1842.] to Shipke, in Chinese Tartary. 379 



one, and a chronometer, so we were still very well supplied with instru- 

 ments. 



We had great reason to be thankful, that during these last three days 

 there was very little wind, and none at all when we visited the highest 

 peaks, for had there been any when the thermometer was so low, it 

 must have chilled us, so that we could not have moved, and to have 

 remained at such heights for a night, would have been almost certain 

 death. 



19th October. — As many of our servants were unable to walk, from 

 fatigue and sore feet, we halted. The village of Nako is situate about a 

 mile to the east of the Lee river, and is the highest we met with during 

 our tour, being not less than 11,850 feet above the sea; it is pretty 

 large, and inhabited by Lama Tartars, rather different in appearance 

 from those at Shipke, and not so much resembling the Chinese ; there 

 is more cultivation about it than would be expected considering its 

 elevation, the fields which are chiefly wheat and a kind of pulse, extend 

 to the height of 13,000 feet, and have stone dykes around them; yaks 

 are used here in the plough, they are hardy animals, but often vicious. 

 The grain produced, as at most other villages in Koonawur, is insuffi- 

 cient for consumption, and the people subsist by their flocks ; there is a 

 pond near this, surrounded by apricot trees, upon which in waiter the 

 boys amuse themselves by sliding, but they do not know the use of skates. 



This morning the thermometer was eighteen degrees below the freez- 

 ing point, a shower of snow had fallen upon the adjacent mountains, 

 and every thing indicated the sudden approach of winter; it was now 

 time for us to think of returning, so we decided upon going no farther 

 than Shealkhur. We here received a visit from the Wuzeer Loktus, 

 who has charge of Hungrung, one of the subdivisions of Koonawur, con- 

 taining ten or twelve Tartar villages, which lies on both sides of the 

 Lee river from Shealkhur to the Sutlej ; he came here to collect the 

 revenue, and brought us a couple of chowrees, and some fine purple 

 grapes from Soongnum. 



20th October. — Marched to Chango nine miles, the road was in gene- 

 ral good and broad, lying about a mile from the left bank of the Lee 

 river; M'e found a great deal of red clay at the height of 12,000 feet, 

 and above the hills, were of granite and gneiss. Chango is situate on 



a pleasant spot between two rivulets near the Lee. 



3 K 



