Page:Wanderings of a Pilgrim Vol 2.djvu/278

 with little apples,—the small sweet apples we get from Meerut.

My mule, who has been christened Don Pedro, carries me beautifully; we canter and trot up and down hill at an excellent pace; he has but one fault,—a dangerous one in the Hills,—that of shying; he would be worth two hundred rupees if he were not timid.

The conical form of The Hills is their great peculiarity; in order to gain sufficient level ground, on which to build the house at Bhadráj, it was necessary to cut off the top of the hill,—a work of labour and expense. A khud is a valley between two hills, which is generally very narrow, so much so, that a horse might leap across the bottom of several of the khuds I have seen near Landowr. The building of the house at Cloud End has proceeded at a great rate; five hundred Hill-coolies are constantly employed under the eye of an European, to keep them at their work. The house has been roofed in, and my relative has come up from Meerut, to have the slates put on after some peculiar hikmat (fashion) of his own.

7th.—The storm of yesterday rendered the air so pure and clear, it was most refreshing; I mounted my mule, and went to spend the day at Bhadráj. The Snowy Ranges were distinct and beautiful, the wild flowers lovely on every rock; the ride was one of great enjoyment. The wild notes of the Hill birds were heard in every direction, and the cuckoo was sending forth its old familiar note. On my arrival I found one of the ponies at the estate had been killed by a fall over the precipice when bringing up water from the khud.

14th.—Capt. S says, a very severe earthquake was felt at his estate during the storm the other night: he was asleep in the outer building, and was awakened by the shock, which threw down the gable end of it; fortunately, the large stones fell outwards, or he would have been killed on his bed; he ran out, and took refuge in the little tent. The shock also split open the stone wall of the mule-shed. Although his estate is only six miles off, we did not feel the earthquake at Landowr.

18th.—My fair friend and myself having been invited to a