As the administrative focus of the Syr Daria province Tashkent is the principal city of Russian Turkestan and the seat of the Governor-General. The Russian quarter at once recalls memories of other spheres of Central Asia. The streets are wide and long. Dusty but much frequented, they are bordered by high, white poplars set in double rows, while upon each side there run the gurgling waters of the irrigation canals. The city is laid out in a sector of a circle, three great boulevards radiating from the cathedral, a handsome, octagonal building in freestone. Surmounted by the dome and golden cross, which mark in Russia all Orthodox places of worship, it occupies the centre of Konstantinovski Square. It contains the remains of General von Kauffman, Governor-General of Russian Turkestan between 1867 and 1882 and, incidentally, conqueror of Khiva in 1873 and of Samarkand in 1868. He died May 4, 1882. [Illustration: SOBORNAYA BOULEVARD IN TASHKENT] Tashkent, situated upon the slopes of the Tian Shan 172 sagenes above sea-level, lies in the midst of an extensive oasis whose fertile acres are watered by the river Chirchik and its tributaries. January is the coldest month, while July is the hottest. The prevailing breezes are north and north-east; but the characteristic peculiarity of the climate is the absence of wind, which makes the high temperature in the summer particularly oppressive. Spring weather begins in March; the hot season, commencing in May, continues until the middle of August. Speaking generally the place possesses the attributes of the climate in the plains of Central Asia while distinguished by its greater yearly rain-fall--384 millimètres--in consequence of the proximity of the mountains. The drinking water question, an ever-attendant difficulty in Central Asia, is no less acute in Tashkent, constituting a serious drawback to conditions of life there. An ample supply of water is available for irrigation, the Chirchik river, as well as numerous wells and springs, being diverted for this purpose.