Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1879-12-31

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SNOW TWO HUNDRED FEET DEEP.
The Extraordinary Snow Fall In
Cashmere Two Winters Ago,
The following remarkable account,
from the London Times, of enormous
snow falls in Northwestern India,
shows what world of vapor is carried
inland on the monsoons from the Ia-s
dian ocean, to strike against the LOTT.
est mountain chain in the world, and
be precipitated in such SHOWS and
rains as occur on the middle slopes
and foothills of the Himalayas.
About the sources of some of the
great rivers Of India occur the heaviest
rains ever known and further east, in
Cashmere, it seems the SHOWS are
sometimes terrific. The London Times
says: "a 80 a.
Some interesting details of this ex
traordinary snow fall in Cashmere in
1877 70 are given in 3 paper in the
just-issued number of the journal of
the Asiatic Society Of Bengal, by Mr.
Lydekker. Early in the month of
Cashmere, and from that time up TO
Mary, 1873 there seemed ito have
been an almost incressante snowfall
in the higher mountains and valleys;
indeed, in places, it frequently snow
without intermission for npwafM of
October. 1877ssnowS commenced to
all in the valley and mountains of
ten days at a time. At Dras, which
as an elevation of 10000 feet, Mr.
Lydekker estimated the snowfall, from
the native account as having been
from thirty to forty feet thick, The
effects Of this enormous snowfall were
to be seen throughout the country.
At Dras, the wellbnilt traveller bun
galow which has stood some thirty
years, was entirely crushed down by
the weight of snow which fell upon it.
In almost every village Of the neigh
boring mountains more or lessof the
log houses had fallen, while at, Gul-
marg and Sonomarg, where no at
tempt was made to remove the snow,
almost all the huts of the European
visitors were utterly broken down by
it. In the higher mountains whole
hillsides have been denuded 'ofyege-
tation and soil by the enormous avail.
anches which swept down them, leay
ing vast gaps in the primeval forests.
and closing the valleys below With the
debris Of rocks and trees. As an in,
stance of the amount of snow, which
must have fallen in the higher levels
MIR. Lydekker mentions the Zogipass,
leading from Cashmere to. Dras,
which has an elevation of II 800 feet.
He crossed this early in August last
year, and then found that the whole
of the ravine leading up to the pass
from the Cashmere side was still filled
with snow, which he estimated in
places to be at least 15O feet thick. In
ordinary seasons this road in the Zogi
pass, is clear from snow some time
during the month Of June. Az another
instance of the great snowfall Mr.. Ly-
dekker takes the valley leading from
the town ofoDras up to the pass sepa-
rating that place from the valley Of
the Kishengunga river. About the
middle of August almost the whole Of
the aforementioned valley, at an ele-
walton of $4,000 feet, was completely
choked with snow, which in places
was at least 200 feet deep. In the
district all passes over 1900 feet
were still deep in snow, at the same
seassn Of the year. Mr.. Lydekker
gives other instances of. snow lying
in places in September where no snow
had ever before been observed after
June. AS to the destruction of ami
NAL life in the Upper Wardwan val
ley, large numbers of ibex were seen
imbedded in snow; in one place up
ward eof 60 heads were counted, and
in another not less than 100, The
most convincing proofs, however, of
the havoc caused among the Wild
animals by the great snowfall is the
fact that scarcely any ibex were seen
during last summer in those portions
of the Wardwan and Tilail valleys,
| which are ordinarily considered as
sure finds. So, also, the red bear and
the marmot were far less numerous
than usual. Mr.. Lydekker estimates
that the destruction to animal life
caused by snow has far exceeded any
slaughter which could be inflicted by;
sportsmen during period of at least,
| five or six years. Az.1EG5EE - <Z4AEl