Geography of the Burrampooter and Sanpoo Rivers. 303 



quence of strong doubts raised during a short voyage up the 

 Burrampooter, and confirmed by subsequent diligent inquiries, 

 I had, several years ago, ventured to call in question the accu- 

 racy of the generally received geography of that river, as 

 identified with the Sanpoo of Tibet, and that I had, even 

 the year before last, submitted a Memoir on the subject to 

 the Asiatic Society of London, in which I arrived, by simple 

 reasoning upon all that I had heard read and seen, at nearly the 

 same conclusion respecting the real source of that river, as 

 Lieutenant Burlton has done from actual survey and investi- 

 gation near its fountain head, — you may easily imagine how 

 much gratified I must feel at perceiving my hypothesis so 

 generally confirmed ; and I shall of course wait the arrival 

 of further advices from India with much anxiety and in 

 terest. 



As you seem solicitous about the fate of this great geogra- 

 phical question, it would have afforded me much pleasure to 

 have had it in my power to give you a perusal of the Memoir 

 alluded to ; but, unfortunately, owing to bad health, and be- 

 ing much hurried at the time it was given in, I had not lei- 

 sure to get a second fair copy made of it, and I was even 

 obliged to allow a very rough draft, instead of a fair copy, of 

 a Sketch Map of Assam, &c. constructed to elucidate it, to 



on the Burrampooter," and is dated from the Surveyor General's Office, 

 Calcutta, June 4<, 1825. It is drawn on a scale of eight British miles 

 to an inch, and represents very distinctly the various anastomosing feed- 

 ers which flow into the Burrampooter near its source. The Booree Dheing 

 river, and several of the streams which flow into it, and have their origin a 

 little to the south of Brama-khoond, anastomose with one another in a 

 most remarkable manner, so as to flow into the Burrampooter at two 

 places, first near its source about Leddeea, by a branch called New Dheing 

 river, and then, a little above Bungpoor, by the Boree Dheing river. In 

 this way there is formed an island 70 miles long by 30, called Mowama- 

 reeah, in which the town of Rungagora is situated. 



About two years ago, Captain Lachlan explained to me his theory of 

 the origin of the Burrampooter and Sanpoo rivers, in which, contrary to 

 the opinions of the best geographers, he maintained that these were two 

 separate rivers. This theory appeared to me so ingenious, and so well- 

 founded, that I had no doubt it would be established by the researches 

 likely to be made during the Burman war. It was, therefore, peculiarly 

 gratifying to me to send to Captain Lachlan the above map, which con- 

 firms the principal point of his theory.— Edit ok. 



