THE iriGKER NARBADA. 329 



honour, liave no such resource ; and so they have 

 nothing for it but to knock oflf their Arab, and other 

 little luxuries, and fag away through an ill-concealed 

 period of indigence to higher grades and better pay. 



All this civilisation has of course greatly deteriorated 

 the place as a residence for him whose pleasures lie with 

 the jungle and its wild inhabitants. In the old times, 

 Jubbulpiir was almost the perfection of a sportsman's 

 head- quarters. It lay nearly at the head of the last of 

 the great basins of the Narbada valley, which have been 

 reclaimed by population and agriculture. These basins 

 are a characteristic of the valley, and within the limits 

 of our province are four in number ; great circular 

 plains surrounded by steep hills, filled with deep 

 alluvial soil, through which the river moves slowly in 

 long silent reaches, with here and there a gentle stream. 

 Between them lie shorter sections of rus^ored ground, 

 where the hills on either side converge, and through 

 which the river tumbles in a less placid course, short 

 pools being connected by long broken rapids. A little 

 way above Jubbulpur, the last of these basins is 

 terminated by the again converging hills, and from this 

 point up to the little civil station of Mandhi the river 

 flows through a narrow valley, very scantily cultivated 

 here and there, and generally covered along the river- 

 side by bamboos, and on the hills by a low jungle 

 composed of the commoner sort of trees. Many little 

 tributary streams joined the river in this part of its 

 course. These ran up into the partially cultivated 

 uplands on either side of the valley ; and in the cold 

 season, when they contained water and green vegetation, 

 afforded cover to great numbers of wild animals of all 

 sorts. When the hot season advanced their waters 

 gradually dried up, and then the game all moved down 



