LEH, LADAK. 229 



mercial products of Eastern Turkestan freely change hands. 

 In its immediate vicinity are a few poplar-groves and fruit- 

 orchards, their vivid green contrasting rather strangely 

 with the surrounding sterile plateau, which extends for 

 miles towards the equally arid mountains that enclose it. 

 Eegarding this town, little more need be said here than that 

 there, at an elevation of nearly 12,000 feet, the sun burns 

 with an intensity that is truly surprising, the thermometer 

 in summer often reaching 140 degrees or more in its rays; 

 whilst the temperature in the shade is quite cold, and at 

 night often freezing. The patient reader who may have 

 accompanied me so far in my wanderings, had now better go 

 no^arther unless he is prepared to traverse some pretty high 

 and rough country ere he reaches Changchenmo, which has 

 little to recommend it beyond its being a favourite haunt 

 of the wild yak and other Tibetan game. 



Thus far I had had the pleasure of travelling from 

 Cashmere with an old friend and schoolmate — Captain 

 Basevi, RE. — who was proceeding to carry out certain 

 scientific observations on the highly elevated table-lands, 

 which are among the principal geographical features of this 

 part of Tibet, and were peculiarly suitable for his purpose. 

 But from Leh our routes and avocations unfortunately lay 

 in different directions. 



Here I met a brother sportsman. Major M., who was 

 bound for Changchenmo ; and as it is as pleasant as advis- 

 able to have a companion in remote uninhabited regions, 

 we joined camps. We were rather disappointed, however, 

 ^ on hearing that two other members of the fraternity had 

 already preceded us there ; ' for in Changchenmo the wild 

 yaks usually frequent certain localities, from which they are 

 soon scared away if disturbed. 



At Leh we engaged the services of an individual named 

 Kurreem, a half-bred Tartar, who had, I believed, been con- 

 verted to the Mohammedan persuasion. He willingly agreed 

 to act as interpreter in the language of the country and make 



