1845.] - Visit to the Hills near the Soobamhiri River. 257 



morning at 8 a. m., and commenced a toilsome ascent of the Moyur 

 mountain, the summit of which we did not reach till 1 1 o'clock ; the 

 ascent was very severe in many places, the natural ladders afforded by the 

 roots of the trees alone rendered it practicable ; near the summit it was 

 less precipitous, and here were the timber trees and Seeas, wild mangoes, 

 chesnuts and oaks, the seeds of all which I have sent you ; but unfor- 

 tunately the acorns were all dead. From the top of the Moyur no 

 view was obtained ; descending occasional openings gave us glimpses of 

 new mountains, for we were now on the north side of the great range 

 seen from Luckimpore, but no extended view ; the path less difficult, but 

 occasionally presenting but a mere ledge over a precipice, and danger- 

 ously slippery from decayed leaves. We descended about one- third of 

 the distance we had ascended, and then crossed over several smaller hills, 

 the northern outworks of the Moyur. In one place a large tree had 

 fallen across a chasm deep and dark, and was used as a bridge. It was 

 slippery as glass, and even the Meris passed over very slowly and cauti- 

 ously ; I did not like it much, but Tema gave me a hand, and I got safe 

 across. We now came to hills that had been cleared for cultivation, and 

 other symptoms of a near approach to human habitations ; not that the 

 road was better, it continued just as before, but here Myttons had been 

 grazing, and they do not stray far from their villages. Several times we 

 passed what appeared to be a well cleared path, but I was told that they 

 led to where spring bows had been set to kill wild animals, and the 

 clearance was made to warn human beings not to go that way. De- 

 pending much upon such stratagems for a supply of animal food, they 

 have various ingenious methods of taking or killing wild beasts. A 

 deer trap is constructed by running a light palisading between two pre- 

 cipices or other obstacles, in the centre of which the trap is placed. 

 It appears to offer an exit to the unwary animal, whose course has 

 been obstructed by the palisading, and through it he attempts to 

 rush, when the top composed of logs of wood bound together drops on 

 and crushes him. Bina Meris village was now before us, and drawn up 

 on the side of the road a deputation of the Sonrok Meris (the Bor Dolonee 

 Meris) awaited my approach. These Sonroks I had hitherto regarded 

 as not near so well affected to us as the Temas and the Torbottiah 

 tribes, and I had been informed by Tema that they were very irate with 

 him for having encouraged this excursion of mine. I was by no means 



