G. J. Younghusband (1859-1944) came from a family with deep roots in the Indian army and colonial service tradition. After school at Sandhurst, the young lieutenant was sent on what was no less than a spying mission in 1888 to find out the most accessible route through Siamese territory to the disputed Shan State of Keng Tung. The area was a hodgepodge of intrigue with Britain, Siam, Lan Na, the French, and of course the Shans vying for position and power. He describes in this book the land through which he passes and the characters whom he meets, and hints at the machinations of other interested parties in the region, with debonair nonchalance and a fine eye for detail.

This intriguing text, of which hitherto only two copies are known still to exist, was first published in 1888, and is here reissued with an introduction by the noted historian David K. Wyatt.