[[1]] *1
To Dr Campbell & Darjeeling political resident there.
Lachen river, 2 marches above village June 9. 1849
My dear Campbell,
I wrote you yesterday by the coolies I sent for Rassett. & as we are still detained, I
send again tomorrow. Yesterday I ascended the mountain, South of our Camp, a
lofty & beautiful cone of Snow some 17000 feet, I presume,. I went up to nearly
14,000 ft by a steep torrent snowed the whole way up i.e. from 11,000 up to
P[erpetual].S[now]. at 13,500, which was there continuous & flanked by lofty black
precipices wholly inaccessible. The fatigue of the ascent was very great from the
Snow, slipperiness, & enormous rocks which are constantly tumbling from above. I
found, as usual, a good many new plants. 2 new Rhododendrons amongst them. I
have now 9 Primroses from these regions, the most beautiful things possible, blue,
pink, & violet, & other Alpines in proportion, I get on average, 10 new plants every
day; & the number still just sprouting is inconceivable. The splendour of the
Rhododendrons is marvellous: there are 10 kinds on this side hill, scarlet, white,
lilac, yellow, pink, marroon[sic],: the cliffs actually bloom with them, at 10,000-12,00 feet. that great-- leaved one of Mearinares? is the most common of all; its
heads of purple flowers (30--40 in a cluster) as big as your head, & the leaves
always 10--18 inches long.. It is an awful pest; its long branches covering the
ground in inextricable confusion, & impervious; you have no idea of it from the
crumpled state in which you saw its drooping foliage. From the highest point
gained, (it took 5 hours to get up to 2,500 feet). I had a splendid view of the Lachen
no the Zemu running up South of West to Kinchin’s [Kanchenjunga's] back! A superb
mass of snow. The head of the Lachen Zemu is a flat floored amphitheatre of Snow,
bounded by stupendous precipices, & valleys of Ice which feed it. Emerging form
this, it flows East, between rugged mountains clothed at their base with Pine wood
& Rhododendron shrubs scrub. Some 3 miles above our camp it receives a large
affluent from the North. I saw up the valley
[[2]] of this which is also heavy with Rhododendron shrubs scrub some 5 miles,
when it turned up West; & along its N[orth]. flank are low rugged hills only patched
with Snow, lower than that I saw was on, &, beyond, the blue sky over Thibet [Tibet]
without a break in the horizon.. I am here most evidently beyond the Himalaya
crest in this Longitude, though east of me the ?Powliang? group & west the Kinchin
have great peaks N[orth]. of my position. I am finding the plants of the Nepal
passes seen no where else; & most remarkable of all, the N[orth]. exposure
(S[outh]. flank) of this valley is wholly bare of trees, not a solitary Pine or juniper;
the S[outh]. flank, steeper if anything clothed 1000 feet up. This is the reverse of
what obtains at Choongtam -- I employed the man men bridging the river, & went up
the mountain alone: they only managed one half; & I doubt their power to do the
rest.
This morning I told Nimbo what I had seen; & we started to explore, if possible, to
the mouth of the promising valley. [A sketch map appears here showing the
position of Hooker's camp and the mountain he ascended in relation to Lachen,
the pass, Kinchin and Choongte].
Meepo accompanied us & & Palesbull; & we took some Tea & Sugar. Arriving up
the rocks up the stream, I told you of, we clambered over a precipitous part of
these, hanging on by Rhododendron bushes & descended on to a bed of Snow,
where no choice was left but to take the water which beat against the salient cliff.
Meepo tried twice
[[3]] & came back, but got round on to a shallow the third; & we followed, the water
up to our middles; & hanging on to projections of the Snow or rock. We then
continued along a gravelly bottom & quicksands kneedeep for 100 yards, between
2 cliffs of Snow, one 60 the other 20 feet high, & at last emerged on some stones
above the difficulties. I could not have gone on 20 yards more; for my limbs were
numbing fast. Thence for about a mile over rocky shelves, great sloping beds of
snow, along which Meepo cut niches with his Bhan, through streams & over gravel
banks & Rhododendron scrub.; sometimes trying the river bed. We were fairly
brought up at a ridge of gravel, capped with Rhododendron scrub, from which we
saw an interminable succession of cliffs & slopes of Rhododendron scrub. Utterly
impoassi ble; & we were still a mile or so short of the river’s mouth, which I
pronounce inaccessible, except with a force of woodcutters; or should the river bed
be practicable in the dry season. We had not made 4 miles nearer, & were very
fatigued, Palesbull's heel cut almost to the bone, Meepo with a twig in his eye, &
my hands & shins sore all over with Rhododendron scrub, & hanging on to
branches, rocks, & snow. I quite believe the valley I wanted to explore as scrubby
as this. It is now certain that the stream running South opposite our camp leads to
the Pass, & that therefore the route is met not by the head of the Lachen which
rises behind (N[orth].E[ast]. of) Kinchen I take it (I have not the map with me nor
protracted my route) We therefore go on bridging tomorrow. I have only 12 people
here in all; & that’s too many to feed -- I came back with my shoes torn to shreds
like paper, & walking on my stocking soles, very footsore & tired.
On my return I found the coolies with Russet & some of the things you so kindly
sent me, the cake amongst them of which I ate an awful piece! With grateful
thoughts-- I was very hard up, having been deceived by people & left Lachen with
only 2 days of stores. I am much as when I met you at Rhomsang [Bhomsong] as
thin & hungry as a wolf. Every night I vow I will lay by next day; but the superb
weather tempts
[[4]] me forth: for 5 days the weather has been heavenly -- clouds come on at 3 or
4 P.M. from the South, & rain at 4 or 5, in short sharp showers. Today the
Temp[erature] was 74 at noon! At 12,000 feet, & felt 16 degrees below that: this is I
think unknown in Darjeeling.
Tomorrow I hope we shall have finished the bridge; if not Meepo found a capital
place for bridging with 2 poles, a mile & a half above this, but through a desperate
scrub, which must be all cut.
This is a howling wilderness,: we scarce see a bird, never a beast; & nothing but
the rush of waters or falling shoots of stones breaks the dead stillness Yesterday,
when on the mountain I was startled by a hollow roar close behind me, when
wrapped in admiration of the snowy gulf at Lachen head -- &, on looking behind,
saw the Snow shooting in cascades from the cliffs above -- not an avalanche, but
just pouring through the fissures like a waterfall. Avalanches of stones are
dreadfully numerous & dangerous; & we pass over these amongst live shrubs &
fresh crushed most lovely Primroses & other flowers daily. The falls are chiefly
during rain at night; Kinchin *2 had his whiskers actually shaved on one side by a
great rolling rock. You never saw a narrower touch. Sutherland’s nose was a trifle
to it.
If still determined to try for a great elevation, let me recommend you to take
October Early, & never dream of reaching Snow except by a path: it is utterly out of
the question. Take Jongri or any Pass, where the path takes you above
Rhododendrons. I will go with you as far as the path leads, but am well sick of
anything beyond that: however if you tie a bottle & cake to the end of a stick & go
ahead we will see what may be done. Worst of all is the depressing effect of being
often baffled: you go at up a gully, take a probable branch, are turned at the top,:
down you go, every step lost & try another, & so on, 4, 5, & 6 times perhaps; till,
utterly fagged, you slope at night--fall down to camp, wet bruised & dissatisfied.
I say no more about Latong &c as I have
[[5]] nothing to add -- Meepo is most active & determined. I shall see the Pass, if
he can make it out. The new (your printed) route I dread; first, because the people
of Lachen are humbugging the road, & Meepo’s order is most strict to take me no
further than a bridge on Latong on this side of the Latong plain. Nimbo hears too
that there is a Chinese village lately built at the Pass, & that the Pass is certainly
the bridge;-- but all is vague -- We do not know whether the Pass we are now
bound for leads to Thibet or the Latong plain nor the distances. I left Adow at Lachen,:
he behaves very well, but is a fool, Nimbo continues most active & steady. My
botanical collection is to me most satisfactory; & I hope in a couple of months to
double my Darjeeling Flora,. I have 30 Rhododendrons.
I have a capital rain--register to compare with Darjeeling; though my great
elevation is in your favour,. Sincere regards & thanks to Mrs Campbell, love to the
children, & all acknowledgements for the cake which is most capital. I will send Mrs
Rowling some more flowers for her garden, primroses & Rhododendrons.
Ever your affectionate. | Jos. D. Hooker.
Please send Thuillier’s letter: it contains other things besides the M. R.
comparisons of my instruments at the office, &c.[A sketch appears here depicting Hooker eating cake in his tent accompanied by a
dog, it bears the following caption] "No, Naughty Rover, go away, you shall not
have a bit" vid. Nursery Rhymes, passim. My Cake & I.
[[6]] Quola -- a Bhotea village or mart, Quoba -- head man of Bhotea village
Gonbah -- head--man of Limbo & others. Casi [Kazi] head--man of Lepcha. (Spell
always “Sikkim” whatever I do)
Natives of Thibet [Tibet] (Chin of Himals) (Bhote of Chinese & themselves) are all
called Bhotheas [Bhutias]. There are Tribes of Bhotheas all along the Himalaya on
this side the crest (i.e. of Thibet) who inhabit the Cachan (upper or Alpine & arctic
region) above rice--cultivation & above the villages of Limbo’s, Ghorka’s [Gurkhas]
& other Nepalese in Nepal, or of Limbo’s Hairo’s, Murim’s & Lepehas in Sikkim. These
Bhoteas are more Chinese than Nepalese & carry on the Salt trade crossing the Passes with
Yaks? & Sheep to the nearest Thibet villages, to which the Salt is brought from far
North in Thibet. Carrying it S[outh]. to Mywa--guola &c & returning laden with
wood, rice, &c. -- Such are cis--nivean Bhoteas. The Natives of Bhotea (called the
end of Bhote i.e. of Thibet) are of course Bhoteas, all of them, but of a different
tribe. My coolies are these, Lhop is their own name for Bhotan, & often "the
Dhurma country" or "Country of the Dhurmah Rajah"-- The Bhoteas I find a
cheerful civil people when the great men are away, Bhootan [Bhutan] people or
"men of Lhop" are renowned as the most detestable. All the above, as are the
Thibetans, many Chinese & people of the 2 plateaus of Little Bucharia & of
Soongaria are Buddhists who practice Lamaism.
ENDNOTES
1. This letter is a copy, written in a hand not that of the original author, JDH, and
not signed in his hand. The copy was probably made by JDH's mother or sister
and the original returned to the addressee, Archibald Campbell.
2. Kinchin was Hooker's dog, a Tibetan Mastiff.
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