Ruins of Desert Cathay : vol.1 / Page 758 (Color Image)

0758	Ruins of Desert Cathay : vol.1

496 PAINTING OF BUDDHIST LEGEND CH. XLIV

There were finds of interest here too, but I cannot spare

space now to detail them. The general impression I gained

was that the area occupied by these older ruins, though

adjacent to the Tibetan fort, must have been completely

abandoned and practically clear of vegetation when the

latter had its garrison ; for only thus did it seem possible

to account for the remarkable difference seen in the effects

of wind erosion. Near some of the earlier structures this

had excavated the soil down to seventeen feet below the

original level, while round the fort walls the maximum

result of the erosion nowhere exceeded six feet.

After our long weeks of exposure to the bitter cold

and incessant winds it was a real relief when my practic-

able tasks at the site were concluded. And yet it cost me

a wrench to give the order for that final duty of all—the

filling-in again of the interior of the temples, which was

to assure fresh protection for the frescoes. This heavy

piece of earthwork was, with the help of extra men

from Abdal, accomplished on February I I th. It was a

melancholy business to watch those graceful wall-paint-

ings, on which my eyes had so fondly feasted in the

midst of the wintry desert, as they slowly disappeared

again under the dust and clay débris. It seemed like a

true burial of figures still instinct with life. Nothing could

relieve its gloom but a vague hope for their eventual

resurrection, and the thought that if they could but take

a look at the desolation around, they might prefer to rest

again in the darkness. I could not foresee what was

written by Fate, that fifteen months later they would

again emerge to light from beneath their protective

covering—only to witness a bitter human tragedy, dark-

ness falling for ever on the eyes of my brave Naik Ram

Singh !

But for the time being it felt like a difficult task

accomplished with abundant reward, and as I rode off late

that day, guided by honest Tokhta Akhun, to rejoin my

base at Abdal, my heart was kept buoyant in the darkness

with hopes for the new field which was to open eastwards.

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