i 4 8 AFTER WILD SHEEP IN THE ALTAI 



seemed to promise happy hunting grounds, and 

 patches of snow here and there gave me the im- 

 pression of the right altitude for sheep at that time 

 of year. Eastwards ran the main ridge of the 

 Mongolian Altai with its lofty peaks of everlasting 

 snow. I thought it was hardly worth while to visit 

 the lower boulders beneath us, when Taba suddenly 

 squatted down and pointed out a couple of rams 

 some 800 yards below. They were making their 

 way up from the dry rocky ground towards the 

 pastures above. As they were advancing slowly, 

 and seemed to carry very fair horns, we decided to 

 try and cut them off from the higher ground. A 

 steep ridge ran down from where we lay, both sides 

 of which were covered with loose shingle ; so we 

 ran down the slope, under cover of this ridge, as 

 fast as we could lay our feet to the ground, till we 

 reached a saddle, which we expected the animals 

 would cross. Had they done so at that moment I 

 certainly should have been unable to shoot, for the 

 pace at which we had gone rendered me breathless 

 for the next five minutes. We waited some time, 

 and, seeing no sign of the sheep, moved cautiously 

 over the ridge commanding a view of the whole 

 corrie. Though we spied every ledge of rock as 

 carefully as we could there was not a beast in sight. 



