LAZY PORTERS. 341 



sunshine lit up tlie pine-forests on the opposite slopes, we 

 were up, and woefully detailing to one another the suffer- 

 ings of the night. Francois' eyes were almost closed by 

 the bites of the small flies, and all the party were more or 

 less disfigured. As soon as the porters had finished tying 

 up their loads, and could be persuaded to put them on 

 their backs, we started. On leaving Pari we had under- 

 stood that we should cross the pass on the second day ; but 

 our men now declared it would be impossible to do more 

 than reach the southern foot of the last ascent before night- 

 fall. Having passed through a belt of pines, we entered a 

 region of scantier and less lofty vegetation, and saw, for 

 the first time, the range of cliffs which, to all appearance, 

 closes the head of the glen. The hillsides were now steep, 

 and slopes of debris, brought down by avalanches from the 

 hollows in the mountains overhead, extended down to the 

 torrent. Numerous and clear fountains sprang out of the 

 ground, and, dammed by the surrounding blocks, formed 

 crystal pools, the banks of which were adorned by clusters 

 of lilies of the valley. Two pretty cascades dashed down 

 the rocks on either side of us, but lacked body of water to 

 rank as firstrate waterfalls. The last birches grew in the 

 hollow at the foot of the cliffs which had barred our view 

 all the morning. 



We now saw that the Five Yerst Map was entirely wrong 

 in its representation of this part of the chain. The offi- 

 cers employed on the survey evidently contented them- 

 selves with a distant view of the Nakra valley, and, de- 

 ceived by appearances, have in consequence represented its 

 head as a S}anmetrical horseshoe basin. In reality the 

 sources of the stream lie in a recess of the mountains un- 

 seen from below, and therefore ignored on the maj). The 

 way to it lay up a steep slope on the left bank of the tor- 

 rent, which is joined by a good-sized tributary, pouring 



