TRANSACTIONS OV THE SECTIONS. 169 



the present day of an Indian city yet to be discovered, whose inhabitants occupy 

 the same splendid palaces and temples as in the days of the Spanish Conquest, and 

 ■whose priests inscribe fresh precepts on their tablets and altars, and who would 

 then read to us theu" now mystical hieroglyphics. He supported this statement 

 by giving an account of certain explorations he had made having this object in 

 view. He left these facts in the hands of those interested in scientific discoveries ; 

 and should sufficient interest in the matter bo awakened from what he had now 

 made known, it would be but another testimony to the valuable results derived 

 from these meetings of the British Association. 



071 Eastern Tibet. By T. T. Coopee. 



Ilohj Islands in the WMte Sea. Bij W. Hepwoeth Dixon. 



Topogmpliical Slcctcli of tlie Zcrafslian VaUeij. By A. Fedchenko. 



The author was employed during 18G9 in a scientific exploration of the valley of 

 the Zerafshan river, in which is situated the city of Saniarcand. He penetrated 

 up the valley as far as the Fan ri^•er, one of four streams which by their union, 

 according to the natives, form the Zerafshan. The Lake Iskander Kul lies in the 

 mountains, separating the Zerafshan from the Oxus, at an altitude of 7000 to 8000 

 feet. The river- valley is bordered by moimtains of great elevation. Approaching 

 Samarcand the Zerafshan branches off into two channels, reuniting ten or twelve 

 miles lower down (below the city), near Khatyrchi, on the western frontier of the 

 new Russian province of Turkestan. The island thus formed is the richest and 

 most populous district of the entire valley. The country to the north of the river 

 is Steppe ; but a considerable portion of it is cultivated, and the road from Tash- 

 Kupriak to Samarcand, a distance of twenty miles, passes almost entirely by gar- 

 dens and fields. The gi-eat volume of water diverted by canals of irrigation from 

 the Zerafshan abundantly satisfies the thirsty ground. The islands formed by the 

 arms of the river have an exceedingly rich soil, and every inch is cultivated with 

 cotton, wheat, barley, rice, millet, or lucerne ; the \iUages are very numerous, and 

 all surrounded by gardens and irrigating canals. The river, rising in lofty, snow- 

 clad mountains, and having a rapid current at certain seasons, fertilizes as well as 

 waters the whole lower district thi-ough which it flows, by brinping down a large 

 quantity of earthy sediment. The author gave a description of the various large 

 towns in the valley, and the fairs held in them. In his description of Samarcand, 

 he stated that the city contained 1846 shops, 27 caravanserais, 7 baths, 86 Mesjids, 

 and 23 colleges ; the population is 30,000. 



Letter on Eastern TurTcestan. By T. D. Foesyth. 



Previous to his departure from Leh, on his present mission to the ruler of 

 Eastern Turkestan, tlie writer communicated to Sir Roderick Miirchison some notes 

 on geographical problems requiring to be solved in this little-known region and the 

 country further to the East. The Yarkand envoy had informed him that the 

 precious stones supposed to come from Khotan were obtained from Kharkhand, a 

 place under the sovereignty of the Chief of Kashgar, but situated forty days' march 

 to the east of Khotan. This place is not to be found in the best maps of the 

 Chinese Empire ; but it is mentioned by Marco Polo under the name of Uharchan, 

 which the commentators had supposed to be the same as Karashahar. It appears, 

 however, to be a distinct place, of large size, and situated in a rich country to the 

 north of Lhassa. The road to it, according to the envoy, skirts the foot of a range 

 of mountains, and crosses a large plain, through which run twelve large streams 

 flowing into Lake Loh, for so he pronounced Lake Lob. The Yarkand and Kash- 

 gar rivers, according to the same authority, do not flow into this lake, but lose 

 themselves in the desert. The inhabitants of the shores of Lake Lok live on fish, 



