Southern Tibet : vol.4 / 182 ページ（カラー画像）

0182	Southern Tibet : vol.4
南チベット : vol.4

here is too little known to allow us a guess regarding this road. But it is not im-
possible that the mountainous country north or N. N. E. of the lake of Camp XXXIII,
may be easier than the region farther west, where the high Kwen-lun Mountains
have been explored by Stein. Regarding the S. E. continuation of the old road from
Camp XLVIII onwards, we will see that I was fortunate enough to find a com-
paratively comfortable passage, where high mountains and difficult passes could be
avoided. And, after all, there may, of course, exist other passages east of my route
which are still easier. Under such conditions the ruins we found may have been a
resting place and a head camp to which provisions were brought in advance and stored
until the final dash of the invasion group was undertaken and which was freshly
equipped at the relay station in question. By other means this adventurous and
audacious expedition could hardly have been successful. Other stations of the same
kind, perhaps larger and more elaborated, may also have been placed along the
road of the army of invasion. Perhaps in the future when the country is better known,
this problem will be solved.
On October 28th we marched 19.8 km. S. E. to Camp XLIX, where the ab-
solute height was 5,205 m. or 52 m. above Camp XLVIII, thus having a rise of
1:381, or practically level ground. From Camp XLVIII the ground falls extremely
slowly to the lake which, so far as can be judged from the whole formation of its
basin, must be very shallow. We cross the very flat and broad watercourse from
the north, and reach the shore, consisting of fine gravel and sand here and there
interrupted with small elevated patches of grass. At several meters' distance from
the edge of the water, there is a belt of black, rotten lake weeds, indicating that the
salinity of the water is not so great that it kills vegetation. Quite fresh shore-lines
proved that the lake grows bigger in summer when a certain amount of water from
the melting snow comes down. Now everything was frozen and dead and hard as
stone. To the south the lake was bounded by low hills. To the east the plain
rose very slowly towards the base of the mountain ridge where our route was passing.
The latitudinal valley we are following is extraordinary in so far that it runs
from N. W. to S. E., proving that there exist very conspicuous exceptions from the
rule that the valleys and ranges in this part of Tibet stretch from W. S. W. to
E. N. E. With low hills to our left and the lake for a while to our right, we
continue S. E. over flat ground, very rich in yapkak and grass and millions of rab-
bits' holes. One herd of antelopes had 60 individuals. Dung of wild yak is abun-
dant. One eagle was seen. It should be noted that wolves, though not numerous,
live nearly everywhere where we had passed. Not a drop of water, nor any ice
was seen during the march. But a large number of small watercourses from the
eastern hills, directed W. S. W. to the lake, were crossed. They were very shallow,
and appeared only as narrow barren ribbons in the grass steppe. Only one of them,

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