JOURNEY FKOM HERAT TO ORENBURG. 223 



a time a box fell to the ground here. " (The ark 1) 

 This is all I could get from the Turkomans, who 

 grinned and said, " Yes, a box fell there, and there- 

 fore it is called Sundook Koochan." 



May 2lst. Started before sunset and marched 

 twenty -two miles. This particular spot is much 

 dreaded by travellers and kafilahs, as the Turka 

 Turkomans often cross it when on plundering ex- 

 cursions. Very heavy jungle on this part of the 

 road, which is still along the Murghab ; slept and 

 fed the cattle at about two miles from the Bund-i- 

 Yellatoon, or bank which throws the water of the 

 Murghab into the canal of Yellatoon. The flood 

 this year has been so great as completely to destroy 

 this bank, and the canal is consequently dry. At 

 sunrise started again, and moved ten miles ; heat 

 oppressive ; total distance thirty-two miles. 



May 22d. Marched nineteen miles to the camp 

 of a friendly Turkoman, who did his "little pos- 

 sible " to make me comfortable, and brought me his 

 son and a colt, both of which, he said, were my 

 property. I of course thanked him, but I told him 

 that I only received one kind of peshltusli (present) 

 viz., slaves. At sunrise moved eight miles to Yella- 

 toon, where there is a governor and kazi. Old Brutus 

 was very anxious, when we came near this place, to 

 see whether these worthies would come out to meet 

 us, and at one time he fondly hoped they had done 

 us that honour ; for, being short-sighted, and seeing 



