XVI PRÉFACÉ.
every available source of information, as well as from personal
observations.
Besides objects of natural history, the Appendix contains a
list of the ancient and modern Arab tribes, as far as they could
be ascertained; and a copious Index will enable the reader to
find the various subjects contained in the first volume.
The Author cannot but feel some anxiety about the second
volume of the work, the subjects of which deserve to have been
placed in more able hands. His first journeys during upwards
of three years in the East, opened to him a wide field of inquiry;
and, on his return, he availed himself of the vast stores of
information contained in the British Museum. The extracts
there made were found highly useful to the Expedition, when
navigating the rivers which flow through lands memorable as
the theatre of the great events recorded in sacred and profane
history, and traversed by Cyrus, Alexander, Trajan, and Julian,
as well as by the most renowned of the Muslim leaders.
The stirring events, which, in ancient and modern times, are
more frequently connected with the Euphrates than perhaps
with any other part of the world, seem to be the first which
require attention. In attempting this task, the Author had
the assistance of Mr. Rassam, the principal Interpreter of the
Expedition, for Arabic researches ; and afterwards that of the
very learned and industrious Aloys Sprenger, M.D, who,
being both an Oriental and a classical scholar, was of the
greatest service. During these researches, the resources of
the British Museum, of the Bodleian at Oxford, and of the
vast library at Paris, were turned to account; and the fifteen
chapters, beginning with the dispersion of mankind, and ending
with the establishment of the Turkish power in Europe, have
been the result.
In Chapters XYI. and XVII. the Author has endeavoured
to show the connexion at different periods between Asia and
Europe, with respect to literature and science. The eighteenth
chapter is devoted to ancient and modern commerce. The
nineteenth describes the architecture, sculpture, &c. of I ’ran;
and the twentieth the boats and hydraulic works of the East.
In the volumes now introduced to public notice, authorities
will be found for every statement which has been made; and
in some instances circumstances have been confirmed by quotations
from other writers, even though they have come within
the Author’s knowledge.
In concluding what relates to the Work itself, the Author
should mention that the orthography and accentuation of
Oriental words are the same as those which have been used by
the Royal Geographical Society. The Author is aware that
such material changes as “ ’Akkd ” for the well-known fortress
of Acre, and Tarabuzun for Trebizond, are not without disadvantage
; but they will cease to be so, when the public shall
be accustomed to them. Por the system itself we are indebted
to the Rev. G. C. Renouard, of Swanscombe Rectory, Kent,
the talented Oriental scholar, by whom the Author has been
assisted from time to time, especially in correcting the orthography
of the maps.
Finally, in respect to the long delay of the Work, the
Author requests the indulgence of the public while he relates
the circumstances which have caused it. The illustrations
selected by the Officers to elucidate the Expedition were put in
hand at the earliest moment, with a clear understanding that
two would be completed each week; but when nearly five years
had elapsed, the Author was obliged to seek redress in a court
of law, and a verdict was scarcely obtained, with the prospect
of the immediate completion of the plates, when he was ordered
to take the command of the Artillery in China.
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