262 SPORT IN MONGOLIA. 



get round him. There was a valley to be crossed and 

 a long climb up a steep shaley mountain-side to be 

 effected, and it was not till an hour later that I found 

 myself crawling down towards the spot which I had 

 so carefully marked. To my satisfaction I was soon 

 able to make out a horn straight down below me, and 

 I knew that he was still there. A few more yards 

 and I should be in a position to shoot ; but the next 

 moment, to my consternation, I saw the ram spring 

 up and bolt, and looking for some cause I descried the 

 evil features of Pombo appearing over a ridge straight 

 in front of me ! He was evidently blissfully ignorant 

 of the presence either of myself or of the wounded ram, 

 but there was no time to be lost, and, running on to 

 a slight eminence, I apprised him of the position by 

 emptying the contents of the magazine after the flying 

 beast. By a stroke of good luck I brought him down, 

 and the next minute was standing exultant beside 

 him. He carried a fine horn of 51 inches, and as 

 this first also had a horn of just over 50 inches, I 

 congratulated myself on bringing my trip after wild 

 sheep to a highly satisfactory conclusion. 



The following day, August 21, I stayed in camp 

 packing the horns and head-skins, and making various 

 preparations for leaving the country on the morrow. I 

 had been out shooting exactly fourteen days, and during 

 that time had shot ten rams and a gazelle, an excellent 

 bag, considering the bare nature of the country and 

 the wildness of the game. I need hardly add, perhaps, 

 that we had worked hard to secure this result. Per- 

 sonally I had not taken a rest once during the fortnight, 

 and the day's work cannot have averaged less than 

 fourteen hours during the whole of that time, my 

 habit being to leave camp at 5 or 6 a.m. and to get 

 back again by dark or as soon after as possible. 



