688 
THROUGH ASIA 
Russian consul in Bagdad, where he and I had several 
mutual friends and acquaintances, and Colonel Galkin, 
who had travelled in East Turkestan and Hi. Finally, 
may mention Dr. Wellmann and four younger officers. 
The Russian escort consisted of some forty Cossacks, 
with a military band of eighteen performers, besides a 
crowd of native jighits and caravan grooms. The English 
tram consisted of about two hundred Indian soldiers, 
Hindus, Afridis, and Kanjutis. 
It would manifestly be out of place for me to say a 
word touching the momentous labours of the Boundary 
Commission. Besides, they did not directly concern me. 
I will merely observe that, considering the opposing 
mterests which the two camps represented, it was 
astonishing- upon what a friendly and confidential footino- 
they were. Both sides were animated by a frank and 
cheerful spirit. Englishmen and Russians were like 
comrades together. Had I not known the fact before- 
hand, I should never for one moment have dreamed 
that they were rivals, engaged in delimitating and fixino- 
a common frontier-lme. For of course, it was the objec^t 
o tie Russians to draw the line as far to the south as 
they could possibly force it; whereas the Englishmen 
wanted it as far north as it could be got. 
The Russian officers’ mess was located in a laro-e, 
tastefully decorated yurt ; the Englishmen had theirs^in 
an immense, yet elegant, tent. Invitations to dinner 
rom the one party or the other were an almost every- 
day occurrence. As for me, I spent one day in the 
English camp and the next in the Russian, and so on 
alternately ; and was on very good terms with everybody 
m both camps. Most of the officers, Russian and English, 
spoke French ; and if I may be permitted to say so, the 
gentlemen selected to serve on this important and delicate 
mission were a credit to the two Governments which 
appointed them. As for me, after my two years of lonely 
wandering through the desert regions of Central Asia, it 
was almost like a rising from the dead, to associate with 
such notable men, men distinguished alike for their 
