As to the question which interested us most nearly, the Kaïd had at first been reserved; and when it became necessary to decide, his language was decidedly unfavourable. It was impossible, he said, to reach the high mountains with snow on them from Tasseremout. Any one attempting to do so would pass beyond his district, where he could not protect us, and he could not allow us to incur such a risk. We remembered Washington’s account of his winter excursion from this place; and, what was more curious, we found that a tradition of the visit of Christians who have gone up the mountains here many years before survived among the people. When, in December, 1829, the late Sir J. Drummond Hay was received at Marocco with great distinction by the then Sultan, it was arranged that, after taking leave of the sovereign, the party should enjoy two or three days’ hunting towards the foot of the Atlas, and they accordingly encamped somewhere below Tasseremout. Washington and some other officers attached to the mission resolved to take the opportunity for ascending the mountains as far as possible. At starting they evidently thought it practicable to attain the higher peaks from this place by a continuous ascent, and appear to have been surprised to find, after several hours’ climbing, when they had reached and somewhat passed the limit of the winter snow, that the ‘highest peaks were still far beyond their reach.’ To one familiar with high mountain countries, the natural course for attaining to the backbone of a considerable chain is by penetrating to the head of one of the deeper valleys; and the course taken by Washington’s party would appear no more promising than the attempt to scale Monte Rosa from the plain of Piedmont by ascending the mountains behind Ivrea. The mountain stream that flows below Tasseremout seems to come from the SE., where the range presents no conspicuous summits; whereas the higher points visible from our camp at Mesfioua lay nearly due south. We were therefore not inclined to insist on carrying out our original design of making Tasseremout our base of operations; and when we were told that the valley of Ourika, lying some distance to the west, led to the snowy mountains, we at once decided on moving thither in the course of the afternoon. To console us for our disappointment, the Kaïd invited us to a repast which, like the food supplied at Mesfioua, was much better cooked than usual. We especially appreciated some cakes, or bannocks, of wheaten flour that made an agreeable change from the biscuit to which we were often reduced.