374 W. T. Blanford — Journey through Sikkim. [No. 4, 



but few birds, the little plumbeous redstart, Ruticilla fuliginosa, was 

 running over the rocks like a dipper, and a superb Ceryle guttata, 

 the large black and white kingfisher of the Himalayan valleys, 

 flew past. We halted at the stream for breakfast, and I should 

 have preferred waiting there till the afternoon, but we found that 

 so long as we halted, the coolies did the same, and that when 

 ordered to go ahead, they did so to the distance of perhaps 200 

 yards and then sat down to wait for us. Rain was threatening, 

 (the weather hitherto had been fine) and we therefore started up 

 the steep ascent to Ehinok. It proved a hot climb through old 

 clearings now overgrown with wormwood, through the close mass- 

 es of which no wind can penetrate, whilst it affords no shelter from 

 the sun's rays. We camped at Ehinok in an open clearing, sur- 

 rounded by wormwood bushes. Our coolies got into houses and sheds 

 scattered about in the neighbourhood. We were informed that a 

 Kaji (the Sikkim corruption for a qdzi) had been sent by the Eaja 

 of Sikkim to meet us here at the entrance to his territories, rather 

 an evil omen, as shewing that the whole of our intended route, 

 which we had tried to keep secret, was perfectly well known to the 

 people in Chdmbi. I had fully expected this, however, for before 

 I left Darjiling I found the story had oozed out some weeks pre- 

 viously. 



17 th. A night's rain was succeeded by a dull morning with a 

 steady downpour, and our coolies commenced a series of most amus- 

 ing manoeuvres to gain a day's halt. First we had to receive the 

 Kajf, who appeared about 8 o'clock, accompanied by another offi- 

 cial who brought us a large present of vegetables, rice, flour and 

 marwa. The Kaji produced a letter from the Eaja written in 

 Tibetan (the court language of Sikkim) on tough silky Tibetan 

 paper, and wrapped in a handkerchief of white Chinese silk, the 

 proper style of envelope in good Tibetan society. The letter was 

 read by the Kaji and, where necessary, interpreted by him into 

 colloquial Tibetan, and then repeated to me in Hindustani by our 

 headman Guruk, who understood ordinary Tibetan well, although 

 some of the more flowery court phrases were evidently not familiar 

 to him. The purport of the letter was, that the Eaja was greatly 

 pleased to hear that we were coming to visit his country, and that 



