1837.] Journal of a Trip to the Burenda Pass in 1 835. # 917 



We therefore deferred our journey, and ascended another hill over- 

 hanging Liti on the right bank of the Pabbar from'fhe top of which 

 is a waterfall, forming a stream which running down past the bunga- 

 low gives it its name of Liti or Litung, and empties itself into the 

 Pabbar. 



Near the top of this hill we crossed an immense bed of junipers, 

 bearing flowers and berries with the same strong flavour as those of 

 Europe. These were growing at an elevation little short of 14,000 

 feet and above the lowest line of snow, yet here among the moss scat- 

 tered beneath them, I found shells of the genera Nanina* and Bulimus. 

 The difference between these and others apparently of the same species 

 which I discovered at Mahdssu and Hattu consists in size only. 



In the former localities they are larger and less ventricose in the 

 whorls, but the colors and markings are the same, as it would also ap- 

 pear are their habits, for at this spot, where snow lies for a great part 

 of the year and which borders on the regions of eternal snows, the ani- 

 mal closes the aperture of the shell with the same thin gumlike sub- 

 stance as those of the warmer hills of Mahdssu. 



From Liti to the waterfall, is a steep and somewhat difficult ascent, 

 of about 2000 or 2500 feet, after which a flat piece of land walled round 

 with lofty snow-clad peaks, presents itself, through which the stream 

 that supplies the waterfall, and which owes its origin to the snows 

 above, slowly winds along. 



Here I found some beautiful flowers growing among the moss and 

 lichens above which they scarcely peeped, as if afraid to lift their 

 heads into the chill and desolate region around them. Some of them 

 occur in Royle's work on the Himalayan Flora such as " Dolomitsa 

 macrocephala ," which was abundant and in flower ! and " Corvisartia 

 Indica," widely spread and in seed. 



Numbers of shrew mice (Arvicola) are found at Liti and high up the 

 hills around it, as also a species of marmot 6 . This latter is about the 

 size of a large rat, but the countenance and general formation exter- 

 nally have more the appearance of a young rabbit than a rat, especially 

 as the tail, so conspicuous in the rats, is wanting in this little animal. 

 One of these we were fortunate enough to capture ; the length was 

 scarcely six inches. Upper incisors with a deep groove ; fur above 

 deep gray like a rabbit, with a reddish tinge over the head, shoulders 

 and sides. Whiskers very long. Ears rounded. It seems most 

 nearly to approach the Arctomys Bobac of Desmarest, or Mus arctomys 

 of Pallas, which is said to be found in Poland and northern Russia, 

 but the length is given as 15 inches, whereas this is barely six. 

 6 A 



