806 Glaciers of the Pindur and Kuphinee Rivers. [Aug, 



velocity down the middle, but sending off, all along it as it went on, 

 particles to the sides. Its head would therefore advance in a convex 

 curve, as the central particles moving directly forward, would always 

 keep in advance of those that spread out to the sides. The end of the 

 snow bed thus takes the curved form shown in the figure, and a suc- 

 cession of smaller avalanches, would mark its surface with numerous 

 curves of the same sort. 



In the last two miles of the approach to the Kuphinee glacier, we 

 crossed two snow-beds, both of which were upwards of ^ of a mile wide, 

 and extended from the ravines in which they originated, right across 

 the valley from side to side, entirely covering up the river. 



The surface of many of the snow-beds has a sort of rippled appear- 

 ance, caused by the protection given by grass and leaves blown upon 

 the snow to the parts immediately under them. The snow itself is 

 generally firm, and receives but a slight impression from the foot of 

 a man walking over it. 



I have estimated the heights of these glaciers from observations of 

 the boiling point of water as follows ; the results will certainly be 

 within 500 feet of the truth. 



Ft. above the sea. 

 Lowest point of the glacier of the Pindurand source of the river 1 1,300 

 Surface of the glacier at the commencement of smooth ice.. . 12,000 

 Lowest point of the glacier of the Kuphinee and source of 



the river 12,000 



Surface of the glacier at the commencement of smooth ice .. . 13,500 

 Diwalee, union of the Pindur and Kuphinee 8,200 



The limit of perpetual snow here being about 15,000 feet above the 

 sea, in the one case the glacier comes down 3/00, and in the other 

 3000 feet below it. At the Kuphinee glacier, a mass of Rhododendron 

 companulatum, a shrub 6 or 8 feet high, was growing within 30 yards 

 of the ice. There were no shrubs of any size at the Pindur glacier, 

 but grass and flowers were at both places flourishing considerably 

 above the level of the ice. 



Having now concluded the record of my own observations on the 

 two glaciers seen by myself, I will add two extracts from the Journals 

 of travellers in these mountains, which most clearly prove the existence 

 of two other glaciers, both of great size, one at the source of the Bha- 



