6. The French and English editors of the Genealogical
History of the Tartars have subjoined a curious, though
imperfect, description of their present state. We might
question the independence of the Calmucks, or Eluths, since
they have been recently vanquished by the Chinese, who, in
the year 1759, subdued the lesser Bucharia, and advanced
into the country of Badakshan, near the sources of the Oxus
(Memoires sur les Chinois, tom. i. p. 325-400). But these
conquests are precarious, nor will I venture to ensure the
safety of the Chinese empire.