Feb. 1848. DIFFICULTIES OF MAKING PROGRESS. 49 



From this place onwards up the Soane, there was no 

 road of any kind, and we were compelled to be our own 

 road engineers. The sameness of the vegetation and late- 

 ness of the season made me regret this the less, for I was 

 disappointed in my anticipations of finding luxuriance and 

 novelty in these wilds. Before us the valley narrowed 

 considerably, the forest became denser, the country on the 

 south side was broken with rounded hills, and on the north 

 the noble cliffs of the Kymore dipped down to the river. 

 The villages were smaller, more scattered and poverty- 

 stricken, with the Mahowa and Mango as the usual trees ; 

 the banyan, peepul, and tamarind being rare. The natives 

 are of an aboriginal jungle race ; and are tall, athletic, 

 erect, much less indolent and more spirited than the 

 listless natives of the plains. 



February 21. — Started at daylight: but so slow and 

 difficult was our progress through fields and woods, and 

 across deep gorges from the hills, that we only advanced 

 five miles in the day ; the elephant's head too was aching 

 too badly to let him push, and the cattle would not 

 proceed when the draught was not equal. What was 

 worse, it was impossible to get them to pull together up 

 the inclined planes we cat, except by placing a man at the 

 head of each of the six, eight, or ten in a team, and 

 simultaneously screwing round their tails ; when one 

 tortured animal sometimes capsizes the vehicle. The 

 small carts got on better, though it was most nervous to 

 see them rushing down the steeps, especially those with 

 our fragile instruments, &c. 



Kosdera, where we halted, is a pretty place, elevated 440 

 feet, with a broad stream from the hills flowing past it. 

 These hills are of limestone, and rounded, resting upon 

 others of hornstone and jasper. Following up the stream 



