more distant still heavily snowed. Higher up, the forest
was chiefly formed of the holly-leaved oak, but the latter
part of the ascent was through a dark forest of silver
fir, intermixed with a few fine yews. The underwood
here was chiefly Viburnum nervosum, still in flower,
though its leaves were almost fully developed. On
emerging from this gloomy forest, in the upper part
of which there was a thin sprinkling of snow, I found
myself on th e . crest of the range, which was bare and
rounded. Snow lay in large patches, and had evidently
been till very recently continuous over the whole top,
as vegetation was just commencing, and few plants
were in flower. Primula denticulata was common,
as well as a little, gentian, which extended on both
sides at least 2000 feet lower; the only alpine plant
was the little Calliantliemum which I had found some
days before on the summit of Wasterwan in Kashmir.
The distant view was unfortunately quite obscured by
haze, so that I could not see, as I had expected, the
plains of India.
In descending the southern face of this mountain,
the road at once entered a forest of silver fir, in the
upper part of which I saw one tree of Quercus seme-
carjoifolia, a species which I had not met with on the
Kashmir passes, or anywhere since leaving the Sutlej.
About 8000 feet, the pines were replaced by the hollyleaved
oak, forming open woods, in the glades of which
patches of cultivation soon occurred ; I encamped at
about 7000 feet, at the village of Katti. During the day
the sandstone rock occurred uninterruptedly, partly, as
the day before, of a reddish-brown colour, partly grey,
or nearly white. On the descent large angular fragments
of this rock were everywhere scattered over the
surface, almost always more or less imbedded in the
soil: these had somewhat the appearance of a former
moraine, but the surface was so much covered with wood,
and the boulders were so much buried, that I could not
trace their arrangement in a satisfactory manner.
Next morning I continued the descent, which was
rapid, so that I soon arrived at tropical vegetation.
There was but little forest, except in ravines, and the
heat soon became very great. About three miles from
Katti I passed the fort of Landar, built on an almost
isolated cliff, overhanging the ravine; and a little further
on I descended abruptly to a small stream, running
towards the Chenab, the elevation of whose bed was
about 3000 feet. The descent, which was almost precipitous,
led down the face of a mass of clay, in some
respects like the alluvial deposits so common in Tibet.
Similar masses of alluvium, all table-topped, and very
steep, and much worn by ravines, had occurred throughout
the whole of the descent from Katti. A few pines
grew on this steep bank, and all the shrubs which I
had found on the banks of the Chenab at Nasmon were
again met with. After crossing this stream, the bed
of which was filled with large water-worn boulders, I
again ascended to about 5000 feet, chiefly among cultivation,
and encamped at Mir, a small village close to
the crest of the main range south of the Chenab, the
elevation of which was now very inconsiderable.
Next day, a gentle ascent of half an hour brought me
to the crest of this range. The mountain slopes were