To Foster Fitzgerald Arbuthnot.
My Dear Arbuthnot,
I have no fear that a friend, whose friendship has lasted nearly a third of a century, will misunderstand my reasons for inscribing his name upon these pages. You have lived long enough in the East and, as your writings show, observantly enough, to detect the pearl which lurks in the kitchen-midden, and to note that its lustre is not dimmed nor its value diminished by its unclean surroundings.
Ever yours sincerely,
RICHARD F. BURTON.
Athenæum Club, October 1, 1885
