# From Kulja, across the Tian Shan to Lob-Nor/Chapter 2

CHAPTER II.
Let us now turn to the animal kingdom. It may be seen from the preceding brief sketch that the basin of the Lower Tarim and Lake Lob contain little for the support of mammalia. Of these we give a complete list in the appendix, and merely remark here that this country is ia general as deficient in the variety, as it is in the number of its mammals. Wild boar and hares excepted, all other animals are comparatively few, and some very scarce. This fauna, too, has no distinguishing feature, for, excepting the wild camel, most of the animals are also found in the Tian Shan, whilst the remainder are common to the deserts of Central Asia generally.
Neither is the country we are describing rich in birds, although one might have supposed that ​the woods and warm climate in the Tarim valley would have attracted many to winter here. Their absence, however, may be accounted for by the want of food, for, with the exception of oleaster, and even this in comparatively small quantities, there is not a single bush or herb with edible seeds. Fish, mollusca, and other small animals common to lakes and marshes, are beyond the reach of birds in winter. This is why neither waterfowl nor wading birds winter on the Tarim; birds of prey are also scarce, and only one songster appears in any number in winter, viz. the black-throated thrush (Turdus atrigularis) ; of the Columubidæ we observed three kinds in winter, not on the Tarim, however, but at Chargalyk, forty versts to the S. E. of Lake Kara-buran.
Most of the birds, of which a list will be found in the Appendix, were also observed by us in the valley of the Kaidu and near the town of Korla. Besides these we found Corvus frugilegus, C. ​monedula, Coturnix communis, Cynchramus polaris, Columba rupestris, Perdix daurica, Caccabis chukar, the three last named being peculiar to the mountains. Many more birds must, in my opinion, winter in the oases at the foot of the Tian Shan, where food is more abundant than on the Tarim and Lob-nor.
Of the forty-eight varieties of birds observed in winter on the Tarim, two are new species. Of these one named by me, Rhopophilus deserti, was also seen during my last expedition to Tsaidam. Having on that occasion only obtained two or three specimens, I decided not to form a separate species, but to call them a variety of Rhopophilus pekinensis Swinh. var. major. But now that I am convinced from a number of specimens of the constant recurrence of certain marks (greater size and pale-coloured plumage) distinguishing the Central Asian bird from its Chinese congener, I have distinguished it as a new species, under the name of "deserti," for it is characteristic of the desert, and is neither found north of the Tian Shan, nor in Russian Turkestan.
Another very interesting novelty among the birds of the Tarim, is a new Podoces. Hitherto we only knew of three species of this sub-genus. A fourth has now been added, which I have named Podoces tarimensis. The new Podoces ​does not differ in its habits from the closely-allied P. Hendersoni, and its range does not extend to the north of the Tian Shan, or into Russian Turkestan.
Of fish, only two kinds are known in the Tarim as well as in Lob-nor itself; the Marœna, and another (of the carp family) strange to me. Both are very numerous, especially the former, and they constitute the chief sustenance of the inhabitants.
Population is first met on descending the Tarim, at the mouth of the Ugen-daria; for administrative purposes the people are divided into two districts—the Tarimtsi or Kara-Kultsi, and the Lobnortsi proper or Kara-Kurchintsi. Let us say a few words concerning the former; we shall speak of the Kara-Kurchintsi later, in describing Lob-nor.
​We were informed that the present inhabitants on the Tarim originally lived at Lake Lob; but that a hundred years ago, owing to a scarcity of fish, and Kalmuk raids, they became dispersed along the banks of the Tarim. We could not ascertain whether, in earlier times, this river's banks were inhabited; one thing, however, is certain, that fugitives, and perhaps exiles, from different parts of Eastern Turkestan, were continually intermixing with the settlers from Lake Lob. Hence the Tarimtsi of the present day, originally doubtless of the Aryan race, have a curiously mixed type of features, and among them may be seen the physiognomy of Sarts, Kirghizes, and even Tangutans; now and then a thoroughly European face will attract your attention, or one characteristic of the Mongolian.
These natives are in general all remarkable for the pallor of their complexions, for their hollow chests and weak frames. The men are of average height, many even tall; the women (whom we rarely saw) are of smaller stature.
If we happened to enter one of their dwellings—the fair sex, married and single, invariably took to flight, disappearing like mice through the crevices of their reed walls.
Our companion, Zaman Beg, having had more opportunities of seeing and studying the ladies on the Tarim, spoke in terms the reverse of flattering of their beauty. One fair one he did except from ​his category, and she came from the village of Akhtarma, and was described as presenting a striking anomaly among her black-haired and dark-eyed countrywomen. She may probably have been a memento of the visit of some Russian starovertsi in 1862, of whom we shall say something presently.
As to the language, I can only say that our interpreter, a Taranchi from Kulja, had no difficulty in making himself understood on all parts of the Tarim and Lob-nor. Hence it may be inferred that the distinction between the Taranchi and Sart languages on the one hand, and the dialect spoken by the natives of these parts on the other is sight. Being myself ignorant of any of these forms of speech, I was unable personally to make any observations upon them, and the interpreter was too stupid to assist me.
The religion of all these people is Mohammedan, with a slight admixture of heathenish rites. For instance, they always bury their dead in canoes, and dispose the fishing-nets of the deceased round his grave.
Their dwelling-places are made of reeds which grow in abundance on the marshes and lakes of the Tarim valley. These habitations are constructed in the most primitive fashion. Bound, rough poplar poles are first driven into the ground at the corners and sides; to these are fastened cross-beams and rods to support the ​ceiling. The sides are covered with reeds fastened in some way together, and the ceiling is also of the same material, a square hole being left for the escape of smoke. In the centre of this apartment stands the fireplace; along the walls, on mats of felt or reed, the master and his family sleep, separate quarters being in some cases reserved for the women. On shelves fastened to the walls, are disposed the domestic utensils, &c. Close beside the habitation is an enclosure also of reeds for the cattle. Ten or more of such houses compose the village, which is not always stationary, for in winter they live wherever food for cattle and fuel are most abundant, whilst in summer they are dispersed over the lake for the purpose of fishing. But their chief motive in removing their villages to new sites is to avoid sickness; small-pox is especially dreaded, for it almost invariably terminates fatally. Any one falling ill of this complaint is abandoned to his fate; a little food is left by the side of the sick man, and the whole village decamps to another place, without further thought for their deserted brother. If he recover, which seldom happens, he returns to his relatives; in the contrary event, nobody troubles himself to bury him. Such of the graves as we saw were marked with long poles, decorated with coloured rags, deers' horns, wild yak tails, &c.
​The inhabitants on the Lower Tarim number 1200 of both sexes. The following is a list of their villages, with details of population:—
| Villages. | Houses. | Men. | Women. | Children. | Total. |
| Kutmet-kul | 6 | 10 | 14 | 18 | 42 |
| Akhtarma | 35 | 103 | 120 | 88 | 311 |
| Taiz-kul | 15 | 47 | 52 | 34 | 133 |
| Kara-kyr | 14 | 38 | 30 | 40 | 108 |
| Kiok-ala | 30 | 93 | 109 | 61 | 263 |
| Markat | 14 | 58 | 49 | 61 | 168 |
| Uiman-kul | 6 | 20 | 18 | 18 | 56 |
| Ehni-su | 12 | 38 | 23 | 30 | 91 |
| Airilgan | 4 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 12 |
| Total | 136 | 413 | 419 | 352 | 1184 |
The dress of the Tarimtsi consists of a camel's hair coat and trousers, a long shirt underneath, and a sheepskin cloak in winter,—a few, but these are exceptions, and only the most prosperous, wear the khalat and turban. The rich have shoes, the poor—sandals of their own make, fastened over felt stockings in winter; in summer their feet are bare. Their head-dress in winter is a lambskin cap turned up at the brim, in summer a felt hat.
The women wear a short khalat with girdle like ​that of the men, but unlike these, they always leave it unfastened; underneath is a shirt; the trousers are tucked into boots like men's. Their head-dress is also a fiir cap, beneath which is a white cloth flowing over the back, two ends being frequently tied under the chin. The men shave the entire head; the women braid their back hair into two tresses, allowing the front locks to fall half way down the cheeks, and keeping them cut to this length. Unmarried girls have only one tress behind. They obtain most of their wearing apparel and domestic utensils from the Korla merchants; some are of home make. The cloth is prepared from sheep's wool, or the fibre of the Asclepias plant, growing in abundance in the Tarim valley. In autumn and winter they collect the withered stalks of this plant, and after beating it with sticks, or with the hand, in order to separate the fibre, they boil it in water, cleanse and boil it a second time; after which it undergoes the final process of combing. The distaff used for spinning is of a peculiar kind, and the yarn thus obtained is woven, by means of a primitive loom and shuttle, into cloth of a very durable texture, not inelegantly decorated.
This cloth-manufacture and the preparation of wild beasts' skins are their only industry, although blacksmiths and bootmakers are occasionally found among them.
Their chief occupation is fishing, and fish ​constitutes their staple food. The nets they use are small and coarsely made. We shall describe their mode of fishing later, suffice it to say here that their lives are mostly passed on the water, and that they are expert in the management of their canoes, both men and women excelling in the art. The canoes are made of hollowed poplar-trees, and form an indispensable adjunct to every household. Their fish diet is varied by Asclepias root, roasted on the fire and eaten instead of bread — the latter being a delicacy reserved only for the very few rich among them. Agriculture is very backward on the Lower Tarim, and was only introduced here, as we heard, about ten years ago. Before sowing, the soil has to be irrigated by artificial dykes. Wheat and barley in small quantities are sown, but the harvest is never particularly good, owing to the saline nature of the soil. Cattle rearing is more general than agriculture. Sheep are the principal domestic animals, and yield an excellent fleece; but they are small, and of the fat-tailed kind; horned cattle of a fine, large breed, a few horses, and asses are also kept. Of camels there are none, the locality disagreeing with them. The reeds we have already mentioned are the only fodder for cattle, but sheep greedily devour besides the stalks of a prickly bush.
With regard to the moral side of the inhabitants of the Tarim, their chief characteristic, as with ​Asiatics in general, is laziness; and, next to this, dissimulation and suspicion; fanaticism does not run high here, and their family life is probably the same as that of other Turkestanis. The wife is mistress of her household, but at the same time her husband's slave, and he may turn her out whenever he chooses and take another, or keep several wives at a time. Marriage may be contracted for the shortest period, even though only for a few days. Their most peculiar habit is that of talking loudly, and with great rapidity of utterance; so much so, that on hearing them conversing with one another, a stranger might suppose that they were quarrelling. Their expression of astonishment is by smacking their lips, and exclaiming "Toba, Toba." For administrative purposes these people, together with the Lobnortsi, are under the governor of Korla, to whom they pay taxes.
To return to our narrative, after this long digression. Having crossed, in the way we have described, the Koncheh and Inchikeh rivers, we struck the Tarim at the point of its confluence with the Ugen-daria, whence another day's march brought us to Akhtarma, the largest of all the settlements on the Tarim and Lob-nor, and the residence of Akhoond Aehliam, governor of Tarim, ​who, notwithstanding his high-sounding title, signifying, as Zaman Beg informed us, "most learned of men," is quite illiterate. Here we halted eight days, and took astronomical observations for longitude and barometrical measurements of altitude, finding the latter to be 2500 feet above sea-level. The height of Lake Lob is 2200 feet, and therefore the fall of the Tarim, notwithstanding its rapid stream averaging three feet per second, is only slight.
From Akhtarma our road lay down the Tarim, now approaching its bank, now retreating to some distance from it. There is no valley in our sense of the word; neither the configuration nor quality of the soil changes even on the very bank of the river. The same loamy plain, the same drift-sand as in the desert, continue to within a hundred paces of the water. The very limited belt of irrigated land is only denoted by the marginal belts of trees, thick reeds in some places, or marshes and lakes in others. Travelling here with camels is extremely difficult, for you have to pass now through woods, or thick, prickly jungle; now ​through withered canebrake, whose roots, as hard as iron, lacerate the camel's hoofs till they bleed.
After crossing the Kiok-ala-daria, an arm of the Tarim, by means of a raft, we continued to make short marches, halting generally near the villages. Zaman Beg and his suite never left us at first; but at length, having convinced themselves that we had no particular object in view, they would generally ride forward to the next halting-place.
The inhabitants on our line of march had evidently been instructed to deceive us in everything that we could not see for ourselves; and never before having set eyes on Russians, about whom they had probably heard marvellous tales, they fled as though we had the plague, and to the very last suspected us of dishonesty, seeing that we, "the valued guests" of their ruler, were treated as spies, and led by circuitous roads in charge of an escort; their suspicions too were heightened, owing to their not understanding the object of our journey. Just as it happened to us in Mongolia and Kansuh, so now on the Tarim, the semi-barbarous natives could not believe it possible that we should undergo the hardships of travel, spend money, sacrifice camels, &c., merely for the sake of seeing a new country, collecting plants and skins, &c., objects which from their point of view were good for little, if not absolutely worthless. Animated by this spirit, the eagerness ​of the Tarimtsi to deceive us often went beyond all bounds, and became childish and silly.
The only person who would tell us the truth was Zaman Beg. But his knowledge of the language was deficient, and he was often the dupe of the natives, who suspected him of being friendly to the Russians.
The sheep supplied to us during the march were taken from the inhabitants, and nothing would induce them to accept payment. As some return for these acts of spoliation, I caused 100 roubles to be distributed among the poor of Lob-nor. On the Tarim, however, positive orders had been given not to take money, and the Akhoond of the district assured me that he had no poor.
After marching 190 versts down the Tarim from the mouth of the Ugen-daria, we reached the place where the Kiok-ala-daria reunites with the main stream. Here we crossed the Tarim a second time on a raft, at a place called Airilgan, where the river is 100 feet wide, and 21 feet deep. After receiving the Kiok-ala-daria, the Tarim again increases, its width being between 210 and 245 feet, these continue to be its dimensions until it discharges into Lake Kara-buran. Fifteen versts above its outflow into the lake, a small square mud fort (Kurgan) has been erected on the right ​bank; in this, at the time of our journey, there were only a few soldiers from Korla.
During the whole of our progress down the Tarim, i.e. during the whole of November and part of December, the weather was very fine, bright, and warm. The night frosts were certainly as severe as 7° Fahr.; but no sooner did the sun appear than the temperature rose rapidly, and it was not till the 19th December that the thermometer stood below freezing point at midday. It was probably about this time that the Tarim froze, although perhaps not entirely. Gales were of rare occurrence, but the air was excessively dry, and filled with vapoury dust. Of atmospherical deposits there were none, indeed the natives say that a snowfall is a rare occurrence in this country, happening perhaps once or twice in three or four winters, and thawing rapidly; rains, too, are very unusual in summer.
From the above-mentioned mud fort we directed our march, not towards Lob-nor, which was now near, but due south to the village of Chargalyk, founded thirty years ago by exiles and free emigrants from Khoten. The village now consists of twenty-one houses, and a mud fort to contain ​the exiles, who are compelled to cultivate the land for Government, whilst the other inhabitants reap their own crops. The water used in irrigating the soil is led from the Chargalyk-daria, which flows from the neighbouring Altyn-tagh mountains, an elevated range south of Lob-nor.
Three hundred versts to the south-west of Chargalyk, and under one governor with it, stands the small town of Cherchen, on a river of the same name. Hence it is ten days' march in a south-west direction to the oasis of Nai (900 houses), and three days' further to the town of Keria, said to contain 3000 houses. From Keria there is a road to Khotan, viâ Djira, all three places being included in the territory of Kashgar.
One day's journey from Keria gold is obtained in the mountains, and other gold-mines are situated five days' march from Cherchen, near the sources of the Cherchen-daria. The quantity of gold annually produced in these mines is said to be about 19 cwt., which finds its way into Yakub Beg's treasury.
On the site of the present village of Chargalyk, remains of mud walls of an ancient city, called Ottogush-shari, may be seen. These ruins are ​reported to be two miles in circumference, and watch-towers stand in front of the principal wall. Two days' journey from Chargalyk, in the direction of Cherchen, the ruins of another ancient city called Gas-shari are reported to exist; and, lastly, we discovered traces of a third very large city near Lob-nor, at a place called merely Kunia-shari, i.e. old town. We could learn of no traditions among the inhabitants respecting any of these ancient remains. Our inquiries as to the recent visit of Russian starovertsi to Lob-nor, led to important results. Persons who had witnessed the arrival of these strangers, who doubtless came to this remote corner of Asia to seek for the promised land of "Biélovódiye," said of them that the first detachment to arrive at Lob-nor in 1861 numbered altogether ten men. After prospecting the locality two of their number returned, and the following year a more numerous party, consisting of 160 men and women, appeared. They were all mounted on horseback, and carried their effects on pack-horses; most of the men were armed with old-fashioned muskets, and a few understood ​how to repair the guns, and even manufacture new ones; there were also carpenters and joiners among them. They supplied themselves with provisions by catching fish, and killing wild boar by the way; but they strictly adhered to their customs of eating no other food than that cooked in their own utensils, and avoiding prohibited meats. They were described to be courageous and persevering folk. Some of them settled on the Lower Tarim, near the fort of the present day; here they built themselves reed huts, in which they passed the winter. Others settled at Chargalyk, where they built a wooden house, perhaps intended to serve as a church, and this edifice has been quite recently swept away by the floods on the Cherchen river.
In the meanwhile a great many of the horses of the Russians had perished—some during the winter, and others on the journey, owing to the difficulties of the road, improper food, and swarms of mosquitoes. The immigrants were not pleased with their newly adopted country, and on the return of spring they decided on retracing their steps or seeking a better fortune elsewhere. The Chinese governor of Turfan, to whom Lob-nor was then subject, gave orders to supply them with the requisite horses and provisions; and one ​of our escort, Rakhmet Beg, was deputed to conduct them back to Ushak-tala, situated on the road from Kara-shahr to Turfan. On reaching the last-named place the emigrants departed for Urumtsi, and nothing has been since heard of them, for the outbreak of the Dungan insurrection interrupted communications with the trans-Tian-Shan districts. This is all we could ascertain about the starovertsi sometime resident at Lob-nor.
After a week's rest at Chargalyk, where I left the greater part of my baggage in charge of three Cossacks, I started with the three other Cossacks and my assistant, F. L. Eklon, the day after Christmas day, for the Altyn-tagh mountains to hunt the wild camel, which according to the unanimous testimony of the Lob-nortsi inhabits these mountains and the deserts to the east of them. Zaman Beg and his companions also remained behind at Chargalyk.
Our caravan now consisted of only eleven ​camels and a riding-horse for me. Eklon bestrode a camel. We took with us a yurta [felt tent] in case of severe cold, and provisions to last six weeks. Our guides were two of the best hunters of Lob-nor, in whose opinion hunting wild camels in winter offered few chances of success. We nevertheless decided upon trying our luck, for we could not defer making the attempt till spring, having other work to do then, such as observing the flight of birds.
Let us first describe the Altyn-tagh Mountains. This range is first seen from the Airilgan ferry, upwards of 100 miles off, whence it appears as an indistinct, narrow belt, hardly remarkable above the horizon. After the wearisome monotony of the Tarim valley and its adjacent desert, the traveller greets with pleasure this range, which gradually grows more distinct at the end of each successive march. Not only are the peaks distinguishable, but the principal ravines may also be traced, and an experienced eye can even from a great distance detect their relative height to be very considerable. On arriving at Chargalyk the Altyn-tagh appeared to us like a huge rampart towering up even higher towards the south-west, where it exceeded the limit of the perpetual snow line.
We succeeded in exploring these mountains, that is to say, their northern slopes, over an extent of 300 versts east of Chargalyk. Throughout the ​whole of this distance the Altyn-tagh serves to buttress a lofty plateau overhanging the Lob-nor desert, and most probably forming the northern limit of the Tibetan highlands; at least this is what the inhabitants gave us to understand, one and all assuring us that the south-western prolongations of the Altyn-tagh continued to margin the desert uninterruptedly as far as the towns of Keria and Khotan. According to the same informants this range stretches a long way in an easterly direction, but where it terminates none could say.
In the central part of the range where we explored it the topography is as follows: First, from Chargalyk to the Djagansai rivulet it stands like a perpendicular wall above the barren, pebbly plain, hardly if at all above the level of Lake Lob. From Djagansai to Kurgan-bulak rivulet (and possibly even further east), that is to say, exactly south of the lake, the plain rises in a steep but gradual incline to the foot of the mountains, until (at Asganlyk spring) it attains an elevation of 7700 feet above the sea. At Kurgan-bulak and eastward to the rivulet Djaskansai lies a confused network of low clay hills; east of this again hillocks of drift-sand, known under the name of Kum-tagh are reported to extend in a broad belt far away to the east (probably skirting the foot of the Altyn-tagh the whole way) to within two marches of Sha-chau.
​On the side of the desert the Altyn-tagh throws out spurs and branches separated from one another by narrow valleys, a few of which attain an elevation of 11,000 feet above sea-level. The peaks shoot up about two or three thousand feet higher, and this is probably the elevation of the main axis of the range, the descent to the table-land on the south being doubtless shorter, as we gathered not only from the testimony of our guides, but also from the general characteristics of most of the mountain ranges of Central Asia.
Although we were unable, owing to deep winter which set in and want of time, to cross to the other side of the Altyn-tagh, and measure the altitudes to the south of it, there can be no doubt of the plateau on that side being at least 12,000 or 13,000 feet above sea-level. This, at all events, may be inferred from the enormous elevation of the valleys in the front terraces of the range. Our guides, who had often hunted on the other side of these mountains, informed us that by going south along an old road, after crossing the Altyn-tagh one arrives at a lofty plain, fifty versts wide, bounded by a range (twenty versts in width) having no specific name, and beyond this again another plain, forty versts wide, abounding in morasses fed by springs (sasi), and confined on the south by a huge snowy ​range, the Chamen-tagh, these two valleys with their marginal ranges continuing far beyond the eastern horizon, whilst on the west all three—the Altyn-tagh, the unnamed, and the Chamen-tagh—unite not far from the town of Cherchen in one snowy chain, Tuguz-daban, extending to the towns of Keria and Khotan.
The natives distinguish under separate names the two parts of the Altyn-tagh; the mountains nearest to the desert of Lob they call Astyn-tagh (i.e. lower hills), those farthest removed from it towards the axis of the range, Ustiun-tagh (i.e. upper hills).
Clay, marls, sandstone, and limestone prevail on the outer border of Altyn-tagh, porphyry is not uncommon in the higher parts, but granite is rare. Water is very deficient in these mountains, even springs are rare, and in such as are to be met with, the water is mostly of a bitter-saline flavour.
These hills are in general characterized by extreme sterility, the scanty vegetation being confined to the upper valleys and gorges, where two or three kinds of the prevailing low, stunted, saline plants, three or four of the order Compositæ, and dwarf bushes of Potentilla, Ephedra, &c., may be found.
As a rarity I occasionally saw withered blossoms of Statice and climbing Euonymus. Tamarisk grows at the bottom of the ravines, reeds on the damper ground (up to 9000 feet), here and ​there may be seen dirisun, Calligonum and Nitraria, and in a few places poplar and wild rose; the latter, however, we only found in Asganlyk ravine. Most of these plants also grow on the border of the desert nearest to the mountains, where the gnarled saksaul also appears.
It is remarkable that notwithstanding the sterility of Altyn-tagh, locusts appear in such large numbers that in the summer of 1876 they devoured all the fronds and young shoots of the reeds for want of something better to eat, and were actually found in the mountains at an elevation of 9000 feet above the sea.
The northern slope of Altyn-tagh is not rich in animal life. We were told that wild beasts were more numerous on the high plateau to the south of the range, especially below, and in the midst of the Chamen-tagh mountains. Here is a list of the mammalia of Altyn-tagh:—
Felis irbis—very rare.
Weasel, Mustela intermedia?—rare.
Wolves and foxes rather scarce; the Tibetan wolf (C. Chanko) is reported to be seen.
Hares common in valleys; and distinct from the Lob-nor species.
Meriones, sp. in valleys—rare.
Wild camel (Camelus Bactrianus ferus)—rarely appears.
Ovis Poli—rare.
Mountain sheep (Pseudo-Nahoor)—common.
​Wild yak (Poëphagus grunniens, ferus)—rare.
Wild ass (Equus Kiang)—rare.
Wild pig (Sus scrofa ferus) in valleys—rare.
Besides the above a species of marmot and Hodgson's antelope are reported to frequent the Chamen-tagh range.
On comparing the above list with the mammalia of the Tarim valley, it will be seen that ten kinds inhabit the Altyn-tagh (together with the Chamen-tagh) which are absent from the Tarim valley and Lob-nor. Of these, the blue mountain sheep, wild yak, and Hodgson's antelope, are peculiar to Tibet, and here find the northern limit of their range.
Of birds there are only a few in the Altyn-tagh, as in winter we found but eighteen kinds.
The climate in winter is extremely rigorous, and snow falls rarely; at all events on the northern slopes. In summer, as we were told by the hunters, rains and cold winds are of frequent occurrence.
Besides hunters' tracks, there are two roads in ​these mountains; one leading from Lob-nor to Tibet, the other to the town of Sha-chau, neither of which are now used, the Kalmuks having discontinued their pilgrimages to Tibet since the outbreak of the Dungan insurrection. By the Sha-chau road, however, a few years ago some parties of Dungans succeeded in effecting their escape from the Chinese, and it was by this road that we pursued our journey to Chaglyk spring; beyond which our guides knew nothing of the country. The path is marked at the passes and at a few other places by piles of stones; in all probability it continues in the Altyn-tagh Mountains for the rest of the way to Sha-chau, the neighbouring desert being waterless.
For forty days we marched at the foot of the Altyn-tagh Mountains, and in the mountains themselves, accomplishing a distance of exactly 500 versts; but during the whole of this time we only saw one wild camel, and this we were unable to kill. Of other large game we only bagged a Kulan (wild ass) and a male yak. Upon the whole, then, this excursion was most unsuccessful and full of mishaps. At a great elevation, in mid-winter, in the midst of an extremely barren country, we suffered most of all from scarcity of water and frost (as severe as—16° Fahr.). Fuel was also ​very scarce, and owing to the ill success of our shooting parties we could not obtain a sufficient supply of fresh meat, and had to live on hares for some days. At the halting-places, the loose, saline, clayey soil pulverized instantly, and covered everything in our tent with a layer of dust. We ourselves had been unable to wash for a whole week, and could not endure our dirty condition, our clothes too became saturated with dust, and our linen of a dirty chocolate colour. In fact, we were experiencing a repetition of last winter's sufferings in Northern Tibet.
After a week's halt near Chaglyk spring, and fixing its latitude and longitude, we decided on returning to Lob-nor to observe the flight of birds, which would soon take place. Two of our guides were to return once more to the mountains to seek for wild camel, as it was indispensable that we should procure a specimen at any cost. As an additional incentive I offered a reward of 100 roubles for a male and female, being fifty times the price usually obtained for them by the native hunters.
* ↑ In the end of November, however, we met with single specimens of Carbo cormoranus, Anas clypeata, Harelda glacialis, Larus brunneicephalus, but these had probably been left behind by their fellows, and perhaps would have taken their departure later. Besides these in Lob-nor itself, as the natives informed us, Botaurus stellaris, and Gygnus olor occasionally winter amongst the reeds where the frost does not penetrate.
* ↑ [Blanford found the black-throated thrush, common in Báluchistán in winter, as well as in the miserable apologies for gardens at Gwádar, one of the most desolate of inhabited spots on the earth's surface."—(Cf. Eastern Persia, vol. ii., zoology, p. 158.)—M.]
* ↑ Podoces Panderi, P. Hendersoni, P. humilis.
* ↑ I.e. of or belonging to the Tarim, where it was first discovered, and to the basin of which river it appears exclusively to belong. [Since I began this translation, Col. Prejevalsky has informed me that the new species of Podoces mentioned in the text, has been identified as P. Biddulphii, discovered during Sir D. Forsyth's expedition to Kashgar.—M.]
* ↑ [This bird appears to bear a closer resemblance to the chough than to any other, and Shaw said that they were good eating. See Lahore to Yarkand, p. 244.—M.]
* ↑ We have several excellent specimens of Lob-nor and Tarim fish in our collection.
* ↑ After Lake Kara-Kul, near which lives an akhoond who governs the people on the Lower Tarim.
* ↑ More correctly Kara-Koshuntsi from the word Kara-Koshun, i.e. black district or quarter.
* ↑ The wild yak inhabits the mountains to the south of Lob-nor.
* ↑ The villages are here given in regular order, beginning from the mouth of the Ugen-daria, and descending the Tarim to Lake Kara-buran.
* ↑ Not far from this village, on the opposite side of the Tarim, lies Lake Kara-kul, which has given its name to the inhabitants of the Tarim valley.
* ↑ Korla is 2600 feet above sea-level.
* ↑ I take the mean of two measurements, one early in December below the mouth of the Kiok-ala-daria, the other in March near Lake Lob. The former gave 3·2 per second, the latter 2·83.
* ↑ The valley of the Tarim, however, from the mouth of the Ugen-daria to the village of Akhtarma is distinctly defined; it is five or six versts wide, and marshy almost throughout.
* ↑ At Airilgan ferry a boat capsized, turning one of the Cossacks and me into the river. Fortunately we swam ashore and escaped with a ducking (10th December).
* ↑ The reason of our not proceeding direct to Lob-nor was that it suited our escort's convenience to winter at Chargalyk, and we were again deceived by the assurance that there was no road to Lob-nor
* ↑ Including nine houses of Lob-nortsi.
* ↑ Numbering 114 of both sexes.
* ↑ Eleven days caravan journey.
* ↑ Is not this the Charchand of Marco Polo? We were told that Cherchen only contains thirty houses at present, but I cannot vouch for the accuracy of this information.
* ↑ I.e. the city of Ottogush, formerly Khan of this place.
* ↑ [Col. Yule is of opinion that this must be the city of Lop or Lob of Marco Polo and Mirza Haidar (see Marco Polo, ii. 201.)—M.]
* ↑ [Literally Old Believers; they are dissenters from the Russian Greek Church, for some account of their sects, vide chap. XX. of Wallace's Russia.—M.]
* ↑ Some said there were only seventy Russians, but the former figure is most probably correct.
* ↑ [For ecclesiastical system of Old Believers, see Duncan's Russia, ii. 225, Herberstein in Hakluyt, vol ii., and supplementary note.—M.]
* ↑ [According to Route XVI. in the Geogr. Appendix to Capt. Trotter's Report of the survey operations in E. Turkestan, 1873-74, Ushak-tal is the third stage from Kara-shahr, on the road to Turfan, the route from Turfan to Urumtsi is also given (ibid. Route XVII.)—M.]
* ↑ [Col. Yule informs me that these mountains are described in dry Chinese fashion, in the Chinese hydrography of the Kashgar basin, translated by Stan. Julien in the N. Annales de Voyages for 1846 (vol. iii.). They seem, however, to describe the mountains as approaching within some twenty miles of the Tarim-gol, which we gather from this notice of Prejevalsky is not the case.—M.]
* ↑ Average rise 120 feet in the verst.
* ↑ Ten versts long by four and five wide, and often less.
* ↑ [For a description of these animals see Mongolia, by the same author, English translation, vol. i. chap. vi. and vol. ii. chap. vi.—M.]
* ↑ Gypaëtus barbatus, Vultur cinereus, Gyps himalayensis, Falco æsalon, Aquila fulva, Accentor fulvescens, Leptopeiles Sophiæ, Turdus mystacinus, Linota montium, Erythrospiza mœogolica, Carpodacus rubicilla, Corvus corax, Podoces Biddulphii (up to 10,000 feet), Fregilus graculus, Otocoris albigula, Caccabis chukar, Megaloperdix sp., Scolopax hyemalis.
* ↑ From the 26th December to the 6th February.
* ↑ I fired at this camel at 500 paces and missed him; a memorable miss for a sportsman.
* ↑ Hence I rode into the Kum-tagh sands after camels, but without success.