1839.] Lieut. Kittoes Journey through the Forests of Orissa. 619 



it off by the messenger who had accompanied me from Gobindpur. 

 I considered it advisable to have some respectable witness to this un- 

 pleasant business, for many good reasons. 



I was about to resume my march at 5 p. m. when a dark north- 

 west horizon indicated the approach of more bad weather ; a range of 

 new huts had just been completed, I removed my palkee &c. into the 

 largest which was also the most sheltered, it was that of my attentive 

 host, the native officer ; I had barely time to remove when a fearful 

 hurricane came on accompanied with heavy rain, and hail stones of 

 great size ; almost every hut was blown down, or so much out of the 

 perpendicular that they were rendered useless, the water was ancle 

 deep ; I had taken the precaution to place my palkee on four large 

 stones, so that I escaped the wet ; the storm lasted till near midnight 

 continuing more or less violent ; I was more fortunate than I had been 

 the previous night, and felt grateful for such shelter. 



3rd June. I was unable to march before sunrise for want of 

 coolies ; I then started onwards for Nowagaon, the second dawk stage in 

 advance ; I had a very unpleasant trip, owing to the muddy state of the 

 greater part of the road, my progress was very slow, not reaching my 

 ground till one p. m. ; the distance travelled sixteen miles, the direc- 

 tion of the road was slightly to the southward of east, the country un- 

 dulating as usual. For three or four miles it runs through a thin 

 jungle, and then enters the clear land in the vicinity of the Bud- 

 daum pahar and of Jushpurgurh, at the eighth mile I reached a 

 large village called Maldapursa, I rested here and breakfasted, after 

 taking the compass bearings and sketching the features of the country ; 

 I then proceeded on my journey, — the first mile or more is over the 

 plain, the road then crosses the continuation of the Buddaum chain 

 of hills, which ends three miles to the south-west by Jushpur ; there 

 are three rugged ascents, and as many descents, they are impassable for 

 cattle (laden) therefore very difficult for a palkee to be carried by, 

 I walked the whole way, I was informed that there was a passage 

 round these hills by which the ghat, which is called " Tinderi ghat" 

 can be avoided ; in my travels this year I have proved this to be cor- 

 rect, I shall allude to the subject in a future page. From the ghat 

 to within a few hundred yards of Nowagaon, the forest is very heavy, 

 but the road is good. 



I shall not say more of Nowagaon at present than that it is near 

 the western extremity of a long narrow and once thickly populated 

 valley in the zemindari of Baumunghatti, the whole of which is 

 now a vast forest, having been devastated during the Cole insurrection 

 consequent on the difference which existed between Narindra Maha- 



