Feb. 28, 1859.] IN THE ALA-TU AND AC-TU MOUNTAINS. 129 



A little farther we found a broad bed covered witb large stones 

 and coarse gravel, over whicb a stream of water was running 

 rapidly, making it very difficult to ford ; and the opposite bank 

 proved as higb and abrupt as the one we bad descended. It was 

 now past midday, and the pass in the mountains appeared still far 

 distant. Questioning the Kirghis guide, I ascertained that he 

 bad never crossed this country before, and could tell me nothing 

 reliable about the pass. Quickening our pace over the sandy 

 steppe, at five o'clock we turned into the great ravine we had been 

 seeking. The first few hundred yards was between grassy slopes 

 with a little rivulet in the centre ; having passed some rocky masses, 

 the rugged mountain jaws opened upon us in all their grandeur. 

 This was a terrific rent ; the dark purple slaty rocks had been 

 riven asunder by the granite, and heaved up into craggy precipices 

 of enormous height. In some parts the rocks were broken into 

 sharp points, in others they were piled up like huge towers over- 

 hanging the base of these mighty cliffs. To add to the wildness 

 of the view, three large eagles were soaring far above our heads, 

 and several were perched upon the crags. 



The Kirghis imagined from this that some of his countrymen 

 were encamped in the pass, and, riding forward, found unmistake- 

 able evidence that horses and other animals had recently passed on 

 the other side of the stream. Presently we came upon three 

 Kirghis, who, after a ride of little more than an hour, brought us 

 to a wide part of the pass, where they had pitched their yourts on 

 some grassy slopes, at a point where the gorge branched off in two 

 directions. The tribe was taking advantage of the rich grass for a 

 day or two before proceeding to the pastures in the Ala-tu. 



All the camels, horses, oxen, and sheep had been assembled close 

 about the yourts, as the space on which these had been pitched was 

 so limited by the precipices around. Various were the sounds that 

 greeted my ears on waking the next morning : the sharp cry of 

 the camels and the bellowing of the bulls echoing among the rocks 

 increased the confusion. As day dawned I turned out and stood 

 at the door of the yourt, gazing in silent wonder at the scene 

 before me. 



The spot on which I stood was a green gi'assy mound in the 

 middle of the gorge, and three yourts were placed upon it. A little 

 below, on the bank of a small torrent, there were seven other 

 yourts ; while immediately opposite, and at about 300 yards from 

 me, rose up a mighty mass of dark basaltic rocks to a much greater 

 height than the distance from me to them. They were pillared and 

 split into most curious fpmis — some of them like watch-towers 



