On the Roof of the World. 



interest by reason of its having been peopled in former times by 

 great races whose deeds have left a mark in Central Asian history. 



Standing on the crest line of the Hindu Kush, one is 

 profoundly impressed with those stupendous barriers marking 

 the northern confines of India and serving as natural frontiers 

 between the Empires of Britain, Russia, and China. 



From the summit of the Mintaka, or " Pass of a thousand 

 ibex," I expected to see before me a great tableland, this, I 



ON THE SUMMIT OF THE MINTAKA PASS (15,430 FT.). 



think, being the popular idea of the Pamirs. Actually they 

 comprise a series of wide open valleys with gently sloping 

 sides, the average elevation being some 13,000 feet, many of the 

 intervening peaks running up to 20,000 feet and over. They 

 may also be compared to a succession of leads formed by the 

 shale detritus which has accumulated through the ages, a 

 mighty mass of lofty, high-pitched ridges and gables, with 



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