They returned by way of Erzerum and Trebizond, taking ship from there to Constantinople and Malta, arriving at the latter place July 2, 1831, after an absence of fifteen and a half months. In that time they had traveled over one thousand miles by water and twenty-five hundred miles by horse through a wild country beset with robbers and perils of every kind. Except when entertained by missionaries or representatives of foreign governments, a rare occurrence upon all this journey, they were compelled to occupy Oriental stables or even worse places as caravansaries and endure multifarious privations and hardships. They returned well, bringing a rich store of accurate knowledge regarding the country, people, and religions, which later proved to be of inestimable value in planting missions in all those regions. Their “Researches,” consisting almost entirely of the journals they kept, cover every phase of the life and customs of the people and the conditions of the country. These were printed in two volumes, aggregating nearly seven hundred pages, and for their scientific value to the student of races, religions, geography, and language were at once recognized to be a classic. By this tour and the publication of their “Researches in Armenia,” all that region was opened to the world as a proper field of operation for the Christian missionary. As a direct result of the work of Messrs. Smith and Dwight, Mr. Perkins was sent to Tabriz in September, 1833, but owing to the unusual difficulties of the way, among which were various warring tribes of Koords, he did not arrive until nearly a year after leaving Boston. In November, 1835, he with Dr. Grant removed from Tabriz to Urumia, and both these places have been the seat of mission work since. In 1835 Trebizond was occupied as a mission station, and four years later missionaries were located in Erzerum. Trebizond is upon the Black Sea and was the port of entry for all that part of the country. It is at the terminus of the great caravan route from Persia to the West, and ever since Xenophon took ship there for Constantinople, with his retreating ten thousand, has held an important place among the ports upon the coast. Erzerum is a week’s journey inland upon the caravan route to Persia and is one of the most important cities in Eastern Turkey. It is situated upon a high plateau nearly six thousand feet above the sea and in the midst of a large population of Armenians, Turks, and Koords.