THE GUN AT HOME AND ABROAD 
fine stag and ibex ground in the upper valleys of the Manas River. It 
is, however, very difficult country to approach and calls for a specially 
arranged outfit. East of this again is the Bogdo-ola group which, being 
sparsely inhabited, might be worth hunting for stag. There is a famous 
reserve in the valley containing the lake of Bogdo-ola which, on account 
of religious scruples, is preserved, no game being allowed to be killed. 
Here we saw traces of the presence of much game. 
Should any hunter be tempted to travel as far as the ranges east of the 
Bogdo-ola, he will find wild sheep in numbers on the plateau country 
between this range and Bar Kul. In the spring season he will also meet 
with “kulon ” or wild ass, and gazelle innumerable, for they then come up 
from the surrounding deserts to feed on the new grass. On the Bar Kul 
and Karlik Tagh ranges are sheep, ibex and stag, all of them worth 
hunting should the traveller pass this way, but scarcely worth following 
whilst they still remain so numerous in localities more easily reached. 
I have spent some time in describing the various shooting grounds of 
the Tian Shan, with special regard to the wild sheep, ibex and wapiti, 
for they indeed are the prizes which tempt the hunter hither. The roe deer 
are also well worthy of notice, for they attain magnificent proportions, 
but these are dealt with elsewhere. They range, so far as I can gather, 
wherever the forest belt extends. 
Besides these trophies, there may fall to the rifle of hard -hunting 
sportsmen bear, snow leopard, and wild boar. Snow leopard, it is true, is 
somewhat of a chance, for it is not a beast one can hunt systematically, 
but they are very numerous in the high rock country inhabited by the ibex. 
The bears of the Tian Shan are sure to be seen at some moment or other. 
They are very much in evidence in spring and early summer. 
It has been said that there are two types of bears on the Tian Shan 
range, a dark coloured, forest loving species, and the other a paler variety, 
found on the high treeless plateaux. More recent opinions seem to decide 
that these are only local varieties of one type; all agree, however, in the 
peculiarity of having white claws. It is closely allied to the Kashmir brown 
bear and is called Ursus arctus leuconyx. 
BOKHARA 
The remainder of mountainous Central Asia is occupied by the Khanate 
of Bokhara and the adjacent district of the Zarafschan. No part of Inner 
148 
