THE WILD ASS 
1029 
The evening passed and the night came, and nothing 
was seen of Parpi Bai. W^e began to be anxious about 
the camel-caravan. I saw that we must make up our 
minds to sacrifice the 3rd September as a rest-day. The 
missing caravan turned up during the course of the next 
morning. They had been obliged to leave a horse and a 
donkey on the road. One of the goats too was upon his 
last legs, and was killed. The camels and other animals 
were still in pretty good condition, and were turned loose 
to graze. 
Early in the morning Islam Bai caught sight of a yak 
cow, with two calves at her heels, grazing on the other 
side of the lake. Taking a rifle, he set out on horseback 
to try and get a shot at her. He came back at noon, and 
with some degree of elation told us, that he had ‘ potted 
the yak with a couple of balls, one of which penetrated 
under the spine. Leaving his horse tethered at some 
distance, he stole upon his prey on foot. The in- 
experienced calves were wholly unconscious of dangei, 
and their dam, running to warn them, fell an easy victim ; 
but directly she fell, the young ones fled behind the nearest 
hills. 
