Red Bears. 



During the winter some of the Kazaks hve in log huts as being 

 warmer and more comfortable than the aul, particularly in mid- 

 winter, when bhzzards are the rule rather than the exception. 



Once down in the valley level I reached a grass country, 

 interspersed with birch and willow jungle. Here is excellent 

 pasturage for large herds of cattle and horses, and a great many 

 of the Kazaks remain there throughout the winter. I reached 

 a number of auls at noon at a spot called Khurdia, hard by the 

 Irtish River, and halted there for a brief rest before continuing 

 across the valley. 



"WE CROSSED THE BL.'\CK IRTISH RIVER, A SOLID SHEET OF ICE 

 WHICH WOULD HAVE BORNE A SIEGE TRAIN." 



The chief of the Kazaks in this part lived in a rough log 

 hut at Khurdia, and from him I obtained fresh horses for 

 the onward march. In the one room of which the log hut 

 was composed I noticed a combination calendar, clock and 

 thermometer, of Russian make, and on my enquiring as to where 

 he had obtained it the chief told me that the year before a Russian 

 traveller had visited the country from Uliassutai and had made 

 him a present of it. He said the traveller in question had come 

 with a small escort of Cossacks, so I concluded it must have been 



371 2 B 2 



