CAMPING IN CHAMBA. 487 



would need four coolies instead of two, but the double fly is no doubt an 

 advantage, and in Chamba there is rarely any difficulty about transport, as 

 sometimes happens further among the hills. Take some strong gunny-bags 

 from down country ; they do for carrying stores in and for packing skins for 

 the return journey. One cannot get leather-covered kiltas in Dalhousie or 

 Chamba such as can be bought good and cheap in Srinagar; but a bit of 

 gunny-bag can be sewn as a lid over the common wicker kilta for coolies to 

 carry stores safely enough. Mule trunks are heavy things, but the yekdans 

 made byFoy Bros., Cawnpore, especially if rivetted with copper rivets instead 

 of screws, are excellent for holding clothes, valuables (which term includes 

 cartridges), books, medicines, &c. Those made in Srinagar are lighter than 

 Foy's. A saddle need not be taken, for after leaving Chamba the roads are 

 too steep generally for much riding to be done ; but a dandy can usually be 

 got along somehow. Merwanji at Dalhousie has dandies for hire and stores 

 and a little furniture for sale. I have mentioned the needful cooking kit r 

 but will repeat myself a little to say that the cook should have a padlocked 

 mule trunk as cook-shop box, and it should contain the following things : four 

 cooking pots of tinned steel, frying pan, oven, camp kettle, knife, 15" 

 knife-board and emery, dusters and piece of soap, enamel bowl, pie dish and 

 three plates, concave iron pan for chupattis, tin-opener, large spoon and iron 

 fork, adze, candle lantern. Allow him J a candle a day. He should have 

 a " kit parade " before starting, to eliminate brass and copper vessels and 

 rubbish. I use a camp bed made on Kinloch's plan, with two mule trunks 

 as the ends, side poles socketed into the trunks and canvas stretched between ; 

 but I also take a light (251b.) folding camp bed, the "Army and Navy" 

 one from the Stores, as one cannot take the mule trunks about on short 

 expeditions. The ground is too damp for a "valise" to be safe. This 

 camp bed alone will suffice. The curtain is essential in Kashmir, but we 

 had no trouble from mosquitoes in Chamba, and I think it need not be 

 taken there. The " Paragon " camp table is the lightest and most portable 

 of tables, but it is a " jim " (short for gimcrack ?) and you should always 

 fix and unfix it yourself. It won't stand a wetting, and should go in camp- 

 bed bag. The " American " folding table does well too and is light. You 

 can sit on your bedside for dinner $ but an easy chair, such as the folding 

 " hammock chair," is a bed of asphodel to fling your weary limbs on after a 

 hard day's climbing. Chair, table, and camp bed make one load. As a 

 dressing case, useful in the train and everywhere, I have a copper basin, 

 with a leather cover that straps on ; there is a light cane basket that fits inside 

 the basin, and holds brushes and comb, sponge bag, soap, mirror, towel, 

 enamel tumbler, tooth powder, &c. ; with the cane tiffin basket and roll of 

 bedding it makes up one load. Miscellanea include : two sets of hooks for tent 

 poles and some flat S hooks to put on the ridge pole, to hang clothes, &c, up 

 on, The knife-board will usefully sharpen skinning knives ; and note that it 



