GROMCHEFSKI. 109 



addressed him in French, and he replied in Ger- 

 man. He was travelling, he said, for the Russian 

 Geographical Society ; but his real work was at 

 Marghilan, where he held a post similar to our 

 Assistant Commissioner, and had got leave of 

 absence to travel and explore the frontier. He 

 was anxious to know if the authorities at Leh 

 would let him through without a passport. So I 

 told him, if he went as a private individual they 

 would, but if he marched in with his Cossacks 

 in full uniform, a great deal of correspondence 

 between our relative Governments would have to 

 be gone through before leave could be sanctioned. 

 We sat for an hour or two, and then, though 

 loath to leave, were obliged to make a start, as 

 daylight was ebbing fast. 



