46o SOUTHERN DZUNGARIA 



unless tempted by the hope of a large reward, or unless 

 compelled to do so by order of a superior. They seldom 

 came in contact with the sedentary people, since the 

 whole extent of their territory touches on only two 

 settled localities — Guchen in the south, and Sharasume 

 in the north. 



A description of the Kirei and their range has already 

 been given in Chapter XIT This branch of the clan 

 belonged rightly to the Baitik Mountains, and migrated 

 southwards only under stress of bad seasons. Accord- 

 ing to report, the last few winters had been exception- 

 ally severe, as was the case with the present winter, snow 

 lying deeper than had been seen for years ; consequently 

 the Kirei had come southwards in larger numbers, and 

 had even tried to establish themselves permanently on 

 the Bogdo-ola Range ; in this attempt they had been 

 frustrated by the Chinese. From this encampment I ex- 

 plored the sand-dunes, while Miller hunted the " kulon," 

 or wild-ass, on the steppes to the north. 



This sand-area was chiefly composed of small, station- 

 ary dunes, well covered with growth ; but on the eastern 

 edge it had thrown out a narrow tongue of high, moving 

 sand-hills. These hills, with their back, as it were, to the 

 stationary dunes, ran out eastwards until they faded 

 away to nothing. Immediately to their north, along the 

 edge of the sand-hills, was a zone of fine saxaul forest, 

 where the trees grew to a height of 20 ft. The forest did 

 not extend far on to the dunes, nor were the trees so well 

 developed there. Whether the existence of this heavy 

 growth had caused the gradual heaping up of the sand 

 to the south and south-west it is difficult to say for 

 certain ; the prevailing wind and the size of the dunes 

 suggest it, for, contrary to the observations of other 



