occurs; but a good deal of cultivation was passed, consisting of madder, barley, and wheat.  A few trees were observed here and there marking the sites of villages.  The country is much poorer than that at Mookhloor, but almost the whole expanse of plain is capable of good cultivation:  soil pebbly.  Fowls a good many are procurable.  Apricots are also brought for sale, but very inferior:  a striking boundary hill to the north presents a rugged, lofty aspect, not less in the peaks than 4,000 above the plain; several ranges occur, but those to the south are low, rounded, and small; rounded clumps of Astragali are seen.

17th.—­Proceeded to Jumrat, 12 miles and 2 furlongs, our direction lying to the north of the star Capella.  The country continues to present a similar aspect:  valley expanded, road tolerable, several ravines and beds of dry watercourses, with sandy bottoms; indeed as compared with yesterday, the soil is much more sandy and less pebbly.  Vegetation is the same, no more dense aggregations of Artemisia fruticosa are seen, but the plants consisting of scattered Artemisia of yesterday, barely suffruticose, Peganum, Astragalus, Astragaloid Muscoideus, and Senecio glaucescens.  A good deal of cultivation occurs on both sides of the slope towards the southern boundary, which is here lofty, presenting the usual limestone characters.  Many villages are seen, all fortified, and about Jumrat there is the appearance of much population.  Jerboas, ravens, rock pigeons, and wild pigeons, are common; hares are uncommon.  Very few trees are to be seen, but there is abundance of good water and grass along the margins of the cut.  Sheep are also to be had, but they are small, and goats for one rupee each, large sheep two rupees:  dhal, atta, barley procurable; and Herat rugs.

To-day the native troops were put on short rations of twelve chatacs; servants, etc. on eight.  Horsemen to the number of 100? came to meet the Shah, all mounted on decent ponies, but quite incapable of coping with our irregular horse.  Barometer 23.305, thermometer 87 degrees, Wooll. new thermometrical barometer 697.6, old 595.8.

From 11 P.M. to 12 P.M. heavy rain; very heavy for about twenty minutes, with a threatening aspect in the horizon at 7 A.M. to south by east, from which direction the rain came:  thunder and lightning; latter very frequent.

18th.—­Entered the district of Karabagh, distance to our present place of encampment from that we had left eight and a half miles.  The road decent, traversing several watercuts, one or two ravines, and a small stream, indeed water becomes more abundant to-day than in almost any other march:  our direction lay the same as before, but as we approached the low hills, separating us from Ghuznee plain, we proceeded more east in order to turn them.  The features of the country are the same, together with the vegetation, the only novelty being a genuine Statice and a Cruciferous plant, which I observed at Mookhloor, and a Composita, Echinops spinis radiantibus continued.  The medicated suffruticose Artemisia:  Joussa in old cultivation, and Peganum are the most common plants.