88 TRAVEL, AD VENTURE, AXD SPORT. 



lose its footing ; but it does require some time for 

 the physical man to get accustomed to its saddle, to 

 its broad back, and to its deliberate motion when its 

 rider is upon it and not in a position to be charged at. 

 So up I went on a yak along a most curious path- 

 way which slanted across the face of an immense slate 

 precipice. From below it appeared impossible for any 

 man or animal to pass along it, and sometimes I had 

 to dismount, and even the saddle had to be taken off 

 my bulky steed, in order that it might find room to 

 pass. From the top of this precipice there was a 

 descent of about 800 feet, and then a tremendous pull 

 up to what I fancied was the top of the pass, but which 

 was far from being anything of the kind. The path 

 then ran along a ridge of slate at an elevation of 

 about 13,000 feet, affording most splendid views both 

 of the Morang Kailas and of the great mountains 

 within the Lassa territory. After a gradual descent 

 we came upon an alp or grassy slope, where we were 

 met by people from Labrang and Kanam, all in their 

 best attire, to conduct us the remainder of the way to 

 Sugnam, These mountaineers, some of whom were 

 rather good-looking women, tendered their assistance 

 rather as an act of hospitality than as a paid service ; 

 and the money they were to receive could hardly 

 compensate them for the labour of the journey. There 

 is a Lama monastery at Kanam, in which the Hun- 

 garian Csomo de Kbrb's lived for a long time when he 

 commenced his studies of the Tibetan language and 



