256 Visit to the Hills near the Soobanshiri River. [No. 160. 



seed of which you returned me split open, the wood is hard, close-grained, 

 and finely colored as the Nahore ; the Assamese call it the Seea Nahore, 

 and the fruit contains a poison with which the Meris kill fish. Great 

 varieties of bamboos and cane. The Meris thatch their houses with the 

 leaves of a species of the latter called Tor, the pine-apple tree, and the 

 fern. 



We passed several squirrel traps of an ingenious and simple construc- 

 tion. On an overhanging branch a seed (chesnut) of which the squir- 

 rels are fond is placed, and bound to the branch by a double band of 

 cane ; the squirrel cannot get at the seed without putting his head 

 through a noose of the cane, and on his disengaging the bait the stone 

 drops and tightens the noose round the squirrel's neck: they eat 

 the flesh of this animal as a great delicacy. As we ascended this hill, 

 the hill people frequently gave us lowlanders a warning to be careful 

 not to loosen a stone from its bed. This was very necessary, people 

 are apt to kick away stones on a hill that are easily dislodged ; and had 

 this been done on the present occasion, they must have fallen on or 

 bounded near those coming up the winding path below us. Having 

 descended a valley in which there was water, we commenced the ascent 

 of another and loftier mountain called Teepooka. On this hill there 

 are magnificent Nalok trees of enormous dimensions ; descending again 

 we came to a rocky stream called the Tiks, up the bed of which our 

 path now lay, and this was to me the most difficult part of the road. 

 The current was strong, and the rocks slippery as glass. It was diffi- 

 cult for me to maintain my footing, and as I proceeded along slowly and 

 cautiously, the Meri girls with their loads came up and laughingly passed 

 me, bounding with astonishing activity and sure-footedness from rock 

 to rock. This stream takes its rise in the Moyur mountain, over which 

 our path now lay ; and learning that we should not see water again till 

 evening I halted for stragglers, and when all had come up it was too 

 late to think of attempting to proceed further. Crossing the stream 

 accordingly, we formed our bivouac for the night. Tema endeavoured 

 to persuade his people to assist in clearing a space for me, and to cut and 

 bring wood and materials for a temporary hut ; they treated his orders 

 with the utmost contempt : upon my applying to them in a more persua- 

 sive strain, they bargained that I should shew them some fun with my 

 guns, and in this way I got them to do all I wanted. We started next 



