FLORA OF TIBET OR HIGH ASIA. 149: 
(Bot. xxx. 1894, p. 131), accompanying our detailed enumera- 
tion of the species :— 
“The object I had in view when making the little collection 
of plants, which, through Professor C. S. Sargent’s kindness, has 
been examined and classified by Mr. Hemsley, of the Royal 
Gardens, at Kew, was to give some idea of the flora of the country 
between the Kuen Luen range to the north and the inhabited 
regions of Tibet adjacent to the Tengri Nor on the south. This 
region has an average altitude of 15,000 ft. above sea-level along 
the route followed by me in 1892, and had not, prior to my visit, 
been explored. 
‘“‘The route followed in 1879 by Przewalski when travelling 
towards Lhasa, which was nearly parallel to the last that I took, 
differed considerably as regards the configuration of the country 
from mine; and consequently I anticipated that notable differ- 
ences in the flora along the two roads would be discovered. 
“J traversed this country in the months of May, June, July, 
and part of August, and heavy snowstorms and nearly daily frosts 
oceurred during this period, though the thermometer rose more 
than once to 70° F., and even to $3° on one occasion in the shade 
at2p.mM. The mean temperature from the 17th of May, when we 
entered the mountainous region to the south of the Tsaidam, to 
the 11th of August, when we descended to below the Timber line 
(13,500 ft. above sea-level) on the Ramachi, where I ceased col- 
lecting plauts, except such as the natives pointed out to me as 
being used by them either as food or medicinally, is shown in the 
following table :— 
1892. 7 AM. 2 P.M. 7 P.M. 
ro) oO" 
May 17 to 31.........- 37-5 F. 546F. 87°38. 
June ....... eee ee ee 35°7 55°9 38°3 
July wo... eee eee 43°0 54°6 442 
Aug. ltoll .......... 40°6 61°5 47°3 
“ Nearly the whole of the region traversed in this interval was 
of sandstone formation, the predominating colour of which was 
bright red. The water was invariably brackish, and in many 
cases undrinkable ; the soil everywhere sandy, or covered with a 
rather fine gravel, and occasionally a little clay. The grasses 
grew in bunches, nowhere forming a sod, except around the 
rare pools of pure water fed by the melting snows we occasionally 
passed. 
