The Orpiment Mines of Chitral 1 5 1 



gard. They can only work during the summer, 

 when the ground is not under snow; in the 

 winter they remain in their villages below, 

 and this, no doubt, accounts for their not 

 suffering more than they do. 



Having come so far, it was, of course, neces- 

 sary to see the interior of the mines, and I 

 told my guide to lead on. He disappeared 

 into one of the holes with extraordinary ease. 

 I followed more deliberately, distinctly surprised 

 at being able to get into it at all. After four 

 yards' crawling, we found ourselves in a small 

 chamber, about eighteen feet long, in which 

 one could stand upright. The air was fresher 

 than I expected. Several miners with torches 

 of pitch pine were standing, but there were 

 no signs of the mineral I had come so far 

 to see. On my asking where it was, "Farther 

 on" was the reply, rather to my surprise, as 

 the cave seemed to end there. On looking 

 closer, however, I saw what appeared to be 

 a well in one corner. There was also a narrow 

 ramp leading up to the roof along one side 

 of the cave. I was looking at this when I 

 heard a muffled rumbling. A light appeared 

 in the roof, followed by a man, who emerged 

 from a small aperture that had escaped my 

 observation. My guide, in the meantime, had 



