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Digital Archive of Toyo Bunko Rare Books
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| 0140 |
The heart of a continent : vol.1 |
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On the summit of each little knoll was a heap of stones,
which, in the dark, we should inevitably have mistaken for men,
and probably have wasted a lot of ammunition on them, as
the guide was careful to tell me that if I did not shoot any
man I saw sharp, he (the brigand, not the guide) would shoot
me. We halted at 6.30, near a small water-hole in the valley.
We started again soon after four in the afternoon, and an
hour later reached the dry bed of a river flowing south, one
hundred feet below the camp, and the lowest point I have yet
reached in the Gobi (probably two thousand eight hundred
feet). Here there was one very large cairn of stones and a lot
of smaller ones, marking the place where a large caravan
carrying silver was attacked five years ago, nine men being
killed, the silver carried off, and the remainder of the men left
to continue their way as best they could on foot across this
awful desert.
For three miles further we passed through low hills. At
every hundred yards or so was a small pile of stones, to which
our two Mongols used regularly to add one or two. At the
point where the hills ended were two large cairns, one on
each side of the road. To these the Mongols added more
stones, carefully building them up, and giving a sigh of relief
as we left the hills and entered an open plain again.
At dusk we approached a hollow, in which was some water.
The guide fearing that brigands might be encamped near this,
we repeated the stage-conspirator performance, advancing
noiselessly with revolvers in hand. Nobody appeared, however,
and when we got on the open plain again, we resumed our
former peaceful demeanour. It was a very disagreeable march,
very dark, sultry, and oppressive, and we got along very slowly,
as Mongols and camels were both very tired.
We camped at midnight, with no water within twelve miles.
I opened the second bottle of sherry which I had brought
from Peking, and which I had reserved for the worst part of
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