KASHMIR AND THE HIMALAYAS 123

But comparisons of this sort fail to impress the mind
with an idea of the real grandeur of the Himalayas. To
watch the early dawn breaking over a line of towering
snow peaks in the clear mornings of early October,
and from the shadowy hillside to count the pinnacles one
by one as the first rays of the sun awaken them from
the blue stillness of sleep to the brilliant glow of early
life ; to see the shadows chased away out of the rifts of
crag and gully till the flat depths of mountain mystery

ABOVE Ean

The Alps and the Himalayas on the same Scale.

are broken into countless shapes with the chequered beauty
of light and shade, and the great majesty of the everlasting
hills slowly resumes its daily form—this is the way to
secure a lasting impression of the Himalayas.
Beyond Kumaon to the north-west, stretching across
the Jumna to the borders of Kashmir, are a variety of
small native states, both Sikh and Rajput, all under
British control, some of them of little or no political importance,
 others (such as Patiala) a source of strength
to the Empire for the loyal support that they bring to
the Government in times of stress and difficulty. Others