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Nor must it be supposed by Englishmen anxious 

 to seek their fortunes in foreign lands, that the tea 

 districts of India, if more profitable, are less attrac- 

 tive than many other parts of the world to which 

 emigrants are daily flocking*. Assam, it is true, 

 was once thought to be so wild and unhealthy a 

 province, that when troops were sent there the 

 European officers were permitted to draw extra 

 allowances. But those days have passed. Much of 

 the jungle with which, for want of population, it 

 was covered, is cleared away, and the province is 

 now found to be not only very much cooler, but very 

 much healthier than many parts of India. The 

 noblest river in- India, the Bramahputra, flows 

 through the Valley, which is enclosed, on two sides, 

 with hills, and on these hills, ere long, will be estab- 

 lished pleasant Sanataria. The Scenery of some 

 parts of this fine province moreover is picturesque 

 and beautiful, while the soil is unsurpassed in fer- 

 tility by the soil of any country in the world. For 

 the profitable cultivation of tea, no district in India 

 can be placed before Assam. 



But should a cold climate be preferred, there are 

 many from which to select : Darjeeling, overlooked 

 by the towering* and snow-capped peaks of Mount 

 Everest and Chinchinjunga, the loftiest mountains 

 in the world ; the charming, salubrious, and fertile 

 valleys of Kamaon ; or the pleasant and milder 

 Doon of Deyrah. More westerly still, are Simla and 

 Hazarah ; but far before all the tea districts of India 



