THE ARKA-KÖL, TAJEK-KOL, KARA-KÖL, ETC. 493
poplars on them; one of these bore the common name of Kök-toghrak. On the left lay Kasan-käti-köl. Then we turned to the north-east. We now had no difficulty in getting along, there being no narrow tschapghans to hinder us. And yet these open sheets of water were not particularly great, for, as is usually the case, the kamisch occupies the greater part of their area. We encamped at Kadike, one of the larger temporary settlements in the Lop region, a place of Io ujlik, with respectively 4, 6, 5, 3, 4, 5, 3, 3, 4, and 3 inhabitants, or 4o in all, giving an average of 4 persons to each household. But at that time only the oldest and the youngest members of the s.ettlement were at home; those who were capable of work were at Jangi-köl tilling the ground. In winter all these families dwell at the mähallä of Jangi-su. All the fishing settlements we passed between Tosghak-tschantschdi and Soghot are subject to the bek of Jangi-su. Scattered over the district are 42 ujlik, and to them must be added 25 ujlik at Jangi-su itself and one ujlik at At-jegen on the Jätimtarim. The beklik, or »administrative district», of Jangi-su is considered to number 498 people in all. Its southern boundary runs through Arghamtschi-baghlaghan immediately south of Arghan, and its northern through the following points — Modschukkotan, Jalghus-toghrak (between the Kuntschekisch-tarim and the Tschong-tarim), Tajir-tschapghan (on the left bank of the Laschin-darja), and Agir-asti on the right bank of the Tarim.
From Kadike I next made a little trip to the Avullu-köl, the result of which was not only to clear up to a great extent the intricacy of this complicated eastern system, but also to confirm observations which I had previously made, as well as to corroborate the information which I had received. After crossing the lake to the north-east, we paddled along the Kadike-ilek; this, after picking up on its left the ilek of Mandschar-baschi, unites with the Bos-ilek (Ördek-jaghutsch-ilek ; Kontschedarja), and then our course ran due south. Thus the Avullu-köl lies almost due east of the Tschivilik-köl. The stream was by this a pretty considerable river, with a powerful current and deep clear water; but it was for the most part bordered with reeds on both sides. Soon however toghrak forests appeared, sparsely on the right, but luxuriant, and situated amongst sand-hills on the left. All along the river sheds off numerous small canals, some of which soon return to it again, while others go their own ways until they empty into the Avullu-köl or the Kara-köl. At length our direction became more easterly; on the right we passed a large arm which proceeds direct to the lake last mentioned. Finally the river, splitting into innumerable branches amongst the reeds, in this way empties itself into the Avullu-köl, with a velocity which amounted to 0.84 m. in the second. Before we reached moderately open water we had a hard struggle to get through the kamish and jäkän; this lake presents the same marshy appearance as its neighbours. The depths we measured were 2.25, 2.82, 3.90, 4.54, and 6.10 m.; this last is said to be the maximum depth in this lake. When we were unable to advance any farther owing to the ka-misch, we turned back; it was at a point whence we could see, in the north and N. 35° E., the poplars that stand beside the route I followed in 1896. The nearest were about i'/2 km. distant, and the whole of the intervening space was occupied by kamisch. The stream quits the lake in two arms. Of these the left one is said to issue to the east of the point where we turned back, and to proceed to the ad-
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