MISFORTUNES NEVER COME SINGLE. 321 



therefore thought it waste of my limited time to remain 

 longer in Changchenmo. 



I had communicated my intentions by a messenger to the 

 Major, and he agreed still to accompany me ; so next day I 

 rejoined him where he had moved his camp to the foot of 

 the glen I was in. He had killed a fine buck antelope, but 

 unfortunately some wild dogs had been sharing the sport on 

 the same ground with him. It was rather late in the morn- 

 ing when we reforded the Changchenmo river, consequently 

 one of the baggage-yaks had a mishap in the rapid water 

 with its load, and my bedding, my shot-cartridges, and other 

 things it was carrying got thoroughly wet. In the evening we 

 were driven nearly distracted by myriads of almost invisible 

 little sand-flies ; and to add to our troubles, a pot of capital 

 soup made of a hare I had shot, which we had been watching 

 the preparation of with hungry eyes, was accidentally upset. 



We had heard so much about the intense cold of this high 

 region, that we were rather surprised at having hitherto 

 suffered almost more from the scorching sun, although the 

 wind was always cutting cold, and there was keen frost every 

 night. We were not, however, to quit it without a taste of 

 what the climate sometimes could be, even in the month of 

 July. Next evening, after a long day's march, varied by grill- 

 ing-hot sunshine and bitter-cold showers of sleet, we camped 

 about six miles short of the top of the Marsemik, intending to 

 cross it in the early morning. Towards dark, clouds began to 

 gather ominously about the mountain-tops, and when we turned 

 in at night snow was falling ; but there was no appearance of 

 it lying anywhere in the vicinity, except inside some small 

 covered recesses of a kind of refuge built rudely of loose 

 stones and earth. In these the drift-snow, from being en- 

 tirely screened from the sun, lay in hard dirt-covered heaps, 

 having probably been deposited there in winter. 



In the morning I was awakened by an unusual sound of 

 thumping and pulling at my tent. It turned out to be my 



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