EXTRACTS FROM HIS LETTERS. 



xvii 



Strongstein on the other, around my collections with good health 

 and good spirits. Tell 1 have in view the division of the vegeta- 

 ble kingdom analagous to radiata, they include all the Marchan- 

 tiaceae, and are, to all intents and purposes, Vegetable Radiata." 



Pushut, 1st march beyond Kooner : January 29th, 1840. 



" This will be a letter of odds and ends, you know I was to return 

 to Jallalabad ; well I reached that place, but left the encampment 

 and crossed the river, where an advance road making partly for 

 the Kooner expedition were employed, and having originally deter- 

 mined on going to Kooner, I accompanied them two marches, when 

 they were overtaken by the army, to avoid which, I halted one day, 

 and on the next proceeded onwards by the north bank of the river, 

 thus saving all the fords of this horrid river. I should call it beauti- 

 ful at any other season. The road was bad, and the last one and 

 a half mile into camp most difficult, the path winding round and 

 over spurs of sharp limestone rocks which must have had abundance 

 of silex in them they were so very hard. At the very worst part, 

 my headman being in front, all of a sudden I heard three shots 

 in quick succession with the usual hallooing, and then I was called 

 on in advance, meeting my headman wounded : he has lost the 

 two fore- fingers of his right hand. All I saw was three men scram- 

 bling up the face of the hill, on whom I opened a fire as soon as my 

 guns came up, and had the pleasure of hitting one on the shield. 



" Such a scene ensued ! for when there are three or four on such 

 occasions we may reasonably expect thirty or forty, and my object was 

 to get out of the bad road, and so be close to camp. Some of, or 

 rather all, my people became dismayed, I had therefore to cheer, to 

 point my double barrels, and in fact to enact a whole legion. One 

 fellow tried to shoot me but his powder proved faithful, the others 

 were wounded : however they kept in sight, and to make matters 

 worse, in one place within twenty yards, six or seven of my loads 

 were thrown ; evening drawing on, and prospects disgusting, 

 when at last having passed over one bad part and got down into a 

 ravine, a number of people were seen closing down on us, but my 

 man had run off to camp, and by shouts succeeded in calling five 

 or six sepahis, part of the rear-guard, to our relief, and so 



d 



