3oo AFTER WILD SHEEP IN THE ALTAI 



hanging on long poles as a pagan sacrifice to their 

 gods. The weather was now warmer than ever, as 

 if we had shifted from winter to summer quarters. 

 The next day we pitched camp at the place where the 

 Oulagan River falls into the Bashkaous, another 

 twenty miles lower down. Here the valley, which 

 had grown narrow and gorge-like in some places, 

 became wider again. The country had entirely lost 

 its savage aspect, and the scenery, were it not for the 

 cedar woods, bore a most commonplace character. 

 In the evening we tried for Roe-deer, but in vain; in 

 fact we could hardly realise the Zaissan's statement 

 that we should find Stags in the neighbourhood. 



Next day, however, we went up the Oulagan Valley 

 and reached the Zaissan's house, which, in comparison 

 to what we had seen before, was quite a comfortable 

 lodging. His wife and children flocked around us, 

 and an exchange of presents took place. I presented 

 our powerful ally with the big revolver that had been 

 stolen from me by the two runaway Kalmuks, and 

 which the Zaissan had managed somehow to retrieve ; 

 I presume after a severe swishing of the culprits. On 

 my eager inquiry about the number and whereabouts 

 of Maral in the vicinity, I was staggered by the 

 Zaissan's answer that there were seventeen. He had 

 been talking the whole time of Maral in an en- 



