al is put to a gallop, and the juvenile rider, in order not
to fall off, has to cling with both hands to his teacher's jacket. The
Tartars thus become accustomed, from a very early age, to the movements
of the horse, and by degrees and the force of habit, they identify
themselves, as it were, with the animal.

There is, perhaps, no spectacle more exciting than that of Mongol riders
in chase of a wild horse. They are armed with a long, heavy pole, at the
end of which is a running knot. They gallop, they fly after the horse
they are pursuing down rugged ravines, and up precipitous hills, in and
out, twisting and twining in their rapid course, until they come up with
their game. They then take the bridle of their own horses in their
teeth, seize with both hands their heavy pole, and bending forward throw,
by a powerful effort, the running knot round the wild horse's neck. In
this exercise the greatest vigour must be combined with the greatest
dexterity, in order to enable them to stop short the powerful untamed
animals with which they have to deal. It sometimes happens that pole and
cord are broken; but as to a horseman being thrown, it is an occurrence
we never saw or heard of.

The Mongol is so accustomed to horseback that he is altogether like a
fish out of water when he sets foot on the ground. His step is heavy and
awkward and his bowed legs, his chest bent forward, his constant looking
around him, all indicate a person who spends the greater portion of his
time on the back of a horse or a camel.

When night overtakes the travelling Tartar, it often happens that he will
not even take the trouble to alight for the purpose of repose. Ask
people whom you meet in the desert where they slept last night, and you
will as frequently as not have for answer, in a melancholy tone, "_Temen
dero_," (on the camel). It is a singular spectacle to see caravans
halting at noon, when they come to a rich pasturage. The camels disperse
in all directions, browsing upon the high grass of the prairie, while the
Tartars, astride between the two humps of the animal, sleep as profoundly
as though they were sheltered in a good bed.

This incessant activity, this constant travelling, contributes to render
the Tartars very vigorous, and capable of supporting the most terrible
cold, without appearing to be in the least affected by it. In the
deserts of Tartary, and especially in the country of the Khalkhas, the
cold is so intense, tha