Hooker, Sir Joseph Dalton
JHC78
Lachoong [Lachung], Sikkim, India
JDH/1/10 f.198-199
unknown addressee,
The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
24-8-1849
© Descendants of Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker
Indian Letters 1847-1851
The Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
English
Contemporary MS copy
7 page letter over 2 folios
 

[Marked as 'extract of a letter'] JDH writes of the loss of his dog Kinchin, who was drowned in the Lachung River. JDH describes the rattan & bamboo cane bridges that span the river & how his dog fell from one. He is now on his way to another pass in North East Sikkim. He describes the landscape & vegetation which reminds him of an English copse. It includes Great Thistles, nettles, dock, & shepherd's purse -- Groudsels, Strawberries, Potentilla, & bramble, willow, poplar, maples, Alder, birch & oak There is less of the deep forest than at Darjeeling, & he enjoys the climate & botany much more but misses [Brian Houghton] Hodgson and his library.

Transcript

came back --
On the route up here, I stopped at the foot of some rocks below a very long cane bridge (40 yards) botanizing; and Kinchin having scrambled up, ran on to the bridge -- I could not see him, & was not thinking about the dog, when his short little barks of terror rang above the roaring torrent -- before I could get up, he had lost his footing, & was no more to be seen -- we went on to the middle of the bridge, and strained our eyes down the boiling flood; but he had been carried under at once, & swept away miles below -- I strained my eyes, till the bridge seemed to be swimming up the valley, & the swift water to stand still; but alas! all to no purpose, and I

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Extract from Dr Hooker's letter *1
Lachoong. Aug.24.1849
Since writing to you I have been continuing my journeys, and getting well on with my collections, &c. I have however met with a terrible disaster in the loss of my dear dog "Kinchin", who was drowned in the Lachoong river -- He had a bad habit of running on before me, and getting into impossible places, of which I was in vain trying to cure him. I generally follow the people of my camp, collecting plants, &c -- and do not arrive at the camping ground till late -- Kinchin accompanies, & is carried by my attendant over such places as dogs can't walk on -- Such are the cane bridges which swing

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across the torrents, and form one of the most beautiful & picturesque features in Sikkim -- I think I have described these before, but lest I did not, here is another account of them --
These rivers are of course ,unfordable, and the plank bridges annually thrown across in the dry season are, though loaded with enormous stones, annually carried away in the rains, where the suspension bridges which swing from rocks or trees on the opposite precipitous banks of the rivers, forms the only means of getting across. -- They are formed of rattan canes, of which two, parallel to one another, & 3 or 5 feet apart are thrown across from these heavy loops of cane,

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and along the loops a Bamboo cane, or 2 or 3 side by side, are laid. To walk across you foot the bamboo, & hold on by the canes as rails -- now poor Kinchin would insist on running upon the bamboo footing; and no cat being able to cross, of course he sticks fast a very few yards on -- It was only a week before that he did this, and I rescued him from the most imminent peril, for my Servant, who was on the bridge before me, shook it so that Kinchin was forced to lie all along on the bamboo 50 feet above a roaring torrent over which his legs hung - he had the sense to lie quite still whilst I encouraged him to do so, as I crept along, and catching him by the tail held him till my Servant

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came back --
On the route up here, I stopped at the foot of some rocks below a very long cane bridge (40 yards) botanizing; and Kinchin having scrambled up, ran on to the bridge -- I could not see him, & was not thinking about the dog, when his short little barks of terror rang above the roaring torrent -- before I could get up, he had lost his footing, & was no more to be seen -- we went on to the middle of the bridge, and strained our eyes down the boiling flood; but he had been carried under at once, & swept away miles below -- I strained my eyes, till the bridge seemed to be swimming up the valley, & the swift water to stand still; but alas! all to no purpose, and I

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went on my way sorrowing -- I cannot tell you how lonely I felt for 2 days with no Kinchin to sit by my table & bed, to eat the bones, & keep watch at my tent--door -- and still I look for him at my side on the mountain, & by my feet when in camp -- He had grown a most beautiful dog, with glossy black hair, pendant triangular ears, a high forehead and jet black eyes; bold and erect, with such a tail -- straight legs & arched neck.
I did not expect to lose him so soon, though I had little idea of taking him to England -- I would send for one of my other dogs, a great Bhotea mastiff at Darjeeling, who is very fond of me; but he eats too much, & is dangerous too when strangers are

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near the tent. I am now on my way to another snowy pass in the N[orth].E[ast]. corner of Sikkim -- The roads are much better along this route, and we have no difficulty in getting food -- Some of the places we camp at are extremely pretty, the lofty snowy Mts. encircling deep valleys clothed with black Pine woods above, and below opening out into grassy flats at or hills, covered with beautiful flowers, Anemonies, Spiraea , Berberry, Clematis, & rose bushes, violets & Euphorbia --
We have too plenty of Great Thistles, nettles, dock, and shepherd's purse -- Groudsels, Strawberries, Potentilla, & bramble, willow, poplar, maples, Alder, birch and oak; so that

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so that you might fancy yourself in an English copse -- red and green Orchis are abundant, as are Pediculares, blue Gentian, dodder, teazle, & Artemisia, Epilobium, beautiful Geraniums & I really think that there are very few English genera not found at about 9000 feet on these Mts.
The woods are far more open, & there is less of the [1 word illeg.], deep, dripping forest I have at Darjeeling -- I hence enjoy the climate and botany far more, but miss Mr Hodgson's society & library sadly

ENDNOTES


1. This extract is a copy not written in the hand of the original author, JDH.

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