130 H. C. Marsn— Description of a trip to the Gilgit Valley. [No. 2 



Amongst others the vakil from Yassin, an old Sayyid, blind of one eye 

 came to have the other doctored, and after I had applied a remedy he 

 stood up, and with upraised hands gave me a blessing from the Koran in 

 Arabic, to which, when he had finished, the whole assembly said Amen,— an 

 impressive scene. 



The old Colonel from the Fort came for some magical elixir, to rein- 

 vigorate a system broken down with debauchery— also two merchants from 

 Koli, who were here collecting their debts (which are paid only in gold 

 dust). These were fine large men, but nearly disabled by rheumatism. 

 Goat-herds from Dareyl also came to ask for drugs. 



Having now been encamped for a week and the heat daily increasing, 

 I determined to push on as fast as possible, so striking my tent at dawn 

 of the 26th July with only seven coolies and a pony I started. The first part 

 of the way led along a raised road with a canal on the left, and after passing 

 out of the villages, we reached the river, and went along its right bank to 

 the village of Bassein, where they grow rice, down to a nala which is 

 bridged ; then the road leads up over a steep spur to the house of 'Azmat 

 Shah and his family, the rightful heir to Yassin, now a pensioner of the 

 Dogras. He was absent in Srinagar urging his claims, so I did not see 

 him, only his son. There is a nice Polo ground through which the path 

 leads, and a mile beyond, the upper Gilgit Valley begins to close in. The 

 dry steep cliffs radiate great heat, and all is desolation, as far as the 

 hamlet of Hunzil four miles. This spot has been uncultivated for many 

 years past, and we saw the first crop of wheat stacked. There are no trees 

 here, only a few fields and two huts. A high conical mound marks the 

 ruins of a former monument of some sort of which nothing is known. 



A short 300 yards beyond is a rock with water near, which affords shade 

 up to noon, the path then ascends a very bad spur called « Katate" and 

 along the steep banks of the river. Just at the worst spot where the path 

 way is so narrow, that two ponies can hardly pass, I met young Fiilad, 

 Tsa Bahadur's little son going to Gilgit to be educated. My pony nearly 

 kicked him down into the river, the plucky behaviour of the two men leading 

 the animals (it being too steep to ride) only prevented an unpleasant acci- 

 dent. Then descending to the river bank along a short level, we arrived 

 at the foot of a granite spur up which the path leads, with no shade, only glare 

 and heat. 



From the top of the spur, Hunzil is to be seen below, bearing 340°, then 

 scrambling down again to the river, which is here very rapid and narrow, we 

 had a long sandy stretch along the water. This part is called < Yaspur Kun.' 

 The river widens again soon, and reaching some tamarisk trees we rested in 

 the shade at 2 p. m, thermometer in shade 105° Fah. The river here has a few 

 islands m its bed covered with long grass and bushes. The path usually runs 



