528 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY, 



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the rocky walls bearing in their clefts the eternal ice which glitters 

 and sparkles in the clear sunlight like a gigantic diamond. Similar in 

 structure, but made more imposing by the fact that the steep precipices 

 are planted directly on the untilled plain of the Tarim basin, without 

 any notable intermediate slopes, rises the extreme chain of the Kuen- 

 lun system as the northern boundary of the Thibetan highland. The 

 western boundary is formed by the chain of the Karakorum, with its 

 Triassic and Carboniferous formations, and the furrowed Pamir plain ; 

 and the eastern boundary by the curved declivities of the Himalaya 

 system itself, descending with a somewhat more gentle slope toward 

 China. Penetrated by numerous streams which, as a whole, main- 

 tain a north and south course, the intervening mountain-regions 

 present formidable impediments to communication. The traveler is 

 overlooked from all directions by icy mountain-peaks that rise to an 

 average height of at least twenty thousand feet. The high table-land 

 itself presents a sad aspect. The enormous height and the climatal 

 conditions dependent upon it restrict vegetation within a narrow limit. 

 No trees are found there, or cultivated fields, no flowers or fruits ; and 

 the green spots on which the stunted lavender maintains a precarious 

 existence may be counted among the broad basins filled with gravel 

 and pebbles. The winds bring no moisture. The sparse snow-falls 

 of the year are not enough to impart productivity to the earth, and 

 the plateau is nearly destitute of animal and plant life. 



The Thibetan settlements are almost entirely situated in the valleys 

 of the larger rivers, which the relatively lower situation, the higher 

 degree of moisture in the atmosphere, and the possibility of irrigation 

 enable the inhabitants to bring to a measure of tillability. A certain 

 degree of fertility of the soil of the capital can not be denied. Two 

 principal rivers have their sources at a nodal point in the Himalayas, 

 whence they cross the more southern country and India from left to 

 right. They are the Indus in the west and the Sampo in the east. 

 The course of the Indus is well known and marked, but all that has 

 been ascertained of the Sampo is that it maintains a nearly easterly 

 course to southeast of Lassa, after which it is still in doubt whether 

 it becomes the Brahmapootra or the Irrawaddy. 



The climate is very severe. The temperature in winter often falls 

 to from 13 to 22 below zero ; all the rivers and lakes are covered 

 with ice as early as November, and even in April the sun has not 

 acquired vivifying force enough to melt their crystal surfaces. 



No European is allowed to pass over the southern boundary of 

 this country. The East Indian Government has made several at- 

 tempts to gather information about it, but has been baffled. Colonel 

 Montgomery, a few years ago, conceived the idea of instructing young 

 Indian Buddhists in geography, and sending them to Thibet in the 

 guise of natives. Carrying only indispensable instruments with them, 

 they have been exploring the plateau since 1865, and have till recently 



