One hot, sultry morning, during the rainy season, he mounted his pad elephant, which he had trained to shikar, and sallied forth from his tea plantation, situated on the Dehing river, near to Debrughur; and, after a short journey through the dense jungle surrounding his place, came out on a large open, covered with wild paddy.* In the centre of this clearing he espied several buffaloes, which, from their evident indifference to his approach, he mistook in the distance for tame ones. Before he had proceeded far, however, he discovered that they were jungle wallahs,† in charge of a fine old bull.

True to a hunter's instincts, the shikary singled out the old bull, and, getting within easy distance of him, fired. The buffalo received this ball without flinching, and came down upon him with a grand charge. A second ball stopped him within a yard or two of the elephant; only for a minute or two, however, for, recovering himself, he charged again and again—nine times-receiving a ball each time, till at last he dropped from loss of blood, but not before inflicting a terrible wound on the elephant.

As a rule, a wounded buffalo' will make for cover, if near at hand; but if hit hard in the open, he becomes a most determined assailant.

Only forty miles remained to complete our voyage to Debrughur when we anchored for the night at the mouth of the Dikhoo river.

* Rice.

† Hindoostanee term applied to wild animals to distinguish them from

tame ones.

A few miles above the mouth of this river, on the left bank, lie the ruins of an old Assamese fort, opposite to the station of Seep Saugor, which has sprung up amidst the ruins of what was formerly a large Assamese town.

Several large tanks, in a state of fair preservation, with two fine old Hindoo temples still remain to testify to the energy and civilization formerly characteristic of the Assamese, which form a striking contrast to the lethargic existence of the present scanty population.

The contemplation of these ruins, surrounded by an almost impracticable jungle, which has over-grown the once fertile and well-cultivated fields of a people that have almost passed away, is calculated to strike one with an intense desire to learn more of the history of those terrible events, which have robbed a fertile country of a large and industrious population, and converted it into a wilderness of swampy forest, breeding deadly miasma, and teeming with wild beasts and reptiles.

The mouth of the Dikhoo river has obtained an unenviable notoriety from the swarms of insatiable mosquitoes which attack man and beast most viciously.

I have suffered from the attack of mosquitoes in several countries, especially on the banks of the Irrawaddy in Burmah; but the Dikhoo mosquito is the most venomous that I ever encountered.

Their envenomed attacks soon drove all from the usual evening lounge on deck, to seek refuge in bed under the mosquito curtains; but in less than an hour every one was on deck again in a state of absolute torment, and sleep was out of the question.

F

The men were not the only unfortunates. My poor mules on first feeling themselves attacked, kept up a perpetual movement of the hoofs, performing a sort of diabolical tattoo on the decks; but this mild resentment soon quickened into a much more active demonstration on their part.

Each animal being merely separated from his neighbour by a single bamboo pole, lashed from an upright between the upper and lower deck, and secured to the bulwarks, there was nothing to prevent them kicking or biting each other, so that when the stings of the mosquitoes had fairly driven them frantic, each began to resent the attack by attacking his neighbour. No sooner had we quieted one pair of combatants, then another frantic animal severely stung, would lay hold of his neighbour with a loud squeal, and in the ensuing struggle their neighbours would come in for a kick, and so the whole lot of them at last set to, and in the scuffle one or two of them broke loose and stampeded round the deck, biting and kicking at every one who approached. The captain hearing the noise in the middle of the night, at last came to my assistance, with some of the crew, and after a great deal of trouble, the mules were once more secured. Still, however, they were restless and struggled to free themselves, so much so that we were at last obliged to light a straw fire on the bank alongside and fan the smoke in upon the mules, by which means we kept off their little buzzing tormentors until daylight, when with the first rays of dawn the mosquitoes departed leaving myself and the poor mules to snatch an hour

Mosquitoes and Mules.

67

or two's rest. On turning out again about eight o'clock, my face and hands were much swollen from the effects of bites, and on going to visit the mules I found their sleek fat sides and flanks covered with lumps, the size of a nut, raised by the venomous stings of the Dikhoo mosquitoes, whose acquaintance I hope never to renew.

At Dikhoo Mookh,* one of the flats was to be left, and the necessary transhipment of a lot of cargo and the mules, from the flat to the steamer, detained us here till nearly midday. Next morning, when getting under weigh, just after daylight, the engine broke down, causing a delay of several hours, till repairs were effected. After a fresh start, while passing the mouth of the Dehing river, a dugout,† with a couple of men, shot out from the bank, and one of the crew came on board with a letter for me from Mr. Jenkins, a tea planter on the Dehing, offering me the use of his bungalow during my stay at Debrughur. This was welcome news, as relieving a secret anxiety as to quarters, house-room being, as I had been told, very precious at this station, and living in tents out of the question now that the rains had set in.

At 3.30 we arrived at the mouth of the Debru river, about six miles below the station of Debrughur, and anchored for the night. Here I was met by Captain Gregory, the Deputy-Commissioner, and drove up to the station with him, leaving my party to follow in the steamer next day. It was a relief to have completed our voyage of nine hundred miles up the Bramapootra,

* Assamese term signifying mouth of a river.

+ Canoe.

which had occupied twenty-four days. The remaining distance of sixty miles, between Debrughur and the frontier station of Sudiya would have to be performed in a native boat, but I looked forward to the change with pleasure, not perhaps without some forebodings that the setting in of the summer rains, would compel a long stay in Debrughur, before proceeding further north towards Thibet, forebodings which were soon realized.