BOOK REVIEWS

1. NANDU JAYAL AND INDIAN MOUNTAINEERING. 6
2. ON THE HEIGHTS.
3. THE MOUNTAIN WORLD, 1964-65.
4. THE MOUNTAINEER'S COMPANION.
5. SCHOOLHOUSE IN THE CLOUDS.
6. PLANTS OF DARJEELING AND SIKKIM HIMALAYA, 1967.
7. ADDITIONAL REPORTS.

 

 

NANDU JAYAL AND INDIAN MOUNTAINEERING. 6
Price Rs.5.

' A tribute to Major Narendra Dhar Jayalsays the title-page of this well-produced volume of mountaineering narratives by the early pioneers of mountaineering in India as a sport by people of Indian origin.

The pioneer Himalayan explorers and climbers were, of course, Europeans, but it is not unjustifiable to consider the early days of Indian mountaineering by people like Messrs. Williams, Martyn, Holdsworth and Gibson, the mentors of the earliest Indian climbers like Nandu Jayal and Gurdial Singh, as Indian mountaineering, because they regarded it as their own country and gave and received quite often more than mere nationality connotes.

Such then are the stories of early climbs in this excellent book, and it is with a sense of recent history and lingering excitement that one reads of the first Bandar Punch reconnaissance and the expeditions that followed. Nandu Jayal was introduced to the mountains during one such, though his apprenticeship began, perhaps, with a mid-term trek of ' the little horse-shoe' with Holdy, when he had his first taste of porter trouble, food trouble, track trouble and bad weather. Of these he had closer experience with Mr. Martyn's trip up the Arwa Valley and seems then to have swallowed the bait, hook, line and sinker, returning a ' blooded ' mountaineer.

 

Thereafter the history of Indian mountaineering seems to have been the history of Nandu's climbs with a few notable exceptions like Mr. Gurdial Singh's ascent of Trisul in 1951, of which there is an excellent account which leaves one wishing there had been more from his pen, on Mrigthuni and other expeditions. Not that these subsequent trips are ill-served by the versatile pen and excellent descriptions of Nalni Jayal, Nandu's cousin and disciple, who does justice to his various trips, adding a very interesting account of what climbing and non-Indians can be like.

Nandu's Kamet expeditions ending in final fulfilment and his association with the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute, Darjeeling, are brought out vividly and, if only for these, this book is worth reading and buying for the shelf, for it is a first-hand account from the horse's mouth of how climbing has taken root in India's fertile soil at last. Saser Kangri and the other trips led naturally to the first 8,000-metre peak to be climbed by Indians, and it was only fitting that Nandu should be there, though not as leader. How this apt culmination of Nandu Jayal's passion ended in a tragic success is simply described in factual terms by Major Jagjit Singh, one of the members of the Cho Oyu Expedition on which Nandu Jayal met his end after a brief illness of pulmonary oedema.

Those of us who have studied or taught at the Doon School cannot help but appreciate more than most people the value of this excellent book, and Amir Ali, an Old-Boy Mountaineer and International Civil Servant, makes this clear in his pertinent epilogue on the future of Indian mountaineering.

The book contains some very good illustrations, very well produced, with a dust jacket picture of Cho Oyu. It is priced at Rs.5 and is cheap at the price.

Hari Dang

 

 

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ON THE HEIGHTS. By Walter Bonatti. Translated from the Italian by Lovett F. Edwards. Pp. 248. Illus. Rupert Hart-Davis, London, 1964. Price 35s.

The original Italian edition of this book appeared in 1961, and was followed in 1962 by a French edition. The appearance of an English edition has been widely welcomed. This is a mountaineering book of great importance ; firstly because Walter Bonatti's climbing exploits have made him almost a legend today ; and also because they are described with a sensitivity and at times a romanticism which is usually rare amongst the modern school of advanced climbers.

The book narrates some of the highlights of Bonatti's exceptional career during his 12 most active years beginning at the age of 19. If the descriptions lack the poetry of Gaston Rebuffat, they contain the same personal honesty ; and the impressions that come through are of determination, supreme technical ability, and outstanding physical strength. If drama, danger and sometimes tragedy seem to predominate in these stories, it is only because in a career so rich with adventure it would seem trite to describe the uneventful climbs.

A single-minded devotion to the mountains led Bonatti, at the age of 23, to abandon the life of a city accountant; and the next year he qualified as a guide. The need to attempt greater and more daring climbs sprang from a restlessness to prove himself ; and led, in 1955, to his climb on the SW. Pillar of the Aiguille du Dru, which involved five days and nights alone on this fantastic wall; a feat unparalleled in Alpine history, The realm of Mont Blanc provides the scene for his greatest and most dramatic ventures, particularly the South side, which contains some of the top Grade VI climbs in Europe.

It would be easy to mistake the simple descriptions for a studied understatement of the facts. Values are relative: as when a high bivouac is described as rather cold ; or ' familiar' difficulties are met with; or when the two climbers on the Brenva spur in winter, both supremely fit and competent, seem to move slowly compared with the superior speed and skill of Bonatti's party. Some of the difficulties and dangers encountered seem to surpass the limits of human endurance. When the great guide Franz Lochmatter, on completion of the first ascent of the S. face of the Taschoran, told Geoffrey Winthrop Young, 'Man could not do much more', there were differences of degree in his remark.

Experienced enough to evaluate and prepare for every eventuality of terrain and weather, Bonatti's great exploits are not undertaken lightly or in any reckless spirit. High up on one of the great routes on Mont Blanc, pinned down helplessly by a seven-day storm of unbelievable ferocity, he humbly acknowledges ‘no skill and no technique could have saved us'. Yet he guided safely down to the glacier a party of seven, four of whom perished in tragic circumstances. Through these, and many other extraordinary adventures Bonatti, seemingly indestructible, emerges unscathed.

There are accounts of two expeditions to the Andes of Patagonia and Peru, with the ascent of the difficult 19,100-foot ice peak, Rondoy North, whose summit was twice reached, the first time in a blinding storm.

A chapter on the ascent of K2 in 1954 contains a graphic description of a night spent in the snow at 26,000 feet without shelter of any kind, and with a half-crazed Hunza porter as a companion. An account is given of the last stages of the ascent of Gasherbrum IV, 26,180 feet, in 1958, when Bonatti and Carlo Mauri reached the summit after a 14-hour climb of great severity including several pitches of Grade IV and V. Fosco Maraini in his book Karakoram (1961), describing the battered condition in which the assault party returned to Base Camp, says ‘Only Walter, only the miraculous Bonatti, seemed to have suffered no ill-effects ... He could smile ; his movements were easy ! he might have just got in from some tricky little climb beyond the rest-hut.'

In a brief and rather curious preface, Bonatti describes mountaineers as ‘those with the most zest for life ; they want to be as close as possible to nature, skimming the outer fringes of life itself to savour the delight of living intensely.' This he has done. It is good to be able to share, in an arm-chair, some of the sensations of his exploits, many of which rank as the most unusual in the history of mountaineering.

T. H. Braham

 

 

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THE MOUNTAIN WORLD, 1964-65. Edited by Malcolm
Barnes. Published for the Swiss Foundation for Alpine Research by Allen & Unwin Ltd., London, 1966. Pp. 215. Maps. Illus. Price 42s.

The first volume of Berge Der Welt was published in Zurich in 1946, and the increasing demand for the high standards of publication maintained ever since was recognized with the introduction of an English edition in 1953 ; the present edition is the eighth in the series. The usual wide coverage is given which includes the regions of Europe, Asia, Africa, the Americas and Antarctica. Contributions are on mountaineering, scientific and exploratory interest; and the illustrations (64 plates in a volume of 215 pages) which are printed in Switzerland are of a special quality. All translations from the German, with one exception, are by Hugh Merrick.

This volume, like its two predecessors, is published under the direction of Hans Muller, who is also the author of the first article—a review of the ascent and tragedy on the Matterhorn in July 1865, a contribution of some significance in the centenary year of the first ascent. Swiss newspaper accounts of the time, quoted here, reveal the inaccuracy of press reporting even 100 years ago.

There are two interesting accounts of expeditions to the Hindu Kush. One by M. Schmuck's party who entered Chitral as ⁴ tourists' in 1963 and climbed two peaks above 22,000 feet from the Hushko Glacier (this technique is wearing a bit thin with the authorities in 1967!); and another by G. Gruber describing ascents of Noshaq in 1963 ; and ascents in 1964 of three peaks over 23,000 feet above the Atrak Glacier ; a very fine effort. The first party made their approach from the north through the Wakhan corridor, and returned home by road from Ouetta to Graz in eight days' non-stop driving. Other articles of Himalayan-Karakoram interest are Unsoeld's narrative of the west ridge of Everest; Pischinger on the first ascent of Momhil Sar ; Talung Peak by Lindner; and Nanda Devi by N. Kumar. A most instructive geological paper by A. Gansser, beautifully illustrated, on North Bhutan shows the vast exploration potential of the mountain regions bordering Tibet.

A paper by Blanche Olschak which discusses the etymology of place-names in Sikkim does not throw much new light on a well-worked subject. Two articles on the Ellsworth range of Antarctica add to our knowledge of erstwhile unknown mountain regions of the world.

Following the pattern of the previous volume there is a chronicle of climbs made or recorded in the Himalayas during 1963-64. Whilst, for the first time, a similar chronicle has been compiled for the Peruvian Andes covering the period from 1958 to 1963. We are also given a list of the world's known peaks over 7,400 metres (24,280 feet) with details of ascents or attempts, compiled by G. O. Dyhrenfurth and A. Bolinder. This is followed by a list of height records ; and of the highest peaks in the Andes. The volume includes an excellent map-sheet of the Cordillera Vilcabamba, Peru, based upon photogrammetric survey carried out by the 1959 Swiss Andean expedition.

As usual, a wonderful collection admirably presented.

T. H. Braiiam

 

 

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THE MOUNTAINEER'S COMPANION. Edited by Michael
Ward. Eyre & Spottiswoode Ltd., London, 1966. Pp. 598. Illus. Price 50s.

Take an unlimited mountaineering library ; a lifetime of devotion to mountaineering literature ; several years of active involvement among mountains and mountaineers. Then carry out the luxurious exercise of selecting all that has seemed to you to be the best in mountain writing. Classify it; divide into groups the ranges of the world, great and small; throw in self-portraits of the great climbers ; and, for good measure, add a few anecdotes and legends. Put all this together into a well-illustrated volume: and my guess is that your’ Companion' is not likely to be much better than Michael Ward's. The editor is, indeed, to be congratulated on having compiled such a widely representative selection of mountain writing, spanning over 100 years of active mountaineering.

In his introduction to the volume, the Editor states that all the material included in his collection has been chosen because he has found it ⁴ interesting or enjoyable or both'. There is little doubt that all those who possess this book will share both the interest and the enjoyment of this distillation of all that is finest in mountain writing.

The writers chosen represent the widest range of personalities ; professionals and amateurs, who include poets, scientists, explorers, scholars ; and all those who go to the hills simply to enjoy them and to test their skills.

The volume is divided into nine sections beginning with The Nature and Fascination of Climbing. There are sections on The Alps, on British climbing, on the Himalayas ; and a comprehensive section devoted entirely to the various expeditions to Mount Everest. Other sections contain an appreciation of some of the great men of the mountains ; mountain accidents ; climbs in other ranges of the world ; whilst the last section contains various curios and tales of mountain devotion.

The Editor acknowledges that⁴ for the majority of mountaineers the aesthetic pleasure inherent in the mountain landscape is the most lasting quality in their climbing careers . . .' yet, that ' nowadays there are a number of very gifted climbers for whom rock gymnastics and the development of technique are sufficient pleasure, and the mountains of only passing interest.'

In an anthology so rich (Wilfrid Noyce's posthumously published Climbers Fireside Book is a volume similar though of smaller proportions) it would be invidious to single out those passages which give the most enjoyment. It is pleasant to encounter personalities famous in other spheres, Gertrude Bell in a storm on the Finsteraarhorn ; Freya Stark on the Marinelli couloir of Monte Rosa. And it is also exciting to follow two tigers, Terray and Rebuffat, battling with the Blaitiere. Side by side with those two, Bonnington on the great Pillar of the Brouillard seems almost uncommitted and ill-prepared. There are some well-written accounts of Scottish winter climbs by Patey and Banks ; a refreshing return to the rock-climbing of the thirties by Frank Smythe. There is humour in Fitzgerald's piece ; courage and honesty in an episode related by Gwen Moffat. There are timeless gems that will appeal to all from Younghusband, Winthrop Young, Longstaff and Mallory. And, finally, from Shipton: ' He is lucky who, in the full tide of life, has experienced a measure of the active environment that he most desires . . . There are few treasures of more lasting worth than a way of life that is in itself wholly satisfying . . . Nothing can alter the fact if for one moment in eternity we have really lived.'

The volume, which contains maps, drawings and numerous illustrations including two in colour, is beautifully produced.

T. H. Braham

 

 

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SCHOOLHOUSE IN THE CLOUDS. By Sir Edmund Hillary.
Hodder & Stoughton, London. Price 30s.

What is the best way of making an underdeveloped country help itself ?

Sir Edmund has some refreshing ideas ... ' Massive aid projects are essential where there are massive problems to be overcome. Yet too often they do little to create goodwill among the local people and frequently lead to an increase in cynicism, corruption and all the less desirable habits' . . . ‘One of the most successful creators of goodwill in recent years has been the American Peace Corps' . . . ' with worth-while motivation, the volunteers live simply in town and village, learn the local language, work with their hands and minds alongside the local people, and at the same time build up a fund of goodwill that does much to counteract the side-effects of more grandiose projects.'

Closely following the Peace Corps pattern, Sir Edmund had already made a start with a school at Khumjung in 1961. By a correct system of grant and a good choice of the teacher, the project provided a great success—enough to elicit petitions from other villages for a similar venture.

In 1963 the objectives were the building and establishment of two more schools in Solu Khumbu, at Thami and Pangboche ; organizing a freshwater supply with ‘alkathene' pipes at Khumjung and Khunde, and finally a climbing programme on Taweche (21,465 feet) and Kangtega (22,340 feet). An unexpected smallpox epidemic provided additional work to the two expedition doctors who were assigned the task of establishing a clinic in Khumjung for six months to give general treatment to all in that area. Quite a bit for one season.

The tale is related with much humour and insight into the Sherpa mentality. A sympathetic approach is not allowed to degenerate into a sentimental one and the high mutual regard between the members of the expedition and the local population is more often sensed than actually read.

The chapters on actual climbing are written by Jim Wilson (on Taweche) and Mike Gill (on Kangtega), both full of the most interesting technicalities.

The women's touch is presented in the form of diary notes of Lady Hillary.

The Sherpas have given much to Himalayan mountaineering and one salutes Sir Edmund's philosophy of repaying the debt (not only his own but of all those Himalayan mountaineers who climb with the Sherpa) in a manner designed to bestow benefit to the greatest number.

The colour photographs are a delight, although one would expect a much better quality of printing from an American firm who printed the book for the publishers.

Soli Mehta

 

 

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PLANTS OF DARJEELING AND SIKKIM HIMALAYA, 1967. By Dr. Kali Pada Biswas. Printed and published by the Superintendent, West Bengal Govt. Press, 1967. Price Rs.50.

The first part of the much awaited and coveted voluminous publication of the Plants of Darjeeling and Sikkim Himalaya has just come out of the West Bengal Govt. Press. This volume of 540 pages of large half-portfolio size is illustrated with 30 pen-and- ink sketches, 73 photos and 61 coloured pictures of plants with index to species and plates. It is a comprehensive publication on the vegetation of the East Himalayas representing plants from the foot of the hills, that is the Terai and Duars, up to the Alpine zone in the snow-line. During the course of over 150 years the plants of this one of the most interesting montane and sub-montane regions of the world, particularly of the most interesting and luxuriant subtropical, subtemperate, temperate, sub-Alpine and Alpine vegetation of the East Himalayas, were studied and the results published rather sporadically in many contributions including some monographic publications. The most important authentic works are those of T. Anderson, J. D. Hooker, C. B. Clarke, G. A. Gammie, George King, David Prain, William Wright Smith, J. S. Gamble, J. M. Cowan, all well-known botanists of world-wide fame and distinguished predecessors of the author.

It is the encouragement and inspiration that the author received personally from Sir David Prain and Sir William W. Smith that prompted him to undertake expeditions in the East Himalayas, particularly in the Darjeeling and Sikkim hill ranges, in season and out of season. Dr. Biswas got unique opportunities to carry on his studies on the vegetation of these parts of the hills for over a period of 25 years both in the field and the herbaria in India and abroad during the tenure of his service as the Superintendent of the then Royal now Indian Botanic Garden. Calcutta, and partly as the Director of the Botanical Survey of India. His studies in the world-famous Herbaria of the Royal Botanic Garden, Kew (England), Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh, and British Museum (Natural History), London, not to speak of the Herbaria at home of the then Royal now Indian Botanic Garden, Calcutta, and Lloyd Botanic Garden, Darjeeling, stood him in good stead. His floristic researches in these institutions and personal discussion with the greatest authorities on the subject proved to be helpful in the preparation of such an exhaustive and masterly floristic work.

The first volume of the work contains a historical account of the areas dealt with including geology, climate and people of Darjeeling, Sikkim and Bhutan with a special reference to the plants cultivated in the Lloyd Botanic Garden, Darjeeling. General features of the rich and varied vegetation of these mountain ranges have been treated in brief but with accuracy and precision about their altitudinal successions and ecological observations as also habitat with notes on their occurrence in a particular locality and also variations under diverse microecological conditions and biotic factors not only of the tropical and temperate rain forests of these hill ranges but also of the sub-Alpine and Alpine plants.

This has been possible for him as a mountaineer and Editor of the Himalayan Journal of international fame. The chapter on the affinity of Darjeeling and Sikkim vegetation to that of the central Nepal as recently recorded by the Japanese botanists from 1955 onwards indicating the range of distribution of the floras in this part of the world is an important phytogeographical contribution. The chapter on fern and fern allies along with flowering plants as found in these hills is another valuable addition which enables the reader to form a general idea of the Pteridophyta of different types composing mixed vegetation found growing wild in the valleys, ravines, meadows, fringe of the open and partially shaded areas of the forests and hill-sides of these mountain ranges.

The special chapter on rhododendrons is a critical monographic contribution. These most attractive flowers of the Sikkim Himalaya have been treated with reference to the Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker's classical work on the ⁶ Rhododendrons of Sikkim Himalaya, 1849,' supplemented by his observations on the correct systematic position of the Taxa based on his own field studies for many seasons and in consultation with type and authentic herbarium specimens at Kew. The list of plant-collectors, and last but not the least his relevant notes on the medicinal value of the plants of Darjeeling and Sikkim with accounts of the successful development on a commercial scale of the plantations of quinine and emetine-yielding plants as the largest in the world earning foreign exchange, proves to be of much practical value for those interested in medicinal plants and industries based on such plants.

It is a pity some of his photos and the coloured pictures have not been properly reproduced although printing is good. Nevertheless, these are valuable additions and give an idea about the hill people, the gardens, the plantations and the vegetation of Darjeeling, Sikkim and Bhutan hills.

This magnificent work on the plants of Darjeeling and Sikkim Himalaya fills up a long-standing lacuna in our knowledge of the flora of the East Himalaya. The book will undoubtedly be widely read and studied with much interest not only by botanists, but also mountaineers and all lovers of the wonderful Darjeeling and Sikkim flowers, the hill-folks and the monasteries of this part of the Himalayas as rightly stated by the late Dr. B. C. Roy, the then Chief Minister, West Bengal, in his preamble to the book. The book has appropriately been dedicated to Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, a genuine lover of the Himalayas.

It is expected that the two other volumes will soon come out of the press for the benefit of the botanists and all concerned.

S. M. Sircar
Director
Bose Institute, Calcutta

 

 

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ADDITIONAL REPORTS. Edited by Siro Kitamura and Rioze Yosii-Results of the Kyoto University Scientific Expedition to the Karakoram and Hindukush, 1965. Vol. VIII-1966, pp. 1-419 {with 11 geological maps and sketches and 10 photographs and numerous illustrations in black and white).

The series of the results of the Kyoto University Scientific Expedition to the Karakoram and Hindukush, 1955, has been ;he present volume. It consists of eight volumes:

Vol.I.Cultivated Plants and their Relatives, edited by K. Yamashita, 1965.

Vol.II.Flora of Afghanistan, edited by S. Kitamura, 1963.

Vol.III.Plants of West Pakistan and Afghanistan, edited by S. Kitamura, 1963.

Vol.IV.Insect Fauna of Afghanistan and Hindukush, edited by M. Ucno, 1963.

Vol.V.Personality and Health in Hunza Valley, edited by K. Imanishi, 1963.

Vol.VI.Zirni Manuscript, edited by S. Iwamura, 1961.

Vol.VII.Geology of the Karakoram and Hindukush, edited by S. Matsushita and K. Huzita, 1965.

Vol.VIII. Additional Reports, edited by S. Kitamura and R. Yosii, 1966.

The present volume contains reports of the research results on materials brought by the major expedition and those brought from related areas by the five expeditions as follows:

Geology, botany and zoology of the mountains have been very ably dealt with by the respective authors. Geology of the Western Karakoram, particularly stratification and geological structures studied by S. Matsushita and K. Huzita, and Botany by M. Hirano and Siro Kitamura. Zoological materials have been treated more exhaustively by as many as 28 entomological experts on the various groups of insects.

The results, of the study of algae of the southern part of the Pamir district are of considerable importance from the point of view of phyto-geographical distribution of these simpler types of plants from the centre of the ranges of mountains of Afghanistan and neighbouring areas so little known to botanists. Moreover, the observations on the algal collections are also very useful from the sanitary point of view.

The majority of these collections exhibit an oligohalophilous habitat especially in mountain areas of Mt. Noshaq. The algae collected from streams and springs surrounding the Base Camp on the high elevation of Mt. Noshaq do not contain many components formed under stagnant circumstances but some are noticeable especially in the desmids, The desmids are, in general, found in the water of stagnant and oligohalophilous habitat, therefore they are difficult to find in such a halophilous habitat in a dry climate district of Afghanistan. The writer supposes that if the desmids are distributed in Afghanistan it will be confined to the mountain area of Hindukush. In fact some of the species of desmids found in the waters of the Alpine region of Mt. Noshaq will probably belong to the boreal element as the writer mentioned for the desmids found from the Nuristan area. The species are the following:

Cosmarium magnificum Nordst., C. crenatum Ralfs var. bold- tianum W. and G. S. West, C. nonshaquense Hirano, sp. nov., Staurastrum yoshiianum Hirano, sp. nov.

The diatoms collected from spring and stream on the Alpine region of this mountain are as follows:

Diatoma hiemale (Lyngb.) Heib., D. vulgare Bory, Achnanthes coarctata (Breb.) Gom., Stauroneis anceps Ehrenb. var. amphi- cephala (Kutz.) V. H., Pinnularia brebissonxi (Kutz.) Cleve, P. lata (Breb.) W. Sm. var. pachyptera (Ehrenb.) Meister, Amphora delicatissima Krasske forma sinica Skvortzow, Cymbella cymbi- formis Kutz. var. nonpunctata A. CI., C. ventricosa Kutz., Gomphonema angustaum (Kutz.) Rabenh. var. sarcophagus (Gregory) V. H., Nitzschia palea (Kutz.) W. Sm. forma minuta A. CI., Hantzschia amphioxys (Ehrenb.) Grun. var. capitata O. Mull., var. rupestris Grun.

At the same time it is an interesting fact that Prasiola and Hydrurus species are growing frequently in the thawing water from glaciers. Quite a good number of species new to science have been described and these are valuable additions to the work. The book containing results of investigation on geological and biological materials of the Karakoram and Hindukush mountains fills up a gap in our knowledge. Such a publication is a welcome advancement to our knowledge of the rock, flora and fauna of this little known mountainous region.

The book, therefore, undoubtedly proves to be of great value to the geologist, entomologist, botanist and especially to the mountaineers interested in biology. This book thus contributes much to our knowledge of little known and unknown regions of the Karakoram and Hindukush mountains and valleys explored and studied so carefully and the results recorded in such details by the Japanese experts.

K. Biswas

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