Source of the Jumna . 9 
of the Omla ; — 2600 easier, to the village of Kliunij on the 
ridge ; remainder, along the mountain's side, with occasional as- 
cents and descents, to the foot of the peak of Birat , which rises 
conically above the ridge ; — 1800 paces of the steep ascent up 
it to the fort, which is a small double inclosure. It was aban- 
doned by the GorcJia garrison, on the approach of a force un- 
der Colonel Carpenter. 
“ The height of Birat above Seharanpur , (which is visible 
from ifb is 6508 feet ; it commands a noble view of the snowy 
mountains, and the various intermediate ranges, a§ well as of 
the Dun valley, and the plains on both sides of the Jumna. 
“ Invalids from the plains, requiring a change of climate, may 
find it at Birat. In the winter, the fort is almost buried in 
snow, which remains in shady places, and on the northern side 
of the peak, till the beginning of April ; but snow seldom falls 
later than the last week of March, at which season, while I was 
in the fort, there was a shower which covered the ground to the 
depth of 2 inches : the peak is a bare slaty rock, with sortie 
quartz intermixed. 
a 2 Qth March 1817.— -Birat to Murlang.—' Total distance 
4 miles 6 furlongs.— 2 miles 5 furlongs, narrow path along the 
mountain’s side, then a steep descent of 2 miles 1 furlong to Mur- 
lang\ a small village in a glen, on the Silgad rivulet, which falls 
into the Jumna , three miles to the east. No grain here. Lat. 
observed 30° 36' 53”. Thermometer at noon 78°. It was yester- 
day, at noon, at Birat , 50°. 
a 30 th March. — Murlang to Cot ha. — Total distance 9 miles 
5 furlongs. Proceed 2| miles down the bed of the Silgad to 
the Jumna, — ■ then leave it, and cross a ridge, and go up the 
bed of the Jumna to the confluence of the Cunti river, which 
joins it from the Keinach peak to the west. That river is about 
60 feet wide, and 1 \ and 2 feet deep. , The Jumna is 90 feet 
wide, 3 to 5 feet deep, rapid, and not fordable. The rest of 
the path is a long ascent of the mountain, above the right bank 
of the Jumna to Cat ha , a village of ten houses, above 3000 feet 
above the level of the river. A fatiguing march,— heavy rain. 
— No grain here. 
66 31s£ March.-— -Coffin to Lack a, Mandat— Total distance 
8 miles 7 furlongs. — For 6 miles 7 furlongs, the path lies gene- 
