LONDON :
BRADBURY AND EVANS, PRINTERS, WHITEFRIARS.
PREFACE,
—♦—
H a v in g accompanied Sir James Ross on his voyage
of discovery to the Antarctic regions, where botany was
my chief pursuit, I was anxious to add to my acquaintance
with the natural history of the temperate zones,
more knowledge of that of the tropics than I had
hitherto had the opportunity of acquiring. My choice
lay between India and the Andes, and I decided upon
the former, being principally influenced by Dr. Falconer,
the Superintendent of the H. E. I. C. Botanic
Garden at Calcutta. He drew my attention to the
fact that we were ignorant even of the geography of
the central and eastern parts of these mountains, while
all to the north was involved in a mystery equally
attractive to the traveller and the naturalist.
The portion of the Himalaya best worth exploring,
was selected for me both by Lord Auckland and Dr.
Falconer, who each recommended Sikkim, as being
ground untrodden by traveller or naturalist. Its ruler
