versary, whose inroads on our constitutions we had no means of resisting.
We therefore humbly submit the following Narrative to the public, without further apology for any deficiency of style or expression which may be discovered in it. It has at least the merit of a faithful account, for our journals were invariably written on the spot at the close of each day, and in all our observations, to the best of our belief, we adhered religiously to the truth.
We have only to add, that since returning to our native country, we have made no alterations, nor introduced a single sentence in the original manuscript of our travels; simply because it was intimated to us, that the public would prefer it in that state, however faulty in style, rather than a more elaborate narrative, which might gain less in elegance than it would lose in accuracy and vividness of description.
We think it necessary, however, to say, that the task of blending our journals into one, as well as constructing the map of our route through the country, has been performed by Lieutenant Becher, of the Royal Navy, to whom we offer our sincere thanks, not only for the performance of these laborious services, but also for his friendly aid and valuable suggestions in many other points connected with the production of these volumes.