BOOKS.

A RIDE TO ICHIVA.* CAPTAIN BURNABY rode to Khiva because, being at Khartoum last year, he read in a newspaper that the. Government at St Petersburg had given an order that no foreigner was to bq

allowed to travel in Russian Asia, and that an Englishman who had recently attempted a journey in that direction had been turned back by the authorities. Captain Burnaby instantly re-, solved to set the authorities at defiance by going to Khiva, and he accomplished his purpose. His motive does not inspire us with the vehement admiration which it has excited in other quarters ; it has in it a spice of the quality which renders Englishmen objects of dislike to other nations, a touch of outrecuidance which, as no duty was involved—indeed, rather a breach of duty, for the Duke of Cambridge recalled the dashing traveller by telegraph—does not impress us with the notion of heroism. Captain Burnaby, a rich, strong, and resolute man, has done for his pleasure that which Mr. MacGahan did in pursuance of his duty to his employers, and each of the travellers has written a narrative of his journey. The proverbially odious comparison is inevitable in such a case, and we must say that clever and amusing as Captain Burnaby's book is, and valuable as is certain exclusive information which

he gives, we do not like it so much as-we liked Mr. Mac Gahan's,

either in the personal or in the literary sense. The Englishman has little but disgust and contempt for the people through whose country he buys, and it must be added, sometimes bullies, his way ; he sees little except his own exploit and the Russian sentiment concerning England. He endures all the discomfort of his self-imposed task very bravely indeed, but he gives needless details of it ; and he adds one more to the long, long list of travellers to whom a journey off the beaten tracks offers an irresistible temptation to dwell on the bad language of their drivers, and the absence of that eminently British institution, the "tub." If " Jehu " and dirt conld only be taken ,for granted by all readers and writers of travel, it would be a good thing, though we quite understand that the two grievances are dear to the soul of the voyager in far Eastern lands, and that he clings to them as the explorers of Lapland and the boaters up the Mounio cling to the memory of their maddening mosquitoes. The American had more extended and comprehen- sive vision, no fixed conviction of the absolute inferiority of the people among whom he travelled, a humane disposition, and an exceedingly picturesque style, whose effect was naturally increased by the condition of the country which he had to describe at the time of his visit. As a narrative of travel, therefore, and apart from the fact that Mr. MacGahan was the first writer who described for us the previously unknown region of Central Asia, which has since assumed so much political importance, Campaigning on the Oxus must be pronounced to be the superior book of the two. Captain Burnaby's work has, however, interest and importance in another sense than the narrative, and it has caught public feeling in the rebound from the impulse to see in Russia a friend and willing ally, to the former suspicious frame of mind which regarded Russia as the "Artful Dodger" of the world. Captain Burnaby, who is one of the few Russian-speaking Englishmen, writes with the authority of an eye - witness who was not liable to the mistakes almost inseparable from the employment of an interpreter.-3 sub- ject on which he is very funny, when he relates his experiences among the Tartars—and with the practical knowledge of a mili- tary man, when he discusses the ultimate designs with which the Russian Government is credited by a large number of people in this country, and quite clearly by her own military classes, which are predominant. Captain Burnaby givesnumerous instances of the open expression in his presence of the belief of the Russian officers that war between Russia and England is certain. Here is one passage out of several :—

"In fact, you cannot be with Russian officers in Central Asia for half an hour without remarking how they long for a war. It is very natural ; and the wonder to my mind is why Russia has not extended herself still farther in Central Asia. If it had not been for the Emperor, who is, by all accounts, opposed to this rapid extension of his dominions, the Russians would already be on our Indian frontier. Nothing would be so popular with the officers in Central Asia, or indeed, for the matter of that in European Russia also, as a war with ogland about India ; and as the only public opinion which can be said to exist * A Ride to Mira : Travels and Adrentures in Central Ana. By Frei Bern107, Captain, Bova! Horse Guards. London: Cavell, Vetter, and Golpie. in the Tzar's empire is represented by the military class, which in a few years will absorb all the male population of the nation, we ought to be thoroughly prepared for any emergency. Indeed, should Russia be permitted to annex Kashgar, Balkh, and Merve, an invasion of India would be by no means so difficult or impossible as some people would have us believe. Russia, if her reserves were called out, would be able to dispose of 1,300,000 men. In the event of a campaign the 847,847 men in her active establishment could be reckoned upon as available for offensive purposes. The province of Turkistan is the one which most closely adjoins our Indian empire. Here, according to Russian data, there are 33,893 men. I use the terra 'Russian data' because we have no means of knowing whether these figures are accurate. At the present moment, the greater part of the forces in the Western Siberian, Orenburg, and Kazan districts might be concentrated in the neighbour- hood of Tashkent and Samarcand, and no one in this country would be the wiser. We have no consular agents in any of the towns through which these troops would have to march on their road to Turkistan. No Englishmen are allowed to travel in Central Asia. Owing to the Russian newspapers being completely in the bands of the authorities, the information which is published may be purposely intended to mis- lead. If the Governor-General in Turkistan were forming large triages, or depots, of provisions and arms in Samarcand, Khiva, and Krasno- Toth& we should be equally ignorant, until awaking up one morning we might discover that instead of our having to fight an enemy 2,000 miles distant from his base of operations, that a base had been formed within 350 miles of our Indian frontier, which was as well supplied with all the requisites for war as St. Petersburg or Moscow. In the Caucasus there is a standing army of 151,161 men, within easy water communication of Ashourade. Along the valley of the Attrek to Herat there are no natural obstacles to impede an advancing force; indeed, if the Afghans, tempted by the idea of looting the rich cities in the plains of India, were to join an invader, he might give us a little trouble."

The result of Captain Burnaby's observations, and the burthen of his counsel are, that Russia has gone as far as it is safe for England she should go; that from her present position she has not the power of even threatening British India, though she has the power of threatening points which, should she be permitted to annex them, would form a splendid basis for operations against Hindustan. The concluding sentences of his preface are about the weightiest in his book :—

" Should Russia," he says, "be permitted to annex Kashgar, Balkh, and Merve, India would be liable to attack from three points, and we should have to divide our small European force. We have learnt how much trust can be placed in a Russian's statesman's promises. Russia ought to be clearly given to understand that any advance in the direc- tion of Kashgar, Balkh, or Merve will be looked upon by England as a easus UN. If this is done, we shall no longer hear from the authorities at St. Petersburg that they are unable to restrain their Generals in Turkistan. At the present moment, Great Britain, without any European ally, can drive Russia out of Central Asia. If we allow her to keep on advancing, the same arms which we might now employ will one day be turned against ourselves."

Turning from the political side of this narrative to the per- sonal, we have a briskly-written, entertaining work. Captain Burnaby is rather inconsistent in his complaints of the coldness and reluctance of the St. Petersburg officials in the furtherance of his views. Considering that he was aware that the Govern- ment wished to discourage travelling even within their legitimate Asiatic borders, he ought not to wonder that General Milutin was not propitious, and Count Schouvaloff's brother waanot at home. The start for Orenburg in very amusing, and a frank conversation hi the railway on the way to Moscow, too long for extract in its integrity, is one of the happiest things of the kind recorded by any traveller. Here is a specimen of it :-

" As for those pigs of Germans, we must fight them scone day or other,' and when the Tzarevitch is Emperor, please God we will beat them well, and drive every German brute out of Russia ; they fatten on our land, at the expense of our brothers.'—' But

supposing they get the best of it? Well, what can they do ? they cannot stop in Russia, even if they should be able to assail us. We can play the old game,—keep on retiring. Russia is big, and there is plenty of country at our back.'—' They might take the Baltic Provinces,' I remarked.—' Take them! I hope Gortschakoff -will give them to Bismarck before long, and arrange that Germany does not interfere 'with us when we march upon Constantinople,' said another of the travellers.—' Arrange with Bismarck! you might as well arrange with the Devil !' said the first speaker ; 'he will take everything he can, and give us nothing. He is the greatest enemy we have, except perhaps the people at Vienna! However, they do not count for much, as with the Czechs and Hungariane, they have plenty on their hands ; but we must give those Austrians a beating before long.'"

At an early stage of his journey Captain Burnaby suffered severely from cold, and subsequently his hands were frost-bitten, in spite pf a wonderful quantity of clothing, which he describes comically. One sleigh-journey over the Russian wastes does not materially differ from another, and it is with the author's arrival at Kasala, in the severest winter known to the present generation, that the stirring interest of his daring exploit begins. The Tartar servant, Nazar, is a somewhat disgusting but very amusing personage, and Captain Burnaby's account of the horrid conviction under which he labours, that his compliments to a handsome Tartar girl are translated into comparisons between her charms and those of roast mutton and sheep with fat tails, is as humorous as the "possible policeman" of Eothen. The camel-driver, too, is a

pleasant acquaintance in print, and the clever device by which Captain Burnaby availed himself of the family affections of the guide to induce him to take him to Khiva by a forbidden route, avoiding Petro-Alexandrovsk, where, as it happened, he would have received his orders to return 'without visiting Khiva, is

related with humour and effect. If A .Ride to .Khiva should be translated into Russian, that guide, with his unlucky passion

for horse-dealing, will be a child of the Tzar not to be envied. A brief military review of the Russian campaign inifliva, in which the author gives in a few lines a horrible account of the cruelty of Kaufmann's troops,—hearsay evidence, of course, but on apparently good authority ; "hell was let loose in Turkomania," is his sum- mary—concludes with a statement of the results to be anticipated from the annexation of Khivan territory to Bokhara. A lifelong fend mustinevitably follow. "If," says Captain Burnaby, "the Germans, instead of taking Alsace and Lorraine for themselves, after.the Franco-Prussian war, hadforced Belgium to accept these provinces, we could not have expected the French to have looked with friendly eyes upon the new proprietors. A spark would have been struck, certain at some future period to burst out into flame. This will happen between Bokhara and Khiva. It will not be difficult to get some one to stir the fire. The consequence will be the absolute incorporation of Bokhara and Khiva with the Russian Empire."

As the traveller nears Khiva he describes a much-improved

condition of things, and we get a first glimpse of the traditional Eastern hospitality when, at a village called Shamahoolhoor, a

fine-looking man, with a cheery, fresh expression, comes out of a substantial-built house, and asks Captain Burnaby to honour his roof by resting beneath it till the morrow. Here occurs another charming conversation :—

" Oar host was a sportsman, and kept several hawks. These birds are much used in the chase by the Khivans. They are flown at hares, or saigaks, a species of antelope. The hawk, hovering above its prey's head, strikes him between the eyes, and the animal, becoming be- wildered, does not know which way to turn, and fella an easy victim to the bounds. 'Do you not hunt in this way in your country?' asked the host.—' No; we bunt foxes, but only with hounds, and follow ourselves on horseback.'—' Are your horses like our own ?' he inquired.—' No; they are stouter-built, as a rule, have better shoulders, and are stronger animals; but though they can gallop faster than your horses for a short distance, I do not think they can last so long.'—' Which do you like best, your horse or your wife ?' inquired the man.—' That depends upon the woman,' I replied ; and the guide, here joining in the conversation, said in England they do not buy or sell their wives, and that I was not a married man. 'What! you have not got a wife?'—' No; how could I travel if I had one ?'—' Why, you might leave her behind, and lock her up, as our merchants do with their wives when they go on a journey.' In my country the women are never locked up.'—' What a marvel l' said the man ; 'and how can you trust them ? Is it not dangerous to expose them to so much temptation ? They are poor, weak creatures, and easily led. But if one of them is unfaithful to her husband, what does he do ?'—' He goes to our moullab, whom we call a judge, and obtains a divorce, and marries some one else.'—' What! you mean to say he does not cut the woman's throat?'—' No he would very likely be hanged himself if he did.'—' What a country!' said the host ; we manage things better in Khiva.' The guide was much astonished on hearing the price of horses in England. And what do the poor people do? he inquired.— 'Why, 'walk.'—' Walk Yes, walk,' this ap- pearing to the man such an extraordinary statement that he could hardly credit it. Later on I took out my breechloader from its case, as the weapon had become very rusty during the march, and began to clean it. The host scrutinised the gun very carefully, and was delighted at the rapidity with which it could be loaded. 'AM' he said, with a sigh, if we had only been armed with some of your guns, the Russians would never have got here ; the Khan's arms were useless in com- parison.' With these words noy host showed me his own gun, which had a barrel at least five feet bag, and 'a rest to stick in the ground so

as to steady the aim. 'It is a ilea weapon, too,' he added, 'though not like yours, for mine takes five minutes to load, and quite a minute to fire; • indeed, before I can shoot once, the Russians with their rifles can kill twenty men. Our Khan has now no soldiers ; the Russians will not let him have any."

The author's description of Khiva and the Khan is the most interesting portion of his book, and as he visited the city in time of peace his account supplements and contrasts with that of Mr.

MacGahan, who beheld it amid the fresh horrors and sufferings of war. The broad, clean streets, and houses built of polished bricks and coloured tiles ; the lofty, coloured, decorated domes, the gardens, and the baths, form a pleasant picture. The author emphatically denies the truth of the tales told of the cruelties perpetrated by the present Khan before the capture of his city.

"They only existed," he says, "in the fertile Muscovite imagina- tion, which was eager to find an excuse for the appropriation of a neighbour's property." So each writer, in turn, according to his bias, denies the truth of tales of cruelty on all sides, and credits the party of opinion which is not his own with "fertile imagination." It would be a happy thing if people who are of no party, only observers, readers,

or reviewers, could combine the information of all these apolo. gists into an assurance that the entire sum of human cruelty is exaggerated, but no such effect is produced. We feel instead that the blindness and the passion of partisanship are becoming more and more misleading, and our chances of acquiring really accurate data for the formation of our judgment are lessening. Captain Burnaby was graciously received by the Khan, and the account of his audience with him is very interesting. The Khan has a profound belief in the power of Russia—as, indeed, why shouldn't he ?—and seems to have received his visitor's account of British invulnerability with grave and polite incredulity.

The serious value of Captain Burnaby's book will be adjudged to reside in the appendix, which treats concisely but exhaustively of the Russian advance eastward, and contains a series of march- routes, translated from several Russian works, from which we gather that the Russian Generals are by no means behind the Germans in the extent and accuracy of their topographical renseignements, for actual and contingent purposes.