Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER SECOND. NATURE OF THE COUNTRY. Division into four Regions from their relative elevation.—First, or Plain Region, or Tariyani.—Soil.—Productions, Animal and Vegetable.—Cultivation.—Climate.—Rivers.—Second, or Hilly Region—Productions.—Minerals.—Forests. —Birds.— Vallies called Dun. — Cultivation. — Climate. — Third, or MounlainousRegion.—Elevation.—Climate.—Diseases.—Cultivation.—Pasture.—Sheep and Cattle.—Minerals.—Spontaneous Vegetables.—Extent.—Fourth, or Alpine Region.— Val- lies.—Mountains.—Productions, Mineral, Animal, and Vegetable. I Shall next proceed to give a general view of the appearance, soil, climate, and productions of the country, and for this purpose I must divide it into four stages of elevation. My actaul observations are confined to the three lower of these, and I have seen these only in the vicinity of the capital. What I say concerning the highest region is, therefore, entirely from report, and what I mention concerning the others, so far as I write from actual observation, is strictly applicable only to the parts near the capital; but inquiries have enabled me to judge, that a great similarity prevails over the whole territory, and whatever differences have come to my knowledgeshall be mentioned either in this part, or when I come to treat of the different principalities, which have now been subjected to the chief of Gorkha. The lowest region is a part of the great plain of Hindustan. In a few places the Company's territory extends to the foot of the mountains which bound the great plain on the north, which are called Himadri, Himachul, Himalichul, or Hima- liya, and which form the Emodus of the ancients : But in most parts the dominions of Gorkha extend about twenty miles into the plain, and it seems in general to have been the policy of...