They worship their ancestors. Their idols are of wood and stone, to whom sacrifices are offered by the hereditary priesthood. They also have magicians. They consider fish as unclean. Polygamy is practised among them. They are deadly foes to the Muhammedans. They are sociable, cheerful, and passionate. Dancing, with musical instruments and drums, forms part of their amusements. Hospitality and vengeance of blood belong to their religious principles. The men wear a shirt, and over it a black goat's skin, for which they are called Seeah-poosh, "Black-clothed." The women wear only one shirt, and their heads are covered with silver ornaments. A red tiara distinguishes the maidens. They live on cattle, fruit, (walnuts, apples, grapes, and apricots,) and good wine. Their domiciles are of wood, with subterranean chambers; utensils according to European fashion, as chairs, tables, and bedding. They have daggers and fire-arms. A wealthy Seeah-Poosh possesses eight hundred goats, three hundred oxen, and eight slaves. Their number amounts to ninety thousand. Upon the height of Badagshaun are four free tribes of Israel; those of Naphtali, Dan, Zebulon, and Ashur. My villain escort, Dil Assa Khan, then came up to me, and said, "You ought to enter Bokhara dressed as a poor man." I replied, "Villain, liar, and man-seller, (for strong terms alone are effective in the East,) leave me. The Assaff-ood-Dowla will assuredly put you to death when we reach Meshed." Dil Assa Khan turned deadly pale. Shouts of Selaam aleikoom from thousands rang upon my ear. It was a most astonishing sight: people from the roofs of the houses, the Nogay Tatars of Russia, the Cassacks and Girghese from the deserts, the Tatar from Yarkand or Chinese Tartary, the merchant of Cashmeer, the Serkerdeha or Grandees of the King on horseback, the Affghauns, the numerous water-carriers, stopped still and looked at me; Jews, with their little caps, the distinguishing badge of the Jews of Bokhara, the inhabitants of Khokand, politely smiling at me; and the Mullahs from Chekapoor and Sinde looking at me, and saying, Inglese Saib; veiled women screaming to each other, Englees Eljee, "English Ambassador;" others coming by them, and saying, “He is not an Eljee, but the Grand Derveesh, Derveesh Kelaun, of Englishtaun.” My addresses had been circulated throughout all the parts of Persia, Turkistaun, and Bokhara; my object had become widely understood, and I doubtless reaped the fruit of making the object of my mission thus clear and intelligible to all the Mussulman world. Amid the continued shouts of Selaam aleikoom, I looked closely among the populace, in the hope that I might recognise Stoddart or Conolly. It was vain. Before we were carried to our assigned quarters, we were brought what they emphatically call Bala, up to the palace of the King. This is situ ated on a lofty eminence. When we reached it, the Serkerdeha, that is, the Grandees of the empire, were just leaving it, riding upon horseback. The people crowded in masses on me, demanding, “What book have you in your hand?" I replied, "The Towrat-e-Moosa, ('Laws of Moses,') the Saboor-e-Dawood, (Psalms of David,') and the Anjeel-e-Esau, ('Gospel of Christ,') and the prophecies of Daniel, Isaiah, Ezekiel, Jeremiah, &c." Devoutly did those poor unenlightened souls touch the book. At the entrance of the palace-gate we were ordered to dismount from our horses. Only the Grandees of the empire, and Ambassadors of the Sultan of Constantinople, of the Shah of Persia, should they come to Bokhara, are permitted to enter the palace-gates on horseback. No Christian, Heathen, or any other Ambassador, is allowed that privilege. Singular to say, how ever, I was allowed this privilege at my audience of leave, prior to my departure from Bokhara. Previous to our entrance, one of His Majesty's Makhrams appeared before me, and said, “His Majesty condescends to ask whether you would be ready to submit to the mode of selaam, (for Stoddart Saib refused, and drew his sword)." I asked, "In what does the selaam consist?” He replied, “You are placed before His Majesty, who will sit upon the Bala Hanah, (from whence Balkan is derived,) and the Shekawl (Minister of Foreign Affairs) will take hold of your shoulders, and you must stroke your beard three times, and three times bow, saying at each time, Allah akbar, Allah akbar, Allah akbar, 'God is the greatest, God is the greatest, God is the greatest;' Salaamat Padishah, 'Peace to the King." "" On being asked if I would do so three times, I said, "Thirty times, if necessary." Entering the gate, we were desired to sit down upon a stone seat, and after a few minutes' delay, were ordered to send up our letters. I sent the following: 1. Two letters from the Sultan. The one which the Sultan himself gave me, and the other which I found at Meshed, and which was not forwarded by that villain Muhammed Ali Serraf. 2. A letter from His Majesty Muhammed Shah of Persia. 3. A letter from Haje Mirza Aghassee, Prime Minister to the King of Persia, addressed to the so-called Vizier of the King of Bokhara, but who in fact is nothing else but the Chief of the Custom-House, and who is not allowed to receive or open any letter without the Ameer's permission. 4. A letter from His Excellency Count Medem, Russian Ambassador at Teheraun, to the Ameer himself. 5. A letter from the Sheikh al-Islam of Constantinople, to the Cazi Kelaun (Grand Judge) of Bokhara; for I knew that none of the dignitaries of Bokhara, not even a merchant, are allowed to receive letters without first of all being perused by the Ameer. 6. Letters from the Assaff-ood-Dowla written to myself, in which he stated to me, that all the presents he had sent to the King of Bokhara were sent on my account; and he further wrote to me, that if Dil Assa Khan should betray me at Bokhara, he would burn his father. 7. A copy of the letter sent by the Assaff-ood-Dowla to Dil Assa Khan himself, warning him not to betray me. Most of the above letters have been published in the course of this Narrative; but the letter to the Cazi Kelaun or Sheikh Islam of Bokhara, from the Sheikh Islam of Constantinople, is so characteristic a document, that I cannot refrain from giving it at full length. "O ASYLUM of Excellence, O Loom of Knowledge, the Master of the art of appreciating the worth of men of science, the Possessor of deliberateness, whose customs are those of sincerity; may He endure in honour! "With the offering of the select of sweet-smelling prayers, and of running fountains of odoriferous blessings of good odour, the friendly representation is this; that of the officers of the Kingdom of England, a Colonel named Stoddart, another officer, and two or three Englishmen under safe conduct, who had gone to Bokhara on business some time back, had been arrested and imprisoned by the glorious Government of Bokhara; and on account of the request which was formerly made on the part of the said kingdom, an august epistle containing (a request for) the exertion of endeavour to liberate the said persons, was issued and dispatched on the part which unites honour and glory, of the asylum of the Caliphate. His Majesty, my Magnified Lord, the Royal, Dread, Puissant, and Great Emperor of the posterity of Osmaun, (may God eternize Him, and fortify Him with His assistance unto the end of time!) my Master, to His Majesty, the fortunate, brave, and glorious Khaun, (may God grant him long life, with glory and renown!) "At this present time, it has been resolved on the part of England, to send the esteemed Derveesh called Doctor Wolff,' to gain information concerning the circumstances of the said imprisoned persons, and, if they are alive, to take them with him and conduct them back to their country; and a request has been made on the part of the said kingdom, that our August Imperial Epistle to His Majesty, the said Khaun, be this time also issued, and that an express letter be also written and sent on our sincere part to Your High Quarter, to the effect that endeavour be made to deliver the said imprisoned persons to the said Derveesh, and to restore them to their place. According as it is known to Your Excellent Self, the endurance and stability of the pillars of sincerity and friendship, and of the columns of love and amity, which from of old have stood and remained firm between the Sublime Empire of eternal duration and the said kingdom, is a thing desired on both sides; and by this reason, such requests as take place are deposited in the centre of acceptance and fulfilment; also in reality the imprisonment and detention of such guests cannot be in accordance and congruous with the laws of nations and the customs of sovereignty; and again, by reason that, according to the result of the requirements of the uniting point of religion and true faith which exist between the Imperial Person of the Caliph and His Majesty the said Khaun, it is an undoubted circumstance that the requests of either to the other, which appear in the mirror of event and forthcoming, will arrive at the receptacle of acceptance; therefore, although it is evident that already endeavour has been made to clear of impediment the road of the said imprisoned persons, still in case they should not yet have left Bokhara, an august epistle has been issued and dispatched unto His Majesty the said Khaun, to the effect that endeavour be used for their being delivered to the said Derveesh, to their being restored and sent back safely and joyfully to their place with all possible speed, by way of Constantinople; therefore, according to the generous qualities of equity and conscientiousness with which Your Noble Self is endowed and qualified in this matter, that is, in the matter of restoring and sending back the said imprisoned persons to their place with all possible speed, it is hereby explained, that it is Our sincere and most express hope that most strenuous endeavours will be exerted to the attainment of the requisite means, and the accompaniment of the necessary assistance and protection in their behalf; and in this wise the present letter, the bond of sincerity, has been written, and sent and forwarded to Your Presence, the Element of Excellence. When, with the grace of the Most High, it shall arrive, the exertion, in the manner aforesaid, of Your most strenuous endeavours, depends upon Your Qualities, Odoriferous with great things. "From the sincere friend, MUSTAFA 'AASIM, Son of the native of Mecca; may both their sins be forgiven!" After the letters were sent up, we were brought before the King, Dil Assa Khan and myself. His Majesty was seated in the balcony of his palace, looking down upon us: thousands of people in the distance. All eyes were bent on me, to see if I would submit to the etiquette. When the Shekawl took hold of my shoulders, I not only submitted to his doing so to me three times, but I bowed repeatedly, and exclaimed unceasingly, "Peace to the King," until His Majesty burst into a fit of laughter, and of course all the rest standing around us. His Majesty said, "Enough, enough, enough." We were then ordered to retire. The Shekawl, an officer who answers to our Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, then assured me that His Majesty had smiled upon me, and exclaimed, “What an extraordinary man this Englishman is, in his eyes, and his dress, and the book in his hand!" But we must not anticipate. (To be continued.) SELECT LIST OF BOOKS RECENTLY PUBLISHED, WITH CHARACTERISTIC NOTICES. [The insertion of any article in this List is not to be considered as pledging us to the approbation of its contents, unless it be accompanied by some express notice of our favourable opinion. Nor is the omission of any such notice to be regarded as indicating a contrary opinion; as our limits, and other reasons, impose on us the necessity of selection and brevity.] Holy Living: exemplified in the Life of Mrs. Mary Cryer, Wife of the Rev. Thomas Cryer, Wesleyan Missionary in the South of India. With Extracts from her Papers and Correspondence. By the Rev. Alfred Barrett. 12mo. pp. 326. John Mason.-This is certainly one of the most choice pieces of religious and Missionary biography that it has been our privilege to read, formany years, either in our own or in any foreign language; and it cannot fail occupying a conspicuous place in the libraries of all who value evangelical piety, and delight in those manifestations of hallowed zeal and Christian enterprise, in behalf of the world of the Heathen, which such piety dictates and encourages. The volume is divided into eight chapters, as follows:-I. Infancy and early years; II. Early youth and school-days; III. Opening life; IV. Christian zeal, and growth in grace; V. Her marriage, and the turning-point in life; VI. The voyage; VII. The Mission field; VIII. Her latter days. We hesitate giving a further description of this work; not doubting that every one possessing ability so to do, will hasten to procure a book so calculated to enlighten the understanding, and edify the heart. Steill's Pictorial Spelling and Reading Assistant. Part II. Explaining Terms used in Literature, Science, and Art. 12mo. pp. 116. Steill's Royal Pictorial Toy-book Grammar. 18mo. pp. 32. Steill. Eminently adapted to blend instruction with amusement. Missionary First-Fruits: or, Short Accounts of Christian Converts among the Heathen. 24mo. pp. viii, 128. Tract Society.-Well selected, and happily adapted to accomplish the object proposed, namely, to show the youthful reader that true religion is the same in every clime and in every age; and that wherever an individual is converted to God, he manifests the same holy tempers and graces, and rejoices in hope of eternal life. This little book ought to have a wide circulation among our juvenile friends, that it may sustain and fan their zeal in the sacred cause of Missions, and lead to increased exertions in promoting it. A Lecture on the Arguments for Christian Theism, from Organized Life, and Fossil Osteology. Containing Remarks on a Work entitled, "Vestiges of the natural History of Creation." Delivered before the Frome Literary and Scientific Institution. By John Shep 18mo. pp. 64. The Spring. Tract Society. Much and important information, embodied in a small, but neatlyprinted, tract. The young Tradesman. 18mo. pp. 258. Tract Society.-An admirable volume, full of judicious counsel to those whom it concerns. The young Women of the Factory: or, friendly Hints on their Dangers and Duties. 18mo. pp. 176. Tract Society. If the mill-owners connected with our extensive manufacturing districts duly appreciated the awful responsibility of their situation, this small, but valuable, tract would be in universal requisition. It is replete with judicious and important admonitions with regard to the health, happiness, and character of the females who are employed in factories. Every topic which relates to the dress, domestic economy, marriage, cleanliness, morality, and industry, briefly, but comprehensively, considered. The book has our hearty commendation. The Workings of Popery: or, the Effects which Popery has a Tendency to produce, and the Means which are employed to produce them; in which the Question is briefly viewed in relation to the Maynooth Grant. By Henry Fish, M.A. 12mo. pp. 59. John Mason. -A very timely and valuable pamphlet, rich in historical fact, deduced from authorities indisputable and accredited. Mr. Fish has rendered important service to the Protestant cause by its publication; and we cordially hope that it will be very extensively circulated and read. Antiscriptural Marriages, the Ruin of Souls, and a Curse to the Church: a Sermon. By Samuel Broadbent. 18mo. pp. 45. John Mason.-A discourse on a very important subject, in which great pastoral fidelity, affection, and prudence are conspicuous. We sincerely recommend it. The Signs of the Times in the East, a Warning to the West: being a practical View of our Duties in the Light of the Prophecies which illustrate the present and future State of the Church, and of the World. By the Rev. E. Bickersteth, Rector of Watton, Herts. 12mo. pp. xxv, 434. Seeley and Co. -While we do not see "eye to eye," at all times, with our respected author, in his interpretation of the prophetic record, we have discovered much in the volume now on our table that excites our warmest approbation and reciprocity of feeling. It has a special reference to the Turkish empire, to which our author conceives the sixth apocalyptic trumpet primarily refers. In this opinion he is by no means singular. The tokens of the decay of that kingdom speak loudly, and are continually manifest in the eye of the Christian. Mr. Bickersteth takes a thoroughly evangelical view of the whole subject, examines it în relation to the present unsettled and conflicting state of affairs as connected with the Protestant Church, and arrives at a conclusion which is at once practical and sound. The volume ought to meet with serious consideration, accompanied with earnest and believing prayer to Him who by his Holy Spirit has said, "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth The Family Choir: or, Psalms, Hymns, and spiritual Songs for social Worship. The Music selected from Handel, Mozart, Haydn, Beethoven, Righini, &c., &c. Arranged for four Voices, and the Pianoforte or Organ. The Poetry from Watts, Wesley, &c., &c. 12mo. pp. 215. Simpkin.—We have examined this selection with some degree of care and application, and do not hesitate to pronounce it one of the most judicious of the kind that has fallen under our editorial inspection. By some we may be considered hypercritical, and our taste fastidious; nevertheless, we are jealous of the character of our sacred minstrelsy, whether pertaining to public or social devotion, and are led to hail with pleasure and gratitude every attempt that is made to unite simplicity with dignity and taste. We therefore in all good faith respond to the sentiment expressed in the compiler's preface: "Among the offerings placed by cultivated musical genius on the altar of |