The Coolidge examiner., 1931-08-21

about 1000 feet from the Belgian
plains. On the side toward the
mountains the ridge drops away
for approximately 5000 feet form
ing what might, in American ter
minOlogy, be called the Grand
Canyon of the Ranjit," but whose
heavily forested slopes and trop-
fcally luXuriant floor earns in
India the more poetic name of vale
of Ranjit."
1t is across this titanic valley
and beyond over ranges of foothills,
lower than that on which Darjeel-
ing sits, that one looks to mighty
kinchinjunga. The eye therefore
sees a rise of approximately 1000
feet, a range of altitude to be seen
in few if any other places in the
world, since most of the highest
mountains rise from lofty plateaus
Darjeeling has characteristics un-
like those of most towns. 1t can
hardly be said to have streets. Most
of the buildings face on paths or
walks which run along the main
ridge and out onto its minor spurs.
or work their way by serpentine
routes to other paths that cling to
the steep sides of the slopes. Steps.
too, serve in place of roads. CON
Meeting terraces that rise one above
the other.
The villas, bungalows, shops,
government buildings, hospitals.
churches, schools, barracks and ma
tive huts that make up Darjeeling
and its suburb form pendant COM
munities, like giant saddle-bags
thrown over the ridge. Dwellings
are scattered down the slopes for
a thousand feet, the ground floor of
one tier on a level with the roofs
of the next tier below. If one must
cover much space in Darjeeling he
rides on pony back or is carried in a
litter by four servants.
The center of Darjeeling is OBJ
servatOry hill, a knoll on the crest
of the ridge. Topping the knoll
is a Buddhist monument and sur
rounding it is a small forest of
staff from which prayer flags fut-
ter their supplications. From the
benches near the monument one
may sit, when mist and clouds do
not interfere, and take advantage
of Darjeeling's best view of mighty
Kinchinjunga and its fellows. But
often the vigil is fruitless. 1t is
only for relatively brief periods
during spring and early winter that
one may be sure of long, uninter-
rupted views of the towering gran
ite and ice walls and snowy slopes
to the north.
Looking Across the Peaks.
Standing on the Darjeeling ridge
when the air is free of mists, the
observer first looks down, deep
down 5000 feet into a river gorge
chOked with tropical jungle. Then
his eyes rise to the rice fields re-
tlecting the blue sky and the tea
plantations. Up and up to the Tenn
perate zone trees, then to the pine
forests crowning lower mountains
The observer peeps over half a
dozen intervening ridges into the
dark mysterious depths of valleys.
Then he sees the bare uplands
above the tree line and finally the
beginning of the SHOWS. Long white
glaciers drape the mountain mass
whose two-prOnged peaks half fills
the sky.
The world seems to be walled
on the north. There is no such
thing as a horizon; Kinchinjunga
closes the view like an exquisite
screen.
The vertical height is to the
length, at this point of vantage as
one is to eight; that is, as a tree
60 feet high appears when viewed
at the distance of one average city
block
In terms of familiar American
views, Kinchinjunga, seen from
Darjeeling, is like the Washington
monument as it appears from the
west veranda of the Capitol or the
WoolwOrth building as seen from
the Jersey shore.
Darjeeling well earns its popu-
larity as a summer resort. While
on the steamy plains of Bengal, a
few miles away, the mercury climbs
in summer above 100 degrees Fab
renheit, it seldom tops 70 degrees
at Darjeeling; and in winter 80
degrees marks the low point of the
temperature range. The unpleas-
ant feature of the weather is fur
nished by the heavy rains. Ten
feet of water fall each year, and
some of the storms are violent. Dar-
feelings name means place of the
ThunderbOlt." FOur-ffths of the
years precipitation falls between
the first of June and the last of
September.
Natives Of the region of Kin
chinjunga believe the snow peaks
to be the abode of the evil spirits.
High up the sides of the mountains
they build monasteries in which
they pray for deliverance from the
evil spirits. They think that to
climb the peaks is to tempt death.