344 Gracilis ad Aornon. [No. 4. 



have brought him into direct conflict with Abisares under circum- 

 stances of great disadvantage. 



Prom this point, according to Arrian, Alexander caused boats to 

 be built and carried down the Indus. At Umb large quantities of 

 drift timber are yearly arrested at an eddy near Durbund. It is 

 also probable that the pine forest then descended lower than at 

 present. Be this however as it may, there were thirteen years ago 

 forests of fine seesoo, mulberry and willow timber along either 

 border and shadowing all the 300 islands of the Indus. 



Curtius says that Alexander after the capture of Aornos came 

 to Ekbolimah. This is generally supposed to be the place desig- 

 nated by Arrian as Embolima. But this idea is liable to question, 

 Embolima seems manifestly a compound of the names Umb and 

 Balima, the one in the river valley, the other on the mountain 

 immediately above it. It is a common custom in the Punjaub to 

 distinguish two villages or towns of the same name by affixing the 

 name of some contiguous village, fort or district. Thus Hazara to 

 distinguish it from other Hazaras is still designated Chuch Hazara 

 and another Hazara in the river Chenab is called Tukht Hazara.* 

 Umb signifies a mangoe tree. The mangoe tree the progenitor of 

 which gave its name to Umb, was carried away by the great flood 

 of the Indus thirteen years ago. Balimah is a Hindee compound 

 signifying the airy or windy. It is generally applied to some 

 elevated spot, but both Umb and Khubbul are remarkable for the 

 airiness of their sites and resorted to by persons in the Eusufzye 

 on that account during the dog-days. Umbalimah would signify 

 Umb the airy, Khubbul Balimah ; Khubbul the airy, which would 

 easily fall into Ekbolima. Khubbul was on Alexander's route back 

 from Umb to the Doaba of the Indus and Koopheen throughout 

 which according to Arrian, Alexander now proceeded, making accord- 

 ing to Curtius sixteen marches to the crossing of the Indus. 



Curtius as has been seen, makes Alexander ascend Mt. Meros 

 previous to his invasion of the Assakanoi. Arrian brings him to 

 Nusa and Mount Meros, in this tour of the Doaba of the Koopheen 



* In like manner the villages Kala and Durra in the Yoosufzye are invariably 

 named as one. Kaldurra possibly the Acadera of Curtius. There is however 

 another Kaldurra eastward of Dirikot the capital of Sab out. 



