AND OTHER LEGENDS. 167 



sequently the side previously facing north was now 

 turned towards the south, and vice vei^sd. The 

 Mongols declare that on this account more trees 

 grow on the southern than on the northern slopes, 

 unlike the other ranges in Mongolia, where it is just 

 the contrary. These peculiarities they attribute to 

 their strange northern origin. 



According to another tradition Chinp-hiz-Khan 

 once lived in the Munni-ula while waging war with 

 China. He took up his abode on Mount Shara-oroi/ 

 where the iron saucepan in which he cooked his 

 food still exists, though hitherto no one has been 

 able to discover it. During the summer religious 

 services are performed here by the lamas of the 

 neighbouring temple of Mirgin. The very name 

 Munni-ula is said to have been given by Chinghiz- 

 Khan, who liked the place on account of the quantity 

 of game he found here. 



The Mongols assert that on Mount Shara-oroi 

 there is a fossil elephant, and that a quantity of ingot 

 silver has been buried in some other part of the 

 range, but that evil spirits guard the treasure and 

 will not allow it to be removed. They say that the 

 silver lies near the summit of a mountain in a ereat 



о 



pit, the mouth of which is covered by an iron shutter, 

 through an orifice in which the treasure may be 

 espied, and that some daring fellows once tried to 

 get hold of it by lowering into the pit in winter some 

 pieces of raw meat and freezing the ingots to it ; in 



' The mountain of that name situated in the centre of the rano-e, 

 not that one at its western extremity. 



