9 
54 DR. HOOKERS MISSION TO INDIA. 
the large kind, left below. Wild Strawberry, Violet, Lysimachia, 
Geranium, Polygonum, and several Rubi, especially the yellow-fruited one 
(on which we luxuriated), announce the lower level of the second or 
temperate region, of which Darjeeling may be considered the central 
point. Potatos and Peaches were cultivated abundantly, the latter 
forming little groves, but the fruit never ripens on these hills, from the 
want of sun. 
It is curious that in this region of the Himalaya, and from Eastern 
Nepal eastward, along the whole Himalaya, there is absolutely no 
good fruit, except Wallnuis. Even the English cultivated fruits at 
Darjeeling are very poor. Apples scarcely ever ripen; Pears never; 
Peaches never : Currants and Gooseberries have not had a fair trial, but 
they seem disinclined to flourish. Strawberries grow exceedingly well, 
but the fruit is very flavourless, much more so than those of the plains, 
which, though inferior to the English, are still large and fairly good. 
European vegetables, again, thrive remarkably, but are all deficient in 
flavour, however abundant the crop and fair the produce may be to 
look upon. All are good, but not when compared with English, as to 
taste. Potatos improve wonderfully, and the Darjeeling root, culti- 
vated on the plains, is, I think, superior to the parent stock in size and 
mealiness. 
Mangos and Bananas are the only Indian cultivated fruits I have 
seen, and both are exceedingly bad. The Orange from the Teesta 
river is highly esteemed; and excellent specimens of this fruit are 
brought up from the plains, though always somewhat the worse for the 
journey. Of course, neither Olive, Fig, Vine, Pomegranate, nor any 
southern European fruit, grows here: the Physalis (‘Cape Goose- 
berry," or * Tippare") does, however: it is a plant indifferent to waut 
of sun and a cool summer, but impatient of a severe winter. 
The total absence of sunlight and heat, during the summer of this 
region, is the cause of this dearth of fruits. The winter of the plains, 
being more analogous to our English summer as regards the amount of 
heat and cold, such fruits as the- Peach, Vine, and even Plum, can 
perfect their fruit in April and May, if they only be coaxed through 
the previous hot and wet season; which, though lasting from June to 
September, is, to all intents and purposes, their winter. At 7,000 feet 
on the Himalaya, where the mean temperature is far better suited to 
their habits, its influence is so modified by the rains and lack of sun 
during summer and by the cold in the winter, that they stand no chance . 
