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| 0055 |
On Ancient Central-Asian Tracks : vol.1 |
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occupy island-like terraces rising high above the wind-
eroded bare ground close by. The debris of walls or the
fallen trunks of trees had here protected the soil from erosion
and thus preserved the original level, while the ground
around was being scooped out around them lower and
lower.
The possibility of permanent human occupation within
the Tarim basin is confined to the small zone of oases left
between the Taklamakan and the encircling mountain
ranges. Owing to extreme aridity cultivation here wholly
depends on canal irrigation. The same deficiency of atmo-
spheric moisture restricts grazing to the narrow belts of
riverine jungle. This explains why the great migrating
tribes of Wusun, Sakas, Yüeh-chih, Huns, Turks, Mongols
and the rest, who during the last two thousand years were
in successive possession of the northern slopes of the T'ien-
shan, were always ready to raid or to make tributary the
oases of the Tarim basin, but never crossed the range to
occupy it permanently. To them the laborious and narrowly
circumscribed life of the cultivator in these irrigated oases
could offer but little attraction as long as there were big
open grazing grounds to hold or to conquer.
The cultivated ground within the Tarim basin could never
have borne more than an extremely slight proportion to
the extent of absolute desert it comprises. As the map shows,
the green oases of the basin appear like mere specks and
splashes on the big canvas of yellow and light brown which
marks the desert. The aridity of the climate accounts for
the striking uniformity in physical conditions which prevails
throughout these oases. Whatever their position or size, the
traveller sees everywhere the same fields of wheat, maize or
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561
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571
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578
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