peculiar aspect. (For other
plants of this neighbourhood, see Cat. and Icones.)

The town although the third in Khorassan, is a miserable place and has a
deserted aspect, the houses are of the most temporary construction, and
the hill is crowned by a poor half-ruined _kucha_ fort; the gates of the
town are ornamented with wild goats' horns and heads. There is no trade,
and the place is stated to be plundered often by Caukers.
Orchards--apricots of large size, and very large cherry trees, a
pomaceous plant with the habit of poplar, occurs; the Ulmus of this place
is one of the largest sized trees; no walnuts.

_April 6th_.--Left Quettah for Kuchlak. We traversed the sandy plain
and then ascended the gravelly slope to the pass traversed before
reaching Kuchlak, the ascent and descent were about equal, but the former
was long and gradual, the latter rapid and short. The features of the
country are precisely the same; the pass is short, the descent to the
ravine, which in the rains is evidently a watercourse, short and steep,
not 100 feet. The mountains forming the sides are steep; and those to
the left, bold and romantic, with here and there a small tree. The plain
of Kuchlak is like that of Quettah, well supplied with water-cuts and one
small canal, but miserably cultivated, and with very few villages. The
hills forming its west boundary are low, rugged, and curiously variegated
with red and white. Tuckatoo forms part of its eastern boundary: no snow
is visible on its face towards Kuchlak: a few low rounded hillocks occur
in the centre of the valley. The chief vegetation round the camp, is
Santonica. We encamped close to the western boundary of the valley,
about two miles from the grand camp: total distance of the march thirteen
and a half miles. The climate is very hot and variable; thermometer
ranged to-day from 40 degrees to 86 degrees.

The chief vegetation of the gravelly slopes is as marked as ever, and
differs entirely from that of the sandy tillable portion; it consists of
Centaurea fruticosa, C. spinosa, Anthylloides or Ononoides, Astragalus
spinosus, and Staticoides, another thorny Composita occurs, but is not
common, the herbaceous plants are Cruciferae in large numbers, as well as
Compositae; of Boragineae, a good many, some Labiatae, a large Salvia:
towards the tillable lands or where gravelly places occur among these,
Asphodelus is common with Cheiranthus; one or more fruticose Dianthi
occur in