96 Lieut. -Col. C. Swinlioe on the 



plains, commencing with Chaman at the foot, past Gatai, 

 Dubrai; Mundi Hissar^ Abdul Rahman,, Melkarez, into Kan- 

 dahar. 



During our march back, however, I had the opportunity of 

 accompanying the general commanding through (to me) a 

 new line of country from the Kojak into Quetta, going from 

 Killa Abdula to Gungazai round by Kushdil Khan and Syed 

 Yarroo, at all of which places I obtained good specimens. 



The country to the east of Pirchowky is a vast sandy 

 desert ; about PirchoAvky itself is a little cultivation. The 

 Bolan river, which runs through nearly the whole pass, comes 

 out into the plains here ; and consequently here and there one 

 finds a little tamarisk jungle and some Crucifers and Cap- 

 paridae. After passing Pirchowky you get at once into the 

 Bolan, and find little but barren mountains to look at, no 

 trees and scarcely any vegetation of any kind whatever, 

 beyond the tamarisk that grows on the river-side here and 

 there, and a little coarse elephant-grass, and some wild thyme, 

 and a species of Ei(j)horbia on the mountain-sides. 



The heat in the Bolan up to j\Iacli is always very great ; 

 when I came down at the end of last May we registered at 

 Kirta 121° F. in a soldier^s tent at noon ; but the climate gets 

 better at Mach, and you are fairly out of the heat at Durwaza, 

 which is, I believe, 6000 feet above sea-level and 1000 feet 

 higher than Quetta. 



There is no cultivation whatever in the Bolan ; the only 

 good thing in it is its river, which contains a ceaseless rapid 

 flow of most excellent water, always cool in the hottest wea- 

 ther. The hills are close on each side of you in many places ; 

 and some of the passes look very beautiful, on account of the 

 different ranges you see standing as it were on each other, 

 pile upon pile ; but all through the pass the chief character- 

 istics are flies and dust ; and, indeed, this may be said of the 

 whole line right up to Kandahar, dust-storms being almost 

 of daily occurrence. 



About Quetta there are a good many orchards, and a little 

 cultivation, wheat, barley, maize, and lucern being the chief 

 crops. At Kandahar you have the same kind of cultivation, 



