THE HUNSERAB VALLEY. 45
Westwards from Hojet-bai there is a road to Kara-chukur, Bak, Min-/eke, Vakjir and Kok-turuk. East of Hoje/-Bai, Shiralji jilga comes out from the vicinity of the Ship alji Peak; it is inhabited by Tajiks during the winter. Ku/as-soidu is a
yeilak (summer grazing ground) or shevär (pronounced shvär, meadow along the river) now inhabited by Vakhanliks. Kichik-Sasik-/eke and Chong Sasik-/eke are small valleys in the mountains to the west of our valley. Another on the same side is called Yetimdube. Opposite the latter we pass along the rocks of the right or eastern side of the valley, where excellent grass grows on both sides of the river. The place is usually simply called Masar, though its name is properly Sultan-Seïd-Asan-masar. On the right bank of the Hunserab there was here an aul of ten black tents inhabited by Kesek Kirgizes. Their yaks and sheep were grazing in the neighbourhood. Above this place there is a small Kirgiz cemetery with cupola-shaped tombs, and still higher up is a small jilga, Masarning-bashi.
At the western side a large tributary valley, Parpak, opens, the yeilaks of which were used by Tajiks and Vakhanliks; the same is the case with the valley Teshik-/ash. A projecting rock at the right or eastern side of the valley consists of hard greenstone in i 4.° S. 3o° W., and is called Burgu-toase. The living rock crops up from amongst the gravel and the blocks.
Next, to the east, we pass the mouth of the large tributary Ilik-su (also pronounced Ileg-su) with a pass and a two days' narrow and difficult road to Raskandaìya. Some passages on the eastern side of the gorge were said to be filled by blocks amongst which a river flows; the road is passable only when there is little water in the rivers, as now was the case. In the mouth of Ilik-su were very good pasturages; its brook had now nearly no water at all, though it may be large after sunny days.
Our road is comfortable, as the ground is hard ; consisting of dust and sand with tussocks and grass ; sometimes it is gravelly. Sar-arik is a region on the left side of Hunserab where the grass is particularly good. The valley is comparatively broad. It is still a long way to the black and white crests and peaks in the south. In nearly all directions are magnificent, snow-covered mountains. Those to the south belong to the Kara-korum, and on their far side is Kanjut. The road across the pass of Hunserab was said to go to a place in Kanjut called Gircha, to which also the Min-teke road comes down.
In the lower part of the right tributary, Kara-su, where we camped, the grass was good but no inhabitants were seen; only in the upper reaches of the valley Vakhanliks were said to camp. The Kara-su valley also leads to a pass. As a rule travellers to Yarkand take the road of T ash - kurgan. The narrow passage east of Ilik-su mentioned above is two and a half days in length and was said to have been very much destroyed by the last earthquake, heaps of blocks and gravel
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