1862.] Journal of a trip in the Sikkim Himalaya. 459 



ed by a bridge made of saplings ; hence we ascended the Binching- 

 poong bill, the lower part of which is rocky and steep, but the upper 

 portion is less so, and the road a made one and good. Passed a good 

 deal of millet cultivation, and stopped with a view to procure some of 

 the well known beverage made from the millet seed, called "Murwa," 

 but the villagers all ran away. We reached Rinchingpoong about 

 12.45 p. m. and pitched our tent immediately above the site of the 

 field entrenchment occupied last j^ear by Dr. Campbell and Captain 

 Murray's party of sappers, A few trenches, broken planks, pieces^of 

 posts strewed about, and the skull of a Bhootia pierced hj a bullet, alone 

 mark the spot, where our countrymen, the year previous, withstood the 

 treacherous attack of twenty times their own number. If this portion 

 of Sikkim should ever become British territory, this hill is deserving 

 of particular attention, as possessing great capabilities for the formation 

 of a winter sanitarium. The southern extremity of the hill is about 

 7000 feet, but the northern, where the village site exists, is not more 

 than 5,600 feet, and the temperature is much milder than that of 

 Darjeeling. The soil is deep and rich, mica schist entering largely 

 into the composition of the hill. It has several good perennial streams, 

 a large pool of water, and broad terraces on all sides. Carriage roads 

 might easily be constructed. The distance from Darjeeling by the 

 lower road is about thirty-five miles. Wheat, millet, rice, buck wheat, 

 &c, are culivated. Crabb apples, raspberries and cherry trees were 

 observed, the latter in full blossom, whilst most of the other trees 

 were shedding their leaves. The daphne or paper-tree also grows 

 here, likewise oak, magnolia, birch, chesnut, walnut and many other 

 forest trees. 



There is a Goompa at this place well worth seeing, the Llama 

 belonging to which died nine months ago. 



The Llama's widow and relatives brought us a present of four bam- 

 boo tubes of hot " Murwa," and later in the evening eggs, rice, milk 

 and fowls ; and in the morning more rice for sale, also eggs, milk and 

 millet seed. Our encampment, which was in the midst of very high 

 wormwood, swarmed with hairy caterpillars, which crawled over our 

 beds and up the sides of the tent, and were very troublesome. 



The morning was very fine, and having breakfasted early, we were 

 ready for a start, but delayed on account of the coolies who had no 

 rice till this morning's supply arrived. 



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