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 The object to which he now turned his attention was the reduction of the city of Serrekhs. That place is considered by the Persians to be one of the four chief cities of Khorassan. From its situation in the desert between Meshed and Merve, its possession is a matter of necessity to an invader approaching from either side with the purpose of possessing himself of one or other of the abovementioned cities, and Prince Abbass Meerza could not have reasserted the power of Persia to regain the line of the Oxus as her frontier without having first possessed himself of Serrekhs. That city is said to have derived its name from Serrekhs, the son of Gooderz, a chief of Turan. It was held by the Saloor tribe of Turkomans, and its possession had been successively disputed by the Khan of Khiva and by the Ameer of Bokhara, respectively. The Saloors are called after the title of Tuli Khan, the son of Genghis, and they form one of the most powerful divisions of the Turkomans. They are not addicted to the practice of making excursions into Persia for the purpose of plundering, but they were accused by Abbass Meerza of being in the habit of supplying arms to other tribes, to be used against the peaceful subjects of the Shah. In return for those arms, or for other commodities, they received many Persian prisoners, whom they detained as slaves, or sold to the inhabitants of Khiva and Bokhara. At this juncture