A LONG AND LUCKY SHOT. 335 



went in a cluster over the rise above them, leaving the lord 

 of the flock half dragging his hind-quarters after him as he 

 in vain tried to overtake the rest. I gave them a parting 

 salute with the other barrel as they topped the rise, which 

 compliment they failed to acknowledge. This was a lucky 

 chance and no mistake, as the distance must have been quite 

 250 yards. The poor brute dragged himself on his haunches 

 for fully a quarter of a mile down the other side of the hill 

 before his strength failed him, and on our approach raised 

 himself on his forelegs and menaced us with his horns. Al- 

 though he was a full-grown ram, measuring about twelve 

 hands, his horns did not turn out to be so large as they had 

 looked at a distance. 



By the time we got back over the hill, the baggage-yaks 

 had arrived at the place where we had left the pony and dogs 

 below. As the country about looked promising, and there 

 was water at hand, I decided to camp here for a day or two. 

 Good as it seemed, and although we worked hard over it, as 

 well as a more distant beat, to reach which we crossed a 

 rocky ridge that must have been considerably above 19,000 

 feet, our success was no better here than on our last ground. 

 We saw only four Oves, which the spy-glass spared me the 

 trouble of going after, by showing them to be either ewes 

 or very young males. How many a weary and useless mile 

 does a good telescope thus save ! We also came across a black 

 wolf, but he was too far out for a shot, and his long slinging 

 trot soon took him out of sight. The only thing I emptied my 

 rifle at was a marmot, as it sat up whistling away, near the 

 mouth of its burrow, not far from my tent. It was somewhat 

 smaller than the Himalayan variety, and of a uniform yellow- 

 ish-grey colour, and appeared to be identical with the Alpine 

 marmot. The Tartars consider marmots excellent eating, and 

 probably they are so, though I could never bring myself to 

 try them. When we happened to encamp near their burrows, 

 of which there are generally a number together, like the 



