308 TIBETAN ANTELOPES. 



Yarkand. We had proceeded two or three miles when 

 Changter detected some moving objects on a gently sloping 

 plateau far away up the glen. The glass was soon brought 

 to bear on them, when they proved to be a herd of seven 

 antelopes, and two kiangs that were grazing near them. 

 After watching for some time, we were glad to see the horses 

 move off, leaving us a better chance of a stalk at the ante- 

 lopes, amongst which I could discover several good bucks. 

 As there was little chance of their noticing us at so great 

 a distance, we moved cautiously on until we gained the 

 cover of a high sloping bank, rising beside the stream that 

 flowed down the glen. Here we left the pony, giving in- 

 structions to the man in charge of him to have the tents 

 pitched, on their arrival, in a sheltered nook, whilst Changter, 

 Kurreem, and I went on to try and circumvent the antelopes. 

 We had proceeded some distance along the stony bed of 

 the stream, under cover of the steep sloping bank beside it, 

 when we were suddenly brought to a stand-still by seeing 

 a buck antelope moving in front of us down towards the 

 stream, and a second soon followed. They were still a con- 

 siderable way off, and, fortunately, did not detect us before 

 we had crouched as close as possible under cover of the bank. 

 Waiting until they were hidden behind some rising ground, 

 we again moved cautiously forward. At length we reached 

 the spot where they had disappeared, but, to our dismay, they 

 were nowhere visible beyond it. Thinking they might have 

 gone back again on to the higher ground, we crept up the 

 steep bank and peered over it, when a single doe, that 

 happened to be close by on the plateau above, catching sight 

 of us, went away at speed. Still there was no sign of the 

 bucks ; and as the wind, which had hitherto favoured us, had 

 now veered round, we made sure that they too had got in- 

 telligence of us and departed. As we lay there, uncertain 

 as to what our next move should be, I noticed that old 

 Changter's countenance brightened up, and his wandering 



