Thomas, Lucy and Alatau by John Massey Stewart

Author:John Massey Stewart [John Massey Stewart]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781912690374
Publisher: Lightning Source Inc.
Published: 2018-03-06T16:00:00+00:00

Thomas and the Cossack and Kazakh escort mounted their horses in pursuit, but the intruders had gone. What had seemed a vast and level plain proved to be undulating and intersected with gullies where riders could easily hide. If the miscreants had stolen the party’s horses as obviously intended, it would have been impossible for the Atkinson party to climb up the deep ravine on foot, and the intense sun, coupled with the burning sand of the steppe and lack of water, would soon have killed them all. And Lake Alakol’s water was to prove salty and bitter.

Riding up a great ravine from the lake, they passed from a morning of intense heat to a night in snow-clad mountains. At the top of the pass Thomas shot a large black eagle, much to the delight of their Kazakh companions; Lucy regarded these birds with the greatest dread, ‘in constant fear of them flying off with Alatau. They frequently carry off lambs, but I had not the slightest desire that Alatau should visit one of their eyries, to serve as a meal for their eaglets.’

On 26 July after further travels they returned to their old quarters on Alakol, getting up before sunrise for an early departure. The dogs had been very uneasy during the night, but although the Atkinsons were up many times to investigate, nothing untoward was seen. Then, just as they were to start off, one of their three Cossacks (whom they called Falstaff) noticed four men prowling about. Thomas ordered both Cossacks and a Kazakh to ride towards them and mounted his own horse to follow, leaving Columbus with Lucy, but she successfully entreated Thomas not to leave her and Alatau, knowing that he was a better shot than the three Cossacks put together. As soon as the four marauders saw they were to be pursued they rode off fast towards the head of the lake, ‘our men’ following at a furious speed.

‘The chase was an interesting one’, Lucy noted coolly. For a full twenty versts she and Thomas were able to watch it almost entirely. But they all became so small that ‘even with the glass we could not distinguish them’. Suddenly those left behind noticed four men creeping towards them but, seeing they were observed, they disappeared and soon rode off, perhaps a ruse to draw everyone away from the camp – if so, unsuccessful. After some two hours the pursuers returned leading a camel, and George, their third Cossack, carrying a long lance. It appeared that they had caught up with the marauders, who attacked the Cossacks with the lance but missed, and George wheeled his horse round suddenly and grabbed it, at which the miscreant shouted furiously, ‘We have tracked you for the last fifteen days, but you shall not escape us; we will take you yet.’ After further skirmishes they rode off. The Atkinson party reloaded their pistols and followed them for some time, then decided it was safer to return to their camp.

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