Mr. Bell on the growing power of Russia. 331 
the regions of the south. The king of the north shall enter into 
the fortress of the king of the south, seize his accumulated trea- 
sures of gold, and silver, and precious things, whilst the conquered 
natives shall, with reluctant homage, own the irresistible power of 
the modern Gog, the prince of Rosch, and Meshech, and Tubal. 
Let us now look farther east, and see what progress Russia has 
made in that direction towards universal domination. Let us take 
a view of what is denominated Independent Tartary. This exten- 
sive tract is commensurate with the Asiatic Scythia of the ancients, 
the Scythia intra Imaum ; and as it is inhabited wholly by tribes 
belonging to the great Turkish race, it may justly be denominated 
Toorkistaun ; and as all these tribes are addicted to robbery, it well 
deserves the Arabic appellation of Belad-al-Atrak, or the Land 
of Robbers. This great region may be divided into two, namely, 
Southern and Northern Toorkistaun, the latter being wholly ten- 
anted by the Kirguisians of the little, middle, and great hordes ; 
the first occupying the step east of the Jaik and south of the Ou- 
ral Tagh ; the second wanders alongst the north side of the Ara! 
Lake, as far south-east as the Sarasu river, and as far north-east 
as the Algydim Shalo mountains, which bouad Siberia on the 
south-west ; whilst the great horde roams to the south-east of the 
former, as far as the mountain barrier of Central Asia. The two 
former of these hordes were nominally subject to Russia, but never 
paid any tribute, nor owned themselves its vassals. On the con- 
trary, the court of Russia was in the habit of sending them annual 
presents, in order to secure the Russian caravans from pillage, 
whilst passing through their deserts to the khanates of Khiva and 
Bokhara ; nay, the caravans, in spite of these annual presents made 
to the Kirguisian khans, were still liable to be plundered and mur- 
dered, and a numerous escort of Cossacks and light artillery usual- 
ly attended them of late years, in their journey through their ter- 
ritories, to ensure their safety. ‘The Russians were also obliged to 
keep a chain of fortified posts alongst the base of the Oural moun- 
tains and the frontiers of the step of Isschim, to protect their sub- 
jects from the incursions of the Kirguis, who usualiy made many 
captives, in spite of every precaution, and carried them across the 
desert, where they either employed them as slaves, or sold them to 
the neighbouring nomadic tribes. Yet the Russians were accustomed 
to class these robbers as their subjects, and the steps of the Small 
and Middle Horde were included in their maps of Asiatic Russia. 
But the Russians have now actually accomplished, by negeciation, the 
real subjection of these hordes, and their territory has, by an ukase 
_ er edict published in 1623, been united to the Russian empire, and 
seven Kirguisian khans, that same year, came to St. Petersburgh, 
and paid homage to the Russian court as its vassals. The Russian 
agents at length, by long continued representations of a sure and 
large profit which the khans and their subjects would derive from 
the transit of commerce between Russia and Bucharia, prevailed 
on them to leave off their wented practice of pillage and plunder, 
