IN VARIOUS PARTS OF THE GLOBE. 5 



crops of the plains. The Lepcha house is far more roomy and 

 comfortable than that of the others ; it is generally square, built 

 on posts, with a stage in front of the door, and has a low-eaved 

 thatch of bamboo stems, split and laid flat. The walls are of 

 bamboo wattle-work. In all respects it resembles the Bhotea 

 house, but is smaller, and the framework is slighter, it not being 

 worth the Lepcha's while to render his liabitation strong and 

 durable. Both Limbos and Murmis build smaller houses, some- 

 times on the ground, but more frequently elevated ; the roof 

 is of grass-thatch, or occasionally of a piece of bamboo matting. 



The soil at the bases of tliese hills is very fertile, owing to 

 tlie accumulation of vegetable mould brought down by the 

 rivers, the rapid decomposition of the rocks, and the ashes of the 

 burnt forest. Beneath the mould is generally a stratum of red 

 clay, wliich uniformly covers the hills at all elevations, to a 

 greater or less depth, sometimes even 15 feet. This varies much 

 in quality, apparently owing to the constituents of tlie subjacent 

 rocks. Of the latter some gneisses decompose m ith the greatest 

 rapidity, others resist the elements for ages. A clayey soil 

 covers even the sharpest ridges, retained in its position by the 

 arboreous vegetation; much of it makes excellent bricks, as it 

 contains a very large per-centage of alumina.* 



A large bamboo (" Pao," Lepcha) is the prevailing plant 

 near the bottom of these valleys ; it attains a lieight of 40 — 60 feet, 

 and the culms average in thickness the human thigh ; it is 

 not spinous, its colour is deep green orpurplisli, and it is used for 

 large water-vessels. Besides this there are nearly a dozen kinds 

 of bamboo known to the Lepchas, all of which liave been pointed 

 out to me. Whether tliese are different species it is impossible 

 to say, for different genera even are too similar in their foliage to 

 be thereby distinguished. Three kinds usually flower; and of 

 these, two bear no leaf on the flowering plant, which dies after 

 seeding. A certain clump of plants seems to flower at the same 

 time, but I could not detect any cause for this isolation of the 

 flowering plants. Bamboos, in the general acceptation of the 

 term (for remotely allied genera bear the same trivial English 

 name), occur at all elevations below 12,000 feet, forming even 

 in the pine-woods, and above their zone in the skirts of the 

 Rhododendron scrub, a small and sometimes almost impervious 

 jungle. In an economical point of view they may be classed 

 into those which split readily, and those which do not. The 

 young shoots of one or more are eaten ; and the seeds of another 

 are made into a fermented drink : but it would take many pages 



* Nearly 30 per cent., according to the analysis of my friends, J. and C, 

 MuUer, Esqs. 



