ECCENTRIC PACKING. 73 



a perseverance beyond praise, starts shooting at 3 a.m. 

 But although he has been out every clay, and does not 

 return till dark, as yet he has seen nothing except a 

 few hill pheasants. This morning they went in the 

 direction of the Marbul Pass, and about noon I got a 

 note to say that they had seen three brown bears, but 

 on the opposite hills, and that we are to move the camp 

 down into the valley. This was welcome news, for I 

 was getting weary of the perpetual cold, and, beautiful 

 as the scenery is, I began to long for a plate glass window 

 to see through. 3Iv unfortunate ayah is simply drunk 

 with cold. There is no other word for it, and, save to 

 make the beds, she never stirs from the fire. The weather 

 leads her to commit the strangest extravagances in the 

 way of packing. 



She has removed all the silver-topped bottles from 

 my dressing-bag, and placed them in the remains of the 

 kettle, which she then rolled up in one of my skirts, 

 and packed in a box. Further investigation in another 

 of my boxes brings to light some knives and spoons, and, 

 from a strong smell of tobacco which I trace to my sponge 

 bag, I discover that Alan's pipe and a handful of cigars 

 have found a home there. It is quite impossible to 

 awaken her to a sense of her enormities, so I leave her 

 alone, gently unpacking a tent which has just been rolled 

 up. But until we start I keep an eye on our live-stock, 



