This Day in History: 1912-01-24

Major A B Lindsay wrote to his grandmother from Dakku while on the Abor Expedition: “A line to say that I am very well and all is going right. We left Janakmukh on 22 January 1912 and camped at Bomjir on the site of the 1894 massacre when local tribesmen killed 42 sepoys. On 23 January we climbed a 4000′ hill and dropped down 3000′ over the most difficult ground to Silli. The coolies were dead beat. Today we moved on to Dakku, another 8 hour day, but our coolies are tired out and so we must halt tomorrow. We should reach Passi on 26 January and on the following day reach Damrah where we hope to reach the eternal snows and get in a lot of useful work. The people on this side are more well-to-do than the Panghis across the valley whom we have visited before. They have more clothes to wear and a certain number of guns. They have nothing to sell worth having.”

Modern map showing the approximate area in which the Abor Expedition took place.

Janakmukh Post, the Dihang River (as this section of the Brahmaputra is known) and distant Abor Hills (photograph from the Regimental History).