DOLON-NOR. 105 



On March 2gth, we arrived at the town of Dolon- 

 nor, which, according to my observations of the Polar 

 star, Hes in 42° 16' north latitude.' Followed by a 

 gaping crowd, we marched through the streets for 

 a long while in search of a night's lodging, but were 

 refused admittance at every inn on the pretext of 

 there not being room for us. Exhausted by the 

 length of our march, and chilled to the bones, we 

 determined to follow the advice of a Mongol and 

 seek shelter at a temple. Here they gladly received 

 us, and placed at our disposal a house where we 

 could warm ourselves and rest after our fatigues. 



Dolon-nor, or, as the Chinese call it, Lama-miau,^ 

 like Kalgan and Kuku-khoto, is an important place 

 of trade. Hither the Mongols drive their cattle, and 

 bring wool and skins to barter for brick-tea, tobacco, 

 cotton, and silk. The town is not walled, but stands 

 in a barren sandy plain watered by the Urtin-gol, a 

 tributary of the Shandu-gol. The Chinese quarter 

 is rather over a mile in length by about half a mile 

 in width ; its population is large, but the streets are 

 narrow and dirty. The Mongolian quarter, distant 

 half-a-mile from the former, contains two large tem- 

 ples standing close together, surrounded by houses, 



^ According to the observations of the Jesuits, Dolon-nor is situated 

 in 0° 11' 50" longitude, west of Peking, and 42° 25' north latitude. 

 (See Klaproth's note in ' Timkowski's Travels,' i. 206) ; but Fritsche, 

 director of the Peking Observatory, has calculated the latitude to be 

 42° 16' 48". See Dr. Bushell's ' Notes of a Journey outside the 

 Great Wall of China,' J.R.G.S., vol. xliv. p. 81.— M. 



^ The Chinese name, Lama-miau, means 'lama monastery ; ' the 

 Mongol name, Dolon-nor, signifies ' seven lakes,' which actually existed 

 at one time near the town, but are now covered with sand-drift. 



