IN TIMOR. 453 



magnificent view lay before us of an immense tract of country 

 between both seas, riven and ploughed up in the most gigantic 

 manner, not an acre of level land being visible anywhere save 

 by the margin of the seas, and in which every isolated peak 

 and crag was capped by a dwelling. Having halted a short 

 time to survey the scene, I observed that the sky was becoming 

 overcast, and gave orders to the men to move on briskly in 

 advance, as I feared it would rain. My boy turned sharply 

 and besought me, " Oh, master, do not say that word ! " (for 

 rain) ; " these mountains are not good, and if you say that 

 word here, we shall certainly be overtaken in a storm." The 

 incident recalled to me a like dread of certain mountain-tops 

 exhibited by the natives in Burn. 



Hence our course lay almost due south right over the peak 

 of Tahaolat — rising up to 6000 feet ; but its impracticable 

 crags necessitated our making a descent of 2000 feet by a 

 spiral track round half its girth, in the face of an almost 

 perpendicular slope, from which radiated many deep and in- 

 accessible ravines, clothed, I could perceive, with a dense and 

 interesting vegetation of Laurimse, Ericacese and numerous 

 small epidendric orchids and Lycopods. 



Where the spur of Tahaolat commenced to rise towards 

 Mount Ailor — 4200 feet — I rode close past a pond full of ducks 

 of the species Tadorna rajah, whose very tameness and utter 

 disregard of us might have told me, even if I had not been 

 carefuJly warned, that they were on Luli ground, where I dare 

 not shoot ; even the scarlet algse covering the surface of the 

 water, it was sacrilege to touch. A long and gradual descent 

 brought us at last to the Eajah's of Bibifupu, where we were 

 assigned a guarda on a windy bluff at 3200 feet above the sea, 

 commanding a view of the whole country along the southern 

 coast from beyond Cape Luca in the east to far past Alias in 

 the west, its low littoral grooved by broad blue-black river-beds 

 margined with casuarinas. Within the neighbouring kingdom 

 of Manufahi the Peak of Kabalaki, with its rugged battle- 

 ments and beetling crags, reared its majestic summit over 

 10,000 feet into the air. The whole region was hewed up into 

 narrower and more precipitous valleys than any I had yet 

 traversed — features awesome and imposing, but with little to 

 commend them to a kindly place in the affections. 



