52 DIFFICULT TRAVELLING 



few minutes had a specimen of the adventures that were in store 

 for us in passing through the forest. In attempting to ford a 

 stream, one of my men suddenly sank nearly to his waist in a 

 thick yellow mud. It was by the barest chance that I was not 

 turned over into the water ; however, after some scrambling 

 from one man's shoulder to another, I managed to reach dry 

 land. There was a shaky, rickety bridge a little higher up 

 the stream, and by this I contrived to get across. 



We now struck right into the hills, up and down, down and 

 up, for nearly four hours. The road was a mere footpath, and 

 sometimes not even that, but the bed of a torrent made by the 

 heavy rains. It wound sometimes round the hills and some- 

 times straight up them, and then down into the valleys at 

 inclinations difficult enough to get along without anything to 

 carry but oneself, but, with heavy loads, requiring immense 

 exertion. My palanquin described all kinds of angles ; some- 

 tunes I was resting nearly on my head, and presently almost on 

 my feet. When winding round the hills we were continually 

 hi places where a false step of my bearers might have sent us 

 tumbling down sixty or seventy, and sometimes a hundred, feet 

 into the valley below. A dozen times or so we had to cross 

 streams foaming over rocks and stones, to scramble down to 

 which, and out again, were feats requiring no ordinary dexterity. 

 Again and again I expected to be tumbled over into the water 

 or down the rocks, the path being often steeper than the roof 

 of a house. Several times I got out and walked up and down 

 the hills in order to relieve the men ; but I afterwards found 

 that I need not have troubled myself, as they easily carried me 

 up much steeper ascents. Some of these scenes were exceed- 

 ingly beautiful and, with the rushing, foaming waters, overhung 

 with palms, ferns, plantains and bamboos, made scores of scenes 

 in which a landscape artist would have delighted. 



In passing along I was struck with the peculiar outline of the 

 hills ; they are mostly rounded cones or mamelle-sh&ped, not 

 connected together in chains, but detached, so it appeared that 

 road-making would be very difficult and would have to be very 

 circuitous. In almost every sheltered hollow were clumps of 

 the traveller's tree, together with palms and bamboos. The 

 hills increased in height as we advanced, while beyond them all 

 in the far distance we could see the line of the mountains form- 



