THE CAPTURE OF TGHIMKENT. 207 



the combined forces of Colonels Tchernaieff and Veref- 

 kin in the days of the Kussian advance, and then turns 

 east, passing through the small towns of Aulie Ata and 

 Pishpek to Verni, now a considerable town grown up 

 round the original fort constructed in 1854 between 

 Lakes Balkash and Issi Kul, distant from Tashkent 509 

 miles. The old fort still stands at Tchimkent, and 

 made an impressive picture as I gazed at it in the grey 

 light of dawn from the vicinity of the post-house. 

 There is a story of a curious mistake which led to its 

 capture by the Russians. A soldier who had been 

 slightly wounded at the beginning of the operations 

 called out for the surgeon, " Dok-tu-ra." His comrades, 

 hearing only "u-ra!" — the Russian hurrah — flung 

 themselves to the assault, and carried the citadel with 

 a loss of only five men.^ 



After leaving Verni the road turns north to the Hi 

 river, which it crosses 555 miles from Tashkent, and 

 then north-east into the mountainous country on the 

 east of Semirechensk — the land of seven rivers. At 

 Altin Imel, a small station 632 miles from Tashkent, 

 the road to the Chinese frontier at Khorgos branches 

 off, and after passing the frontier proceeds to the 

 Chinese town of Kulja, 62 miles farther on, and 808 

 miles from Tashkent. 



Of the chequered history in recent years of this 

 remote appanage of the " Son of Heaven," and of its 

 present position, I shall have something to say in a sub- 

 sequent chapter, omitting to do so now in order that, 

 for the sake of convenience, I may here complete the 

 sketch of my journey along the post-road. 



From Altin Imel, then, you travel on northwards 

 through mountainous country for some distance, passing 

 the small town of Kopala, a short distance beyond 



^ See Schuyler's Turkestan, vol. ii. p. 75. 



