32 IN TIBET AND CHINESE TURKESTAN.
undrinkable. The view from Camp 24 was most picturesque, the blue waters of the lake a few hundred feet from our tents, on an upper terrace which -had at one epoch been submerged, formed a striking contrast to the fine range of high, snow-capped mountains on the southern side. No doubt in circumstances causing less anxiety the majestic nature of the landscape would have been properly appreciated, but then I could not exclude from my thoughts the facts that Pike was very unwell, that nearly all our animals were in very poor condition, that the men were not behaving well, and that we had no idea of when and where supplies and transport could be procured. On many of the hills near Camps 24 and 25 there are numerous lines, which looked like boundaries consisting of stones and small mounds, about one foot high, at regular intervals apart. The caravan men attributed these to Chukpas or robbers, who formerly had come to these parts to graze their flocks, and no doubt for professional purposes also if opportunities occurred, but who were now debarred from coming by order of the authorities of Lhasa. There may be some truth in this statement, but it is not very apparent how the Lhasa officials can hold sway over professional robbers in this distant part of Tibet, unless the latter contribute- regularly to the state exchequer, or the pockets of its high officials, which are no doubt the same thing.
We were now in a country with a profusion of excellent grass, but water was not so plentiful. At one camp at the west end of the long valley leading into the lake north of and close to Aru Cho, the small stream by which we camped flowed only for a few hours daily, showing that the hot sun of a summer's day has only a very temporary effect on the glaciers at the western end of the snow range on the south side of the valley. Pike's riding pony, which had shown signs of weakness and
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