KUCHA TO KHOTAN 181 



crossed the bed of the Khotan River, dry, except for 

 occasional little pools under the banks, by one of 

 which we camped about three miles above the 

 junction with the Tarim. 



The bed of the Khotan River is here only about 

 500 yards across, and when in flood the water is said 

 to be six feet deep ; but further up it widens out, and 

 the bed is anything from half a mile to three or 

 more miles in width. The river meanders along 

 this crossing from side to side, often splitting in 

 several channels and generally behaving in an 

 undecided manner. From our camp here we saw 

 the hills by Aksu, appearing much nearer than they 

 really are, also a very fine black sandstorm, which 

 occasioned us some anxiety, but luckily it passed 

 away to the north. 



On the 28th we reached Zil, another seventeen 

 miles, but the going was very bad, the sand in the 

 river-bed being both loose and deep. There is a 

 path along the banks as well, but here the river way 

 is the most direct. 



Zil is only a camping-ground, and is where the 

 Aksu road joins the Khotan River. There is a 

 plentiful and permanent supply of water in a pool 

 in the jungle, but the quality is indifferent. 



The banks of the river are covered with a belt 

 of poplar trees, which look green and pleasant 

 enough, but the soil under them is all sand, and in 

 places the desert has pressed right up to the river 



