CENTRAL ASIAN EXPLORATION 
7 
between Ladak and Tibet, they met with both forest 
and pasture. The tract east of Lake Panggong was un- 
inhabited, except by a few shepherds and their flocks. 
The natives called themselves Changpas or Northmen ; 
but to the inhabitants of Turkestan they were known as 
Taghliks or Mountaineers. The Tibetan plateau stretched 
away east for 800 miles, to the sources of the Chinese 
rivers and the Burkhan-buddha Mountains. As far as 
eye could reach, it appeared to consist of a grass-grown 
plateau region diversified by hills and valleys, with snow- 
dad mountains in the distance. Occasionally a shepherd’s 
tent was seen ; and antelopes, wild asses, and wild sheep 
abounded. The results of the journey were 276 deter- 
niinations of latitude, the mapping of 1200 miles of 
unknown country, 497 observations for altitude with the 
boiling-point thermometer, and a series of meteorological 
observations. 
Among those who have travelled in eastern Tibet the 
Russian General Przhevalsky (Prjevalsky) ranks first. The 
17th (29th) November 1870 he started from Kiakhta with 
three Russian followers, and passed through the Desert of 
Gobi by way of Urga and Kalgan to Peking. After a 
tnp to Dalai-nor, he left Kalgan in May 1871, and 
travelled west, through the mountain chains of In-shan 
and Muni-ula, then up the Yellow River (Hwang-ho) 
until he reached the country of Ala-shan, and its capital 
Dy 
n-yuan-in. He afterwards returned to Kalgan. Then 
after a good rest he went back to Dyn-yuan-in, where we 
find him in June 1872. Here began the most remarkable 
part of his travels, the country which he next traversed 
being little known. He first explored the highlands of 
Kan-su, a well-wooded mountain region lying north-east 
of Koko-nor ; then, having made the circuit of the lake, 
and crossed the Southern Range of Koko-nor, the ex- 
pedition reached the great swamps of Tsaidam, whence 
•t ascended into the higher regions of Tibet, the home 
of the wild yak. Several of the mountain-chains of the 
"1 ibetan highlands were crossed on the way to the 
Yang-tse-kiang, which was reached on January loth 
