146 Eussian Missioti from Orenhourg to Bokhara, 



[Jul? 



lak of water having once flowed there, and they assured me that their 

 fathers had seen the sea of Aral extending to the foot of this hill, 

 though it does not now approach nearer than sixty verstes. So many 

 Kirghiz have declared the same thing to me, that I can have no doubt 

 of the fact, which shows how considerable and how rapid the decrease 

 of the sea of Aral is; it. still continues, and one of our guides recollected 

 having seen the sea extend beyond Kulli and Sapak, places which we 

 passed on the 14th and 15th of November, less than a } r ear ago, the 

 Camechlu-bacb, a large bay of the Sir-deria, extended three verstes far- 

 ther than at the time of our journey. 



At about 25 verstes from Sari-boulak, we passed the solitary hill of 

 Berman-bachi ; it is known to the Kirghiz by the name of Termembes, 

 and is so called by all their tribes, though it is common enough for them 

 to give different names to the same place. The smallest of the hills we 

 feaw near the Termembes, and in fact all those we saw between the Sari- 

 boulak and the sea of Aral, have their slopes^ on the side towards the 

 lake, intersected by ravines and destitute of grass. They present a mass 

 ef hillocks, barren and always round at the summit, whilst the slopes on 

 the opposite side are gentle, and covered with wormwood ; signs of the 

 action of water on all these hills is incontestible. 



Before reaching the Aral lake, we entered the Cara-coum, or black 

 sands, a desert thus called without its being possible to assign a reason. 

 All the sandy deserts offer nearly the same aspect. The Cara-coum is 

 abundantly supplied with water, which is found by digging one or two 

 toises. The Cossacks who preceded us, dug seventeen wells at Behrat- 

 ehai-koudouk, containing but little water, each more or less brackish. 



The Cara-coum extends to the lake of Aral, and in some places to the 

 liver Sir, far to the eastward, where it is much wider. In returning 

 from Bokhara, 1 crossed this desert in eight days, about 268 verstes, 

 that is from the Sir to the Irghiz. After having passed near the Sari- 

 tchaghanak, or yellow bay, a creek of the Aral, we again entered into 

 the Cara-coum, and did not leave it till near Camechlu-bach. The 

 banks of the lake of Aral, from Sari-tchaghanak to the mouths of the 

 Sir. are composed of sand hills driven up from the Cara-coum. To the 

 R outh of Kouwan, sand is again met with, intersected at intervals by 

 patches of clay extending to the lake. From the Sir-deiia, to Kouwan 

 it is entirely of clay, flat and capable of cultivation, if water could be 

 procured for irrigation. 



The water had for a long time been so indifferent, that we thought 

 that of the Camechlu-bach excellent; and, lying down upon the ice, we 

 drank it with inexpressible plessuic. The Camechlu-bach is a cor.side- 



