debouches over against Kenki, a village of 8 or 9 steadings, surrounded by orchards and fields, where we encamped for the night. Amongst the fruits cultivated are apples, pears, peaches, and mulberries; while the other crops embrace wheat, barley, melons, and so forth. Besides these things we were offered carrots, turnips, onions, and other vegetables, and poultry and eggs were to be had in abundance. We were again in East Turkestan, in a milder and more hospitable climate; but the absolute altitude was now only 2200 m.
After granting ourselves a day's rest, we resumed our march down towards the lowlands. The dust persisted through both the 6th and the 7th May; indeed on the latter of these two days it was thicker than ever. In addition to that the wind blew strongly from the north, and the natives declared, that one of the usual sarik-burans was raging in the lowlands; for when a kara-buran is blowing the haze is wont, even so far up, to be a good deal thicker than it was then. They look upon the cuckoo as a sure weather prophet, for he always sings in a distressed note when a buran is coming on. The inhabitants of the village of Sologhas, situated farther down — in fact the place does not belong to our glen, but is entirely dependent for its drinking-water upon that derived from the melting of the snows — assert that hazy weather like that which then prevailed is favourable for the crops, because at such times the river flows uniformly and regularly, and consequently the water admits of more even distribution, and so' is more beneficial to the fields. On bright and sunny days, on the contrary, the thaw-water flows much too rapidly and in too concentrated a stream to allow of its being utilized to full advantage. The numerous villages which during the course of the day we were to pass in the big glen that runs down from the pass of Sandschu are in this respect less dependent upon the river; for, as we learnt, that part of the glen is supplied, even when the sky is clouded, with an abundance of water, derived from mountainous districts into which the dust-haze and its effects do not penetrate.
The name Kenki or Kengri has reference to the breadth of the glen, although some ventured to assert that it is a corruption of Chaneka. From that point we continued our journey down the glen with a new supply of fresh horses, keeping to the right bank and passing in succession the villages of Sälpütsch (with three steadings), Dovalik (5 steadings), Kum-arik, Kisil-basch, Isme-sala, Ara-jangal, Toghöjlik, Savo (too steadings), Kajtschile, and Dung-tscheke. The villages followed one another so thick and fast that at last it was as though we were riding through a continuous street or along a highway with long grey walls on each side of it. Of the other villages in the glen I will mention Tschakende-aghil, Tschamgor-tagh, which is said to be situated near to Kenki and to consist of 30o scattered steadings; Sejtlar, Baskak, Tägirmän-baschi, with a large irrigation canal going to Sanguja; Tschäsgham; Siklik with a lenger or guest-house; Dung-bagh; Basch-kantschi, with four steadings; Masar Danisch Bende, with two steadings; Baghlar, with 15o steadings (or ujliks); Saj-bagh, of the same size; Tschüdar, with too steadings; Tschahrvagh, with 150; Moköjle and Mudschi. This is not however a complete list. Several of these villages belong to the large oasis of Sandschu. Yet all belong to the glen that runs from the Sandschu-davan and finally divides into the two glens of Mudschi and Sanguja, whereupon the river breaks up in deltaic fashion before it finally be-
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