mountains, so that the lower hills north of our road were also partly covered with snow, which in no small measure heightened the beauty of the scene. Immediately after starting we passed some trenches with parapets made during some manoeuvres, and further on in the Allai valley we saw some larger ones belonging to the time when the country was conquered by the Russians. In the eastern part of the valley there are some ruins of Chinese fortifications built about 5o years ago.
In a Kirghiz village consisting of 4. or 5 kibitkas I was able for the first time to watch the women rolling blankets of wool and camel's hair. With the permission of their husbands I photographed a dozen old and young women at this occupation. The cattle are tall and fine, the most beautiful I have seen so far, piebald cows and oxen, red, red and white, or black and white. The mares are beautiful and deep-chested. — The road ascends constantly, becoming steeper the nearer it approaches the eastern end of the Allai valley. Here the valley runs into hills divided by the beds of streams (mostly dry at present) that lead gradually and almost imperceptibly to the summit of Tumburun (»The Frozen Nose») which is about the same height as Taldik. The barometer, uncorrected, indicated approximately 3500 metres. A great number of caravans with merchandise met us on the way. One caravan of 500 or 600 camels moved across the plateau in a number of columns. The ability of the camels to keep at an equal distance from each other creates the impression of soldiers drilling. At 5 p.m. we reached a narrow, short valley on the other side of Tumburun, where I was delighted to see kibitkas put up. The cropped grass and clearly visible tracks of hundreds of horses indicated that this spot was frequently used as a resting place for caravans. Towards evening the cold became fairly severe. We had to wait a couple of hours before we got the mutton necessary for our soup. A brace of wild pigeon I had just shot, roasted on a spit, fortunately put matters right for me. There was heavy hail at night.
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