us to take it on loan to our destination. When I
offered this man books, he inquired whether he was
obliged to purchase them. He did so, however, upon
being assured that he was a perfectly free agent.
We now set off on our last stage across plains, from
which we could see Vierny a long, long way distant
among trees, and behind it, rising in majestic grandeur,
the snowy peaks of the Trans-Ili or southern Ala-Tau.
This range consists of two long, high, and parallel
chains. The northern, of which we had a good
APPROACHING VIERNY.
distant view as we drove along the plains, presents
an uninterrupted mountain mass, rising to an average
height of 8,600 feet, and in its central portion to the
limits of perpetual snow, but falling somewhat lower at
either extremity, and, finally, in its eastern section,
broken by the gorge of the River Chilik, and afterwards
by the Charin. Tal-Cheku, the highest peak, has an
elevation about equal to that of Mont Blanc, and
its snows are visible for more than 30 miles ; and,
in addition, we could see many heights with snowy
patches, fully entitling the range to its name A la -T a u
or the spotted mountain. The porphyritic forelands
are small in comparison with the height of the ridge
itself.
Until comparatively recently, not only the slopes,
but also the lower spurs of these mountains were
covered with thick forests. Now grass alone
grows on the summits, and the clear, bright emerald
green of this mingles with the- dark green of the
few fir-trees that remain on the hill-tops. Rain
often falls in the mountains, causing them to be
veiled in dark mists, which, as they rise upwards,
become whiter, taking all manner of quaint and
fantastic forms, and finally melt away. The spectacle
presented by the lower spurs in spring, as described
by both Kostenko and Morgan, is said to be very
beautiful; especially The Almatinka valley when its
apple-trees are white with blossom, mingling with the
delicate pink of the apricot bloom. A t this season,
moreover, the nomads set fire to the old grass in
order to help the growth of the new, and the heavens
become red with the glow of the flames, filling the
neighbourhood with waves of light. Later on, the
steep declivities, clothed with luxuriant grass, are
stained with dark-red beds of peeonies, and from the
ground, coloured with purple and lilac irises, shoot up
tall flower-stalks of lilies and hollyhocks. This chain
is crossed by five passes, of which three are higher
than the Stelvio, the highest in Europe, the most
elevated being that of Almata at 10,900 feet, from
which there opens to ■ the traveller’s view the southern
chain of the Ala-Tau, with an average height of 8,825
feet.
Between the low portions of the northern and
southern ranges, north of the Chilik extends the