er, a Turk, who was going to
Nickshitch to buy sugar and salt for Plevlie.

Bits of the big white road appeared and reappeared with insistence. We
asked who was responsible for its inception.

"Sirdar," said Mike; "he good boy. Much work."

The country was now like brown velvet spread over heaps of gigantic
potatoes.

Our horses grew slower and slower, and the inn which we were seeking
seemed ever further and further away. We passed many peasants, and had
evidently entered the land of Venus, for each one was more beautiful
than the neighbour. Since Jabliak we had not seen an ugly man or woman,
and the dignity of their carriage was exceeded only by the nobleness of
their features. Ugly women must be valuable in these parts, and probably
marry early; humans ever prize the rare above the beautiful.

Mike spoke to many of the girls, asking them their names and of their
homes. One had his own name--which we forget--and he said that she must
be his cousin, and that if she would wait where she was he would come
back later and give her a lift.

At last we came to the wooden inn.

The better-class inns have dining-room and kitchen separate, the
second-class both are one, but in each case the fire is made on a heap
of earth piled in the centre of the floor; there is no chimney, and the
smoke fills the room with a blue haze, smarting in the eyes; it drifts
up to the roof, where hams are hung, and finds its way out through the
cracks in the wooden roofing slats. This inn was second-class, and along
one wall was a deep trough, in which were four huge lumps of a white
substance which puzzled us. First we thought it was snow, but that
seemed impossible; then we thought it was salt--but why?

It was snow, there being no water fit to drink, so the snow was stored
in the winter in huge underground cellars.

We got coffee and kaimak--a sort of cross between sour milk and cream
cheese--and as a great honour the lady of the house, a villainously
dirty-looking woman, brought us two eggs. Jan's was bad, but he put it
aside, saying nothing, for it is impossible to explain to these people
what is a "bad" egg--all are alike to them.

We took an affectionate leave of Mike, for here we degenerated to a
carriage, which was waiting us, and he rode off, dragging our tired
horses behind him.

As we were getting into the carriage the dirty woman ran up and, before
Jo could ward it off, planted a loving kiss on either cheek.

We flung our