The Torture of Frost-bite. 



banks of the Irtish where there was wood in abundance, which 

 enabled us to indulge in a fire as some sort of solace to the toils 

 of the day. 



Mortification of the frost-bitten parts had now set in, and 

 the operation of dressing my wounds and disposing of the 

 gangrene resulting therefrom was indeed a painful task I 

 found a solution of carbolic, from some tabloids I carried, very 

 good for this, and continued the treatment twice daily, despite 

 the pain occasioned by it, until arrival at Zaisan. 



TREKKING THROUGH THE BLACK IRTISH VALLEY. 



I was obliged to halt another day on the banks of the Irtish 

 River, pending repairs to the wretched tarantass being com- 

 pleted. The front axle was hopelessly broken down the centre, 

 but we managed to patch it up by binding a piece of iron round 

 the woodwork, not perhaps a brilliant specimen of the black- 

 smith's art, but good enough for the occasion. 



On January 5th we resumed the march, rather a sorrowful 

 band, as Yusuf was now very bad with a swollen face, due to 

 frost-bite, to allay which I could do nothing beyond bandaging 

 it and seating him on a camel, where he wept steadily from 

 pain and anguish for three whole days, at the end of which time 



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