286 AFTER WILD SHEEP IN THE ALTAI 



heights, staring at us, and came down to i(-cd as soon 

 as we had passed. I returned to camp at 6 p.m. 

 thoroughly disappointed, and Littledale had met with 

 no better success. 



Next day he went to the Happy Valley, whilst 1 

 stopped in bed tired and disheartened. Though it 

 blew a gale, he returned in the afternoon with a fine 

 massive head, saying he had come across a small herd 

 of old rams, out of which he had succeeded in secur- 

 ing one. In the evening a Kalmuk came in with 

 letters and papers from Ongoudai, the first we had 

 as yet received, and we spent three or four hours 

 devouring the " latest " news, of which the most 

 important was an account of the Queen's Jubilee 

 procession, which had taken place two months 

 previously ! 



The following day, August 12th, was to be my last 

 after kotchkor. The weather was evidently breaking 

 up lor the autumn, and a bitterly cold wind blew 

 incessantly. Littledale went to the Happy Valley 

 with my wife, whilst I went up the Tchagan-Burgaza 

 together with Taba. We had hardly advanced an 

 hour from camp, when we came across a herd of ten 

 rams feeding in a small lateral ravine. Some of them 

 carried good heads, and the wind being favourable, 

 we attempted to stalk them. As they fed slowly over 



