Page:Burke, W.S. - Cycling in Bengal (1898).djvu/40

 At Burhee, 16 miles more, a capital Dâk Bungalow stands on the right of the road. Here we find post and telegraph offices, dispensary, school and telephone communication with Hazaribagh. There are some fine bungalows occupied by European Government servants in the Opium and other departments. A capital place for breakfast and work with the camera, if we are provided with one. Between this village and Dhunwa the road is nearly always cut up by incessant cart traffic, while the steep gradients do not admit of much in the way of road-making as we understand it in the plains. Yet for a hill road it is not so bad—and we have often seen worse—while there is some compensation in the charming scenery throughout the entire stretch of 29 miles. A little careful steering is all that is needed. Hundreds of native pilgrims, half starved and footsore, crawl onwards towards Juggernath and Pooree; sleek Brahmin mendicants move comfortably along, extorting the best the villages can produce; strings of ponies laden with grain, and cloth merchants in gangs, flocks of sheep, droves of pigs, an occasional camel and carts galore help to sustain the interest and keep one from thinking too much of the going, the possibilities of serious punctures, or the collapse of the frame till we get to Dhunwa. It is only 20 miles after all, but it takes some doing. Arrived at the Dhunwa pass, we have travelled 50 miles since leaving Bogodar. It will probably be enough, so we dispose ourselves as comfortably as we can in the bungalow. Dinner may perchance consist of chapatis, eggs and tea, but we are sustained by the certainty of a square breakfast at Shergotty early next morning.