120 JOURNEY TO YARKAND. 



what they call shore, which appears to be a mix- 

 ture of salt and saltpetre, which exudes from the 

 ground at the base of the mountains. 



Getting up at midnight, we breakfasted (if a 

 meal at that unholy hour can so be called) 

 and made a start. It was cold and dark, and no 

 moon to cheer us on our way. For fear of losing 

 the road, we had to keep with the caravan, and 

 tramped along in a mechanical sort of way. I 

 got on my pony for a change, but found it too 

 cold to ride. At about eight o'clock we came to 

 a plain the plain of Eastern Turkistan when 

 the long-wished-for sun rose, but it appeared 

 through a mist, just as it does in a London fog ! 

 This was a sore disappointment, for we had 

 looked forward to getting on our ponies as it 

 grew warmer. Vain hope ! The sun got higher 

 and higher ; but for all the good it was to us in 

 the way of warmth, it might just as well have not 

 been there at all. There was nothing for it but 

 to tramp on to the end. Had we found fuel and 

 water, we might have warmed ourselves with a 

 hot meal ; but as it was, frozen tea out of a 

 bottle, and hard cold mutton, were not conducive 

 to much caloric. 



The ponies kept on at the same pace, and the 



