国立情報学研究所 - ディジタル・シルクロード・プロジェクト
『東洋文庫所蔵』貴重書デジタルアーカイブ

›The actual source of the eastern branch or main stream of the Indus was not reached,
but the people between Giachuruff and Jiachan said it rose at a place called Gangri-Goorgiap,
which may perhaps refer to the Gangri or Kailas Peak; but the direction of the course of the
Indus, as seen from near Jiachan, pointed rather to the east of that mountain. The whole
district along the upper course of the Indus is called Bongthol, which is divided into the small
districts of the Singhtod and Singhmet, 'tod' signifying upper, and 'met' lower. At the highest
point visited the Indus was still a considerable stream. At Giachuruff the ford was always a
difficult one, and for eight days after the fall of snow the Pundit experienced, the river was
not fordable in any way. — From Jiachan to Giachuruff the Indus flows through a rather
broad, flat valley, and from Giachuruff to its junction with the Garjung-Chu it flows through
a similar valley, the banks being lined in many places with long patches of low jungle. The
Indus above the junction was from 100 to 200 paces in breadth, with a depth of 4 to 6 feet;
while the Garjung-Chu was in places as much as 250 paces in width, with a depth of only
1 to 2 feet. The Garjung-Chu between Gartok and the junction flows through a particularly
broad and flat valley. The Indus below the junction flows through a wide valley to a con-
siderable distance below Demchok.›

Montgomerie almost always gets the right grasp of the countries from which
his Pundits have brought home reports, and he describes them as if he had seen
them with his own eyes. The following passage is of particular interest, for, so far
as I know, it contains the only information we possessed of the district of Selipuk,
until I was fortunate enough to visit this place 40 years later:¹ ›When at Thok-
Jalung the Pundit made diligent inquiry as to the adjacent countries; he was informed
that a large district, called Majin, extended for nine days' journey to the east, and
that a smaller district, called Shellifuk, lay to the S.E. The Majin country was
said to be a difficult one to travel in, as no rivers ran through it. The Shelli-
fuk district boasted of some streams, but they all run into a large inland lake.› This
lake was Nganglaring-tso.

The Pundit found that north of Thok-jalung the country was not regularly
inhabited; only thieves called Champas or Khampas were said to live there, information
that was somewhat exaggerated. From Thok-jalung a direct road was said to go in
a S.E. direction to Tadum (Tradum) and it was said to cross some comparatively
low ranges, but generally to run over plains.

The new information brought back by the Pundits from their journey of 1867
induced Major Montgomerie to send the third Pundit upon a new expedition, the
preparations for which were made early in 1868, and the object of which was to
explore the country beyond the eastern watershed of the upper Indus.² The Pundits
of 1867 had got some information about the country between Rudok and Thok-jalung
and between the latter place and Tradum. Further they had heard of an ›upper
road‹ from Thok-jalung through various gold-fields to Tengri-nor and Lhasa. They
had even met merchants who had travelled that road. It is characteristic for Mont-