National Institute of Informatics - Digital Silk Road Project
Digital Archive of Toyo Bunko Rare Books
|
|
Color Thumbnail -
Table of Contents -
Page Number -
Biliographic Information (Metadata) -
Caption -
Color Image -
Gray HighRes. Image -
Facing Pages -
Graphics -
| 0149 |
The heart of a continent : vol.1 |
Citation Information
OCR Text
June 23. — The gravel plain gradually gave way to a
light clay soil, with plenty of bushes ; and a little further we
came on a regular meadow, with herds of cattle, sheep, and
ponies, and several Mongol tents. We even saw patches of
cultivation and trees, and water was plentiful, and was led on
to the fields by irrigation ducts. Wheat was the only crop
grown. The Mongol is evidently not fitted for agriculture,
for the plots of cultivation were in the most untidy state.
There were no signs of furrows, and the seed had evidently
been thrown broadcast over the land ; in some places it was
very thick, and in others very thin. This was the first real
oasis we had come across. It is in a depression between
the range of hills, the ground gently sloping down to it from
every side.
The name of this oasis is Ya-hu. It is about five miles in
extent from west to east, and rather more from north to south.
Some twelve miles to the west is a remarkable hill, called by
the guide Ho-ya-shan. It rises very abruptly out of the plain
to a height of about two thousand feet, and is a perfectly
solid mass of rock of a light colour. There is said to be
water on the summit, possibly in the crater of an old volcano,
as in the Pei-shan in Manchuria.
On June 25 we reached Ula-khutun, where the road to
Hami leaves the road to Guchen. It is merely a camping-
ground, situated in a stony plain, surrounded by low mounds
or heaps of gravel, at the southern base of a branch from the
main range of the Altai Mountains, from which it is separated
by a gravelly plain about twenty miles in width—the exten-
sion westward of the same plain in which Ya-hu is situated.
The height of this southern ridge must be considerable, for
a heavy snowstorm was falling on it even so late in the year
as this (June 25), and the snow seemed to remain there.
A peculiarity common to all the mountains which I had
seen in the Gobi—the long, even, sloping gravel plains which
1
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
12
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
22
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
32
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
43
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
53
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
63
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
74
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
85
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
96
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
106
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
116
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
126
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
137
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
147
148
149
150
151
|
.
.
.
.
157
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
169
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
179
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
189
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
199
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
210
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
222
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
233
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
243
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
255
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
266
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
277
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
287
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
297
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
307
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
317
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
327
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
337
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
347
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
357
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
367
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
378
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
388
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
398
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
408
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
419
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
430
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
440
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
450
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
461
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
471
.
.
.
.
|
.
.
.
.
482
.
.
485
Copyright (C) 2003-2026
National Institute of Informatics
and
The Toyo Bunko. All Rights Reserved.
