82 NAVIGATION OF THE INDUS. 



first specimens of the chivalry of Sindh. It is 

 however hardly fair upon that country so to call 

 them, as very few of Meer Ali Moorad's re- 

 tainers are natives of the province, His High- 

 ness hardly employing any natives of Sindh in 

 his service. Their horses were mostly miserable 

 as regards appearance and condition, but these 

 wretched-looking creatures, as I afterwards 

 found, are capable of extraordinary endurance 

 of fatigue. 



It having been decided by the Military and 

 Marine Authorities that the Meer's suite should 

 be accommodated on one of the river steamers, 

 which was about to take up the officers of the 

 Sindh Survey department, I was directed to 

 proceed in charge of His Highness' valuables, 

 the Meer travelling by land, with his sons, in 

 order to enjoy field sports, on his way along the 

 skirts of the Lukhee mountains to Sehwan. We 

 accordingly embarked on the Frere steamer upon 

 the 21st December, which put to sea at 3 o'clock 

 in the morning, but the weather was so threat- 

 ening that her commander deemed it prudent 

 to return, as those shallow flat-bottomed river- 

 steamers are not at all calculated for encounter- 

 ing rough weather at sea, and between the har- 



