34 SOANE VALLEY. Chap. II. 



those which water the country between the Soane, Hoogly, 

 and Ganges, as well as from its deflecting the course of the 

 latter river, which washes its base at Rajmahal, and forcing 

 it to take a sinuous course to the sea. In its climate and 

 botany it differs equally from the Gangetic plains to the 

 north, and from the hot, damp, and exuberant forests of 

 Orissa to the south. Nor are its geological features 

 less different, or its concomitant and in part resultant 

 characters of agriculture and native population. Still 

 further west, the great rivers of the peninsula have their 

 origin, the Nerbudda and Taptee flowing west to the gulf 

 of Cambay, the Cane to the Jumna, the Soane to the 

 Ganges, and the northern feeders of the Goclavery to the 

 Bay of Bengal. 



On the 12th of February, we left Sheergotty (alt. 463 feet), 

 crossing some small streams, which, like all else seen since 

 leaving the Dunwah Pass, flow N. to the Ganges. Between 

 Sheergotty and the Soane, occur many of the isolated 

 hills of greenstone, mentioned above, better known to 

 the traveller from having been telegraphic stations. Some 

 are much impregnated with iron, and whether for their 

 colour, the curious outlines of many, or their position, form 

 quaint, and in some cases picturesque features in the 

 otherwise tame landscape. 



The road being highly cultivated, and the Date-palm 

 becoming more abundant, we encamped in a grove of 

 these trees. All were curiously distorted ; the trunks 

 growing zigzag, from the practice of yearly tapping the 

 alternate sides for toddy. The incision is just below the 



the Ganges. Amongst the former are the Rheru, the Kunner, and the Coyle, 

 which contribute to the Soane; amongst the latter, the Dammooda, Adji, and 

 Barakah, flow into the Hoogly, and the Subunrika, Brahminee, and Mahanuddee 

 into the Bay of Bengal. 



