On the west side of the castle of Lahore is the ferry for crossing over the Rauvee on the way to Cabul, which is 271 cosses, and thence to Tartary and Cashgar.  Cabul is a large and fair city, the first seat of the present king’s great-grandfather Babur.  At forty cosses beyond is Gorebond, or Gourhund, a great city bordering on Usbeck Tartary; and 150 coss from Cabul is Taul Caun, a city in Buddocsha, or Badakshan of Bucharia.  From Cabul to Cashgar, with the caravan, it is two or three months journey, Cashgar being a great kingdom under the Tartars.  A chief city of trade in that country is Yarcan, whence comes much silk, porcelain, musk, and rhubarb, with other commodities; all or most of which come from China, the gate or entrance into which is some two or three months farther.  When the caravan comes to this entrance, it must remain under tents, sending by licence some ten or fifteen merchants at once to transact their business, on whose return as many more may be sent; but on no account can the whole caravan be permitted to enter at once.

From Lahore to Cashmere, the road goes first, part of the way to Cabul, to a town called Gojrat, forty-four coss; whence it turns north and somewhat easterly seventy coss, when it ascends a high mountain called Hast-caunk-gaut, on the top of which is a fine plain, after which is twelve coss through a goodly country to Cashmere, which is a strong city on the river Bebut, otherwise called the Ihylum, or Collumma.  The country of Cashmere is a rich and fertile plain among the mountains, some 150 coss in length, and 50 broad, abounding in fruits, grain, and saffron, and having beautiful fair women.  This country is cold, and subjected to great frosts and heavy falls of snow, being near to Cashgar, yet separated by such prodigious mountains that there is no passage for caravans.  Much silk and other goods are however often brought this way by men, without the aid of animals, and the goods have in many places to be drawn up or let down over precipices by means of ropes.  On these mountains dwells a small king called Tibbet,[254] who lately sent one of his daughters to Shah Selim, by way of making affinity.

[Footnote 254:  Little Thibet, a country hardly known in geography, is on the north-west of Cashmere, beyond the northern chain of the Vindhia mountains.—­E.]

Nicholas Uphet, [or Ufflet] went from Agra to Surat by a different way from that by which I came, going by the mountains of Narwar, which extend to near Ahmedabad in Guzerat.  Upon these mountains stands the impregnable castle of Gur Chitto, or Chitore, the chief seat of the Ranna, a very powerful rajah, whom neither the Patans, nor Akbar himself, was ever able to subdue.  Owing to all India having been formerly belonging to the Gentiles, and this prince having always been, and is still, esteemed in equal reverence as the pope is by the catholics, those rajahs who have been sent against him have always made some excuses for not being able to do much injury to his territories, which extend towards Ahmednagur 150 great cosses, and in breadth 200 cosses towards Oogain, mostly composed of, or inclosed by inaccessible mountains, well fortified by art in many places.  This rajah is able on occasion to raise 12,000 good horse, and holds many fair towns and goodly cities.