48 pltny's >^atural histot^t. [Book VT. 



thousand foot, three hundred elephants, and eight hundred 

 horse. They are hounded by the river Indus, and encircled by 

 a range of mountains and deserts for a distance of six hundred 

 and twenty-five miles. Below these deserts are the Dari and 

 the Sura3, and then deserts again for one hundred and eighty- 

 seven miles, sands in general encircling these spots just as 

 islands are surrounded by the sea. Below these deserts, again, 

 are the Maltecorce, the Singse, the Maroha3, the Earungse,^ 

 and the Morontes. These last peoples, who possess the 

 mountains throughout the whole range of country as far 

 as the shores of the ocean, are free, and independent of all 

 kings, and hold numerous cities upon the declivities of the 

 mountains. After them come the Nareae,''^ who are bounded 

 by Capitalia, the most lofty of all the Indian peaks : the in- 

 habitants who dwell on the other side of it have extensive 

 mines of gold and silver. After these again are the Oratae, whose 

 king possesses only ten elephants, but a large army of foot ; 

 next come the Suarataratse, who live under the rule of a king 

 as well, but breed no elephants, as they depend solely on their 

 horse and foot ; then the Odonbeores, the Arabastrae, and the 

 Horacse, which last inhabit a fine city fortified by trenches cut 

 in the marshes. It is quite impossible to approach the city, 

 except by the bridge, as the water in the trenches is full of 

 crocodiles, an animal most insatiate for human flesh. There 

 is another city also in their territory, which has been greatly 

 extolled, Automula by name, situate on the sea-shore, a 

 famous mart, lying at the point of confluence of five rivers : 

 their king possesses sixteen hundred elephants, one hundred 

 and fifty thousand foot, and five thousand horse. The king of 

 the Charmae is a less opulent potentate ; he has only sixty 

 elephants and some small remains of his former strength. 

 After these we come to the nation of the Pandae,'^ the only one 

 throughout all India which is ruled by women. It is said 

 that Hercules had but one child of the female sex, for which 

 r'iason she was his especial favourite, and he bestowed upon 

 her the principal one of these kingdoms. The sovereigns who 



''^ These peoples are supposed byHai-clouin to have occupied the southern 

 parts of tlie peninsula now known as Bisnagar, Calicut, and the Deccan, 

 with the Malabar and Coroniandel coasts. 



'^ llardouin suggests that this people dwelt on the present peninsula of 

 Guzerat. 



