Across the Roof of the World. 



get nearer than a good 400 yards, so held a council of war and 

 decided that Numgoon should move round lower down in an 

 endeavour to work them out towards me. This all turned out 

 very well, but it was a most bitter day with a cutting wind, and 

 again freezing hard, so that by the time Numgoon had shifted 

 them out in our direction we were both stiff and numbed. 



We were lying under cover of some rocks near the top edge of the 

 grass slopes, the ground above being mostly rock trending shghtly 

 upwards until the lower limit of the cliffs, the latter a notable 

 feature of ibex ground in the Thian Shan. The field of view was 

 therefore fairly favourable, and as there was every prospect of 

 them passing between me and the foot of the cliffs I hoped to 

 obtain a shot. The biggest ibex passed a couple of hundred yards 

 from me and I already regarded him as good as dead, when to 

 crown all I had three miss-fires in succession, and by the time 

 I had had a fourth attempt, which did go off, he was lost amongst 

 the rocks. It was a cruel disappointment, as I was quite sure of 

 another record head, but luck was apparently out, and I returned 

 to camp sad and sorrowful. 



The weather was now getting very cold, with hard frosts every 

 night, and the same throughout the day on the higher ground, so 

 that it is possible the ammunition suffered thereby. With a view 

 to obviating this undesirable state of affairs cartridges should be 

 warmed before starting in the morning, and then kept in a dry 

 pocket until they are actually required. 



The next day, October 17th, Nurah left for his home as he 

 had injured his right knee, and could no longer do climbing or 

 hard work on the hillside, so Numgoon took charge and, as usual, 

 did very well. I sent the camp on lower down the valley and 

 with him did the ground above. When we had gone up a 

 thousand feet or more we sighted some ibex coasting along the 

 near side of a steep ravine on the crest of which we were pro- 

 ceeding. One of the heads was distinctly good, so I had a shot, 

 almost a vertical one, missing handsomely. We followed the 

 herd over very bad ground, some of the hardest up there, so 



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