40 A TRIP TO GUNONG BINTANG. 
25th. At 7.50 a.m. I again started ahead of the main body with 
two coolies, to make a shelter at the next camping-ground. As on the 
previous days, our journey consisted of going up one side of a spur and 
down the other into the valley of the stream. In this way I arrived 
at Xan Bharu, the next camp, er 10.9 a.m. Here, fortunately, were the 
remains of a former Malay encampment employed in lampaning the 
stream for tin. It looks a very likely place, and a few pikuls were, 
[ believe, obtained, but the adventurer, Kulop Mat Dari, of Selama, was 
not satisfied with the results, and gave it up. The main body of the 
coolies and the elephants were again late, arriving at 2 p.m. 
The soil in this neighbourhood is particularly promising in appear- 
ance, and there is a marked absence of boulders; bamboos and long grass 
grow very freely, and it evidently is a neighbourhood teeming with large 
game, elephants, rhinoceros, etc. 
26th. We left camp at 7.55 a.m., and immediately began the ascent 
of a spur which we topped at 8.30 a.m. From this point (2,400 feet) 
both Bintang and False Bintang are visible, and a great many of the 
valleys which form the horseshoe, with Gunong Inas as the apex, were 
laid out before us. The view thus obtained showed that the spurs are 
not very steep, but have long slopes towards the north and north-west. 
The track then continued along the ridge for about two miles, maintain- 
ing an elevation of 2,400 to 2,500 feet, the whole country being remark- 
ably free from boulders or any form of rock, with deep rich soil, the 
jungle containing many wild citrons and limes. At 9.20 a.m. we reached 
the point where the ridge began to descend, and, at 10.7 a.m., we struck 
the Krian River, at an elevation of 1,440 feet, the bed being very rough 
and full of boulders of considerable size. A few yards brought us toa 
hot spring, which issues from what appears to be a bed of schistose rock, 
dipping about 15° to the south-east, overlaid by the rocky bed of a small 
rivulet, the granite boulders in which are of very considerable size. 
The temperature of the water issuing was 93° Fah., that of the air at 
the same instant being 79° Fah.; it smelt very strongly of sulphuretted 
hydrogen, and a new 5-cent piece immersed in it was rapidly blackened 
by the formation of sulphide of silver. There was a slight indescribable 
taste, not unpleasent to the palate, and a subsequent evaporation of 
some of the water I brought back to Taiping showed the presence 
of soda and silica. I fixed upon a camping-ground about five minutes’ 
walk beyond the spring, and before the camp was completed it came on 
to rain in torrents, soaking everything and continuing till midnight, 
when there was a lull. This: camp was at an elevation of about 1,475 feet. 
The bed of the river was very rocky, and the track beyond impassable 
for elephants, so I had to send them back to Selama. 
27th. Got away from the camp at 8.35 a.m., and steered north-east 
along the top of a spur attaining an elevation of 2,500 feet, but had to 
descend again into the river, w hich we struck at an elevation of 2) 165 Oey 
and then followed it up to camp No. 5 at the foot of the Bintang range, 
and at an elevation of about 2,600 feet, which was reached at 2.12 p.m. 
During this day’s journey [| found several wild pomelo trees in fruit, the 
ground being strewn with them. From this camp the pass to the north 
