596 The Turaee and Outer Mountains of Kumaoon. [June, 



shady dell of the Surjoo is in many places a thicket of the Wallichia 

 oblongifolia, which has been traced from Bumouree to Assam. 



Linnaeus classed the Palms as the " Principes," of the vegetable 

 kingdom, and with all subsequent Botanists, places them near the 

 grasses : it is not a little interesting, then, to find that, perhaps before 

 Sweden emerged from the waves of the sea, the Indian writers had 

 designated the Palm, " Droomeshwur," — Sovereign of trees, and 

 " Trinraj," King of the grasses : (Borassus flabelliformis.) 



There are some trees of Mesua ferrea, Nagkeshwur, in Dotee opposite 

 to Askot ; the people, with botanical rivalry, boast that Kumaoon has 

 none, which is true enough. The Gorkhas tell me that the Chilounia, 

 Gordonia integrifolia, is abundant in the mountains to Thansen (Palpa,) 

 but no farther towards the N. W. 



The Thakil mountain is generally, in Shor, known as the Thul- 

 kedar, which one might be inclined to refer to the growth of the 

 Palm, Tul or Tal ; but the word really comes from its Sanscrit 

 name, Sthul-kedar, " the station mountain," or " place of the sign," 

 from a not very remarkable temple of Muhadev, which crowns the 

 N. E summit. The ridge here is composed of crags of a compact 

 reddish-purple dolomitic limestone, which indeed forms the whole 

 upper mass of the mountains ; in the main summit, about a mile to 

 S. W. this rock is of a pale blue color, distinctly stratified : the beds 

 flush with the surface, and only supporting a scanty vegetation of grass 

 and Gentians ; the strata seem to dip here to the S. E. and on the 

 S. W. prolongation of the mountain, crop out in precipitous tiers, in one 

 locality greatly contorted. At the temple the dip of the strata seemed 

 north or N. E. : the whole mass is pervaded by layers of chert, or 

 hornstone, as Herbert calls it, which resist decomposition much longer 

 than itself, and project in bevelled cornices ; as in the limestone of 

 Shalee mountain near Simla. Between the hut and the main summit there 

 is a mine of very compact steatite, of a much better description than 

 that in the dolomite of the Ladder Hill above Bagesur. The loftiest 

 point of Thakil is 8221 feet above Calcutta ; between it and the temple 

 is a col, perhaps 400 feet deep, in which, sheltered by some fine oaks 

 (Qucrcus dilatata,) Major Drummond has a shooting hut, which saves 

 the labour of bringing up tents. The abundance of wood and grass in 

 the mountains affords great facilities for the construction of these 



