TOUR OF INDIA

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXXI, 26 April 1937, Page 3

TOUR OF INDIA

6,000 MILES BY RAIL GRAND MOUNTAIN SCENES ■: ix i ■ The journey up the Nilgiri hills was through loveiy native bu.-.h land, and ; here and there in the opui spaces me land was under cultivation. Many Indian settlements formed a pleasant sight. Tile downhill run to Hie plain ’ beiow was through some of the grandest mountain scenery we have exper- | leiiced on all our tour in this country. I I'he cascades of lolly mountain streams pouring over Hie rocky formations I above was enhanced by the beautiful flora en rome. The leathery bamboo, i with rlioelodcndions inre and there 1 coming into bloom formed a lovely ! avenue of many kinds of native trees which lasted lor many miles along this ! mountain railway. 'lnc passage on tiiis

' line was a slow one on account ot the : extreme steepness of the hills and the .; serpentine nature of the line. It travels , down by gravitation, and the tram is j braked both from the engine and the 1 guard's van as well as by a cogged (.('litre line brake. This to my mind is one of the beauty spots of India as it J passes through such a variety of the : most bcautilul mountain scenery. We i arrived at Trichinopoly at 3.30 a.m., i having hadAea and dinner on the train.

-! 1 forgot to mention that we changed 2 1 trains at Methupalayon for a broad i j gauge one, and arrived at Trichinopoiy -i' at me time stated above. Wc were . ; pusncd on to a side line and slept in I our conipartinent lor a perfect four , J nours ot silence. This train was not a J! particularly steady or noiseless one. ; and in consequence our rest was dis- '! airbed. ’J nere is not much to see here ' 1 and I will be somewhat giad to get to ! Ceylon and hear some news from home. ■ The heat is very oppressive and we ■ nave ctonned our whites and light underclothing Left Trichinopoiy by the ! 7.27 S.i.R. train for Radura and arrived at the place at 11.17 after a good run through excellent agricultural land. The railway retiring room was not us good as the former station, and the whole arrangements were pretty rought but clean. This town is frightfully dusty, and its crowded population and extreme heat intensifies the j difficulty of moving about with any degree ill comfort. There are very few whiles living here, probably not more than a couple of hundred. The sightseeing included a few temples and other places of interest. The Great Siva certainly contains some marvellous edifices within its outer walls which are some miles round. Jt covers 32 acres and the high stone carved towers are distributed over this space. The fnterior workmanship in most parts arc beautiful, and the Hall of a 1000 Pillars is positively wonderful for vastncss and the variety of carvings. In the centre of this temple a large pool ol unsavoury looking water was washed in and drunk by the natives. I marvel that they could possibly escape disease of some virulent type after indulging in such filth. The old buildings ot the town of Nanak have been

• | restored, and now form some of the j finest public offices in the whole of India. Madura was left at 10.48 a.rrj. on the 27th February for the last portion of our Indian tour, which is to terminate at Colombo. The train run south was a lovely one through level arid fertile country. IN CEYLON

! We eventually came to the narrow strip of land and water which leac down to the Pier of Dhamishkold (Adams Bridget on the Gulf of Waj nnar. This was the last sight which we had of India as we steamed across ihe straits of 22 miles to Ceylon beyond. The passage was smooth and we soon drew alongside the Pier of TalaiI mannar on the Ceylon coast. Wc changed over to the train that awaited us on the wharf, winch got away to scheduled lime for Colombo. The night run was a good one and we had some sleep. Arrived at Colombo at 7 a.m.. and transferred to the Hotel Bristol and have now settled down for a lew days' rest after the termination oi our long Indian tour which was an undt'Ubiect success from start to finish, not a single hitch occurring at any time. We have now finalised a tour ol Ceylon and will commence it to-mor-row afternoon by motor car. 1 anticipate that this will also be an interesting one.

At the pier on the Indian side of the straits between the mainland and Ccyion the health officer questioned all passengers troin India very rigorously, a-- unfortunately the last two places we passed through in South India were injected witli smallpox, plague and cholera, and on litis account they would not give us a free pass and our eertiiiealc was marked to be vaccinated. We did net know our fate, however, until we got to Colombo, and there we learnt alter visiting the quarantine oifiee several times that it was impossible io avoid the ordeal. We were vaccinated and after 24 hours in botli our cases it showed no signs of taking, and we were thankful.

Our itinerary drawn up for the Ceylon tour commenced at 2 p.m. on the 2nd February, and the first part by motor car to Kandy of 72 miles was a beautiful one. The road was perfect, and the car supplied by Cooks was a

I llow elosed-in one (jiid very comfortable. Tile drive, was a delightful one a-s it passed through most luxuriant tropical vegetation all the way to Kandy. The coconut and banana palms, bread lrmt, and numerous other indigenous trees and shrubs formed one of tiie loveliest avenues anyone could imagine iVe called at a small menai ? CIUC by a private gentleman, and 1 d was botli interesting and in some | cases very amusing. The dancing and i elephants; the comical monj l:e -V's. crocodiles, bears etc. One little i monkey was very affectionate and cried like a baby; be would strike ! I’latciies on a box if you gave them to | lllni ; tlh ’ Queen Hotel is a very large | tlcc ' Kandy, and we have large | ) coins each with every convenience. Ihe morning drive through a large ■ c.ocou plantation, with rubber trees, coocnm palms, and tea bushes was \eiy luxuriant and picturesque. The cocoa trees look extremely healthy and prolific; they are medium in size and somewhat like laurel but more open in habn. Ihe leaves are crinkled and shaded in colour from mid green to red and brown. They enhance flic landscape with their bright colour. The varied coloured pods containing the beans are distributed well over the tree. In Ibis plantation they did not cover tlie land exclusively but were mixed with the coconut palm, rubber frees and also tea bushes. It was a perfect morning with bright sunshine, clear sky and still air. We saw the boys collecting the rubber milk from the tapped trees. This is led into coconut shell cups attached below the incision in the bark. The milk is of a light creamy colour, and about half a pint would be exuded from a mediumsized tree. Coconuts are very extensively grown and form one of the largest parts in the cultivated area of the staple commodities of Ceylon. (To be continued).