Among Horses in India. 27 



■where there is a moist atmosphere during nearly the whole 

 year, and where the soil is also rich, the grass often loses its 

 habit of sending out runners with bunches of roots. It then 

 grows like ordinary grasses to a height of twelve or eighteen 

 inches. 



Speae Geass. 



Spear grass (Heteropogon contortus), called lam in the 

 Punjab, is also very common in some parts of the country. 

 The spears are long barbed processes at the end of the seed- 

 covers. It is good fodder if given before the spears form, and 

 even afterwards horses will thrive upon it if it is well beaten 

 so as to shake them off. When this precaution is not taken 

 a horse is sometimes found unable to eat, and on examining 

 him, a quantity of spears are found embedded in the mucous 

 membrane of his mouth, generally under the tongue or in the 

 roof. 



Janowa. 



Digitaria sanguinalis (called janowa in Hindustani, and 

 poliaong^in the Punjab) is an excellent ^forage grass, and 

 makes first-rate hay. It has small processes on its seed- 

 covers like spears, but they are not sufficiently stiff to be of 

 any consequence even when ripe. 



The grass is exceedingly plentiful in many districts. 



The above-named three grasses are about the most uni- 

 versally diffused in the Bengal Presidency. There are many 

 other kinds which are good for forage, but they are, I think, 

 more local, being plentiful in certain districts and not found 

 at all in others. 



Maniaea. 



In the Himalayas the finest of all grasses, superior even 

 to dhub, is a kind called maniara by the natives, and 

 Pennisetum triflorum by English botanists. It grows to a 

 height of four or five feet during the rains, when on a soil 

 formed of vegetable mould and decomposed limestone, which 

 seems to be peculiarly well adapted to it. It contains an 

 extraordinary amount of sugar, and has a fine, soft, easily 



Digitized by Microsoft® 



