from without in those directions. There are few
states in Asia with a more clearly marked position than that of which we
have been speaking. Nature seems to have formed it to lead an isolated
and independent existence, happy and prosperous in its own resources and
careless of the outer world; but its history has been of a more troubled
character, and at only brief intervals has its natural wealth been so
fostered as to make it that which it has been called, "the Garden of
Asia." This condition of almost continual warfare and disturbance during
centuries, has left many visible marks on the external features of the
country, and in nothing is this more strikingly evident than in the
small population. A region which contains at the most moderate estimate
250,000 square miles, is believed by the highest authorities to contain
less than 1,000,000 inhabitants. In breadth Kashgaria may be said to
extend from longitude E. 73 deg. to 89 deg., and in width from latitude N. 36 deg.
to 43 deg.; but the ancient kingdom of Kashgar has been always considered to
have reached only to Aksu, a town about 300 miles north-east of Kashgar.
When the Chinese about fifty years ago conceded certain trade privileges
to Khokand, they were not to have effect east of Aksu; this fact seems
conclusive as to the recognized limits of the ancient dynasty of
Kashgar. The capital of this district, which at one time has been a
flourishing kingdom under a native ruler, at another a tributary of some
Tartar conqueror, and then distracted by the struggles of his effete
successors, and at a third time a subject province of the Chinese, has
fluctuated as much as the fortunes of the state itself. Now it has been
Yarkand, now Kashgar, and yet again, on several occasions, Aksu. The
claims of Kashgar seem to have prevailed in the long run, for, although
Yarkand is still the larger city, Yakoob Beg established his capital at
Kashgar, and made that town known throughout the whole of Asia by the
means of his government.

Kashgar is situated in a plain in the north of the province, and the
small river on which it is built is known as the Kizil Su. Immediately
beyond it the country becomes hilly and mountainous, until in the far
distance may be seen the snow-clad peaks of the Tian Shan, and the Aksai
Plateau. Although the population is barely 30,000, there is now an air
of brisker activity in the bazaars and caravanserais of this capital
than in any other city in the count