268 THE UPPER BASPA 



not make out. The young man looked more like a 

 Chinese Tartar than the old one, and was evidently of a 

 superior breed. Their heads were bare except a short 

 plaited tail behind. They had two miserable dogs with 

 them — very poor creatures. The sheep were large and 

 strong, and carried very heavy fleeces, which they would 

 leave behind in the Baspa valley. They all carried salt 

 in small woollen bags. There was no snow this evening 

 in the valley, but higher up there was a storm, and the 

 breeze was blowing down instead of up. There was a 

 heavy fall of snow at night, the lieaviest we had had yet ; 

 it must have come from the higher valley ; usually the 

 storms came across the range from the Garhwal side 

 At 6 A.M. the thermometer was at freezing point, but 

 the sun came out strong, and the snow rapidly disappeared. 

 A very cold wind was blowing from the upper valley, and I 

 stayed in the tent, having contracted a bad cold during 

 the night. A particularly fine evening ; the young moon 

 in the very blue sky was a glorious sight. Next day the 

 breeze was cold and dry, and the sun very hot. The 

 rhubarb stalks were springing along the level of the stream, 

 and I saw one plant whose central stem was ten inches 

 high. . Very few flowers were visible — in fact, the little 

 yellow scolloped one was the only flower that had as yet the 

 courage to peep above the ground ; and this at the end of 

 May ! Anparh and the coolies of his village came in 

 the evening. 



My cold left me, but indigestion and nausea took 

 possession, and I had only two cups of beef-tea during 

 twenty-four hours. These complications were caused by 

 my four days' inaction at this cam]3. I left Siiancho 

 camp and reached Dunti after a very wearying march of 

 four hours. All strength seemed to have left me, and I 

 was hardly able to get up the shortest ascents ; I never 



