270 
THROUGH ASIA 
we had traversed an extraordinarily romantic gorge, 
which, having cut out its channel to a great depth 
recalled the characteristics of the typical Peripheral 
region of which I have before spoken. Above the gorge 
the glen had widened out; the enclosing mountains assum- 
ing at the same time a gentler inclination and falling^ to 
a relatively lower elevation — a typical Transitional region 
in miniature. We now began to enter upon a typical 
high-plateau or Central region. I had ascertained, tnat 
the volume of water in the mountain-streams general y 
increased towards four o’clock in the afternoon, and went 
on increasing until well on in the evening ; proving that 
the snows which are melted by the midday sun do not 
get down to the glens until several hours later. The 
streams were lowest about noon and a couple of hours 
afterwards, and attained their maximum during the night. 
But these general variations are subject to irregular oscilla- 
tions, caused by the irregularity of the rainfall. It is 
these deluge-like floods which do the real work of erosion, 
a fact evfdenced further by their thick, muddy-looking 
water. During the early part of the day the stream 
gradually deposited the detritus it caught up on its way 
down, and so became clear again. 
Bulak-bashi was a place of six yurts, inhabited by thirty 
Kessek Kirghiz. They are stationary there all the year 
round being commissioned to keep karaol (watch) upon 
the passes, to lodge and help Chinese travellers journeying 
over them, and to carry to and fro the Chinese post. 
Both at Bulak-bashi and at Pasrabat there were therefore 
three postmen stationed, each three being paid 25 ch'dreck 
(nearly 6 bushels) of wheat from Yanghi-hissar and 20 
chdreck (nearly 5 bushels) from Tash-kurgan. Since 
leaving Yanghi-hissar we had passed six watch-houses— 
Icrhiz-yar, Tokai-bashi, Kashka-su-bashi, Chihil-gumbez, 
plsrabat, and Bulak-bashi. Two of the men belonging 
to the aul last-named were looked upon as bais, i.e. 
rich men ; each owned about one thousand sheep, two 
hundred goats, one hundred yaks, thirty horses, and the 
same number of camels. The winters were said to be 
