Late in the afternoon of the 5th of July we forded the stream in the southern ravine, and, after crossing an extensive and very ruinous cemetery, made our way over the plain of lava which stretches without interruption to the base of the still distant Sipan. Our course was directed to a village on its southern confines, at the foot of those heights which have already been mentioned as extending between Sipan and Bilejan. You may canter the whole way, for the ground is fairly even, although broken here and there by mounds of black boulders, which may represent either minor outbreaks of volcanic matter, or the sites of steam vents through the sheet of cooling lava. In places there is a thin covering of marly deposits; and, where these occur, the soil becomes fertile. But it is little cultivated--only in patches, and in a very primitive fashion. The village proved to be Circassian; its name was Kara Ali; a second Circassian settlement, called Yaralmish, was its close neighbour upon the east. Our track commenced to ascend, immediately beyond Kara Ali, up the face of the opposite heights. The nature of these hills was at once apparent from the character of their forms and from the change in vegetation. We rode over the slopes of downs, resting the eye on fresh pastures, and with the song of the lark in our ears. The purple vetch was resplendent on the cliff-sides. Here and there a white patch disclosed the calcareous nature of the underlying rock. The village of Demian (raya Hasananli, alt. 6690 feet) is situated below the crest of the ridge, in full view of the plain. There we decided to encamp for the night. [233] July 6.--What a landscape to wake up to! The side of our tent towards the plain had been left open during the night. We overlooked such an immense expanse of earth--nude, or veiled in transparent mists, and quite unconscious of the presence of man! Even we, who were already accustomed to such visions, had never yet seen the like. Reach upon reach, in large surroundings, we traced the course of the Murad, flowing towards us from Tutakh; loop upon loop, we followed its waters into the dimness of the west, flowing away through the plain. The contrasts in the lighting were less impressive this morning; but last evening the river was thrown into pronouncement, and lay like a parti-coloured riband in the expanse. From vivid whites and tender greys it became a sheen of gold under the red blaze of the setting sun.