THE agreeable task of revising this work, for the purpose of bringing its contents “up to date,” having been undertaken
by the undersigned, indulgence is asked of the reader, for a word in explanation: The work was accepted both as a pleasure and a compliment. The continued popularity of Bayard Taylor’s works of travel and adventure, attest, as nothing else could, their intrinsic worth; the historical and geographical fidelity of the author, no less than his literary excellence, whether in his own writings or the selecting and editing of the productions of other travellers. It is only that the political cards have so frequently been shuffled of late years in the countries of Central Asia, and that our knowledge of hitherto mysterious regions has been increased by later explorations, that legitimate excuse for this revision has been found.