1024 
THROUGH ASIA 
strong ; for they came rolling up from the west tipped 
with spray, and beat upon the shore with the harmonious 
regularity of a ring of bells. At three o’clock in the 
afternoon the temperature of the water was 55°9 Fahr. 
(i3°3 C.) as compared with 52°3 Fahr. (ii°3 C.) for the 
air. The surface of the lake, wFich lay between the 
arms of the two ridges, had approximately the same 
altitude as camp No. XV., or 16,195 f'set above the 
level of the sea. For the sake of clearness, I decided 
to number these several lakes ; this one of which I have 
just been speaking was therefore No. 5.* 
August 31st. Immediately to the east of the camp 
we discovered a tiny freshwater lake, fed by a glacial 
torrent from the Arka-tagh. After passing a low range 
of dark mountains on our left, we turned off towards 
the east-south-east across a rolling grassy country. Then 
we entered another latitudinal valley, poorly supplied 
with water, but tolerably well grassed ; and there we 
observed numbers of khulans, antelopes, and hares. 
Beyond the 8th lake we crossed another magnificent 
watershed, on the other (east) side of which all the 
watercourses drained into lake No. 9. This was an 
isolated central basin, for it was encompassed by the 
large lakes into which the Arka-tagh and the great 
Southern Mountains poured their melting snows. This 
day we could not see the Arka-tagh : it was hidden 
behind its own outlying chains. But the snowy peaks 
of its counterpart frequently glittered down upon us ; 
for we advanced at such a slow rate that we seemed 
to get no nearer to it. To lake No. 10 it sent down 
a river of some magnitude. A short distance beyond 
this last we encamped beside a spring, having done 18^ 
miles between camp No. XV. and camp No. XVI. 
East-south-east of the camp we had a grand peak, 
covered with vast expanses of snow, among them some 
small glacier formations ; we also caught glimpses of a 
number of peaks towering up in the west. 
Many of these small lakes are not shown on the map, printed at the end 
of this volume. 
