326 Journal of a visit to [May, 



At this village my attention was first directed to a very valuable na- 

 tive dye, the room of the Assamese ; with this dye all the deep blue 

 cloths so much used by the Kamptees and Singphos are prepared. What 

 is more curious, it belongs to a family (Acanthacea), the constituents of 

 which are generally devoid of all valuable properties — it is a species of 

 Ruellia, and is a plant highly worthy of attention. Leaving the boats, 

 I proceeded up the Karam, the general direction of which is about 

 E. S. E., and after a tedious march of five hours over small boulders, 

 reached the first Mishmee village on the route. This village is called 

 Jingsha, deriving its name, as appears to be always the case, from the 

 Gam : it is about six miles from the foot of the hills — it is small, the 

 number of houses not exceeding ten, and possesses apparently very 

 few khets. The Gam is a man of inferior note. After a halt of two 

 days to enable my people to bring up the provisions, &c, I left for 

 Brahma-kiind, which, from Captain Wilcox's description, I imagined 

 to be the usual route to the interior. Brahma-kund lies to the E. N. 

 E. of Jingsha, from which place it is distant by the path, which is very 

 circuitous, about twelve miles. The route at first follows another bed 

 of the Karam to the S. W., thence ascending the Dai Punee to the 

 eastward, thence diverging to the north through a heavy tree jungle, 

 and after traversing this for about an hour ending at the kund, to 

 which place the descent is steep, but short. Of this celebrated place 

 much has been said, but no description at all answers to it, as it 

 exists now. The scenery is bold, the hills on either side of the river 

 being very steep but of no great height, and the kund, or reservoir 

 itself is totally lost in the contemplation of the immensely deep bed 

 of the river and the gigantic rocks visible in every direction. The 

 extreme width of the bed of the river is certainly upwards of one 

 hundred yards, but of this only the left half is occupied by the stream. 

 The kund is contemptible, and unless the attention were especially di- 

 rected to it, would quite escape observation. The Deo Pdnee is a 

 paltry attempt at a waterfall. The course of the river is slow and 

 sufficiently tranquil, but to the eastward there is a violent rapid 

 ending about sixty yards from the kund itself. This reservoir owes 

 its existence to the projection of two rocks into the Lohit ; at this 

 season it contains but little water. The fuqeer's rock is a huge mass 

 perforated near its summit ; its extreme apex is accessible, but with 

 difficulty ; it does not represent Gothic spires, this appearance, so far 

 as I know, being limited to shell-limestone. At this romantic spot 

 I staid three days, paying particular attention to the vegetation of the 

 place, which presents some curious features, of which the most 



