1848.] The Turaee and Outer Mountains of Kumaoon. 44/ 



est of Sal, Semecarpus, Hymenodyctum, &c. Near Jam hackery 

 tracks come up perpendicularly to the Hills, for drawing the Sal tim- 

 ber. But most of the large trees near the route are gone. At about 5 

 miles pass a Goth called Surria Panee, from its lethsean stream of 

 bad water, and two miles farther, where the Dewa debouches from the 

 mountains, the richly cultivated and irrigated settlement of Lukhmun 

 Mundee : here the path leaves the base of the mountains, and two miles 

 on, reaches Chorguliya, a large and ancient clearing, well sprinkled with 

 huts and Goths, but without a tree to shade the luckless passenger, 

 though millions are in sight all round. The place probably has its 

 name from Chor-gurha, a pitfall, or Chorguliya, " defile of the thieves." 

 The Dewa flows about a mile to the east, in several broad stony chan- 

 nels, covered as usual, with Seesoo, now coming into leaf and flower ; 

 at present only one of these channels carries a small runnel of water. 

 This stream rises amongst the lofty mountains of the Dhyanee Rao 

 Pergunna, apparently from a huge bare range called Neta : it is known 

 in the hills under the name Nudour, in the Turaee as the Dewa, and 

 under the third name of Gurra, passes Peleebheet and Shahjuhanpoor, 

 and finally joins the Ramgunga. 



From Chorguliya there are two routes to Burm Deo ; one makes a 

 great circuit to the south, through the grass jungle to Nanukmuth, 12 

 miles, Suniya, 12, and Burm Deo 11. Nanukmutha is reported to 

 have been founded by the prophet of the Sikhs, with a promise that 

 the rule of his disciples should one day include it : there is a temple 

 there, where the offering consists of the Soapnut, which, in its common 

 form might imply a sarcasm on the personal purity of the divinity ; 

 but in this case the fruit, called Goolia-reetha, is said to be sweet and 

 edible, from a spot known as Raj ka Shera in upper Dhyanee Rao ; 

 where if the chronicles lie not, grows a tree of which one side produces 

 sweet, and the other, the common nut : the prodigy was effected by a 

 hungry fakeer, Nanukmutha is 773 feet above Calcutta. Suniya, a 

 mart for ratans, 829 feet, is the same as the Bilehree Mundee of the 

 maps, and I believe with Khetul Sanda. Between this line and the 

 mountains, at from 8 to 16 miles distance, there is in the Choubhynsia 

 district, an impassible belt of cane-brake, the favorite lair of the Cheeta 

 (Python tigris) commonly called the Boa ; they also penetrate into the 

 great vallies of the Surjoo, and are held in much terror by the people : 

 the name is from " chitr," spotted. 



