Nov. 1848. BHOTEEAS. 205 



ascended over dry, grassy, or rocky spurs to Lelyp, the first 

 Bhoteea village ; it stands on a hill fully 1000 feet above 

 the river, and commands a splendid view up the Yalloong 

 and Kambachen valleys, which open immediately to the 

 east, and appear as stupendous chasms in the mountains 

 leading to the perpetual snows of Kinchin-junga. There 

 were about fifty houses in the village, of wood and thatch, 

 neatly fenced in with wattle, the ground between being 

 carefully cultivated with radishes, buckwheat, wheat, and 

 millet. I was surprised to find in one enclosure a fine 

 healthy plant of Ojmntia, in flower, at this latitude and 

 elevation. A Lama, who is the head man of the place, 

 came out to greet us, with his family and a whole troop of 

 villagers ; they were the same class of people as I have else- 

 where described as Cis-nivean Tibetans, or Bhoteeas ; 

 none had ever before seen an Englishman, and I fear they 

 formed no flattering opinion from the specimen now pre- 

 sented to them, as they seemed infinitely amused at my 

 appearance, and one jolly dame clapped her hands to her 

 sides, and laughed at my spectacles, till the hills echoed. 



ffloeaynus was common here, with Edgewortliia Gardneri* 

 a beautiful shrub, with globes of waxy, cowslip -coloured, 

 deliciously scented flowers ; also a wild apple, which bears 

 a small austere fruit, like the Siberian crab. In the bed 

 of the river rice was still cultivated by Limboos, and sub- 

 tropical plants continued. I saw, too, a chameleon and a 

 porcupine, indicating much warmth, and seeming quite 

 foreign to the heart of these stupendous mountains. 

 From 6000 to 7000 feet, plants of the temperate regions 

 blend with the tropical ; such as rhododendron, oak, ivy, 



* A plant allied to Daphne, from whose bark the Nepal paper is manufactured. 

 It was named after the eminent Indian botanist, brother of the late Miss 

 Edge worth. 



