1841.] Wood's Report on the River Indus. 521 



ledge of the other, I shall apportion the river into sections correspond- 

 ing to its capabilities, and afterwards indicate the character of the 

 present method of navigating the stream. 



The Delta, — As high as the influence of the tide extends, there 

 will always be an ample depth of water for even vessels of a greater 

 draft than those elsewhere described as the best and only boats 

 suited to the river under all circumstances. 



It reaches to Nooroo-kanand, a village on the left bank of the river 

 below Tatta. But above this navigation is intricate, nor does it ma- 

 terially improve till beyond the Delta. 



This is owing to the great expansion of the river's bed, where among 

 the numerous channels that present themselves, it is not always 

 an easy matter to select the right one. No great inconvenience is 

 felt on this score by the vessels now upon the river, for whether 

 they ascend it laden, or in ballast, dragged by the track rope, or 

 propelled by the breeze, their progress is so slow that they may be 

 said to feel every inch of the way.* 



From the Delta to Sehewan. — This is the best portion of the river, 

 and the Pulla fisherman as he floats down the centre of the stream, 

 proclaims the fact. The pole to the lower extremity of which his net 

 is fastened, measures from sixteen to twenty- two feet, and according 

 as this may be in March or August, either eight or fifteen feet of its 

 entire length is immersed in water. Two rocky ledges occur in 

 this section ; both project from the right bank of this river, and are 

 found, one under the village of Jeskh, and the other at the north end 

 of the Hilaya reach. Both are under water in the swell. 



Sehewan to Roree, or Bukkur. — As the character of the last section 

 was determined by the avocations of the fisherman, so may be that of 

 this one. The fishing pole is no longer in general use ; but among the 

 shallows in the middle of the stream, men armed with creels, shaped 

 like inverted cones, may be seen busy at work ensnaring the pulla 

 fish. Here then it may be presumed, the depths are too irregular for 

 the employment of the former method. Such is the cause, and thus 

 does the practice of the fisheries on this river become an index to the 

 state of its navigation. 



Bukkur to Mittun. — A great change here takes place in the charac- 

 ter of the river. The stream at Roree, though at some places it may 



* See Appendix, Tabic V. for the soundings of this and other sectional divisions. 



