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[1] 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,[2] 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
