CAMELS LOST; LAMAS REFUSE HELP. 17 



from some camels belonging to other caravans which 

 were on their way from Kuku-khoto. Just at this 

 place the steppe grass was entirely trodden down ; 

 our beasts therefore crossed a little hill a short dis- 

 tance off to find some better food and seek shelter 

 from the wind, which had been blowing in gusts for 

 five days without intermission. After a little while 

 a Cossack and our Mongol started to drive back to 

 the tent the strayed camels, but they had dis- 

 appeared from the hillock, and their tracks, partly 

 obliterated by the wind, were undistinguishable from 

 those of other camels. As soon as I heard of their 

 disappearance, I despatched the same men in search 

 of them ; they were absent the whole day inspecting 

 the camels of all the caravans in the neighbourhood, 

 but not a vestige could be seen or heard of the 

 animals, which were as completely lost as though 

 they had been swallowed up by the earth. Early 

 the following morning I sent my Cossack interpreter 

 to the monastery of Shireti-tsu, on the land of which 

 we had sustained the loss, to give notice of the theft 

 and ask assistance in finding the missing camels. 

 Our messenger was very reluctantly admitted into 

 the monastery, where the lamas, after examining our 

 Peking passport in which it is mentioned that assist- 

 ance is to be given when needed, coolly remarked, 

 * We are not the guardians of your camels ; seek 

 them yourselves as best you can.' A similar reply 

 was given by the Mongol official, to whom we like- 

 wise applied for aid. Meanwhile the Chinese refused 

 to sell us straw to feed our only remaining sick 

 VOL. II. с 



