11 



3. Pure white salt around the lake Jugur Kul, Chiwa. 

 July 15 th 1899: - 



NaCl 



with MgSO 4 , ab. 3,? per ct. 

 and MgCl 2 , - 1,4 



4. In the same place. Salt around and encrusting the 

 base of Salicornia plants: 



MgSO 4 , ab. 21,5o perct. 

 NaCl, - 76,9 

 Na 2 SO 4 , 1,6 



5. Salt from a dried - up water-hole near Chodsheli, 

 Ghiwa. July 26 th 1899. A salt-cake consisting of six strata 

 of colourless crystals lying one above another, and corre- 

 sponding somewhat to the mineral Astrakanit: 



NaCl, ab. 0,5o per ct. 

 MgSO 4 36,7 



Na 2 SO 4 , - 41,5 

 Water - 31,3 

 (including carbonate of Mg or Na). 



As will be seen, gypsum, glauber-salts, magnesium sul- 

 phate, carbonate of lime and common salt are the most fre- 

 quent salts. Their mode of occurence will be dealt with 

 later, especially in the chapter on salt-deserts. 



CHAPTER 3 



General Aspects of the Climate of Transcaspia. 



The climate is continental, the winter is cold and the 

 summer very hot. Kasalinsk has an annual range of almost 

 90 Centig. (-f 48 C. summer-maximum, - 40 C. winter- 

 minimum) (SCHWARZ p. 576). The precipitation is slight. 



The winter is not very long, as a rule there is frost, not of 

 long duration, but hard. In 1886 Tashkent had 89 frosty 



