376 TERAJ. Chap. XV11. 



all unsatisfactory to me : it accompanies great heat, 

 dryness, and elasticity of the suspended vapours, and is 

 not affected by wind. During the afternoon the latter 

 blew with violence, but being hot and dry, brought no 

 relief to my still unacclimated frame. My pony alone 

 enjoyed the freedom of the boundless plains, and the gallop 

 or trot being fatiguing in the heat, I tried in vain to keep 

 him at a walk ; his spirits did not last long, however, for 

 he flagged after a few days' tropical heat. My little dog 

 had run thirty miles the day before, exclusive of all the 

 detours he had made for his own enjoyment, and he flagged 

 so much after twenty more this day, that I had to take 

 him on my saddle-bow, where, after licking his hot swollen 

 feet, he fell fast asleep, in spite of the motion. 



After leaving the wooded Terai at Siligoree, trees became 

 scarce, and clumps of bamboos were the prevalent features ; 

 these, with an occasional banyan, peepul, or betel-nut 

 palm near the villages, were the only breaks on the distant 

 horizon. A powerfully scented Clerodendron, and anOsdecha 

 gay with blossoms like dog-roses, were abundant; the former 

 especially under trees, where the seeds are dropped by birds. 



At Titalya bungalow, I received a hearty welcome from 

 Mr. Hodgson, and congratulations on the success of my Nepal 

 journey, which afforded a theme for many conversations. 



In the evening we had three sharp jerking shocks of an 

 earthquake in quick succession, at 9'8 p.m., appearing to 

 come up from the southward : they were accompanied by a 

 hollow rumbling sound like that of a waggon passing over 

 a wooden bridge. The shock was felt strongly at Dorjiling, 

 and registered by Mr. Muller at 9" 10 p.m. : we had 



also objects to Dr. M'Clelland's theory, citing those parts of Southern India which 

 are least likely to be visited by dust-storms, as possessing an equally hazy atmo- 

 sphere ; and further denies its being influenced by the hygrometrio state of the 

 atmosphere. 





