Page:Wanderings of a Pilgrim Vol 2.djvu/262

 attracted by the sound, and found the mountain rill collected into a mill-dam, from which, rushing down, it turned several mills; and one of the streams was turned off into the valley, forming the little cascade, the sound of which had attracted me. How bright, clear, cold, and delicious was the water! Being too unwell to bear the fatigue of climbing the hill, I sent for a hill-pony, called a gūnth; he was brought down; the little fellow never had a woman on his back before, but he carried me bravely up the sheep-path, for road there was none. Motī, the name of the handsome gūnth, is an iron-grey hill-pony,—more like a dwarf-horse than a pony; he has an exceedingly thick, shaggy mane, and a very thick, long tail;—the most sure-footed sagacious animal; he never gets tired, and will go all day up and down hill; seldom fights, and is never alarmed when passing the most dangerous places. Give your gūnth his head, and he will carry you safely. Horses are dangerous,—even the most quiet become alarmed in the hills. Captain S bought this gūnth at the Hurdwar fair; he came from Almorah, cost 160 rupees (£16); and 300 rupees have been refused for him.

The following history was related to me concerning the gūnth:—Colonel P, to whom the animal was lent, took him to the Snowy Ranges; "In some pass, by some accident, the gūnth fell down a precipice, and was caught upon an oak tree. There he swung; one struggle would have sent him to the bottom, and to certain death; he never moved. Colonel P, who was walking at the time, got some people, who descended to the place where the gūnth hung, dug out a standing-place in the side of the hill, just big enough to hold the pony, and contrived to get him off his tree into the spot: the gūnth was so much alarmed, that they left him to recover from his fright on this spot the whole night; and the next morning got him up the precipice in safety to the road." Any horse would have struggled and have been killed; these gūnths appear to understand that they must be quiet, and their masters will help them. He is a queer-tempered little fellow; he kicked my sā'īs over one day, and always kicks at me if I attempt to pat him; but