped on in the dark until a second torrent barred our way. Here, in the +gloom, we made out the tonga empty, and stuck fast against the far bank. +It was all right though, for Jane had crawled out at the front and +wandered on in search of the dâk bungalow, leaving the driver squatting +helplessly beside the water. + +It was so dark that she missed the bungalow, which stands a little above +the road, and struggled on till she came to a small cluster of native huts. +One of the inhabitants, on being boldly accosted, was good enough to point +out the way, and so the re-united party--tired, wet, and with no prospect +of dry clothing--took possession of the cheerless-looking dâk bungalow. +Things now began to improve. To our joy we found our ekkas with their +contents drawn up in the yard. And while a fire was being encouraged into +a blaze, and the lean fowl was being captured and slain on the back +premises, we obtained dry garments--of sorts--from the baggage. + +Madame's dinner costume consisted of a blue flannel garment--nocturnal by +design--delicately covered by a quilted dressing-gown, and the rest of us +were _en suite_, a great lack of detail as to collars and foot-wear being +apparent! Nevertheless, the fire blazed royally, and we ate up all the old +hen and called for more, and prepared to make a night of it until, about +ten o'clock, our bearer Sabz Ali appeared, with a train of coolies carrying +our bedding and the other contents of the derelict carriage. + +This morning the two young gunners departed on foot, leaving their tonga, +as the road to Domel is reported to be quite impassable. They intend to +walk by a short cut over the hills, and get on as best they may, the race +for Astor being a keen one. + +We decided to remain here, the weather being still gloomy and unsettled, +and the road being impossible for a lady. + +At noon the landau was brought in, minus a step and very dirty, but +otherwise "unwounded from the dreadful close." + +Ghari Habibullah is not at all a cheerful spot, as it appears, the centre +of a grey haze, with dense mist low down on the surrounding mountains. +Sabz Ali, too, complains of fever, which is not surprising after the +wetting and exposure of yesterday; and when a native gets "fever" he curls +up and is fit for nothing, and won't try. + +The dâk bungalow stands on a little plateau overlooking the road and a +swift river, whose tawny waves were loaded with mud washed from the hills +by recent storms. On a slope opposite, the queer, flat-roofed native +village perched, and above it swirled a misty pall which hid all but the +bases of the hills. To this village we strolled, but it was not +interesting; the inhabitants did not seem wildly friendly, and the mud and +dirt and dogs were discouraging. So we roamed along the Domel road till we +came to a high cliff of conglomerate, which had recently been shedding +boulders over the track to an alarming extent; so, deciding that it would +be merely silly to risk getting our heads cracked, we turned back, and, +re-crossing the river, clambered up a steep path above the right bank. Here +we soon found great rents and rifts where falling rocks had come bounding +down the steeps from above, so once more we turned tail, and, giving up +the idea of any more country walks in that region, betook ourselves to the +gloomy and chilly bungalow. The only really delightful things we saw +during our doleful excursion were a lovely clump of big, rose-coloured +primula, drooping from the clefts of a steep rock, and a pair of large and +handsome kingfishers,[1] pursuing their graceful avocations by a roadside +pool--their white breasts, ruddy flanks, and gleaming blue backs giving a +welcome note of colour to the sedate and misty grey of the landscape. + +_Tuesday, April_ 4.--Thirty-six hours of Ghari Habibullah give ample time +for the loneliest recluse to pant for the bustle of a livelier world. We +were so bored on Thursday that we determined to push on, _coûte que coûte_, +on Friday morning, although a note sent back by one of the gunners from +Domel, by a coolie, informed us that the road about a mile short of that +place was completely blocked by a fallen mass of some hundreds of tons. + +Our henchman having somewhat recovered of his fever, thanks to a generous +exhibition of quinine, we gave the order to pack and start, hoping to +achieve the twelve miles which separated us from Domel, even though the +last bit had to be done on foot. About two miles from Ghari Habibullah we +came to the Kashmir custom-house, presided over by a polite gentleman, +whose brilliant purple beard was a joy to look upon. + +Most of the elderly natives dye their beards with, I think, henna, +producing a fine orange effect, but purple...! + + _Bottom_. What beard were I best to play it in? + + _Quince_. Why, what you will. + + _Bottom_. I will discharge it in either your straw-coloured beard, your + orange-tawny beard, your purple-in-grain beard, or your + French-crown-colour beard, your perfect yellow + +_Midsummer Night's Dream_, + +Act I. Sc. 2. + + "What _coloured beard_ comes next by the window?" + + "A black man's, I think." + + "I think a _red_: for that is most in fashion." + +RAM ALLY. + +Truly, until I beheld that tax-gatherer of the Orient, I had no idea that +the "purple-in-grain" beard existed outside a poet's fancy! + +The road took us along the left bank of the river, whose soil-stained +waters churned their way through a wild and rocky gorge. On our left the +mountain rose bare and steep, fringed with a few straggling bushes, and +here and there a clinging patch of rose-coloured primula. Part of the +conglomerate cliff had come down and obliterated the road, but a party of +coolies was busily at work, and, after about an hour's delay, we +triumphantly bumped our way past. + +The road now led steadily upward, leaving an ever-increasing slope (or +khud) between it and the river, until it attained a height of over a +thousand feet, when, turning to the left, it swung over the watershed, and +began to descend into the valley of the Kishenganga. Through the haze we +could make out Domel, our goal, lying far below, and then the old Sikh +fort of Musafferabad. + +The road was so encumbered with rock-falls that we walked the greater part +of it, until we came to the new bridge over the Kishenganga, whose dark +red waters rush into the Jhelum about a mile below. + +Here was Musafferabad, the whole place a confused jumble of wheeled +traffic caught up by the big landslip in front. Passing, amid the chatter +and clamour of men and beasts, through the medley of bullock-carts and +ekkas that crowded every available space, we hauled the carriage through +the bed of a watercourse whose bridge was broken. Up over the prostrate +trunk of a fallen tree we regained the road, to find ourselves in front of +the big landslip of which we had been warned. It consisted of some +thousands of tons of dark red mud and loose boulders, and it blocked the +road for fully a couple of hundred yards. + +A large and energetic swarm of coolies was busily engaged in "tidying up." +This was apparently to be achieved by means of shovels, each little shovel +worked by two men--one to shovel, and the other to assist in raising it +when full by means of a little rope round the head. This labour had to be +lubricated by much conversation. + +It seemed upon the whole unlikely that a path could be made for a +considerable time, so we lunched peacefully in the carriage, a pair of +extremely friendly crows assisting at the feast, and then, leaving our +landau to follow as best it might, we walked into Domel, crossing the +Jhelum by a fine bridge. + +The dâk bungalow, prettily placed in a clump of trees, seemed the abode of +luxury to us after the discomfort of Ghari Habibullah, and we fondly hoped +that, being now upon the main road which runs from Rawal Pindi to Srinagar, +our troubles were over. + +Saturday was the 1st of April, the day upon which I should have applied +for my pass for Astor. Wiring to Srinagar to explain that I was in Kashmir +territory (which I subsequently found was enough to entitle me to a pass), +and also to Smithson to say that we were making the best of our way to +join him, we "took the road" after breakfast. + +The carriage and the two ekkas had come in early, having been unloaded and +then carried bodily over the "slide." + +A broad and smooth road, whose gentle gradient of ascent was merely +sufficient to keep us level with the river bank, opened up an alluring +prospect of ease and comfort. We lay back on our comfortable cushions and +watched the clouds as they swept over the mountains, hiding all but +occasional glimpses of snow-streaked slopes and steep and barren ridges. + +The valley of the Jhelum between Domel and Ghari is not beautiful--merely +wide and desolate, with steep hills rising from the river, their lower +slopes sparsely clad with leafless scrub, their shoulders merging into the +dull mist which hangs around their invisible summits. + +Alas! it soon became apparent that our troubles were not over. The cliffs +above us became steeper, and the familiar boulder reappeared upon the road. +Small landslips gave us a good deal of trouble, although we had no serious +difficulty before reaching Ghari. Here we were told that a complete +"solution of continuity" in the road at Mile 46 would prevent our reaching +Chakhoti, so we reluctantly decided to remain where we were for the night. +Although a cold and dull spring afternoon is not exciting at Ghari, where +distractions are decidedly scanty, we found interest in the discovery of +the Smithsons' heavy luggage, which had been sent on from Rawal Pindi ages +ago. Here it lay in the peaceful backwater of a native caravansary, piled +high on a bullock-cart, whose placid team lay near pensively chewing the +"cud of sweet and bitter fancy," and apparently quite innocent of any +intention of moving for a week or two! + +We extracted the charioteers from a neighbouring hut, and gave them to +understand, by means of Sabz Ali, that hanging was the least annoyance +they would suffer if they didn't get under way "ek dam" at once. They +promptly promised that their oxen--like Pegasus--should fly on the wings +of the wind, and, having seen us safely round a corner, departed +peacefully to eat another lotus. + +The luggage arrived in Srinagar towards the end of the month. + +Sunday morning saw us again battling with a perfect coruscation of +landslips; so "jumpy" was it in many places that we sat with the carriage +doors ajar, in hopes that a timely dart out might enable us to evade a +falling rock. At Mile 46 we were held up for an hour until a ramp was made +over a bad slide, and the carriage and ekkas were unloaded and got across. +The landau looked for all the world like a great dead beetle surrounded by +ants, as, man-handled by a swarm of coolies, it was hauled, step by step, +over the improvised track. A landau is not at all a suitable or convenient +carriage for this sort of work, and had we guessed what was before us we +should most certainly have employed the handier tonga. + +The road to-day, cut as it was out of the steep flank of the mountain, was +magnificent, but, in its present condition, nerve-shattering. Fallen +boulders and innumerable mud-slides constantly forced us to get out and +walk, while the sturdy little horses tugged the carriage through places +where the near wheels were frequently within a few inches of the broken +edge of the road, while far below Jhelum roared hungrily as he foamed by +the foot of a sheer precipice. + +Reaching Chakhoti about four o'clock, we decided to remain there for the +night, as it was growing late and the weather looked gloomy and +threatening. Although we had only achieved a short stage of twenty-one +miles, there was no suitable place for a night's halt until Uri, distant +some thirteen miles and all uphill. + +About half a mile above Chakhoti there is a rope bridge over the Jhelum, +and after tea we set forth to inspect it. + +The river is here about 150 yards wide and extremely swift, and I confess +the means of crossing it, although practised with perfect confidence by +the natives, did not appeal to me. + +From two great uprights, formed from solid tree-trunks, three strong ropes +were stretched--the upper two parallel, and the third, about four feet +lower, was equidistant from each. + +These three ropes were kept in their relative positions by wooden +stretchers--something like great merrythoughts, lashed at intervals of a +few yards-- + + "And up and down the people go," + +stepping delicately upon the lower rope, and holding on to the upper ones +with their hands. The uncomfortable part seemed to the unpractised +European to be where the graceful sweep of the long ropes brought the +traveller to within a painfully close distance of the hurrying, hungry +water, before he began to slither circumspectly up the farther slope! + +We stood for some little time watching the natives going to and fro, +passing one another with perfect ease by means of a dexterous squirm, and +carrying loads on their backs, or live fowls under their arms, with the +utmost unconcern. + +We left Chakhoti early this morning--Tuesday--with the intention of +getting right through to Baramula. The road was of course extremely bad, +and the long ascent to Uri very hard upon our willing little nags. Of +course they have had a remarkably easy time of it lately, as we have been +limited to very short stages, and they are in excellent hard condition, so +that we felt it no great hardship to ask them to do forty-two miles: +albeit to drag a heavy landau containing five people and a good deal of +luggage for that distance, with a rise of over 2000 feet, is a heavy +demand upon a single pair of horses! + +The scenery was very fine as we toiled up the gorge, in which Uri stands +on a plateau over the river and guards the pass into Kashmir valley. + +The ruins of an ancient fort rose on the near edge of the little plain. +The Jhelum tore through a rocky gorge far below, and a dark semi-circle of +mountains stood steeply up, their cloud-hidden summits giving fleeting +glimpses of snow and precipice and pine-clad corries as the sun now and +again shot through the clinging vapours. + +The dâk bungalow of Uri, white and clean, was most attractive, and I +should imagine the place to be charming in summer, but as yet the short +crisp turf is still brown from recent snow, and although hot in the sun, +which now began to shine steadily, it was extremely cold in the shade, +while lunch (or should I say "tiffin"?) was being got ready. I strolled +over to the post-office to find--as usual--another urgent wire from +Smithson several days old, beseeching me to secure my pass for Astor at +once. Directly after lunch we set forward, and as the road on leaving Uri +takes a long bend of some miles to the right to a point where the Haji Pir +River is crossed, and then sweeps back along its right hank to a spot +almost opposite the dâk bungalow, we thought that a short cut down to the +water, which from our height seemed quite insignificant, and thence up to +the road on the other side, would be a desirable stroll. As we walked down +the steep path into the nullah a brace of red-legged partridges (chikor) +rose in a great fuss, and sailed gaily across the river, whose roaring +gained ominously in volume as we drew near. It soon became plain to us +that everything is on a very big scale in this country, and that the +clearness of the atmosphere helps to delude the unwary stranger. The +little stream that seemed to require but an occasional stepping-stone to +enable us to pass over dry-shod, proved in the first place to be much +farther off than we had supposed, and when, after a hot scramble, we found +ourselves on the bank, the stepping-stones were no more, but only here and +there we saw the shoulders of huge rocks which doggedly threw aside the +flying foam of a fair-sized river. It was obviously impossible to cross +except by deep wading, but, being unwilling to own defeat, I yelled to a +brown native on the far bank, and made signs that he should come and do +beast of burthen. He, however, stolidly shook his head, pointed to the +water, and then to his chest, and finally we sadly and wrathfully toiled +back to the road we had so lightly left, and expended all our energies on +attracting the notice of the carriage, which, having crossed the bridge, +was crawling along the opposite face of the nullah, and when, after a hot +three miles, we once more embedded ourselves amongst the cushions with a +sigh of relief, we swore off short cuts for the future. + +We had been warned at Uri that there was a "bad place" at Mile 73, and +sure enough, on rounding a bend, we came upon the familiar mass of +semi-liquid red earth and a pile of boulders heaped across the road, the +khud side of which had entirely given way. The usual crowd of coolies was +busily engaged in trying to clear the obstruction by means of toothpicks +and teaspoons. + +We quitted the carriage with a celerity engendered of much practice, and, +having crossed the obstacle on foot, sat down to await the coming of our +conveyance. + +It seemed perfectly marvellous that the heavy vehicle could be safely got +over a jagged avalanche of earth and rock piled some eight or ten feet +above the roadway, and having an almost sheer drop to the river entirely +unguarded for some hundred yards, where the retaining parapet and even +some of the road itself had gone. + +Amid much apparent confusion and tremendous chattering, a sort of rough +ramp was engineered up the slip, and presently the horseless landau +appeared borne in triumph by a mob of coolies superintended by our +priceless Sabz Ali. + +For a minute we held our breath as one of the near wheels lipped the edge +of the chasm, but the thing was judged to an inch, and in due time the +sturdy chestnuts, the two ekkas, and all the luggage were assembled on the +right side of what proved to be the last of the really bad slips. + +The road engineer, who arrived in great state on a motor cycle while we +were executing the portage, told us that there were no more difficulties, +but an officer who was going out, and whose tonga was checked also at the +big slip, informed us that about a mile farther were two great boulders on +the road, lying so that although a short vehicle such as a tonga or motor +cycle could wriggle round, yet a long four-wheeled landau could not +possibly execute the serpentine curve required. + +We therefore requisitioned a few coolies with crowbars, and set forward to +attack the boulders. Sure enough there were two beauties, placed so that +we could not possibly get by, until a large slice was chipped from the +inner side of each. + +This done, our most excellent and skilful driver piloted his ponies +through the narrow strait, and we felt that, at last, our troubles were +over, and that we could breathe freely and admire at leisure the snowy +peaks of the Kaj-nag beyond the Jhelum, and the rough wooded heights that +frowned upon our right. + +I confess the relief was great, as we had endured six days of incessant +strain on our nerves, never knowing when a turn of the road might bring us +to an impassable break, or when the conglomerate cliffs beetling above +might shed a boulder or two upon us! + +Passing the somewhat uninviting little village of Rampur, we crossed a +torrent pouring out of a dark pine-clad gorge, and halted for tea by the +curious ruined temple of Bhanyar. The building consists of a rectangular +wall, cloistered on two sides of the interior and surrounding a small +temple approached by a dilapidated flight of stone steps. I regret to be +obliged to own that I know but a mere smattering of architecture. I do not +feel competent therefore to discuss this, the first Kashmiri temple I have +seen, upon its architectural merits. I only know that it struck me as +being extremely small, and principally interesting from its magnificent +background of shaggy forest and snow-capped mountain. + +Tea on a short smooth sward, starred with yellow colchicum, while the +carriage, travel-stained and with one step lacking, stood on the road hard +by, and the horses nibbled invigorating lumps of "gram" and molasses. Then +the etna was returned to the "allo bagh" (yellow bag) and the tea things +to the tiffin basket, and away we went along the now smooth and level road +with only fifteen easy miles between us and Baramula. + +The vegetation had gradually grown much richer. The sparse and +storm-buffeted pines and the rough scrub merged into a tangled mass of +undergrowth and forest, where silver firs and deodars rose conspicuous. +The little streams that rushed down the hillsides were fringed with +maidenhair fern, lighted up here and there with a bunch of pink primula or +a tiny cluster of dog violets. + +Jhelum had ceased from roaring, pursuing his placid path unwitting of the +rush and fury that would befall him lower down, and by-and-by we emerged +from the dark and forest-covered gorge into a wide basin where the river, +now smooth and oily, reflected tall poplars and the red shoots of young +dogwood. + +Through a village, round a sweep to the left, over a tract said to be much +frequented by serpents, and then in the deepening and chilly dusk we made +out Baramula, lying engirdled by a belt of poplars about a mile away. + +Glad were we, and probably gladder still our weary horses, to draw up +before the uninviting-looking dâk bungalow, knowing that only thirty-five +miles of level and open road lay now between us and Srinagar. + +The dâk bungalow of Baramula is, upon the whole, the worst we have yet +sampled. No fire seemed able to impart any cheerfulness to the gloomy den +we were shown into, and the dinner finally produced by the +khansamah-kitmaghar-chowkidar (for a single tawny-bearded ruffian +represented all these functionaries when the morning tip fell due) was not +of an exhilarating nature. Strolling out to have a look at the town of +Baramula, I shivered to see a heap of snow piled up against the wall. It +snowed here, heavily, three days ago, I am told. + +We have not been, so far, altogether lucky in the weather. Bitter cold in +Europe, cold at Port Saïd and Suez, chilly in the Red Sea, and wet at Aden! +Distinctly chilly in India, excepting during the day; we seem to have hit +off the most backward spring known here for many years. The Murree route, +which was closed to us by snow, should have been clear a month earlier, +and spring here seems not yet to have begun. + +_April_ 5.--We crept shivering to our beds last night, to be awakened at 6 +A.M. by an earthquake! + +I had just realised what the untoward commotion meant when I heard Jane +from under her "resai" ask, "What _is_ the matter--is it an earthquake?" +Almost before I could reply, she was up and away, in a fearful hurry and +very little else, towards the open country. + +I followed, but finding hoar-frost on the ground and a nipping eagerness +in the air, I went back for a "resai." The feeling was that of going into +one's cabin in a breeze of wind, and the door was flapping about. Seizing +the wrap in some haste, as I was afraid of the door jamming, I rejoined +Jane in the open, to watch the poplars swaying like drunken men and the +solid earth bulging unpleasantly. The shock lasted for three minutes, and +when it seemed quite over we retired to our beds to try to get warm again. + +The morning at breakfast-time was perfectly beautiful. Baramula lay +serenely mirrored in the silver waters of the Jhelum, its picturesque +brown wooden houses clustering on both banks, and joining hands by means +of a long brown wooden bridge. No signs of any unusual disturbance could +be seen among the chattering crews of the snaky little boats and +deep-laden "doungas" that lined the banks or furrowed the waters of the +shining river. + +We left Baramula in high spirits to accomplish the five-and-thirty miles +which still stretched between us and Srinagar. The scenery was quite +different from anything we had yet known, for now we were in the broad +flat valley of Kashmir, which stretches for some eighty miles from beyond +Islamabad, on the N.E., to Baramula, planted at the neck where the Jhelum +River, after spreading itself abroad through the fertile plain, +concentrates to pour its many waters through the mountain barrier until it +joins the Indus far away in Sind. + +A broad and level road stretched straight and white between a double row +of stark poplars, reminding one of the poplar-guarded ways of Picardy; +also (as in France) not only were the miles marked, but also the +thirty-two subdivisions thereof. On the right hand the ground sloped +slowly up in a succession of wooded heights, the foothills of the Pir +Panjal, whose snow-crowned peaks enclose the Kashmir valley on the south. +Opposite, through a maze of leafless trees, one caught occasional gleams +of water where the winding reaches of the river flowed gently from the +turquoise haze where lay the Wular Lake, and beyond--clear and pale in +the clear, crisp air--shone a glorious range of snow mountains, stretching +away past where we knew Srinagar must lie, to be lost in the distant haze +where sky and mountain merged in the north-east. + +By the roadside we passed many small lakes, or "jheels," full of duck, but +as there was never any cover by the sides I could not see how the duck +were to be approached. + +We lunched at the fascinating little bungalow at Patan (pronounced +"Puttun"), about half-way between Baramula and Srinagar. The Rest House +stands back from an apparently extremely populous and thriving village, +the inhabitants whereof were all engaged in conversation of a highly +animated kind! In the compound stood a fine group of chenar trees +(_Platanus orientalis_) whose noble trunks and graceful branches showed in +striking contrast to the slender stems of the poplars. The guide-book +informed us that an ancient temple lay in ruins near by, but we trusted to +a later visit and determined to push on. By-and-by a fort-crowned hill +rose above the tree-tops. This we took to be Hari Parbat, the ancient +citadel of Srinagar, and presently, through the poplars and the willows +queer wooden huts or châlets began to appear, and the increasing number of +men and beasts upon the road showed the proximity of the city. + +Ekkas, white-hooded, with jingling bells hung round the scraggy necks of +their lean ponies; brown men clad in sort of night-shirts composed of +mud-coloured rags; brown dogs, humpy cattle, and children innumerable, +swarmed upon the causeway in ever-increasing density until we drew up at +the custom-house, and the usual jabber took place among Sabz Ali, the +driver, and the officials. + +All appeared satisfactory, however, and we were presented with bits of +brown paper scrawled over with hieroglyphics which we took to be passes, +and drove on, leaving the native town apparently on our left and making a +détour through level fields and between rows of poplars, until we swung +round and crossed the river by a fine bridge. Here we first got some idea +of the city of Srinagar, which lay spread around us, bisected by the broad, +but apparently far from sluggish river, which seems here to be about the +width of the Thames at Westminster at high water. + +Tier upon tier, the rickety wooden houses crowded either bank, the +prevailing brown being oddly lighted up by the roofs, which were +frequently covered with deep green turf. Here and there the steep and +peculiar dome of a Hindu temple flashed like polished silver in the keen +sunlight, while around and beyond all rose the ring of the everlasting +hills, their peaks clear, yet soft, against a background of cloudless blue. + +Close below us stood a remarkably picturesque pile of buildings, of a +mixed style of architecture, yet harmonising well enough as a whole with +its surroundings. Over it flew a great "banner with a strange device," and +we assumed (and rightly) that we looked upon the palace of His Highness +Sir Pratab Singh, Maharajah of Jammu and Kashmir. + +Crossing the river, we dived into a bit of the native town, and were much +struck by the want of colour as compared with an Indian street. Everything +seemed steeped in the same neutral brown--houses, boats, people, and dogs! +Emerging from the native street, with its open shop-fronts and teeming +life, we drove for some little way along a straight level road, flanked, +as usual, on either side by poplars of great size which ran through a +brown, flat field, showing traces of recent snow, and finally finished our +two-hundred-mile drive in front of the one and only hotel in all Kashmir. + +Our two little chestnuts, which had brought us right through from Chakhoti +to Srinagar--a distance of about seventy-eight miles--in two days, were as +lively and fit as possible, and playfully nibbled at each other's noses as +they were walked off to their well-earned rest. + +The ekka horses, too, had brought our heavy luggage all the way from +Abbotabad over a shocking road in the most admirable manner, and we had +every reason to congratulate ourselves on having entrusted the arrangement +of the whole business--the "bandobast" in native parlance--to our henchman +Sabz Ali, who had thus proved himself an energetic and trustworthy +organiser, and saving financier to the extent of some twenty rupees. + +I may emphasise here the importance of keeping one's heavy baggage in +sight, herding on the ekkas in front, if possible, and keeping a wary eye +and a firm hand on the drivers at all halts. The Smithsons, who had sent +on their gear from Rawal Pindi some days before we got there, did not +receive it in Srinagar until the 22nd of April. It took about five weeks +to do the journey, and the rifle which I was obliged to leave in Karachi +on the 19th of March finally turned up in Srinagar, after an infuriating +and vain expenditure of telegrams, on the 1st of May! + +Of course, part of the delay was due, and all was attributed, to the +unusually bad state of the roads. The heavy storms and floods which, by +wrecking the road, had delayed us so much, naturally checked the heavy +transport still more; and severe congestion of bullock-carts resulted at +all the halting-places along the route. Still, the main cause of delay +lies in the fact that the monopoly of transport has been granted by the +Maharajah to one Danjibhoy, who charges what he pleases, and takes such +time over his arrangements as suits his Oriental mind. + +The motto over the Transport Office door might well be "_Ohne Hast--mit +Rast_!" + +The other (much-cherished) monopoly in this favoured land is that enjoyed +by Mr. Nedou, the owner of THE HOTEL in Kashmir. + +We were advised when at Lahore to approach Mr. Nedou (who winters in his +branch there) with many salaams and much "kow-towing," in order to make a +certainty of being received into his select circle in Kashmir. The great +man was quite kind, and promised that he would do his best for us; and he +was as good as his word, as we were immediately welcomed and permitted to +add two to the four persons already inhabiting the hostelry. I confess +that, even after a dâk bungalow of the most inferior quality--such as that +at Ghari Habibullah or Baramula--Mr. Nedou's hotel fails to impress one +with an undue sense of luxury. In fact, it presented an even desolate and +forlorn appearance with its gloomy and chilly passages and cheerless +bed-vaults. + + +[1] _N. Smyrnensis_ (?). + + + +CHAPTER V + +FIRST IMPRESSIONS OF SRINAGAR + +We learnt that the earthquake of this morning was far more than the +ordinary affair that we had taken it to be. The hotel showed signs of a +struggle for existence. Large cracks in the plaster, spanned by strips of +paper gummed across to show if they widened, and little heaps of crumbled +mortar on the floors, betrayed that the grip of mother earth had been no +feeble one. + +Telegrams from Lahore inquired if the rumour was true that Srinagar had +been much damaged, and reported an awful destruction and loss of life at +Dharmsala. I think if we had fully known what an earthquake really meant, +we should not have so calmly gone back to bed again! + +The advent of Mrs. Smithson upon the scene relieved a certain anxiety which +we had felt as to immediate plans. The idea of rushing into Astor had been +given up, we found--not so much on account of our tardy arrival, permits +being still obtainable, but on account of the impossibility--at any rate +for ladies--of forcing the high passes which the late season has kept +safely sealed. + +Walter, having pawed the ground in feverish impatience for some days, had +gone off into a region said to be full of bara singh; so we decided to +possess our souls in patience for a little time, and remain quietly in +Srinagar. Accordingly, instead of unpacking our "detonating musquetoons," +we exhumed our evening clothes, and began life in Srinagar with a cheerful +dinner at the Residency. + +_Friday, April 7th_.--We are evidently somewhat premature here as far as +climate goes. The weather since our arrival has become cold and grey, and +we have seemed on the verge of another snowfall. However, the clerk of the +weather has refrained from such an insult, contenting himself with sending +a breeze down upon us fresh from the "Roof of the World," and laden with +the chilly moisture of the snows. We have consumed great quantities of +wood, vainly endeavouring to warm up the den which Mr. Nedou has let to us +as a sitting-room. Fires are not the fashion in the public rooms--probably +because the only "public" besides ourselves consist of one or two +enterprising sportsmen, who doubtless are acclimatising themselves to camp +life amid the snows, and have implored the proprietor to save his fuel and +keep the outer doors open. + +Yesterday, we went on a shopping excursion down the river, our "hansom" +being a long narrow sort of canoe, propelled and dexterously steered by +four or five paddlers, whose mode of _digging_ along by means of their +heart-shaped blades reminded me not a little of the Kroo boys paddling a +fish-canoe off Elmina on the Gold Coast. + +We embarked close to the back of the hotel, at the Chenar Bagh, and went +gaily enough down the strong current of what we took to be an affluent of +the Jhelum. As a matter of fact, the European quarter forms an island, low +and perfectly flat, the banks of which are heaped into a high dyke or +"bund," washed on one side (the south) by the main river, and on the other +by the Sunt-i-kul Canal, down which we have been paddling. + +The river life was most fascinating--crowds of heavy doungas lay moored +along the banks--their long, low bodies covered in by matting, and their +extremities sloping up into long peaked platforms for the crew. +These--many of them women and children--were all clothed in neutral-tinted +gowns, the only bit of colour being an occasional note of red or white in +the puggaree of the men or skull-cap of the children. The married women +invariably wore whity-brown veils over the head. The wooden houses that +lined the banks were all in the general low scheme of colour, but a +peculiar charm was added by the roofs covered in thick, green turf. + +Srinagar has been called the "Venice of the East," and, inasmuch as +waterways form the main thoroughfares in both, there is a certain +resemblance. Shikaras (the Kashmiri canoes) are first-cousins to +gondolas--rather poor relations perhaps; both are dingy and clumsy in +appearance, and both are managed with an extraordinary dexterity by their +navigators. + +Both cities are "smelly," though Venice, even at its worst, stands many +degrees above the incredible filth of Srinagar. + +Finally--both cities are within sight of snowy ranges; although it seems +hardly fair to place in comparison the majestic range that overhangs +Srinagar and the somewhat distant and sketchy view of the Alps as seen +from Venice. + +Here, I think, all resemblance ceases. The charm of Venice lies in its +architecture, its art treasures, its historical memories, and its +interesting people. + +Srinagar has no architecture in particular, being but a picturesque chaos +of tumble-down wooden shanties. It has no history worth speaking of, and +its inhabitants are--and apparently have always been--a poor lot. + +Shopping in Srinagar is not pure and unadulterated joy. Down the river, +spanned by its seven bridges, amidst a network of foul-smelling alleys, +you are dragged to the emporiums of the native merchants whose +advertisements flare upon the river banks, and who, armed with cards, and +possessed of a wonderful supply of the English language, swarm around the +victim at every landing-place, and almost tear one another in pieces while +striving to obtain your custom. + +Samad Shall, in a conspicuous hoarding, announces that he can--and +will--supply you with anything you may desire, including money--for he +proclaims himself to be a banker. + +Ganymede, in his own opinion, is the only wood-carver worth attention. + +Suffering Moses is the prince of workers in lacquer, according to his own +showing. + +The nose of the boat grates up against the slimy step of the landing-place, +and you plunge forthwith into Babel. + +"Will you come to my shop?" + +"No--you are going somewhere else." + +"After?" + +"Perhaps!" + +"To-day, master?" + +"No--no time to-day." + +"To-morrow, then--I got very naice kyriasity [curiosity]--to-morrow, +master--what time?" + +"Oh! get out! and leave me alone." + +"I send boat for you--ten o'clock to-morrow?" + +"No." + +"Twelve o'clock?" &c. &c. + +After a short experience of Kashmiri pertinacity and business methods, you +cease from politeness and curtly threaten the river. + +Certainly the Kashmiri are exceedingly clever and excellent workers in +many ways. Their modern embroideries (the old shawl manufacture is totally +extinct) are beautiful and artistic. Their wood-carving, almost always +executed in rich brown walnut, is excellent; and their _old_ papier-mâché +lacquer is very good. The tendency, however, is unfortunately to abandon +their own admirable designs, and assimilate or copy Western ideas as +conveyed in very doubtful taste by English visitors. + +The embroidery has perhaps kept its individuality the best, although the +trail of the serpent as revealed in "quaint" Liberty or South Kensington +designs is sometimes only too apparent. Certain plants--Lotus, Iris, +Chenar leaf, and so-called Dal Lake leaves, as well as various designs +taken from the old Kashmir shawls, give scope to the nimble brains and +fingers of the embroiderers, who, by-the-bye, are all male. + +Their colours, almost invariably obtained from native dyes, are excellent, +and they rarely make a mistake in taste. + +The coarser work in wool on cushions, curtains, and thick white numdahs is +most effective and cheap. + +Curiously enough, the best of these numdahs (which make capital rugs or +bath blankets) are made in Yarkand; and Stein, in his _Sand-Buried Cities +of Kotan_, found in ancient documents, of the third century or so, "the +earliest mention of the felt-rugs or 'numdahs' so familiar to Anglo-Indian +use, which to this day form a special product of Kotan home industry, and +of which large consignments are annually exported to Ladak and Kashmir." + +The manufacture of carpets is receiving attention, and Messrs. Mitchell +own a large carpet factory. Designs and colours are good, but the prices +are not low enough to enable them to compete with the cheap Indian makes; +nor, I make bold to say, is the quality such as to justify high prices. +The shop of Mohamed Jan is well worth a visit, for three good +reasons--first, because his Oriental carpets from Penjdeh and Khiva are of +the best; second, because his house is one of the first specimens of a +high-class native dwelling existing; and third, because he never worries +his customers nor touts for orders--but, then, he is a Persian, and not a +Kashmiri! + +The famous shawls which fetched such prices in England in early Victorian +days are no longer valued, having suffered an eclipse similar to that +undergone by the pictures of certain early Victorian Royal Academicians, +and the loss of the shawl trade was a severe blow to Kashmir. With the +exception of occasional specimens of these shawls, which, however, can be +bought cheaper at sales in London, there are no _old_ embroideries to be +got. + +The wood-carving industry, too, is quite modern; but, although of great +excellence and ingenuity in manipulation, it does not appeal to me, being +too florid and copious in its application of design. A restless confusion +of dragons from Leh, lotus from the Dal Lake, and the ever-present chenar +leaf, hobnob together with British--very British--crests and monograms on +the tops of tables and the seats of chairs--portions of the furniture that +should be left severely plain. + +British taste is usually bad, and to it, and not to Kashmiri initiative, +must be ascribed the production of such exotic works as bellows +embellished with chaste designs of lotus-buds, and afternoon tea-tables +flaunting coats-of-arms (doubtless dating from the Conquest), beautifully +carved in high relief just where the tray--the bottom of which is probably +ornamented with a flowing design of raised flowers--should rest! + +The lacquered papier-maché work--often extremely pretty when left to its +own proper Cabul pattern or other native design--aims too often at +attracting the eye of the mighty hunter by introducing an inappropriate +markhor's head. The old lacquer-work is difficult to get, and, when +obtained, is high in price; but comparison between the old and the new +shows the gulf that lies between the loving and skilful labour of the +artist and the stupid and generally "scamped" achievement of him who +merely "knocks off" candlesticks and tobacco-boxes by the score, to sell +to the English visitor--papier-maché being superseded by wood, and lacquer +by paint. + +The workers in silver, copper, and brass are many, but their productions +are usually rough and inartistic. Genuine old beaten metal-work is almost +unobtainable, although occasionally desirable specimens from Leh do find +their way into the Srinagar shops. + +Chinese porcelain is to be got, usually in the form of small bowls; but it +is not of remarkably good quality, and the prices asked for it are higher +than in London. + +The jewellers' work is very far behind that of India. Amethysts of pale +colour and yellow topaz are cheap. Fine turquoise do not come into Kashmir, +but plenty of the rough stones (as well as imitations) are to be found, +which, owing to a transitory fashion, are priced far above their intrinsic +value. They come from Thibet. + +A great deal of a somewhat soft and ugly-coloured jade is sent from +Yarkand, also agates and carnelian; beads of these are strung into rather +uncouth necklets, which may be bought for half the sum first asked. + +Bargaining is an invariable necessity in all shopping in Kashmir, as +everywhere else in the East, where the market value of an article is not +what it costs to produce, but what can be squeezed for it out of the purse +of the--usually--ignorant purchaser. + +Three things are essential to the successful prosecution of shopping in +Srinagar:-- + +(1) Unlimited time. + +(2) A command of emphatic language, sufficient to impress the native mind +with the need for keeping to the point. + +(3) A liver in such thorough working order as to insure an extraordinary +supply of good temper. + +Without all these attributes the acquisition of objects of "bigotry and +vertue" in Srinagar is attended with pain and tribulation. + +The descent of the river is accomplished with ease and rapidity, but +_revocare gradum_ involves much hard paddling, with many pants and grunts; +and it was both cold and dark when we again lay alongside the bank of the +Chenar Bagh, and scurried up the slippery bund to the hotel, with scarcely +time to dress for dinner. + +_Sunday, 9th April_.--Friday was a horrible day--rainy, dull, and cold; +but a thrill of excitement was sent through us by the news that Walter has +shot two fine bara singh! Charlotte (who is nothing if not a keen +sportswoman) was filled with zeal and the spirit of emulation, so we +resolved to dash off down the river to Bandipur, join Walter--who has now +presumably joined the ranks of the unemployed, being only permitted by the +Game Laws to kill two stags--and take our pick of the remaining "Royals," +which, in our vivid imaginations, roamed in dense flocks through the +nullahs beyond Bandipur! + +All Friday and yesterday, therefore, were devoted to preparation. I had +already, through the kindness of Major Wigram, secured a shikari, who +immediately demonstrated his zeal and efficiency by purchasing a couple of +bloodthirsty knives and a huge bottle of Rangoon oil at my expense. I +pointed out that one "skian-dhu" seemed to me sufficient for "gralloching" +purposes, but he said two were better for bears. My acquaintance with +bears being hitherto confined to Regent's Park, I bowed to his superior +knowledge and forethought. + +A visit to Cockburn's agency resulted in the hire of the "boarded dounga" +_Cruiser_, which the helpful Mr. Cockburn procured for us, in which to go +down the river; also a couple of tents for ourselves with tent furniture, +one for the servants, and a cooking tent. + +The local bootmaker or "chaplie-wallah" appeared, as by magic, on the +scene, and chaplies were ordered. These consist of a sort of leather +sandal strapped over soft leather boots or moccasins. They are extremely +comfortable for walking on ordinary ground, but perfectly useless for hill +work, even when the soles are studded with nails. The hideous but +necessary grass shoe is then your only wear. The grass shoe, which is made +as required by the native, is an intricate contrivance of rice straw, kept +in position by a straw twist which is hauled taut between the big and next +toe, and the end expended round some of the side webbing. The cleft sock +and woollen boot worn underneath keep the feet warm, but do not always +prevent discomfort and even much pain if the cords are not properly +adjusted. However, the remedy is simple. Tear off the shoe, using such +language as may seem appropriate to the occasion, throw it at the shikari's +head, and order another pair to be made "ek dam"! Jane and I each +purchased a yakdan, a sort of roughly-made leather box or trunk, strong, +and of suitable size for either pony or coolie transport. Our wardrobe was +stowed in these and secured by padlocks, and the cooking gear, together +with a certain amount of stores in the shape of grocery, bread, and a +couple of bottles of whisky were safely housed in a pair of large covered +creels or "kiltas." + +Each of the party provided him or herself with a khudstick, consisting of +a strong and tough shaft about five feet long, tapering slightly towards +the base, where it is shod with a chisel-shaped iron end. + +Our staff of retainers had now been brought up to five--the shikari, Ahmed +Bot, having procured a satellite, known as the chota shikari, a youth of +not unprepossessing appearance, but whose necessity in our scheme of +existence I had not quite determined. Ahmed Bot, however, was of opinion +that all sahibs who wanted sport required two shikaris, so I imagined that +while I was to be engaged with one in pursuit of bara singh, the other +would employ himself in "rounding up" a few tigers for the next day's +sport in another direction. Ahmed Bot agreed with me in the main, but did +not feel at all sure about the tigers--he proposed ibex. + +The fifth wheel to our coach was a strikingly ugly person, like a +hippopotamus, whose plainness was not diminished by a pair of enormous +goggles; this was the harmless necessary sweeper, that pariah among +domestics, whose usefulness is undreamed of out of India. + +After dinner last night we left the hotel, truly thankful to shake the +dust of its gloomy precincts from our feet, and sought our boats, which +were moored in the Chenar Bagh. How snug and bright the "ship" seemed +after the murky corridors of Nedou! And yet the _Cruiser_ was not much to +boast of, really, in the way of luxury. + +Let me describe a typical boarded dounga. Upon a long, low, flat-bottomed +hull, which tapered to a sharp point at bow and stern, was raised a light +wooden superstructure with a flat roof, upon which the passengers could +sit. The interior was divided off into some half-a-dozen compartments, a +vestibule or outer cabin held boxes, &c., and through it one passed into +the dining or parlour cabin, which opened again to two little bedrooms and +a couple of bathrooms. There was no furniture to speak of, but we had +hired from Cockburn all that we required for the trip. + +The servants, as well as the crew of the dounga, were all stowed in a +"tender" known as the cook boat--no one, except for navigating duties, +having any business on board the "flagship." + +Charlotte Smithson had a smaller ship than ours--a light wooden frame, +which supported movable matting screens or curtains, taking the place of +our wooden cabins. The matted dounga looked as though it might be chilly, +particularly if a strong wind came to play among the rather +draughty-looking mats which were all that our poor friend had between her +and a cold world! + + + +CHAPTER VI + +OUR FIRST CAMP + +The fleet, consisting of four sail (I use this word in its purely +conventional sense, a dounga having no more sails than a battleship), got +under way about 5 A.M., while it was yet but barely daylight, and so we +were well clear of Srinagar when we emerged from our cosy cabins into a +world of clean air and brilliant colour. + +The broad smooth current of the Jhelum flowed steadily and calmly through +a level plain, bearing us along at a comfortable four miles an hour, the +crew doing little more than keep steerage-way with pole and paddle. + +Beyond the green, tree-studded levels to the south, the range of the Pir +Panjal spread wide its array of dazzling peaks, while on the right towered +the mountains which enclose the Sind Valley, culminating in the +square-headed mass of Haramok. In the clear air the snows seemed quite +close, although we knew that the snow-line was really some three thousand +feet above the level of the valley. + +A day like this, as we sit on the little roof of our floating home +watching the silent river unfold its shining curves, goes far to +obliterate the memory of the fuss and worry inseparable from the exodus +from Srinagar. After lunch we tied up for a while, and I took my gun on +shore to try and pick up a few of the duck that dotted the waters of the +little lakes or jheels which lay flashing amid the hillocks beyond the +river banks. The shores of these being perfectly bare and open, it was +obviously impossible to escape the keenly observant eyes of the duck, +which appeared, unlike all other birds in Kashmir, to retain their +customary wariness. + +Crouching low amid the furrows of a newly-ploughed field, I sent the +shikari with a knot of natives to the far side of the water, whence they +advanced in open line, splashing and shouting. + +Presently, with much fuss and indignant quacking, a cloud of duck rose, +and, circling after their fashion, as though reluctant to quit their +resting-place, gave me several chances of a long shot before, working high +into the air, they departed with loud expostulation to some quieter haunt. + +Later in the afternoon we tied up to the bank for the night near a large +jheel, where we all landed, Charlotte to try a rifle which she had +borrowed, and I, if possible, to slay a few more duck, while Jane sat +peacefully on a bank and enjoyed the glorious sunset. + +The bag having been swelled by the addition of another dozen +"specimens"--obtained by the same manoeuvres as before--we strolled back +to our ships in the luminous dusk, visions of roast "canard" floating +seductively before our mental vision. + +There proved to be several varieties of duck among the countless flocks +which I saw, notably mallard, teal, pochard, and shoveller. Likewise there +were many coots, while herons, disturbed in their meditations by the +untoward racket, flapped heavily away with disgusted squawks. + +Jane is getting along remarkably well with her Hindustani. I have just +found her diary, and hasten to give an extract:-- + +"Woke up very early; much bitten by pice. Tom started off to try and shoot +a burra sahib, as he hears and hopes they've not yet shed all their horns." + +"He really looked very nice in his new Pushtoo suit, with putty on his +legs and chaplains on his feet.... His chickory walked in front, carrying +his bandobast." + +"9 A.M.--Sat down to my solitary breakfast of poached ekkas and paysandu +tonga, with excellent chuprassies (something like scones). After breakfast, +tried on my new kilta, which I have had made quite short for walking. I +generally prefer walking to being carried in a pagdandy." + +"Then took another lesson in Hindustani from my murghi, though I really +think I hardly require it! My attention a good deal distracted by the +antics of a pair of bul-buls (not at all the same as our coo-coos) in the +jungle overhead." + +"7 P.M.--T. returned after what he called a blank blank day. He found some +bheesties (one of them a chikor ram or wild ghât) chewing the khud on a +precipitous dâk." + +"They were rather far off, about a mile he thinks, but he couldn't get any +nearer owing to a frightful ghari-wallah with deep piasses which lay +between, so he put up his ornithoptic sight for 2000 yards and 'pumped +lead' into the bheesties for half-an-hour." + +"He says he _thinks_ he hit one, but they all went away--as his chickory +remarked--'ek dam,' and Tom agreed with him." + +"He fell into a budmash on his way home and was half-drowned, but the +chickory, assisted by a friendly chota-hazri, managed to pull him out ... +quite an eventful day!" + +"10 P.M.--The body of the ram chikor has just been brought in. It looks as +if it had been dead for weeks, but the doolie, who found it, says that in +this climate a few hours is sufficient to obliterate a body.... Anyhow the +head and tail seem all right.... Tom says the proper thing to do is to +measure something--he can't quite remember whether it is the horns or the +tail, but the latter seems the more remarkable, so we measured that, and +found it to be 3 feet 4 inches." + +"By a little judicious pulling, the chickory, who knows all about +measuring things, elongated it to 4 feet 3 inches." + +"This, he says, is a '_Record_'--how nice!" + +_Wednesday, April 12._--The place where we tied up was not far from the +point where the Jhelum expands into the Wular Lake--a broad expanse of +water, some seven or eight miles wide in places, which holds the proud +record of being the largest lake in all India. + +The mountains rise steeply from its northern shores, and from their narrow +glens, squalls swift and strong are said frequently to sweep over the open +water, particularly in the afternoons. The bold sailormen of Kashmir are +not conspicuous for nautical daring--in fact their flat-bottomed arks, +top-heavy and unwieldy, destitute alike of anchor and rudder, are not fit +to cope with either wind or wave; they therefore aim at punting hurriedly +across the danger space as soon after dawn as may be--panting with +exertion and terror, they hustle across the smooth and waveless water, +invoking at every breath the protection of local saints. + +Long before we had left our beds, and blissfully unconscious of our awful +danger, we were striking out for Bandipur, which haven we safely reached +about 8 A.M. on a still and glorious morning. + +Then came the business of collecting coolies and ponies, and loading them +up with the tents and lesser baggage under the direction of Sabz Ali and +the shikari. + +By nine o'clock we were off. Charlotte and Jane, mounted astride a brace +of native ponies, led the way, and, in ragged array, the rest of the +procession followed. A quarter of a mile from the landing-place, clustered +at the foot of a steep little hill--a spur from the higher ranges--lies +the village of Bandipur, dirty and picturesque, with, its rickety-looking +wooden houses, and its crowded little bazaar. It is a place of some +importance in Kashmir, being the starting-point for the Astor country and +Gilgit--and here the sahib on shikar bent, obtains coolies and ponies to +take him over the Tragbal Pass into Gurais. A post and telegraph office +stands proudly in the middle of the little village, and behind it lies a +range of "godowns" filled with stores for the use of a flying column +should the British Raj require to send troops quickly along the Gilgit +road. + +Passing through into the open country, we found ourselves on a good +road--good, that is to say, for riding or marching, as no roads in Kashmir +are adapted for wheeled traffic excepting the main artery from Baramula to +Srinagar, and the greater portion of the route from Srinagar to Gulmarg. +This road we followed up a gradually narrowing valley, and over a brawling +little river, until at Kralpura the Gilgit road begins the steep ascent to +the Tragbal by a series of wide zigzags up the face of a mountain. The +pass which we should have had to tackle, had we carried out our original +intention of going into Astor for markhor and ibex, is nearly 12,000 feet +above sea level, and is still securely and implacably closed to all but +the hardiest sportsmen. A short cut, which we took up the hill face, led +us through a rough scrub of berberis and wild daphne (the former just +showing green and the latter in flower) until, somewhat scant of breath, +we regained the road, and followed it to the left up a gorge. As the +mountains closed in on either side, we began to look out for the camp, +which we knew was not far up the nullah. Presently, turning off the Gilgit +road, along a track to the left, we came upon Walter--bearded like the +pard--a pard which had left off shaving for about a week. He was pensively +sitting on a big sun-warmed boulder, beguiling the time while awaiting us +by contemplating the antics of a large family of monkeys, which he pointed +out to Jane, to her great joy. + +Tender inquiries as to camp and consequent lunch revealed the sad fact +that some miles of exceedingly rough path yet lay betwixt us and the haven +where we would be. + +So we pricked forward, along a sort of cattle track, across dirty +snow-filled little gullies, and over rock-strewn slopes, until the white +gleam of Walter's tent showed clear on its perch atop of a flat-roofed +native hut. + +Crossing the stream which tumbled down the valley, by a somewhat "wobbly" +bridge, and picking our way through the mixen which forms the approach to +every well-appointed hut, we arrived upon the roof which supported the +tent. This we achieved without any undue trouble, the building, like most +"gujar" homes, being constructed on the side of a hill sufficiently steep +to obviate the necessity for any back wall--the rear of the roof +springing directly from the hillside. A Gujar village, owing to this +peculiarity of construction, always looks oddly like a deposit of great +half-open oysters clinging to the face of the hill. + +After a welcome lunch, the ladies both pronounced decidedly against +remaining in or near the highly-scented precincts of the village. The +argument that there was no flat ground excepting roofs to be seen was +overruled; so Walter and I climbed a neighbouring ridge, and selected a +site on the crest. + +It was not, certainly, a very good site for a camp, as it was so narrow +that the unwary might easily step over the edge on either side, and +toboggan gracefully either back on top of the aforesaid roof, or forward +into a very rocky-bedded stream which employed its superfluous energy in +tossing some frayed and battered logs from boulder to boulder, and which +would have rejoiced greatly in doing the same to a fallen nestling from +the eyry above. + +Neither was the ridge level, and our tents were pitched at such an angle +that the slumberer whose grasp of the bed-head relaxed + + "In the mist and shadow of sleep" + +was brought to wakefulness by finding his toes gently sliding out into the +nipping and eager air of night. + +The holding-ground for the tent-pegs was not all that could be desired, +and visions of our tents spreading their wings in the gale and vanishing +into space haunted us. + +No--it was not an ideal camping-ground, and Jane, whose rosy dreams of +camping in Kashmir had pictured her little white canvas home set up in a +flowery mead by the side of a purling brook, gazed upon the rugged slopes +which rose around--the cold snow gleaming through the shaggy +pine-trees--with a shiver and a distinct air of disapproval. + +It grew more than chilly too, as the sun dipped early behind the ridge +that rose jealous between us and the western light, and an icy breeze from +the snow came stealing down the gorge and whispering among the taller +tree-tops in the nullah at our feet. + +We were about 1500 feet above the Wular Lake, and snow lay in thick +patches within a few yards of our tents, and had obviously only melted +quite recently from the site of the camp, leaving more clammy mud about +the place than we really required. + +As it is reasonable to suppose that the bilingual lady who composes the +fashion columns of the _Daily Horror_ is most anxious to know how the fair +sex was accoutred at our dinner party that night, I hasten to inform her +that Charlotte was gowned in an elegant confection of Puttoo of a simply +indescribable nuance of _crême de boue_--the train, extremely décolletée +at the lower end, cunningly revealing at every turn glimpses of an +enchanting pair of frou-frou putties. + +The neat bottines, _à la_ Diane Chasseresse, took a charming touch of +lightness from the aluminium nails which decorated the "uppers" with a +quaint and original Dravidian cornice. + +She carried a spring bouquet of wild onions _en branche_--ornaments (of +course), diamonds. + +Every one remarked that Jane was simply too lovely for words, as, with the +sweet simplicity of an _ingénue, en combinaison_ with the craft of a +Machiavella (I beg to point out that I know my Italian genders), she +draped her lissom form in the clinging folds of an enormous habit _de peau +de brebis_--portions of ear and the tip of her nose tilted over the edge +of the deep turned-up collar, which, on one side, supported the coquettish +droop of the hairy "Tammy" that, dexterously pinned to the spikes of a +diamond fender, gave a _clou_ to the entire "_sac d'artifice_." + +Walter, having already shot two bara singh and a serow, came under the +"statute of limitations" of the Kashmir Game Laws, and had to sound the +"cease firing" as regards these animals; but Charlotte and I, having +"khubbar" of game, started at 7 A.M. in pursuit. She, attended by Walter +and in tow of Asna (the best shikari in all Kashmir), followed up the +nullah which lay to our right, while I deflected to the north. Having +donned grass shoes, I started off up a very steep slope which rose +directly behind the camp. Reaching snow within a few minutes of leaving my +tent, I was glad to find it hard and the going good, the early sun not yet +having had time to soften and destroy the crisp surface. + +Up and up we toiled, I puffing like any grampus--partly by reason of not +yet being in good condition, and partly on account of the height, which +was probably nearly 9000 feet above sea level. As we rose to the shoulder +of the hill the gradient became much easier, and I had leisure to admire +the panorama that stretched around the snowy ridge, which fell away +abruptly on either side through dense pine forests. The day was quite +glorious.... The sun, blazing in a cloudless sky, cast sharp steel-blue +shadows where rock or tree stood between the snow and his nobility. The +white peaks that rose around in marvellous array seemed so near in the +bright air that it seemed as though one could see the smallest creature +moving on their distant slopes. But there was little life observable in +this still and silent world--nothing but an occasional pair of crows +flapping steadily over the woods, or a far vulture circling at a giddy +height in the "blue dome of the air." Silence everywhere, except for the +distant and perpetual voice of many waters murmuring in the unseen depths +below. + +To the south--showing clear above the serrated back of the ridge beyond +the camp--stood the Pir Panjal; pale ivory in the pale horizon below the +sun. At the foot of the valley up which we had come yesterday, and partly +screened by the intruding buttresses of its enfolding hills, the Wular +Lake lay a shimmering shield of molten silver. + +In front, the sheeted mountains which guard Gurais and flank the icy +portals of the Tragbal stood, a series of glistening slopes and +cold-crowned precipices, while to the east Haramok reared his 17,000 feet +into a threefold peak of snowy majesty. + +It was a sight to thank God for, and to remember with joy all the days of +one's life. Doubtless there are many views as wonderful in this lovely +land, but this was the first, and therefore not to be effaced nor its +memory dimmed by anything that may come after. + +The shikari had not climbed the mountain's brow to waste time over scenery; +so, having apparently gone as far as he wanted on the ridge, he plunged +down among the silver firs to the right, and I, with my heart in my mouth, +went after him. At first it seemed to the inexperienced that we were +slithering down the most awful places, and that, should the snow give way, +I should have to swiftly embrace the nearest tree to avoid being shot down, +a human avalanche, farther than I cared to think. However, I soon found it +was all right. A welcome halt for lunch brought the tiffin coolie to the +front. A blanket spread upon the hard snow at the foot of a fir made an +excellent seat, and a cold roast teal, an apple, and a small flask of +whisky were soon exhumed from the basket. Water, or rather the want of it, +was a difficulty, for I was uncommonly thirsty, and no sign of any water +was to be seen. A judicious blending of the dry teal with bits of +succulent apple overcame the drought, and the half-hour for refreshment +passed all too quickly. + +The men considered it now time to get up some "shikar," so they invented a +bear. This was exciting! They had separated (there were four of them) in +search of traces of bara singh, &c., and some one found the bear, or its +den, or a lock of its wool--I really couldn't quite ascertain which--but +fearful excitement was the immediate result. + +A consultation took place in frenzied whispers. My rifle was peeled from +its case, and we proceeded to scramble stealthily down a horribly steep +face much broken by rocks. The shikari being in front with my rifle over +his shoulder, I was favoured with frequent glimpses down its ugly black +barrel as I, like Jill, "came tumbling after," and I rejoiced that all the +cartridges were safely stowed in my own pocket. Well! we searched like +conspirators for that bear, peeped round rocks and peered into holes, and +anxiously eyed all possible and impossible places where a bear might be +supposed to reside, but there was no bear; and at length we arrived on the +bank of the torrent which rioted noisily down the bottom of the nullah. + +I now began to realise that plunging about in snow, often over one's knees, +and scrambling among the fallen tree-trunks and great rocks selected by +the torrent to make its bed, was distinctly tiring work! + +Presently we came to a bridge over the river. It consisted of a single log, +and appeared extremely slender. The stream was not deep enough to drown a +man, but, all the same, a slip, sending one into the foaming water among a +particularly large and hard collection of boulders, seemed most +undesirable, and I stepped across, like Agag, delicately, carefully +balancing myself with a khudstick. The men came prancing over as if they +were on a good high-road, the careless ease with which they made the +passage bordering on impertinence! I reflected, however, that sheep, and +such like beasts of humble brain, can stroll upon the brink of gruesome +precipices without any fear of falling, and my self-respect returned. + +After another half-hour of stiff scrambling I sat down to rest awhile, +leaving the men to spy the neighbourhood. Of course they had to find +something, so this time they found a "serow"--a somewhat scarce beast. I +awaited the coming of the serow at various coigns of vantage where they +said it was bound to pass, while the four men surrounded it from different +directions. Finally, like the Levite, it passed by on the other side--at +least I never saw it. The shikari afterwards informed me, in confidence, +that it was, like the inexcusable baby in _Peter Simple_, "a very little +one." + +We now made the best of our way down the nullah, and when an apology for a +path became apparent I rejoiced greatly, and followed it along its +corkscrew course until the camp came suddenly into view as we topped a +spur, which gave the path a final excuse for dragging me up a stiff two +hundred feet, and then sending me down a knee-shaking descent, for no +apparent reason but pure "cussedness." + +Charlotte had got home just before me, having seen nothing to shoot at. +She, too, seemed anxious for tea! + +During the day Sabz Ali had been doing his level best to improve the +position in our sleeping-tent. The camp-beds had stood at such an angle +that it was almost impossible to avoid sliding gradually into the outer +darkness, but S.A. had scraped out earth from the head, and filled up a +terrace at the foot, in a way which gave us hope of sound sleep. Our +things had been carefully stowed, too, and a sort of hole scooped for the +bath. Luxury stared us in the face! + +The sunset certainly was a little dull last night, but we were quite +unprepared for the dreary aspect of Dame Nature to which we awoke this +morning. It was raining very heavily, and a dense pall of mist hung low +among the pines, giving an impression of melancholy durability. + +There was obviously nothing to do but exist as cheerfully as might be +until the weather improved. The wet had shrunk canvas and rope gear till +the tent-guys were as taut as fiddle-strings; and as it did not seem to +have occurred to any of the servants to attend to this, an immediate tour +of the camp had to be undertaken, in "rubbers" and waterproofs, to slack +off guys and inspect the drainage system, as we had no wish to have our +earthen floor--already sufficiently cold and clammy--turned into an +absolute swamp. + +These things done, we scuttled and slid down to the mess tent, and +breakfasted as best we might; and the best was surprisingly good, +considering the difficulties the wretched servants must have had in +cooking anything in their wet lair, where the miserable fire of damp +sticks produced apparently little but acrid smoke. + +We passed a dismal day, as, wrapped in our warmest clothes, we sat upon +our beds watching the rain turn to snow, then to hail and sleet, and +finally back to rain again; while the ever-changing wisps of grey mist +gathered thick in the glens, or "put forth an arm and crept from pine to +pine." + +Towards evening the clouds broke a little, and the forest-clad steeps +appeared through them, powdered thickly with new snow. Walter and I +sallied forth from our sodden tents and held a council of war in the mud. +It was decided to quit our somewhat unsatisfactory and precarious position +early to-morrow, if fine, as the weather looked so nasty, and a squall of +wind might have awkward consequences. + +_Friday, April_ 14.--A very fairly fine morning enabled us to strike camp +yesterday, and get the baggage off in good time. The Smithsons decided to +make for the jheels near the river, in order to give the duck a final +worry round before the season closes on the 15th. + +My shikari having reported a good bara singh in a small nullah off the +Erin, I arranged to go in search of him. The march down to Bandipur was a +short and easy one, and we got comfortably settled on board our boats +early in the afternoon. About sunset the clouds gathered thick over the +hills which we had left, and a thunderstorm broke, its preliminary squall +throwing the crews of our fleet into a fearful fuss, and sending them on +to the bank with extra ropes and holdfasts to make all secure. An elderly +lady, with a dirty red cap and very untidy ringlets, superintended the +business with much clamour. We take her to be the wife or grandmother (not +sure which) of the skipper. + +It was with an undoubted sense of solid comfort that we lay in our cosy +beds under a wooden roof, whereon the fat rain-drops sputtered, while the +thunder still crackled and banged in the distance! + +We shifted before dawn to a small village a couple of miles to the east, +and at 6.30 Jane and I set out to attack the bara singh, of which the +shikari held out high hope. My wife, mounted on a rough pony, was able to +accomplish with great comfort the two miles of flat country which we had +to traverse before turning off sharp to the right along a track which led +steeply upwards through the scrub that clothed the lower part of the +nullah. + +There is something unusually charming in the dawn here--the crisp, buoyant +air, the silent hills, their lower slopes and corries still a purple +mystery; on high, the silver peaks--looking ridiculously close--change +swiftly from their cold pallor into rosy life at the first touch of the +risen sun. + +The first part of our day's work was easy enough. The sun was still hidden +from us behind the mountain flange on our left; the snow patches on the +sky-line ahead seemed comparatively near, and the diabolical swiftness of +the shikari's stealthy walk was yet to be fully realised. + +Up and up we went, first through a thick scrub or jungle of a highly +prickly description, over a few small streams, then out upon a grassy +ridge, up which we slowly panted. The gradient became sharper, and I began +to feel a little anxious about Jane, as the short, brown grass was +slippery with frost--a slip would be very easy, and the results unpleasant. +However, with the able assistance of the shikari, she did very well, and, +having crossed a shelving patch of snow by cutting steps with our +khudstick, we found ourselves, after an hour and a half's stiff climbing, +on the sky-line of the ridge that had seemed but an easy stroll from below. +The heights and distances are most deceptive, partly on account of the +crystal clearness of the air, and partly because of the magnitude of +everything in proportion. The mountains are not only high themselves, but +their spurs and foothills would rank as able-bodied mountains were they +not dwarfed by peaks which average 15,000 feet in height above the sea. +The pines which clothe their sides, the chenars and poplars in the valley, +are all enormous when compared with their European cousins. + +The view was most remarkable as we gained the crest of the ridge--a sea of +white cloud came boiling up from the valley to the east, and, pouring over +the saddle upon which we stood, gave only occasional glimpses of snow and +pine and precipice above, or the glint of water in the rice-fields far +below. Once, between the swirling cloud masses, the near hills lay clear +in the sunshine for a few moments and revealed a party of five bara singh +hinds, crossing the slope in front of us, and not more than 150 yards away. +Alas! there was no stag. + +This was not satisfactory weather for stalking. However I was hopeful, as +I have noticed that in the fine forenoons a thick white belt of cloud +often forms about the snow level--roughly, some 8000 feet above the sea, +or 3000 above the Wular Lake--and hangs there for an hour or two, to +disappear entirely by midday. And so it came about to-day; after a halt +for tiffin, I set forward in brilliant sunshine, while Jane remained +quietly perched on the hillside, as the shikari said the road was not good +for a lady. The shikari was right, as, within ten minutes of starting, we +had to drop from the crest of the ridge to circumvent a big rock which +barred our way, to find ourselves confronted by a very unpleasant-looking +slope of short brown grass, which fell away at an angle of about 50° to +what seemed an endless depth. This grass, having only just become +emancipated from its winter snow, had all its hair--so to speak--brushed +straight down, and there was mighty little stuff to hold on to! Carefully +digging little holes with our khudsticks, and not disdaining the help of +my shikari, I got across, and thankfully scrambled back to the safety of +the ridge. + +Now we reached snow, and the going became easier, whereupon Ahmed Bot +promptly set a pace which left me struggling far behind. As the sun grew +stronger the surface-crust of the snow became soft, and at every few steps +one went through to the knees, until both muscles and temper became sorely +tried. For an hour or so we kept climbing up what was evidently one of the +many steep and rugged ranges which, radiating from Haramok, on this side +flank the Wular with their lofty bastions. Having apparently attained the +height he deemed necessary, and got well above the part of the pine forest +in which he expected to find game, Ahmed Bot turned to the left of the +ridge, and we were immediately involved in the deep drifts which covered +the pine-clad slope of the nullah. Over snow-covered trunks of prostrate +trees, over hidden holes and broken rocks, we toiled and scrambled until, +emerging breathless on a bare knoll--smooth and white as a great +wedding-cake--we obtained a searching view into the neighbouring gullies. +Still no sign or track of any "beast," so we worked back until, tired and +hot, I regained the place where Madame lay basking beneath her sunshade. +The shikari and his myrmidons departed to "look" another bit of country, +while I, nothing loth, remained to await events in the neighbourhood of +the refreshment department. + +On the return of the men, who had of course seen nothing, we set off for +home, climbing down the edge of the ridge where yellow colchicum starred +the turf. It was steep--verging on the precipitous in places--and Jane +frankly expressed her satisfaction when we accomplished the worst part and +entered a dense jungle of scrubby bushes, all of which seemed to grow +spines of sorts. A bear was said to have been seen here yesterday, so we +kept our weather eyelids lifting, but were not favoured with a sight of +him. We had almost gained the bottom of the hill, with but two short miles +to dinner and a tub, when weird shrieks and whistles were exchanged +between our people and an excited villager below. The shikari, his eyes +gleaming with uncontrollable excitement, announced that the "big stag" was +waiting for me at that very moment!--and therewith Ahmed Bot dashed off +down the hill, leaving me to follow as best I might. Leaving my wife in +charge of the tiffin coolie, I tumbled off after the shikari, whom I found +gloating with the messenger over the inspiriting particulars of the +monarch of the glen, which, I understood, crouched expectant some paltry +2000 feet above us, near the top of the nullah! + +It was past six o'clock, and the light already showing signs of waning, so +we lost no time in attacking the hill again. I was pretty well "done," and +had to accept a tow from the shikari, and hand in hand we pressed up that +accursed hill until, at seven o'clock, the sun set and it began to grow +dusk. Lying down near the edge of the snow, to gain breath and let the +shikari crawl round and "look" the face of the hill, I was soon moved to +activity by the news that the stag was lying under a pine tree within a +few hundred yards. A short "crawl" brought me within sight of the beast, +who lay half-hidden by a rock. It was now so dark that even with my +glasses I could only make sure that it was a "horn beast" and not a hind; +there was no time to lose, so, putting up my sight for 150 yards, I let +him have it, and was nearly as much surprised as gratified to see him roll +out on the snow to the shot. My vexation and disgust may be imagined when +I found the noble beast to be a miserable 8-pointer, which I would never +have fired at if I could have seen its head properly. Heartily consigning +the shikari, together with the mendacious villager and all his kind, to a +hot place, I dolefully stumbled away downhill again in the gathering dark, +and finally deposited my weary and dejected self on board the boat, after +fourteen hours of the hardest walking I have ever done. + +There is a confused tale prevalent that the bear, taking a mean advantage +of my absence, has been down to the village and eaten a few ponies, or +frightened them--I can't make out which. + + + +CHAPTER VII + +BACK TO SRINAGAR + +Easter Day, _April_ 23.--We left the Erin district early in the morning +following the bara singh fiasco, and punted and poled up the river to join +the Smithsons in a last attack upon the duck. We found the bold Colonel, + + "Rough with slaughter and red with fight," + +enjoying himself hugely among the jheels, and we prepared to join in the +fray; but our _chasse_ was put an end to by the discovery that the 14th, +and not the 15th, was the last legal day for shooting. So we packed away +our guns and towed up to Srinagar, which we reached on Sunday afternoon. + +Our brief experience of camping and "shikar" had proved to my wife that +she was not cast in the heroic mould of a female Nimrod. Not being a shot +herself--as Charlotte is--she saw that, as far as she was concerned, a +shooting expedition with the Smithsons would entail a great deal of +solitary rumination in camp, while the rest of the party pursued the red +bear to his den, or chased the nimble markhor up and down the precipices. +The joys of reading, knitting, and washing the family clothes +might--probably would--pall after a time; and the physical exertion of +"walking with the guns" in Kashmir is decidedly more of an undertaking +than over a Perthshire grouse moor! Our original arrangement, before +coming out to join the Smithsons, was that the time should be spent in +camping, boating, "loafing," and shooting. Being perfectly ignorant of the +conditions of life out here, we were unaware of the fact that it is +practically impossible to combine serious shooting with any other form of +amusement. In Scotland one may stalk one day, fish the next, and golf the +third, but out here it is not so. The worshipper of Diana must be prepared +to sacrifice everything else at her shrine; he must go far afield, and be +prepared to live hard and work hard, and even then it may befall that his +trophies of the chase are none too plentiful. That will depend a good deal +on his shikari and his own knowledge, together with luck. + +Walter had the good fortune to come upon two fine stags not far from his +camp almost as soon as he got there. He was within fifty yards of them as +they were moving slowly in deep snow, and he killed them both; the best of +these was a remarkably fine 10-pointer, length of horn 41 inches and span +38-1/2 inches. His wife spent an equal time in the same neighbourhood and +never saw anything.[1] + +When we talked over plans with Colonel and Mrs. Smithson at Pindi, the +general idea had crystallised into a scheme for going into Astor to shoot, +immediately upon our arrival in Kashmir, and, in order to reach Srinagar +before April 1st--the date of issue of shooting passes--we had struggled +hard to make our way into the country before it was really attractive to +the ordinary visitor. + +When we did reach Srinagar we found that our friends had abandoned all +idea of an expedition to Astor, partly on account of expense, but +principally on account of the backwardness of the season, which +practically precluded ladies from crossing the Tragbal and Boorzil Passes +for some time. The merits and demerits of the Tilail district and +Baltistan came up for review, and then we almost decided to go to Leh +until we reflected that the return journey over a bare and open +country--arid and hot as an Egyptian desert--in the month of August might +not be unmixed joy, and the Smithsons were assured that they would find no +sport whatever _en route_, but would have to go several marches beyond Leh +to obtain the chance of an Ovis Ammon or Thibetan antelope. + +The Leh scheme thus having come to naught, and our friends being still +wholly intent on "shikar" to the exclusion of all other pursuits, we +decided to be independent, so we hired a nice-looking boarded dounga, +whose fresh and clean appearance pleased us, for a term of three months. +Nedou's Hotel offered so few attractions and so many drawbacks that we +were prepared to do anything rather than return to it, and, as a matter of +economy, we scored heavily, as, on working it out, we found that the boat, +including the cook-boat, would cost 60 rupees per month. Our food and the +wages of those servants whom we should not have required at the hotel came +to approximately 80 rupees per month, making a total of 140 rupees, or £9, +6s. 8d.; whereas our hotel bill would have come to 12 rupees per day, +without extras--or 360 rupees (£24) per month--a clear saving in money as +well as in comfort. + +Our new habitation--the house dounga _Moon_--was owned and partly worked +by Satarah, an astute old rascal, whose "tawny beard," like Hudibras'-- + + "Was the equal grace + Both of his wisdom and his face; + In cut and dye so like a tyle + A sudden view it would beguile: + The upper part whereof was whey, + The nether orange mixt with grey." + +His costume consisted of a curious sort of short nightgown worn over white +and flappy trousers, below which were revealed a pair of big, flat naval +feet. The first lieutenant, Sabhana--sleek and civil-spoken, but +desperately afraid of work--was, we understand, son-in-law to the Admiral +Satarah, having to wife the Lady Jiggry, eldest daughter of that worthy, +who, with her younger sisters Nouri, Azizi, and "the Baba," completed the +ship's company. + +The _Moon_ differed from an ordinary house-boat in being narrower, and +possessing a long bow and stern which projected far enough from the body +of the boat to enable men to pole or paddle with ease; a house-boat can +only be towed. On embarking by means of a narrow gangway--a plank +possessed of an uncontrollable desire to "tip-up" at unexpected and +disconcerting moments--one entered first a small vestibule, or +"ante-cabin," which held our big boxes and opened into the +drawing-room--quite a roomy apartment, about fifteen feet by ten feet, +fitted with a fireplace, a rough writing-table, and overmantel, surmounted +by a photograph--something faded--of Mrs. Langtry! A small table and a +couple of deck chairs graced the floor, while upon the walls a +heterogeneous collection of pictures, including a coloured lithograph of a +cottage and a brook, a fearful and wonderful portrayal of an otter, and a +very fancy stag of unlimited points dazzled the eye. The ceiling was +decorated with an elaborate and most effective design in wood--a fashion +very common in Srinagar, consisting of a sort of patchwork panelling of +small pieces of wood, cut to length and shape, and tacked on to a backing +in geometrical designs. At a little distance the effect is rich and +excellent, but close inspection shows up the tintacks and the glue, and a +prying finger penetrates the solid-looking panel with perfect ease. + +The drawing-room was separated from the dining "saloon" by a sliding +door--which frequently refused to slide at all, or else perversely slid so +suddenly as to endanger finger-tips and cause unseemly words to flow. This +noble apartment of elegant dimensions (to borrow the undefiled English of +the house-agent) could contain four feasters at a pinch. Sabz Ali having +cooked the dinner, the cook-boat was laid alongside, and Sabz Ali, +clambering in and out of the window, proceeded to serve the repast, a +black paw, presumably belonging to Ayata, the kitchenmaid-man, appearing +from time to time to retrieve the soiled plates or hand up the next course. + +A funny little sideboard and cupboard contained a slender stock of knives, +forks, and glasses, and part of a broken-down dinner set, while the +fireplace easily held three dozen of soda-water. + +Then came Jane's bedroom, fitted with a cupboard and shelves, which were a +constant source of covetousness to me, who had none. A small bathroom +completed our suite of apartments, and, after the bare boards of the +_Cruiser_, the _Moon_ seemed to overflow with luxury. + +We have been taking life easily here for the last week. The Smithsons +intend going into Tilail as soon as the Tragbal becomes feasible; we +propose to remain in Srinagar for a while. The weather has not been very +fine--cold winds and a good deal of rain, varied by thunderstorms, being +our daily experience. The spring is, I am told, exceptionally backward, +and, although the almond is in full and lovely flower, the poplars and +chenars are barely showing a sign of life. + +My wife having gone to lunch at the Residency this afternoon, I walked +half-way up the Takht-i-Suleiman, whose sharp, rock-strewn pyramid rises a +thousand feet above Srinagar. + +The view of the Kashmir plain, through which the river winds like a silver +snake; the solemn ring of mountains, enclosing the valley with a rampart +of rock and snow; the innumerable roofs of the city, glittering like +burnished scales in the keen sunlight, densely clustered round the +fort-crowned height of Hari Parbat, went to make up such a picture as +Turner would have kneeled to. + +Of course it is simply futile to compare one magnificent view with another +which differs entirely in kind. All that one can do is to lay by in the +memory a mental picture-gallery of recollection; and as I sat in the +shelter of a big rock, gazing out over the level plain stretching below, +where the changing shadows as they swept by turned the amber masses of the +trees to gold, I conjured up in my mind's eye other scenes whose beauties +will remain with me while life shall last:--The purple and gold of a +glorious sunset over Etna, the Greek theatre of Taormina in front of me, +with the sea below--a shimmering opal that melted away in the haze beyond +Syracuse; the awful rapids raging furiously below Niagara, a very ocean +tortured and maddened to blind fury, pouring its irresistible torrents +through the chasm above the whirlpool; and again, a cloudless October +morning, with just the keen zest of early autumn in the air, as I lay high +up on a hillside in Ardgour watching for deer--with the hills of Lochaber +and Ballachulish reflected in all their glory of purple and russet in the +waters of Loch Linnhe, windless and still! + +Chills can be caught amidst the most glorious scenery--the little tufts of +purple self-heal at my feet were shivering and shaking in a biting breeze +that swept down from the snows to the north-east, and although I am an +admirer of Kingsley, I do not hold with him in his wrong-headed admiration +for a "nor'-easter"--so I quitted my perch in search of tea. + +_Easter Monday_.--The Smithsons scuttled away in a great hurry to-day, +their shikari, Asna (the best shikari in Kashmir), having heard that, +owing to the lateness of the season, the bara singh have not even yet all +shed their horns--so Charlotte is filled with high hope. The bears, too, +are said to be waking from their winter's doze and poking around in warm +and balmy corners. + +Armed to the teeth and thirsting for blood, the hunter and the huntress +cast loose their matted dounga and paddled away merrily down the Jhelum to +Bandipur, thence to pursue the royal bara singh, and later, if possible, +scale the snow-barred slopes of the Tragbal and penetrate the lonely +Tilail Valley to assail the red bear and the multitudinous ibex. + +Jane and I having decided that a purely shikar expedition into the more +difficult parts of the country was not suited to our prosaic habits, +remained to enjoy the effeminate pleasures of Srinagar till the weather +should grow a few degrees warmer. + +As we are bidden to a sort of state luncheon to-morrow, given by the +Maharajah, it appeared to me to be but right and seemly to go and inscribe +my name in the visitors' book of His Highness, and also to call upon his +brother, the Rajah Sir Amar Singh. I went with the more alacrity as I +thought it might prove interesting. Strolling across the big bridge above +the Palace, I soon found myself in the purely native quarter, immersed in +a seething crowd of men and beasts, from beneath whose passing feet a +cloud of dust rose pungent. The water-sellers, the hawkers of vegetables +and of sweets, the cattle, the loafers and the children got into the way +and out of it in kaleidoscopic confusion. By the side of the street, +money-changers, wrapped in silent consideration, bent over their trays of +queer and outlandish coins. Bright cottons and silks flaunted pennons of +gorgeous colours. Brass, glowing like gold, rose piled on low wide +counters. In front stood the Palace, looking its best from this point, and +showing huge beside the huddle of wooden and plaster huts which hem it in. + +General Raja Sir Amar Singh lives in a sort of glorified English villa. +Were it not for the flowering oleanders and hibiscus in front and the +silvery gleam of temple domes beyond, one might suppose oneself near the +banks of Father Thames. And were it not for the group of stalwart +retainers at the door, the illusion need not be lost on entering the house. + +The hall and staircase were decorated with a profusion of skins and horns, +somewhat modern and brilliant rugs, and tall glasses full of flowers +closely copied from Nature; while the drawing-room was of a type very +frequently seen near London. + +Like so many British reception-rooms, it shone replete with _objets d'art_, +rather inclining to Oriental luxury than Japanese restraint. + +My host, who came in almost immediately, was charming, speaking English +with fluency, although he has never been in England. + +He is essentially a strong man, and remarkably well posted in everything, +both political and social, that occurs in the state, mixing far more +freely than his brother with the English, towards whom his courtesy is +proverbial. + +His elder brother, the Maharajah of Jammu and Kashmir, is in many respects +of a different type. Keeping more aloof from the English colony, he spends +much of his time in devotion and the privacy of the inner Palace. + +On leaving Sir Amar Singh, one of his henchmen conducted me across the +iron bridge spanning a cut from the Jhelum, and into the warren-like +precincts of the Palace; presently we emerged from an obscure passage, and +found ourselves at the "front door," where, in the visitors' book, by +means of the stumpy pencil attached thereto, I inscribed my name and +condition. + +_April_ 27.--His Highness the Maharajah having invited us to a luncheon +given by him in honour of Colonel Pears, the new Resident, we prepared to +cross the famous Dal Lake to the Nishat Bagh, the scene of the present +feast, which we fondly hoped might recall the glorious days of the Moguls +when Jehangir dallied in the historic Shalimar with the fair Nourmahal. + + "Th' Imperial Selim held a feast + In his magnificent Shalimar:-- + In whose saloons ... + The valleys' loveliest all assembled." + +Our shikara, a sort of canoe paddled by four active fellows, with the +stern, where we sat on cushions, carefully screened from the sun by an +awning, was brought alongside the dounga at about 11.30, as we had some +seven or eight miles to accomplish before reaching the Nishat Bagh. + +Leaving the main river just above the Club, we paddled down the Sunt-i-kul +Canal, which runs between the European quarter and the Takht-i-Suleiman, +the rough brown hill which, crowned with its temple, forms a constant +background to Srinagar. + +The canal was closely lined with house-boats and their satellite +cook-boats, clinging to the poplar-shaded banks. The golf-links lay on our +left, and on a low spur to the right stood the hospital, which the energy +and philanthropy of the Neves has gained for the remarkably ungrateful +Kashmiri. It is told that a man, being exceedingly ill, was cared for and +nursed during many weeks in the Mission Hospital, his whole family +likewise living on the kindly sahibs. When he was cured and shown the door, +he burst into tears because he was not paid wages for all the time he had +spent in hospital! + +Just before entering the waterway of noble chenars, known as the Chenar +Bagh (a camping-ground reserved for bachelors only), we ported our helm +(or at least would have done so had there been any rudders in Kashmir), +and pushed through the lock-gate, which gives entrance to the Dal Lake, +against a brisk current. + +This gate, cunningly arranged upon the non-return-valve principle, is +normally kept open by the current from the Dal; but if the Jhelum, rising +in flood, threatens to pour back into the lake and swamp the low ground +and floating gardens, it closes automatically, and so remains sealed until +the outward flow regains the mastery. + +A sharp bout of paddling, puffing, and splashing shot us into the peaceful +waters of the Dal Lake, over which every traveller has gushed and raved. +It is difficult, indeed, not to do so, for it is truly a dream of beauty. + +A placid sheet of still water, its surface only broken here and there by +the silvery trails of rippled wake left by the darting shikaras or +slow-moving market boats, lay before us, shining in the crystal-clear +atmosphere. On the right rose the Takht, his thousand feet of rocky +stature dwarfed into insignificance by holy Mahadeo and his peers, whose +shattered peaks ring round the lake to the north, their dark cliffs and +shaggy steeps mirrored in its peaceful surface. + +On the lower slopes strong patches of yellow mustard and white masses of +blossoming pear-trees rose behind the tender green fringe of the young +willows. + +As we swept on, the lake widened. On the left a network of water lanes +threaded the maze of low-growing brushwood and whispering reeds, and round +us extended the half-submerged patches of soil which form the celebrated +"floating gardens" of the lake. From any point of view except the +utilitarian, these gardens are a fraud. A combination of matted and +decaying water-plants, mud, and young cabbages kept in place by rows and +thickets of willow scrub, is curious, but not lovely; and our eyes turned +away to where Hari Parbat raised his crown of crumbling forts above the +native city, or to the mysterious ruins of Peri Mahal, clinging like a +swallow's nest to the shelving slopes above Gupkar. + + "Still onward; and the clear canal + Is rounded to as clear a lake;" + +and we emerged from the willow-fringed water lanes, and saw across the +wider shield of glistering water the white cube of the Nishat Bagh +Pavilion--the Garden of Joy, made for Jehangir the Mogul--standing by the +water's edge, and at its foot a great throng and clutter of boats, amidst +whose snaky prows we pushed our way and landed, something stiff after +sitting for two hours in a cramped shikara. + +Other guests--some thirty in all--were arriving, either like us by boat, +or by carriage _viâ_ Gupkar, and we strolled in groups up the sloping +gardens, which still show, in their wild and unrestrained beauty, the +loving touch of the long-vanished hand of the Mogul. + +Down seven wide grassy terraces a series of fountains splashed and +twinkled in the sun. Broad chenars, just beginning to break into leaf, +gave promise of ample shade against the day when the blaze should become +overpowering. So far so good, but the grass that bordered the path was not +the sweet green turf of an English lawn, and the way was edged by big +earthen pots, into which were hastily stuck wisps of iris blooms and +Persian lilac. The topmost terrace widened out, enclosing a large basin of +clear water, in the middle of which played a fountain. On one side was +raised a marquee, revealing welcome preparations for lunch. On the +opposite side of the fountain a profusion of chairs, shaded by a great +awning, stood expectantly facing a bandstand. Here we were welcomed by His +Highness, a somewhat small man with exceedingly neat legs and an enormous +white pugaree, in his customary gracious manner. + +It was now half-past two, and we had breakfasted early, so that a move +towards the luncheon tent was most welcome. Finding the fair lady whom I +was detailed to personally conduct, and the ticketed place where I was to +sit, I prepared to make a Gargantuan meal. Was it not almost on this very +spot that + + "The board was spread with fruit and wine, + With grapes of gold, like those that shine + On Casbin's hills;--pomegranates full + Of melting sweetness, and the pears + And sunniest apples that Cabul + In all its thousand gardens bears. + Plantains, the golden and the green, + Malaya's nectar'd mangusteen; + Prunes of Bokara, and sweet nuts + From the far groves of Samarcand, + And Basra dates, and apricots, + Seed of the sun, from Iran's land;-- + With rich conserve of Visna cherries, + Of orange flowers, and of those berries + That, wild and fresh, the young gazelles + Feed on in Erac's rocky dells.. + Wines, too, of every clime and hue + Around their liquid lustre threw; + Amber Rosolli.. + And Shiraz wine, that richly ran.. + Melted within the goblets there!" + +This reckless, but unsubstantial and very unwholesome meal, was not for us, +and while waiting patiently for the first course to appear, I glanced down +the long table to admire the decorations. They were delightful, consisting +of glass flower-vases spaced regularly along the festive board, and filled +to overflowing with tufts and clumps of flowers. Innumerable plates filled +with fruit and sweetmeats graced the feast, and a magnificent array of +knives and forks gave promise of good things to come. + +Presently the expected dainties arrived, resembling but little the +lately-described poetic feast; a strict attention to business enabled us +to keep the wolf from the door, and a very cheerful party finally emerged +from the big tent to stroll by the fountains that flashed under the +chenars. + +The Maharajah, of course, did not lunch with us, but held aloof, peeping +occasionally into the cook-house to satisfy himself that the lions were +being fed properly, and in accordance with their unclean customs. + +Finally, he and his chief officers of state vanished into a secluded tent, +where he probably took a little refreshment, having first carefully +performed the ablutions necessary after the contamination of the +unbeliever. + +His Highness reappeared from nowhere in particular as his guests strolled +across the terrace, and, after a little polite conversation, we took our +leave and set forth for Srinagar. + +It was a glorious afternoon, and we deeply regretted that time would not +permit us to visit the neighbouring Shalimar Bagh, which lay hidden among +the trees near by. The excursion must remain a "hope deferred" for the +present, as we had again to thread the maze of half-submerged melon plots +and miniature kitchen gardens which, even in the golden glow of a perfect +evening, could not be made to fit in with our preconceived ideas of +"floating gardens." Jane was frankly disappointed, as she admitted to +having pictured in her mind's eye a series of peripatetic herbaceous +borders in full flower, cruising about the lake at their own sweet will +and tended by fair Kashmirian maidens. + +By-the-bye, here let me expose, once for all, the fallacy of Moore's +drivel about the lovely maids of fair "Cashmere." _There are none!_ This +appears a startling statement and a sweeping; but, as a matter of fact, +the Eastern girl is not left, like her Western sister, to flirt and frivol +into middle age in single "cussedness," but almost invariably becomes a +respectable married lady at ten or twelve, and drapes her lovely, but not +over clean, head in the mantle of old sacking, which it is _de rigueur_ +for matrons to adopt. + +The good Tommy Moore did not know this, but, letting his warm Irish +imagination run riot through a mixed bag of Eastern romancists and their +works, he evolved, amid a _pôt pourri_ of impossibilities, an impossible +damsel as unlike anything to be found in these parts as the celebrated +elephant evolved from his inner consciousness by the German professor! + + As I traversed the main, or rolled by train, + From my Western habitation, + I frequently thought--perhaps more than I ought-- + Upon many a quiet occasion + Of the elegant forms and manifold charms + Of the beautiful female Asian. + + For the good Tommy Moore, in his pages of yore, + Sang as though he could never be weary + Of fair Nourmahal--an adorable "gal"-- + And of Paradise and the Peri, + Until, I declare, I was wild to be where + I might gaze on the lovely Kashmiri. + + Through the hot plains of Ind I fled like the wind, + Unenchanted by mistress or ayah, + The dusky Hindu, I soon saw, wouldn't do, + So I paused not, until in the sky----Ah!-- + Far upward arose the perpetual snows + And the peaks of the proud Himalaya. + + But in Kashmir, alas! I found not a lass + Who answered to Tommy's description-- + For the make of such maid I am sadly afraid + The fond parents have lost the prescription, + And I murmured; "No doubt, the old breed has died out, + At least such is my honest conviction." + + In the horrible slums which form the foul homes + Of the rag-covered dames of the city, + I saw wrinkled hags, all wrapped in old rags, + Whose appearance excited but pity. + Beyond question the word which it would be absurd + To apply to these ladies is "pretty." + + In the high Gujar huts were but brats and old sluts, + These last being the plainest of women; + Then I sought on the waters the sisters and daughters + Of the Mangis--those "bold, able seamen" + (I have often been told that the Mangi is bold, + And as brave as at least two or three men). + + One lady I saw--I am told her papa + In the market did forage and "gram" sell-- + Decked all over with rings, necklets, bangles and things, + She appeared a desirable damsel; + And I cried "Oh, Eureka! I've found what I seek: + Tell me quick--Is she 'madam' or 'ma'mselle'?" + + It was comical, but to this question I put-- + A remarkably innocent query-- + I received but a sigh or evasive reply, + Or a blush from the modest Kashmiri; + And I gathered at last that the lady was "fast," + And her name should be Phryne, not Heré. + + Toddled up a small tot--her hair tied in a knot-- + Who remarked, "I can hardly consider + You've the ghost of a chance on this wild-goosie dance + Unless you should hap on a 'widder!' + For our maidens at ten--ay, and less now and then-- + Are all booked to the wealthiest bidder." + + "My dear man, it's no use to indulge in abuse + Of our customs, so be not enraged, sir-- + No woman a maid is--we're all married ladies. + Our charms very early are caged, sir-- + I'm eleven myself," remarked the small elf, + "And a year ago I was engaged, sir!" + +Ah, well! The country is the loveliest I ever saw, and that goes far to +make up for its disgusting population. + +Here, indeed, it is that + + "Every prospect pleases, and only man is vile." + +We stopped to look at the ruins of an ancient mosque, built in the days of +Akbar by the Shiahs. Its remains may be deeply interesting to the +archaeologist, but to me a neighbouring ziarat, wooden, with its grassy +roof one blaze of scarlet tulips, was far more attractive. Moving homeward, +we floated under a lovely old bridge, whose three rose-toned arches date +from the sixteenth century--the age of the Great Moguls. The extreme +solidity of its piers contrasts strongly with the exceedingly sketchy (and +sketchable) bridges manufactured by the Kashmiri. + +In fairness, though, I must point out that, as the bridge in Kashmir +usually spans a stream liable at almost any moment to overwhelming floods, +it would appear to be a sound idea to build as flimsily as possible, with +an eye to economical replacement. + +The Kashmiri carries this plan to its logical conclusion when he fells a +tree across a raging torrent, and calls it a bridge, to the unutterable +discomfiture of the Western wayfarer. + + +[1] That lady subsequently killed a remarkably good 13-pointer bara singh + and some bears in October. + + + +CHAPTER VIII + +THE LOLAB + +_May_ 1.--The pear and cherry blossom has been so lovely in and around +Srinagar that we determined to go to the Lolab Valley and see the apple +blossom in full flower. + +We started in some trepidation, for the warm weather lately has melted +much snow on the hills, and Jhelum is so full that we were told that our +three-decker would be unable to pass under the city bridges--of which +there are seven. We decided to see for ourselves, so set forth about +eleven, and soon came to the first bridge, the Amira Kadal, which carries +the main tonga road into Srinagar, tying up just above it, amid the +clamour and jabber of an idle crowd. + +The Admiral solemnly measured the clear space between the top of the arch +and the water with a long pole, consulted noisily with the crowd, yelled +his ideas to the crew, and decided to attempt the passage. + +Hen-coops, chairs, half-a-dozen flower-pots containing sickly specimens of +plants, and all other movables being cleared from the upper deck, we set +sail, and shot the bridge very neatly, only having a few inches of +daylight between the upper deck and the wooden beams upon which the +roadway rests. + + _Ce nest que, le premier "pont" que coute_. + +The other bridges were all easier than the first, and we shot them gaily, +spending the rest of the day in floating quietly down the river, and +finally anchoring--or rather mooring, for anchors are, like boat-hooks, +masts, sails, rudders, and rigging, alike unknown to the "jollye mariners" +of the Jhelum--some two or three miles above the entrance to the dreaded +Wular Lake. + +This awful stretch of water, so feared by the Kashmiri that his eyes +goggle when he even thinks of it, is an innocent enough looking lake, +generally occupied in reflectively reproducing its surroundings upside +down, but occasionally its calm surface is ruffled by a little breeze, and +it is reported that wild and horrible squalls sweep down the nullahs of +Haramok at times, and destroy the unwary. These squalls are said to be +most frequent in the afternoons, and are probably the accompaniments of +the thunderstorms. + +It is only considered possible to cross the Wular between dawn and 10 or +11 A.M., and no persuasion will prevail upon a native boatman to risk his +life on the lake after lunch. + +Before turning in, I gave orders that a start should be made next morning +at five o'clock, but a heavy squall of rain and thunder during the night +had the effect of causing orders to be set at naught, and at +breakfast-time there was no sign of "up anchor" nor even of "heaving +short." An interview with the Admiral showed me that the Wular, in his +opinion, was too dangerous to cross to-day--in fact he wouldn't dream of +asking coolies to risk it. He was given to understand that we intended to +cross, and that the sooner he started the safer it would be. + +No coolies being forthcoming, I inhumanly gave orders to get under +way--the available crew consisting of the wicked Satarah, the first +lieutenant, and the Lady Jiggry. Sulkily and slowly we wended our way past +the wide flats which border the Wular, all blazing golden with mustard in +full pungent flower. + +Before entering the lake the Admiral meekly requested to be allowed to try +for coolies in a small village near by. He was allowed quarter of an hour +for pressgang work, and sure enough he came back within a very reasonable +time with a few spare hands, and then--paddling and poling for dear +life--we glided swiftly through the tangled lily-pads and the green +rosettes of the Singhara, and soon were _in medias res_ and fairly +committed to the deep. + +The Wular lay like a burnished mirror, reflecting the buttresses of +Haramok on our right, and the snowy ranges by the Tragbal ahead, its +silvery surface lined here and there with the wavering tracks of other +boats, or broken by bristling clumps of reeds and tall water-plants. Our +transit was perfectly peaceful, and by lunch-time we were safely tied up +to a bank, purple with irises, just below Bandipur. + +A visit to the post-office and a stroll up the rocky hill behind it, where +we sat for some time and watched a pair of jackals sneaking about, +completed a peaceful afternoon. + +_May_ 3.--We were up with the lark, and, having moved along the coast a +few miles to the west of Bandipur, left the ship before six of the clock +in pursuit of bear. I had "khubbar" of one in the Malingam Nullah, and, +after a brisk walk over the lower slopes, we entered the nullah and +clambered up about 1500 feet to a quiet and retired spot under a shady +thorn-bush, where we breakfasted. + +We thereafter climbed a little higher, and then sat down while the +shikaris departed to spy, their method of spying being, I believe, +somewhat after this fashion:--Leaving the sahib with his +belongings--notably the tiffin coolie--in a spot carefully selected for +its seclusion, the miscreants depart hurriedly and rapidly up the nearest +inaccessible crag; this is "business," and throws dust, so to say, in the +eyes of the sahib, by means of an exhibition of activity and zeal. Passing +out of sight over the sky-line, the hunters pause, wink at one another, +and, choosing a shady and convenient corner, proceed to squat, light their +pipes, and discuss matters--chiefly financial--until they deem it time to +return, scrambling and breathless with excitement, to relate all that they +have seen and done. + +So, while the shikaris unceasingly spied for bear, for nine mortal hours +Jane and I camped out on a remarkably hard and unyielding stone, varied by +other seats equally tiresome. + +Fortunately we had brought books with us, and we relieved the monotony by +observing the habits of a pair of "kastooras," a hawk, and a brace of +chikor at intervals, but it was truly a tedious chase. + +At four o'clock the sons of Nimrod returned, declaring that the bear had +been seen, but that as we had on chaplies and not grass shoes, it would be +impossible for us to pursue him. I asked the shikari why the ---- goose he +had let me come out in chaplies instead of grass shoes if the country was +so rough? His reply was to the effect that whatever it pleased me to wear +pleased him! + +_May_ 4.--Armed _cap-à-pie_ so to speak, with pith helmets and grass shoes, +we again set forth at dawn of day to hunt the bear. Breakfast under the +same tree, sitting on the same patch of rose-coloured flowers--a sort of +fumitory (_Corydalus rutaefolia_)--followed by another nine-hour bivouac, +brought us to 5 P.M. and the extreme limit of boredom, when lo! the +shikaris burst upon us in a state of frenzied excitement to announce the +bear! Off we went up a steep track for a quarter of an hour, until, at the +foot of a rough snow slope, the shikari told the much disgusted Jane that +she must wait there, the rest of the climb being too hard for her, and, in +truth, it was pretty bad. Up a very steep gully filled with loose stones +and rotten snow, scrambling, and often hauling ourselves up with our hands +by means of roots and trailing branches, we slowly worked our way up a +place I would never have even attempted in cold blood. + +Twenty minutes' severe exertion brought us to a shelf, or rather slope, of +rock on the right, sparsely covered with wiry brown grass from which the +snow had but very recently gone, and crowned by a crest of stunted pines. +Up this we wriggled, I being mainly towed up by my shikari's cummerbund, +and, lying under a pine, we peered over the top. + +A steep gully divided us from a rough ridge, upon a grassy ledge of which, +about 200 yards off, a big black beast was grubbing and rooting about. + +The shikari, shaking with excitement, handed me the rifle, urging me to +shoot. I did nothing of the sort, having no breath, and my hand being +unsteady from a fast and stiff climb. + +I regret to be obliged to admit that, not realising that it would be +little short of miraculous to kill a bear stone-dead at 200 yards with a +Mannlicher, and being also, naturally, somewhat carried away by the sight +of a real bear within possible distance, I waited until I was perfectly +steady, and fired. The brute fell over, but immediately picked himself up +again and made off. I saw I had broken his fore-shoulder and fired again +as he disappeared over the far side of the ledge, but missed, and I saw +that bear no more. + +We had the utmost difficulty in crossing the precipitous gully to a spot +below the ledge upon which the beast had been feeding--the ledge itself we +could not reach at all; and the lateness of the hour and the difficulty of +the country in which we were, prevented us from trying to enter the next +ravine and work up and back by the way the bear had gone. A neck-breaking +crawl down a horrible grass slope brought us to better ground, and I sadly +joined Jane to be well and deservedly scolded for firing a foolish shot. +The lady was very much disgusted at having been defrauded of the sight of +a bear "quite wild," as she expressed it--a certain short-tempered animal +which had eaten up her best umbrella in the Zoo at Dusseldorf not having +fulfilled the necessary condition of wildness. + +Next day I sent out coolies to search for traces, promising lavish +"backshish" in the event of success, but I got no trustworthy news, "and +that was the end of that hunting." + +_May_ 6.--Jane took a respite from the chase, and I sallied forth alone at +dawn up a nullah from Alsu to look for a bear which was said to frequent +those parts. A brisk walk of some four miles over the flat, followed by a +climb up a track--steep as usual--to the left of the main track to the +Lolab, brought us to a grassy ridge, where I sat down patiently to await +the bear's pleasure. I took my note-book with me, and whiled away some +time in writing the following:-- + +Let me jot down a sketch of my present position and surroundings; it will +serve to bring the scene back to me, perhaps, when I am again sitting in +my own particular armchair watching the fat thrushes hopping about the +lawn. + +Well, I am perched in a little hollow under a big grey boulder, which +serves to shelter me to a certain, but limited, extent from the brisk +showers that come sweeping over from the Lolab Valley. The hollow is so +small that it barely contains my tiffin basket, rifle, gun, and self--in +fact, my grass-shod and puttied extremities dangle over the rim, whence a +steep slope shelves down some 200 feet to a brawling burn, the hum of +which, mingling with the fitful sighing of the pines as the breeze sweeps +through their sounding boughs, is perpetually in my ears. Across the +little torrent, and not more than a hundred yards away, rises a slope, +covered with rough grass and scrub, similar to that in the face of which I +am ensconced. + +Here the bear was seen at 7 A.M. by a Gujar, who gave the fullest +particulars to Ahmed Bot (my shikari) in a series of yells from a hill-top +as we came up the valley. We arrived on the scene about seven, just in +time to be too late, apparently. It is now 3 P.M., and the bear is +supposed to be asleep, and I am possessing my soul in patience until it +shall be Bruin's pleasure to awake and sally forth for his afternoon tea. + +There is certainly no bear now, so I pass the time in sleeping, eating, +smoking, writing, and observing the manners and customs of a family of +monkeys who are disporting themselves in a deep glen to the left. Beyond +this ravine rises a high spur, beautifully wooded, the principal trees +being deodar, blue pine (_Excelsa_) and yew. This is sloped at the +invariable and disgusting angle of 45 degrees. Beyond it rise further +wooded slopes, with snow gleaming through the deep green, and above all is +the changing sky, where the clear blue gives way to a billowy expanse of +white rolling clouds or dark rain-laden masses, which pour into the upper +clefts of the ravine, and blot out the serried ranks of the pines, until a +thorough drenching seems inevitable--when lo! a glint of blue through the +gloomy background, and soon again, + + "With never a stain, the pavilion of Heaven is bare." + +The immediate foreground, as I said before, slopes sharply from my very +feet, where a clump of wild sage and jasmin (the leaves just breaking) +grows over a charming little bunch of sweet violets. Lower down I can see +the lilac flowers of a self-heal, and the bottom of the little gorge is +clothed with a bush like a hazel, only with large, soft whitish flowers. + +My solitude has just been enlivened by the appearance of a cheerful party +of lovely birds. They are very busy among the "hazels," flying from bush +to bush with restless activity, and wasting no time in idleness. They are +about the size of large finches--slender in shape, with longish tails. +They are divided into two perfectly distinct kinds, probably male and +female. The former have the back, head, and wings black; the latter barred +with scarlet, the breast and underparts also scarlet. The others--which I +assume to be the females--replace the black with ashy olive, the wings +being barred with yellow, the underparts yellowish. The very familiar note +of the cuckoo, somewhere up in the jungle, reminds me of an English spring. + +4 P.M.--I knew it! I knew that if the wind held down the nullah I should +be dragged up that horrible ridge opposite. Hardly had I written the above +when I was hunted from my lair, and rushed down 200 steep feet, and then +up some 500 or 600 on the other side of the stream, through an abattis of +clinging undergrowth that made a severe toil of what could never have been +a pleasure. There can be no doubt but that a pith helmet--a really shady, +broad one--is a most infernal machine under which to force one's way +through brushwood. + +Well, all things come to an end--wind first, temper next, and finally the +journey. + +My shikari is a fiend in human shape. He slinks along on the flat at what +_looks_ like a mild three-miles-an-hour constitutional, but unless you are +a _real_ four-mile man you will be left hopelessly astern; but when he +gets upon his favourite "one in one" slope, then does he simply sail away, +with the tiffin coolie carrying a fat basket and all your spare lumber in +his wake, while you toil upward and ever upwards--gasping--until with your +last available breath you murmur "Asti," and sink upon the nearest stone a +limp, perspiring worm! + +5.30 P.M.--That bear has taken a sleeping draught! + +I am now perched on a lonely rock, my hard taskmaster having routed me out +of a very comfortable place under a blue pine, whose discarded needles +afforded me a really agreeable resting-place, and dragged me away down +again through the pine forest and jungle; hurried me across a roaring +torrent on a fallen tree trunk; personally conducted me hastily up a place +like the roof of a house; and finally, explaining that the bear, when +disturbed, must inevitably come close past me, has departed with his staff +(the chota shikari, the tiffin coolie, and a baboon-faced native) to wake +up the bear and send him along. + +After the first flurry of feeling all alone in the world, with only a +probable bear for society, and having loaded all my guns, clasped my visor +on my head and my Bessemer hug-proof strait-waistcoat round my "tummy," I +felt calm enough to await events with equanimity. + +6.15 P.M.--A large and solemn monkey is sitting on the top of a thick and +squat yew tree regarding me with unfeigned interest. The torrent is +roaring away in the cleft below. Nothing else seems alive, and I am +becoming bored----What? A bear? No! The shikari, thank goodness! + +"Well, shikari--Baloo dekho hai?" No, it is passing strange, but he has +_not_ seen a bear. "All right! Pick up the blunderbuss, and let us make +tracks for the ship." + +_Wednesday, May_ 10.--Beguiled by legends of many bears, detailed to me +with apparently heartfelt sincerity by Ahmed Bot, I have been pursuing +these phantoms industriously. + +On Monday we quitted our boat, and started upon a trip into the Lolab +Valley. The views, as the path wound up the green and flower-spangled +slope, were very beautiful, and, when we had ascended about 1500 feet and +were about opposite to the supposed haunt of Saturday's bear, we +determined to camp and enjoy the scenery, not omitting an evening +expedition in search of our shy friend. + +Jane joining me, we had a most charming ramble down a narrow track to the +bed of the stream which rushes down from the snow-covered ridge guarding +the Lolab. Here we crossed into a splendid belt of gaunt silver firs, the +first I have seen here; whitish yellow marsh-marigolds and a most vivid +"smalt" blue forget-me-not with large flowers were abundant, also an +oxalis very like our own wood-sorrel. + +Emerging from the pines, we crossed a grassy slope covered with tall +primulas (P. _denticulata_) of varying shades of mauve and lilac, and sat +down for a bit among the flowers while the shikaris looked for game. (I +need hardly remark that the noble but elusive beast had appeared on the +scene shortly after I left on Saturday; a Gujar told the shikari, and the +shikari told me, so it must be true.) When we had gathered as many flowers +as we could carry, we strolled back to the camp to watch the sunset +transmute the snowy crest of Haramok to a golden rose. + +Yesterday, Tuesday, I left the camp at dawn, and went all over the same +ground, but with no better success, only seeing a couple of bara singh, +hornless now, and therefore comparatively uninteresting from a "shikar" +point of view. After a delightful but bearless ramble I returned to +breakfast, and then we struck camp, and completed the ascent of the pass +over into the Lolab. Arrived at the top, we turned off the path to the +right, and, climbing a short way, came out upon the lower part of the +Nagmarg, a pretty, open clearing among the pines where the grass, dotted +thickly with yellow colchicum, was only showing here and there through the +melting snow. Choosing a snug and dry place on some sun-warmed rocks at +the foot of a tree, we prepared to lunch and laze, and soon spread abroad +the contents of the tiffin basket. + +There is something, nay much, of charm in the utter freedom and solitude +of Kashmir camp life. There is no beaten track to be followed diligently +by the tourist, German, American, or British, guide-book in hand and guide +at elbow. No empty sardine-tins, nor untidy scraps of paper, mar the clean +and lonely margs or village camping-grounds. + +The happy wanderer, selecting a grassy dell or convenient shady tree with +a clear spring or dancing rivulet near by, invokes the tiffin coolie, and +if a duly watchful eye has been kept upon that incorrigible sluggard, in +short space the contents of the basket deck the sward. What have we here? +Yes, of course, cold chicken-- + + "For beef is rare within these oxless isles." + +Bread! (how lucky we sent that coolie into Srinagar the other day). Butter, +nicely stowed in its little white jar, cheese-cakes (one of the Sabz Ali's +masterpieces), and a few unconsidered trifles in the form of "jam pups" +and a stick of chocolate. + +Whisky is there, if required, but really the cold spring water is +"delicate to drink" without spirituous accompaniment. + +Hunger appeased, the beauty of the surrounding scenery becomes intensified +when seen through the balmy veil of smoke caused by the consumption of a +mild cheroot, and peace and contentment reign while we feed the sprightly +crows with chicken bones and bits of cheese rind. + +Shall we ever forget--Jane and I--that simple feast on the Nagmarg? + +The sloping snow melting into little rills which trickled through the +fresh-springing flower-strewn grass; the extraordinary blue of the +hillsides overlooking the Lolab Valley seen through the sloping boughs of +the pines; the crows hopping audaciously around or croaking on a dried +branch just above our heads; and above all, the glorious sense of freedom, +of aloofness from all disturbing elements, of utter and irresponsible +independence in a lovely land unspoiled by hand of man? + +The afternoon sun smote us full in the face as we descended the bare and +not too smooth path that led into the valley, and we were right glad to +reach the shade of a grove of deodars that covered the lower slopes of the +hill. The Lolab Valley, into which we had now penetrated, is a rich and +picturesque expanse of level plain, some fifteen miles long by three or +four broad, apparently completely surrounded by a densely-wooded curtain +of mountains, rising to an elevation of some 3000 feet above the valley on +the south and west, but ranging on the other sides up into the lofty +summits which bar the route into Gurais and the Tilail. The mountain chain +is not really continuous, the river Pohru, which drains the valley, +finding outlet to the west e'er it bends sharply to the south and enters +the Wular near Sopor. + +Perhaps the most noticeable objects in the Lolab are the walnut trees; +they are now just coming into full leaf, and their great trunks, hoary +with age and softly velveted with dark green moss, form the noble columns +of many a lovely camping-ground. We pitched our tents at Lalpura in a +grove of giants, the majesty of which formed an exquisite contrast to the +white foam of a cluster of apple trees in bloom. + +It has been so hot to-day that we have stayed quietly in camp, reading, +sketching, and enjoying the _dolce far niente_ of an idle life. + +_Sunday, May_ 14.--On Thursday we left Lalpura and marched to Kulgam, a +short distance of some eight or ten miles. Mr. Blunt, the forest +officer,[1] had most kindly placed the forest bungalows of the Lolab at +our disposal; but, as they all lie on the other side of the valley, we are +obliged to camp every night. We have been working along the north side +of the Lolab, as the shikari is full of bear "khubbar," and as long as the +weather remains fair we really do not much care where we go! Skirting the +foot of the wooded ridge on our right, and with the flat and populous +levels of the valley on our left, we marched along a good path shaded in +many places by the magnificent walnuts and snowy fruit-trees for which the +Lolab is justly famed, until, crossing the Pohru by a rickety bridge, and +toiling up a hot, bare slope, we reached Kulgam, nestling at the foot of +the hills. + +After tiffin and a short rest we set forth up the nullah behind the +village to look for (need I say?) a bear. The gradient was stiff, as usual, +and the path none too good. Feeling that our laborious climb deserved to +be rewarded by, at any rate, the sight of game, and Ahmed Bot having sent +a special message to the Lumbadhar at Kulgam directing him to keep the +nullah quiet, we were justly incensed when, having toiled up some couple +of thousand weary feet, we met a gay party of the _élite_ of Kulgam +prancing down the hill with blankets stuffed with wild leeks, or some such +delicacy. + +Ahmed Bot showed reckless courage. Having overwhelmed the enemy with a +vituperative broadside, he fell upon them single-handed, tore from them +their cherished blankets, and spilt the leeks to the four winds. + +I expected nothing less than to be promptly hurled down the khud, with +Jill after me, by the six enraged burghers of Kulgam. But no. They simply +sat down together on a rock, and blubbered loud and long; we sat down +opposite them on another rock and laughed, and laughed--tableau! + +On Friday I went for a delightful walk through the pine and deodar forests, +the ostensible objective being, of course, a bear. Putting aside all ideas +of sport, I gave myself up to the simple joy of mere existence in such a +land; noting a handsome iris with broad red lilac blooms, which I had not +seen before; listening to the intermittent voice of the cuckoo, and +pausing every here and there to gaze over the fair valley, backed by its +encircling ranges of sunlit mountains. + +The chota shikari is a youth of great activity, both mental and physical. +He almost wept with excitement on observing the mark of a bear's paw on a +dusty bit of path. He said it was a bear which had left that paw-mark, so +I believed him. Late in the dusk of the afternoon he _saw_ a bear sitting +looking out of a cave. I could only make out a black hole, but he saw its +ears move. I regarded the spot with a powerful telescope, but only saw +more hole; still, I cannot doubt the chota shikari. The burra shikari saw +it too, but was of opinion that it was too late to go and bag it. I think +he was right, so we went back to camp without further adventure. + +Yesterday we left Kulgam, and followed up a track to a small village which +lies at the foot of the track leading over to Gurais and the Tilail +country. Here we camped in a grove of walnuts, which stood by an icy +spring. Jane and I went for a stroll, watched a couple of small +woodpeckers hunting the trunk of a young fir within a few feet of us, but +retreated hurriedly to camp on the approach of a heavy thunderstorm. This +was but the prelude to a bad break in the weather; all to-day it has +rained in torrents, and everything is sopping and soaked. The little +stream which yesterday trickled by the camp is become a young river, and +it is a perfect mystery how Sabz Ali manages to cook our food over a fire +guarded from the full force of the rain by blankets propped up with sticks, +and how, having cooked it, he can bring it, still hot, across the twenty +yards of rain-swept space which intervenes between the cook-house and our +tent. + +_Monday, May_ 15.--The deluge continued all night, and only at about ten +o'clock this forenoon did the heavy curtain of rain break up into ragged +swirls of cloud, which, torn by the serrated ridges of the gloomy pines, +rolled dense and dark up the gorges, resonant now with the roar of +full-fed torrents. + +The men are all beginning to complain of fever, and have eaten up a great +quantity of quinine. Considering the dismal conditions under which they +have been living for the last couple of days, this is not surprising; so, +with the first promise of an improvement in the weather, we struck camp, +determined to make for the forest bungalow at Doras and obtain the shelter +of a solid roof. Many showers, but no serious downpour, enlivened our +march, and we arrived at the snug little wooden house just in time to +escape a particularly fine specimen of a thunderstorm. The Doras bungalow +seemed a very palace of luxury, with its dry, airy rooms and wide verandah, +all of sweet-smelling deodar wood. The men, too, were thankful to have a +good roof over their heads, and we heard no more of fever. + +_Wednesday, May_ 17.--Yesterday it rained without ceasing, until the +valley in front of us took the appearance of a lake--A party of terns, +white above and with black breasts, skirled and wrangled over the "casual" +water. It was still very wet this morning, but as it cleared somewhat +after breakfast, we made up our minds to quit the Lolab and get back to +our boat. + +Doras has sad memories for Jane, for here died the "chota murghi," a black +chicken endowed with the most affectionate disposition. It was permitted +to sit on the lady's knee, and scratch its yellow beak with its little +yellow claw; but I never cared to let it remain long upon my shoulder--a +perch it ardently affected. Well! it is dead, poor dear, and whether from +shock (the pony which carried its basket having fallen down with it _en +route_ from "Walnut Camp"), or from a surfeit of caterpillars which were +washed in myriads off the trees there, we cannot tell. Sabz Ali brought +the little corpse along, holding it by one pathetic leg to show the +horrified Jane, before giving it to the kites and crows. He has many +"murghis" left; baskets full, as he says, for they are cheap in the Lolab, +but we shall never love another so dearly. + +We had a shocking time while climbing to the pass which leads over to +Rampur, the road being deep in slimy mud, and so slippery that the +unfortunate baggage ponies could hardly get along. Jane, who is in +splendid condition now, toiled nobly up a track which would have been +delightful had the weather been a little less hideous. + +Reaching the ridge which divides the Lolab from the Pohru Valley, we +turned to the left, along the edge, instead of descending forthwith, as we +had hoped and expected to do. It was raw and cold, with flying wreaths of +damp mist shutting out the view, and we were glad of a comforting tiffin, +swallowed somewhat hurriedly, under a forlorn and stunted specimen of a +blue pine. Then on along a rough and slippery catwalk that made us wonder +if the baggage ponies would achieve a safe arrival at Rampur. + +Crossing a steep, rock-strewn ridge, covered with crown imperial in full +flower, we began a sharp descent through a wood of deodars; and now the +thunder, which had been grumbling and rumbling in the distance, came upon +us, and a deafening peal sent us scurrying down the hill at our best pace; +the lightning-blasted trunks stretching skywards their blackened and +tempest-torn limbs in ghastly witness of what had been and what might be +again. + +At last we cleared the wood, and, plunging across a perfect slough of deep +mud, crawled on to the verandah of the Rampur forest-house, where we sat +anxiously watching the hillside until we saw our faithful ponies safely +sliding down the hill. + +_Thursday, May_ 18.--The changes of weather in this country are sudden and +surprising. This morning we woke to a perfect day--the sun bathing the +warm hillsides, the picturesque brown village, and the brilliant masses of +snowy blossoming fruit-trees with a radiant smile. And, but for the +tell-tale riot of the streams and the sponginess of the compound, there +was nothing to betray the past misdeeds of the clerk of the weather. + +At noon we set out to cover the short distance that lay between us and +Kunis, where we had made tryst with Satarah. The country was like a series +of English woodland glades--watered by many purling streams, and bright +with masses of apple blossom; the turf around the trees all white and pink +with petals torn from the branches by the recent storms. Clumps of fir +clothed the hills with sombre green--a perfect background to a perfect +picture. + +The flowers all along our path to-day were much in evidence after the rain. +Little prickly rose-bushes (_R. Webbiana_) were covered with pink blossoms +just bursting into full glory; bushes of white may, yellow berberis, +Daphne (_Oleoides?_), and many another flowering shrub grew in tangled +profusion, while pimpernel (red and blue), a small androsace +(_rotundifolia_), hawks-bit, stork's bill, wild geranium, a tiny mallow, +eye-bright, forget-me-not, a little yellow oxalis, a speedwell, and many +another, to me unknown, blossom starred the roadside. In the fields round +Kunis the poppies flared, and the iris bordered the fields with a ribbon +of royal purple. + +We reached Kunis at two o'clock, and found the village half submerged, the +water being up and over the low shores from the recent rain. Our boats +were moored in a clump of willows, whose feet stood so deeply in the water +that we had to embark on pony-back! After lunch came the usual difference +of opinion with the Admiral, who seems to have great difficulty in +grasping the fact that our will is law as to times and seasons for sailing. +He always assumes the rôle of passive resister, and is always defeated +with ignominy. He insisted that it was too late to think of reaching +Bandipur, but we maintained that we could get at any rate part of the way; +so he cast off from his willow-tree, and sulkily poked and poled out into +the Wular, taking uncommon good care to hug the shore with fervour. + +Here and there a group of willows standing far out into the lake, or a +half-drowned village, drove us out into the open water, and once when, +like a latter-day Vasco de Gama, the Admiral was striving to double the +dreadful promontory of a water-logged fence, a puff of wind fell upon us, +lashing the smooth water into ripples, whereupon the crew lost their wits +with fright, and the lady mariners in the cook-boat set up a dismal +howling; the ark, taking charge, crashed through the fence, her way +carrying us to the very door of a frontier villa of an amphibious village. +With amazing alacrity the crew tied us up to the door-post, and prepared +to go into winter quarters. + +This did not suit us at all, and + + "The harmless storm being ended," + +we ruthlessly broke away from our haven of refuge, and safely arrived at +Alsu. + +_Friday, May_ 19.--An ominous stillness and repose at 3 o'clock this +morning sent me forth to see why the windlass was not being manned. A +thing like a big grey bat flapping about, proved, on inspection, to be +that rascal the Lord High Admiral Satarah. He said he could not start, as +the hired coolies from Kunis had been so terrified by the horrors of +yesterday that they had departed in the night, sacrificing their pay +rather than run any more risks with such daredevils as the mem-sahib and +me. This was vexatious and entirely unexpected, as I had never before +known a coolie to bolt before pay-day. Sabz Ali and Satarah were promptly +despatched on a pressgang foray, while I put to sea with the +first-lieutenant to show that I meant business. A crew was found in a +surprisingly short time, and a frenzied dart was made for the mouth of the +Jhelum. + +All day we poled round the shore of the lake, over flooded fields where +the mustard had spread its cloth of gold a short week ago, over the very +hedges we had scrambled through when duck-shooting in April, until in the +evening we entered the river just below Sumbal. + +The towing-path was almost, in many places quite, under water, and the +whole country looked most forlorn and melancholy as the sun went down--a +pale yellow ball in a pale yellow haze. + +_Sunday, May_ 21.--All yesterday we towed up the river against a current +which ran swift and strong. + +The passage of the bridge at Surahal gave us some trouble, as the flooded +river brought our upper works within a narrow distance of the highest +point of the span, but we finally scraped through with the loss of a +portion of the railing which decorated our upper deck. + +The strain of towing was severe, so, when a brisk squall and threatening +thunder-shower overtook us at the mouth of the Sind River, we decided to +tie up there for the night. + +This morning we started at four o'clock, but only reached our berth at +Srinagar at two, having spent no less than six hours in forcing the boats +by pole and rope for the last three miles through the town! An incredible +amount of panting, pushing, yelling, and hauling, with frantic invocations +to "Jampaws" and other saints, was required to enable us to crawl inch by +inch against the racing water which met us in the narrow canal below the +Palace. + +All's well that ends well, and here we are once more in Srinagar, after a +trip which has been really delightful, albeit the weather latterly has not +been by any means all that could have been desired, and we have slain no +bears![2] + + +[1] Commonly called the "Jungly-sahib." + +[2] Can it be that Bernier was right? "Il ne s'y trouve ni serpens, ni + tigres, ni ours, ni lions, si ce n'est très rarement."--_Voyage de + Kachemire_. + + + +CHAPTER IX + +SRINAGAR AGAIN + +We have spent the last three weeks or so quietly in Srinagar, our boats +forming links in the long chain that, during the "season," extends for +miles along both banks of the river. A large contingent of amphibians +dwells in the canal leading to the Dal gates, and the Chenar Bagh, sacred +to the bachelor, shows not a spare inch along its shady length. + +Not being either professional globe-trotters or Athenians, we have not +felt obliged to be perpetually in high-strung pursuit of some new thing; +and to the seeker after mild and modest enjoyment there is much to be said +in favour of a sojourn at Srinagar. + +Polo, gymkhanas, lawn-tennis, picnics, and golf are everyday occurrences, +followed by a rendezvous at the club, where every one congregates for a +smoke and chat, until the sun goes down behind the poplars, and the swift +shikaras come darting over the stream like water-beetles to carry off the +sahibs to their boats, to dress, dine, and reassemble for "bridge," or +perhaps a dance at Nedou's Hotel, or at that most hospitable hub of +Srinagar, the Residency. + +Polo is, naturally, practically restricted to the man who brings up his +ponies from the Punjab, but golf is for all, and the nine-hole course, +although flat, is not stale, and need not be unprofitable, unless you are +fallen upon--as I was--by two stalwart Sappers, sons of Canada and potent +wielders of the cleek, who gave me enough to do to keep my rupees in my +pocket and the honour of the mother country upheld! + +On May 26th we took shikara and paddled across the Dal Lake to see +something of the Mohammedan festival, consisting in a pilgrimage to the +Mosque of Hasrat Bal, where a hair of the prophet's beard is the special +object of adoration. + +As we neared the goal the plot thickened. Hundreds of boats--from enormous +doungas containing the noisy inhabitants of, I should suppose, a whole +village, down to the tiniest shikara, whose passenger was perched with +careful balance to retain a margin of safety to his two inches of +freeboard--converged upon the crowded bank, above which rose the mosque. + +How can I best attempt to describe the din, the crush, the light, the +colour? Was it like Henley? Well, perhaps it might be considered as a mad, +fantastic Henley. Replace the fair ladies and the startling "blazers" with +veiled houris and their lords clad in all colours of the rainbow; for one +immortal "Squash" put hundreds of "squashes," all playing upon weird +instruments, or singing in "a singular minor key"; let the smell of +outlandish cookery be wafted to you from the "family" boats and from the +bivouacs on the shore; let a constant uproar fall upon your ears as when +the Hall defeats Third Trinity by half a length; and, finally, for the +flat banks of Father Thames and the trim lawns of Phyllis Court, you must +substitute the Nasim Bagh crowned with its huge chenars, and Mahadco +looking down upon you from his thirteen thousand feet of precipice and +snow. + +Half-an-hour of this kaleidoscopic whirl of gaiety satisfied us. The sun, +in spite of an awning, was a little trying, so we sought the quiet and +shade of the Nasim Bagh for lunch and repose. + +Returning towards Srinagar about sundown, we stopped to visit the ancient +Mosque of Hassanabad, which stands on a narrow inlet or creek of the Dal +Lake, shaded by chenars and willows in all their fresh spring green. A +little lawn of softest turf slopes up gently to the ruined mosque, of +which a portion of an apse and vaulted dome alone stand sentinel over its +fallen greatness. Around lie the tombs of princes, whose bones have +mouldered for eight hundred years under the irises, which wave their green +sabres crowned with royal purple in the whispering twilight. + +Near by, the mud and timber walls of a ziarat stand, softly brown, +supporting a deeply overhanging, grass-grown roof, blazing with scarlet +tulips. Through its very centre, and as though supporting it, pierces the +gnarled trunk of a walnut tree, reminding one of Ygdrasil, the Upholder of +the Universe. + +_May_ 27.--What an improvement it would be if a house-dounga could be +fitted with torpedo netting! Jane finds herself in the most embarrassing +situations, while dressing in the morning, from the unwelcome pertinacity +of the merchants who swarm up the river in the early hours from their +lairs, and lay themselves alongside the helpless house-boats. + +By 10 A.M. we have to repel boarders in all directions. Mr. Sami Joo is +endeavouring to sell boots from the bow, while Guffar Ali is pressing +embroidery on our acceptance from the stern. Ali Jan is in a boat full of +carved-wood rubbish on the starboard side, while Samad Shah, Sabhana, and +half-a-dozen other robbers line the river bank opposite our port windows +and clamour for custom. A powerful garden-hose of considerable calibre +might be useful, but for the present I have given Sabz Ali orders to rig +out long poles, which will prevent the enemy from so easily getting to +close quarters. + +_June_ 17.--It is quite curious that it should be so difficult to find +time to keep up this journal. Mark Twain, in that best of burlesques, _The +Innocents Abroad_ affirms, if I remember rightly, that you could not +condemn your worst enemy to greater suffering than to bind him down to +keep an accurate diary for a year. + +It is the inexorable necessity for writing day by day one's impressions +that becomes so trying; and yet it must be done daily if it is to be done +at all, for the only virtue I can attain to in writing is truth; and +impressions from memory, like sketches from memory, are of no value from +the hand of any but a master. + +The time set apart for diary-writing is the hour which properly intervenes +between chota hasri and the announcement of my bath; but, somehow, there +never seems to be very much time. Either the early tea is late or bath is +early, or a shikar expedition, with a grass slipper in pursuit of flies, +takes up the precious moments, and so the business of the day gets all +behindhand. + +The fly question is becoming serious. Personally, I do not consider that +fleas, mosquitoes, or any other recognised insect pests (excepting, +perhaps, harvest bugs) are so utterly unendurable as the "little, busy, +thirsty fly." It seems odd, too, as he neither stings nor bites, that he +should be so objectionable; but his tickly method of walking over your +nose or down your neck, and the exasperating pertinacity with which he +refuses to take "no" for an answer when you flick him delicately with a +handkerchief, but "cuts" and comes again, maddens you until you rise, +bloody-minded in your wrath, and, seizing the nearest sledgehammer, fall +upon the brute as he sits twiddling his legs in a sunny patch on the table, +then lo-- + + "Unwounded from the dreadful close "-- + +he frisks cheerfully away, leaving you to gather up cursefully the +fragments of the china bowl your wife bought yesterday in the bazaar! + +How he manages to congregate in his legions in this ship is a mystery. +Every window is guarded by "meat safe" blinds of wire gauze; the doors are, +normally, kept shut; and yet, after one has swept round like an irate +whirlwind with a grass slipper, and slain or desperately wounded every +visible fly in the cabin, and at last sat down again to pant and paint, +hoping for surcease from annoyance, not five minutes pass before one, two, +nay, a round dozen of the miscreants are gaily licking the moisture off +the cobalt (may they die in agony!), or trying to swim across the glass of +water, or playing hop-scotch on the nape of my neck. + +From what mysterious lair or hidden orifice they come I know not, but here +they are in profusion until another massacre of the innocents is decreed. + +It is a sound thing to go round one's sleeping-cabin at night before +"turning in," and make a bag of all that can be found "dreaming the happy +hours away" on the bulkheads and ceiling. It sends us to bed in the +virtuous frame of mind of the Village Blacksmith-- + + "Something attempted, something done, + Has earned a night's repose" + +There are other microbes besides flies in Kashmir which are +exasperating--coolies, for instance. + +I had engaged men through Chattar Singh (the State Transport factotum at +Srinagar) to take us up the river, and decreed that we should start at +4 A.M. yesterday. + +We had been to an _al fresco_ gathering at the Residency the night before, +and so were rather sleepy in the early morning, and I did not wake at four +o'clock. At six we had not got far on our way, and at ten we were but +level with Pandrettan, barely three miles from Srinagar as the crow (that +model of rectilinear volition) flies. + +I was busy painting all the forenoon, and failed to note the sluggish +steps of our coolies, but in the afternoon it was borne in upon us that if +we wanted to reach Avantipura that night, as we had arranged, a little +acceleration was necessary. + +Then the trouble began. The coolies were bone-lazy, the admiral and +first-lieutenant were sulky, and the weather was stuffy and threatened +thunder--the conditions were altogether detrimental to placidity of +temper. + +By sunset we had the shikari, the kitchen-maid, and the sweeper on the +tow-rope, and even the great and good Sabz Ali was seen to bear a hand in +poling. Much recrimination now ensued between Sabz Ali and the Admiral, +and the whole crowd made the air resound with Kashmiri "language," every +one, apparently, abusing everybody else, and making very nasty remarks +about their lady ancestors. + +At 10 P.M. I got four more coolies from a village, apparently chiefly +inhabited by dogs, who deeply resented our proximity, and at 2 o'clock +this morning we reached the haven where we would be--Avantipura. + +This morning I discharged the Srinagar coolies and took a fresh lot, who +pull better and talk less. + +How differently things may be put and yet the truth retained. Yesterday we +reclined at our ease in our cosy floating cottage, towed up the lovely +river by a picturesque crew of bronze Kashmiris, the swish of the passing +water only broken by their melodious voices. The brilliancy of the morning +gave way in the afternoon to a soft haze which fell over the snowy ranges, +mellowing their clear tones to a soft and pearly grey, while the +reflections of the big chenars which graced the river bank deepened us the +afternoon shadows lengthened and spread over the wide landscape. Towards +evening we strolled along the river bank plucking the ripe mulberries, and +idly watching the terns and kingfishers busily seeking their suppers over +the glassy water; and at night we sat on deck while the moon rose higher +in the quiet sky, and the dark river banks assumed a clearer ebony as she +rose above the lofty fringe of trees, until the towing-path lay a track of +pure silver reaching away to the dim belt of woodland which shrouded +Avantipura. + +That is a perfectly accurate description of the day, and so is this:-- + +It was very hot--and there is nothing hid from the heat of the sun on +board a wooden house-dounga. The flies, too, were unusually malevolent, +and I could scarcely paint, and my wife could hardly read by reason of +their unwelcome attentions. + +The coolies were a poor lot and a slack, and as the day grew stuffier and +sultrier so did their efforts on the tow-path become "small by degrees and +beautifully less." + +That irrepressible bird--the old cock--refused to consider himself as +under arrest in his hen-coop, and insisted upon crowing about fifteen +times a minute with that fidgeting irregularity which seems peculiar to +certain unpleasant sounds, and which retains the ear fixed in nervous +tension for the next explosion of defiance or pride, or whatever evil +impulse it is which causes a cock to crow. + +Driven overboard by the cock, and a feeling that exercise would be +beneficial, we landed in the afternoon, and plodded along the bank for +some miles. The innumerable mulberry trees are loaded with ripe fruit, the +ground below being literally black with fallen berries. We ate some, and +pronounced them to be but mawkish things. + +After dinner we sat on deck, as the lamp smelt too strongly to let us +enjoy ourselves in the cabin, and the coolies on the bank and the people +in our boat and those in the cook-boat engaged in a triangular duel of +words, until the last few grains of my patience ran through the glass, and +I spake with _my_ tongue. + +There is certainly some curious quality in the air of this country which +affects the nerves: maybe it is the elevation at which one lives--certain +it is that many people complain of unwonted irritability and +susceptibility to petty annoyances. And, while travelling in Kashmir is +easy and comfortable enough along beaten tracks, yet the petty worries +connected with all matters of transport and supply are incessant, and +become much more serious if one cannot speak or understand Hindustani. + +It takes some little time for the Western mind to grasp the fact that the +Kashmiri cannot and must not be treated on the "man and brothel" principle. + +He is by nature a slave, and his brain is in many respects the undeveloped +brain of a child; in certain ways, however, his outward childishness +conceals the subtlety of the Heathen Chinee. + +He has in no degree come to comprehend the dignity of labour any more than +a Poplar pauper comprehends it, but fortunately his Guardians, while +granting certain advantages in his tenure of land and payment of rent, +have bound him, in return, to work for a fair payment, when required to do +so by his Government, as exercised by the local Tehsildhar. + +The demand made upon a village for coolies is not, therefore, an arbitrary +and high-handed system of bullying, but simply a call upon the villages to +fulfil their obligation towards the State by doing a fair day's work for a +fair day's pay of from four to six annas. + +I do not, of course, propose to entangle myself in the working of the Land +Settlement, which is most fully and admirably explained in Lawrence's +_Valley of Kashmir_. + +The coolie, drawn from his native village reluctant, like a periwinkle +from its shell, is never a good starter, and when he finds himself at the +end of a tow-rope or bowed beneath half a hundredweight of the sahib's +trinkets, with a three-thousand-feet pass to attain in front of him, he is +extremely apt to burst into tears--idle tears--or be overcome by a fit of +that fell disease--"the lurgies." Lest my reader should not be acquainted +with this illness, at least under that name, here is the diagnosis of the +lurgies as given by a very ordinary seaman to the ship's doctor. + +"Well, sir, I eats well, and I sleeps well; but when I've got a job of +work to do--Lor' bless you, sir! I breaks out all over of a tremble!" + + + +CHAPTER X + +THE LIDAR VALLEY + +We were glad enough to leave Srinagar, as that place has been undoubtedly +trying lately, being extremely hot and relaxing. The river, which had been +up to the fourteen-foot level, as shown on the gate ports at the entrance +to the Sunt-i-kul Canal, had fallen to 9-1/2 feet, and the mud, exposed +both on its banks and in the fields and flats which had been flooded, must +have given out unwholesome exhalations, of which the riverine population, +the dwellers in house-boats and doungas, got the full benefit. + +Jane has certainly been anything but well lately, and I confess to a +certain feeling best described as "slack and livery." + +We had not intended to remain nearly so long in Srinagar, but the +continuity of the chain of entertainments proved too firm to break, and +dances and dinners, bridge and golf, kept us bound from day to day, until +the _fête_ at the Residency on the 15th practically brought the Srinagar +season to a close, and broke up the line of house-boats that had been +moored along both banks of the river. + +We had arranged to start with a party of three other boats up the river, +visiting Atchibal with our friends, and then going up the Lidar Valley, +while they retraced their way to Srinagar. + +The most popular bachelor in Kashmir was appointed commodore, and deputed +to set the pace and arrange rendezvous. He began by sending on his big +house-boat, dragged by many coolies, to Pampur, a distance of some ten +miles by water, and, following himself on horseback by road, instituted a +sort of "Devil take the hindmost" race, for which we were not prepared. + +On reaching Pampur we heard that the "Baltic Fleet" had sailed for +Avantipura, so we followed on; but, alas! having made a forced march to +this latter place, we found that Rodjestvenski Phelps had again escaped us +and "gone before." + +We consigned him and the elusive "chota resident," who was in command of +the rest of the party, to perdition, and decided to pursue the even tenor +of our way to the Lidar Valley. + +The upper reaches of the Jhelum tire not wildly or excitingly lovely. The +narrowed waters, like sweet Thames, run softly between quiet British banks, +willow veiled. The wide level flats of the lower river give place to low +sloping hills or "karewas," which fall in terraced undulations from the +foothills of the higher ranges which close in the eastern extremity of the +Kashmir Valley. + +It was well into the evening, and the sun had just set, throwing a +glorious rosy flush over the snows which surround the Lidar Valley, when +we came to the picturesque bridge which crosses the stream at Bejbehara. + +The scene here was charming--a grand festa or religious tamasha being +toward; the whole river was swarming with boats--great doungas, with their +festive crews yelling a monotonous chant, paddled uproariously by. Light +shikaras darted in and out, making up for want of volume in their song by +the piercing shrillness of their utterances. The banks and bridge teemed +with swarming life, and all Kashmir seemed to have contributed its +noisiest members to the revel. + +Beyond the bridge we could see through the gathering dusk many house-boats +of the sahibs clustering under a group of magnificent chenars, over whose +dark masses the moon was just rising, full orbed. The piers of the bridge +seemed to be set in foliage, large willows having grown up from their +bases, giving a most curious effect. We marked with some apprehension the +swiftness of the oily current which came swirling round the piers, and +soon we found ourselves stuck fast about half-way under the bridge, +apparently unable to force our boat another inch against the stream which +boiled past. An appalling uproar was caused by the coolies and the +unemployed upon the bridge, who all, as usual, gave unlimited advice to +every one else as to the proper management of affairs under the existing +circumstances, but did nothing whatever in support of their theories. The +situation was becoming quite interesting, and the "mem-sahib" and I, +sitting on the roof of our boat, were speculating as to what would happen +next when the Gordian knot was cut by the unexpected energy and courage of +the first-lieutenant, who boldly slapped an argumentative coolie in the +face, while the admiral dashed promiscuously into the shikara, +and--yelling "Hard-a-starboard!--Full speed ahead!--Sit on the +safety--valve!"--boldly shot into an overhanging mulberry tree, wherein +our tow-rope was much entangled. The rope was cleared, the crew poled +like fury, the coolies hauled for all they were worth, every one yelled +himself hoarse, and we forged ahead. We crashed under the mulberry tree, +which swept us from stem to stern, nearly carrying the hen-coop overboard; +while Jane and I lay flat under a perfect hail of squashy black fruit +which covered the upper deck. + +We went on shore for a moonlight stroll after dinner. The place was like a +glorified English park; chenars of the first magnitude, taking the place +of oaks, rose from the short crisp turf, while a band of stately poplars +stood sentry on the river bank. Through blackest shadow and over patches +of moonlit sward we rambled till we came upon the ruins of a temple, of +which little was left but a crumbled heap of masonry in the middle of a +rectangular grassy hollow which had evidently been a tank, small detached +mounds, showing where the piers of a little bridge had stood, giving +access to the building from the bank. An avenue of chenars led straight to +the bridge, showing either the antiquity of the trees or the comparatively +modern date of the temple. + +_June 19_.--Yesterday afternoon we left Bejbehara, and went on to Kanbal, +the port of Islamabad. A hot and sultry day, oppressive and enervating to +all but the flies, which were remarkably energetic and lively. The river +below Islamabad is quite narrow, and hemmed in between high mudbanks. + +Here we found the "Baltic Fleet," but, knowing that our fugitive friends +must have already reached Atchibal, we held to our intention of going up +the Lidar. + +Having tied up to a remarkably smelly bank, which was just lofty enough to +screen our heated brows from any wandering breeze, we landed to explore. A +hot walk of a mile or so along a dusty, poplar-lined road brought us to +the town of Islamabad, which, however, concealed its beauties most +effectually in a mass of foliage. Although it ranks as the second town in +Kashmir, it can hardly be said to be more than a big village, even +allowing for its 9000 inhabitants, its picturesque springs, and its boast +of having been once upon a time the capital of the valley. The first +hundred yards of "city," consisting of a highly-seasoned bazaar paved with +the accumulated filth of ages, was enough to satisfy our thirst for +sight-seeing, and after a visit to the post-office we trudged back through +a most oppressive grey haze to the boat. Crowds of the _élite_ of the +neighbourhood were hastening into Islamabad, where the "tamasha," which we +came upon at Bejbehara, is to be continued to-morrow. + +We had a good deal of difficulty in getting transport for our expedition, +as the Assistant Resident and his party had, apparently, cleared the place +of available ponies and coolies. An appeal to the Tehsildhar was no use, +as that dignitary had gone to Atchibal in the Court train. However, a +little pressure applied to Lassoo, the local livery stablekeeper, produced +eight baggage ponies and a good-looking cream-coloured steed, with man's +saddle, for my wife. + +The syce, a jovial-looking little flat-faced fellow, was a native of +Ladakh. + +We made a fairly early start, getting off about six, and, having skirted +the town and passed the neat little Zenana Mission Hospital, we had a +pretty but uneventful march of some six miles to Bawan, where, under a big +chenar, we halted for the greater part of the day. + +Here let me point out that life is but a series of neglected opportunities. +We were within a couple of miles of Martand, the principal temple in +Kashmir, and we did not go to see it! I blush as I write this, knowing +that hereafter no well-conducted globe-trotter will own to my acquaintance, +and, indeed, the case requires explanation. Well, then, it was excessively +hot; we were both in bad condition, and I had ten miles more to march, so +we decided to visit Martand on our way down the valley. Alas! we came this +way no more. + +Little knowing how much we were missing, we sat contented in the shade +while the hot hours went by, merely strolling down to visit a sacred tank +full of cool green water and swarming with holy carp, which scrambled in a +solid mass for bits of the chupatty which Jane threw to them. + +A clear stream gushed out of a bank overhung by a tangle of wild plants. +To the left was a weird figure of the presiding deity, painted red, and +frankly hideous. + +We were truly sorry to feel obliged, at four o'clock, to leave Bawan with +its massy trees and abundance of clear running water, and step out into +the heat and glare of the afternoon. + +I found it a trying march. The road led along a fairly good track among +rice-fields, whence the sloping sun glinted its maddening reflection, but +here and there clumps of walnuts--the fruit just at the pickling +stage--cast a broad cool shadow, in which one lingered to pant and mop a +heated brow e'er plunging out again into the grievous white sunlight. + +The cavalcade was increased during the afternoon by the addition to our +numbers of a dog--a distinctly ugly, red-haired native sort of dog, +commonly called a pi-dog. He appeared, full of business--from nowhere in +particular--and his business appeared to be to go to Eshmakam with us. + +As we neared that place the road began to rise through the loveliest +woodland scenery--white roses everywhere in great bushes of foamy white, +and in climbing wreaths that drooped from the higher trees, wild indigo in +purple patches reminding one not a little of heather. Above the still +unseen village a big ziarat or monastery shone yellow in the sinking +sunlight, and overhead rose a rugged grey wall of strangely pinnacled +crags, outliers of the Wardwan, showing dusky blue in the clear-cut +shadows, and rose grey where the low sun caught with dying glory the +projecting peaks and bastions. + +In a sort of orchard of walnut trees, on short, clean, green grass, we +pitched our tents, and right glad was I to sit in a comfortable Roorkhee +chair and admire the preparations for dinner after a stiff day, albeit we +only "made good" some sixteen miles at most. + +_June_ 20.--A brilliant morning saw us off for Pahlgam, along a road which +was simply a glorified garden. Roses white and roses pink in wild +profusion, jasmin both white and yellow, wild indigo, a tall and very +handsome spiraea, forget-me-not, a tiny sort of Michaelmas daisy, wild +strawberry, and honeysuckle, among many a (to me unknown) blossom, clothed +the hillside or drooped over the bank of the clear stream, by whose +flower-spangled margin lay our path, where, as in Milton's description of +Eden, + + "Each beauteous flower, + Iris all hues, roses, and jessamine + Reared high their flourished heads." + +Soon the valley narrowed, and closer on our left roared the Lidar, foaming +over its boulders in wild haste to find peace and tranquil flow in the +broad bosom of Jhelum. + +The road became somewhat hilly, and at one steep zigzag the nerves of Jane +failed her slightly and she dismounted, rightly judging that a false step +on the part of the cream-coloured courser would be followed by a hurried +descent into the Lidar. I explained to her that I would certainly do what +I could for her with a dredge in the Wular when I came down, but she +preferred, she said, not to put me to any inconvenience in the matter. We +were asked to subscribe, a few days later, at Pahlgam to provide the +postman with a new pony, his late lamented "Tattoo" having been startled +by a flash of lightning at that very spot, and having paid for the error +with his life. + +A halt was called for lunch under a blue pine, where we quickly discovered +how paltry its shade is in comparison with the generous screen cast by a +chenar; scarcely has the heated traveller picked out a seemingly +umbrageous spot to recline upon when, lo! a flickering shaft of sunlight, +broken into an irritating dazzle by a quivering bunch of pine needles, +strikes him in the eye, and he sets to work to crawl vainly around in +search of a better screen. + +Nothing approaches the great circle of solid coolness thrown by a big +chenar. The walnut does its best, and comes in a good second. Pines +(especially blue ones) are, as I remarked before, unsatisfactory. + +But if the pine is not all that can be wished as a shade-producer, he is +in all his varieties a beautiful object to look upon. First, I think, in +point of magnificence towers the Himalayan spruce, rearing his gaunt shaft, + + "Like the mast of some tall ammiral," + +from the shelving steeps that overhang the torrents, and piercing high +into the blue. In living majesty he shares the honours with the deodar, +but he is merely good to look upon; his timber is useless and in his decay +his fallen and lightning-blasted remains lie rotting on these wild hills, +while the precious trunks of the deodar and the excelsa are laboriously +collected, and floated and dragged to the lower valleys, producing much +good money to Sir Amar Singh and the best of building timber to the +purchaser. + +The road towards Pahlgam is a charming woodland walk, where the wild +strawberries, still hardly out of flower, grow thick amidst a tangle of +chestnut, yew, wild cherry, and flowering shrubs. Overhead and to the +right the rocky steeps rise abruptly until they culminate in the crags of +Kohinar, and on the left the snow-fed Lidar roars "through the cloven +ravine in cataract after cataract." + +About four miles from Pahlgam, on turning a corner of the gorge, a +splendid view bursts upon the wayfarer. The great twin brethren of Kolahoi +come suddenly into sight, where they stand blocking the head of the valley, +their double peaks shining with everlasting snow. + +It needed all the beauty of the scene to make me forget that the thirteen +miles from Eshmakam were long and hot, and that I was woefully out of +condition, and we rejoiced to see the gleam of tents amid the pine-wood +which constitutes the camping-ground of Pahlgam. + +We sat peacefully on the thyme and clover-covered maiden, amongst a herd +of happily browsing cattle, until our tents were up and the irritating but +needful bustle of arrival was over, and the tea-table spread. + +Pahlgam stands some 2000 feet above Srinagar, and although it is not +supposed to be bracing, yet to us, jaded votaries of fashion in stuffy +Srinagar, the fresh, clear, pine-scented air was purely delightful, and a +couple of days saw us "like kidlings blythe and merry"--that is to say, as +much so as a couple of sedate middle-aged people could reasonably be +expected to appear. The camping-ground is in a wood of blue pines, which, +extending from the steeper uplands, covers much of the leveller valley, +and abuts with woody promontories on the flowery strath which borders the +river. Here some dozen or so of visitors had already selected little +clearings, and the flicker of white tents, the squealing of ponies, and +the jabber of native servants banished all ideas of loneliness. + +About half a mile below the camping-ground is the bungalow of Colonel Ward, +clear of the wood and with Kolahoi just showing over the green shoulder +which hides him from Pahlgam. I was fortunate enough to find the Colonel +before he left for Datchgam to meet the Residency party, and to get, +through his kindness, certain information which I wanted about the birds +of Kashmir. + +An enthusiast in natural history, Colonel Ward has given himself with +heart-whole devotion for many years to the study of the beasts and birds +of Kashmir, and he is practically the one and only authority on the +subject. + +We were very anxious to cross the high pass above Lidarwat over into the +Sind Valley, having arranged to meet the Smithsons at Gangabal on their +way back from Tilail. Knowing that Colonel Ward would be posted as to the +state of the snow, I had written to him from Srinagar for information. His +reply, which I got at Islamabad, was not encouraging, nor was his opinion +altered now. The pass might be possible, but was certainly not advisable +for ladies at present. + +_Friday, June 23_.--We were detained here at Pahlgam until about one +o'clock to-day, as Colonel Ward, as well as two minor potentates, had +marched yesterday, employing every available coolie. The fifteen whom I +required were sent back to me by the Colonel, and turned up about noon, so, +after lunch, we set forth. + +Camels are usually unwilling starters. I knew one who never could be +induced to do his duty until a fire had been lit under him as a gentle +stimulant. He lived in Suakin, and existence was one long grievance to him, +but no other animal with which I am acquainted approaches a Pahlgam coolie +in _vis inertiâ_. + +Whether a too copious lunch had rendered my men torpid, or whether the +attractions of their happy homes drew them, I know not, but after the +loads (and these not heavy) had been, after much wrangling, bound upon +their backs, and they had limped along for a few hundred yards or so, one +fell sick, or said he was sick, and, peacefully squatting on a convenient +stone, refused to budge. + +We were still close to some of the scattered huts of Pahlgam, so an +authority, in the shape of a lumbadhar or chowkidar, or some such, came to +our help, and promptly collected for us an elderly gentleman who was +tending his flocks and herds in the vicinity. Doubtless it was provoking, +when he was looking forward to a comfortable afternoon tea in the bosom of +his family, after a hard day's work of doing nothing, to be called upon to +carry a nasty angular yakdan for seven miles along a distinctly uneven +road; but was he therefore justified in blubbering like a baby, and +behaving like an ape being led to execution? + +The first half-mile was dreadful. At every couple of hundred yards the +coolies would sit down in a bunch, groaning and crying, and nothing less +than a push or a thump would induce them to move. We felt like +slave-drivers, and indeed Sabz Ali and the shikari behaved as such, +although their prods and objurgations were not so hurtful as they appeared, +being somewhat after the fashion of the tale told by an idiot, + + "Full of sound and fury, signifying nothing." + +Presently we became so much irritated by the ceaseless row that we decided +to sit down and read and sketch by the roadside, in order to let the whole +mournful train pass out of sight and earshot. + +Now, I wish to maintain in all seriousness that I am not a Legree, and +that, although I by no means hold the "man and brother" theory, yet I am +perfectly prepared to respect the _droits de l'homme_. + +This may appear a statement inconsistent with my acknowledgment that I +permitted coolies to be beaten--the beating being no more than a +technical "assault," and never a "thrashing!"--but my contention is that +when you have to deal with people of so low an organisation that they can +only be reached by elementary arguments, they must be treated absolutely +as children, and judiciously whacked as such. + +No Kashmiri without the impulsion of _force majeure_ would ever do any +work--no logical argument will enable him to see ultimate good in +immediate irksomeness. + +It is very difficult for the Western mind to give the Kashmiri credit for +any virtues, his failings being so conspicuous and repellent; for not only +is he an outrageous coward, but he feels no shame in admitting his +cowardice. He is a most accomplished thief, and the truth is not in him. +He and his are much fouler than Neapolitan lazzaroni, and his morals--well, +let us give the Kashmiri his due, and turn to his virtues. He is, on the +whole, cheerful and lively, devoted to children, and kind to animals.[1] + +Here is a story which is fairly characteristic of the charming Kashmiri. + +During the floods which nearly ruined Kashmir in 1901, a village near a +certain colonel's bungalow was in danger of losing all its crops and half +its houses, the neighbouring river being in spate. My friend, on going to +see if anything could be done, found the water rising, and the adult male +inhabitants of the village lying upon the ground, and beating their heads +and hands upon it in woebegone impotence. + +He walked about upon their stomachs a little to invigorate them, and, +sending forthwith for a gang of coolies from an adjacent village which lay +a little higher, he set the whole crowd to work to divert part of the +stream by means of driftwood and damming, and was, in the end, able to +save the houses and a good part of the crops. + +When the hired coolies came to be paid for their labour, the villagers +also put in a claim for wages, and were desperately vexed at my friend's +refusal to grant it, complaining bitterly of having had to work hard for +nothing! + +You will find a good description of the Kashmiri in _All's Well that Ends +Well:_-- + + _Parolles_. He will steal, sir, an egg out of a cloister.... He + professes not keeping of oaths, in breaking them, he is stronger + than Hercules. He will lie, sir, with such volubility, that you + would think truth were a fool: drunkenness is his best + virtue; ... he has everything that an honest man should not have; + what an honest man should have, he has nothing. + + * * * * * + + He excels his brother for a coward, yet his brother is reputed + one of the best that is: in a retreat he outruns any lackey; + marry, in coming on he has the cramp. + +We had not long sat sketching and basking in the genial glow of a summer +afternoon among the mountains, when it began to be borne in upon us that +the weather was going to change, and that the usual thunderstorm was +meditating a descent upon us. Black clouds came boiling up over the +mountain peaks, and the too familiar grumble of distant thunder sent us +hurrying along the lovely ravine, through which the path leads to Aru. +Only a seven miles' journey, but ere we had gone half-way the storm broke, +and a thick veil of sweeping rain fell between us and the surrounding +mountains. + +Presently we found a serious solution of continuity in the track, which, +after leading us along a precarious ledge by the side of the river, +finished abruptly; sheared clean off by a recent landslip. + +We were very wet, but the river looked wetter still, and it boiled round +the rocky point, where the road should have been but was not, in a +distinctly disagreeable manner. + +However, Jane dismounting, I climbed upon the cream-coloured courser, and +proceeded to ford the gap. The water swirled well above the syce's knees, +but the noble steed picked his way with the greatest circumspection over +and among the submerged boulders, till, after splashing through some +hundred yards of water, he deposited me, not much wetter than before, on +the continuation of the high-road, whence I had the satisfaction of +watching Jane go through the same performance. + +Hoping against hope that the coolies, by a little haste, might have got +the tents pitched before the storm came on, we plodded on, until, wet to +the very skin, we slopped into Aru, to behold a draggled party squatting +round a central floppy heap in a wet field, which, as we gazed, slowly +upreared itself into a drooping tent. + +In dear old England this sort of experience would have spelt shocking +colds, and probably rheumatism for life, but here--well, we crawled into +our tent and found it, thanks to a couple of waterproof sheets spread on +the ground, surprisingly dry. A change of clothes, a good dinner, produced +under the most unfavourable circumstances from a wretched little +cooking-tent, and a fire burning goodness knows how, in the open, showed +the world to be quite a nice place after all. + +After dinner a great camp-fire was lit in front of our tent, the rain +cleared off, and I sat smoking with much content, while all our soaking +garments were festooned on branches round the blaze, and Jane and I turned +them like roasting joints, at intervals, until the steam rose like incense +towards the stars. + +The coolies, too, had quite got over their homesickness, and were +extraordinarily cheerful, their incessant jabber falling as a lullaby on +our ears as we dropped off to sleep. + +_Saturday, June_ 24.--We got away in good time for our short eight-mile +march to Lidarwat. The coolies went off gaily--the day was warm and +brilliant, and the views down the valley towards Pahlgam superb. + +We had camped on the low ground at Aru, just across the bridge, but about +half a mile on, and upon a grassy plateau there is an ideal camping-ground +facing down the Lidar Valley, towards the peaks which rise behind Pahlgam. +Want of water is the only drawback to this spot, but if mussiks are +carried, water can easily be brought from a small nullah towards Lidarwat. + +Tearing ourselves away from this spot, and turning our backs upon one of +the most gorgeous views in Kashmir, we plunged into a beautiful wood. +Maidenhair and many another fern grew in masses among the great roots +which twined like snakes over the rocky slopes. Far below, with muffled +roar, the unseen river tore its downward way. + +By-and-by, the path emerging from the wood shelved along a green hillside, +where bracken and golden spurge clothed the little hollows, while wild +wall-flower, Jacob's Ladder, and a large purple cranes-bill brightened the +slopes where happy cattle, but lately released from their winter's +imprisonment, were feeding greedily on the young green grass. + +I fancy the cattle have a remarkably poor time here in winter. Hay is not +made, and very little winter forage seems to be collected. As the snows +fall lower on the hills, the flocks and herds are driven down to the low +ground, where they drag through the dark days as best they can, on +maize-stalks and such like. + +I noticed early in May the water buffaloes just turned out to graze in the +Lolab, and more weakly, melancholy collections of skin--and--bone I have +seldom seen. + +Now, however, up high in every sunny grassy valley, the Gujars may be +found camping with their flocks--cattle, ponies, buffaloes, and goats, +working upwards hard on the track of the receding snow, where the primula +and the gentian star the spring turf. + +A series of grassy uplands brought us close to Lidarwat, when a sharp +shower, arriving unexpectedly from nowhere in particular, sent us to eat +our lunch under the shelter of some fairly waterproof trees in the company +of a herd of water buffaloes of especially evil aspect. + +One hoary brute in particular, with enormous horns and pale blue eyes, +made me think of the legend concerning the origin of the buffalo. + +When the Almighty was hard at work creating the animals, the devil came +and looked on until he became filled with emulation, and begged the Deity +to let him try his hand at creation. So the Almighty agreed, asking him +what beast he would prefer to make, and he said, "A cow." So he went away +and created a water buffalo, which so disgusted the Creator that the devil +was not permitted to make any more experiments. + +As soon as the rain held up and the thunder had rolled off up the valley, +we packed the tiffin basket, had one more drink from an icy spring, and +left the shelter of the friendly trees, followed by the glares of all the +buffaloes, who appear to have a decided antipathy to the "sahib logue." + +We soon came to Lidarwat, passing several tents there, pitched by the edge +of a green lawn, and sheltered by a deep belt of trees. Crossing to the +right bank of the river by the usual rickety bridge, we continued our way, +as the farther up the glen we get to-night, the less shall we leave for +to-morrow, when we intend to visit the Kolahoi Glacier. + +The cream-coloured courser nearly wrecked my Kashmir holiday at this point, +owing to the silly dislike of white folk which he possesses in common with +the buffaloes. As I was incautiously handing Jane her beloved parasol, he +whisked round and let out at me, and I was only saved from a nasty kick by +my closeness to the beast, whose hock made such an impression upon my +thigh as to cause me to go a bit short for a while. + +We camped in rather a moist-looking place, where the wood begins to show +signs of finishing, and the slopes fall steep and bare to the river. + +A rather rank and weedy undergrowth was not inviting, and was strongly +suggestive of dampness and rheumatism. It was fairly chilly, too, at night, +as our camp was some 11,000 feet above the sea, and the little breezes +that came sighing through the pines were straight from the snow. + +_Sunday, June 25_.--A most glorious morning saw us start early for an +expedition to the Kolahoi Glacier. The sombre ravine in which we were +camped amid the pines lay still in a mysterious blue haze, but the sun had +already caught the snow-streaked mountain-tops to our left, and gilded +their rugged sides with a swiftly descending mantle of warmth and light. + +A very fine waterfall came tumbling down a wooded chasm on our right, and +as fine waterfalls are scarce in Kashmir we stopped for some time to +admire it duly. + +The track now led out into a wide and treeless valley, flanked by +snow-crowned mountains, and we pushed on merrily until we arrived at the +brink of a rascally torrent, which gave us some trouble to ford, being +both exceeding swift and fairly deep. Luckily, it was greedy, and, not +content with one channel, had spread itself out into four or five branches, +and thus so squandered itself that Jane on her pony and I on coolie-back +accomplished the passage without mishap. For some miles we held on along +an easy path which curved to the right along the right bank of the river, +which was spanned in many places by great snow bridges, often hundreds of +yards in width. We lunched sitting on the trunk of a dead birch which had +been carried by the snow down from its eyrie, and then left, a melancholy +skeleton, bleaching on the slowly melting avalanche. Some two miles +farther on we could see the end of the Kolahoi Glacier, its grey and +rock-strewn snout standing abrupt above the white slopes of snow. + +Behind rose the fine peak of Harbagwan, in as yet undisputed splendour, +Kolahoi being still hidden behind the cliffs which towered on our right. + +Distances seem short in this brilliant air, but we walked for a long while +over the short turf, flushing crimson with primulas and golden with small +buttercups, and then over snowy hillocks, before we reached the solid ice +of the great glacier. + +It was so completely covered with fragments of grey rock that Jane could +hardly he persuaded that it really was an ice slope that we were +scrambling up with such difficulty, until a peep into a cold mysterious +cleft convinced her that she was really and truly standing upon 200 feet +of solid ice. + +The sight that now burst upon us was one to be remembered. Kolahoi towered +ethereal--a sunlit wedge of sheer rock some six thousand feet above +us--into the crystal air. From his feet the white frozen billows of the +great glacier rolled, a glistering sea, to where we, atoms in the enormous +loneliness, stood breathless in admiration. Around the head of the wide +amphitheatre wherein we stood rose a circle of stately peaks, their bases +flanged with rocky buttresses, dark amid the long sweeps of radiant snow, +their shattered peaks reared high into the very heavens. A great silence +reigned. There was no wind with us, and yet, even as we watched, a white +cloud flitted past the virgin peak of Kolahoi--ghostly, intangible; and +immediately, even as vultures assemble suddenly, no one knows whence, so +did the clouds appear, surging over the gleaming shoulders of the mountain +ridges, and up and round the grim precipices. We turned and hurried down +the face of the glacier, and made for camp, as we knew from much +experience that a thunderstorm was inevitable. + +Over the beds of dirty snow, down by the side of the new-born torrent, +which leaped full-grown to life from the womb of a green cavern below the +glacier; over patches of pulpy turf just freed from its wintry bondage, +and already carpeted with masses of rose-coloured primulas, we hastened, +keeping to the left bank of the stream, in order to avoid the torrent +which had so troubled us in the morning, which we knew would be deeper in +the afternoon owing to the melting of the snows in the sunshine. + +We had got but a bare half of our journey done when the storm burst, and +in a very short time we were reduced to the recklessness which comes of +being as wet as you can possibly be. + + "The thunder bellows far from snow to snow + (Home, Rose and Home, Provence and La Palie), + And loud and louder roars the flood below. + Heigho! But soon in shelter we shall be + (Home, Rose and Home, Provence and La Palie)." + +Crossing the river on a big snow-bridge below the point where our old +enemy came thundering down the mountain-side, we tramped gaily through mud +and mire and over slippery rocks until we were gladdened by the sight of +our camp, dripping away peacefully in the midst of the weeping forest. + +The rain, as usual, ceased in the evening. A great camp-fire was lit, and +the neighbouring buffaloes of Gujar-Kote having kindly supplied us with +milk, we dined wisely and well and dropped off to sleep, lulled by the +roaring of the Kolahoi River, which raced through the darkness close by. + +_Tuesday, June 27_.--Being still hopeful of achieving the pass over into +the Sind, we struck camp early yesterday and marched down to Lidarwat, +only to find that the party which we knew had camped there with a view to +crossing, had given up the idea and retreated down the valley; so I sent a +swift messenger to countermand the three days' supply of "rassad" which I +had ordered from Pahlgam for my men, and we marched on to Aru. Upon the +spur which overlooks Aru we found Dr. Neve encamped, and proceeded to +discuss the possibility of crossing into the Sind Valley _viâ_ Sekwas, +Khem Sar, and Koolan. The Doctor, who is an enterprising mountaineer, was +himself about to cross, but he did not encourage Jane to go and do +likewise, as he said it would be very difficult owing to the late spring, +and would probably entail a good deal of work with ropes and ice-axes. + +This absolutely decided us, our valour being greatly tempered by +discretion, and we camped quietly at Aru, and came on into Pahlgam this +forenoon. The river, for some reason best known to itself, was so low that +we got dry-shod past the corner which had worried us so much on the way up. + + +[1] This is incorrect, the European Residents having frequently attempted, + but hitherto vainly, to induce the native authorities to curb Kashmiri + cruelty. + + + +CHAPTER XI + +GANGABAL + +Friday, _June_ 30.--The last few days have been somewhat uneventful. We +left Pahlgam at early dawn on Wednesday, just as the first lemon-coloured +light was spreading in the east over the pine-serrated heights above the +camp. + +The rapids below Colonel Ward's bungalow, which had been fierce and +swollen as we passed them on our upward way, were now reduced to roaring +after the subdued fashion of the sucking dove; so we hardly paused to +contemplate either them or the big boulder, red-stained and holy, at +Ganesbal, but hastened on to the point where, just before turning a high +bluff which shuts him from sight for the last time, we got the view of +Kolahoi, with the newly-risen sun glowing on his upper slopes. An hour +flew by much too fast, and it was with great reluctance that we finally +turned our back on the finest part of the Lidar Valley, and sadly resumed +our march to Sellar, crossing the river and following a rather hot and +dull road. Sellar itself is not nearly as pretty as Eshmakam, and we grew +rather tired of it by evening, as we arrived soon after one o'clock, and +found little to do or see. + +Yesterday we left Sellar and marched to Bejbehara, the hottest and dullest +march I know of in Kashmir. A shadeless road slopes gently down across the +plains to the river. All along this road we overtook parties of coolies +laden with creels of silk cocoons, whose destination is the big silk +factory at Srinagar, small clouds of hot red dust rising into the still +air, knocked up by the shuffling tread of their grass-shod feet. + +In the fields, dry and burnt to our eyes after the green valleys, squatted +the reapers, snipping the sparse ears, apparently one by one, with sickles +like penknives. They seemed to get the work done somehow, as little sheafs +laid in rows bore witness; but the patience of Job must have been upon +them! + +The chenars of Bejbehara threw a most welcome shade from the noonday sun, +which was striking down with evil force as we panted across the steamy +rice-fields which surround them. + +Hither we came at noon, only to find that our boats were not awaiting us +as we had directed. A messenger bearing bitter words was promptly +despatched to root the lazy scoundrels out from Islamabad, while Jane and +I camped out beneath a huge tree and lunched, worked, and sketched until +four o'clock, when the Admiral brought the fleet in and fondly deemed his +day's work done. + +This was by no means our view of the case, and the usual trouble +began--"No coolies"--"Very late"--"Plenty tired," &c. &c. + +Of course Satarah was defeated, and was soon to be seen sulkily poling +away in the stern-sheets, while his son-in-law still more sulkily paddled +in the bow. + +We made about eight or ten miles, having a swift current under us, before +a strong squall came up the valley, making the old ark slue about +prodigiously, and inducing us to tie up for the night. + +This morning we slipped down stream to Srinagar, only halting for a short +while to obtain some of the native bread for which Pampur is celebrated. + +The river seemed exceedingly hot and stuffy after the lovely air which we +have been breathing lately, and we quite determined that the sooner we get +out of the valley the better for our pleasure, if not for our health. + +We have been greatly exercised as to how best dispose of the time until +September, for, during the months of July and August, the heat in the +valley is very considerable, and every one seeks the higher summer +retreats. The Smithsons suggested an expedition to Leh, which would, +undoubtedly, have been a most interesting trip, but which would in no wise +have spared us in the matter of heat. Had we started about this time for +Leh we should have reached our destination towards the end of July, and +would therefore have found ourselves setting out again across an arid and +extremely hot country on the return journey somewhere about the middle of +August. + +The game did not seem to be worth the candle, and the Smithsons themselves +shied at the idea when it was borne in upon them that there would be +little or no shooting to be done _en route_. + +The alternatives seemed to lie between Gulmarg, where most of the beauty +and fashion of Kashmir disports itself during the hot weather, Sonamarg, +and Pahlgam. + +Sonamarg, from description, seemed likely to be quiet, not to say dull, as +a residence for two months. One cannot live by scenery alone, and even the +loveliest may become _toujours pâté de l'anguille._ + +Pahlgam suffered in our eyes from the same failing, and our thoughts +turned to Gulmarg. Here, however, a difficulty arose. It is a notoriously +wet place. We heard horrid tales of golf enthusiasts playing in waders, +and of revellers half drowned while returning from dinners in neighbouring +tents. + +We thought of rooms in Nedou's Hotel, but our memories of this hostelry in +Srinagar were not altogether sweet, and we did not in the least hanker +after a second edition; moreover, every available room had been engaged +long ago, and it was extremely doubtful, to say the least of it, if the +good Mr. Nedou could do anything for us. The prospect of a two-month +sojourn in a wet tent wherein no fire could ever be lighted, and in which +Jane pictured her frocks and smart hats lying in their boxes all crumpled +and shorn of their dainty freshness, was far from enticing! + +Tent existence, when one lives the simple life far from the madding crowd, +clad in puttoo and shooting-boots, or grass shoes, is delightful; but tent +life in the midst of a round of society functions--golf, polo, with their +attendant teas and dinners--was not to be thought of without grave +misgiving. + +Sorely perplexed, and almost at our wits' end, the Gordian knot was cut by +our being offered a small hut which had been occupied by a clerk in the +State employ, now absent, and which the Resident most kindly placed at our +disposal for a merely nominal rent. Needless to say we gratefully accepted +the offer, in spite of the assurance that the hut was of very minute +dimensions. + +_Sunday, July_ 2.--Yesterday we toiled hard in the heat to get everything +in train for a move to Gulmarg. Subhana, that excellent tailor and +embroiderer, arranged to have all our heavy luggage sent up to meet us on +the 10th, and from him, too, we arranged for the hire of such furniture as +we might require, for we knew that the hut was bare as the cupboard of +nursery fame. + +This morning we set off down the river to keep tryst with the Smithsons at +Gangabal, where we hope to meet them about the 5th on their way back from +Tilail. The usual struggle with the crew resulted, also as usual, in our +favour, and we got right through to Gunderbal at the mouth of the Sind +River, where we now lie amid a flotilla of boats whose occupiers have fled +away from the sultriness and smelliness of Srinagar in search of the cool +currents, both of air and water, which are popularly supposed to flow down +the Sind. + +As Jane and I returned from a visit to the post-office along a sweltering +path among the rice-fields, from which warm waves of air rose steaming +into the sunset, we failed to observe the celebrated and superior coolness +of Gunderbal' + +_Thursday, July_ 6.--The lumbadhar of Gunderbal, in spite of his +magnificent name, is a rascal of the deepest dye. He put much water in our +milk, to the furious disgust of Sabz Ali, and he failed to provide the +coolies I had ordered; I therefore reported him to Chattar Singh, and sent +my messengers forth, like another Lars Porsena, to catch coolies. + +This was early on Tuesday morning, and a sufficient number of ponies and +coolies having been got together by 5.30, we started. + +I may here note that, owing to a confusion between _Gunderbal_ (the port, +so to speak, of the Sind Valley, and route to Leh and Thibet) and +_Gangabal_, a lake lying some 12,000 feet above the sea behind Haramok, +our arrangement to meet the Smithsons at Gangabal was altered by a letter +from them announcing their imminent arrival at Gunderbal! This was +perturbing, but as the mistake was not ours, we decided not to allow +ourselves to be baulked of a trip for which we had surrendered an +expedition to Shisha Nag, beyond Pahlgam. + +The lower part of the Sind Valley is in nowise interesting; the way was +both tedious and hot, and we rejoiced greatly when, having crossed the +Sind River, we found a lovely spring and halted for tiffin. After an +hour's rest we followed the main road a little farther, and then, passing +the mouth of the Chittagul Nullah, turned up the Wangat Valley. The +scenery became finer, and the last hour's march along a steep +mountain-side, with the Wangat River far below on our right, was a great +improvement on what we had left behind us. + +The little village of Wangat, perched upon a steep spur above the river, +was woefully deficient of anything like a good camping-ground. We finally +selected a small bare rice patch, which, though extremely "knubbly," had +the merits of being almost level, moderately remote from the village and +its smells, and quite close to a perfect spring. + +Yesterday we achieved a really early start, leaving Wangat at 4.15, the +path being weirdly illuminated by extempore torches made of pine-wood +which the shikari had prepared. A moderately level march of some three +miles brought us to the ruined temples of Vernag and the beginning of our +work, for here the path, turning sharply to the left, led us inexorably up +the almost precipitous face of the mountain by means of short zigzags. + +It was a stiff pull. The sun was now peering triumphantly over the hills +on the far side of the valley, and the path was (an extraordinary thing in +Kashmir) excessively dusty. Up and on we panted, Jane partly supported by +having the bight of the shikari's puggaree round her waist while he towed +her by the ends. + +There was no relaxation of the steep gradient, no water, and no shade, and +the height to be surmounted was 4000 feet. + +If the longest lane has a turning, so the highest hill has a top, and we +came at last to the blissful point where the path deigned to assume an +approach to the horizontal, and led us to the most delightful spring in +Kashmir! The water, ice-cold and clear, gushes out of a crevice in the +rock, and with the joy of wandering Israelites we threw ourselves on the +ground, basked in the glorious mountain air, and shouted for the tiffin +basket. + +Only the faithful "Yellow Bag" was forthcoming, the tiffin coolie being +still "hull down," and from its varied contents we extracted the only +edibles, apricots and rock cakes. + +Never have we enjoyed any meal more than that somewhat light breakfast, +washed down by water which was a pure joy to drink. + +Alas! There were but two rock cakes apiece! Another half-hour's clamber, +along a pretty rough track, brought us to a point whence we looked down a +long green slope to our destination, Tronkol--a few Gujar huts, indistinct +amidst a clump of very ancient birch-trees, standing out as a sort of +oasis among the bare and boulder-strewn slopes. + +The view was superb. To the right, the mountain-side fell steeply to where, +in the depths of the Wangat Nullah, a tiny white thread marked the river +foaming 4000 feet below, and beyond rose a jagged range of spires and +pinnacles, snow lying white at the bases of the dark precipices. "These +are the savage wilds" which bar the route from the Wangat into Tilail and +the Upper Sind. + +Over Tronkol, bare uplands, rising wave above wave, shut out the view of +Gangabal and the track over into the Erin Nullah and down to Bandipur. + +On our left towered the bastions of Haramok, his snow-crowned head rising +grimly into the clear blue sky. + +We pitched our camp at Tronkol about two o'clock, on a green level some +little way beyond the Gujar huts, and just above a stream which picked its +riotous way along a bed of enormous boulders, sheltered to a certain +extent by a fringe of hoary birches. + +We had never beheld such great birches as these, many of them, alas! mere +skeletons of former grandeur, whose whitening limbs speak eloquently of a +hundred years of ceaseless struggle with storm and tempest. + +I saw no young ones springing up to replace these dying warriors. The +Gujars and their buffaloes probably prevent any youthful green thing from +growing. It seems a pity. + +Towards evening we observed baggage ponies approaching, and at the sight +we felt aggrieved; for, in our colossal selfishness, we fancied that +Tronkol was ours, and ours alone. A small tent was pitched, and presently +to our surly eyes appeared a lonely lady, who proceeded solemnly to play +Patience in front of it while her dinner was being got ready. + +A visit of ceremony, and an invitation to share our "irishystoo" and +camp-fire, brought Mrs. Locock across, and we made the acquaintance of a +lady well known for her prowess as a shikari throughout Kashmir-- + + "There hunted 'she' the walrus, the narwal, and the seal. + Ah! 'twas a noble game, + And, like the lightning's flame; + Flew our harpoons of steel" + +I cannot resist the quotation, but I do not really think Mrs. Locock hunts +walruses in Kashmir, and I know she doesn't use a harpoon. No matter, she +proved a cheery and delightful companion, and we entirely forgave her for +coming to Tronkol and poaching on our preserves. + +We were extremely amused at the surprise she expressed at Jane's feat in +climbing from Wangat. Evidently Jane's reputation is not that of a +bullock-workman in Srinagar! + +This morning we all three went to see Lake Gangabal. An easy path leads +over some three or four miles of rolling down to our destination, which is +one of a whole chain of lakes--or rather tarns--which lie under the +northern slopes of Haramok. + +We came first upon a small piece of water, lying blue and still in the +morning sun, and from which a noisy stream poured forth its glacier water. +This we had a good deal of trouble in crossing, the ladies being borne on +the broad backs of coolies, in attitudes more quaint than graceful. A +second and deeper stream being safely forded, we climbed a low ridge to +find Gangabad stretched before us--a smooth plane of turquoise blue and +pale icy green, beneath the dark ramparts of Haramok, whose +"eagle-baffling" crags and glittering glaciers rose six thousand sheer +feet above. In the foreground the earth, still brown, and only just +released from its long winter covering of snow, bore masses of small +golden ranunculus and rose-hued primulas. + +An extraordinary sense of silence and solitude filled one--no birds or +beasts were visible, and only the tinkle of tiny rills running down to the +lake, and the distant clamour of the infant river, broke, or rather +accentuated, the loneliness of the scene. + +We had brought breakfast with us, and after eating it we made haste to +recross the two rivers, because, troublesome as they were to ford in the +morning, they would certainly grow worse with every hour of ice-melting +sunshine. + +Once more on the camp side, however, we strolled along in leisurely mood, +staying to lunch on top of the ridge overlooking Tronkol. I left the +ladies then to find their leisurely way back among the flowery hollows, +and made for a peak overlooking the head of the Chittagul Nullah. A sharp +climb up broken rocks and over snow slopes brought me to the top, a point +some 13,500 feet above the sea. In front of me Haramok, seamed with +snow-filled gullies, still towered far above; immediately below, the +saddle--brown, bare earth, snow-streaked--divided the Chittagul Nullah +from Tronkol. Far away down the valley the Sind River gleamed like a +silver thread in the afternoon light, and beyond, the Wular lay a pale +haze in the distance. + +To the northward rose the fantastic range of peaks that overhang the +Wangat gorge, and almost below my feet, at a depth of some 1500 feet, lay +a sombre lakelet, steely dark and still, in the shadow of the ridge upon +which I sat. + +The sun was going down fast into a fleecy bed of clouds, amid which I knew +that Nanga Parbat lay swathed from sight. To see that mountain monarch had +been the chief object of my climb, so, recognising that the sight of him +was a hope deferred, I made haste to scramble down to the tarn below, +stopping here and there to fill my pith hat with wild rhubarb, and to pick +or admire the new and always fascinating wild flowers as I passed. +Large-flowered, white anemones; tiny gentian, with vivid small blue +blossoms; loose-flowered, purple primulas, and many strange and novel +blossoms starred the grassy patches, or filled the rocky crevices with +abundant beauty. + +By the lake side the moisture-loving, rose-coloured primula reappeared in +masses, and as I followed down its outgoing stream towards the camp, I +waded through a tangle of columbine, white and blue; a great purple salvia, +arnica, and a profusion of varied flowers in rampant bloom. + +_Saturday, July_ 8.--An early start homewards yesterday, in the cold dawn, +rewarded us by the sight of the first beams of the rising sun lighting up +the threefold head of Haramok with an unspeakable glory, as we crossed the +open boulder-strewn uplands, before descending into the nullah, which lay +below us still wrapped in a mysterious purple haze. The downward zigzags, +with their uncompromising steepness, proved almost as tiring as the ascent +had been, and we were more than ready for breakfast by the time we reached +the ruined temples of Vernag. + +These temples, built probably about the beginning of the eighth century, +are, like all the others which I have seen in Kashmir, small, and somewhat +uninteresting, except to the archaeologist. They consist, invariably, of a +"cella" containing the object of veneration, the lingam, surmounted by a +high-pitched conical stone roof. In structure they show apparently signs +of Greek influence in the doorways, and the triangular pediments above +them. Phallic worship would seem to have been always confined to these +temples, with ophiolatry--the nagas or water-snake deities being +accommodated in sacred tanks, in the midst of which the early Kashmir +temples were usually placed. + +Any one who wishes to study the temple architecture of Kashmir cannot do +better than read Fergusson's _Indian Architecture_, wherein he will find +all the information he wants. + +To the ordinary "man in the street" the ancient buildings of Kashmir do +not appeal, either by their aesthetic value or by the dignity of size. +Martand, the greatest, and probably the finest, both in point of grandeur +and of situation, I regret to say, I did not see; but the temples at +Bhanyar, Pandrettan, and Wangat resemble one another closely in design and +general insignificance. The position of the Wangat ruins, embosomed in the +wild tangle + + "Of a steep wilderness, whose airy sides + With thicket overgrown, grotesque and wild, + Access denied; and overhead up grew + Insuperable height of loftiest shade, + Cedar, and pine, and fir," + +and seated at the base of a solemn circle of mountains, gives the group of +tottering shrines a picturesqueness and importance which I cannot concede +that they would otherwise have had. + +I do not remember ever to have seen it noted that all buildings which are +impressive by the mere majesty of size are to be found in plains and not +in mountainous countries. This is probably due to two causes. The one +being the denser population of the fat plains, whereby a greater concourse +of builders and of worshippers would be sustained, and the other being +the--probably unconscious--instinct which debarred the architect from +attempting to vie with nature in the mountains and impel him to work out +his most majestic designs amid wide and level horizons. + +The fact remains, whatever may be the cause, that architecture has never +been advanced much beyond the mere domestic in very mountainous regions, +with the exception of the mediaeval strongholds, which formed the nucleus +of every town or village, where a _point d'appui_ was required against +invasion, for the protection of the community. + +Breakfast, followed by a prowl among the ruins and a short space for +sketching, gave the sun time to pour his beams with quite unpleasant +insistence into the confined fold in the hills, where we began to gasp +until the ladies mounted their ponies, and we took our way down the valley, +crossing the river below Wangat, and keeping along the left bank to +Vernaboug, where we camped, the only incident of any importance being the +sad loss of Jane's field-glasses, which, carried by her syce in a boot-bag, +were dropped in a stream by that idiot while crossing, he having lost his +footing in a pool, and, clutching wildly at the pony's reins, let go the +precious binoculars. + +This morning we were up betimes, Mrs. Locock having ordained a bear "honk"! +This was, to me, a new departure in shikar, and truly it was amusing to +see the shikari, bursting with importance, mustering the forty half-naked +coolies whom he had collected to beat. A couple of men with tom-toms slung +round their necks completed the party, which marched in straggling +procession out of the village at dawn. + +A mile of easy walking brought us to the rough jungly cliffs, seamed with +transverse nullahs, narrow and steep, which bordered the river. Here we +were placed in passes, with great caution and mystery, by the shikari and +his chief-of-the-staff--the "oldest inhabitant" of Vernaboug; and here we +sat in the morning stillness until a distant clamour and the faint beating +of tom-toms afar off made us sit up more warily, and watch eagerly for the +expected bear. + +The yells increase, and the tom-toms, vigorously banged, seem calculated +to fuss any self-respecting bear into fits. We watch a narrow space +between two bushes some dozen yards away, and see that the Mannlicher +across our knees and the smooth-bore, ball loaded in the right and +chokeless barrel, lie handy for instant use. + +Hidden in the dense jungle, some hundred yards below, sits Mrs. Locock on +the matted top of a hazel, while Jane, chittering with suppressed +excitement, crouches a few paces behind me. + +The beaters approach, and pandemonium reigns. A few scared birds dart past, +but no bear comes; and when the first brown body shows among the brushwood +we shout to stop the uproar, and all move on to another beat. + +Four "honks" produced nothing, so far as I was concerned; but a +bear--according to her shikari--passed close by Mrs. Locock, so thickly +screened by jungle that she couldn't see it. This may be so, but Kashmir +shikaris have remarkably vivid imaginations. + +After a delightful morning to all parties concerned--for we were much +amused, the coolies were adequately paid, and the bear wasn't worried--we +returned to breakfast, and then marched fifteen hot miles into Gunderbal, +where we found the Smithsons, with whom we dined. They have been in Gurais +and the Tilail district ever since they left Srinagar on the 24th April, +and have had an adventurous and difficult time, with plenty of snow and +torrents and avalanches, but somewhat poor sport. + +This is not according to one's preconceived ideas of shikar in Kashmir, as +they went into a nullah which no sahib had penetrated for five years; they +had the best shikari in Kashmir (he said it, and he ought to know); they +worked very hard, and their bag consisted of one or two moderate ibex and +a red bear. + +_Tuesday, July_ 11.--On Sunday morning the combined fleet sailed for +Palhallan. The Smithsons had a "matted dounga," and she "walked away" from +our heavier ark down the winding Sind at a great pace. We reached Shadipur +at 11 A.M., but the Smithsons had "gone before," so, crossing the Jhelum, +we made after them in hot pursuit, and reached them and Palhallan at +sunset. + +A narrow canal, bordered by low swampy marshland, allowed us to get within +a mile of the village and tie up among the shallows, whereupon the +mosquitoes gathered from far and near, and fell upon us. + +The final packing, effected amid a hungry crowd of little piping fiends, +was a veritable nightmare, and yesterday morning we rescued our mangled +remains from the enemy, and, having paid off our boats, hurriedly +clambered on to the ponies which had come--late, as usual--from Palhallan +to convey what was left by the mosquitoes to Gulmarg. + +The unfortunate Jane--always a popular person--is especially so with +insects; and if there is a flea or a mosquito anywhere within range it +immediately rushes to her. + +She paid dearly for her fatal gift of attractiveness at Palhallan--her +eyes, usually so keen, being what is vulgarly termed "bunged up," and +every vulnerable spot in like piteous plight! + +We quitted Palhallan as the Lot family quitted Sodom and Gomorrah, but +with no lingering tendency to look backward; we cast our eyes unto the +hills, and kicked the best pace we could out of our "tattoos," halting for +breakfast soon after crossing the hot, white road which runs from Baramula +to Srinagar. + +As we left the steamy valley and wound up a rapidly ascending path among +the lower fringes and outliers of the forest our spirits rose, and by the +time we had clambered up the last stiff pull and emerged from the +darkly-wooded track into the little clearing, where perches the village of +Babamarishi, we were positively cheerful. + +Once more the air was fresh and buoyant, the spring water was cool and +"delicate to drink," and from our tents we could look out over the valley +lying dim in a yellow heat-haze far below. + +Babamarishi is a picturesquely-grouped collection of the usual +rickety-looking wooden huts, no dirtier, but perhaps noisier than usual, +owing to the presence of a very holy ziarat much frequented by loudly +conversational devotees. We spent the crisp, warm afternoon peacefully +stretched on the sloping sward in front of our tents, and making the +acquaintance of the only good thing that came out of Palhallan--a charming +quartette of young geese which Sabz Ali had bought and brought. + +These delightful birds evinced the most perfect friendliness and +confidence in us, and we became greatly attached to them. They and the +fowls seemed excellent travellers, and after a long day's march would come +up smiling, like the jackdaw of Rheims, "not a penny the worse." + +This morning we had but a short and easy march from Babamarishi to Gulmarg, +along a good road, through a fine forest of silver fir. + + + +CHAPTER XII + +GULMARG + +Somehow one's preconceived ideas of a place are almost always quite wrong, +and so Gulmarg seemed quite different from what I had expected. It seemed +all twisted the wrong way, and was really quite unlike the place which my +imagination had evolved. + +Turning through a narrow gap, we found ourselves facing a wide, green, +undulating valley completely surrounded by dense fir forest. Beyond, to +the left, rose the sloping bulk of Apharwat, one of the range of the Pir +Panjal; while to the right low, wooded hillocks bounded the valley and +fell, on their outward flanks, to the Kashmir plain. + +Immediately in front of us a small village or bazaar swarmed with native +life, and sloped down to a stream which wound through the hollows. + +All round the edge of the forest a continuous ring of wooden huts and +white tents showed that the "sahib" on holiday intent had marked Gulmarg +for his own. + +As we rode through the bazaar the view expanded. Apharwat showed all his +somewhat disappointing face; his upper slopes, streaked with dirty snow, +looked remarkably dingy when contrasted with the dazzling white clouds +which went sailing past his uninteresting summit. The absence of all +variety in form or light and shade, and the dull lines of his +foreshortened front, made it hard to realise that he stood some five +thousand feet above us. + +Near the centre of the marg, on a small hill, was a large wooden building +surrounded by many satellite huts and tents: this we rightly guessed to be +Nedou's Hotel. Below, on a spur, was the little church, and to the right, +in the hollow, the club-house faced the level polo-ground. + +A winding stream, which we subsequently found to be perfectly ubiquitous, +and an insatiable devourer of errant golf-balls, ran deviously through the +valley, which seemed to be rather over a mile long, and almost equally +wide. + +The Smithsons rode away vaguely in search of a camping-ground; while we, +having found out where our hut was, turned back and climbed a knoll behind +the bazaar, and found ourselves in front of our future home, a very plain +and roughly-built rectangular wooden hut, containing a small square room +opening upon a verandah, and having a bedroom and bathroom on each side. + +Such was our palace, and we were well satisfied with it. + +The cook-house and servants' quarters were in a hut close by, and I could +summon my retainers or chide them for undue chatter from my bedroom +window--a serviceable short cut for the dinner, too, in wet and stormy +weather! + +Life at Gulmarg is extremely apt to degenerate into the "trivial round" of +the golf links varied by polo, or polo varied by golf, with occasional +gymkhanas and picnics. There are, doubtless, many delightful excursions to +be made, but upon the whole it seems difficult to break far beyond the +"Circular Road," a fairly level and well-kept bridle-path, which for eight +beautiful miles winds through the pine forest, giving marvellous glimpses +of snowy peaks and sunlit valleys. + +The "Circular Road" is always fine, whether seen after rain, when, far +below in the Ferozepore Nullah, the + + "Swimming vapour slopes athwart the glen, + Puts forth an arm, and creeps from pine to pine," + +or when in the evening sunlight the whole broad Valley of Kashmir lies +glowing at our feet, ringed afar by the ethereal mountains whose pale +snows stand faint in the golden light, until beneath the yellowing sky the +clouds turn rosy, and from their midst Haramok and Kolahoi raise their +proud heads towards the earliest star. + +The expedition to the top of Apharwat is, in my opinion, hardly worth +making, but then I was not very lucky in the weather. Major Cardew, R.F.A., +and I arranged to do the climb together, and duly started one excessively +damp and foggy morning towards the middle of July. + +Taking our ponies, we scrambled up a rough path through the forest to +Killanmarg, a boulder-strewn slope, some half a mile wide, which lies +between the upper edge of the forest and the final slopes of the mountain. + +Sending our ponies home, we set about the ascent of the 3500 feet that +remained between us and our goal. The whole hillside was a perfect wild +garden. Columbines, potentillas--yellow, bronze, and crimson--primulas, +anemones, gentian, arnica, and quantities of unknown blossoms gave us +ample excuse for lingering panting in the rarefied air, as we struggled +through brushwood first, and then over loose rocks and finally slopes of +shelving snow, before we found ourselves on the crest of the mountain, +shivering slightly in the raw, foggy air. + +Our view was narrowed down to the bleak slopes of rock and snow that +immediately surrounded us, for our hope that we should get above the cloud +belt was not fulfilled, and beyond a dismal tarn, lying just below us, in +whose black waters forlorn little bergs of rotten snow floated, and a very +much circumscribed view of dull tops swathed in flying mist, we saw +nothing. + +Had the sky been clear, I am told that the view would have been +magnificent, but I should think probably no better than that from +Killanmarg, as it is a mistake to suppose that a high, or at least too +high, elevation "lends enchantment." As a rule the view is finer when seen +half-way up a lofty mountain than that obtained from the summit. + +We did not stay long upon the top of Apharwat discussing the best point of +view, because Cardew sagaciously remarked that if it grew much thicker he +wouldn't be answerable for finding the way down, and as I have a holy +horror of rambling about strange (and possibly precipitous) mountains in a +fog, we set about retracing our own footsteps in the snow until we +regained the ridge we had come up by. + +A remarkably wet couple we were when we presented ourselves at our +respective front doors, just in time for a "rub down" before lunch! + +The golf at Gulmarg is very good, the 18-hole course being exceedingly +sporting, and tricky enough to defeat the very elect. Jane and I had +conveyed our clubs out to Kashmir, knowing that they were likely to prove +useful. I had also taken the precaution to pack up a box or two of balls, +but I found my labour all in vain, as "Haskells" and "Kemshall-Arlingtons" +were supplied by the club at precisely the same price as in England--viz., +1 r. 8 an., or two shillings. + +New clubs are also cheap and in plenty, but repairs to old favourites are +not always satisfactory. My pet driver, having been damaged, was very +evilly treated by the native craftsman, who bound up its wounds with large +screws! + +The mountains of Kashmir have been a constant joy to us. Varying with +every change of light and shade, custom cannot stale their infinite +variety; but as yet I had not seen the great monarch of Chilas, Nanga +Parbat. + +In July and early August he is rarely visible from Gulmarg, owing to the +haziness of the atmosphere. One clear morning, however, towards the end of +July, after a night of rain and storm, I was strolling along the Circular +Road when, lo! far away in the north-west, soaring ethereal above the blue +ranges that overlook Gurais, above the cloud-banks floating beyond their +summits, the great mountain, unapproachable in his glory, stood revealed. + +The early morning sun struck full on his untrodden snows, making it hard +to realise that eighty-five miles of air separated me from that clear-cut +peak. Soon, very soon, a light cloud clung to his eastern face, and within +ten minutes the whole vision had faded into an up-piled tower of seething +clouds. + +Later in the season, as the air grew clearer, Jane and I made almost daily +pilgrimages to the point, only a few minutes' walk from our hut, whence, +framed by a foreground of columnar pines, Nanga Parbat could generally be +seen for a time in the morning. + +_Tuesday, August_ 1.--Society in Gulmarg is particularly cheery, as indeed +might be expected where two or three hundred English men and women are +gathered together to amuse themselves and lay in a fresh store of health +and energy before returning to the routine of duty in the plains. + +There have been many picnics lately, the little glades or margs, which are +frequent in the forest slopes, being ideal places of rendezvous for +merrymakers on horse or foot. Picnics of all sorts and sizes, from the +little impromptu gatherings of half-a-dozen congenial young souls (always +an even number, please), who ride off into the romantic shades to nibble +biscuits and make tea, to the dainty repasts provided by a hospitable lady, +whose official hut overlooks the Ferozepore Nullah, and who, in turn, +overlooks her cook, to the great gratification of her guests. + +How small a thing will upset the best-laid plans of hospitality! It is +said that a most carefully planned picnic, where all the little tables, +set for two, were discreetly screened apart among the bushes, was entirely +ruined by a piratical damsel undertaking a cutting-out expedition for the +capture of the hostess' best young man. + +Our evenings are by no means dull. On many a starlit night has Jane +mounted the noble steed which, through the kindness of the Resident, we +have hired from the "State," and ridden across the marg attended by her +slaves (her husband and the ancient shikari, to wit), to dine and play +bridge in some hospitable hut, or dance or see theatricals at Nedou's +Hotel. + +Last week we tore ourselves away from our daily golf, and joined the +Smithsons in a futile expedition to the foot of the Ferozepore Nullah for +bear. Three days we spent in vain endeavour to find "baloo," and on the +fourth we wended our toilsome way up the hill again to Gulmarg. + +_Monday, August_ 27.--There are drawbacks as well as advantages in being +perched, as it were, just above the bazaar. Its proximity enables our good +Sabz Ali to sally forth each morning and secure the earliest consignment +of "butter and eggs and a pound of cheese," which has come up from +Srinagar, and select the best of the fruit and vegetables. It affords also +an interesting promenade for the geese, who solemnly march down the main +street daily for recreation and such stray articles of food as may be +found in the heterogeneous rubbish-heaps. + +It possesses, however, a superabundance of pi-dogs, who gather together on +the slope in front of our hut in the watches of the night, and serenade us +to a maddening extent. + +The natives, too, have a sinful habit of chattering and shouting at an +hour when all well-conducted persons should be steeped in their beauty +sleep. + +A few nights ago this culminated in what Keats would have called a "purple +riot." The sweeper and his friends were holding a meeting for the purpose +of conversation and the consumption of apple brandy. + +Having fruitlessly sent the shikari to try and stop the insufferable noise, +I was fain to sally forth myself to investigate matters. + +Then to a happy and light-hearted party seated chattering round a blazing +fire there came suddenly the unwelcome apparition of an exceedingly irate +sahib, in evening dress and pumps, brandishing a khudstick. + +A wild scurry, in which the bonfire was scattered, a few remarks in +forcible English, a whack which just missed the hindmost reveller, and the +place became a deserted village. + +Next morning Sabz Ali came to me in a towering rage to report that the +sweeper--that unclean outcast--had dared to say most opprobrious things to +him, being inspired thereto by the devil and apple brandy. Nothing less +than the immediate execution of the culprit by hanging, drawing, and +quartering would satisfy the outraged feelings of our henchman. + +I promised a yet severer punishment. I said I would "cut" the wretched +minion's pay that month to the amount of a rupee. Vengeance was satisfied, +and the victim reduced to tears. + +It is good to hear Jane--who for many years has been accustomed to having +her own way in all household matters--ordering breakfast. + +"Well, Sabz Ali--what shall we have for breakfast to-morrow?" + +"Jessa mem-sahib arder!"--with a friendly grin. + +"Then I shall have kidneys."' + +"No kidney, mem-sahib! Kidney plenty money--two annas six pice ek. Oh, +plenty dear!" + +"I'm tired of eggs. Is there any cold chicken you +could grill?" + +"Chota murghi one egg lay, mem-sahib, anda poach. Sahib, chicken grill +laike!" + +"Oh, all right! But I thought of a mutton-chop for the major sahib." + +"Muttony stup" (mutton's tough). "Sahib no laike!" + +"Very well, that will do--a poached egg for me and grilled chicken for the +sahib." + +"No, mem-sahib--no 'nuf. Sahib plenty 'ungry--chicken grill, peechy +ramble-tamble egg!" + +"Have it your own way. I daresay the major sahib _would_ like scrambled +eggs, and we'll have coffee--not tea." + +"No, mem-sahib. No coffee--coffee finish!" + +"Send the shikari down to the bazaar, then, for a tin of coffee from +Nusserwanjee." + +"Shikari saaf kuro lakri ke major sahib" (cleaning the golf-clubs). "Tea +breakfast, coffee kal" (to-morrow). + +And, utterly routed on every point, Jane gives in gracefully, and makes an +excellent breakfast as prearranged by Sabz Ali! + +The news is spread that there will be an exhibition of pictures held in +Srinagar in September. Every second person is a--more or less--heaven-born +artist out here, so there promises to be no lack of exhibits. I dreamed a +dream last night, and in my dream I was walking along the bund and came +upon an elderly gentleman laying Naples yellow on a canvas with a trowel. +The river was smooth and golden, and reflected the sensuous golden tones +of the sky. Trees arose from golden puddles, half screening a ziarat which, +upon the glowing canvas, appeared remarkably like a village church. "How +beautiful!" I cried, "how gloriously oleographic!" and the painter, +removing a brush from his mouth, smiled, well pleased, and said, "I am a +Leader among Victorian artists and the public adores me!" and I left him +vigorously painting pot-boilers. Then in a damp dell among the willows of +the Dal I found a foreigner in spectacles, and the light upon his pictures +was the light that never was on sea or land; but through a silvery mist +the willows showed ghostly grey, and a shadowy group of classic nymphs +were ringed in the dance, and I cried "O Corot! lend me your spectacles. I +fain, like you, would see crude nature dimmed to a silvery perpetual +twilight." And Corot replied: "Mon ami moi je ne vois jamais le soleil, je +me plonge toujours, dans les ombres bleuâtres et les rayons pâles de +l'aube." + +Then upward I fared till, treading the clear heights, I found one +frantically painting the peaks and pinnacles of the mountains in weird +stipples of alternate red and blue. + +"Great heavens!" I exclaimed, "what disordered manner is this!" + +The artist glanced swiftly at me, and said disdainfully: "I am a modern of +the moderns, and if you cannot see that mountains are like that, it is +your fault--not mine. Go back, you stand too close." + +And as I went back I looked over my shoulder, and, truly, the flaring +rose-colour had blended amicably with the blue, and I admitted that +perhaps Segantini was not so mad as he looked. + +A little lower down a stout Scotchman painted a flowery valley. The +flowers were many and bright, but not so garish as they appeared to him, +and I hinted as much; but he scorned my criticism. + +"Mon," he shouted, "I painted the Three Graces, an' they made me an +Academeesian. I painted a flowery glen in the Tyrol (dearie me, but thae +flowers cost me a fortune in blue paint), and it was coft for the Chantry +Bequest, and hoo daur _you_ talk to me?" + +Then I departed hurriedly and came upon four men, two of them with long +beards, and all with unkempt hair, laboriously depicting a blue pine, +needle by needle, and every one in its proper place. I asked them if +theirs was not a very troublesome way of painting. + +They looked at one another with earnest blue eyes, and remarked that here +was evidently a Philistine who knew not Cimabue and cared not a jot for +Giotto; and the first said: "Sir, methinks he who would climb the golden +stairs should do so step by step;" and the second said, sadly: "We are but +scapegoats, truly, being cast forth by the vindictive Victorians of our +day." + +The third murmured in somewhat broken English. + + "Victoria Victrix, + Beata Beatrix," + +whereby I recognised him to be a poet, if not a painter. + +But the fourth--an energetic-looking man with a somewhat arrogant +manner--said briskly: "Perchance the ass is right; these pine needles are +becoming monotonous, and I have seventeen million four hundred and +sixty-two thousand five hundred and eleven more to do. Beshrew me if I do +not take to pot-boiling!" + +Down by the water-side a lady sat, sketching in water-colours for dear +life; around her lay a litter of half-finished works, scattered like +autumn leaves in Vallombrosa. I approached her, quite friendly, and +offered to gather them up for her--at least some of them, saying +soothingly, for I saw she was in a temper-- + +"Dear, dear, Clara, why, what _is_ the matter?" + +"I am painting the Venice of the East," she cried petulantly, "but for the +life of me I can't see a campanile, and how can I possibly paint a picture +without a campanile?" + +I understood that, of course, she couldn't, so I stole away softly on +tip-toe, leaving her turning doungas into gondolas for all she was worth. + +A dark, dapper man, with an alert air and an eyeglass, sat near the +seventh bridge, writing. Beside him stood an easel and other painting-gear. +I asked him what he was doing, and he answered, with a fine smile, "I am +gently making enemies;" so, to turn the subject, I picked up a large +canvas, smeared over with invisible grey, like the broadside of a modern +battleship, and sprinkled here and there with pale yellow blobs. + +"What have we here, James?" I inquired cheerfully, and he, staying his +claw-like hand in mid-air, made reply-- + +"A chromatic in tones of sad colour, with golden accidentals--Kashmir +night-lights." + +"Ah! quite so," I exclaimed; "but have I got it right side up?" + +He looked at it doubtfully for a moment, then, pointing to a remarkable +butterfly (_Vanessa Sifflerius_) depicted in the corner, cried: "It's all +right; you'll never make a mistake if you keep this insect in the _right +bottom corner_. It is put there on purpose." + +Lastly, on an eminence I saw a man like an eagle, sitting facing full the +sun, and upon his glowing canvas was portrayed the heavens above and the +earth beneath and the waters under the earth, and behind him sat one who +patted him upon the back, and looked at intervals over his shoulder at the +glorious work, and then wrote in a book a eulogy thereof; and I, too, came +and looked over the painter's shoulder, and I muttered, with Oliver +Wendell Holmes, + + "The foreground golden dirt, + The sunshine painted with a squirt." + +Then the man who patted the painter on the back turned upon me +aggressively, and said: "This is the only painter who ever was, or will be, +and if you don't agree with me you are a fool." The painter, smiling a sly +Monna-Lisan smile of triumph, remarked: "Right you are, John. I rather +think this _will_ knock that rascal Claude," and I laughed so that I awoke; +but the memory of the dream remained with me, and it seemed to me that, +perhaps, we poor amateurs might not be any better able to compass aught +but caricatures of this marvellous scenery than the ghostly limners of my +dream! + +The hut just above ours was tenanted by a party of three young Lancers on +leave from Rawal Pindi, a gramophone, and a few dogs. + +One of the soldiers was laid up with a bad ankle, and it soon became a +daily custom for Jane or me to play a game of chess or piquet with the +invalid. + +Later on, when leave had expired for the hale, when the dogs had departed, +and the voice of the gramophone was no more heard in the land, we came to +see a great deal of the wounded warrior, and finally arranged to +personally conduct him off the premises, and return him, in time for +medical survey, to Rawal Pindi. + +Many years ago I read a delightful poem called _The Paradise of Birds_--I +believe it was by Mortimer Collins,[1] but I am not sure. Now the Poet +(who, together with Windbag, sailed to this very paradise of birds) deemed +that this happy asylum of the feathered fowls was somewhere at the back of +the North Pole. He cannot have known of Kashmir, or he would assuredly +have sent the persecuted birds thither, and placed the "Roc's Egg" as +janitor, somewhere by the portals of the Jhelum Valley. Kashmir is truly +and indeed the paradise of birds, for there no man molests them, and no +schoolboy collects eggs, and the result is a fascinating fearlessness, the +result of perpetual peace and plenty. + +I regret exceedingly that my ornithological knowledge is extremely limited. +I could find no books to help me,[2] and, as I did not care to kill any +birds merely to enable me to identify their species, my notes were merely +"popular" and not "scientific." + +Shall I confess that I began an erudite work on the birds of Kashmir, but +got no further than the Hoopoe? It began as follows:-- + +THE HOOPOE + +_Early history of_.--Tereus, King of Thrace, annoyed his wife Procne so +much by the very marked attention which he paid to her sister Philomela, +that she lost her temper so far as to chop up her son Itylus, and present +him to his papa in the form of a ragoût. + +This, naturally, disgusted Tereus very much, and he "fell upon" the ladies +with a sword, but, just as he was about to stab them to the heart, he was +changed into a Hoopoe, Philomela into a nightingale, Procne into a swallow, +while Itylus became a pheasant. + + "Vertitur in volucrem, cui stant in vertice cristae + Prominet immodicum pro longa cuspide rostrum; + Nomen epops volucri." + +OVID, _Metam_. lib. vi. + +_His crest and patent of nobility_.--Once upon a time, King Solomon, while +making a royal progress, was much, incommoded by the powerful rays of the +sun, and as he had ascendency over the birds, and knew their language, he +called upon the vultures to come and fly betwixt the sun and his nobility, +but the vultures refused. Then the kindly Hoopoes assembled, and flew in +close mass above his head, thus forming a shade under which he proceeded +on his journey in ease and comfort. + +At sundown the monarch sent for the King of the Hoopoes, and desired him +to name a reward for the service which he and his followers had rendered. + +Then the King of the Hoopoes answered that nothing could be more glorious +than the golden crown of King Solomon; and so Solomon decreed that the +Hoopoes should thenceforward wear golden crowns as a mark of his favour. +But alas! when men found the Hoopoes all adorned with golden crowns, they +pursued and slew them in great multitudes for greed of the precious metal, +until the King of the Hoopoes, in heavy sorrow, hied hastily to King +Solomon, and begged that the gift of the golden crowns might be rescinded, +ere every Hoopoe was slain. + +Then Solomon, seeing the misery they had brought upon themselves by their +presumption, transformed their crowns of gold to crowns of feathers, which +no man coveted (for the Eastern ladies didn't wear hats), and the Hoopoes +wear them to this day as a mark of royal favour, but all the feathers fell +off the necks of the disobliging vultures. + +_His amazing talent_.--In those dark ages ... the Hoopoe was considered as +prodigiously skilful in defeating the machinations of witches, wizards, +and hobgoblins. The female, in consequence of this art, could preserve her +offspring from these dreaded injuries. + +She knew all the plants which defeat fascinations, those which give sight +to the blind; and, more wondrous still, those which open gates or doors, +locked, bolted, or barred. + +Aelian relates that a man having three times successively closed the nest +of a Hoopoe, and having remarked the herb with which the bird, as often, +opened it, applied the same herb, and _with the same success_, to charm +the locks off the strongest coffer.--_Naturalists' Magazine_ (about 1805). + +_His personal appearance_.--The beak is bent, convex and sub-compressed, +and in some degree obtuse; the tongue is obtuse, triangular and very short, +and the feet are ambulatory. As this bird has a great abundance of +feathers, it appears considerably thicker than it is. It is, in fact, +about the size of a mistletoe thrush, but looks, while in its feathers, to +be as large as a common pigeon.--_Naturalists' Magazine_. + +I had got _no_ further in my _magnum opus_, when I unfortunately showed my +notes to Colonel--well, I will not mention his name, but he is the +greatest authority on the birds and beasts of Kashmir. He besought me to +spare him, pathetically remarking that I should cut the ground from under +his feet, and take the bread out of his mouth, and the wind out of his +sails, if I went any further with my monograph on the Hoopoe. He saw at a +glance that I was conversant with authorities whom he had never consulted, +and possessed a knowledge of my subject to which he could hardly aspire, +so I gracefully agreed to leave the field to him, and relinquished my +_magnum opus_ in its very inception. + +One of the chiefest charms of Kashmir, and one which is apt to be +overlooked, is the entirely unspoilt freshness of its scenery. No locust +horde of personally-conducted "trippers" pollutes its ways and byways, nor +has the khansamah of the dâk bungalow as yet felt constrained to add +sauerkraut and German sausage to his bill of fare--for which Allah be +praised! + +The world is growing very small, and the globe-trotter rushes round it in +eighty days. The trail of the cheap excursionist is all over Europe, from +the North Cape to Tarifa, from the highest Alpine summit (which he attains +in comfort by a funicular railway) to the deepest mines of Cornwall. Egypt +has become his footstool, and the shores of the Mediterranean his wash-pot. +Niagara is mapped and labelled for his benefit, and the Yosemite is his +happy hunting-ground. He "does" the West Indies in "sixty days for sixty +pounds," and he is now arranging a special cheap excursion from the Cape +to Cairo. "But," it may be remarked, "what were Jane and I but +globe-trotters'? and am I not trying to sing the praises of Kashmir with +the avowed object of inducing people to go out and see it for themselves?" + +By all manner of means let us travel. Far be it from me to wish folks to +stay dully at home, while the wonders and beauties of the wide world lie +open for the admiration and education of its inhabitants. + +But there are globe-trotters and globe-trotters. My objection is only to +those--alas! too numerous--vagrants who cannot go abroad without casting +shame on the country which bred them; whose vulgarity causes offence in +church and picture-gallery; who cannot see a monument or a statue without +desiring to chip off a fragment, or at least scrawl their insignificant +names upon it. + +From these, and such as these, Kashmir is as yet free; but some day, I +suppose, it will be "opened up," when the railway, which is already +contemplated, is in going order between Pindi and Srinagar, and cheap +excursion tickets are issued from Berlin and Birmingham. + +Here is a specimen page of the Guide Book (bound in red) for 19--(?): + +"Ascend Apharwat by the funicular railway. The neat little station, +with its red corrugated-iron roof, makes a picturesque spot of colour near +the Dobie's Ghât. Fares, 4 an. 6 pi., all the way." + +"A local guide should on no account be omitted (several are always to be +found near the station leaning on their khudsticks, and discussing +controversial theology in the sweet low tones so noticeable in the +Kashmiri). See that he be provided with a horn, to the hooting of which +the Echo Lake will be found responsive." + +"From the balcony of the * Hôtel Baloo an unrivalled view of Nanga Parbat +should be obtained. Glasses can be procured from the anna-in-the-slot +machines which are dotted about." + +"This veritable king of the Himal--" (here follows a pageful of regulation +guide-book gush). + +"Good sport is to be obtained from the obliging and enterprising manager +of the hotel, Herr Baer. A few rupees will purchase the privilege of +shooting at that monarch of the mountains, the markhor. Start not, fair +tourist, for no danger lurks in the sport. No icy precipices need be +scaled, no giddy gulfs explored, and the only danger which menaces the +bold hunter in the mimic stalk, is that which menaces his shins in the +broken soda-water bottles and sharp-edged sardine tins with which the +summit of Apharwat is strewn." + +"As a matter of fact, the consumption of mutton is considerable in the +Hôtel Baloo in the tourist season, and the worthy Baer conceived the +brilliant and financially sound scheme of attaching some old ibex and +markhor horns (bought cheap when the old library at Srinagar was swept +away in the last flood) to his live stock, and turning his decorated flock +loose on the mountain's brow, where the sportsman saves him the trouble of +slaughter while enjoying all the excitement and none of the difficulty of +a veritable stalk." + +"Another brilliant invention of the good Baer is his 'sunset spectacles.' +These are made with the glasses in two halves--the upper part orange and +the lower one purple. These are simply invaluable to those who have only a +brief half-hour in which to 'do' Apharwat before darting down to catch the +3.15 express for Leh (_viâ_ the newly opened Zoji La tunnel), since for +the modest sum of 8 a. a superb sunset can be enjoyed at any time of the +day." + +"Should, however, the leisured globe-trotter have unlimited time at his +disposal, he would do well to lunch at the Hôtel Baloo, in order to taste +the celebrated Kashmir sauerkraut (made of wild rhubarb) and Gujar pie +(composed of the most tempting tit-bits of the water buffalo), before +returning to the 'Savoy' at Srinagar by the turbine tram from Tangmarg, or +by the pneumatic launch which leaves Palhallan Pier every ten minutes, +weather permitting." + +"Should the tourist be a naturalist he can hardly fail to observe, and be +interested in, the mosquitoes of this charming and picturesque locality. +He will note that they rival the song-thrush in magnitude and the Bengal +tiger in ferocity. A coating of tar laid with a trowel over the exposed +parts of the body will be found the best protection, especially as the new +Armour Company's patent hermetically sealed bear-proof visor will be found +too hot for comfort in summer." + +"The environs of Srinagar are charming. Notice the picturesque 'furnished +apartments' for paying guests all along the water-side, and the mixed +bathing establishments, crowded daily by the Smart Set, whose jewelled +pyjamas flash in rivalry of the heliographic oil-tins which deck the +neighbouring temples." + +"By a visit to the Museum, and an inspection by eye and nose of the quaint +specimens of antique clothing exhibited there, the intelligent and +imaginative traveller may conjure up a mental picture of the unpolished +appearance of the old-time Mangi and his lady before he adopted the tall +hat and frock coat of civilisation, or she had discovered the 'swanbill'!" + + +[1] It is by Courthope, not Collins. + +[2] See Appendix II. + + + +CHAPTER XIII + +THE FLOOD + +Tuesday, _September_ 12.--A second edition of the Noachian deluge is upon +us! It began to rain on Saturday, at the close of a hot and stuffy week, +and, having succeeded in thoroughly soaking the unfortunate ladies who +were engaged in a golf competition that day, it proceeded to rain +abundantly all through Sunday and Monday. + +The outlook from our hut is dispiriting; through a thick grey veil of +vapour the gleam of water shines over the swamp that was the polo-ground. +The little muddy stream in which so many erring golf-balls lie low is up +and out for a ramble over its banks. The lower golf-greens resemble +paddy-fields, and round the marg the spires of dull grey pines stand +dripping in a steadfast shower-bath. + +Sometimes the heavy cloud folds everything in its leaden wing, blotting +out even the streaming village at our feet, and reducing our view to the +immediate slope below us where the wilted ragwort and rank weeds bend +before the tiny torrents which trickle everywhere. Then comes a break, +falsely suggestive of an improvement, and lo! soaring above the cloudy +boil, the lofty shoulders of Apharwat sheeted in new-fallen snow! + +After the somewhat oppressive heat of last week, the sudden raw cold +strikes home, and Jane and I take a great interest in the fire, the "Old +Snake"[1] is an accomplished fire-master, and it is pleasant to watch him +squatting like an ungainly frog in front of the hearth, and sagaciously +feeding the flame with damp and spitting logs. + +It is amazing what lavish expenditure of fuel one will indulge in when it +costs nothing a ton! + +We are just beginning to find out the exact spots where chairs may be +planted so as to avoid the searching draughts which go far to make our +happy home like a very airy sort of bird-cage. + +Well! we might have been worrying through all this in a sodden tent, where +even a boarded floor would barely have kept out rheumatism, and where one +would have been liable to alarms and excursions at all sorts of untoward +times when drains wanted deepening and guys slackening. The mere thought +of such things sent us into a truly thankful state of mind, and we +discussed from our cosy chairs the probable condition of the party from +the Residency which set forth, full of high hope, on Saturday morning to +attack the markhor of Poonch. + +Here it has rained with vehemence ever since they left; up in the high +ground it has doubtless snowed; and although they were well armed with +cards and whisky, yet it would appear but a poor business to play bridge +all day in a snow-bound tent on the top of the Pir Panjal! Nothing short +of a hundred aces every few minutes could make the game worth the candle! + +This spell of bad weather has greatly interfered with the movements of a +large number of the folks who were to leave Gulmarg early this week. Many +got away betimes on Saturday, and a few faced the elements on Sunday, and +a painful experience they must have had. + +We had intended to leave next Thursday, and had ordered boats to meet us +at Parana Chauni, but the road will be so bad that I wired this morning to +put off our transport till further orders. + +The end of the season at Gulmarg sees the bazaar stock at low water. Eggs, +fowls, cherry brandy, and spirits of wine are "off," also butter, but the +latter scarcity does not affect us, as we make our own in a pickle jar. +The bazaar butter became very bad, probably because the large numbers of +visitors to Gulmarg caused an additional supply to be got from uncleanly +Gujars, so we, by the kindness of the Assistant Resident, had a special +cow detailed to supply us daily with milk at our own door. + +That cow was very friendly; I first made its acquaintance one forenoon. +While I was sitting below the verandah sketching, with a dozen lovely +peaches spread by me on the hoards to obtain their final touch of +perfection in the sun before lunch, the cow strolled up. I was much +interested in the sketch, and believed that the cow was too; but when I +looked up at last, expecting to see its eye fixed upon the work in silent +approbation, + + "The 'cow' was still there, but the 'peaches' were gone." + +In the afternoon the weather showed signs of a desire to amend its ways. +The clouds broke here and there, and, though it still rained heavily, it +became apparent that the clerk of the weather had done his worst, and the +supply of rain was running short. Clad in aquascutic garments, and +surmounted by an ungainly two-rupee bazaar umbrella (my dapper British one +having been annexed by a covetous Mangi)-- + + "Ombrifuge, Lord love you, case o' rain, + I flopped forth 'sbuddikins on my own ten toes." + +The whole slope in front of the hut was a trickle of water, threading the +dying stalks of dock and ragwort, and hurrying down to add its dirty +pittance to the small yellow torrent rushing along the greasy strip of +clay that in happier days was the path. + +The whole marg was become lake or stream--lake over the polo-ground and +half the golf-links--fed by the weeping slopes on every side, whence +innumerable rills rioted over the grass, emulating in ferocity and haste, +if not in size, the tawny torrents which drained the sides of Apharwat. + +The road from the bazaar to the club was all but impassable, but as it had +still a few inches of freeboard, I followed it to the foot of the church +slope, and, skirting the hill, inspected the desolation which had been +wrought at the Kotal hole, where the stream had torn through its banks and +wrecked the green. + +During a visit of condolence to Mrs. Smithson, whose unfortunate husband +is pursuing markhor in Poonch, the sky cleared--a splendid effort in the +way of a "clearing shower" being followed by a decided break-up of the +pall of wet cloud in which we have been too long immersed. Not without a +severe struggle did Jupiter Pluvius consent to turn off the tap, but at +length the sun broke through the hanging clouds and sent their sodden grey +fragments swirling up the Ferozepore Nullah to break in foamy wreaths +round the ragged cliffs of Kulan. + +Finding the road across to the post-office altogether under water for some +distance--a lake extending from the twelfth hole for nearly a quarter of a +mile to the main road--I wandered back towards the higher ground, joining +a waterproof figure, a member of the Green Committee, who was sadly +regarding the water-logged links with the disconsolate air of the raven let +loose from the ark! We agreed that this was a remarkably good opportunity +for observing the drainage system, and taking notes for future guidance, +and in company we went over as much of the links as possible, finishing +below the second hole, where the cross stream which comes down from the +higher ground had torn away the bridge and cut off the huts beyond from +civilisation. + +The homeward stroll at sunset was perfectly beautiful, and showed Gulmarg +in an absolutely new guise. The lower part of the marg, being all lake, +reflected the lustrous golden sky and rich dark pine-woods in a faithful +mirror. Flying fragments of cloud, fleeces of gold and crimson, clung to +the mountain-sides or sailed above the forests, while beyond Apharwat, +coldly clad in a pure white mantle of snow, new fallen, rose silhouetted +against the darkening sky. + +_Saturday, September_ 16.--After the Deluge came the Exodus, everybody +trying to leave Gulmarg at once. We had always intended to go down to +Srinagar about the 15th, but, finding that the Residency party meant to +move on that day, we arranged to migrate a day earlier in order to avoid +the pony and coolie famine which a Residential progress entails on the +ordinary traveller. + +On Wednesday afternoon the ten ponies, carefully ordered a week before +from the outlying villages, were congregated on the weedy slope which +falls away from our verandah, picking up a scanty sustenance from decaying +ragwort and such like. + +Secure in the possession of the necessary transport, Jane and I strolled +forth for a last look at Nanga Parbat, should he haply deign to be on view. +He did not deign, however, preferring to remain, like Achilles, when +bereft of Briseis, sulking in his cloudy tent. So we consoled ourselves +with an exceedingly fine view of the snow-crowned heights at the head of +the Ferozepore Nullah. Upon returning to our beloved log cabin we were met +by Sabz Ali--almost speechless with wrath--who broke to us the distressing +news that six of our ten weight-carriers had departed from the compound. +The entire staff, with the exception of our factotum, were away in pursuit, +and there was nothing for it but to possess our souls in what patience we +might until they returned. + +As we had arranged for a four o'clock start next morning, it was most +disconcerting to have all our transport desert so late in the evening. An +urgent note to the Assistant Resident, and some pressure on the Tehsildhar, +produced promise of assistance. + +Early on Thursday morning came an indignant chit from an irate General, +complaining that my servants were trying to seize his ponies, for which he +had paid an advance of two rupees, and would I be good enough to +investigate the affair. Here was the murder out. His chuprassie had +obviously bribed my pony wallahs, and a letter, stating my case pretty +clearly, produced the ponies and an apology. + +This delay kept us till after midday, when, stowing our invalid snugly in +a dandy, we left Gulmarg and began the descent to Srinagar. I remained +behind to see the hut clear and make a sketch, and then hurried down the +direct path, which drops some 2000 feet to Tangmarg. Here I found Jane and +the invalid comfortably disposed in a landau, but the baggage spread about +anywhere, and the usual clamour of coolies uprising in the heated and +dust-laden air. + +No ekka--the one which had been ordered with the landau having apparently +got another job and departed. Presently a stray ekka, drawn by a sorely +weary-looking mule, appeared on the scene, and we seized upon it instantly, +loaded it up with most of the baggage, and despatched coolies with the +rest. + +After the storm came a holy calm, and we settled down to a light but +welcome lunch before starting down the long slope into the valley. + +We had heard most disquieting tales of floods; the water had burst the +bund at Srinagar, and there was said to be ten feet over the polo-ground. +The occupants of Nedou's Hotel were going in and out by boat, and Srinagar +itself was said to be quite cut off from all access by road. + +The Residency party have countermanded their intended move to-morrow. + +At the post-office I was told that only a small part of the mail had been +brought into Srinagar, the road being "bund" between Baramula and that +place, while an unusual number of landslips and bridges have come down in +the Jhelum Valley. + +Nevertheless, we had made a push to get on; things in Kashmir are often +less gloomy than their reports would make one believe, and so we bowled +quite cheerfully down the road from Tangmarg, basking in the hot and sunny +air, which seemed to us really delicious after the raw cheerlessness of +the last few days at Gulmarg. + +From Tangmarg to the dâk bungalow at Margam, a steady descent is +maintained by an excellent road over the sloping Karewa, for about ten +miles, of which we had just about travelled half when a series of yells +from the syce behind, a wild swerve, and a heavy plump brought us up just +on the edge of the steep and rocky bank, which fell sharply from the +roadside. + +Alas! the axle of the off hind wheel had snapped, and the wheel itself was +hopelessly lying in the thick white dust, and our landau looked like an +ancient three-decker in a squall. + +The horses being unharnessed, we sent the drivers with one of them forward +to look for help, and Hesketh and Jane proceeded to make tea while I sat +by the roadside and sketched. + +Presently an empty dandy came "dribbling by" on its return journey to +Gulmarg, and it was immediately impressed for the benefit of the lame. +Hardly had we packed him in, when a wandering tonga hove in sight, and, +being promptly requisitioned, we rattled off the five miles which lay +between us and Margam in no time. + +Here we found a large party assembled in the little rest-house. Colonel +and Mrs. Maxwell (who had kindly sent us back the tonga on hearing of the +breakdown); Mr. and Mrs. Allen Baines, whose dandy had been the means of +bringing Hesketh along; and Sadleir-Jackson, and Edwards of the 9th +Lancers. + +The bungalow was full, but I found out that one room was appropriated by a +coming event, who had cast his shadow before him in the guise of a bearer. +This being contrary to the etiquette as observed in dâk bungalows, I +gently but firmly cleared out the neatly arranged toilet things and +ready-made bed; while Hesketh was taken over, somewhat shattered by his +tedious though exciting day, by his fellow Lancers. + +The resources of the little place were severely strained; dinner was a +scanty meal, and soda-water gave out almost immediately: nevertheless, a +cheroot and a rubber of bridge sent us contented to bed. + +Yesterday (Friday) the question of how to proceed arose. The road was +reported to be impassable after about five miles, the remaining ten being +under water. + +We set out after breakfast, Jane perched on a pony which Sabz Ali had +raised or stolen, Hesketh in the dandy, and I on foot. After a warm five +miles' march we came upon signs of a block. Vehicles of many and strange +sorts were drawn up in the shade of a chenar, under whose wide branches +the Baines family was faring sumptuously on biscuits and brandy and water. + +Horses, goats, and cattle strayed around, and a chattering mob of natives, +busily engaged, as usual, in doing nothing, completed the picture. + +Hesketh was reduced to despair; after two months in bed, this could not +but be a trying journey under the most favourable circumstances, and the +prospect as held out by his pessimistic bearer was pretty gloomy--no boats +available, and no signs of our doungas. + +I pushed on to the break in search of my shikari, whom I had sent on by +pony early in the morning, and soon found that estimable person, who is +not really the blithering idiot he looks! + +In the first place, he had appropriated the only two shikaras he could +find, and our baggage was already being stowed in them; secondly, he had +discovered both Juma and Ismala, our Mangis, who reported the doungas +moored below Parana Chaum, about four miles away over the flooded fields. + +This was good news, and we ate a cheerful lunch under a tree densely +populated by jackdaws. + +The Maxwells got away somehow in search of their house-boat, which was +supposed to have left Baramula some days ago. They started cheerfully, but +vaguely, down the Spill Canal, and we trust they found their ark somewhere! + +Promising to send back a boat for the Baines, we paid and dismissed +coolies and ponies, and paddled away over the flood water. The country was +simply a vast lake, the main road merely marked by a dense row of poplars. +Trees rose promiscuously out of the calm and sunlit water, wisps of maize +and wreckage clinging to their lower boughs. Presently the road showed in +patches, a broad waterfall breaking it every here and there as the +imprisoned waters from above sought the slightly lower channel of the +Jhelum. + +We passed a party of natives bivouacking near the roof and upper storey of +their wooden hut, which, floating from above, was held up by the Baramula +road. Sounding now and then with our khudsticks, we found no bottom over +the submerged rice crops, though we could see plainly the laden ears +waving dismally down below. This is nothing less than a great calamity for +the owners, as the rice was just ready for gathering. + +Towards dusk we arrived at our ships, calmly lying moored to poplar trees +by the roadside, and right gladly did we clamber on board, for our invalid +was pretty well fagged out. + +This morning we cast loose from our poplars, and brought the fleet up to +within half a mile of the seventh bridge, or, rather, of the spot where +the seventh bridge used to be, for all but a fragment has been washed away! +The strong current prevented us from getting any higher up the river in +our doungas. Jane and I, however, were anxious to see what appearance +Srinagar presented, so we manned the shikara with five able-bodied +paddlers and pushed our way upwards. Turning into a side canal we passed a +demolished bridge, and tried to force our way up a small but swift stream. + +Failing to make anything of it, we landed and had the boat carried over +into a wider channel. Three times we were obliged to get out and leave our +stalwart crew to force the boat on somehow, and they did it well--hauling, +paddling, and shouting invocations to various saints, particularly the one +whose name sounds like "jam paws!" + +The water had already fallen some four or five feet, but there was plenty +left. A great break in the bund between Nusserwanjee's shop and the Punjab +Bank allowed us to paddle into the flooded European quarter, past the +telegraph office, standing knee-deep in muddy water, up over the main road +to Nedou's Hotel, where boats lay moored outside the dining-room windows, +then across the lagoon, lightly rippled by a tiny breeze, beneath which +lay the polo-ground, to the Residency, where we landed to inspect damages. + +The water had been all over the lower storey, but a muddy deposit on the +wooden floor, and a brown slimy high-water mark on the door jambs, alone +remained to show what had happened. The piano had been hoisted upon a +table, carpets and curtains bundled upstairs, and everything, apparently, +saved. The poor garden, with its slime-daubed shrubs, broken palings and +torn creepers, trailing wisps of draggled foliage in the oozy brown pools, +was a sad and pitiful sight, especially when mentally contrasted with the +glowing glory of asters and zinneas which it should have been. + +The flood has been nearly as bad as the great one of 1903. Fortunately the +Spill Canal, cut above Srinagar to carry off the flood water, took off +some of the pressure; the bund, also, is three feet higher than it was +then, but it gave way in two places--one somewhere near the top, and the +other just below the Bank, letting in the river to a depth of ten feet +over the low-lying quarter. The stream is now falling fast, and, after +doing a little shopping and visiting the post-office, which is temporarily +established on the bund in the midst of an amazing litter of desks, boxes, +and queer pigeon-holes admirably adapted to lose letters by the score, we +spun swiftly down the rushing stream to tea and our cosy dounga. + +_Monday, September_ 18.--It was impossible to get our boats up the river +yesterday, so I spent the day sketching amidst the most picturesque, but +horribly smelly, part of the town; much quinine in the evening seemed +desirable as a counterblast to possible malaria. + +The sunsets lately have been really magnificent; the poplars and chenars, +darkly olive, reflected in the flooded fields against a red gold sky, in +the foreground the black silhouettes of the armada. + +The days are almost too hot, but the nights are cool and delicious, and +the mosquitoes are only noticeable for a brief period of sinful activity +about sundown, after which the wicked cease from troubling and the weary +are at rest. + +At half-past ten this morning we set sail; that is to say, we hired nine +extra coolies and a second shikara to tow, and advanced on Srinagar. +Hesketh's boat, being the lighter, kept well ahead (here let me note that +"bow" in that boat is quite the prettiest girl we have seen in Kashmir, +and the minx knows it!), but we had good men, and worked along slowly and +steadily up the main river, the side canals being all choked by broken +bridges and such like. We crept past the Amira Kadal, or first bridge, +about two o'clock, and tied up for lunch, revelling in the most perfect +pears, peaches, and walnuts. As a rule the Kashmir fruit is disappointing; +abundant and cheap certainly, but not by any means of first-rate quality. + +Strawberries, cherries, apricots, melons, and grapes might all be far +better if properly cultivated, and scientifically improved from European +stock. + +The pears alone defy criticism, and the apples, I am told, are excellent +also. + +Vegetables are in great plenty, but, like the fruit, would be much +improved by good cultivation. + +_Wednesday, September_ 25.--The abomination of desolation wrought by the +flood is borne in upon one more and more as an inspection of the town +reveals the damage done more fully--the houses standing empty, their lower +storeys dank and slimy, the ruined gardens, and muddy, slippery roads. The +wrecked garden of the Punjab Bank is one of the saddest sights, and must +be a painful spectacle to Mr. Harrison, whose joy it was to spend time and +money on importing exotic and improving indigenous plants. + +One cannot help reflecting how desperately depressed Noah, and the +probably more impressionable Mrs. Noah, must have been when, discarding +their aquascutums for the first time, they sallied forth, a primeval party, +to observe the emerging country. + +Mrs. Noah, tucking up the curious straight garment that is a memory of our +childhood, went ahead with feminine curiosity; Noah, bare-legged, +slithering along in the rear and beseeching the ladies to note the +slipperiness of the alluvial deposit, and for goodness' sake not to make a +glissade down the side of Ararat. + +I feel confident they must have taken great precautions, for Sabz Ali +slipped up on the shelving bank of the Jhelum, and, had he not caught the +gunwale of our dounga in his descent, would most certainly have had to +swim for his life--which I doubt if he can do! + +Now, Shem and Co. were as valuable to Noah as Sabz Ali is to us, and I +should not be surprised if he made them travel on all-fours in the risky +places. Fathers were very dictatorial in those days, and there was nobody +about to make them consider their dignity. + +One can imagine the scene. Ararat, a muddy pyramid dotted here and there +with olive trees--curious, by the way, to find olives so high!--in the +receding waters the vagrant raven cheerfully picking out the eye of a +defunct pterodactyl. The heavy clouds rolling off the sodden world--they +must have indeed been heavy clouds, nimbus of the first water--as they had +raised the world's water-level 250 feet per day during "the flood" ... +surely a record output! + +The primeval family party, sadly poking about along the expanding margin +of the world, noting how Abel Brown's tall chimney was beginning to show, +and how Cain Jones' wigwam was clean gone. Mrs. Shem said she knew it +would, the mortar work had been so terribly scamped. + +And Naboth Robinson's vineyard--well, _it_ was in a pretty mess, to be +sure, and serve him right, for Mrs. Noah had frequently offered him two of +her (second) best milch mammoths for it; yet he had held on to his nasty +sour grapes, like the mean old curmudgeon that he was. + +And now Hammy must set to work and tidy it up; and oh! what lots of nice +manure was floating about, all for nothing the cartload ... And so the +primeval family felt better, and went back to the ark to tea, feeling +almost cheerful, but rather lonesome. + +Fortunately this great flood did little injury to life or limb. A certain +amount of destruction of crops and other property was inevitable, but on +the whole the loss was not so great as was at one time feared, and much +was saved that at first seemed irreparable. + +A well-known lady artist came near to giving the note of tragedy to the +British community, and losing the number of her mess (to use a nautical, +and therefore appropriate expression) by reason of a big willow tree, +beneath whose shady boughs she had moored her floating studio. This +hapless tree, having all its sustenance swept from beneath by the greedy +water, came down with a crash in the night upon the confiding house-boat, +and all but swamped it. + +The cook-boat, occupied as usual by a pair of prolific Mangis and their +large small family, was saved by the proverbial "acid drop"--the children +crawling out somehow or anyhow from among the branches of the fallen tree. + +The fair artist, having with shrieks invoked the aid of a neighbour, he +promptly descended from his roof or other temporary camp, and helped her +with basins and chatties to bale out the half-swamped boat. The lady is +now safely moored to the mudbank on the other side of the river where +willow trees do not grow. + +The whole bund is in a very unsafe state: it was raised three feet after +the last flood, but its width was not increased correspondingly. Now that +the water has fallen, great fissures and subsidences have appeared, and in +many places large portions of the bank have fallen away, carrying big +trees with them. + + +[1] Our pet name for Shikari Mark II., who reigns in the stead of Ahmed + Bot, sacked for expensive inefficiency. + + + +CHAPTER XIV + +THE MACHIPURA + +Wednesday, _September_ 27.--We left Srinagar yesterday, very sorry indeed +to part from the many good friends we have made and left there. Truly +Kashmir is a hospitable country, and we have met with more kind +friendliness in the last six months than we could have believed possible, +coming as we did, strangers and pilgrims into a strange land. Our +consolation is that every one comes "Home" sooner or later, so that we can +look forward to meeting most of our friends again ere very long, and +recalling with them memories of this happy summer with those who have done +so much to make it so. + +Farewell, Srinagar! Your foulness and inward evilness were lost in the +background behind your picturesque and tumble-down houses as we floated for +the last time down Jhelum's olive waters, where the sharp-nosed boats lay +moored along the margin or, poled by their sturdy Mangis and guided by the +chappars of their wives and daughters, shot athwart the eddying flood, +breaking the long reflections of the storeyed banks. + +Past the Palace of the Maharajah, its fantastic mixture of ancient +fairness and modern ugliness blending into a homogeneous beauty as +distance lent it enchantment. + +Past the temples, their tin-coated roofs refulgent in the brilliant +sunlight; under the queer wooden bridges, their solid stone piers parting +the suave flow of water into noisy swirl and gurgle. + +Past the familiar groups of grave, white-robed men solemnly washing +themselves, then scooping up and drinking the noisome fluid; past their +ladies squatting like frogs by the river-side, washing away at clothes +which never seem a whit the cleanlier for all their talk and trouble. + +Past the children and fowls, and cows and crows, all hob-nobbing together +as usual. + +Past all these sights--so strange to us at first and now so strangely +familiar--we floated, till the broken remnant of the seventh bridge lay +behind us, and the lofty poplars that hem in the Baramula road stood stark +and solemn in their endless perspective. + +Here a jangling note, out of tune and harsh, was struck by the dobie, with +whom we had a grave difference of opinion regarding the washing. + +That gentleman having "lost by neglect" certain articles of my kit--to wit +sundry shirts and other garments--and having rendered others completely +_hors de combat_ by reason of his sinful method of washing, I decided to +"cut" three rupees off his remuneration. + +This decision seemed to have taken from him all that life held of worth, +and he implored me to spare his wife, children, and home, all of whom +would be broken up and ruined if I were cruel enough, to enforce my awful +threat. Seeing that I was obdurate, being well backed by the infuriated +Jane, whose underwear showed far more lace and open work than nature +intended, the wretched dobie melted into loud and tearful lamentation, and +perched himself howling in the prow. This soon became so boresome that I +deported him to Hesketh's boat, where he underwent another defeat at the +hands of that irate Lancer, whose shirts and temper had suffered together; +finally the woeful washerman, still howling lugubriously, was landed on +the river bank, and we saw and heard him no more! + +Down the gentle river we swiftly glided all day, while the Takht and Hari +Parbat grew smaller and bluer, and Srinagar lay below them invisible in +its swathing greenery. + +Reaching Sumbal at sunset, we turned to the left down a narrow canal, and +soon the Wular lay--a sheet of molten gold--upon our right; and by the +time we had moored alongside a low strip of reedy bank, the glorious rosy +lights had faded from the snows of the Pir Panjal, and their royal purple +and gold had turned to soft ebony against the primrose of the sky. + +A few hungry mosquitoes worried us somewhat before sunset, promising worse +to follow; but the sharp little breeze that came flickering over the Wular +after dark seemed to upset their plans, and send them shivering and hungry +to shelter among the reeds and rushes. + +This morning we crossed the Wular, starting as the first pale dawn showed +over the eastern hills. + +Before the sun rose over Apharwat, his shafts struck the higher snows and +turned them rosy; while the lower slopes, their distant pines suffused +with strong purple, stood reflected in the placid mirror of the lake. + + "Full many a glorious morning have I seen + Flatter the mountain tops with sovran eye," + +but seldom a more lovely one than this--our last on the Wular Lake. + +The active figures of the propellent Mangis, and the quiet ones of their +ladies at the helm, completed a picture to be recalled with a sigh when we +are parted by thousands of miles from this entrancing valley. + +Sopor we had understood to be but an uninteresting place, but we were, +perhaps, inclined to regard things Kashmirian through somewhat rosy +spectacles. Anyhow, we rather liked Sopor. Mooring close alongside a +remarkably picturesque building standing in the midst of a smooth green +lawn, which was once, I believe, a dâk bungalow, we halted to make +arrangements for the hire of coolies and ponies to take us inland, and I +went off to the post-office for letters and to make inquiries as to the +probable depth of water in the river Pohru. + +Our skipper, Juma, affirmed that there was no water to speak of; but Juma +probably--nay, certainly--prefers the _otium_ of a sojourn at Sopor to the +toil of punting up the Pohru. + +The postmaster declared that there was lots of water, but qualified his +optimism by saying that it was falling fast. So we arranged for our land +transport of ponies for ourselves, and a dandy for Hesketh, to meet us one +march up the river at Nopura, while we ourselves set forward in our boats +to Dubgam, three or four miles down the Jhelum, where the Pohru joins it. +At the entrance are large stores of timber, principally deodar, which is +floated down from the Lolab, stored at Dubgam, and sent thence down +country and otherwhere for sale. The great boom across the river to catch +the floating logs had been carried away in the flood, and merely showed a +few melancholy and ineffectual spikes of wood sticking up above the now +calm and sluggish river. + +We towed up easily enough, through a quiet and peaceful country, which +only became gorgeous under the alchemy of sunset, reaching Nopura in good +time to tie up before dinner. + +_Friday, September 29_.--On Thursday morning we started, as usual, at dawn, +and proceeded to pole and haul our way up the devious channel of the Pohru. +Some four or five miles we accomplished successfully, although there were +ominous signs of a gradual lack of water, until we came upon a hopeless +shallow, where the river, instead of concentrating its energies on one +deep and narrow channel, had run to waste over a wide bed, where the +wrinkling wavelets showed the golden brown of the gravel just below the +surface. Our big dounga stuck hard and fast at once, and Captain Jurna +promptly gave up all hope of getting farther. He was, in fact, greatly +gratified to find his prophesies come true, and an insufferable air of "I +told you so" overspread his face as he wagged his head with mock sorrow, +and gently poked the bottom with his pole to show how firmly fixed we were. + +Having an invalid with us, however, it was important to gain every easy +mile we could, and it was not until all the fleet in turn had attempted to +cross the shallow, and failed, that we made up our minds to take to our +land transport. It was uncommonly hot in the full glare of the sun as +Hesketh in his dandy, Jane on her "tattoo," and I on foot set forward for +the forest house at Harwan, which lay some five miles away across the +fields, where the rice is now being busily cut. + +At the foot of a very brown and parched-looking hill stood the little +wooden hut, facing the valley of the Pohru and the Kaj-nag range. Hot and +thirsty, we blessed the good Mr. Blunt, the kindly forest officer, who had +so courteously given us permission to use the forest huts of the Lolab and +the Machipura. Our blessings of Blunt turned swiftly to curses directed +towards the chowkidar, who was not to be seen, and who had left the hut +firmly fastened from within. An attempt to force the door brought upon us +the resentment of a highly irritable swarm of big red wasps, who plainly +regarded us as objectionable intruders; and Jane was really getting quite +cross (she says--she always does--that it was I who lost my +temper)--before the bold sweeper, prying round the back premises, found an +unbarred window, and the joy bells rang once more. + +The Colonel turned up from the Malingam direction, and pitched his tent in +the rest-house compound; and, as the afternoon grew cooler, he and I +sallied forth to select a few chikor for the pot. + +The chikor is extremely like the ordinary European redleg or Barbary +partridge, not only in colouring, but in habit, loving the same dry, +scrub-covered country, and preferring, like him, to run rather than fly +when pursued. The chikor, however, is certainly far superior in the +capacity of what fowl fanciers call "a table bird," being, in fact, truly +excellent eating. + +He is not an altogether easy bird to shoot, owing to his annoying +predilection for the steepest and rockiest hillsides, and those most +densely clothed in spiny jungle, wherein lurking, he chooses the +inopportune moment when the sportsman is hopelessly entangled, like +Isaac's ram, to rise chuckling and flee away to another hiding-place. + +Without dogs, he would be often extremely hard to find; but unluckily for +himself, being a true Kashmiri bird, he cannot help making a noise, and +thereby betraying his presence. His corpse, when dead, is hard to find in +the jungle, and a runner is, of course, hopeless without canine help. It +is well, therefore, to kill him as dead as possible, and to that end I +used No. 4 shot, with, I think, a certain advantage over Walter, who shot +with No. 6, and who, in consequence, lost several birds. + +The friendliness and sociability of the beasts and birds of Kashmir has +been a great joy to us. The thing can be overdone, though, and both the +wasps and the rats of Harwan were inclined to overstep the bounds of +decorum. + +The latter were obviously overjoyed to see visitors, and visions of +unlimited plunder from our festive board would, of course, put them +somewhat above themselves. Still, they should have refrained from rioting +so openly around our beds as soon as the lights were out, and Jane was +naturally indignant when a large one ran over her feet! + +On Friday morning we left Harwan, pretty early, as usual, for it is still +somewhat too warm to travel comfortably in the middle of the day. The +Colonel (always an early bird) got away first, followed by our invalid in +his dandy, while Jane and I remained to hunt the loiterers out of camp. A +glorious morning, and the cheering knowledge that breakfast was in front +of us, sent us merrily along for a mile or two, until branching paths led +us to inquire of an intelligent Kashmiri, who appeared to be busily +engaged in reaping rice with a penknife, as to the road taken by our +precursors, especially the tiffin coolie! + +The industrious one had seen no sahibs at all pass by. This was a blow, +and Jane and I sat down to review the situation. We finally decided that +the son of the soil was indulging in what the great and good Winston +Churchill has called a "terminological inexactitude," as the others must +have gone by one of the two roads; so, putting our fortunes to the touch, +we took the left-hand path, and were in due time rewarded by reaching +Sogul, and there finding our pioneers peacefully seated under a tree, and +breakfast ready. + +Leaving Sogul, we skirted for some miles a bare ridge which rose on the +right, and which looked an ideal ground for chikor, and then turned into a +beautiful valley drained by the Pohru, now quite a small and insignificant +stream. + +Drogmulla, our objective, lies about fourteen miles from Harwan, and the +forest house is a full mile beyond the village, at the end of a somewhat +steep and winding path. + +A welcome sight was the snug rest-house, perched upon a hillock above a +fussy little stream and surrounded by a fine clump of deodars. + +A tiny lawn in front was decorated with an artificial tank full of +water-plants, and through the opening, among the trees, we saw the snowy +crest of Shambrywa and the Kaj-nag rising over the deeply-wooded foothills. + +Drogmulla was so fascinating a spot, and the weather was so remarkably +fine, that we made up our minds to remain here for a few days. That old +red-bearded snake, the shikari, has sent the Colonel into a seventh heaven +of anticipation by pointing to the encircling forest with promise of +"pul-lenty baloo, sahib, this pul-lace." We straightway ordained a honk. + +Our sick soldier is so much better since leaving Gulmarg that he is able +to hop "around" with considerable activity on his crutches. + +_Saturday, September_ 30, 4 P.M.--Walter and I have been bear-honking all +day in a district reputed to be simply crawling with bears. I love +bear-honking; it is such a peaceful occupation. + +After a stiff and very hot scramble up a rugged hillside covered with the +infuriating scrub through which nothing but a reptile could crawl easily, +the spot is reached within short range of which (in the opinion of the +"oldest inhabitant," backed up by the "Snake") the bear _must_ pass. + +Here the battery of rifles and guns is carefully arranged, and I proceed +to wipe my heated brow and settle down to the calm enjoyment of the honk. +Drawing forth my cigar-case, I am soon wreathed in the fragrant clouds +engendered by the incineration of a halfpenny cheroot, and, with a sigh of +satisfaction, I spread out my writing or sketching materials and proceed +to scribble or paint, calm in the knowledge that nothing on earth is in +the least likely to disturb the flow of ideas, or interrupt the laying on +of a broad flat wash. Now and again, lazily, I lean back to watch the +witless hoverings of a big butterfly, or sleepily listen to the increasing +sound of the tom-toms and the yells of the beaters, whose voices, as those +of demons of the pit, rend the peaceful air and add to my sense of +Olympian aloofness! + +A feeling of drowsiness steals over me; that succulent cold chikor, +followed by a generous slice of cake upon which I so nobly lunched, clouds +somewhat my active faculties, and the article--"A Bear Battue in the +Himalayas"--which I am engaged in writing for the _Field_--seems to flag a +little. + +Come, come! Begone dull sloth--let me continue-- + +"As the sound of the beaters swells upon the ear, and the thunder of the +tom-toms grows more insistent, the keen-eyed sportsman grasps more firmly +the lever of his four-barrelled Nordenfeldt and prepares to play upon the +bears his hail of stinging missiles. Hark! The plot is thickening, behind +yon dense screen at the end of the cover the ph---- bears are beginning to +crowd, the pattering of their feet upon the dead leaves sends a thrill +through the beating heart of the expectant sportsman. A few bears break +back amid wild yells from the coolies. One or two odd ones dart out here +and there at angles of the covert. Steady! Steady! Here they are, +following the lead of yon fine old cock; with a whirr and a rush the +bouquet is upon us. The shikari, mad with excitement, presses the second +Gatling and the light Howitzer into our hands as he screams: 'Bear to +right, sahib!--Bear over!!--Bear behind!!! Bang--bang!'" + +"Eh? What? Oh, all right, shikari. Honk finished? Is it? Saw nothing? Dear +me! how very odd. Very well, then gather up my guns and things, and we'll +go on to the next beat." + +_Sunday, October 1_.--To-day being Sunday, we have been idle and +happy--sketching, loafing, and enjoying the scenery and the glorious +weather. Our bear-honk yesterday was only productive of annas to the +beaters, but we picked up some chikor on the way home, and we have found +mushrooms growing close to the hut, so that our lower natures are also +satisfied. After lunch I mustered up energy sufficient to take me down to +the village to sketch a native hut which, surrounded by a patch of flaming +millet, had struck me on Friday as an extraordinary bit of colour. Jane +and Walter, after many "prave 'orts" about climbing the ridge behind +Drogmulla, contented themselves with a minor ascent of a knoll about fifty +feet high, while the Lancer, reckless in his increasing activity, managed +to trip over his crutches and give himself an extremely unfortunate fall. + +_Monday, October 2_.--There was a man who, during our bear-honk on +Saturday, rendered himself conspicuous, partly by reason of his likeness +to my shikari, and also because of his complete knowledge of the +whereabouts of all bears for many miles around. He was quite glad to +impart much information to us, and so won upon the sporting but too +trustful heart of the brave Colonel, that he was retained by that officer +in order that he might show sport to the Philistines, and annas and even +rupees were bestowed upon him; and he and the old original "Snake" were +sent forward on Saturday evening, as Joshua and Caleb, to spy out the +promised land in the neighbourhood of Tregam. + +Lured by rumours of many bears, Walter and I set forth at daylight for +Tregam, leaving Jane and the youthful Lancer (once more, alas! reduced to +stiff bandages and a painful relapse) in possession of the hut. We "hadna +gane a mile--a mile but barely twa," when the old shikari met us with the +painful intelligence that two sahibs were already at Tregam, and had +killed many bears there, grievously wounding the rest; so we altered +course eight points to port, crossed the Pohru, and made for Rainawari. + +A sharp climb over a wooded ridge (on the top of which we halted for +breakfast), followed by a steep descent, brought us into a flat and +well-cultivated plain, which sloped gently from the foothills of the +Kaj-nag to the bed of the Pohru. Everywhere, in the glowing sunlight, the +villagers were busily engaged in reaping the rice, which lay in ripe brown +swathes along the little fields. The walnuts, of which there are a great +plenty in this district, have been lately gathered, some few trees only +still remaining, loaded with a heavy crop, but the main produce lay drying +in heaps in the villages as we rode through. + +The road to Rainawari seemed curiously devious. A Kashmiri track seldom +shies at a hill, but pursues its way, heedless of gradient, for its +objective; but this path imitated a corkscrew in its windings, and reduced +us to the utmost limit of our patience before, passing through a small +village whose dull-coloured houses were enlivened with gorgeous festoons +of scarlet chilies, we climbed a steep little hill and found ourselves +upon a park-like lawn or clearing, and facing the cluster of rough wooden +shanties which compose the Rainawari forest bungalow and its outhouses. +Behind the huts the densely-wooded hill drops sharply to where a stream of +good and pure water riots among the maidenhair and mosses. + +A large and inquisitive company of apes came up from the wood to take +stock of us, and I sat for a long time watching them as they played about +quite close to me, feeding, chattering, and quarrelling, entirely +unconcerned by the presence of their human spectator. + +_Friday, October 6_.--All Tuesday was spent in honking bear in the lower +woods which stretch far towards the Pohru. The high hills which rise above, +covered with jungle, are said to be too large to work, and I can well +believe it! For the first drive I was posted on a steep bank overlooking a +most lovely little hollow, where the shafts of sunlight fell athwart the +grey trunks and heavy green masses of the pines, lighting up the yellow +leaves of the sumachs till they glowed like gold, and casting a flickering +network of strong lights and shadows among the tangled mazes of +undergrowth. A happy family of magpies, grey-blue above, with barred tails +and yellow beaks, flitted about in restless quest, their constant cries +being the only sound which broke the peaceful stillness, until the faint +and distant sound of shouts and tom-toms showed that the first act of the +farce had begun. + +Towards the end of the third beat, while I was drowsily digesting tiffin, +and, truly, not far from napping, I was electrified by the report of a +rifle, followed by yells and a second shot! The beaters redoubled their +shouts, and the tom-tommers seemed like to burst their drums. + +My shikari, writhing with extreme excitement, hissed, "Baloo, sahib, +baloo!" and began aimlessly running to and fro, apparently hoping to meet +the bear somewhere. It was truly gay for a few minutes, but as nothing +further occurred, and the beaters grew very hoarse with their prodigious +efforts, I hurried on to Walter's post to learn what had happened. + +A bear had suddenly come out of the cover some 40 yards off, and stood to +look. The Colonel missed it, whereupon it dashed forward, passing within a +few yards of him, and he missed it again. It departed at top speed across +some open ground behind him, and gained the great woods which stretch away +to the Kaj-nag, and never shall we see that bear again! The Colonel was +much disgusted, and if language--hot, strong, and plenty of it--could +have slain that bear, he would have dropped dead in his tracks. + +The beaters brought up a wonderful tale of how another bear, badly wounded +in the leg, had charged through their lines and gone back. They stuck to +their story, and either a second bear actually existed or they are +colossal liars. I incline to the latter theory. + +We had wasted all our luck. No more bears came to look at us, and so, late +in the afternoon, we sought the rest-house and consolation from Jane and +Hesketh, who had arrived from Drogmulla. + +I had occasion to deplore the bad manners of the rats at Harwan, but their +conduct was exemplary compared with that of the rats of Rainawari! I had +been writing my journal, according to my custom, before going to sleep, +and hardly had "lights out" been sounded than a rat went off with my +candle, literally from below my very nose. Then, from the inadequately +partitioned chamber where the invalid vainly sought repose, came sounds of +strife--boots and curses flying--followed by an extraordinary scraping and +scuffling. A large rat, having fallen into the big tin bath, was making +bids for freedom by ineffectually leaping up the slippery sides. At last +he contrived to get out, and peace reigned until we managed to get to +sleep. + +Wednesday was spent honking in the forlorn hope of a bear, I have now +spent more than fourteen days in pursuit of black bear, and I have only +seen one. Every one said to me in spring, "Oh, go to the Lolab, it's full +of bear," I went, and was informed that it was a late season and I was too +early--the bears were not yet awake. I was consoled by learning that later +on, when the mulberries were ripe, the berry-loving beasts jostled one +another in the pursuit of the delicacy so much, that they were no sport I +went down from Gulmarg for three days, honking among the mulberries, but +saw none. Then I was told the maize season was undoubtedly the best. Now +the maize is full ripe; the maize fields are tempting in their golden +glory, and the only thing wanting to complete the picture is a big, black +bear. + +Either my luck has been particularly bad (and I think it has, as the +Colonel got a fine bear below Gulmarg, and had another chance at +Rainawari), or else there are not so many bears in real life as exist in +the imaginations of those who know. My own theory is, that, unless he has +remarkable luck, a stranger, in the hands of an ignorant shikari, and +knowing nothing of the language, has but a remote chance of sport. If the +shikari does not happen to know the district thoroughly, he is necessarily +in the hands of the villagers, and has to trust to them to arrange the +beats and place the guns. The villagers want their four annas for a day's +shouting, but do not know or care if a bear is in the neighbourhood, so, +having planted the gun (and shikari with him), they proceed to beat after +their own fashion, in other words to stroll, in Indian file, like geese +across a common, along the line of least resistance, instead of spreading +out and searching all the thickest jungle. + +Much yelling serves both to cheer the sahib, and frighten away any bear +which might otherwise haply frighten them. + +I cannot say I regret the time I have spent looking for bear. The scenery +has always been fine--sometimes magnificent, and there has always been a +certain cheering hope, which sustained me as I lay hour after hour in the +Malingam Nullah, or sat expectant amid ever varying and always beautiful +glades and passes, watching the bird life, and storing up scenes and +memories which I know I shall never forget. + +Alas! we have but a very few days yet before us in Kashmir, and it is +lamentable, for now the climate is simply perfect, the air clear and clean, +and without the haze of summer; the first crispness of coming autumn +making itself felt most distinctly in the early hours of morning ere + + "Nor dim nor red, like God's own head, + The glorious sun uprist;" + +and each dawn saw us up and out to watch these sunrises, whose splendour +cannot be expressed on paper. This morning it was more than usually +wonderful, the whole flank of Nanga Parbat and his lesser peaks, turning +from clear lemon to softest rose, stood radiant above the purple shades of +the great range which lies around Gurais. In the middle distance, rising +above the level yellow of the plain, still dim and shadowy below the +morning light, rolled wave upon wave of the blue hills which hold in their +embrace the fruitful Lolab. At our feet the deodars, still dark with the +shadow of night, crept up the dewy slope upon whose top we stood. Then +suddenly + + "The sanguine sunrise, with his meteor eyes," + +flamed over the eastern ridges, and in a flood of glory the soft shadows +and pallid lights of the dawn became merged in the brilliance of a Kashmir +autumn day. + +Our march yesterday from Rainawari to Kitardaji was charming. I had no +idea that this Machipura country, which is not much visited by summer +sojourners in Kashmir, was so fine. The district lies along the lower +shoulders and foothills of the Kaj-nag, and, while lacking the savage +grandeur of the Lidar or Upper Sind, yet possesses the charm of infinite +variety and, in this early autumn, a climate in which it is a pure joy to +live. On leaving Rainawari we followed up a river valley for some distance, +and then wound through richly cultivated hollows and past well-wooded +hills, where the dark silver firs and the deodars were lit up by splashes +of scarlet and orange, and the deciduous sumach and thorn-bushes hung out +their autumn flags. Walnuts--the trees in many places turning yellow--were +being gathered into heaps, and the apple trees, reddening in the autumn +glow, hung heavy with abundant fruit. + +Turning into a narrow gorge, where the trees overhung the path and shaded +the wanderer with many an interlaced bough; where ferns grew in great +green clumps, and the friendly magpies chattered in the luminous shade, I +hurried on, having stayed behind the others to sketch. Up and up, till +only pines waved over me, and the track, leading along the edge of a deep +khud, opened out at last upon a plateau, hot and sunlit; here an +entrancing panorama of Nanga Parbat and the whole range of mountains round +Haramok caused me to stop "at gaze" until a mundane desire for breakfast +sent me scurrying down the dusty and slippery descent to Larch, where I +found, as I had hoped, the rest of the party assembled expectant around +the tiffin basket, while the necromancer, Sabz Ali, had just succeeded in +producing the most delightful stew, omelette, and coffee from the usual +native toy kitchen, made, apparently, in a few minutes with a couple of +stones and a dab of mud! + +It has been an unfailing marvel to us how, in storm or calm, rain or fine, +the native cook seems always able to produce a hot meal with such +apparently inadequate materials as he has at his command. Give him a fire +in the open, screened by stones and a mud wall, a _batterie de cuisine_ +limited to one or two war-worn "degchies," and let him have a village fowl +and half-a-dozen tiny eggs, and he will in due time serve up, with modest +pride, a most excellent repast. + +The remaining half of our twelve-mile march lay along a continually rising +track, which finally brought us to Kitardaji, a cosy pine-built hut, +perched upon a hill clothed with deodars, at the foot of which ran the +inevitable stream. + +This, alas! is our last Kashmir camping-ground, and it is one of the most +charming of all. + +At 8.15 this morning we bade farewell to Kitardaji. We had got up before +dawn to see the sunrise, but afterwards took things leisurely, as the +march is short to Baramula, and our boats were to be in waiting there, and +we had made all arrangements for a landau and ekkas to be in readiness to +take us down to Rawal Pindi, while the Colonel returned up the Jhelum for +more shooting before rejoining his wife at Bandipur. + +The march of about thirteen miles from Kitardaji to Baramula is fine--the +views of Nanga Parbat in the early hours, before the sun's full strength +cast a golden glow over the distance, were magnificent, and long we +lingered upon the last ridge, gazing over the great valley, ringed with +its guardian mountains, ere we sadly turned our backs for the last time on +the scene, and wended our way downward to Baramula and our boats. + +Kashmir seems to be as difficult to get out of as to get into! What was +our amazement and disgust to find neither landau nor ekkas, nor, +apparently, any chance of getting them! + +Baramula was in a ferment, and wild confusion reigned because the Viceroy, +having somewhat suddenly determined to come to Jammu, the Maharajah and +all his suite, together with the Resident and his belongings, were to +start down the road at once, and all transport was commandeered by the +State. Here was a coil! Officers innumerable, who had stayed in Kashmir +until the limit of their leave, were struggling vainly to get on, and had +got to Baramula only to find all transport in the hands of the State +officials. Some few had, by fair means or foul, got hold of an ekka or two +and hidden them; others had seized ponies, but nothing to harness them to. +A few of the younger men set forth on foot, and others had their servants +out in ambush on the roads to try and collect transport. + +It was most important that we should get on, as Hesketh had to be in Pindi +to go before a medical board on the 14th, in order to be invalided home to +England; and as he was most anxious to catch a steamer sailing on the 25th, +he had no time to spare. + +I telegraphed to Sir Amar Singh for authority to engage ekkas, and I sent +for the Tehsildhar of Baramulla to complain of my ekkas being taken. He +appeared in due course--a somewhat pert little person--who promised to do +what he could, which I knew would be nothing. A farewell dinner on board +Walter's ship concluded a fairly busy day. + +_Saturday, October 7_.--A strenuous day, to say the least of it. Sir Amar +Singh most courteously met my wishes, and himself directed the local +authorities to assist me. Armed with this power, I again sent for the +Tehsildhar, who promised many ekkas, but appeared to have some difficulty +in fulfilling his promises. I spent the forenoon in hunting transport, +sending out my servants also in pursuit. The Tehsildhar produced one ekka +with great pomp, as earnest of what he could and would do later on. + +During the afternoon the landau turned up from Srinagar, and at 6 P.M. one +of my myrmidons rushed in to say that two ekkas had arrived at the dâk +bungalow. + +It was but a few yards away, and in a couple of minutes I was on the spot. +The ekkas had come up from Pindi, and the sahib who had lured them to +Baramula seemed astonished at my method of taking them over. In an +uncommonly short while the ekkas were parked, with the landau, close to +the boats and under strict watch, while all harness was brought on board +my dounga, just in time, as native officials of some sort romped up and +claimed the ekkas, and threatened to beat my servants. It was explained to +them gently, but firmly, that if they touched my ekkas or landau they +would taste the waters of the Jhelum. We were then left in peaceful +possession. + +_Tuesday, October 10_.--On Sunday morning we really saw our way to making +a start. We had three ekkas collected, and the Tehsildhar produced a +fourth with a great flourish, as though in expectation of a heavy tip. The +landau was being piled with odds and ends while the last bits of business +were being got through. Juma and his crew were paid and tipped (grumbling, +of course, for the Kashmiri is a lineal descendant of the horse-leech). +The shikari went to Smithson, and the sweeper and permanent coolie were +transferred to the assistant forest officer, while Ayata (in charge of +Freddie, the blackbird) scrambled into the leading ekka. + +By noon all was ready, and amid the rattle and jingle of many harness +bells and the salaams of the domestics, we bowled out of Baramula, and set +forward down the valley of the Jhelum. + + + +CHAPTER XV + +DELHI AND AGRA + +The journey down was uneventful, and quite unlike the journey up, when we +had been briskly occupied in dodging landslips for days. A good road, +white and dry, and sloping steadily downward; a good pair of ponies, +strong and willing; a roomy landau, wherein Hesketh--still suffering from +his fall at Drogmulla--could stretch himself in comparative comfort, +combined to bring us to Kohala this afternoon in a state of excellent +preservation. Here we crossed the bridge, which brought us to the right +bank of the river--from Kashmir to British territory. + +Kohala is the proud possessor of one of the very worst dâk bungalows yet +discovered. This seems disappointing when stepping under the folds of the +Union Jack full of high hope and confidence. + +Climbing up through a particularly noisome bazaar to the bungalow, I was +met with the information that it was already full. I said that was a pity, +but that room must be found for my party. + +Room was got somehow, a dâk bungalow being an extraordinarily elastic +dwelling. Hesketh was stored in a little tent. I lodged in the dining-room, +and Jane took up her quarters in a sort of dressing-room kindly given up +by a lady, who bravely sought asylum with a sister-in-law and a remarkably +strong-lunged baby. I believe more travellers arrived later, +for--although, thanks to Sir Amax Singh and good luck, we gained a good +start at Baramula--now the tongas are beginning to roll in and the plot to +thicken. + +I cannot think where the last arrivals bestowed themselves--not on the +roof, I trust, for a thunderstorm, accompanied by the usual vigorous +squall of wind, fell upon us during the night, and raged so furiously that +I was greatly relieved to see the Lancer's little tent still braving the +battle and the breeze in the morning. + +We had a long day before us, so started in good time to make the tedious +ascent to Murree. It rained steadily, and a cold wind swept down the river +valley as we began to make our slow way up the long, long hill. + +I never knew milestones so extraordinarily far apart as those which mark +the distance between Kohala and Murree. There are twenty-five of them, +distributed along a weary winding road which extends without an apparent +variation of gradient from Kohala to the Murree cemetery. The rise from +the river level to Murree is 5000 feet, and this, in a heavy landau over a +road often deep in red mud, is a heavy strain on equine endurance and +human patience. + +We had a fresh pair of horses waiting for us half-way up the hill, but they +proved absolutely useless, being obviously already dead tired and quite +unable to drag the carriage through any of the muddier places even with +every one but the invalid on foot. So we apologetically put the gallant +greys in again, poor beasties, and they took us up well. + +From the cemetery the road runs fairly level to where, upon rounding a +sharp corner, the hill station of Murree comes into sight, clinging to its +hill-tops and overlooking the far flat plains beyond Pindi. + +I cannot imagine how anybody would willingly abide in Murree who could go +anywhere else for the hot weather. There being no level ground, there is +no polo, no cricket, and no golf. There is no river to fish in, and I do +not think that there is anything at all to shoot. Doubtless, however, it +has its compensations. Probably it abounds in pretty mem-sahibs, who with +bridge and Badminton combine to oil the wheels of life, and make it merry +on the Murree hills. + +Leaving the station high on the left, we dipped in a most puzzling manner +down a slope through a fine wood giving magnificent views towards the +hills of our beloved Kashmir, and presently came to "Sunny Bank," whence a +steep road seemed to run sharply hack and up to Murree itself. It was late, +and both we and our unfortunate horses were tired, but a hasty peep into +the little inn showed it to be quite impossible as a lodging, and a biting +wind sent us shivering down the hill as fast as might be to seek rest and +warmth at Tret. + +The good greys took us down the eleven miles in a very short time, and we +pulled up at the dâk bungalow at 7.30, having been just twelve hours doing +the forty miles from Kohala. + +The dâk bungalow and all the compound in front was crowded, detachments +_en route_, from Murree to Pindi having halted here for the night. Hesketh +was lucky enough to share a room with a brother Lancer, and a mixed bag of +Gunners and Hussars made up a cheery dinner-table. + +The only member of the party showing signs of collapse was the unfortunate +Freddie, who, shaken up in his small cage for three days in an ekka, +seemed in piteous plight, feathers (what there were of them) ruffled and +unkempt, and eyes dim and half closed. Poor dear, it was only sleep he +wanted, for next morning he showed up, as his fond owner remarked, "bright +as a button!" + +_12th_.--The road from Tret to Pindi seemed tame to us, but probably +charming to the horses, first down a few gently sloping hills, and then +for the remainder of its six-and-twenty miles it wound its dull and dusty +length along the level. + +We halted for our last picnic lunch in a roadside garden full of loquat +trees and big purple hibiscus. The only curious thing here was a pi-dog +which refused to eat cold duck! Certainly it was a _very_ tough duck, but +still, I do not think a pi-dog should he so fastidious. + +A few more level dusty miles, and we rattled into Rawal Pindi, where, +after depositing our sick man safely in his own mess precincts, we +proceeded to ensconce ourselves in Flashman's Hotel, which is certainly +far better than the Lime Tree, where we stayed before. Indian hotels are +about the worst in the world. We have sampled rough dens in Spain, in +Tetuan, and in Corsica--especially in Corsica, but then they are +unpretentious inns in unfrequented villages, whereas in India you find in +world-famous cities such as Agra or Delhi the most comfortless dens +calling themselves hotels--hotels where you hardly dare eat half the food +for fear of typhoid, and will not eat the rest because it is so unsavoury! + +It may be argued that the hotels, if bad, are cheap, and that one cannot +reasonably expect much in return for five or six rupees per day; it seems, +however, that in a country where food and labour cost next to nothing, a +good landlord should be able to "do" his customers well upon five rupees, +and make a substantial profit into the bargain. + +Probably, as the facilities for travel are rapidly increasing, and India +is now as easy to reach as Italy was in days not so long by, the hotels +will soon improve. Hospitality, which is still to-day greater in the East +than in our more selfish Western regions, and which has, until quite +recently, obviated for strangers and pilgrims the necessity for hotels, is +now unable to cope with the increasing flood of visitors and wanderers; as +the need becomes more pressing, so will the supply, consequent upon the +demand, improve both in quality and quantity; and we have already heard of +the new Taj Mahal Hotel at Bombay, the fame of which has been trumpeted +through India, and which is said to rival in luxury the palaces of Ritz! + +The real and serious difficulty, and one which at present seems +insurmountable, is to secure cleanliness and safety in that Augean +stable--the cook-house. Until the native can be brought to understand the +inadvisability of using tainted water and unclean utensils, and of +permitting the ubiquitous fly to pervade the larder--until, I say, that +millennium can be attained, the danger of enteric and other ills will +always be very great in Indian hotels. + +_Friday, October_ 13.--Lunch with Dr. Munro, who surprised us somewhat by +having married a wife since we played golf and bridge together at Gulmarg +only a few weeks ago. Tea, a farewell repast with our invalid--who goes +before a medical board in a few days, and who will then be doubtless sent +home on long sick leave--and the despatch of our heavy luggage direct to +Bombay, occupied us pretty fully for the day; and in the evening, after +dinner, we took up our residence in a carriage drawn up in a siding to be +attached to the 6.30 mail in the morning. Our last recollection of Pindi +was a vision of the faithful Ayata, paid, tipped, and provided with a +flaming "chit," flapping along the road in the bright moonlight, with all +his worldly possessions, _en route_ for Abbotabad and home. + +_Saturday, October_ 14.--A prodigious amount of banging, whistling, and +yelling seemed to be necessary before we could be coupled up to the early +train, and sent flying towards Lahore. It was impossible to sleep, and I +was peacefully watching the landscape as it slid past, first in the pink +flush of early dawn, and gradually losing colour as the sun, gaining in +strength, reduced everything to a white hot glow, when, scraping and +bumping into a wayside station, we were suddenly informed that, owing to +hot bearings or heated axles or something, we must quit our carriage at +once, and so, half dressed and wholly wrathful, we were shot out on a hot +and exceedingly gritty platform, with our hand luggage and bedding all of +a heap, and with the whole length of the train to traverse to attain our +new carriage. Sabz Ali being curled up asleep in an "intermediate," was +all unwitting of this upheaval. The officials were impatient, and so Jane +and I were in a thoroughly unchristian frame of mind by the time we were +stowed, hot and greatly fussed, into a stifling compartment, whose +dust-begrimed windows long withstood all endeavours to open them. + +We reached Lahore about noon, and, having some six hours to dispose of +there, we spent them in calm contemplation, sitting on the verandah of +Nedou's Hotel. It was really too hot to think of sight-seeing. + +_Thursday, October 19_.--Another night in the train brought us to Delhi at +dawn, and we drove up to the execrable caravansary of Mr. Maiden. I do not +propose to write much about Delhi. Every one who has been in India has +visited the capital of the Moguls, whose wealth of splendid buildings +would alone have rendered it a supreme attraction for the sight-seer, even +had it not played the part it did in the Mutiny, and been memorable as the +scene of the storming of the Kashmir Gate and the death of John Nicholson. + +We, personally, carried away from Delhi an uncomfortable sense of +disappointment. It was very hot, and Jane fell a victim to the heat or +something, and took to her bed in the comfortless hotel, while I prowled +sadly about the baking streets, and tried to work up an enthusiasm which I +did not feel. + +As soon as Jane was fit, we joined forces with a young fellow-countryman +and his sister, who were the only other English people in the hotel, and +drove out to see the Kutab Minar. On arrival we found a comfortable dâk +bungalow, and, having made an excellent breakfast, sallied forth to view +the Kutab. May I confess that I was again a little disappointed? I do not +really know exactly why, but the great tower, whose fluted shaft, dark red +in the sunglow, shoots up some 270 feet into the air, did not appeal to me. +It is like no other column--it is unique, marvellous,--but it leaves me +cold. + +The splendid arch of the screen of the old temple, and the lovely columns +of the Jain temple opposite, attracted me far more than the Kutab Minar. + +Jane and young Buxton went off to see a native jump down a well fifty feet +deep for four annas. The performance sounded curious, but unpleasant. The +sightseers were much impressed! Meanwhile, Miss Buxton and I discovered a +very modern and exceedingly hideous little Hindu temple, painted in the +most appalling manner--altogether a gem of grotesqueness, and truly +delightful and refreshing. + +Tea in front of the dâk bungalow, in a corner blazing with "gold mohurs" +and rosy oleanders, while the driver and the syce harnessed the lean pair +of horses, a final visit to the Kutab and the great arch, and we fared +back over the eleven bumpy miles that lay between us and Delhi. + +A good deal of my spare time, while Jane was _hors de combat_, was spent +in the jewellers' shops of the Chandni chowk, the principal merchants' +quarter of Delhi. I do not think that anything very special in the way of +a "bargain" is to be obtained by the amateur, although stones are +undoubtedly cheaper than in London. I saw little really fine jewellery, +probably because I was obviously unlikely to be a big buyer, but many good +spinels, dark topaz, and rough emeralds. The stones I wanted I failed to +get. Alexandrites were not, and pink topaz scarce and dear. The dealers +generally tried to sell pale spinels as pink topaz. Peridot are cheaper, I +think, at home, and certainly in Cairo, and the only amethysts worth +looking at are sent out from Germany. The pale ones of the country come +from Jaipur. By-the-bye, the best-coloured amethysts I ever remember +seeing were in Clermont Ferrand. + +Delhi has always been connected with gems in my mind. I am not certain why. +Partly, perhaps, because the famous Peacock Throne of Shah Jehan stood in +the Palace here. I cannot resist giving the description of it in the words +of Tavernier, who saw it about 1655, and who describes it as follows:-- + +"This is the largest throne; it is in form like one of our field-beds, six +foot long and four broad. The cushion at the back is round like a bolster; +the cushions on the sides are flat. I counted about a hundred and eight +pale rubies in collets about this throne, the least whereof weighed a +hundred carats. Emeralds I counted about a hundred and forty." + +"The under part of the canopy is all embroidered with pearls and diamonds, +with a fringe of pearls round about. Upon the top of the canopy, which is +made like an arch with four paws, stands a peacock with his tail spread, +consisting entirely of sapphires and other proper-coloured stones;[1] the +body is of beaten gold enchased with several jewels; and a great RUBY upon +his breast, to which hangs a pearl that weighs fifty carats. On each aide +of the peacock stand two nosegays as high as the bird, consisting of +various sorts of flowers, all of beaten gold enamelled." + +"When the king seats himself upon the throne there is a transparent jewel, +with a diamond appendant of eighty or ninety carats weight, encompassed +with rubies and emeralds, so hung that it is always in his eye. The twelve +pillars also, that uphold the canopy, are set with rows of fair pearl, +round, and of an excellent water, that weigh from six to ten carats +apiece." + +"At the distance of four feet, upon each side of the throne, are placed +two umbrellas, the handles of which are about eight feet high, covered +with diamonds, the umbrellas themselves being of crimson velvet, +embroidered and fringed with pearl." + +"This is the famous throne which Tamerlane began and Shah Jehan finished; +and is really reported to have cost a hundred and sixty millions and five +hundred thousand livres of our money." + +One can picture the enraptured diamond merchant examining this masterpiece +of Oriental luxury with awe-struck eye, appraising the size and lustre of +each gem, and taking the fullest notes with which to dazzle his countrymen +on returning to the more prosaic Europe from what was then indeed the +"Gorgeous East!" This world-famous throne was seized by Nadir Shah, when +he sacked Delhi in 1739, and carried away (together with our Koh-i-noor +diamond) into Persia. Dow, who saw the famous throne some twenty years +before Tavernier, describes _two_ peacocks standing behind it with their +tails expanded, which were studded with jewels. Between the peacocks stood +a parrot, life size, cut out of a single emerald! + +_Friday, October_ 20.--Yesterday at 6 A.M. we spurned the dust of Delhi, +hot and blinding, from our feet and clambered into the train, which +whirled us across the sun-baked plain to Agra. + +There has been a woeful shortage of rain in the Punjab and Rajputana, and +a famine seems imminent--not a great and universal famine, as, the monsoon +having been irregular, only some districts have suffered to a serious +extent, and they can be supplied from elsewhere, whereas in the great +famine of 1901 the drought parched the whole land, and no help could be +given by one State to another, all lying equally under the sun's curse. +Not a great famine, perhaps; yet, to one accustomed to the genial +juiciness of the West, the miles and miles of waterless hot plains, +stretching away to where the horizon flickered in the glare, the brown and +parched vegetation, the lean and hungry-looking cattle, tended by equally +lean and famished herds, caused the monotonous view from the carriage +windows to be strangely depressing. + +This is the very battle-ground of Nature and the British Raj. We have +given peace and, to a certain extent, prosperity to the teeming millions +of India, and they have increased and multiplied until the land is +overburthened, and Nature, with relentless will, bids Famine and +Pestilence lay waste the cities and the plains. Then Science, with +irrigation works and improved hygiene, strives hard to gain a victory, but +still the struggle rages doubtfully. + +Agra we liked as much as we disliked Delhi. To begin with creature +comforts (and the well-being of the body produces a pair of _couleur de +rose_ spectacles for the mental eye), Laurie's Hotel at Agra is very much +more comfortable than the den we abode in at Delhi, and after a good +tiffin we set forth with light hearts to see the Fort. + +This, the accumulated achievement of the greatest of the Mogul Emperors, +is a magnificent monument of their power and pride. The earliest part, +built by Akbar, is all of rich red sandstone. The great hall of audience +and other portions show his broad-minded tolerance and catholicity of +taste in being almost pure Hindu in style and decoration. Later, with +Jehangir and Shah Jehan, the high-water mark of sumptuousness was attained +in the use of pure white marble, lavishly inlaid with coloured stones. + +As we wandered through halls and corridors of marble most richly wrought, +while the sun-glare outside did but emphasise the cool shade within, or +filter softly through the lace-like tracery of pierced white-marble +screens, one longed to reclothe these glorious skeletons with all the pomp +of their dead magnificence--for one magic moment replace the Great Mogul +upon his peacock throne, surround him with a glittering crowd of courtiers +and attendants, clothe the wide marble floors upon which they stand with +richest carpets from the looms of Persia and the North, and drape the tall +white columns with rustling canopies of silk. + +Before the great audience hall let the bare garden-court again glow with a +million blooms; there let the peacocks sun themselves, their living jewels +putting to shame the gems that burn back from aigrette and from sword-hilt; +see and hear the cool waters sparkling once again from their long-dried +founts, flashing in the white sunlight, and flowing over ducts cunningly +inlaid with zigzag bands to imitate the ripple of the mountain stream. + +The dead frame alone is left of all this gorgeous picture. The +imperishable marble glows white in the sunlight as it did in the days of +Shah Jehan. The great red bastions of the Fort frown over the same placid +Jumna, and watch each morning the pearly dome of the Taj Mahal rise like a +moon in the dawn-glow, shimmer through the parching glare of an Indian day, +and at eve sink, rosy, into the purple shadows of swiftly-falling night, +as they did when Shah Jehan sat "in the sunset-lighted balcony with his +eyes fixed on the snow-white pile at the bend of the river, and his heart +full of consolation of having wrought for her he loved, through the span +of twenty years, a work that she had surely accepted at the last."[2] + +We spent a long afternoon in the Fort, and drove out finally through the +monstrous gateway in a little Victoria, feeling all the time that none but +elephants in all their glory of barbaric caparison could pass through such +a portal worthily. + +The moon was full almost a week ago, unfortunately, so we determined that, +failing moonlight, our first visit to the Taj should be at sunset. + +The two miles' drive along an excellent road was delightful, and the +approach to the Taj has been laid out with much skill as a beautiful bit +of landscape garden. This care is due to Lord Curzon, who has taken Agra +and its monuments into his especial keeping. + +A very small golf-course has been laid out, and the familiar form of the +enthusiast could be seen, blind to everything but the flight of time and +his Haskell, hurrying round to save the last of the daylight. + +Beneath a tree was laid out a tea equipage, and a few ladies indolently +putting showed that, after all, the game was not taken too seriously. + +I have no intention of trying to describe the Taj Mahal. The attempt has +already been made a thousand times. I may merely remark that the +detestable Indian miniatures, and little ivory or marble models that are, +alas! so common, are incapable of giving an idea, otherwise than +misleading, of this wonderful building, which is not--as they would vainly +show it--glaring, staring, and hard, nor does its formality seem other +than just what it should be. + +As we saw it first--opalescent in the soft, clear light of sunset--the +chief impression it made upon us was that of size; for this we were quite +unprepared. + +As we approached it from the great red entrance arch, along a smooth path +bordering the central stretch of still, translucent water, the lovely dome +rose fairy-like from the masses of trees that, in their turn, formed a +background of solemn green for gorgeous patches of colour, in bloom and +leaf, which glowed on either side as we advanced. + +Ascending a flight of steps to the wide terrace, all of whitest marble, +upon which the Taj is raised, we realised that the detail of carving and +of inlay was as perfect as the general effect of the whole. + +High as my expectations had been raised, I was not disappointed in the Taj, +and that is saying much, for one's pre-formed ideas are apt to soar beyond +bounds and to suffer the fate of Icarus. At the same time, I cannot agree +with Fergusson that the Taj Mahal is the most beautiful building in the +world. I do not admit that it is possible to compare structures of such +widely divergent types as the Parthenon, the Cathedral of Chartres, the +Campanile of Giotto, and the Taj Mahal, and pronounce in favour of any one +of them. It is as vain as to contend that the "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" +is a finer poem than Keats' "Eve of St. Agnes," or that the "Erl Konig" is +better music than "The Moonlight Sonata." + +Perhaps it is not too much to say that it is the loveliest tomb in the +world, and the finest specimen of Mohammedan architecture in existence. If +I dared to criticise what would appear to be faultless, I should humbly +suggest that the four corner minarets are not worthy of the centre +building, reminding one rather of lighthouses. + +We spent a second day in Agra, revisiting the Fort and the Taj rather than +seeing anything new. We could have hired a motor and rushed out for a +hurried visit to Fatehpur-Sighri, and there was temptation in the idea; +but we decided to content ourselves with the abundant food for eye and +mind which we had in these two wonderful buildings, and in the evening we +took the train for Jaipur. + +_Saturday, October 21._--One is apt to be cross and fussed and generally +upset on being landed on a strange platform in the dark at 5.30 A.M., as +we were at Jaipur, but much solace lay in the fact that a comfortable +carriage stood waiting us and a most kind and genial host received us on +the broad verandah of his bungalow, and the cheering fact was borne in +upon us that we shall have henceforward but little to do with Indian +hotels. + +How one appreciates a large, cool room, good servants, good food, and last, +but not least, the society of one's kind, after two or three weeks of +racket and discomfort by road and rail. + +A restful morning enlivened us sufficiently to enjoy a garden party at the +Residency in the afternoon, where not only the English society, but a +large number of native gentlemen, were playing lawn-tennis with laudable +energy. + +After Kashmir, where Sir Amar Singh is the only native who mixes at all +with the English, it was interesting to see and meet on terms of +good-fellowship these Rajput aristocrats. + +_Sunday, October_ 22.--The city of Jaipur is, I think, principally +interesting as being modern and enlightened among those of the native +states. + +When the ancient city of Ambér was abandoned, principally on account of +its scanty water-supply, Jaipur was built upon a regular and prearranged +plan, having a great wide street down the centre, crossed by two large +thoroughfares at right angles, thus dividing the town into six rectangular +blocks. + +We drove into the city in the afternoon, and were much impressed by its +airiness and cleanliness. The houses are all coated with pink stucco, +picked out with white, which, in the bright atmosphere, has, at a little +distance, a charming effect. On closer inspection the real tawdriness and +want of solidity of the work become painfully apparent, and the designs in +white upon the pink, in which the wayward fancy of each householder runs +riot, generally leave much to be desired, both in design and execution. + +The broad, clean main streets were a perfect kaleidoscope of colour and +movement. Men in pink pugarees--in lemon-coloured--in emerald green; women +in blood-red saris, bearing shining brass pots upon their heads, all +talking, shouting, jostling--a large family of monkeys on a neighbouring +roof added their quota of conversation--calm oxen, often with red-painted +horns and pink-streaked bodies, camels, asses, horses, strolled about or +pushed their way through the throng. No Hindu cow would ever dream of +making way for anybody. Yes, though! Here comes an elephant rolling along, +and the holy ones with humps discreetly retire aside, covering their +retreat before a _force majeure_ by stepping up to the nearest +greengrocer's stall and abstracting a generous mouthful of the most +succulent of his wares. + +Rising in the midst of a lovely garden, just outside the city, is the +Albert Hall, a remarkably fine structure, built in accordance with the +best traditions of Mohammedan architecture adapted to modern requirements +by our host, the designer. It contains both a museum of the products of +Rajputana, and also an instructive collection of objects of art and +science, gathered together for the edification of the intelligent native. + +We would willingly have spent hours examining the pottery and brass work +for which Jaipur is famous, or in making friends with the denizens of the +great aviary in the garden, but time is short, and even the baby panther +could only claim a few minutes of our devotion. + +The Palace of the Maharajah is neither particularly interesting nor +beautiful, and we did not visit it further than to inspect the ancient +observatory built by Jey Singh, with its huge sundial, whose gnomon stands +80 feet above the ground! What we are pleased to call a superstitious +attention to times lucky or unlucky has given to astronomical observations +in the East an unscientific importance which they have not had for +centuries in Europe.[3] A slight attack of fever prevented me from going +to Ambér; so I stayed at home, peacefully absorbing quinine, subsequently +extracting the following from Jane's diary:-- + + "'Tea ready, mem-sahib.' The familiar and somewhat + plaintive sound of Sabz Ali's voice roused me, + as it so often has in tent, forest hut, or matted dounga;" + +but this time I was really puzzled for a moment, on awaking, to find +myself in a real comfortable spring bed, white-enamelled and +mosquito-netted, while for roof I only saw the clear, pale, Indian sky. +Then it was I remembered that, at my host's suggestion, my bed had been +carried out into the shrubbery, and that I had fallen asleep, lulled by +the howling of the jackals and the rustle of the flying squirrels in the +gold mohur-tree overhead. + +"Springing on to the cool, grassy carpet, and dressing quickly, to gain as +much time as possible before the rising of the hot October sun, I was soon +ready for breakfast, which Miss Macgregor and I had in the garden among +the parrots and the pigeons, and the dear little squirrels. We were ready +for the road before seven, and were soon trotting along between dusty +hedges of gaunt-fingered cactus, shaded here and there by neem trees and +peepuls." + +"Our smart victoria was lent by a Rajput friend of Sir Swinton's, and he +had also sent us his private secretary as guide and escort--a very thin +young man in a black sateen coat and gay-flowered waistcoat." + +"Through the pink-stuccoed streets of Jaipur we threaded our way--slowly, +on account of the holy pigeons breakfasting in thousands on the road, and +the sacred bulls, who barely deigned to move aside to let us pass." + +"It appears to be the custom, when a man dies, for his relatives to let +loose a bull _in memoriam_, and the happy beast forthwith sets out to live +a life of sloth and luxury. The city is his, and every green-grocer in it +is only too much honoured if the fastidious animal will condescend to make +free with his cabbages." + +"Once clear of the crowded streets, we got on quicker, and about six miles +out we found the elephant which had been sent out from the royal stable to +carry us to Ambér. We climbed upon her (it was a lady elephant) in a great +hurry, by means of a rickety sort of ladder, as we were told that an +elephant, if 'fresh,' was apt to rise up suddenly, to the great detriment +of the passenger who had 'not arrived.' She was a very friendly-looking +creature though, and her little eyes twinkled most affably; her face was +decorated in a scheme of red and green, and her saddle was a sort of big +mattress surrounded by a railing." + +"I am no judge of the paces of elephants, but this one seemed uncommonly +rough; and we held on vigorously to the railing until we reached a ridge +and saw the dead city of Ambér before us, dominated by the white marble +palace, standing on a steep cliff, and reflected in the water of the lake +which laps its base." + +"Up a steep and narrow path we mounted until we reached the courtyard of +the ancient palace of the ruler of Ambér, and there we alighted from our +steed, and set out to explore the ruins. First we came to a small temple, +ugly enough, but interesting, for here a goat is sacrificed every morning +to Kali--a particularly hideous goddess, if the frescoes on the walls and +the golden image in the sanctuary are in any way truthful! Formerly a +human sacrifice was customary, but the unfortunate goat is found to fulfil +modern requirements, since goddesses are more easily pleased or less +pampered than of yore." + +"The Palace, which dates from the seventeenth century, is chiefly +remarkable for its magnificent situation, and for its court and hall of +audience of marble and red sandstone." + +"This work was so fine as to excite the jealousy of the Mogul Emperor, so +the Prince of Ambér had it promptly whitewashed--and whitewashed it +remains to this day. Some of the brazen doors are remarkably fine, as also +those of sandal-wood, inlaid with ivory, in the women's quarters." + +"We climbed to the marble court on the roof, where, canopied only by the +sky and lighted by the moon, nocturnal durbars were held. Now, in the +glare of the noonday sun, we fully appreciated the value of an evening +sitting, for it was impossible to remain grilling there, even though the +view of the silent city below, falling in tier after tier to the lake--the +glare only broken here and there by patches of green garden--was superb. +On either side rose the bare, rocky ridges, fort-crowned and looking +formidable even in decay, while in front the dusty road stretched away +into the haze of the dusty plains below. Of course, we should have visited +the great Jain temples and other things worthy of note; but, alas! a green +garden, whose palms overhung the lake, proved more attractive than even +Jain temples, and a charming picnic on fruits and cool drinks strengthened +us sufficiently to enable us to face the hot road home, buoyed up each +mile by the nearer prospect of a tub." + + * * * * * + +Jaipur is celebrated for its enamelling on gold, so our host kindly sent +for an eminent jeweller to come and show us some trifles. Expectant of a +humble native carrying the usual bundle, we were much impressed when, in +due time, a dignitary drove up in a remarkably well turned out carriage +and pair. His servants were clad in a smart livery, and he himself was +resplendent, with uncut emerald earrings, and the general appearance of a +certain Savoy favourite as the "Rajah of Bong"! + +Our spirits sank as he spread himself and his goods out upon the +drawing-room floor, which speedily became a glittering chaos of gold and +jewelled cups, umbrella handles, boxes, scent-bottles, and necklaces. Jane +divided her admiration between a rope of fat pearls and a necklace of +uncut emeralds, either of which might have been hers at the trifling price +of some 7000 rupees, but we finally restricted our acquisitions to very +modest proportions, and the stout jeweller departed, apparently no whit +less cheerful than when he came. + +The modern brass-work of Jaipur is somewhat attractive, and we bought +various articles--a tall lamp-stand, an elephant bell, and a few ordinary +bowls of excellent shape. + +I have remarked before on the extreme tameness of, and the confidence +shown by, wild creatures out here. A titmouse came and perched on the arm +of my chair while sitting reading on the verandah at Gulmarg. + +The rats and mice, who own the forest houses in the Machipura, have to be +kicked off the beds at night. But the little grey squirrels in Sir Swinton +Jacob's garden are--_facile princeps_--the boldest wild-fowl we have yet +encountered. + +Every afternoon about three, when tea was toward, the squirrels gathered +on the gravel path, and prepared to receive bread and butter. + +After a few nervous darts and tail whiskings, a bold squirrel would skip +up close, and, after eating a little ground bait, would boldly come up and +nibble out of a motionless hand. In two minutes half-a-dozen pretty little +creatures would be fidgeting round, eating bread and butter daintily, +neatly holding the morsel in their little forepaws and nuzzling into one's +fingers for more. + +A handsome magpie, and, of course, a contingent of crows, made up the +fascinating party; while in the background, among the neem trees and the +flaming "gold mohurs," the minahs and green parrots sustained an incessant +and riotous conversation. + +_Wednesday, October 25_.--Gladly would we have accepted the Jacobs' +invitation to stay longer at Jaipur. We would have liked nothing better, +but time was flying, and the 5th November--our day of departure from +Bombay--was drawing rapidly near. So yesterday evening we took the 6.30 +train for Ajmere, and, reaching there at 10.30, changed into the +narrow-gauge railway for Chitor. We are becoming well accustomed to +sleeping in an Indian train, and Sabz Ali had our beds unrolled and our +innumerable hand luggage stowed away in no time, including four bottles of +soda-water, which he has carefully garnered in the washstand, and which no +hints, however broad, will induce him to relinquish. + + +[1] "Au dessus du ciel qui est faite en voûte à quatre pans on voit un + Paon, qui a la queue relevée fait de Saphirs bleus et autres pierres + de couleur."--TAVERNIER, livre ii. chap. viii. + +[2] _The Web of Indian Life_ + +[3] I fear this is somewhat misleading. Jey Singh was, _par excellence_, + an astronomer, not an astrologer,--T. R. S. + + + +CHAPTER XVI + +UDAIPUR + +We arrived, very sleepy and gritty, at Chitor at 5.30 A.M., to find an +unprecedented mob of first-class passengers _en route_ for Udaipur, and +only one very minute compartment in which to stow them. + +The station-master--a solemn Baboo, full of his own importance, becomingly +clad in a waving white petticoat, with bare legs and elastic-sided boots, +surmounted by a long cutaway frock-coat, topped by a black skull-cap, and +finally decorated by a pen behind his ear--seemed totally unable to cope +with the terrible problem he was set to solve. + +I suggested that another carriage should be put on, but he had none, nor +any solution to offer; so we cleared a second-class compartment and +divided the party out, and then, with five people in our tiny compartment, +we set out on the fifty-mile run to Udaipur. + +Five people in a carriage in Europe is nowise unusual, but five people in +an Indian one (and that a narrow, very narrow gauge), accompanied by rolls +of bedding, tiffin-baskets, and all the quantity of personal luggage which +is absolutely necessary, not to speak of a large-sized bird-cage (which +cannot, strictly speaking, be classed as a necessary), requires the +ingenuity of a professional packer of herrings or figs to adjust nicely! + +By cramming the toilet place with bedding, khudsticks, a five-foot brass +lamp-stand, and the four soda-water bottles, we made shift to stow +portmanteaux, bags, tiffin-baskets, &c., under the seats and ourselves +upon them, and then arranged a sort of centre-piece of Jane's big tin +bonnet-box, surmounted by Freddy in his cage. The other passengers were +very amiably disposed, and not fat, and they even went so far as to +pretend to admire Freddy--a feat of some difficulty, as he is still very +bald and of an altogether forbidding aspect. This admiration so won upon +the heart of Jane, that in the fulness thereof she served out biscuits and +a little tinned butter all round, while Freddy cheerfully spattered food +and water upon all indiscriminately. + +About eighteen miles from Udaipur we passed the ruins of Ontala. Here, in +the stormy time when Jehangir had seized Chitor, there happened a +desperate deed. + +The Rana of Mewar, expelled from his capital, determined to attack and +retake Ontala. Now, the Rajputs were divided into clans as fiery as any of +those whose fatal pride went far to ruin Bonnie Prince Charlie at Culloden. +The Chondawats and the Saktawats both claimed the right of forming the +vanguard, and the Rana, unable to pronounce in favour of either, subtly +decided that the van should be given to the clan which should first enter +Ontala. + +The Saktawats then made straight for the one and only gateway to the +fortress, and, reaching it as day broke, almost surprised the place, but +the walls were quickly manned and defended. Foiled for a moment, the +leader of the Saktawats threw himself from his elephant, and, placing +himself before the great spikes with which the gate was protected against +the assault of the beast, ordered the mahout to charge; and so a crushed +and mangled corpse was forced into the city on the brow of the living +battering-ram, in whose wake the assailants rushed to battle. + +Alas! his sacrifice was in vain. The Chondawat chief was already in Ontala. +First of the stormers with scaling-ladders, he was shot dead by the +defenders ere reaching the top of the rampart, and his corpse fell back +among his dismayed followers. Then the chief of Deogurh, rolling the body +in his scarf, tied it upon his back, fought his way to the crest of the +battlements, and hurled the gory body of his chieftain into the city, +shouting, "The vanguard to the Chondawat!" + +It is further told how, when the attack began, two Mogul chiefs of note +were engaged within upon a game of chess. Confident of the strength of the +defence, they continued their game, unheeding the din of battle. Suddenly +the foe broke in upon them, upon which they calmly asked for leave to +finish their interesting match. The request was granted by the courtly +Rajputs, but upon its termination they were both put to death. + +Udaipur lies in a well-cultivated basin, shut in by a ring of arid hills. +After skirting the flanks of some of the outlying spurs, we bustled +through a tunnel and drew up at a bright little station, draped with great +blue and pink convolvulus. And this was Udaipur. + +We were picked out of the usual jabbering, jostling, gibbering crowd of +natives by our host, who, looking most enviably cool and clean, took his +heated, dishevelled, and unbarbered guests off to a comfortable carriage, +and we were quickly sped towards tiffin and a bath. + +The station is a long way from the town, as the Maharana, a most staunch +conservative of the old school, having the railway more or less forced +upon him, drew the line at three miles from his capital, and fixed the +terminus there. One cannot help being glad that the prosaic steam-engine, +crowned with foul smoke and heralded by ear-piercing whistles, has not +been allowed to trespass in Udaipur, wherein no discordant note is struck +by train line or factory chimney, and where everything and every one is as +when the city was newly built on the final abandonment of Chitor, the +ancient capital of Mewar. + +Here in the heart of the most conservative of native States, whose ruler, +the Maharana, Sir Fateh Singh, claims descent from that ancient luminary +the Sun, we found novelty and interest in every yard of the three miles +that stretch between the station and the capital. The scrub-covered desert +has given place to a wooded and cultivated valley, ringed by a chain of +hills, sterile and steep. The white ribbon of the road, through whose dust +plough stolid buffaloes and strings of creaking bullock-carts, is bordered +by tall cactus and yellow-flowered mimosa on either side. Among the trees +rise countless half-ruined temples and chatries; on whose whitewashed +walls are frequent frescoes of tigers or elephants rampant, and of +wonderful Rajput heroes wearing the curious bell-shaped skirt, which was +their distinctive dress. + +The people too, their descendants, who crowd the road to-day, are +remarkable--the men fine-looking, with beards brushed ferociously upwards, +and all but the mere peasants carrying swords; the women, dark-eyed, and +singularly graceful in their red or orange saris, and very full +bell-shaped petticoats. Upright as darts, they walk with slightly swaying +gesture, a slender brown arm upraised to support the big brass chatties on +their heads, revealing an incredible collection of bangles on arms and +ankles. These women are the descendants of those who, in the stormy days +of the sixteenth century, while the Rajput princes still struggled +heroically with the all-powerful Mogul emperors, preferred death to shame, +and, led by Kurnavati (mother of Oodi Singh, the founder of Udaipur), +accepted the "Johur," or death by fire and suffocation, to the number of +13,000, while their husbands and brothers threw open the city gates and +went forth to fight and fall. + +As we drew near our destination the towers of the Maharana's Palace rose +up above the trees, gleaming snowy in the cloudless blue. The brown +crenellated walls of the city appeared on our left, and, suddenly sweeping +round a curve, we found ourselves by the border of a lovely lake, whose +blue-rippled waters lapped the very walls of the town. In the foreground a +glorious note of colour was struck by a group of "scarlet women" washing +themselves and their clothes by the margin. + +Up a steep incline, and we found ourselves before a verandah, blazing +overhead with bougainvillea, and our hostess waiting to receive us beneath +its cool shade. + +In the afternoon, refreshed and rested, we went down to the shore, where +our host had arranged for a state-owned boat and four rowers to be in +waiting. Armed with rods and fishing tackle, we proceeded to see Udaipur +from the lake which washes its northern side. First crossing a small +landlocked bay bordered on the left by a long and picturesque crenellated +wall, and passing through a narrow opening, we found ourselves in a second +division of the water; on the left, still the wall, with a +delightful-looking summer-house perched at a salient angle; on the right, +small wooded islands, the haunt of innumerable cormorants, who, with snaky +necks outstretched, watched us suspiciously from their eyrie. + +A curious white bridge, very high in the centre, barred the view of the +main lake till, passing through the central arch, we found ourselves in a +scene of perfect enchantment. Before us the level sheet of molten silver +lay spread, reflecting the snowy palaces and summer-houses that stood amid +the palms and greenery of many tiny islands. On the left the city rose +from the water in a succession of temples and wide-terraced buildings, +culminating in the lofty pile of the Palace of the Maharana. Here, on this +enchanted lake, we rowed to and fro until the sun sank swiftly in the west +and the red gold glowed on temple and turret. + +Then, with our catch, about 15 lbs. weight of most excellent fish, we +rowed back past the white city to the landing-place, and, in the gathering +dark, climbed the hillock upon which stood our host's bungalow. + +We spent a week at Udaipur--a happy week, whose short days flew by far too +quickly. The weather was splendid; hot in the middle of the day--for the +season is late, and the monsoon has greatly failed in its cooling +duty--but delightful in morning and evening. + +Rising one morning at early dawn, before the sun leaped above the eastern +hills, we took boat and rowed to one of the island palaces, where, after +fishing for mahseer, we breakfasted on a marble balcony overlooking the +ripples of the Pichola Lake, which lapped the feet of a group of great +marble elephants. + +Not the least interesting expedition was to the south end of the lake one +afternoon to see the wild pigs fed. Traversing the whole length of the +Pichola, past the marble ghâts where the crimson-clad women washed and +chattered, while above them rose the roofs and temple domes of the fairy +city culminating in the walls and pinnacles of the palace--past the fleet +of queer green barges wherein the Maharana disports himself when +aquatically inclined, we left the many islands marble-crowned on our right; +and finally landed at a little jutting ledge of rock, whence a jungle +track led us in a few minutes to a terrace overlooking a rocky and steep +slope which fell away from the building near which we stood. The scene was +surprising! Hundreds of swine of all sorts and sizes, from grim slab-sided, +gaunt-headed old boars, whose ancient tusks showed menacing, to the +liveliest and sprightliest of little pigs playing hide-and-seek among +their staid relatives, were collected from the neighbouring jungle to +scramble for the daily dole of grain spread for them by the Maharana. + +A cloud of dust rose thick in the air, stirred up by the busy feet and +snouts of the multitude, and grunts and squeals were loud and frequent as +a frisky party of younglings in their play would heedlessly bump up +against some short-tempered old boar, who in his turn would angrily butt a +too venturesome rival in the wind and send him, expostulating noisily, +down the hill! + +Beyond the crowd of swine on the edge of the clearing, a few peacocks, +attracted by the prospect of a meal, held themselves strictly aloof from +the vulgar herd. + +The whole city of Udaipur is a paradise for the artist--not a corner, not +a creature which does not seem to cry aloud to be painted. The only +difficulty in such _embarras de richesses_ of subject and such scantiness +of time, is to decide what not to do. + +Hardly has the enthusiastic amateur sat down to delineate the stately pile +of the palace, soaring aloft amid its enveloping greenery, than he is +attracted by a fascinating glimpse of the lake, where, perhaps, a royal +elephant comes down to drink, or a crimson-clad bevy of Rajputni lasses +stoop to fill their brazen chatties with much chatter and laughter. + +Bewildered by such wealth of subject, one is but too apt to sit at gaze, +and finally go home with merely a dozen pages of scribbles added to the +little canvas jotting-book! + +The Palace of the Maharana is a very splendid pile of buildings, as seen +from some little distance crowning the ridge which rises to the south of +the lake, but it loses much of its beauty when closely viewed. It is, of +course, not to be compared architecturally with the master-works of Agra +and Delhi, and the internal decorations are usually tawdry and +uninteresting. The entrance is fine; the visitor ascends the steep street +to the principal gate, a massive portal, strengthened against the +battering of elephants by huge spikes, and decorated by a pair of these +animals in fresco-rampant. Beyond the first gate rises a second or inner +gate. On the right are huge stables where the royal elephants are kept, +and on the left stand a row of curious arches, beneath one of which the +Maharanas of old were wont to be weighed against bullion after a victory, +the equivalent to the royal avoirdupois being distributed as largesse to +his people! + +Within the gates, a long and wide terrace stretches along the entire front +of the Palace, on the face of which is emblazoned the Sun of Mewar, the +emblem of the Sesodias. This terrace was evidently the happy home of a +great number of cows, peacocks, geese, and pigeons, which stalked calmly +enough, among the motley crowd of natives, and gave one the impression of +a glorified farmyard. The building itself, like most Indian palaces, is +composed of a heterogeneous agglomeration in all sorts of sizes and styles. +Each successive Maharana having apparently added a bit here and a bit +there as his capricious fancy prompted. + +Jane visited the armoury to-day with the Resident, who went to choose a +shield to be presented by the Maharana to the Victoria Museum at Calcutta. +I chose to go sketching, and was derided by Jane for missing such a chance +of seeing what is not shown to visitors as a rule. She whisked away in +great pomp in the Residential chariot, preceded by two prancing sowars on +horseback, and subsequently thus related her experiences:-- + + * * * * * + +"We really drove up far too fast to the Palace, I was so much interested +in the delightful streets; and we just whizzed past the innumerable +shrines and queer shops, and frescoed walls, where extraordinary lions and +tigers, and Rajput warriors, riding in wide petticoats on prancing steeds, +were depicted in flaming colours. I wanted, too, to gaze at the native +women, in their accordion-pleated, dancing frocks of crimson or dark blue; +but it seemed to be the correct thing for a 'Personage' to drive as fast +as possible, and try to run over a few people just to show them what +unconsidered trifles they were. Well, we were received at the entrance to +the Palace by one of the Prime Ministers. There are two Prime +Ministers--one to criticise and frustrate the schemes of the other; the +result being, as the Resident remarked, that it is not easy to get any +business done. Our Prime Minister was dressed in a coat of royal purple +velvet, on his head was wound a big green turban, and round his neck hung +a lovely necklet of pearls and emeralds, with a pendant of the same, he +had also earrings to match. It was truly pitiful to see such ornaments +wasted on a fat old man." + +"Going up a narrow and rather steep staircase, we came to a small hall +full of retainers of his Highness, waiting until it should please him to +appear and breakfast with them, for it is the custom of the Maharana to +make that meal a sort of public function. In the middle of the hall +reposed a big bull, evidently very much at ease and quite at home!" + +"A few more steps brought us to the door of the armoury. This is small and +badly arranged, which seems a pity, as there were some lovely things. +Chain armour and inlaid suits lay about the floor in heaps; and we were +shown the saddle used by Akbar during the last siege of Chitor. The most +remarkable things, however, were the Rajput shields, of which there were +some beautiful specimens. They are circular, not large, and made, some of +tortoiseshell, some of polished hippo hide, &c. One was inlaid with great +emeralds, a second had bosses of turquoise, and a really lovely one was +inlaid with fine Jaipur enamel in blue and green. There were swords simply +encrusted with jewels--one with a hilt of carved crystal; another was a +curiously-modelled dog's head in smooth silver, and I noticed a beauty in +pale jade. Altogether it was a most fascinating collection, different from, +but in its way quite as interesting, as the fine armoury at Madrid." + +Thus did Jane triumph over me with her description of what she had seen +and what I had missed; and I had been trying to delineate the Temple of +Jagganath, and had been disastrously defeated, for it is indeed a +complicated piece of drawing, and the children, both large and small, +crowded round me to my great hindrance. Therefore, it was not until I had +been soothed with an excellent lunch, and the contents of a very long +tumbler, that I felt strong enough to take an intelligent interest in the +contents of the Maharana's curiosity-shop! + +_Monday, October_ 30.--The more we see of Udaipur the more we are charmed +with it. The whole place is so absolutely unspoilt by modernism, is so +purely Eastern--and ancient Eastern at that--that we feel as though we +were in a little world far apart from the great one where steam and +electricity shatter the nerves, and drive their victims through life at +high pressure. + +Ringed in by a rampart of arid hills, beyond which the scrub-covered +desert stretches for miles, the peaceful city of Udaipur lies secluded in +an oasis, whose centre is a turquoise lake. High in his palace the +Maharana rules in feudal state, and, like Aytoun's Scottish Cavalier, + + "A thousand vassals dwelt around--all of his kindred they, + And not a man of all that clan has ever ceased to pray + For the royal race he loves so well." + +For to his subjects the Maharana is little less than a divinity, for is he +not a direct descendant of the Sun? Likewise is he not the chief of the +only royal house of Rajputana, who disdained to purchase Mogul friendship +at the price of giving a daughter in marriage to the Mohammedan? + +There are greater personages among the ruling Princes of India, according +to British ruling--Hyderabad, for instance. And in the matter of +precedence and the number of guns for ceremonial salutation, the Chief of +Mewar--like other poor but proud nobles--is treated rather according to +his actual power than the cloudless blue of his blood. Hence he is +extremely unwilling to put himself in a position where he might fail to +obtain the honour which he considers due to him. He was most averse from +attending the Delhi Durbar, but such pressure was put upon him that he was +induced to proceed thither in his special train running, as far as +Chitorgarh, upon his own special railway. He reached Delhi, and his +sponsors rejoiced that they had indeed got him to the water, although they +had not exactly induced him to drink. As a matter of fact, the Maharana, +having gone to Delhi to please the British authorities, promptly returned +to Udaipur to please himself, alleging a terrific headache as reason for +instant departure from the capital, without his having left his very own +specially reserved first-class compartment! + +He may not be a willing guest, but he is evidently disposed to be an +excellent host, for great preparations are toward for the reception of the +Prince of Wales, who is expected in the course of a fortnight or so. + +The Residency, too, is being swept and garnished, the garden already +looking like a miniature camp, with tents for the suite all among the +flower-beds. + +_Tuesday, October_ 31.--A day or two ago we arose betimes, and before +sunrise embarked in the State gig (which was always, apparently, placed at +our host's disposal on demand), and set forth to catch fish for our +breakfast, and then proceed to eat the same on one of the island palaces +on the lake. We did not catch many fish--the mahseer were shy that +morning--but fortunately we did not entirely depend on the caprices of the +mahseer for our sustenance, and a remarkably well-fed and contented +quartette we were when we got into the gig while the day was yet young, +and rowed home as quickly as might be in order to escape the heat which at +noonday is still great. + +This afternoon we went for a (to us) novel tea picnic. A State elephant +appeared by request, and we climbed upon him with ladders, and he +proceeded to roll leisurely along at the rate of about two and a half +miles an hour towards the foot of a hill, on the top of which stood a +small summer palace. + +The afternoon was warm, and the rhythmic pace drowsy, but our steed was +determined to amuse us and benefit himself. So he blew great blasts of +spray at his own forelegs and chest to cool himself, and now and then made +shocking bad shots at so large a target, and, getting a trifle too much +elevation, nearly swept us from our lofty perch. + +Fortunately his stock of spray gave out ere long, or he found that the +increasing gradient of the hill took all his breath, for we were left at +leisure to admire the widening view until we reached the top. + +Here we had tea in one of the cool halls, and then sat watching the sun +sink towards the hills that stretch to Mount Aboo. + +To the south-east lay Udaipur, milk-white along the margin of its "marléd" +waters. + +On our way home we met with an adventure. While prattling to my hostess, I +observed that our toes were rising unduly, the saddle or howdah being +seated somewhat after the fashion of an outside car. Glancing over my +shoulder I descried Jane and her partner far below their proper level. The +howdah was coming round, and our steed was eleven feet high! Agonised +yells to the gentleman who guided the deliberate steps of the pachyderm +from a coign of vantage on the back of his neck, awoke him to an +appreciation of the situation. The elephant was "hove to" with all +possible despatch, and we crawled off his back with the greatest celerity. +We then sat down by the roadside and superintended the righting of the +saddle and the tautening of the girths by several natives, who "took in +the slack" with an energy that must have made the poor elephant very +"uncomfy" about the waist! I secretly hoped it was hurting him horribly, +as I had not forgiven him for his practical jokes on the way up. + +We had no more thrills. Resuming our motor 'bus, in due course, we were +landed opposite the top of our host's verandah, whereupon the beast shut +himself up like a three-foot rule, and we got to ground. + +The inexorable flight of time brought us all too soon to the limit of our +stay at Udaipur. Early on Wednesday the 1st November, therefore, we bade +adieu to the capital of the State of Mewar, and, accompanied by our kind +host and hostess, set out to spend a day in exploring the ruined city of +Chitor before taking train for Bombay. + +As we drove to the station, we passed the group of ancient "chatries" or +tombs of dead and gone Ranas of Mewar, and halted for a short inspection, +as, the train by which we were to travel to Chitorgarh being a "special," +we were not bound to a precise moment for our appearance on the platform. + +Jane, who is perfectly Athenian in her passion for novelty, decided to +travel on the engine, and proceeded to do so; until, at the first +halting-place, a grimy and somewhat dishevelled female climbed into our +carriage, and the next half-hour was fully occupied in scooping smuts out +of her eyes with teaspoons. + +It had been arranged that an elephant should await our arrival at +Chitorgarh to take us up to the ancient city, but a careful search into +every nook and cranny failed to reveal the missing animal. + +So my host and I set out on foot to cross a mile or so of plain which +spread in deceptive smoothness between us and the ascent to the city. What +seemed a serene and level track became quickly entangled in a maze of +rough little knobs and nullahs, and we took a vast amount of exercise +before arriving at the old bridge which spans the Gamberi River. + +Meanwhile, towering over the scrubby bushes and surrounded by a dusty halo, +the dilatory pachyderm bore down upon us, and, after the mahout had been +interviewed in unmeasured terms by my host, went rolling slowly to the +station to pick up the ladies. + +The ancient city of Chitor lies crumbling and desolate on the back of a +long, level-topped hill, which rises solitary to the height of some five +hundred feet above the far-stretching plain. Kipling likens it to a great +ship, up the sides of which the steep road slopes like a gangway. At the +foot lies the modern village, squalid but picturesque. + +As we toil, perspiring, up the long ramp which for a weary mile slopes +sidelong up the scarped flank of the mountain, and pass through the seven +gates which guarded the way, and every one of which was the scene of many +a grim and bloody struggle, I will try to sketch the outline of the +history of the famous fort, for many centuries the headquarters of the +royal race of Mewar. + +The Gehlotes, or (as they were afterwards styled) the Sesodias, claim +descent from the Sun through Manu, Icshwaca, and Rama Chandra, as indeed +do the other Rajput potentates of Jaipur, Marwar, and Bikanir, the Rana of +Mewar, however, taking precedence owing to his descent from Lava, the +eldest son of Rama. + +The ancient dynasty of Mewar has fallen from its high estate, but the +history of its rise is lost in the mists of grey antiquity. + +"We can trace the losses of Mewar, but with difficulty her acquisitions.... +She was an old-established dynasty when all the other States were in +embryo." Long before Richard of the Lion-heart fared to Palestine to wrest +the Holy City from the infidel, "a hundred kings, its (Mewar's) allies and +dependants, had their thrones raised in Chitor," to defend it against the +sword of the Mohammedan; while overhead floated the banner displaying the +golden sun of Mewar on a crimson field. + +Some centuries later the Crusaders brought to Europe from the plains of +Palestine the novel device of armorial bearings. + +Chitor itself appears to have been in possession of the Mori princes until, +in A.D. 728, it was taken by Bappa, who, though of royal race, was brought +up in obscurity by the Bhils as an attendant on the sacred kine. This +shepherd prince, ancestor of the present Rana of Mewar, became a national +hero, and many legends are still current concerning him and his romantic +deeds. The story of his "amazing marriage," by which he succeeded in +wedding six hundred damsels all at once, is one of the most curious. Bappa, +while still a youth, was appealed to, one holiday, by the frolicsome +maidens of a neighbouring village, who, led by the daughter of the +Solankini chief of Nagda, in accordance with the custom upon this +particular saint's day, had come out to indulge in swinging, but who had +forgotten to supply themselves with a swinging-rope. Bappa agreed to get +them one if they would play his game first. This the young ladies readily +agreed to do; whereupon, all joining hands, he danced with them a certain +mystic number of times round a sacred tree. + + "Regardless of their doom, the little victims played," + +and finally dispersed to their homes, entirely unconscious that they were +all as securely married to Bappa as though they had visited Gretna Green +with him. + +Some time afterwards, upon the engagement of the Solankini maiden to an +eligible young man, the soothsayer, to whom application had been made with +regard to fixing a favourable and auspicious wedding-day, discovered from +certain lines in her hand that the girl was already married! Thus the +whole story came out, and no less than six hundred brides assumed the +title of Mrs. Bappa. + +He seems to have had a passion for matrimony, for when an old man he left +his children and his country, and carried his arms west to Khorassan, +where he wedded new wives and had a numerous offspring. He died at the age +of a hundred! + +From the days of the very much married Bappa, until the time of Samarsi, +who was Prince of Chitor in the thirteenth century, the city continued to +flourish and increase in power and importance. Samarsi, having married +Pirtha, sister of Prithi Raj, the lord of Delhi, joined his brother-in-law +against Shabudin. For three days the battle raged, until the scale fell +finally in favour of Shabudin, and the combined forces of Delhi and Chitor +were almost annihilated. "Pirtha, on hearing of the loss of the battle, +her husband slain, her brother captive, and all the heroes of Delhi and +Cheetore 'asleep on the banks of the Caggar in a wave of the steel,' +joined her lord through the flames." + +From that time forward the history of Chitor is but a tale of sack and +slaughter, relieved in its murkiest days by flashes of brilliant heroism +and self-sacrificing devotion while the chivalrous Rajputs struggled +vainly against the successive waves of the Mohammedan invasions, which in +a fierce flood for centuries swept over India, and deluged it with blood. + +In the year 1275 Lakumsi became Rana of Chitor. His uncle Bheemsi had +married Padmani, a fair daughter of Ceylon, and her beauty was such that +the fame of it came to the ears of Alla-o-din, the Pathan Emperor. + +He promptly attacked the fortress, but without success for a long period, +until he agreed to a compromise, declaring that if he could merely see the +Lady Padmani in a mirror he would be contented and raise the siege. + +His request was granted, and, trusting to the honour of a Rajput, he +entered the city unattended, and was rewarded by a sight of this Eastern +Helen reflected in a mirror. Desirous of showing equal faith in a noble +enemy, Bheemsi accompanied Alla back to his lines, but there he was +captured and held to ransom, Padmani being the price. + +Word was now sent to the Emperor that Padmani would be delivered to him, +and seven hundred covered litters were prepared to convey her and her +ladies to Delhi, but each litter was borne by six armed bearers, and +contained no "silver-bodied damsels with musky tresses," but only +steel-clad warriors, who, upon arrival in the Moslem camp, sprang from +their concealment as surprisingly as Pallas from the head of Zeus. + +Alla-o-din was, however, not to be caught napping, and, being prepared for +all contingencies, a fierce combat took place, and the warriors of Chitor +were hard put to it to stand their ground until Bheemsi had escaped to the +stronghold on a fleet horse. Then the devoted remnant retreated, pursued +to the very gates by their foes. The flower of Chitor had perished, but +they had achieved their object. This was called the "half sack" of +Chitor.[1] + +Fifteen years later, Alla-o-din once more attacked Chitor, and this time +the assaults were so deadly that the garrison was decimated and utter +annihilation stared the survivors in the face. Then to the Rana appeared +the guardian goddess of the city, who warned him that "if twelve who wear +the diadem bleed not for Chitor, the land will pass from the line." Now +the prince had twelve sons, and, in obedience to the goddess and in hope +of eventually saving their dynasty, eleven of them cheerfully headed +sorties on eleven following days, and were slain, until only Ajeysi, the +youngest, was left alive. Then the Kana prepared for the end. He sent the +boy Ajeysi with a small band by a secret way, and he escaped to Kailwarra, +so that the royal race of Chitor should not become extinct. Then the women +of the city, with the noble Padmani at their head, accepted the Johur; +"the funeral pyre being lighted within the great subterranean retreat," +they steadfastly marched into the living grave rather than yield +themselves to the will of the conqueror. All being now ready for the last +act of the hideous drama, the Rana caused the gates to be opened, and with +his valiant remnant of an army fell upon the foe only to perish to a man, +and then, and not till then, did the victorious Alla set foot of a +conqueror within Chitor, where now no living thing remained to stay him +from razing her deserted temples to the ground. The palace of Padmani +alone was spared in this, the first "saka" of Chitor.[2] + +The wrecked stronghold remained an appanage of the Mogul until Hamir, who, +though not the direct heir of Ajeysi, had gained the chieftainship through +his valour, and who, having married a ward of the Hindu governor of Chitor, +by her help regained possession of the fortress. + +Defeating the Emperor Mahmoud, Hamir entered Chitor in triumph, and once +again the standard of the Sun floated over its blood-stained rocks. The +Emperor Mahmoud himself was led captive into Chitor, and kept prisoner +there for three months until he regained his liberty by surrendering +Ajmere, Rinthumbore, Nagore, and Sooe Sopoor, with fifty lacs of rupees +and a hundred elephants. By this victory Hamir became the sole Hindu +prince of power in India; and the ancestors of the present lords of Marwar +and Jaipur brought their levies and paid homage, together with the chiefs +of Boondi, Abu, and Gwalior. + +Then ensued for Chitor a period of splendid prosperity, during which rose +many noble buildings, amongst the ruins of which the great Tower of +Victory still soars supreme. This splendid monument[3] was raised to +commemorate the victory gained by Koombho over Mahmoud, King of Malwa, and +the Prince of Guzzerat, who in A.D. 1440 had formed a league against +Chitor. The Rana met them at the head of 100,000 troops and 1400 elephants, +and overthrew them, and the commemorative tower was begun in 1451 and +finished in ten years. + +The State of Mewar reached the zenith of her glory in 1509, when 80,000 +horse, seven rajas of the highest rank, nine raos, and 104 chiefs bearing +titles of rawul or sawut, with 500 elephants, followed Rana Sanga of +Chitor into the field. + +The Mogul Baber, who captured Delhi in 1527, was yet unwilling to face the +ordeal of battle with the warlike Rajputs, but in the following year Sanga +marched against him at the head of the princes of Rajast'han. A terrible +battle ensued, which long inclined in favour of the Rajputs, until, +through the treachery of a Tuar chief, they were defeated, and the star of +Mewar began to decline, although so severe had been the struggle that +Baber dared not follow up his victory. + +In 1533 Chitor suffered her second "saka" at the hands of Buhadoor or +Bajazet, Sultan of Guzzerat, who, after a grim struggle, obtained a +footing at the "Beeka" rock, and, springing a mine there, blew up 45 +cubits of rampart and killed the Prince of the Haras, with five hundred of +his kin. Then the Queen-Mother, Jowahir Bae, clad in armour, headed a +sally, and was slain before the eyes of all. + +The entrance to the city being forced, the heir of the Sesodias, the +infant Oodi Singh, son of Sanga, was placed in safety, while Bagh-ji, +Prince of Deola, assuming royalty, prepared to die, for Chitor could only +be retained by the Rajput princes while guarded by royalty. + +The horrible Johur was decreed, and 13,000 women, headed by Kurnavati, the +mother of Oodi Singh,[4] marched to death and honour through the "Gau +Mukh," or entrance to the subterranean tomb; while the city gates were +thrown open, and the defenders sallied forth. "Every clan lost its chief," +and 32,000 Rajputs were slain during the siege and storm. + +Now Kurnavati had bound Hamayoun, the son of Baber, to her cause by a +curious ceremony: she having sent him the Rakhi (bracelet), and he having +bestowed on her the Katchli (corselet), he was bound, in consequence of +this bond, to assist the lady in any time of need. Too late to save Chitor, +he retook it, and restored Bikramajit to the throne; but the guardian +goddess had turned her face from the doomed city, and its final fall was +at hand. The Emperor Akbar, having laid almost all India at his feet, +determined to bring the proud princes of Rajputana into subjection. He +attacked Chitor, but was foiled by the masculine courage of the Rana's +concubine queen. + +Again, in 1568, the Emperor Akbar attacked, and this time he found the +fated city in evil case, for Oodi Singh,[5] the Rana, for whom in infancy +his nurse had sacrificed her own child, was a degenerate son of his race. +He left Chitor to be defended by his lieutenants Jeimul and Putta. + +In the first "saka" by Alla, twelve crowned heads defended the "crimson +banner" to the death. In the second, when conquest, at the hand of Bahadur, +came from the south, the chieftain of Deola, a noble scion of Mewar, +claimed the crown of glory and of martyrdom. But on this, the third and +greatest struggle, no royal victim appeared to appease the Cybele of +Chitor and win her to retain its battlements as her coronet. + +When Jeimul fell at the Gate of the Sun, the command devolved upon Putta +of Kailwa, a lad of sixteen. His mother commanded him to don "the saffron +robe," then, with him and his young bride, she fell full armed upon the +foe, and the heroic trio died before the eyes of the war-worn garrison. + +Once more was the Johur commanded, while 8000 Rajputs ate the last "beera" +together, and put on their saffron robes. The gates were thrown open, "and +few survived to stain the yellow mantle by inglorious surrender." + +Thus in the blood-red cloud of battle sank for ever the Sun of Chitor; for +from this, the third and last "saka," the ruined city never rose. Her doom +has been as the doom of Babylon, of which Isaiah declared: "It shall never +be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to +generation ... but wild beasts of the desert shall lie there; and their +houses shall be full of doleful creatures; and owls shall dwell there.... +And the wild beasts ... shall cry in their desolate houses, and ... in +their pleasant palaces:... Her days shall not be prolonged." + +The top of the long ascent being reached, the last gate, the Hathi Pol, is +passed, and the wayfarer finds himself in the midst of the great dead city, +which lies in ruins for three miles along the bastioned brow of the +mountain. + +Just beyond the first group of stately ruins, we came on the building +which was probably the palace built by Lakha Rana in 1373. Here we sat and +rested until the elephant, bearing the ladies and the lunch, stalked +sedately round the jutting angle of a decayed fort, and then we wended our +way along a road lined with many a half-fallen temple, until we reached +the ancient palace where, six hundred years ago, dwelt the ill-starred +Padmani, whose loveliness brought such woe upon Chitor. Here, in a cool +chamber overlooking the tank, upon the brink of which the palace stands, +we lunched; afterwards threading our way among the fallen fragments of +many a stately shrine and palace towards the high point on which the great +Jain Tower of Fame rears its deeply-sculptured shaft into the sky. + +For a thousand years the innumerable stone gods which encircle the tower +in endless profusion have watched with sightless eyes over the city. Grey +already with age were they when they saw, raised in pristine beauty, the +shattered domes and broken columns which now lie prone in the brushwood +far beneath their feet. What ghastly scenes those stony faces have +surveyed, when, swept by the scathing steel, the city has run red with +blood, and her defenders have fallen to the last man. One crowning horror, +though, they have been always spared, for no maid or matron of Chitor ever +deigned to bow her neck beneath the yoke of the Mogul, but rather dared to +face a fiery death in the bowels of the great cavern beneath the city than +yield her honour to the conqueror. + +The Tower of Fame is being repaired by the present Rana, under the +superintendence of our host and a party of native workmen. Masons and most +skilful carvers in stone were busily engaged in the restoration of parts +that had fallen into dangerous decay--an extremely flimsy-looking +scaffolding, made apparently of light bamboos, tied together in wisps, and +forming a fragile-looking ramp, wound spirally up the outside of the tower. +My host seemed to consider it a perfectly safe means of ascent, and as the +workmen did not appear to slip off in any appreciable numbers I felt +constrained to go up. I should like to have done it on all fours! The +climb was well worth undertaking, as it enabled one to inspect the +astonishing and finely-carved figures which encrust the whole exterior of +the column. + +From the Tower of Fame we made our way to the other great landmark of +Chitor--the Tower of Victory. + +Passing and examining _en route_ many elaborately-carved temples, whose +domes rose amid the strangling masses of desert tree and shrub, we came to +the base of the red tower, whose shaft, four-square and in perfect +preservation, has, with its more venerable brother of Fame, watched for so +many centuries over the fallen fortress of Chitor. + +Not far away, the rocky wall on which the city stands is shattered into a +gloomy chasm, half-hidden in rank vegetation, which, clinging with knotted +root to ledge and crevice, hangs darkly over a stagnant pool. Here was the +awful portal, "the Gau Mukh," or "cow's mouth," by which, when all was +lost to Chitor save honour, her women entered the subterranean cavern +while the fuel was heaped high, and an honourable death by suffocation +awaited them. + +The burning Indian day was over, and the sun blazed red in the west, as we +mounted our elephant and paced along the road towards the Hathi Pol. +Darker grew the ghostly domes and shattered battlements against a golden +sky, and the swift southern night fell, dark yet luminous, as we turned +down the hill and left the dead city, splendid in its loneliness and +isolation, asleep within its crumbling walls. + +Our dinner-table was set out on the platform of the station at Chitorgarh, +and our bedrooms were close by, our host and hostess sleeping in the +"special" by which they were to return to Udaipur in the morning, while we +slept in a siding, ready to be coupled up to the early train from Bombay. + +Late into the warm and balmy night we paced the platform; for there seemed +to be always something still to say, and we found it hard to part from our +charming friends; realising, too, that this was the end of our holiday, +and that before us lay merely the toil and bustle of a return to +commonplace, everyday life. At last, though, the final fag-end of a +cheroot was thrown away, the last hand-grips given, and the parting came. + +There is little more to say. + +All Thursday we rushed through the wide landscape; saw the parched plains +stretch far into the dusty horizon; saw the lean men and leaner cattle, to +whom the grim spectre of famine is already foreshadowed; flew past +populous villages and creaking water-wheels, noting every phase of a scene +now familiar, yet always delightful. + +Late in the evening we changed at Baroda, and dawn next morning saw us +speeding across the swamps and inlets, which gave place ere long to the +palm groves and clustering houses which marked the farther limits of the +suburbs of Bombay. + +We found the heat--damp and oppressive--very trying after the drier air of +Rajputana, and the Taj Mahal Hotel below our expectations in all respects +save price. It is undoubtedly better than most Indian hotels, but yet it +is not good! + +Bombay is chiefly connected in our minds with the inevitable fuss and +worry of packing and departure. + +As we left the Taj Mahal Hotel, in a conveyance piled high with +miscellaneous baggage, we saw the last of our faithful and indispensable +Sabz Ali, as he hurriedly quitted the hostelry in our wake, fearful lest +undue delay should jeopardise the possession of the spoils he was carrying +off, wrapped in bulging bundles of goodly size. + +Jane and I were sorrier, I think, to part with him than he with us. After +all, we were but troublesome charges, for whose well-being he had to +answer to "General 'Oon Sahib,"--charges who had not been quite so lavish +with their incalculable riches as they should have been, and who doled out +rupees, and even annas, with a sorely grudging hand; still I think Sabz +Ali, as he made his way to the station, with many rupees lining his inmost +garments, and a flaming "chit" carefully stowed away, felt a certain +regret at parting from the "sahibs," who had really shown a very fine +appreciation of his merit, and were sending him back with much honour to +his own country. + +Late in the afternoon, as the spires and roofs of the city stood dark +against the sky, and the many steamers and native dhows showed black upon +a flood of liquid gold, the _Persia_ got under way, and we slowly left the +anchorage, steaming out into the fading light. + +We stood long, leaning over the bulwarks and watching the lights of Bombay, +at first so distinct, melt gradually into a line of tiny stars as the gulf +widened that separated us from the land where we had spent so many happy +days. + +I wonder if we shall ever revisit it? I trust so ... and yet---- + +"As a rule it is better to revisit only in imagination the places which +have greatly charmed us ... for it was not merely the sights that one +beheld which were the cause of joy and peace. However lovely the spot, +however gracious the sky, these things external would not have availed but +for contributory movements of mind and heart and blood--the essentials of +the man as then he was."[6] + + +[1] These notes on the history of Chitor are taken, it need hardly be said, + from Tod's _Rajast'han_, he being _the_ authority on Rajputana. An + account of the above incident is given somewhat differently by Maurice + in his _Modern History of Hindostan_ (1803), who also relates that + Akbar used the same trick to enter Rhotas in Behar, after being long + baffled by the apparent impregnability of that fortress. + +[2] The Jain Tower of Fame was also left standing, it dates from about + A.D. 900. + +[3] It is also attributed to Lakha Rana, A.D. 1373. + +[4] And sister of the Rahtore queen, Jowahir Bae. + +[5] The infant Oodi Singh being threatened with death by conspirators, his + Rajputni nurse hid him in a fruit-basket, and, covering it with leaves, + had it conveyed out of the fort, substituting her own child just as + Bimbir, the usurper, entered the room and asked for the prince. Her + pallid lips refused to utter sound, but she pointed to the cradle and + saw the swift steel plunged into the heart of her child. + +[6] "Henry Ryecroft" + + + +APPENDIX I + +BIG GAME LICENSE No. I, +Price Rs. 60 (sixty only). + +This license will remain in force from the 15th of March 190 to the 15th +November 190, and is subject to the Kashmir Stata Game Laws; it permits +the Licensee to shoot the undermentioned game in the Districts and Nullahs +open to sportsmen, and, subject to Rules 8 and 9 of these Laws, small game +between the above dates. + +----------------------+---------------+--------------+---------+--------- + | No. permitted | No. actually | Size of |District. + Name of Animal. | to be | shot. | heads. | + | shot. | | | +----------------------+---------------+--------------+---------+--------- +Markhor of any variety| 2 | | | +Ibex | 4 | | | +Ovis Hodgsoni (Ammon) | 1 | | | +Ovis Vignei (Sharpu) | 4 | | | +Ovis Nahura (Burhal) | 6 | | | +Thibetan Antelope | 6 | | | + Do. Gazelle | 1 | | | +Kashmir Stag | 2 | | | +Serow | 1 | | | +Brown Bears | 2 | | | +Tehr | 6 | | | +Goral | 6 | | | +Pigs, Black Bears and | No limit. | | | + Leopards | | | | +----------------------+---------------+--------------+---------+--------- + +_Name of Licensee____________________________________________ +_Address_____________________________________________________ +_Signature of Licensee on returning License__________________ + +N.B.--This portion of the License to be returned to the Secretary, +Game Preservation Department. + +------------------------------------------------------------------------- + NAME OF SHIKARIES, &c., EMPLOYED +------+-------+--------+-------+----------------------------------------- + |Name of| |Nature | _Place of Residence_. | +Serial|Shikari|Father's| of +---------+--------+----------+ REMARKS. + No. | or | Name. |employ-| Village | Tehail | District | + |Coolie.| | ment. | | | | +------+-------+--------+-------+---------+--------+----------+----------- + | | | | | | | + | | | | | | | +------+-------+--------+-------+---------+--------+----------+----------- + +This License does not permit the Licensee to shoot in any of the closed +tracts or preserves mentioned in Rules 2 and 10, Kashmir State Game Laws, +nor in the Gilgit district, nor in the Astor or Kaj-nag districts, +without the special permit laid down under Rule 2. + + +_Dated_ ____ (Sd.) AMAR SINGH, GENERAL, RAJA, +_The_ ______ _Vice-President of Council, Jammu and Kashmir State_. + +I certify that a copy of Kashmir State Game Laws, 190, has been issued +herewith, + +_Signature of Official granting License_ ___________________ + +NOTE--This License will be shown on demand and is not transferable. +A fee of Re. 1 will be charged for a duplicate copy. + + + +APPENDIX II + +From the earliest times the Kashmiris have been objects of contempt and +derision, whilst the women have been--perhaps unduly--lauded for their +looks and general excellence. + +The Kashmiris themselves are of opinion that "once upon a time" they were +an honourable and valiant folk, brought gradually to their present +condition by foreign oppression. + +To a certain extent this is probably true, but, according to the +_Rajatarangini Kulan_, they were noted for dishonesty and cunning long +before the evil days of conquest and adversity. Bernier speaks well of the +men, calling them witty and industrious. Doubtless the Kashmiri character, +originally none too good, was ruined during the long years of cruelty and +injustice to which he was subjected by the Tartars, Afghans, and Sikhs, +who, from the day when Akbar put him into women's clothes, treated him as +something lower than a brute. + +Forster, writing in 1783, abuses the Kashmiri, whom he stigmatises as +"endowed with unwearied patience in the pursuit of gain." He speaks of the +vile treatment to which he was subjected by his then rulers the Pathans, +observing that Afghans usually addressed Kashmiris by striking them with a +hatchet, but, he concludes, "I even judged them worthy of their adverse +fortune." + +Elphinstone (1839) is of opinion that "the men are excessively addicted to +pleasure, and are notorious all over the East for falsehood and cunning;" +and again, "The Cashmerians are of no account as soldiers." + +"Many fowls in a yard defile it, and many Kashmiri in a country ruin it," +says the proverb. Lawrence goes very fully into the Kashmiri character, +and dwells upon its few good points, giving him credit for great artistic +feeling, quick wit, ready repartee, and freedom from crime against the +person. He considers the last merit, though, to be due to cowardice and +the state of espionage which exists in every village! + +I was told (but perhaps by a prejudiced person) of a Kashmiri who, during +the great flood of 1903, he being safely on the shore, saw his brother +being swept down the boiling river, clinging to his rapidly disintegrating +roof. The following painful conversation ensued:-- + +"Whither sailest thou, oh brother, perched upon the birch bark of thine +ancestral roof?" + +"Ah! brother dear. Save me quick! I drown!" + +"Truly that can I; but say, what recompense wilt thou give me?" + +"All I have in the world, brother--two lovely rupees." + +"Tut, tut, little one; thou takest me for a fool. Two rupees, forsooth, +for five perchance I will deign to save thy worthless life." + +"Three, then, three, carissimo--'tis all I have--and make haste, for I +feel my timbers parting, and I know not how to swim." + +"Farewell, oh, dearest brother! I could not possibly think of taking so +much trouble for three rupees, especially as, now I come to think of it, I +can borrow a singhara pole, and, in due time, will prod for thy corpse in +the Wular! Mind thou wrappest the lucre snugly in thy cummerbund, that it +be not lost--farewell, little brother!" + +While the gentlemen of the Happy Valley have been lashed by the tongue and +pen of every traveller, the ladies, on the contrary, have been rather +overrated. + +In all communities where the men are invertebrate the women become the +real heads of the family, doing not only most of the actual work, but also +taking the dominant position in affairs generally. This I have observed +strikingly in the case of the three "slackest" male races I know--the +Fantis of the Gold Coast, the Kashmiri, and the crofters of the West +Highlands. + +Opinion is divided on the question of female loveliness in Kashmir. + +Marco Polo (who probably only got his ideas of "Kesmur" from hearsay) +echoed the prevalent opinion by saying, "The women although dark are very +comely" (ch. xxvii.). Bernier is enthusiastic: "Les femmes surtout y sont +très-belles," and hints at their popularity among the Moguls. + +Moorcroft, Vigne, and others swelled the laudatory chorus until Forster, +"having been prepossessed with an opinion of their charms, suffered a +sensible disappointment," and even was so rude as to criticise the ladies' +legs, which he considered thick! + +Lawrence saw "thousands of women in the villages, and could not remember, +save one or two exceptions, ever seeing a really beautiful face;" but the +heaviest blow was dealt them by Jacquemont, who, as a gay Frenchman, +should have been an excellent judge: "Je n'avais jamais vu auparavant +d'aussi affreuses sorcières!" + + + +APPENDIX III + +I had hoped to have given, through the kindness of Colonel Ward, a full +list of the birds of Kashmir. Up to the time of going to press, however, +the complete list has not been made out. A very large proportion, however, +has been published in the _Journal of the Bombay Nat. Hist. Society_. I +would refer those desirous of a knowledge of the birds of Kashmir to the +above Journal for 23rd April and 20th Sept. 1906, and 15th Feb. 1907. Also +to Hume and Henderson's _Lahore to Yarkand_, and to Le Mesurier's _Game, +Shore, and Water Birds of India_, to which I am indebted for the +following:-- + +"In Kashmir, out of 116 genera of land birds, 34 have a wide range, 32 are +characteristic of the Palar Arctic, 29 of the Indian, and 21 of the +Himalo-Chinese sub-region. Only one species is peculiar to Kashmir, a very +normal bullfinch (pyrula)." + +The flora, which is most interesting, has yet (as far as I know) to be +treated independently of the neighbouring regions. Royle is scientific but +antiquated, and I know of no better list than that given by Lawrence in +his _Valley of Kashmir_. + + + +APPENDIX IV + +It may interest any one intending a trip to Kashmir to see a note of +reasonable expenses as incurred by two people during a nine-month absence +from England. Therefore I append a précis of ours. + +It is to be remembered that a saving might be effected in many particulars +by any one knowing something of the country. We had to buy our experience. +Fully £10 or £12 could be saved in wages, as at first we had a fighting +tail like "Ta Phairson" of "four-and-twenty men and five-and-thirty +pipers"--and pipers have to be paid! We also hired tents when we did not +really require them. Against these outgoings, however, it should be borne +in mind that, thanks to the kindness of friends, we paid a merely nominal +rent for a "State" hut at Gulmarg. At Abbotabad, Jaipur, and Udaipur, also, +we had no hotel bills to meet. + + +PRÉCIS OF EXPENSES--TWO PERSONS + +LONDON TO KARACHI (25 Days) + £ s. d. £ s. d. +Half-Return fares, 1st class, London to Trieste, + and thence by Austrian Lloyd (unaccelerated) 60 0 0 +Hotels, sleeping-car, gratuities, wine bills, &c. 16 15 0 +Baggage expenses 8 15 7 + ---------- 85 10 7 + +BOMBAY TO LONDON (25 Days) +Share of fares 60 0 0 +Hotel expenses and sundries, as before 10 6 8 +Baggage expenses, dock dues, &c. 17 11 4 + ---------- 87 18 0 + +KARACHI TO SRINAGAR (16 Days) +Rail and baggage expenses to Pindi 12 6 8 +Landau and two ekkas to Srinagar, inclusive of + gratuities, tolls, &c. 10 10 8 +Hotels, Dàk bungalows, &c. 13 18 9 +Duty on firearms (repayable on leaving) 1 16 8 +Resais, waterproof for luggage, kettles, &c. 1 19 3 +Servant's fare to Karachi, wages, &c. 2 12 8 + ---------- 43 4 8 + ------------- + _Carry forward_ 216 13 3 + +EXPENSES IN KASHMIR (6 Months) + £ s. d. £ s. d. + _Brought forward_ 216 13 3 + +Food, wine, washing, cigars, &c. 72 7 3 +Wages, inclusive of various clothes 42 9 9 +Amusements, golf and tennis subscriptions, &c. 11 7 2 +Hire of boats, tents and equipment 17 6 5 +Transport coolies and ponies 33 14 11 +Hire of hut at Gulmarg 5 6 8 +Sundry furniture, cooking gear, yakdans, &c. 9 0 8 + ----------- 191 12 10 + +BARAMULA TO BOMBAY (1 Month) + +Landau and four ekkas, with gratuities and tolls. 13 14 0 +Dâk bungalows, hotels, &c. 18 5 8 +Wages, inclusive of gratuities 6 14 0 +Rail, Pindi to Bombay (_viâ_ Udaipur) 16 17 0 +Baggage 5 2 8 +Hire of carriages, &c. 1 4 11 + ---------- 61 18 3 +Loss by exchange on cheques. 5 19 7 + ------------ + Total 476 3 11 + ============ + + + +INDEX AND NOTES + +ABBOTABAD, A frontier station garrisoned by a mobile force of Gurkhas and + Royal Artillery, whence any descent from the Black Mountain or Chilas + country can be checked. Named after Lieutenant Abbot, who reduced the + neighbourhood to order in 1845-48. +Aden, Occupying a warm corner just outside the straits of Babol-Mandeb; + was the first addition made to the British dominions in the reign of + Queen Victoria, having been taken from the Arabs in 1839. +Agates, +Agra, Rose to importance under the Moguls, becoming their seat of + government after Akbar quitted the city he had built, Fatehpur-Sighri, + until Aurungzeb removed the seat of government to Delhi. +Akbar, The third, and in many ways the greatest, of the six "Great Mogul" + Emperors of India. A warrior first, he consolidated his conquests with + the genius of an enlightened statesman. +Alsu, A small village on the north-west shore of the Wular Lake. +Amar Singh (General Raja Sir Amar Singh, K.C.S.I.), Brother of His + Highness Sir Pratab Singh, G.C.S.I., Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir; is + Vice-President of the States Council and owner of much land in Kashmir, + the prosperity of which he has done much to promote. +Ambér, The ancient capital of Jaipur; was built in the eleventh century, + its Rajput rulers being the powerful allies of Chitor during her + struggles against the Mohammedan invasion. The Palace was built by Raja + Maun, _circa_ 1600, in the days of Akbar, whose cousin he was by + marriage ( _comp_. ). Ambér was deserted in 1728 by Jey Singh for his + new city of Jaipur. +Amethyst, This stone should be much worn in Scotland, particularly on New + Year's Day, it having been (according to the Greek derivation of the + name) an antidote to drunkenness! +Amira Kadal, The highest of the seven bridges at Srinagar; a fine modern + structure, replacing that built by Amir Khan Jawan Sher, the Pathan, who + also built Sher Garhi. +Anda, Egg. +Anna, the sixteenth part of a rupee, value one penny. +Apharwat, One of the Pir Panjal range, which rises above Gulmarg, height + 14,500 feet. +Aru, A small village, beautifully situated about seven miles above Pahlgam. +Asti, "Go slow." +Astor, A district on the main route from Kashmir to Gilgit, the village is + about ninety-two miles from Bandipur. Two passes (the Rajdiangan, or + Tragbal, 11,800 feet, and the Boorzil, 13,500 feet) have to be crossed. + About ten passes are issued each season to sportsmen, markhor and ibex + being the game. +Atchibal, A village seven miles from Islamabad, where many springs burst + out from the rocks. Atchibal was a favourite pleasure-garden of the + Mogul Emperors, the remains of which still exist. +Aurungzeb, The last of the six "Great Moguls"; deposed and imprisoned his + predecessor Shah Jehan in 1658, and reigned until 1707. Bigoted and + intolerant, he shares with Sikander the odium of having destroyed many + of the ancient Hindu temples of Kashmir. +Avantipura, The modern village is near the extensive ruins named after + King Avanti Verma, which formed once the capital of Kashmir. + +Bahamarishi, (_Baba-pam-Rishi=_Father Smoothbeard.) A village some three + miles below Gulmarg; the ziarat is named after a rishi, or ascetic, of + the sixteenth century. +Baloo, (Kashmiri, _Harpat_) "Rara avis in terras, nigroque similima + cignis." _Anglicè_, a bear. +Bandipur, An important village on the north shore of the Wular Lake, the + starting-point for Gilgit, &c. Oddly enough, Bandipur is not marked on + the Ordnance Map. +Bandobast, A bargain or arrangement. +Bappa, An eighth-century Rajput hero, and ancestor of the present chiefs + of Mewar; appears to have had strong Mormon proclivities. +Baramula, The third town in Kashmir, having some 900 houses, is built on + the Jhelum at its outflow from the Kashmir Valley: it is also built on + the west focus of seismic disturbance in Kashmir, and was destroyed by + an earthquake in 1885, when 3000 Baramulans were killed. We were unaware + of these interesting facts on the morning of April 4! The "Palms of + Baramoule," which Moore sang of, are like snakes in Iceland--they do + not exist. +Bara singh, The Kashmir stag. +Bawan, +Beera, +Bejbehara, The ancient Vijayasvara, a picturesque village and bridge about + four miles below Islamabad. +Bernier, F., a Frenchman attached to the court of Aurungzeb as medical + adviser; wrote _Voyage à Kachemire_. +Bhanyar, +Bheostie, The Indian Aquarius--the water-bearer. +Bhils, +Birch, (Kashmiri, _Burza_) The bark used in making the paper for which + Kashmir was noted, also for roofing, it being strong and impervious to + water. +Blue pine, _Pinus Excelsa_, (Kashmiri, _Yar_.) +Bombay, +Books on Kashmir:(1) Bernier, _Voyage à Kachemire_ (Utrecht, 1724); + (2) Forster's (G) _Journey from Bengal to England_ (London, 1798); + (3) Moorcroft, _Travels in Kashmir, &c._ edited by Wilson, 1841; + (4) Jacquomont (V), _Voyage dans l'Inde_ (Paris, 1841); + (5) Vigne (G. T.), _Travels in Kashmir, &c._, 1844; + (6) Hugel's _Travels_, 1845; + (7) Drew, _Jummoo and, Ktishmir Territories_; and + (8) Lawrence's _Valley of Kashmir_ 1895. +Budmash, A scoundrel. +Bund, An embankment or dyke to bank a river. +Burra, Big, or great. + +Carnelian, "Flesh-stone"--for origin read Marryat's _Pacha of Many Tales_ +Chakhoti, +Chandni Chowk, +Chaplies, +Chappar, Paddle with heart-shaped blade. +Chatris, The cenotaphs of the Maharanas of Mewar; they stand in a walled + enclosure between Udaipur and the railway station. +Chonar, _Plaianus Orientals_ or Oriental plane. This magnificent tree is + supposed to have been introduced into Kashmir by the Mogul Emperors. It + grows to a great size, one measured by Lawrence being sixty-three feet + five inches in circumference at five feet above the ground! There is a + very fair specimen in Kew Gardens, between the pond and the "herbaceous + border." +Chilas, +Chit, A note or letter, and also a character or recommendation, Every man + collects something, from pictures to tram tickets--the native collects + "chits." Like other collectors he will beg, borrow, or steal to improve + his store, and life is made a burden by the perpetual writing and + reading of these mendacious documents. +Chitor, +Chittagul Nullah, The next nullah to the south-west of the Wangat. The + village of Wangat is wrongly placed in it, according to the Ordnance Map. +Chondawats, A Rajput clan. +Chota, Little, _Chota Hazm = petit dejeúner_ or early breakfast. +Chowkidar, A functionary whose principal duty seems to be to snore in the + verandah at night and scare other robbers away. +Chupatty, A flabby sort of scone. +Chuprassie, +Cockburn's Agency, The nearest approach to "Whiteley's" in Kashmir. + +Dâk, Post. _Dâk Bungalow_=posting station. +Dal Lake, _Dal_ means lake (in a plain), while _nag_ is a mountain tarn. +Dandy, A sort of enclosed chair with four projecting arms, wherein pretty + ladies are carried when it doesn't suit them to walk. +Degchies, Cooking utensils--best made of aluminium, owing to the unclean + ways of native scullions. +Dekho, See, look! +Delhi, The capital of the Mogul Emperors, dating from 1638, when Shah + Jehan commenced to build the great fort. The ancient city lies some + miles to the south. Delhi was taken by General Lake in 1803. +Deodar, (Kashmiri, _Diár.) Cedrus Lebani_, var. _Deodara_. The most + valuable tree in Kashmir, where it was formerly abundant. It is now + chiefly found in the north-west districts, and it is carefully cherished + by the "Jungly Sahib" and his myrmidons. +Dobie, The thing that ruins all your shirts and causes you to shatter the + Third Commandment. +Domel, Village with Dâk Bungalow, at the confluence of the Jhelum and the + Kishenganga. +Doolie, +Doras, +Dounga, "The boats of Kashmir are very long and narrow, and are rowed with + paddles from the stern, which is a little elevated, to the centre; a + tilt of mats is extended for the shelter of passengers or merchandize" + (Forster); the mats are made of "pits" (reed mace), a swamp plant. +Drogmulla, +Dubgam, A village at junction of the Pohru with the Jhelum, about seven + miles above Baramula. + +EARTHQUAKE, An upsetting event of too frequent occurrence in Kashmir. + Particularly severe visitations occurred in 1827 and 1885 (_see_ + Baramula). +Echo Lake, A small tarn on the top of Apharwat. +Ek, One. (_Ek dam_=immediately.) +Ekka, +Embroidery, +Erin Nullah, +Eshmakam, =_Eysh Makám_("the delightful halting-place") Above the village + stands the shrine of Zyn-u-din, one of the four disciples of the Kashmir + patron saint, Shah Nur-u-din. + +FATERPUR-SIGHRI, +Ferozepore Nullah, +Floating Gardens, + +GANESBAL, The boulder, red-stained and extremely sacred, which lies in the + middle of the Lidar; bears some fancied likeness to Ganésh (the + elephant-headed god). +Gangabal, A sacred lake, lying under the north glaciers of Haramok at the + elevation of 12,000 feet. It is said to be a source of the Ganges(!) + and is an object of pilgrimage +Ghari, +Ghari Habibullah, +Ghari Wallah, The Jehu of these parts. +Ghât, +Gold mohur, +Golf, +Gram, +Grass shoes, +Gujar, Is not a Kashmiri, being a member of the semi-nomad tribes which + graze buffaloes and goats upon the hills. He speaks Parímu or Hindki. +Gulmarg, (The Rose Marg.) The most frequented resort of the English in + Kashmir during July and August; stands some 8500 feet above the sea, + wherefore some people find the air too rarefied. Gulmarg was first + mentioned by Yusaf Khan in 1580. +Gunderbal, A village placed where the Sind River debouches into the plain. + The starting-point for Leh and Thibet. +Gupkar, Town of Gopaditya(?). A wine-manufacturing suburb of Srinagar, + overlooking the Dal. +Gurais, A large village on the Bandipur-Gilgit route, lying on the right + bank of the Kishenganga, about forty-two miles from Bandipur. + +HARAMOK, The predominating mountain (16,903 feet) of the valley, from + almost every part of which his square-headed bulk is visible; hence the + name, which means "all faces" or "all mouths." A legend holds that a + vein of emerald lies near the summit, and that within view of this gem + no snake can live +Harbagwan, +Hari Parbat, ("The Green Hill") So named on account of the gardens and + vineyards which clothed its sides. Became the residence of Akbar, who + built the wall round foot of hill in 1597. The fort on top was the work + of the Pathan, Atta Mohamad Khan. +Haripur, +Harwan, +Hasrat Bal Mosque, (The Prophet's Hair.) Various fairs and festivals are + held here, the principal one being held upon the day that the Prophet + rode up to Heaven on his mule Al Barak (the Thunderer). This mule, + by-the-bye, is one of the five favoured beasts which the Mohammedans + believe destined to immortality; the others are (1) Abraham's Ram, (2) + Balaam's Ass, (3) the one upon which Christ rode on Palm Sunday, and (4) + the dog which guarded the seven sleepers. +Hassanabad Mosque, Built by Nur Jehan Begum (Nourmahal), and destroyed by + the Sikhs. +Hassan Abdal, (_Abdal=_fanatic). +Hoopoe, Un-natural history of. + +INSECTS, Of benign insects such as butterflies there are singularly few. + Both mosquitoes and flies are very troublesome during the hot weather in + the valley. Visits to native huts will probably lead to an introduction + to other insects. In India ants become a nuisance: I met with a foraging + party of extremely large and well-nourished ones as I entered my bath + place one morning. I recognised them for the descendants--decadent + somewhat--of the famous fellows who played Alberich to the Gold of + Hindostan and regarding which Herodotus (commonly known as the Father of + History, or of Lies, I forget which) asserted that they were of the + bigness of foxes and ran with incredible swiftness. He evidently got + this yarn from Pliny-- + + "Indicae Formicae. + Aurum ex cavernus egerunt terrae + Ipsis autem color Fehum magnitudo Aegypti Luporum" + (Lib. xi. ch. 31)-- + + and passed it on to Sir J. Maundevil, who swallowed it greedily. "Theise + pissmyres ben grete as houndes; so that no man dar come to the hilles, + for the pissmyres wolde assaylen hem and devouren hem" (ch. xxx) For the + wily method of catching the ants napping, together with other _contes + drolatiques_, read Maundevil's _Travels_. +Iris, (Kashmiri, _Krishm_) Succeeds the tulip and precedes the rose as + typical of Kashmirian Flora, is used as fodder, and the fibre makes + ropes, which are, however, not durable. +Islamabad, (Or Anant Nag, the "Place of Countless Springs.") Is the second + city in Kashmir, having about 9000 inhabitants; stands at the head of + the navigable Jhelum, fifty miles by water and thirty-two by land above + Srinagar. + +Jade, +Jagganath, +Jain, A small sect founded by Mahavera, a contemporary of Gautama. The + Jains were great temple-builders. +Jehangir, +Jeimal, With Putta, one of the national heroes of the Rajputs. They fell, + while mere boys, in the heroic defence of Chitor against Akbar. +Jey Singh, (Sowar Jey Singh.) Succeeded to the throne of Ambér in 1699, + founded Jaipur in 1728. He wrote the following, which I had not read + when I visited his observatory at Jaipur "Let us devote ourselves at the + altar of the King of Kings, hallowed be his name! In the book of the + register of whose power the lofty orbs of Heaven are but a few leaves, + and the stars, and that heavenly courser the sun, small pieces of money + in the treasury of the Most High." +Jheel, A small lake, or pond. +Jhelum, (Kashmiri, _Veth_, Hindu, _Vetasta_, the ancient _Hydaspes_.) + Rises at Vernag, becomes navigable at Kanbal, and is so for 120 miles, + when it forms rapids below Baramula. Average breadth at Srinagar in + December 210 feet, average depth 9 feet. +Johur, + +Kaj-nag, +Kali, ("The Terrible.") Wife of Shiva or Mahadeva. +Kanbal, +Karachi, +Karewas, "Where the mountains cease to be steep, fan-like projections, + with flat, arid tops, and bare of trees, run out towards the valley" + (Lawrence) +Kashmir=Kashuf-mir (the country of Kashuf). Was ruled by Tartar princes + from about 150-100 B.C. for several centuries; conquered after a year's + struggle by Mahmoud of Guznee (1014-1015 A.D.). Invaded by Baber and + Humayun, and finally conquered by latter in 1543, and formally annexed + by Akbar in 1588. After the fall of Delhi (Nadir Shah) in 1739, Kashmir + fell into the hands of Amirs of Cabul in 1753. It was captured by the + Sikhs under Ranjit Singh in 1819, and, after the defeat of the Sikhs at + the hands of the British, was handed over to Gulab Singh of Jammu for + twenty-five lacs of rupees "Kailasa is the best place in the three + worlds, Himalaya the best part of Kailasa, and Kashmir the best place in + Himalaya" _(Rajatarangini Kulan_). +Kastoora, Merula Boulboul (the grey-winged ousel). Jane + bought "Freddie" one day in Srinagar, and he has been our friend + and companion ever since--being at this present (August 1907) + in rude health. +Khansamah, A Cook. +Khubbar, News--usually untrustworthy. +Khud, A steep slope or precipice. +Khudstick, An alpenstock made of tough wood, usually of Cotoneaster + baccillaris (lun); should be well tested before purchase, as life may + depend on its strength. +Killanmarg, A wide sloping marg above Gulmarg, just above the pine forest + on the slopes of Apharwat. +Kilta, Creel made of the pliant withes of the Wych Hazel, _Parrotia_ + _Jacquemontiana_ (Chob-i-poh). +Kishenganga, A large affluent of the Jhelum which drains the Tilail Valley, + passes Gurais, and joins the Jhelum below Muzafferabad. +Kitardaji, Forest house in the Machipura. +Kitmaghar, Bearer. +Kobala, +Kohinar, +Kolahoi, or Gwash Brari, 17,800 ft. The loftiest peak in Kashmir proper. + It has not yet been ascended. +Koolan, +Kralpura, +Kulan, A peak of the Pir Panjal, at the head of the Ferozepore Nullah. +Kulgam, or Kuligam. +Kunis, +Kurnavati, +Kutab Minar, + +Lacquer, +Lahore, Capital of the Punjab. An ancient and interesting city, which + (like Agra and Delhi) only attained its zenith of prosperity in the days + of Akbar. +Lakri, A stick (at Gulmarg also a golf-club). +Lalpura, A charming village in the Lolab. +Larch, +Lidar, Liddar, or Lambodri, Drains the Kolahoi district, and forms the + first substantial affluent of the Jhelum, which it joins below Islamabad. +Lidarwat, A small Grujar village fifteen miles above Pahlgam, on the left + bank of the river, about 10,000 ft. above sea-level. +Logue or Log, Folk. +Lumbadhar, The headman of a village. + +Machipura, "The Place of Fish"--why, I cannot imagine! The district lying + along the east foothills of the Kaj-nag. +Mahadeo, (Mahadeva or Shiva) A sacred mountain and object of pilgrimage, + north of Srinagar, 13,500 feet high. +Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir, H.H. Sir Pratab Singh, G.C.S.I., succeeded + his father Ranbir Singh (who was third son of Gulah Singh) in 1885. The + family is of the Rajput Dogras. "His kindness to all classes has won him + the affection of his people" (Lawrence). +Maharana, H.H. the Maharana Dhiraj Sir Fateh Singh, G.C.S.I., of Udaipur, + is head of the Rajput princes in point of blood, being descended from the + Suryabansi, or Children of the Sun. +Mahseer, +Malingam, +Manji or Hanji, A Kashmiri water-thief or boatman. +Manserah, +Mar (snake) Canal. A dirty but most picturesque waterway between the Dal + and the Anchar Lakes. +Marg,(Margh?) Persian for a garden abounding in plants. +Margam, +Martand, The principal temple in Kashmir--stands on a high karewa some few + miles from Islamabad. +Metal-work, +Mewar, +Mogul, The Moguls were a warlike people of Central Asia, who, under Timur + (Tamerlane) their chief, sacked Delhi in 1398. At the great battle of + Panipat, in 1524, Baber the Mogul (direct descendant of Timur) defeated + the Sultans of Delhi. He was the first of the six "Great" Moguls (the + others being Humayun, Akbar, Jehangir, Shah Jehan, and Aurungzeb), who + ruled India with unparalleled magnificence for 150 years. +Mulberry, (_Morus sp_. Kashmiri _Tul_) A very precious tree in Kashmir, on + account of the silk industry. It grows to a great size, attaining a girth + of 25 feet. +Murghi, A fowl. +Murree, A hill station and sanatorium, 37 miles from Rawal Pindi, on a + hill 7500 feet above the sea. Its importance dates from 1850. Forster + speaks of it as a small village in 1786. +Musafferabad, ("The Place of Victory") Built by Masufer Khan, Rajah of + Chikri. +Mussick, Water-skin. + +NAG, A mountain lake or tarn. +Nagas, Human-bodied, snake-tailed gods. +Nagmarg, +Nanga Parbat, A great mountain in the Chilas country, 26,620 feet high + (the fourth in point of height in the world), Mommery and two guides were + destroyed in 1895, probably by an avalanche, while attempting the ascent. +Nassim Bagh, ("The Garden of Delicious Breezes") A favourite spot in the + days of the Mogul Emperors. Akbar planted 1200 chenars. +Neem tree. +Neve, Dr. A. He and his brother are surgeons to the Kashmir Medical + Mission, where for many years they have carried on the somewhat + thankless task of benefiting the natives. +Nishat Bagh, ("The Garden of Drink") +Nopura, A village on the Pohru. +Nourmahal, ("Light of the Palace"), or, more properly, Nur Jehan Begum + ("Light of the World"), was the wife of Jehaugir, celebrated in Mooree's + _Lalla Rookh_. Her life story was very curious. See Forster's _Journey + from Bengal to England_, London, 1798. +Nullah, A valley or ravine. +Numdah, + +ONTALA, +Oodi Singh, + +PADMANI, "The Lotus-lovely Lady." +Pagdandy, A short cut. +Pahlgam, "The Shepherd's Village," A Kashmiri summer resort for those who + like quiet. It is 27 miles from Islamabad up the Lidar Valley, and is + somewhat over 7000 feet above the sea. +Pampur, (Padma-pur, city of Vishnu, or Padmun-pur, "the place of beauty"), + principally noted now for its Pampur roti or bread, a speciality of the + place. +Pandrettan, or Pandrenthan, =Puranadhisthana, "the old capital." Was built + in the time of Partha by his Prime Minister, Meru. +Parana Chauni, +Patan. "The City" or "Ferry," the ancient Sankarapura, Sankaravarma having + built two temples there at the end of the eighth century. +Peechy, Afterwards, later, by-and-bye +Peri Mahal, "The Abode of the Fairies." Built on the hill above Gupkar by + Prince Dara Shikoh, probably for astronomical purposes +Piasse, The onion. +Pice, See Rupee. +Pichola Lake, +Pir Panjab, Pir=Dogri for peak Pantzal, Kashmiri for ditto Pir also meant + a saint, particularly one who lived in the pass in the days of Shah + Jehan and Aurungzeb and who was interviewed by Bernier. The Pir Panjal + was the route followed by the Moguls when coming to Kashmir, and, rough + as it is, they sent elephants along it. The highest peak of the Pir + Panjal is Tatakuti, 15,500 feet. +Pohru, +Poonch, A native state lying south-west of Kashmir, to which it is + tributary. The Raja Buldeo Singh is cousin to the Maharajah of Kashmir. +Poplar. There are two varieties of Poplar in Kashmir, the Italian or + Black Poplar, and the White, the latter attains a great size, one near + Gurais measuring 127 feet in height and 14-1/2 feet in girth. +Porcelain, +Port Saïd, +Puttoo, Native cloth. + +RAINAWARI, +Rajput, The brave and chivalrous inhabitants of Rajputana. Bernier, + probably influenced by Mogul opinion, attributes much of their valour to + opium, as the following curious extract shows "Ils sont grands preneurs + d'opium, et je me suis quelque fois etonné de la quantité que je leur + en voiois prendre; aussi ils s'y accoutûmerent dès la jeunesse; le jour + d'une bataille ils ne s'oublient pas de doubler la dose; cette drogue + les anime ou plutot les enyvre, et les rend insensibles an danger, de + sorte quils se jettant dans le combat comma des bêtes furieuses, ne + sachant ce que c'est de fuir ... c'est un plaisir de les voir ainsi avec + leur fumée d'opium dans la tête s'entre embrasser quand on est prêt de + combattre et se dire adieu les uns aux autres, comme gens qui sont + resolus de mourir."--Vol. i. p. 54. +Ramble-tamble egg, Scrambled eggs. +Ram chikor, The great snow partridge (_Tetragallus Himalayensis_). +Rampur. A small village in the Jhelum Valley, and a village on the way + into the Lolab _viâ_ Kunis. +Rawal Pindi, +Rassad, "Field Allowance" or extra rations given to coolies when doing any + mountain work or away from supplies. +Resai, +Roorkhee chair, An extremely comfortable and portable chair made by the + R.E. at Roorkhee. +Rope bridge, +Rupee=one fifteenth of a sovereign, or 1s. and 4d. + 12 pice (or pies)= 4 paisa = 1 anna = 1 penny + 16 annas = 1 rupee. + +SAAF kuro, "Make clean." +Saktawats, A Rapjut clan. +Sari, A woman's garment, usually brilliant in colour, blood-red and dark + blue being favoured. +Sekwas, +Sellar, +Serow, _Nemorhaidus bubalerius_. +Sesodia, The ruling family of Udaipur, formerly known as Gehlote. +Shadipur, "The Place of Marriage"--probably with reference to the junction + of the Sind and Jhelum rivers. +Shah Jehan, The greatest builder of the Mogul Emperors. Ruled from 1627 to + 1658, when he was deposed and imprisoned by Aurungzeb. +Shalimar, +Shalimar Bagh, +Shambrywa, One of the peaks of the Kaj-nag. +Shiah, A Mohammedan sect, usually much at variance with those of Sunni + persuasion. +Shikara, A light sort of canoe. +Shikari, A necessary joint in the "fighting tail" of the sportive visitor + to Kashmir. Usually a fraud, but, if not too proud, makes quite a good + golf caddy. +Shisha Nag, "The Glassy or Leaden Lake." +Silver fir, _Abies Webbiana_ (Kashmiri, _Sungal_). Grows to a great height, + being known 110 feet high and 16 feet in girth. +Sind Desert, +Sind Valley, +Singhara, Meaning "horned nut," the water chestnut _(Trapa bispinosa_). + An article of diet much prized by the Kashmiri. +Sogul, +Sonamarg, "The Golden Marg." A summer station high up the Sind Valley on + the route to Leh and Ladak. +Sopor, =Sonapur, or the Golden City. A somewhat unclean little town of + some 600 houses on the Jhelum, about eight miles by road and twelve by + water above Baramula. +Spill Canal, Cut in 1904, after the Great Flood of 1903, to carry some of + the river clear of Srinagar and ease the pressure on the bund. +Spruce, _Picca, Morunda_. (Kashmiri, _Kachal_.) +Srinagar, _Surga Nagur_, City of the Sun. Has a population of 120,000. + Became capital in 960 A.D., when the ancient city of Pandrettan was burnt + in the reign of Abimanyu. The city was called Kashmir until recently, + Martand being called Sringar by Jacquemont. +Sultanpur, +Sumbal, Said to be the site of the ancient city Jayapura. +Sunt-i-kul = "Apple-tree Canal." + +TAJ MAHAL, The magnificent tomb of Mumtez Mahal, favourite wife of Shah + Jehan. +Takht-i-Suleiman, A steep isolated hill rising nearly 1000 feet above + Srinagar, crowned by a temple which is built on the ruins of a very + ancient edifice. The Takht or Throne of Solomon is, according to the + legend, the place which Solomon occupied during his mythical visit to + Kashmir. +Tangmarg, "The Open Marg". Is the village about 1500 foot below Gulmarg, + which is the nearest point to Gulmarg attainable by wheeled conveyance. +Tattoo, A pony. +Tehsildhar, The functionary who has jurisdiction over a tehsil. +Temples, For full description read Lawrence _(Valley of Kashmir_, chap. + vi.) Their ruined state is partly due to earthquakes, but probably still + more to the iconoclastic activity of Sikandar (_d._ 1416) and Aurungzeb. +Tilail, +Tonga, +Topaz, Name derived from the Greek "to conjecture"--because no one knew + whence they came! +Tower of Fame, +Tower of Victory, +Tragbal, +Tragam, A large village south-west of the Lolab, whence a route leads to + Musafferabad. +Tret, A station at the foot of the Murree hills on the road to Rawal Pindi. +Trieste, +Tronkol, +Turquoise, + +UDAIPUR, The capital of the ancient and powerful Rajput State of Mewar, + founded by Oodi Singh after the fall of Chitor. +Uri, + +VERNABOUG, +Vernag, + +WALNUT, A valuable tree in Kashmir, where its fruit and timber are both + greatly esteemed; grows to a very large size, one in the Lolab having a + girth of 18 feet 10 inches. +Wangat, +Wardwan, The mountainous district on the east of Kashmir. +Water buffalo, An ungainly and "sneevish" beast beloved of Gujars and + nobody else. +Weights 2 lbs. (English)=1 seer. 40 seers = 1 maund. +Wood carving, +Wular, Means "cave". The largest lake in India, being 12-1/2 x 5 miles in + average extent. In floods it covers much extra space. +Wych hazel, _See_ Kilta. + +YAKDAN, + +ZIARAT, A Mohammedan shrine. +Zoji La, The pass at the head of the Sind Valley which is crossed on going + to Leh, height 11,300 feet. + + + +***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A HOLIDAY IN THE HAPPY VALLEY WITH +PEN AND PENCIL*** + + +******* This file should be named 11873-8.txt or 11873-8.zip ******* + + +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: +https://www.gutenberg.org/1/1/8/7/11873 + + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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