DOI Seite / Zitierlink:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.15174#0153
chap. i. CLIMATE AND PHENOMENA.
137
soil. In the valleys there occasionally occur de-
posits of salt and saline rivulets ; and nearly all the
wells of this tract are either bitter or brackish.
The depth of these never exceeds thirty-six feet,
and many of them have water at half that distance
from the surface. Between Bokhara and the Oxus
the water exudes through sand, and in August had
a temperature of 60°, while the air exceeded that
of 100°. It was as grateful to the palate as if
cooled in ice. In the cold season, these wells are
described as warm ; so it is evident that they re-
tain an equality of temperature during the year.
The tract north of the Oxus is thinly peopled by
pastoral tribes, and uncultivated; but the remains
of aqueducts and buildings, in particular between
Kurshee and Bokhara, denote a more prosperous
age in these now neglected lands.
The climate of Bokhara is salubrious and plea-
sant ; it is dry, and in the winter very cold, as is
usual in sandy countries. Nothing proves this so
satisfactorily as the freezing of the Oxus. In sum-
mer, the thermometer seldom rises much above 90°,
and the nights are always cool. But this only ap-
plies to the city of Bokhara ; for, in approaching it
by the desert in June, the heat exceeded 100° of
Fahrenheit. The exuberance of vegetation near
the city must lower the temperature; and will ac-
count for the difference between the scorching heat
around, and its milder climate. Bokhara has an
elevation of about 1200 feet above the sea. There
is a constant serenity in its atmosphere, and a clear-
ness in the sky. The heavens are a bright azure
137
soil. In the valleys there occasionally occur de-
posits of salt and saline rivulets ; and nearly all the
wells of this tract are either bitter or brackish.
The depth of these never exceeds thirty-six feet,
and many of them have water at half that distance
from the surface. Between Bokhara and the Oxus
the water exudes through sand, and in August had
a temperature of 60°, while the air exceeded that
of 100°. It was as grateful to the palate as if
cooled in ice. In the cold season, these wells are
described as warm ; so it is evident that they re-
tain an equality of temperature during the year.
The tract north of the Oxus is thinly peopled by
pastoral tribes, and uncultivated; but the remains
of aqueducts and buildings, in particular between
Kurshee and Bokhara, denote a more prosperous
age in these now neglected lands.
The climate of Bokhara is salubrious and plea-
sant ; it is dry, and in the winter very cold, as is
usual in sandy countries. Nothing proves this so
satisfactorily as the freezing of the Oxus. In sum-
mer, the thermometer seldom rises much above 90°,
and the nights are always cool. But this only ap-
plies to the city of Bokhara ; for, in approaching it
by the desert in June, the heat exceeded 100° of
Fahrenheit. The exuberance of vegetation near
the city must lower the temperature; and will ac-
count for the difference between the scorching heat
around, and its milder climate. Bokhara has an
elevation of about 1200 feet above the sea. There
is a constant serenity in its atmosphere, and a clear-
ness in the sky. The heavens are a bright azure