watched his movements, and when sufficiently near, their hands clutched a piece of mutton from the tray. They then retreated in the same stealthy manner behind a heap of voilocks, and devoured the spoil. I saw this repeated two or three times, and was highly amused by their cunning. Beyond the women, and surrounded by a group of dogs, there was a child about four years old sitting with a dry leg-bone of a sheep in its hand. This puzzled me at first, till I saw bones thrown among them, when there was a general rush of the canine race. The child was not daunted by their growls; his bony weapon fell heavy on their noses, and he frequently carried off the spoil. In a remarkably short time the sheep had disappeared, when large bowls of the liquid in which it had been boiled were handed round, and drunk with a great relish by the Kirghis. The dinner being ended, two men brought the water-vessels, and poured the warm liquid over our hands, after which all rose up and went to their occupations.

The sultan expressed a wish to see our rifles used, and ordered three of his men to bring out theirs. I gave them powder and lead, and induced them to fire at a target placed at sixty paces distant; each man fired two rounds, but not one ball touched it. They then removed ten paces nearer, and one man hit it, to their great joy. A Cossack and Tchuck-a-boi next fired, and sent both balls near the centre. I now desired one of the Cossacks to place the target at what he considered the best long range for their rifles. He stepped off two hundred paces-about one hundred and eightyfive yards. The sultan and his Kirghis looked at the distance with utter amazement. When the first shot was fired, and the hole pointed out not far from the centre, they were astonished. The target was a piece of dark voilock, with a piece of white paper, seven inches square, pinned on the middle. This I have always found much better than a black centre. We all fired, and not a ball missed the paper. When the sultan saw this, I fancied that it made a strong impression on his mind; the superiority of our arms, and the way they were used, could scarcely be without its effect. After this there was a general cleaning of arms, to have them in perfect order.

We were now in Chinese Tartary, in the country of the ancient Sungarians previous to their being conquered by the Chinese emperor Kien Long, near the middle of the eighteenth century. It

KIRGHIS CHIEFS.-THE BEARCOOTE.

415 was in this region that about four thousand men of the tribe of Prince Tsebeck Dordzi settled after the exodus of the Tartars from the Volga. We should most probably make an acquaintance with the descendants of these men before many days passed over.

The sultan returned into the yourt with me, accompanied by a Cossack and Tchuck-a-boi. I wished to ascertain if we should find Kirghis farther to the southeast, taking care at the same time not to hint that there could be any difficulty to retard our traveling in that direction, as I had learned that the Asiatics instantly take advantage of any doubt, and turn it to their own account: I have surmounted not a few of their impossibilities. In answer to my questions, Baspasihan said there were two chiefs in the country beyond his pastures, Oui-jass and Koubaldos; and at eight days' journey from his aoul we should find his friend, Sultan Sabeck, a very good man. He informed me that Oui-jass would treat us well, but he said that Koubaldos was a great robber. I desired to know if there were Kirghis about Kessil-bach-Noor. The sultan informed me that there were many aouls on the River Ourunjour, that Kessil-bach-Noor was six days' journey distant, and that the people were all robbers.

I desired the Cossack to inform Baspasihan of my intention to visit his friend Sultan Sabeck, and that we should start in the morning. He at once proposed to accompany me to another aoul of his own, nearly a day's journey distant in the direction we must travel. We were also to have a hunt with the bearcoote, that I might see their sport, as we should find plenty of game on our way. The gunpowder and the lead which I had given to his men had brought this about. He was also desirous of seeing a boarhunt, and witnessing the effects of our rifles on the bristly animal. During the evening the sultan asked if I would permit two of his Kirghis to go with me to Sultan Sabeck. He wished to send a present of a fine young stallion to his friend, which he thought would be perfectly safe under our escort. The accuracy and range of our rifles had impressed upon him a very high notion of the power we possessed to repel the attack of any plunderers, and he thought it probable that we might meet with some of them. Several skins were spread for me in the sultan's yourt, on which I slept soundly, and forgot for a time both fatigue and robbers.

Soon after daybreak we were all up, and making preparations

for our departure. Horses were standing ready saddled, and every thing indicated a busy scene. I saw two Kirghis occupied with the bearcoote and the falcon. Having finished our morning meal, horses were brought for the sultan and myself. I was to be mounted to-day on one of his best steeds—a fine dark gray, that stood champing my English bit, which he did not appear to relish. All my party were mounted on the sultan's horses; ours had been sent on to the aoul with a party of his people and three of my Kalmucks. When mounted, I had time to examine the party. The sultan and his two sons rode beautiful animals. The eldest boy carried the falcon, which was to fly at the feathered game. A wellmounted Kirghis held the bearcoote, chained to a perch, which was secured into a socket on his saddle. The eagle had shackles and a hood, and was perfectly quiet: he was under the charge of two men. Near to the sultan were his three hunters, or guards, with their rifles, and around us were a band of about twenty Kirghis, in their bright-colored kalats: more than half the number were armed with battle-axes. Taking us altogether, we were a wildlooking group, whom most people would rather behold at a distance than come in contact with.

We began our march, going nearly due east, the sultan's three hunters leading the van, followed by his highness and myself; his two sons and the eagle-bearers immediately behind us, with two of my men in close attendance. A ride of about two hours brought us to the bank of a stagnant river, fringed with reeds and bushes, where the sultan expected that we should find game. We had not ridden far when we discovered traces of the wild boar, large plots having been recently plowed up. This gave us hopes of sport. Our rifles were unslung, and we spread out our party to beat the ground.

We had not gone far when several large deer rushed past a jutting point of the reeds, and bounded over the plain about three hundred yards from us. In an instant the bearcoote was unhooded and his shackles removed, when he sprung from his perch and soared up into the air. I watched him ascend as he wheeled round, and was under the impression that he had not seen the animals; but in this I was mistaken. He had now risen to a considerable height, and seemed to poise himself for about a minute. After this he gave two or three flaps with his wings, and swooped off in a

NEW SPECIES OF FALCONRY.

417

straight line toward his prey. I could not perceive that his wings moved, but he went at a fearful speed. There was a shout, and away went his keepers at full gallop, followed by many others. I gave my horse his head and a touch of the whip; in a few minutes he carried me to the front, and I was riding neck-and-neck with one of the keepers. When we were about two hundred yards off the bearcoote struck his prey. The deer gave a bound forward and fell. The bearcoote had struck one talon into his neck, the other into his back, and with his beak was tearing out the animal's liver. The Kirghis sprung from his horse, slipped the hood over

the eagle's head and the shackles upon his legs, and removed him from his prey without difficulty. The keeper mounted his horse, his assistant placed the bearcoote on his perch, and he was ready for another flight. No dogs are taken out when hunting with the eagle; they would be destroyed to a certainty; indeed, the Kirghis assert that he will attack and kill the wolf. Foxes are hunted in this way, and many are killed; the wild goat and the lesser kinds of deer are also taken in considerable numbers. We had not gone far before a considerable number of antelopes were seen

DD

418

WILD BOAR SHOOTING.

feeding on the plain. Again the bird soared up in circles as before, this time I thought to a greater elevation, and again he made the fatal swoop at his intended victim, and the animal was dead before we reached him. The bearcoote is unerring in his flight; unless the animal can escape into holes in the rocks, as the fox does sometimes, death is his certain doom.

We returned to the river, beating the cover in search of other animals, and rode for a long time without success. At length we roused up some game which kept in the long grass and reeds. Subsequently we got sight of the bristly back of a large boar; several shots were fired, but no ball went near him. After running him about half an hour we came upon open ground, when we had the game in full view-two young boars and a very large one; and as they all made for the open country, they afforded us a good chase.

The animals bounded along at a great speed about four hundred yards ahead of us, but presently separated, the two young ones turning to the left toward the cover on the river farther down; and as the old boar went forward on his course, our party divided, some trying to head the young boars and force them out upon the steppe, while several of the sultan's Kirghis, two Cossacks, Tchucka-boi, and myself, followed the old boar, and were gaining upon him fast. I observed that he was a much nobler foe, and much more dangerous to approach than those we had shot before. The horses seemed to enter into the spirit of the chase, and dashed over the plain at a pace that was rapidly bringing us toward our game. A Cossack and myself had been gradually drawing ahead of the other hunters, and were now within fifty yards of the boar, though too much behind him to get a good shot. We could see his formidable tusks and the foam on his jaws as he gnashed them together in his rage. A few minutes more brought us abreast of him, and gradually closing nearer, when within about twenty yards the Cossack fired, and I saw that the boar was wounded. He turned his head toward us for a moment, and then rushed on. I was now within fifteen paces of him, and going at the same speed. Grasping the horse firmly with my knees, I dropped the rein and fired; I noticed with effect, as a red stream gushed down his shoulder.

He turned suddenly and made a rush toward me, but my horse