dation passed the village of Chulung, on the western boundary of Chorbad. Two days afterwards, at exactly the same hour, the flood swept by Torbela, a distance of 550 miles, its motion being at the rate of 114583 miles per hour, or 16.81 feet per second. The devastating effects of this terrible flood were still quite fresh in 1847. At Tertse, one of the widest parts of the valley, they could be traced to a height of more than twenty feet above the stream, where twigs and straws were massed together in lines two or three feet broad, upwards of half-a-mile from the present channel of the river. But the most striking effect of the flood was the entire absence of trees in the valley of the Shayok, while the lateral valley of Nubra was full of trees 200 years old. Major Cunningham quotes the following account of the inundation at Torbela, which was received by Major James Abbott from an eyewitness: At about 2 p.m. a murmuring sound was heard from the north-east, amongst the mountains, which increased until it attracted universal attention, and we began to exclaim, "What is this murmur? Is it the sound of cannon in the distance? Is Gandgarh bellowing? Is it thunder? Suddenly some one cried out, The river's come.' And I looked and perceived that all the dry channels were already filled, and that the river was racing down furiously in an absolute wall of mud, for it had not at all the colour or appearance of water. They who saw it in time easily escaped. They who did not were inevitably lost. It was a horrible mess of foul water, carcasses of soldiers, peasants, war-steeds, camels, prostitutes, tents, mules, asses, trees, and household furniture, in short every item of existence jumbled together in one ruin; for Raja Gulab Sing's army was encamped in the bed of the Indus, at Kulai, three kos above Torbela, in check of Painda Khan. Part of the force was at that moment in hot pursuit, or the ruin would have been wider. The rest ran, some to large trees, which were soon uprooted and borne away, others to rocks, which were speedily buried beneath the waters. Only they escaped who took at once to the mountain side. About 500 of these troops were at once swept to destruction. The mischief was immense. Hundreds of acres of arable 169 land were licked up and carried away by the waters. The whole of the Sisutrees which adorned the river's bank, the famous Burgot-tree of many stems, time out of mind the chosen bivouac of travellers, were all lost in an instant.'* The ruin caused by this awful inundation is so vast (says Major James Abbott) that it will take hundreds if not thousands of years to repair the mischief of that terrible hour. The revenue of Torbela has dwindled in consequence from 20,000 rupees to 5000. Chach has been sown with barren sand. The timber for which the Indus has been celebrated since the days of Alexander until this disaster, is so utterly gone, that I vainly strove throughout Huzara to procure a Sisu-tree for the repair of the field-artillery carriages. To make some poor amends, the river sprinkled golddust over the barren soil, so that the washings for several successive years were farmed at four times their ordinary rent. Major Cunningham estimates the accumulated waters at 20,000,000,000 of cubic feet! About eighty years earlier a similar catastrophe was caused by the hundred channelled' Sutlej, owing to the shoulder of a vast mountain giving way, and falling down from a great height into the river. Major Cunningham tells us that the slip took place at midnight on the 10th Nov. 1762, near the hot springs of Seoni, about twenty miles north by west from Simla, where the river is confined between precipitous cliffs, which rise several thousand feet above the stream. The narrow channel was instantly choked with a vast mass of rock, earth, and rubbish to a height of more than 400 feet. Below the barrier the bed of the river became dry for forty days, and above it the waters accumulated until they rose 400 feet opposite Bhagi, while the effect of the obstruction was felt as high up the river as Rampur, a distance of sixty miles. At length the accumulated waters began to pour over the obstructing barrier: the masses of loose earth and stones were speedily cut up in all directions, until they yielded to the pressure of the mighty body of water, and the long-imprisoned river bursting its fetters, rushed headlong down its rocky channel in * Journal of the Asiatic Society. Bengal. XVII., page 231. one vast wave from fifty to more than one hundred feet in height. In its progress it destroyed the lower town of Bilaspur, which it passed at the rate of fifteen miles an hour, and when it reached the plains it was carried by its own impetus into a new course, nor was it until the rise of the river in the following June that the last remains of the once mighty barrier were swept away by the swollen river. The lakes of this region are, with few exceptions, landlocked; and consequently, says Major Cunningham, they are salt or brackish. Is it not possible that this deduction may lead us to the conclusion that the brackishness of inland seas and lakes, as for instance in the case of the Caspian and the Aral, is by no means owing to their having, at some distant period, formed a part of the ocean, but that their saltness is in proportion to the time which has elapsed since their waters ceasing to have an outfall, have escaped by evaporation only? Might not further observations on this subject enable our geologists to fix with some degree of accuracy the periods of those mighty cataclysms which appear to have occurred in all parts of the world, and which, combined with the subterranean fires which cause the elevation and depression of the earth's crust, have given to its surface its present form? What marvellous changes must have occurred in the Himalayan region since the time when its lakes, situated in a temperate climate, poured their sweet waters to the ocean! Yet this must once have been the case, for on the borders of the now diminutive salt lakes, fresh-water shells of species still existing in milder climates, but not found in the few remaining fresh-water lakes of Ladak, are deposited in great abundance, while beach-marks and beds of fine-clay on the mountain-sides point out the great extent of these sheets of water in former times. It is remarkable that the elevated regions of the Himalaya, which teem with animal life, have been fixed upon by many of the ablest men as the primeval seat of the human race; and their conjectures are marvellously confirmed by the fact that nearly all the domestic animals are here to be found in a state of nature, while the grains, fruits, and vegetables which are most valued by man have flourished in Tibet from the earliest times. The wild animals are leopards, bears, wolves, foxes, dogs, horses, asses, the Yak, or long-haired bull, the Shu, or Tibetan stag, the musk deer, the goat, the shawl-wool goat, three kinds of sheep, two varieties of the hare, rabbits, marmots and weasels; while the peacock, and the jungle fowl, which is the original stock from which our domestic fowls are descended, flourish at the foot of the mountains. The Yuk, the tail of which furnishes the Indian Chaori, when tamed is a valuable beast of burden, and is often crossed with the common kine. The tame sheep are the tall black-faced Huniya, which is chiefly used for the transport of merchandize, and by means of which nearly the whole commerce of the mountains is carried on,† and the Purik, a pretty diminutive animal about the size of a Southdown lamb at six months old, which gives two lambs within twelve months, and is shorn twice in the year. Its flesh is excellent, and it is kept principally for food. Moorcroft says that in the fineness and weight of its fleece and in the flavour of its mutton it is equal to any race hitherto discovered. Major Cunningham tells us that Moorcroft was so impressed with the value of this breed, that he collected a small flock for transmission to England, but unfortunately just as he was leaving Ladak the whole flock of sixty-seven was carried off by the chief of Hasora.+ It was his opinion that the British cottager might keep three of these sheep with more ease than he now supports a cur-dog; and that every small farmer might maintain fifteen or twenty of them without any extra expense, as they would be entirely supported on that kind of produce which now runs wholly to waste, or is thrown out on the dunghill. The Purik sheep will eat crumbs The unicorn is still declared to exist in the northern part of Tibet. Transactions of the Royal Asiatic Society, Vol. I., page 49; and Travels, Vol. I., page 310. 1856.] Customs of the Ladakis. and parings of all kinds. Apricot skins, turnip-peelings, pea-shells, and tealeaves are eagerly picked up by this domestic animal, which, as Moorcroft has also noticed, will not disdain to nibble a bone. It will also eat grass, straw, chaff, and leaves. I brought a small flock of twenty from the Purik district to Simla, from whence they were despatched to England by the Governor-General. The Court of Directors presented them to Prince Albert, by whom they were first exhibited at the Zoological Gardens, and afterwards distributed to different persons interested in the breeding of sheep. The crops of Ladak consist of wheat and buckwheat, which are found up to the height of 13,000 feet; peas and mustard, which extend up to 13,500; and barley and turnips, which grow at 15,000. The fruits are apples, apricots, walnuts, mulberries, gooseberries, currants, and grapes; and it is worthy of notice that the diminutive grape which takes its name from Corinth, and which is regarded in Europe as a distinct species formed by a freak of nature in one of the Greek islands, is found in Tibet growing on the same vine with the larger fruit. The people of Tibet, although slightly mixed with the Hindu race, belong to the same stock as the Chinese and the Mongols. They must be brave, for in spite of their inexperience in war, the disciplined Sikhs had considerable difficulty in subduing them; and 15,000 Ladakis, out of a population of 165,000 persons, are said to have fallen in the struggle against the invaders. They are very fond of a spirited game called Polo, which is in fact hocky, played on horseback, and is well calculated for the display of boldness and activity. It is participated in by all classes, and the winning of a goal is loudly cheered by the successful party. The game was once common in India under the name of Chaogan, and the old grounds in which it was formerly played are still to be found near every large town in the Punjaub hills. The practice of polyandry prevails amongst the Ladakis, but it is strictly 171 confined to brothers-each family of brothers having one wife in common; this system however prevails only amongst the poorer classes, for the rich, as in all Eastern countries, generally have two or three wives, according to their wealth. In some districts the bodies of the dead are burned, but in the lofty districts of Rukchu and Chang-thang, where fuel is scarce, they are exposed on hills to be eaten by vultures and wild beasts. In Great Tibet the bodies of the dead are cut into small pieces by professional corpsebutchers, and given to the dogs. This is called the 'terrestrial funeral.' The bones, after being bruised in a mortar with parched corn, are made into balls, and thrown to the dogs and vultures. This is the 'celestial funeral,' and these are the most fortunate modes of disposing of the dead. The Gyalpo or Sovereign of Ladak formerly paid a small tribute to the Chinese authorities at Lhasa, but after Ranjit Sing's conquest of Kashmir he paid tribute to the governor of that province. When Moorcroft was in Ladak in 1822, the dread of a Sikh invasion induced the Gyalpo to tender his allegiance through him to the British Government. The anticipated invasion did not occur until 1834, when Zorawar Sing, the Vazir of Raja Gulab Sing, took possession of the western provinces of Suru and Dras, and the proffer of allegiance was again. made by the reigning sovereign to Dr. Henderson, who was at that time travelling through Ladak under the name of Ismail Khan, and who, notwithstanding his Mussulman disguise, was speedily recognised as a British officer. He however had crossed the frontier in spite of a positive prohibition, and dared not undertake to make a communication to the Governor-General, which would have exposed his violation of orders. Unable to obtain British aid, the Ladakis met Zorawar Sing at the head of the Suru valley with 5000 men. They were defeated by the Sikhs, but they afterwards contrived to oppose them successfully for some time with a force of 22,000 Major Cunningham says that Bhotiya is their Hindu name. The Tibetans call themselves Botpa, Bod-pa. The name is most probably derived from their profession of Buddhism, Bauddha being the designation of a Buddhist. men. This army was at last scattered, and a series of truces, outbreaks, and petty struggles, lasted till 1838, when Zorawar Sing returned to Jummu, after placing a new sovereign on the throne, exacting the expenses of the war, and fixing an annual tribute. His next exploit was the conquest of Balti, which he entered in 1840, and in spite of his troops being caught in the snow, and suffering terribly from cold and hunger, he succeeded in taking Skardo, where he also established a new ruler, who agreed to pay tribute. In the month of May, 1841, he invaded Great Tibet. After advancing up the valley of the Indus, and plundering the monasteries of Hanlé and Tashgong, the districts of Rudok and Garo submitted to him without a struggle, and he established his head-quarters in the holy district of Lake Manasarovara. His lieutenants were now occupied for some months in plundering the whole country, and they found abundance of gold and silver in the monasteries and temples. The news of the invasion had been speedily carried to Lhasa, the capital, and in the beginning of November, Zorawar Sing heard of the approach of a Chinese force. He sent two detachments to oppose their advance, but both were surrounded and cut to pieces. The two armies came in contact on the 10th of December, and it was evident that the Chinese had greatly the advantage in numbers. After three days spent in skirmishing, a battle was fought, in which Zorawar Sing was slain. His troops, thrown into disorder, fled in all directions, and his reserve of 600 men gave themselves up as prisoners of war. All the principal officers were captured, and out of the whole army only 1000 escaped alive, and of these 700 were prisoners. The Indian soldiers of Zorawar Sing (says Major Cunningham) fought under very great disadvantages. The battlefield was upwards of 15,000 feet above the sea, and the time mid-winter, when even the day temperature never rises above the freezing-point, and the intense cold of night can only be borne by people well covered with sheep-skins and surrounded by fires. For several nights the Indian troops had been exposed to all the bitterness of the climate. Many had lost the use of their fingers and toes, and all were more or less frostbitten. The only fuel procurable was the Tibetan furze, which yields much more smoke than fire, and the more reckless soldiers had actually burned the stocks of their muskets to obtain a little temporary warmth. On the last fatal day not one half of the men could handle their arms, and when a few fled the rush became general. But death was waiting for them all, and the Chinese gave up the pursuit to secure their prisoners and to plunder the dead, well knowing that the unrelenting frost would spare no one. A few men made their way to their brethren at Takla-khar, but that garrison was so dismayed by the defeat, that they fled precipitately, even over the Snowy Mountain range, near the head of the Kali River, into the British province of Kumaon. In this unopposed flight one half of the men were killed by the frost, and many of the remainder lost their fingers and toes. These few and the prisoners form the whole number that escaped with their lives. * This expedition cost the lives of about 8000 Sikhs, and 5000 Ladakis who accompanied them. The Chinese followed up their victory by re-occupying Garo, and in the next spring they entered Ladak with 3000 men and besieged Lé, the capital. The people of the country joined them and dreamt once more of independence, but the Sikhs turned the position of the Tibetans, and the latter were glad to retire on the single condition that the old boundary between Ladak and China should be re-established. * In this very month in the same year, 1841, the British army of about the same strength was destroyed at Cabul. 1856.] KATE COVENTRY. An Autobiography. EDITED BY THE AUTHOR OF 'DIGBY GRAND.' WE CHAPTER V. HEN Aunt Deborah is laid up with one of her colds, she always has a wonderful accession of 'propriety' accompanying the disorder; and that which would appear to her at the worst a harmless escapade when in her usual health and spirits, becomes a crime of the blackest dye when seen through the medium of barley-broth and watergruel, these being Aunt Deborah's infallible remedies for a catarrh. Now the cold in question had lasted its victim over the Ascot meeting, over our pic-nic to Richmond, and bade fair to give her employment during the greater part of the the obstinate was summer, SO enemy when he had once posand sessed himself of the citadel; under these circumstances, I confess it appeared to me quite hopeless to ask her permission to accompany Cousin John on a long-promised expedition to Hampton Races. I did not dare make the request myself, and I own I had great misgivings, even when I overheard from my boudoir the all-powerful John preferring his petition, which he did with a sort of abrupt good humour peculiarly his own. 'Going to take Kate out for another lark, aunt, if you have no objection,' says John, plumping down in an arm-chair, and forthwith proceeding to entangle Aunt Deborah's knitting into the most hopeless confusion. Only some quiet races near town; all amongst ourselves, you know gentlemen riders, and that sort of thing.' Aunt Deborah, who is a good deal behindhand in all matters connected with the turf, and who has set her face into a determined refusal when she hears the word 'racing,' rather relaxes at the mention of gentlemen riders,' and replies gravely, John, I want to talk to you about Kate. The girl's wild after horses and hounds, and all VOL. LIII. NO. CCCXIV. such unfeminine pursuits. I wonder you like to see it yourself, my dear. Now don't you think it would be far better to encourage her in domestic tastes and amusements? I give you my word she hasn't done a bit of worsted-work for a fortnight.' John's face must have been good at this piece of intelligence; if there is one thing he hates more than another, it is cross-stitch.' But he replied with exemplary gravity that 'Cousin Kate never was strong, you know, aunt, and she is ordered to be a good deal in the open air, with plenty of horse exercise, and this is delightful weather for riding.' Well, John,' says Aunt Deborah, 'of course if don't mind it, I you needn't; you'll be the sufferer, my dear, not I' (I wonder what she meant by that?); and I must let her go if you choose to take her, John. How like your father you're growing, my handsome boy!' and Aunt Deborah kissed Cousin John on the forehead, with tears in her eyes, and they called to me to get ready, and the horses came round, and in less than ten minutes we were up and away. It was very gratifying to overhear the complimentary remarks made upon the general appearance of White-Stockings, whom I had save Brilliant, ridden down, to and who, despite his ugliness, is a very hunting-looking horse. Looks a game 'un, don't lie, squire ?' remarked a jolly-looking Surrey farmer, in top-boots, to a dilapidated friend in a white neckcloth. 'Shouldn't wonder if he couldn't kick the dirt in some of their faces, with that tight lass to keep his head straight.' The friend was a melancholy man, and nodded his silent affirmative with a sigh. think, early as it was, they had both been drinking. I Look at that chesnut horse!' M |