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292 ADVENTURES IN TIBET.
and a very long string they made. It was, in fact, the
biggest caravan I have ever led ; the biggest, indeed, that
any European has ever led with a peaceful object into the
interior of Tibet. It marched in several detachments,
each under the command of a separate leader, the string
filling the whole of the road in front of the yamcn, where
Jan Daloi, the Chinese amhan, or governor, and a special
friend of mine, resided. All the animals were in the pink
of condition. In fact, the horses were so fresh as to be
half-wild, and no sooner did they get started than they
began to play the maddest pranks, flinging off their loads
and galloping away. Fortunately they carried nothing
but sacks of grain and so forth, which, the sacks being
strong and well-tied, suffered no hurt.
It was in truth a magnificent spectacle to see the long
array of caravan animals winding away from the quiet
serai and the shade of its willows to the tinkling of the
camels’ bells and any amount of shouting and screaming,
neighing, roaring and barking. The dust hung in clouds
along the highway. And yet I feared, nay I knew, that
the greater part of these noble animals would leave their
bones in the inhospitable wilds of Tibet. It is not without
reason that my route is marked on the map with red : the
journey was at the price of blood.
Chernoff was appointed commander-in-chief of the
whole caravan, while Turdu Bai was nominated captain
of the camel corps. Their orders were to march by way
of Abdal and Tatlik-bulak, the easiest road that existed,
up into the highlands, and there await my arrival beside
the lake of Kum-kol. They also took with them seven
dogs and the stag, and were to buy fifty sheep in Abdal.
After they had disappeared amongst the orchards, our
serai felt very lonely and silent ; stables and courtyards
were all empty, and I was left alone, except for the three
men whom- I kept back to wait upon me—namely, Sirkin,
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