70 JOURNEY TO THE PAMIRS. 



prevented their getting their wind, and we had 

 regularly to haul them up without any loads, the 

 yaks doing the whole of the work in several trips. 

 Altogether it took four hours to get everything 

 to the top over this bit, which could not have 

 measured 300 yards. Bower tried to take the 

 altitude with his boiling-point thermometer, but 

 the wind prevented the water boiling, and he had 

 to give it up. The height could have been little 

 less than 18,000 feet. The view was very fine, 

 and the most extended we had had for long. 

 Far away in the north we made out what we 

 afterwards found to be Pargarma Peak : at our 

 feet lay a broad valley, down which and north- 

 wards was our road ; while to the west appeared 

 a sort of pamir, broken up by low hills, which 

 looked very like Ovis-ground. 



We were now within three marches of Tagh- 

 dumbash, one to the valley below us, one over 

 the range facing, called the Karatagh or black 

 mountains, and the last up the river Tashkurgan 

 to Taghdumbash. This was a cheering prospect, 

 and so the ponies seemed to think. The slopes 

 on this side became more and more gradual, and 

 they jogged down the path merrily. At five 

 o'clock they thought they had earned their tea, 



