the south flank of Donkia mountain, both many marches
north of my present position.
At Singtam I was waited on by the Soubah of the
district, a tall portly Bhotea, who was destined to
prove the most active enemy to my pursuits. He
governs the country between Grorh and the Tibet
frontier, for the Maha-itanee (wife of the Rajah), whose
dowry it i s ; and she being the Dewan’s relative, I had
little assistance to expect from her agent. His conduct
was very polite, and he brought me a handsome
offering for myself; but after delaying me a day on the
pretext of collecting food for my people, I was obliged
to move on with no addition to my store, and trust to
obtaining some at the next village, or from Dorjiling.
Owing, however, to the increasing distance, and the
destruction of the roads by the rains, my supplies from
that place were becoming irregular: I therefore thought
it prudent to reduce my party, by sending back my
guard of Sepoys, who could be of no further use.
From this point the course of the Teesta is
materially different from what it is lower down; it
becomes a boisterous torrent, as suddenly as the
Tambur does, above Mywa Guola. Its bed is
narrower, large masses of rock impede its course, nor
is it practicable for rafts at any season; the only
means of passing it being by cane bridges that are
thrown across, high above the stream.
The slope on either side of the valley is very steep ;
that on the north, in particular, appearing too precipitous
for any road, and being only frequented by
honey-seekers, who scale the rocks by cane ladders,
Ma t , 1849. BEES’-NESTS. LAND-SLIPS. 41 i
and thus reach the pendulous bees’-nests, which are
so large as in some instances to be conspicuous
features at the distance of a mile. This pursuit
appeared extremely perilous, the long thread-like canes
in many places affording the only footing over many
yards of cliff: the procuring of this honey, however, is
the only means by which many of the idle poor raise
the rent which they must pay to the Rajah.
The most prominent effect of the steepness of the
valleys is the prevalence of land-slips, which sometimes
descend for 3000 feet, carrying devastation along their
course; they are caused either by the melting of the
snow-beds on the mountains, or by the action of the
rains on the rocks; and are much increased in effect
and violence by the heavy timber-trees which, swaying
forwards, loosen the earth at their roots, and give
impetus to the mass. This phenomenon is as frequent
and destructive as in Switzerland, where, however,
more lives are lost, from the country being more
populous, and from the people recklessly building
in places particularly exposed to such accidents.
A most destructive one had occurred here the previous
year, by which a village was destroyed, together with
twelve of its inhabitants, and all the cattle. I crossed
its debris on the first march beyond Singtam; the
whole face of the mountain appeared more or less tom
up for fully a mile, presenting a confused mass of white
clay, full of angular masses of rock. The path was
very difficult and dangerous, being carried along the
steep slope, at an angle, in some places, of 35°; and it
was constantly shifting, from the continued downward