88 



The crest of the ri(5go is about 4000 feet high and bears hoary damp hill-forests on the favor- 

 ably exposed slopes of the opposite side, with lofty trees up to 120 feet in heiglit. After hiiviug 

 oolieoted what I could reach with tlie aid of my gun, we descended towards evening to Puki, 

 where I found Mr. Graliam still busy with his diplomatic discussions whicli nearly ended iu 

 a regular row. liowever, only two of the worst of them left us, uud the remainder agreed to 

 go with us. i 



5th March, 18G8. The path was winding through hill-toungyas along the slopes pf th* 

 Kye and Myitgnan watershed, and we had a good deal of marching up and down the numer- 

 ous little choungs coming down from those ridges, until we finally ascended the ridge, and 

 found ourselves again in pine forests, in which Andiosapii gigautea formed tle principal 

 undergrowth. These pine forests were soon interrupted by drier hill forests, consisting chiefly 

 of oaks, Ternatroemia, Eiirija, Engelhardtia, Garcinia elliplica, Turpinia nepalensis, Vaccinium 

 etc. Descending to the Lajtlo choung, a feeder of tlie Yungeeliu stream, majestic ever- 

 greens formed a dark forest of the kind I distinguished as moister hill forests, but it was im-' 

 possible without spending several weeks to make out the lofty trees here. ^Ve passed several 

 fine tree ferns 25 feet in heiglit, and an Arundiuaria formed locally a dense undergrowth^ 

 amongst which the curious fungus-like looking Bulanophora globosa formed clumps as large 

 as a child's head. We encitmped at the usual resting-place near a huge overhanging rook^ 

 where we found the Rev. Mr. Parish's old camp. d 



6M March, 1S68. We had to go a little way down the Laytlo, along the banks of which 

 I found the first violets. A path branches ofl' to the left following wliich a very steep ascent 

 through moister hill-forests soon brought us over rough ground to tiie nanow crest of tho 

 eo-called Loko ri<lge. The slopes to our left were occupied by stunted hill-lbreatB, whiW 

 along the very precipitous slopes to our right, pine trees grew scattered over the grassy BidoB 

 chiefly composed of Arundinclla, Andropogon, Carex, etc. Here and there a low palm (CAa- 

 fiiwiops K/iasyana) could be seen amongst the pines. The vegetation here was of course quite 

 temperate, although the elevation only varied between 5000 to 6000 feet. Oaks, Myrica, pines, 

 Ehododeiidroii , Vacchiia, etc. were common, while tlie grassy slopes shewed abundant speciea 

 of the parsley family, Gentiana, Senecio etc. Some passing Karens had set fire to the 

 grass which rapidly spread over the ridge much to my annoyance. The ridge is very sharp 

 and narrow, and became at its highest point so precarious that I crawled on my hands and fefcfc 

 over the peak in preference to going along the precipitous slopes, about 4000 feet high, 

 covered with slippery pine needles. A rapid descent brought us to the bottom of a dark 

 valley with moister hill-forests, in which Ophiopogon with its beautiful blue berries formed 

 a substitute for the missing grass. But we had soon to ascend nearly as higli again as be- 

 fore and continued our march on the crest of a ridge lying between the Loko ridge and the 

 l^attoung of which latter it is a spur. We had now a full view of this mountain on which a 

 flagstaff has been erected. The forests became beautiful ; the ridges were covered with drier 

 hill-forests while the sides were occupied by moister hill-forests, resembling (especially those 

 of the gorges) those in the Java hills. Along an almost vertical slope, densely overgrown 

 with moister hill-forests, and through a dense growth of Arundiuaria we soon got on the 

 Nattoung itself, and finally emerged on the woodless plateau, behind which the flagstaff waS 

 -visible sticking out from the low stunted hill forests. We encamped under an old pine, and 

 -* visit to the top of Nattoung closed our day's work, i 



ij' 7th March, 1868. Halted. The day was spent in exploring the forests all round. 

 iEnropean plants were chiefly conspicuous, 2 kinds of Gentiana, Fieris aquiliiia, Vaccinia, 2 

 OT 3 Bjteeiea ot Fogonatitm, Funaria, 2 species oi Senecio, Hypericum, Lycopodiuni damtum.t 

 The grass was all burnt down and consisted chiefly of high-growing Arundinella, and a 

 hairy Andropogon: In boggy places the remains could be seen of Droscra lunata, together 

 with a few small European Scirpew, that spring up iu the brown cushion like masses com- 

 posed chiefly of CaMj/lopvs, intermixed with Fogonatum. Cladonia, and in some plaeqi 

 Beeomyees, formed conspicuous patches on the ground. The forests were chiefly stuuted hiU 

 forests gradually passing on favourably exposed slopes into moister hill forests. Iu the val- 

 ley, where a choung glitters over the rocky bed, trees attained the height of 120 to 130 feet. 

 A new kind of rattan, the underpart of whose leaves were white is the only representative of 

 .palms here. The Javanese Rubtis a/pestris and H. rugosua were plentiful together with 

 Sarcopyrnmis, Begouia etc. The stems appeared densely clothed with mosses and HymenO' 

 phylkce, amongst which a beautiful Fleione was plentiful aud in lull flower. Epiphytic Fac- 

 cinia, with crimson or scarlet flowers looked beautiful while the white flowered B/wdoden' 

 dron Monlmeineme stood iu full blossom. Just below the top the li/wdodendron /ormosum 

 grows, which has unnecessarily been made into a new species {Bh. Veitchianum), a 

 shrub, along with Arundinaria and a large flowered Gentiana struggle here against the 

 influence of weati'ier and exposure. We had all the day dense fog with a strong W. N. W. 

 breeze which finally burst into a most disagreeable rain lowering the thermometer between 

 3 and 4 p. m., to between 01 and 53". 1 could do little more than watch my thermoiueter, 

 .and iiepe for better weather the. ueit day. 



