240 SUGHEIT. 



the party permitted to proceed, or detained, or repulsed. 

 Moosa thinks that, if I give notice of my arrival, and 

 explain to the officials at this thanna my desire for a 

 friendly interview with the ruler of Yarkand, that func- 

 tionary will accord it, and will assist my enquiries after 

 this servant and any effects of the saheb to be had, and 

 will also order supplies for my party to any extent. The 

 Yarkand people had nothing to do with the assassination 

 of poor Schlagentweit, so will the more readily co- 

 operate, perhaps. I fully determined to try and carry 

 out this scheme. 



I must allow the poor, galled, jaded horses some few 

 days' rest and refreshment, in the meanwhile hunting ; 

 then, selecting followers and the best cattle, will move on 

 Khylian, this outpost, giving entrance to the Yarkand 

 territories. It is a ticklish adventure, as we are at war 

 with China ; but I trust to the ignorance of these singu- 

 lar people, either not to know or to recognise this fact. 

 Moosa and my whole council seem much pleased with 

 this resolution ; and the more so, as I tell them that, in 

 all probability, if I succeed in recovering the papers of 

 the deceased, government will reward any native assis- 

 tants liberally; if not, I will myself. I talked this 

 project over at length, and retired, my mind full of it 

 and its execution. 



25th August. "We had a long stiff pull up hill, of 

 some five miles, ere we descended to our former bivouac ; 

 then on, down the rough glen, till we debouched on the 

 valley where was our standing camp. Crossing some 

 level sand through which the path runs, Subhan gave a 

 low peculiar whistle, and pointed to fresh tracks of yak, 

 some four or five, and two of them bulls. Much struck 

 by the oddity of the animals we had taken such trouble 

 about having thus in my absence gone straight to my 



