Mus-tagh-ata encircled by a bright halo ; the fire gradu- 
ally died down ; and we slept the sleep of the just 
under the open sky on Hazrett-i-Musa’s (Holy Moses’) 
mountain. 
The following day, the i8th April, the weather was 
unfavourable, the sky being wreathed with clouds ; besides 
which, it was cold and windy. Nevertheless we made up 
our minds to go on. The Kirghiz preferring to walk, 
we took only three yaks with us to carry our belongings. 
By innumerable sharp zigzag curves we worked our way 
I--I5 
CLIMBING MUS-TAGH-ATA 225 
evening we were joined by another Kirghiz, who brought 
us two yak-loads of teresken, and then we very soon had 
a splendid fire roaring away. Around it we gathered to 
eat our plain evening meal. The lively flames darted 
backwards and forwards like a giddy dancer, now skim- 
ming the lips of one of the spectators with a coquettish 
kiss, now singeing the beard of this or the other frozen 
Kirghiz, in a way that gave rise to a good deal of merri- 
ment. The moon rose from behind the shoulder of 
MUS-T.AGH-ATA SEEN FROM THE NORTH 
