ARRIVAL IN T ARK AND, ETC. 
139 
One day I asked him to get me a man who would 
catch rats and mice for me, as these were said to be 
very common, but he was so amused at the request, 
that I could not convince him I was in earnest. He 
said, " Ah, Doctor Sahib, Doctor Sahib, you are 
making fun of me and away he went, probably to 
inform the Dad Khwah. I saw a few lizards in the 
desert, but failed to secure any of them. Frogs 
were not uncommon about the tanks. 
Mr. Forsyth got Hari Chand to survey the city 
and fort, and make an estimate of the number of 
houses. I have reproduced, with Mr. Forsyth's per- 
mission, a map which was drawn up from Hari 
Chand's information. The inhabitants of Yarkand 
are a very mixed race. From information he re- 
ceived from the agent of Kashmir, who is stationed 
there, Mr. Forsyth estimates the population at about 
60,000, as follows :— 
Badakshan people 2000 
Baltistan do 2000 
Kashmiris 1000 
Andijanis or Kokandis . . . . 3000 
Tunganis 500 
Yarkandis 50,000 
Of the Yarkandis, about 5000 are mendicants. 
Many of the people have very marked Chinese 
features, and these, as a rule, have no beard, but only 
the moustache and imperial. No religion is tolerated 
except the Mahomedan, and caste prejudices, with 
the exception of such as exist amongst ourselves, are 
unknown. The few Hindus who have come over 
from India to trade are terribly kept down; they 
