SPRING THAW DIFFICULTIES 247 



two guides with our saddle-bags. I selected for 

 myself what I thought was a good strong horse. 

 iWe started at seven p.m. and rode through the 

 village, and up a steep hill, on ascending which we 

 found ourselves in the steppes once more. At about 

 eight o'clock the leader of our little procession in- 

 quired the way across of a peasant whom we met, 

 and was instructed, as it was then dark, to follow 

 a line of railings, till they came to an end some three 

 miles farther, and then turn to the right. When we 

 reached the end of the railings I attempted to per- 

 suade the peasant who had directed us, and who 

 had accompanied us thus far, to go farther with us, 

 as he seemed to know all about the road, but he 

 politely refused my invitation. We descended the 

 banks of a small stream, which we crossed. The soil 

 beneath our horses' feet now seemed as black as 

 soot, and we seemed to be riding into the darkness. 

 I could scarcely see the leader, although he was only 

 some few yards ahead of me. Suddenly we pulled 

 up abruptly by the side of a lake, into which he had 

 very nearly walked. We called a halt and rested. 

 A flock of ducks rose quite close to us beating the 

 water with their wings, but we could not see them. 

 They seemed so near that one of our company fired 

 a shot at them, causing considerable commotion 

 among their numbers. Then we made a circuit of 

 the lake, wading through three streams as we did 

 so. Presently we came to a fourth stream, which 

 ended in a cataract some fifty feet high quite close to 

 us. We could hear the water tumbling over the 

 ledge about three yards to our right, which made it 

 necessary^ for us to ride very carefully, as a slip 

 would have meant a good ducking — if not worse . We 

 next encountered an accumulation of melting snow, 

 which had lodged in a hollow, and through which we 

 had to guide our horses with great care. Just as I 



