CHAPTER THREE.
THE PLANT-HUNTER AND HIS COMPANIONS.
Karl Linden, a young German student, who had taken part in the revolutionary struggles of 1848, had by the act of banishment sought an asylum in London.

Like most refugees, he was without means; but, instead of giving himself up to idle habits, he had sought and obtained employment in one of those magnificent "nurseries" which are to be met with in the suburbs of the world's metropolis.

His botanical knowledge soon attracted the attention of his employer, the proprietor of the nursery--one of those enterprising and spirited men who, instead of contenting themselves with merely cultivating the trees and flowering-plants already introduced into our gardens and greenhouses, expend large sums of money in sending emissaries to all parts of the earth, to discover and bring home other rare and beautiful kinds.
These emissaries--botanical collectors, or "plant-hunters," as they may be called--in the pursuit of their calling, have explored, and are still engaged in exploring, the wildest and most remote countries of the globe--such as the deep, dark forests upon the Amazon, the Orinoco, and the Oregon in America; the hot equatorial regions of Africa; the tropical jungles of India; the rich woods of the Oriental islands; and, in short, wherever there is a prospect of discovering and obtaining new floral or sylvan beauties.
The exploration of the Sikhim Himalaya by the accomplished botanist, Hooker--recorded in a book of travels not inferior to that of the great Humboldt--had drawn attention to the rich and varied _flora_ of these mountains; and in consequence of this, the enterprising "seedsman" who had given Karl Linden temporary employment in his garden, promoted him to a higher and more agreeable field of labour, by sending him as a "plant-hunter" to the Thibetan Himalayas.
Accompanied by his brother, Caspar, the young botanist proceeded to Calcutta; and, after a short residence there, he set out for the Himalayas--taking a direction almost due north from the city of the Ganges.
He had provided himself with a guide, in the person of a celebrated Hindoo hunter or "shikaree," called Ossaroo; and this individual was the sole attendant and companion of the two brothers--with the exception of a large dog, of the boar-hound species, which had been brought with them from Europe, and that answered to the name of Fritz.
The young botanist had come to India furnished with a letter of introduction to the manager of the Botanical Garden of Calcutta--an establishment of world-wide renown.

There he had been hospitably received on his arrival in the Oriental city; and during his sojourn he had spent much of his time within its boundaries.

Moreover, the authorities of the place, interested in his expedition, had given him all the information in their power as to the route he intended pursuing--though that was not much: for the portion of the Himalayas he was about to explore was at that time a _terra incognita_ to Englishmen--even in the city of Calcutta! It is not necessary here to detail the many adventures that befel our plant-hunter and his party, during the progress of their journey towards the Himalayas, and after they had entered within the grand gorges of these mountains.