1 SULTAN BECK. 475 in the Syan-shan. In all my wanderings in the Karatou, Alatou, and Actou, I did not discover one crater. We now turned toward the west in search of the aoul of Sultan Beck, the largest man and most wealthy Kirghis in the steppes. He has ten thousand horses, and camels, oxen, and sheep in proportion to this vast herd. It was late in the evening when we found him: perhaps we disturbed his slumbers, and by so doing ruffled his temper, as he was exceedingly uncivil, and sent us a sheep that was diseased. This was quickly returned to him with my compliments, and a message stating that we did not eat such food, nor did we require any thing from him. I desired the Cossack to say that he was the first sultan who had behaved so ungentlemanly toward me, and that, notwithstanding his large body, he had the heart of a mouse. This roused him into a fury, and he ordered us away, threatening that if we did not move instantly his men should drive us into the lake. The Cossack replied that if either he or any of his men came near our camp, we would shoot them; which having said, he left the yourt, and told us what had passed. It was not long before we perceived two girls coming toward us leading a sheep, which the sultan had sent, begging me to accept it, as it was one of the best in his flock: they assured me that he wished to pay me a visit, had offered to let me stay as long as I liked, and had promised to give me men and horses when I left. His mutton having been accepted, and a message returned saying I should be glad to receive him, it was not long before we saw his huge bulk approaching our camp. He saluted me by touching the chest in the usual manner, after which we sat down and became friends. He drank tea with me, and remained to partake of his own mutton; and while this was preparing, he ordered his poet to sing for us. The man obeyed, and chanted forth songs, describing the prowess and successful plundering expeditions of my host and his ancestors, which called forth thunders of applause from the tribe. After spending more than two hours in the company of the sultan and his bard, we separated on friendly terms. Next morning before starting I sketched Sultan Beck and his family. He is feeding his bearcoote, hunting with the king of birds being his favorite sport. Early in the forenoon I said Aman-bul and departed, attended by ten of the sultan's men; good horses had also been provided. From this aoul our route was in a southwesterly direction, about twenty versts from the foot of the Karatou, a chain of mountains rising abruptly from the steppe. They are composed chiefly of a dark purple slate, are destitute of vegetation, and in no part rise to more than six thousand feet; but there are several magnificent gorges here, through which the rivers find their way to the steppe. Again we had to ride over a sandy plain, stretching westward to the shores of the Lake Tengiz; and after a two days' journey found the Kirghis more numerous. Their aouls and dwellings resemble each other so much that it would be repetition to describe them. On the fourth day after leaving Sultan Beck's aoul we were in search of Sultan Boulania. If the first was the largest man in the steppe, the one I was now seeking was reported to be by far the most enlightened and talented among the Kirghis. Having slept the night at an aoul on the River Lepsou, the inhabitants told me that we should find the sultan's aoul a two days' journey up the river; and soon after daylight we left these people, and rode in the direction indicated. The Lepsou is a large stream, running between high sandy banks, in some parts extending into broad shallow pools covered with reeds and bulrushes, while in others it has a rapid current. We presently reached undulating sandy hills, into which our horses sunk deep at every step, and this materially retarded our progress. By noon we had not traveled more than twenty versts, when we came upon a plain covered with hundreds of sandy mounds: it was, indeed, a perfect labyrinth. As we were winding our way through these hillocks, we met a party of Kirghis armed with rifles, the advance guard of the sultan, who was following at a short distance. We soon met, when he invited me to accompany him to his aoul. A few years before the sultan had visited the Governor-General of Western Siberia, who had most kindly given me a letter recommending me to his care. It was written in the Tartar language, which the Mulla could not read. When the contents had been explained to Boulania, he ordered the Mulla to write me a passport which would be respected in the middle horde; it would also aid me with two of the sultans in the great horde. While I remained at the aoul I sketched a portrait of this sultan. At daylight' we left, attended by ten of the sultan's Kirghis, |