his announcement worked like a charm.
The interest the Kurds had up to this time taken in our venture died away
at once. Even the three Kurds who, as requested in the message of the
mutessarif, were to accompany us up the mountain to the snow-line, refused
absolutely to go. The mention of the mutessarif's name awakened only a
sneer. We had also relied upon the Kurds for blankets, as we had been
advised to do by our friends in Bayazid. Those we had already hired they
now snatched from the donkeys standing before the tent. All this time our
tall, gaunt, meek-looking muleteer had stood silent. Now his turn had
come. How far was he to go with his donkeys?--he didn't think it possible
for him to go much beyond this point. Patience now ceased to be a virtue.
We cut off discussion at once; told the muleteer he would either go on, or
lose what he had already earned; and informed the zaptiehs that whatever
they did would be reported to the mutessarif on our return. Under this
rather forcible persuasion, they stood not on the order of their going,
but sullenly followed our little procession out of camp before the
crestfallen Kurds.

In the absence of guides we were thrown upon our own resources. Far from
being an assistance, our zaptiehs proved a nuisance. They would carry
nothing, not even the food they were to eat, and were absolutely ignorant
of the country we were to traverse. From our observations on the previous
days, we had decided to strike out on a northeast course, over the gentle
slope, until we struck the rocky ridges on the southeast buttress of the
dome. On its projecting rocks, which extended nearer to the summit than
those of any other part of the mountain, we could avoid the slippery,
precipitous snow-beds that stretched far down the mountain at this time of
the year.

Immediately after leaving the encampment, the ascent became steeper and
more difficult; the small volcanic stones of yesterday now increased to
huge obstructing boulders, among which the donkeys with difficulty made
their way. They frequently tipped their loads, or got wedged in between
two unyielding walls. In the midst of our efforts to extricate them, we
often wondered how Noah ever managed with the animals from the ark. Had
these donkeys not been of a philosophical turn of mind, they might have
offered forcible objections to the way we extricated them from their
straightened circumstances. A remonstrance on our part for carelessness in
driving