112 
NARRA TIVE. 
nium and Lycium. The only animal life I saw in this 
desert was a large lark near the river, and in the 
sand of the desert a new species of Fodoces, called 
ku77i tuche, the flesh of which is said to be good 
eating. But I may note that the Yarkandis are not 
very reliable informants, and always try to suit their 
answers to the supposed wishes or gullibility of the 
questioner. 
After fourteen miles of desert we saw some tall 
trees in the distance, and very soon descended from 
the sand-hills to a gravelly plain about 150 feet lower, 
where we found a little oasis, consisting of a few 
acres of cultivation and a few clumps of large trees. 
Here I overtook the rest of the party, who had 
arrived about an hour before. Mirza Shadi again 
complained about my leaving the cavalcade and going 
off the road. He said that he was responsible for the 
safety of the party ; but as far as one could judge, the 
only risk to life in Yarkand is from the men in power, 
and as long as they are friendl}^ one is perfectly safe. 
I believe that not only life, but property also, is safer 
in Yarkand than in many civilized countries. Theft, 
I believe, is often punished with death. I believe 
that when a trader's horse gets disabled and cannot 
proceed, the load of merchandize is often left for 
months on the road, and is perfectly safe until the 
owner's return ; in fact, we saw quantities of mer- 
chandize which had been thus left for months near 
the Sanju pass. We often had discussions with the 
Envoy and Kazi Sahib about crime and criminals. 
They expressed great admiration for everything con- 
nected with our rule in India, except our treatment 
of criminals, which they considered absurdly lenient. 
