On Either Side of the Equator. By Colonel P. T.
Etherton. (John Long. 16s.) A Long Way South. By Geoffrey Dutton. (Chapman & Hall. 18s.) THE Himalayas, Turkistan, Yarkand, the Heavenly Mountains, Rio de Janeiro; Kalmuks, Monguls, tigers and elephants. Few people, one imagines, have travelled so extensively in Asia and India as Colonel Etherton, nor been so dangerous and adventurous. Diplomatic associations helped him considerably and he was able to go to remote and well-nigh inaccessible places. If you don't mind the author's whisky-and-soda style:* the disunity of his book, and some irritating tricks of journ- alism, not least of which is cliché after cliché, and you have a predilection for odd things in odd places—Kanjuti bodyguards dressed in the uniform of the Bedfordshire Regiment, Asiatic mysticism, and tiger- hunts—then Colonel Etherton is your man. One or two maps, however, would be a great help, as the author moves about a good deal and apparently expects the reader to, be familiar with some very unfamiliar geography. Mr. Dutton has written a sensitive and pleasant travel book. He and his wife, both Australians, decided to return to Australia in 1951 by driving the whole way from London. Their car had a nervous tempera- ment which, with inevitable rough treatment and overloading, broke down frequently. In this story appear a delightful young man from Afghanistan called Anvar, an equally charming Persian called Said, and many others who illustrate in most cases the kindness and courtesy which the author received on his journey through many
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