Journals of Travels in Assam, Burma, Bhootan, Afghanistan and The Neighbouring Countries | Page 9

under .5 inch lens you can easily open the pistillum of
Santalum having previously removed the perianth: it is a concial body;
you must take care to get it out entire, especially at the base, then place
it in water, and dissect off the ovula of which there are three or four, as
per sketch. I shall not say what I see, as I want to have your original
opinion unbiassed, etc.; but whenever you see the tubes with filaments
adhering to their apices, pray mark attentively what takes place, both at
the point and at the place where the tube leaves the ovulum; your
matchless 1/1500 would do the thing. Try iodine with all such, after
having examined them in water.
"Should you find any difficulty in dissecting away the ovula, light
pressure under glass will relieve you. I shall be very anxious to know
what your opinion is, particularly with regard to the tubes and all
adhering filaments; the question now occupying botanists, being this, is
the embryo derived directly from the boyau or is it derived from some
parts of the ovulum?
"I hope you can understand these sketches."
* * * * *
_Peshawur_: _13th December_, 1839.
"What a shame it is that botanists should know nothing whatever of the
formation and structure of wood! They look at a section of a piece of

oak, and imagine they have discovered the secret, and write volumes on
this imagination, yet they have been told over and over again, that
nothing is to be learnt on such subjects without beginning at the
commencement, which they are too idle to do. To name an abominable
Aster, is among them of much higher importance than to discover the
cause of the growth of wood. Medullary rays are most difficult, because
they are very often deficient particularly in climbers. I am horridly idle,
and yet what can I do without books; yet with regard to books, the
more originality we possess, the less we require them? There is nothing
to be got here except a few marsh plants coming into flower. One
beautiful Chara, which might disclose the secret, had I good glasses, it
is a most graceful pellucid form, an undescribed duckweed, a floating
Marchantiaceae. Would that I was settled with a Ross on one hand, and
a Strongstein on the other, around my collections with good health and
good spirits. Tell ---- I have in view the division of the vegetable
kingdom analagous to radiata, they include all the Marchantiaceae, and
are, to all intents and purposes, Vegetable Radiata."
* * * * *
Pushut, _1st march beyond Kooner_: _January 29th_, 1840.
"This will be a letter of odds and ends, you know I was to return to
Jallalabad; well I reached that place, but left the encampment and
crossed the river, where an advance road making partly for the Kooner
expedition were employed, and having originally determined on going
to Kooner, I accompanied them two marches, when they were
overtaken by the army, to avoid which, I halted one day, and on the
next proceeded onwards by the north bank of the river, thus saving all
the fords of this horrid river. I should call it beautiful at any other
season. The road was bad, and the last one and a half mile into camp
most difficult, the path winding round and over spurs of sharp
limestone rocks which must have had abundance of silex in them they
were so very hard. At the very worst part, my headman being in front,
all of a sudden I heard three shots in quick succession with the usual
hallooing, and then I was called on in advance, meeting my headman
wounded: he has lost the two fore-fingers of his right hand. All I saw

was three men scrambling up the face of the hill, on whom I opened a
fire as soon as my guns came up, and had the pleasure of hitting one on
the shield.
"Such a scene ensued! for when there are three or four on such
occasions we may reasonably expect thirty or forty, and my object was
to get out of the bad road, and so be close to camp. Some of, or rather
all, my people became dismayed, I had therefore to cheer, to point my
double barrels, and in fact to enact a whole legion. One fellow tried to
shoot me but his powder proved faithful, the others were wounded:
however they kept in sight, and to make matters worse, in one place
within twenty yards, six or seven of my loads were thrown; evening
drawing on, and prospects disgusting, when at last having passed over
one bad part and got down into a ravine, a number of people were seen
closing down on us,