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i86 ADVENTURES IN TIBET.
threaten to engulf the entire caravan, and why was the
ground as thin as the atmosphere—the last alone was
almost enough to make our hearts burst when we got down
and walked ?
I again mounted, but it was as much as I could do to
keep my horse from pitching over on his own head at every
step. It was just as though his feet were entangled with
cords, from which he had to free himself before he could
take a fresh step. I rode on first, seeking out a path. The
caravan crawled behind like snails, and the beasts of burden,
being afraid of the deepest holes, refused to step into them,
but swerved to one side, though in nine cases out of ten it
was like jumping out of the frying-pan into the fire. Hour
after hour passed as we struggled on and on, slowly and
painfully, up towards that low pass.
In the pass we met a solitary wolf. What was he doing
there ? Although, it was only four o’clock, it turned as
dark as an autumn evening, when the usual storm came
crashing like the bombardment of a fortress. The horses
walked sideways, to screen themselves from the hail.
" Stop !
" I at length cried, for we could see nothing. We
encamped, therefore, on the miry slope, making ditches
round the tents to drain off the water. There we remained
an entire day, for one of our camels had lagged behind and
had to be fetched in. It was as much as the men could do
to make him rise, and after he did so, he soon fell again,
and had to be slaughtered. It rained cats and dogs all
day, and on each side of my bed there was a pool of water,
which had to be conducted away by grips. The rain
dripped in everywhere, through the felt coverings of the
yurts, and everything was wet and uncomfortable. We
all longed for a change ; we could not very well change for
the worse.
On 14th August the sun once more showed himself, and
we had the good fortune to find a patch of tolerable grass.
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