And would it not be grievous, if Muscovite ascendancy should do harm to such a State? The strong will of a free people governs on the Thames; on the Neva the ambition of an Asiatic dynasty, a system of government so framed that its capacity for reform in the future remains doubtful, while its great perniciousness in the present is all the more assured. Yes; only in Russia's approach towards India, that Achilles-heel of British interests, may we discover the infallible sign of serious danger for England. A greater struggle than that which the British Lion had to encounter in the south with France, for the establishment of its power on the Ganges, it has still to look for in the north. The first-named foe, weaker in numbers and endurance, had but a small fleet, and a sea at that time unnavigable behind her back, and could easily be overcome. The last-named, on the contrary, will be supported by an unbroken chain of fortresses, garrisons, guarded roads; her weapons are a boundless ambition, the blind devotion of millions of subjects, and the sympathy of rude neighbour-states. Victory over such a power will be far less easy, and the consequences of defeat far greater. Be on thy guard, therefore, Britannia! For if the star of thine ancient fortune should now begin to wane, then will that verse-- "The nations not so blest as thee Must in their turn to tyrants fall, While thou shalt flourish great and free, The dread and envy of them all," --have to remain unread in the different zones. LEWIS & SON, Printers, Swan Buildings, Moorgate Street, London. * * * * * Transcriber's note: Minor typographical errors have been corrected without note. Irregularities and inconsistencies in the text have been retained as printed. Mismatched quotes are not fixed if it's not sufficiently clear where the missing quote should be placed. The cover for the eBook version of this book was created by the transcriber and is placed in the public domain. End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Sketches of Central Asia (1868), by Arminius Vámbéry