170 WANDEKINGS OF A 



Holding a north-east course along the bank of the river, 

 through forests of deodar, or woods of mulberry and fruit- 

 trees, together with the hazel -like fothergille (Pother gilla 

 iv/oolucrata), we entered a little valley surrounded by moun- 

 tains and pine-forests, with beautiful fields of green turf; 

 gable-roofed hamlets, built of logs and thatched with straw, 

 were hid among a profusion of arboreal vegetation. At 

 the northern extremity the Jhelum was seen gliding placidly 

 round a corner towards a gap in the west, where it suddenly 

 begins its furious downward course to Uri — a distance of 

 fuUy sixteen miles. Shoals and little islets of alluvium have 

 been formed at the above point, and possibly most of the 

 deposits of this little nook have been obtained from the river 

 during former conditions. Although it rained constantly 

 during our stay at Noushera, we could not help admiring this 

 little corner of Cashmere ; it was as it were a prelude to the 

 splendid panorama which burst on our view on the following 

 morning, when, after crossing the valley and mounting the sum- 

 mit of the little pass above Baramala, we had the first glimpse of 

 the Vale of Cashmere. There it lay in all its beauty, with the 

 Jhelum twisting through its grassy glades, the Wulur Lake 

 in the distance, and the great Pinjal ranges, covered with 

 snow, surrounding the valley on all sides. The lofty Hara- 

 muk, greatest amongst the rock-giants, raised its granite top 

 13,400 feet above the level of the sea. The town of Bara- 

 mala is placed on the right bank of the river, and occupies 

 the most west point of the valley. It is composed of a 

 few hundred log-bidlt houses, its streets are filthy beyond 

 description, and the poor half-clad natives, in their long robes 

 and turbans, looked pictures of human misery in that cold, 

 wet, April morn. The weather was too unsettled and rainy 

 to allow us to proceed to the capital overland, we conse- 



