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HARVARD 
COLLEGE 
LIBRARY 


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CENTRAL  CAUCASUS  AM)  BASHAN. 


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TRAVELS 


IN    THE 


CENTRAL  CAUCASUS  AND  BASHAN 


TSCLTTDISQ 


VISITS  TO  ARARAT  AND  TABREEZ 


▲NO 


ASCENTS    OF    KAZBEK    AND    ELBRUZ. 


BT 


DOUGLAS  W.  FRESHFESLD. 


'  Per  Alpiiuu  jaga 
InhospiUlem  ot  Oftocasom.* 

HoR.  Epod,  I.  12. 


CX 


LONDON: 

LONGMANS,    GEEEN,    AND    CO. 

1869. 


Tht  right  tff  trantlaUon  is  reserved. 


5/av  ^'^2.^.  y5 


HARVARD  UNIVERSITY 
LIBRARY 

ShF  1  7  1991 


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V 


PREFACE. 


<0t' 


The  following  pages  sufficiently  explain  how  the 
journey  described  in  them  was  planned  and  carried 
out.  In  the  course  of  our  wanderings,  we  visited  two 
countries,  well  known,  indeed,  by  name  to  the  general 
reader,  but  concerning  which  vague,  and  in  some 
respects  incorrect  impressions  are  frequently  enter- 
tained. A  truthful  traveller  may  do  as  good  service 
by  destroying  illusions  as  by  bringing  forward  fresh 
information,  and  I  have  felt  bound  to  record  our  con- 
viction that  the  belief  that  there  are  *  Giant  Cities ' 
in  Bashan  is  as  unfoimded  as  the  stiU  more  prevalent 
idea  that  all  the  men  in  the  Caucasus  are  brave,  and 
all  the  women  beautiful. 

Our  Syrian  travels  .owed  their  chief  interest  to  a 
sudden  access  of  vigour  on  the  part  of  the  Turkish 
Pashas,  which  enabled  us  to  visit,  with  little  risk  or 
expense,  the  remarkable  ruins  of  the  HJauran  and  Lejah, 
and  to  form  our  own  opinion  as  to  their  date — a  question 


VI  PREFACE. 

as  yet  discussed  principally  by   unskilled  witnesses, 
and  still  awaiting  the  decision  of  a  competent  judge. 

The  exploration  of  the  passes  and  glaciers  of  the 
Central  Caucasus,  and  the  ascent  of  its  two  most 
famous  summits,  formed  the  chief  aim  of  our  journey, 
and  are  the  main  subject  of  the  present  volume.  I 
trust  that  the  record  of  our  adventures  in  the  moun- 
tain fastnesses  may  prove  of  sufficient  interest  to  draw 
the  attention  of  our  coimtrymen  to  a  range  surpassing 
the  Alps  by  two  thousand  feet  in  the  average  height  of 
its  peaks,  abounding  in  noble  scenery  and  picturesque 
inhabitants,  and  even  now  within  the  reach  of  many 
*  long-vacation  tourists.'  When  the  Caucasus,  as .  yet 
less  known  than  the  Andes  or  the  Himalayas,  becomes 
a  recognised  goal  of  travel,  this  work  will  have  fulfilled 
its  object,  and  will  be  superseded  by  the  production 
of  some  author  better  qualified,  both  by  literary  skill 
and  scientific  attainments,  to  treat  of  so  noble  a  theme. 

The  reader  will  not  find  in  these  pages  any  political 
speculations,  for  which  so  rapid  a  journey  afibrded 
scant  opportunity ;  he  may  more  justly  complain  of 
the  absence  of  ethnological  details  concerning  the  tribes 
of  the  Caucasus.  My  excuse  is,  that  information  filtered 
through  an  uneducated  interpreter  is  difficult  to  obtain 
and  httle  trustworthy ;  the  subject,  moreover,  has  been 
fully  treated  of  by  German  travellers,  in  works  al- 
ready translated  into  Enghsh,  and  accessible  to  those 
in  whom  the  present  account  of  the  natural  features  of 


PREFACE.  VU 

the   Caucasian    region    may  raise    a   wish    to   learn 
more. of  its  inhabitants. 

The  Map  of  tlie  Central  Caucasus  is  reduced 'from 
the  Five  Verst  Map,  executed  by  the  Eussiau  Topo- 
graphical Department  at  Tiflis,  with  many  corrections 
suggested  by  our  own  experience.  The  illustrations 
are  derived  from  various  sources;  some  have  been 
engraved  from  paintings  by  a  Eussian  artist  resident 
at  Tiflis,  others  are  from  photographs  or  pencil-sketches. 
Two  of  the  smaller  plates  are  borrowed  from  a  privately- 
printed  work  of  Herr  Eadde,  our  numerous  obliga- 
tions to  whom  I  gladly  take  this  opportunity  of 
acknowledging. 

I  owe  my  best  thanks  to  Mr.  Edward  Whymper 
for  the  skill  he  has  shown  in  dealing  with  the  rough 
materials  placed  at  his  disposal,  a  task  for  which  his 
well-known  knowledge  of  mountain  scenery  eminently 
qualified  him.  I.  have  also  to  thank  Mr.  Weller  for 
the  care  he  has  taken  to  make  the  maps  accurate  and 
intelligible. 

I  cannot  conclude  these  few  words  of  preface  with- 
out bearing  grateful  witness  to  the  constant  encourage- 
ment, and  very  important  aid,  which  I  have  received 
from  my  companions,  Mr.  A.  W.  Moore  and  Mr.  C.  C. 
Tucker,  in  the  preparation  of  the  volume  now  sub- 
mitted to  the  pubhc. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

EGYPT  AND   PALESTINE. 

PAas 
Intzodactory — Choosing    a    Dragoman — ^Djebel    Mokattam — ^The    Nile 

Steamer — ^The  Mecca  Caravau — Sail  for   Syria — ^A  Poor  Trayeller — 

Struck  byldglitning — Syrian  Sloughs  and  Storms — ^TheBiverKishon — 

Arrival  at  Jerusalem — An  Idea  worked  out — *  Vive  la  Mer  Morte !' — 

Jericho— We  fall  among  Thieves — ^The  Jordan  Valley — Capture  of  a 

Standard-bearer — ^Ferry  of  the  Jordan  .        - 1 


CHAPTER  n. 

BASHAN. 

The  English  Soldier— A  Mountain  Ride^-Bs-Salt— Lost  on  the  Hills— 
The  Jabbok — Camp  of  the  Beni-Hassan — Suppressing  a  Sheikh — ^The 
Oak  Forests  of  Gilead— -The  Tablelands— An  Uxorious  Sh<nkh— Derat— 
The  Roman  Road — The  Robbers  repulsed — Ohusam — ^Bozrah — Honoured 
Quests — ^A^Ramble  in  the  Ruins — Kureiyeh — ^Patriarchal  Hoepitali^ — 
Hebran — ^A  Stone  House — ^Kufr — ^Ascent  of  El-E[leib — Suweideh — 
Hunawat — ^Noble  Ruins — Shuhba — Hades  on  Earth — Visiting  Extra- 
ordinary—The  Lqah— A  Lava  Flood — Ahireh — Khubab— A  Rush  to 
Arms — ^The  Stolen  Mule — ^A  Village  in  Pursuit — Mismiyeh — ^The  *  Giant 
Cities '  are  Roman  Towns— The  Wrath  of  the  Beys— A  Friendly  Sulut 
— ^Eesweh — ^Entrance  to  Damascus 16 

CHAPTER  m. 

LEBANON  AND  THE  LEVANT. 

Damascus — ^Bazaars  and  Gkodens — ^An  Enthusiastic  Freemason — Snow- 
storm on  Anti-Lebanon — ^Baalbeo — ^An  Alpine  Walk — ^The  Cedars — 
Return  to  Beyrout — Cyprus  and  Rhodes — Smyrna — ^The  Valley  of  the 
Msander — ^Excavations  at  Ephesus — Constantinople-r-  The  Persian 
Khan — May-Day  at  the  Sweet  Waters— Preparations  for  the  Caucasus  .    63 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

TRANSCAUCASIA. 

PACK 

On  the  Block  Sea — ^Trebizonde — Rival  Interpreters — Paul — Running  a 
Muck — Batoum — ^The  Caucasus  in  Sight — Lauding  at  Poti — The  Rion 
Steamer — A  Driye  in  the  Dark — Kutais — Count  lieverschoff — Splendid 
Costumes — ^Mingrelian  Princesses — ^Azaleas — ^The  Valley  of  the  Quirili — 
A  Post  Station — The  Georgian  Plains — Underground  Villages — Gori — 
First  View  of  Kazbek— Tiflis— The  H6tel  d'Europe— The  Streets- 
Silver  and  Fur  Bazaars — Maps — Chuman  Savants — The  Botanical 
Grarden — The  Opera — Officialism  Rampant— A  False  Frenchwoman — 
A  Paraclodnaia — The  Postal  System  in  Russia      .        .        .       -.        .74 


CHAPTER  V. 
THE  PERSIAN  POST-ROAD. 

The  Banks  of  the  Kui^— Troops  on  the  March— A  Romantic  Valley — 
Delidschan — ^A  Desolate  Pass — ^The  Gokcha  Lake — ^Ararat — ^Erivan — 
The  Kurds — ^The  Valley  of  the  Araxes — ^A  Steppe  Storm — ^A  Dangerous 
Ford — Kakhitchevan — ^A  Money  Question — ^Djulfa — Charon's  Feny  and 
a  Modem  Cerberus — ^A  Friend  in  Need — ^A  Persian  Khan — Maraud — 
Entrance  to  Tabreez — Chez  Lazarus 112 


CHAPTER  VL 
TABREEZ,  ARARAT,  AND  THE  GEORGIAN  HILL-COUNTRY. 

The  City— Brick  Architecture— The  Shah's  Birthday— The  European 
Colony — A  Market  Committee — Return  to  rjulfa — A  Dust  Storm — Ford 
of  the  Araxes — ^Aralykh — Start  for  Ararat — ^Refractory  Kurds — ^AMoon- 
light  Climb— Failure — A  Lonely  Perch — ^Vast  Panorama — ^Tucker^s 
Story — ^AGloomy  Descent— Return  to  Erivan — Etchmiadzin — The  Arme- 
nian Patriarch — ^A  Dull  Ride — Hammamly — The  Georgian  Hills — ^Dje- 
laloghlu — ^A  Moist  Climate — Schulaweri — Tiflis  again — ^Moore  joins  us  .  141 

CHAPTER  VIL 

THE  KRESTOWAJA  GORA  AND  ASCENT  OF  KAZBEK. 

Start  for  the  Mountains — The  Pass  of  the  Caucasus — Kazbek  Post  Station 
— ^The  GovemorB — ^A  Reconnaissance  in  force — ^Legends — Avalanches — 
The  Old  Men's  Chorus — ^Men  in  Armour — Our  Bivouac — ^A  Critical 
Moment — Scaling  an  Icewall — ^The  Summit — The  Descent — A  Savage 
Glen — ^A  Night  with  the  Shepherds — Return  to  the  Village — Caucasian 
Congratolations  «        • 179 


CONTENTS.  XI 


CHAPTER  Vm. 

THE  VALLEYS  OF  THE  TEREK,  ARDON,  AND  RION. 

A  Geographical  Disquisition — The  Upper  Terek — Savage  Scenery — ^Fero- 
cious Dogs — ^Abano — ^A  Dull  Walk— Hard  Bargaining — ^An  Unruly 
Train — ^A  Pass — ^Zaoca,  on  the  Ardon<'— A  Warm  Skirmish  and  a  Barren 
Victory — ^An  Unexpected  Climb — The  Lower  Valley — ^A  Russian  Road 
-> Teeb— The  Ossetes— The  Mamisson  Pass— Adai  Khokh— A  Shift 
in  the  Scenery — GurschaTi — ^The  Boy-Prince — ^An  Idle  Day — ^Viewfrom 
the  Rhododendron  Slope— Glola — ^The  Pine-Forests  of  the  Rion — Chiora  208 


CHAPTER  IX. 
THE    GLACIERS    AND    FORESTS    OF    THE    CENTRAL    CAUCASUS. 

Caucasian  Shepherds — ^A  Lovely  Alp— Sheep  on  the  Glacier — A  New  Pass 
— ^A  Snow  Wall — ^A  Rough  Glen — ^The  Karagam  Glacier — ^Bivouac  in  the 
Forest — ^An  Icefiill — ^A  Struggle  and  a  Victory — ^The  Ui^>er  Snowfields 
—The  Watershed  at  last— Check— A  Useful  Gully— An  Uneasy  Night 
— Glola  again — ^Pantomime — Gebi — Curious  Villagers — ^A  Bargain  for 
Porters — ^Asalea  Thickets— The  Source  of  the  Rion — ^Rank  Herbage 
— Camp  on  the  Zenes-Squali — ^A  Low  Pass — Swamps  and  Jungles — 
Path-finding— The  Glen  of  the  Scena— Wide  Pasturages— The  Naksagar 
Pass 245 


CHAPTER  X. 

SUANETIA. 

Free  Snanetia,  Past  and  Present — ^Herr  Radde's  Experiences — Physical 
Features — Fortified  Villages — Jibiani — ^Pious  Savages — A  Surprise — 
Glaciers  of  the  Ingur — Petty  Theft — ^Threats  of  Robbery — ^Alarms  and 
Excursions — ^A  Stormy  Parting — The  Horseman's  Home — The  Ruined 
Tower — A  Glorious  Icefall — Adisch — Sylvan  Scenery — The  Mushalaliz 
— Suni — Ups  and  Downs — Midday  Halt — ^Latal — A  Suanetian  Farm- 
house— Murder  no  Crime — Tau  Totonal — A  Sonsation  Scene — The  Cau- 
casian Matterhorn— Pari  at  last — Hospitable  Cossacks  .        .        ,292 


XU  CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

FROM  PARI  TO  PATIGORSK,  AND  ASCENT  OF  ELBRUZ. 

PAGE 

A  Captive  Bear — ^Moore  Harangnes  the  Porters — Camp  in  the  Forest — 
A  Plague  of  Flies— Lazy  Porters — A  Nook  in  the  Mountains — Cattle-  ' 
Lifting — ^Across  the  Chain  in  a  Snowstorm — A  Stormy  Debate — A 
Log  Hut — ^Baksan  Valley — Umspieh — ^The  Ghiest  House— Villany 
Kevaided — ^Minghi-Tau — ^An  Idle  Day — An  Enlightened  Prince — Passes 
to  the  Karatchai — ^Tartar  Mountaineers — A  Night  with  the  Shepherds 
— A  Steep  Climb—Camp  on  the  Socks— Great  Cold — On  the  Snowfield 
— In  a  Crevasse-— Frigid  Despair — ^A  Crisis — Perseverance  Bcwarded — 
The  Summit — ^Panorama — ^The  Betum — ^Enthusiastic  Reception — The 
Lower  Baksan — ^A  Long  Ride — ^A  Tcherkess  Village — Grassy  Downs — 
Zonitzki — ^Patigorsk     .        .        .        « 387 


CHAPTER  Xn. 
PATIGORSK  AND  THE  TGHEREK  VALLET. 

The  Caucasian  Spas — ^Their  E[istory  and  Development — ^View  from 
Machoucha — ^The  Piatients— Essentuky — ^Kislovodsk — ^The  l^aizan — 
Hospitable  Reception — ^A  Fresh  Start — A  Russian  Farmhouse — ^By  the 
Waters  of  Baksan — ^Naltschik — The  'Tcherek — Camp  in  the  Forest — ^A 
Tremendous  Gorge — ^Balkar — ^A  Hospitable  Sheikh — ^The  MoUah — ■ 
Gloomy  Weather — ^A  Solemn  Parting — Granitic  Clifib — ^Kaiaoul — ^A 
Mountain  Panorama — Sources  of  the  Tcherek — ^The  Stuleveeak  Pass — 
Koschtantau  and  Dychtau — ^A  Noble  Peak — Our  Last  Camp.        •        .381 


CHAPTER  XIIL 

THE  URUCH  VALLEY  AND  RETURN  TO  TIFLIS. 

Wooded  Defiles — Styr  Digor — A  Halt — ^We  Meet  a  Cossack — A  Rain- 
storm— 2iadele8k — ^The  Gtite  of  the  Mountains — ^Across  the  Hills  and 
Through  the  Forest — ^Tuganova — Novo-Christiansky — ^A  Christian 
Welcome — A  Wet  Ride — Ardonsk — A  Breakdown  on  the  Steppe — ^Vladi- 
kafkaz — ^A  Diligence  Drive — ^The  Dariel  Gorge — Return  to  Tiflis — 
Reflections  on  the  Caucasian  Chain — Its  Scenery  and  Inhabitants — Com- 
parison with  the  Alps— Hints  for  Travellers 422 


CONTENTS.  Xlll 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

TRANSCAUCASIA     AND     THE     CRIMEA  :       HOME  THROUGH 

RUSSIA. 

PAOK 

Borjom — Bad  Road — ^Beautiful  Scenery — Achaltzich — ^Across  the  Hills — 
Abastuman — A  Narrow  Valley — The  Burnt  Forest — ^Panorama  of  the 
Cancasos — ^Last  Appearance  of  Kazbek  and  Elbnu — ^A  Forest  Bide — 
Bagdad — ^Mingrelian  Hospitality — A  French  Baron's  Farm — ^The  Rion 
Basin — Kntais — ^The  Postmaster — ^Poti — A  Dismal  Swamp— Soukhoum- 
Kal6 — Sevastopol — The  Battli^fields  —  The  Crimean  Comiche  — 
Bakhchi-S&rai — Odessa — A  Run  across  Russia — ^A  Jew's  Gait — ^The 
Dnieper  Steamboat — Kieff — Picturesque  Pilgrims  —  The  Lavra 
— Sainted  Mummies — A  Long  Drive  —  Vitebsk — St.  Petersburg — 
Conclusion 466 

APPENDIX. 

I.  The  Elbruz  Expedition  of  1829  ....   497 

II.  Heights  of  Peaks,  Passes,  Towns,  and  Villages  in  the  Caucasian 

Provinces 500 

in.  Catalogue  of  Plants 502 


LIST    OF    MAPS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


-o* 


MAPS. 

/PAGE 

I.    Hoate  Map  of  the  Hanran lb/ace  16 

II.    The  Caacasian  ProTinoes „  74 

III.    The  OentnU  GaxxMsxis End  of  Vol. 

FULL-PAGE  ILLUSTRATIONS. 

Elbrnz  from  the  Nortli Frontispiece 

Ararat To  face  125 

Kaibek  from  the  Port  Station „  185 

Kaibek  from  the  Boath „  197 

PANORAMAS. 

The  Gancaens  from  PtttigorBk „  881 

The  Koschtantaa  Groap 881 

WOODCUTS  IN  TEXT. 

A  Geoxgfan  Chttrch 95 

The  Geoigiaa  Castle,  Tiflia 104 

Monntaineen  in  Armour ^       ....  199 

An  OflBete  Village 218 

AnOasete S27 

Adai  Ehokh  from  the  Rion  Valley 287 

Soimx  of  the  Eoatem  Zenes-Sqoall 282 

Our  Camp-fire  in  the  Fbreet 288 

A  Natiye  of  Jibfani SOO 

Tan  l^tttnal  from  aboTe  Lotal 328 

Uachba  from  aboTB  Latal 329 

Woman  of  Unupieh ...  357 

Peak  in  the  Tcherek  Valley ^n 

FortofDarlel 442 

Qrand-Dncal  Villa  at  Borjom 4^6 

HingreUan  Wine  Jar ; 479 


TRAVELS 


XM 


THE  CENTRAL  CAUCAJSUS  AND  BASHAN. 


CHAPTER  L 

EaXPT  AKD   PALESTOTE. 

Intzodactoiy — Chooeiog  ft  '  Dragoman — I>jel>el  Kokattam — ^The  Kila 
Steamer — ^The  Mecca  CaraTaa— Sail  for  Syria — A  Poor  Trayeller — 
Struck  by  Lightning — Syrian  Sloughs  and  Storms — ^Tho  River  Kishon — 
Aarival  at  Jerusalem — An  Idea  "worked  out — 'Yiye  la  Mer  Morte!'^ 
Jericho— We  fall  among  Thieves — ^The  Joxdan  Valley — Capture  of  a 
Standard-bearer — ^Ferry  of  the  Jordan. 

Befobe  carrying  mj  readers  into  the  primitiTe  wilds  of 
Bashan^  and  amongst  the  tmknown  yaUeys  and  ridges  of 
the  Caucasus,  I  must  give  some  explanation  of  the  circum- 
stances which  induced  me  to  imdertake  the  journey  I 
am  about  to  describe.  In  many  summer  holidays,  spent 
among  the  Alps,  I  had  acquired  a  taste  for  mountain 
scenery,  and  when  an  opportunity  of  being  absent  from 
home  for  a  longer  time  than  usual  presented  itself,  I 
looked  for  some  country  where  the  zest  of  novelty  would 
be  added  to  those  natural  features  which  chiefly  at- 
tracted me.  For  many  reasons  the  Caucasus  seemed  to  be 
the  very  region  I  was  seeking.  Less  distant  than  the 
Andes  or  the  Himalayas,  its  mountains  were  yet  unknown 
to  ordinary  travellers,  and  none  of  our  countrymen  had 

B 


2  EGYPT  AND   PALESTINE. 

• 

explored  the  recesses  of  the  finest  portions  of  the  chain, 
although  not  a  few  had  crossed  the  great  highway  of 
the  Dariel,  or  followed  in  the  footsteps  of  the  Eussian 
armies  in  Daghestan. 

My  journey  was  to  begin  in  January,  at  which  time 
it  was  obviously  too  early  to  start  on  a  mountaineering 
excursion,  and  the  ease  with  which  a  visit  to  the  Cauca- 
sian provinces  might  be  fitted  on  to  an  Eastern  tour 
induced  me  to  spend  the  intervening  months  in  Egypt 
arid  the  Holy  Land. 

The  plan  was  definitely  settled  when  my  friend  Mr. 
Tucker  agreed  to  join  me  in  the  whole  of  the  proposed 
journey.  I  had  the  good  fortune  to  secure  a  second  comrade 
for  our  Caucasian  explorations  in  Mr.  Moore,  who  was, 
however,  unable  to  leave  London  until  the  summer,  and 
therefore  promised  to  meet  us,  at  Tiflis,  about  June 
20th.  So  far  our  party  was  complete,  but  for  moun- 
taineering work  it  was  evidently  necessary  to  have  the 
assistance  of  at  least  one  skilled  guide.  My  old  com- 
panion, Pran9ois  Devouassoud  of  Chamouni,  was  just  the 
man  we  wanted,  and.  he  proved  not  only  willing  but 
anxious  to  join  us.  .  The  only  question  was  whether  he 
should  meet  us  at  some  point  in  our  journey,  or  should 
accompany  us  from  its  outset.  I  finally  determined  to 
accede  to  his  wishes,  and  take  him  as  a  travelling  servant, 
having  full  confidence  in  his  intelligence  and  readiness 
to  accommodate  himself  to  new  scenes  and  unaccustomed 
modes  of  life.    We  had  no  reason  to  repent  this  decision. 

After  a  busy  fortnight,  spent  in  getting  together  the 
necessaries  for  our  journey — which  included  a  tent,  water- 
proof saddlebags,  a  portable  kitchen,  and  large  quantities 
of  Liebig's  soup — we  left  England  on  January  4th,  1868. 
We  passed  through  the  South  of  Prance  in  the  most  intense 
cold;  at  Avignon  the  Ehone  was  frozen  from  bank  to 


CHOOSING  A   DRAGOMAN.  S 

bank,  and  the  fountains  at  Marseilles  were  turned  into 
masses  of  icicles.  On  January  8th  we  sailed  for  Egypt, 
on  board  the  Messageries  Imperiales'  steamer  *Port 
Said/  with  a  miscellaneous  batch  of  passengers,  in- 
cluding two  French  officers  who  were  going  to  Abys- 
sinia, two  directors  of  the  Suez  Canal,  Gerdme  the 
painter,  the  Viceroy  of  Egypt's  dentist,  two  missionary 
ladies  bound  for  Jerusalem,  and  a  party  of  Algerine 
Arabs  on  their  way  to  Mecca,  who  lay  all  day  and  night 
on  deck,  huddled  in  their  cloaks.  With  such  variety  on 
board,  and  a  constantly-changing  horizon,  we  found  the 
voyage  by  no  means  monotonous. 

On  the  sixth  morning  the  tall  lighthouse  and  low  coast 
of  Alexandria  came  in  sight.  *  We  landed  in  a  storm  of 
i%dn,  which  added  to  the  difficulties  of  newcomers  in  an 
Eastern  city.  We  were  at  once  surrounded  by  a  host  of 
dragomen,  and  pestered  by  their  persistent  attentions, 
xlntil  we  at  last  selected  one,  whose  personal  appearance 
was  in  his  fietvour,  and  whose  terms  and  promises  were 
more  reasonable  than  those  of  most  of  the  men  we  saw. 
By  the  kind  assistance  of  a  European  resident,  a  contract 
was  made  with  him  to  accompany  us  during  our  Syrian 
tour;  his  duties  were  to  begin  on  our  la.nciing  at  JaflFa  or 
Beyrout.  The  successful  candidate  was  Elias  Abbas,  a 
Maronite  of  the  Lebanon. 

I  have  no  intention  of  adding  to  the  already  too 
numerous  descriptions  of  Egypt  and  the  Nile,  but  I 
cannot  refrain  from  one  hint  to  all  visitors  to  Cairo. 
Visit  the  petrified  forest,  and  make  your  donkey-boy  bring 
you  back  by  Djebel  Mokattam,  or  you  will  lose  one  of  the 
most  wonderful  views  in  the  East.  After  riding  for  miles 
over  the  arid  African  desert,  with  a  narrow  horizon,  and 
nothing  to  attract  the  attention  save  a  distant  train  of 
camels  or  a  troop  of  gazelles,  the  edge  of  an  abrupt 

b2 


4  EGYPT  AND  PALESTINE. 

descent  is  reached,  and  the  view  of  Cairo  and  the  vallej 
of  the  Nile  bursts  upon  the  eyes  with  an  almost  magical 
suddenness.  The  immediate  foreground  is  formed  by 
the  quarried  heights  of  Djebel  Mokattam,  in  the  centre 
of  the  picture  rise  the  taper  minarets  of  the  mosque 
of  the  citadel,  in  a  valley  on  its  right  are  the  tombs 
of  the  Memlooks,  a  deserted  town  of  the  dead,  and  the 
vast  modem  city  spreads  itself  out  in  the  plain  below. 
In  the  centre  of  the  broad  bluish-green  ribbon  of  fertile 
land,  dotted  with  clusters  of  pyramids,  the  Nile  itself, 
can  be  traced  to  the  commencement  of  the  Delta,  while 
beyond,  on  the  west,  the  yellow  sands  of  the  desert 
mark  the  limits  of  its  fertilising  inundation* 

At  Cairo  we  were  fortunate  in  falling  in  with  some 
pleasant  Americans,  who  were  making  up  a  party  to  hire 
a  steamboat  for  a  trip  up  the  river.  They  asked  us  to 
join  them,  and  although  the  Nile  had  not  formed  part, 
of  our  programme,  the  opportunity  was  too  good  to  be 
lost,  and  we  gladly  accepted  the  offer. 

Although  our  company  consisted  of  eleven  Americans 
and  only  four  Englishmen,  the  majority  were  not  at  all 
disposed  to  abuse  their  power,  and  we  gave  an  example  of 
unbroken  harmony  to  the  other  steamers  going  up  the 
river  at  the  same  time.  Indeed,  I  believe  that  on  this 
account,  as  well  as  from  our  being  so  fortunate  as  to  carry 
with  us  some  pretty  and  lively  Transatlantic  cousins,  we 
were  an  object  of  envy  and  heartburning  to  most  of  the 
boats  we  met. 

Time  could  not  hang  heavy  on  the  hands  of  those  who, 
when  their  admiration  was  no  longer  called  forth  by  ^  the 
mysterious  type  of  beauty'  peculiar  to  the  broken-nosed 
sisterhood  of  Sphinxes,  could  turn  their  eyes  on  the 
fresher  charms  which  the  Far  West  had  sent  to  compete 
with  the  stony  loveliness  of  the  East.     On  February  14th 


SAIL  FOR  SYKIA.  6 

we  bade  farewell  to  the  little  steamer  in  which  we  had 
spent  three  very  pleasant  weeks  on  the  NOe,  and  returned 
to  our  old  quarters  in  Shepherd's  Hotel  at  Cairo. 

We  witnessed  the  departure  of  the  Haj  caravan  for 
Mecca,  admired  the  holy  camel,  draped  with  cloth  of  gold, 
carrying  the  annually  renewed  covering  of  Mahomet's 
tomb,  and  laughed  heartily  at  a  sheikh  of  extraordinary 
sanctity  and  obesity,  who,  stripped  to  the  waist  and  shining 
with  oil,  swayed  himself  backwards  and  forwards  on  his 
camel  with  the  air  of  a  tipsy  Falstaff. '  A  few  hours  later 
we  bade  adieu  to  Cairo  and  our  Nile  Mends,  and  on  the 
next  day  embarked  at  Alexandria  for  Syria. 
•  We  had  been  asked  to  take  out  from  England  a  long 
box,  labelled  *  Delicate  instnunents — ^with  care,'  for  the 
use  of  Lieutenant  Warren,  the  officer  engaged  in  super- 
intending the  excavations  lately  undertaken  by  the  '  Pales- 
tine Exploration  Committee.'  On  our  leaving  Alexandria 
the  custom-house  officer  wanted  to  examuie  the  box,  and 
it  was  only  by  loud  protests  and  threats  of  official  ven- 
geance that  we  saved  the  instruments  from  the  risk  of 
being  spoiled  by  the  Egyptians.  This  was  the  beginning 
of  woes  to  these  '  delicate  instruments,'  which  became 
celebrated  characters  with  lis  during  the  next  fortnight. 

We  spent  a  day  at  Port  Said,  an  utterly  xminteresting 
town  of  third-class  villa  residences,  and  wide  streets  lined 
with*  hastily-ruri-up  stores,  built  upon  a  sandspit.  It  is 
probably  destined  to  future  importance  as  the  Mediter- 
ranean port  of  the  Suez  Canal.  We  had  not  time  to 
see  much  of  the  works  how  in  progress  there,  but  enjoyed 
a  ramble  on  the  beach,  which  is  entirely  formed  of  lovely 
little  shells  of  the  most  delicate  shapes  and  colours.  We 
re-embarked  on  Tuesday  the  17th,  and  in  the  evening  the 
sea  became  very  rough.  At  midnight  half  the  passengers 
were  pitched  out  of  their  berths  by  some  terrible  rolls ; 


6  EGYPT  AND  PALESTINE. 

then  the  cabin-benches  got  loose,  and  tombled  about 
noisily.  At  7  a.m.  we  were  off  Jaffa,  but  landing  was 
out  of  the  question;  an  hour  later  the  cabin  in  which 
I  was  dressing  was  filled  with  a  blaze  of  light,  and  the 
ship  shook  with  a  report  as  if  she  had  fired  a  broadside. 
Our  foremast  had  been  struck  by  lightning,  but,  being 
provided  with  a  conductor,  the  vessel  escaped  injury.  All 
that  day  we  ran  on  through  a  big  tumbling  sea,  and 
anchored  at  night  in  the  roadstead  of  Beyrout. 

On  Wednesday  morning  we  disembarked,  and  went  to 
the  *H6tel  de  Damas.'  Our  original  plan,  to  land  at 
Jaffa  and  go  up  direct  to  Jerusalem,  had  been  thrown  out 
by  the  storm,  and  new  arrangements  were  necessary. 
Mr.  Williams,  one  of  our  American  friends,  was  in  the 
same  position,  and  now  agreed  to  join  us  in  our  Syrian 
journey,  so  that  we  were  a  party  of  three.  As  attendants, 
besides  the  dragoman,  Elias  Abbas,  we  had  a  cook  and 
a  waiter,  with  the  usual  staff  of  muleteers. 

Elias's  preparations  took  him  several  days,  and  it  was 
not  till  Sunday  that  we  succeeded  in  leaving  Beyrout. 
Meantime  we  heard  complaints  from  all  sides  of  the  extra- 
ordioary  severity  of  the  season;  Damascus  was  virtually 
inaccessible,  owing  to  the  heavy  snowstorms,  which  had 
blocked  up  the  passes  of  the  Lebanon.  The  rain  fell  almost 
incessantly,  and  the  mock  torrents  ^vrhich  poured  down 
the  streets  of  Beyrout  augured  ill  for  our  chance  of.  pass- 
ing the  formidable  streams  which  intersect  the  road  to 
Jerusalem.  At  last  we  set  out.  We  made  a  long  circuit 
through  the  hills  to  Deir-el-E[amr,  to  find  a  bridge  over 
the  Damur,  the  first  and  most  formidable  of  the  rivers  we 
had  to  cross.  Along  the  coast  of  Tyre  and  Sidon  we 
journeyed  on  through  rain  and  mud,  imtil  at  Acre  the  tide 
of  our  mishaps  reached  its  highest  point.  We  had 
pitched  our  tent  beneath  a  ruined  villa  a  mile  outside 


SYRIAN  SLOUGHS  AND  STORMS  7 

the  town ;  about  9  P.M.  the  wind  rose ;  an  honr  later  it 
was  blowing  a  gale,  and  the  ropes  began  to  part ;  however, 
by  doubling  our  fastenings,  and  by  dint  of  constant  sallies, 
we  kept  a  shelter  over  our  heads  all  night.  At  6  a.m. 
the  outside  roof  of  the  tent  was  in  rags,  the  wooden  sup- 
ports of  the  sides  mostly  broken,  and  the  wind  generally 
master  of  the  situation.  I  was  too  sleepy  to  stir  out  of 
bed,  and  lay  in  momentary  expectation  that  we  should 

friends,  however,  did  not  wish  to  try  this  new  sensation, 
so  we  roused  ourselves  to  action,  and  with  much  difficulty 
succeeded  in  lowering  and  fastening  up  the  canvas ;  then 
we  took  refuge,  with  the  horses,  in  a  ruinous  cellar. 

Next  morning,  just  outside  Acre,  the  passage  of  a  river, 
which  entered  the  sea  by  two  mouths,  rendered  necessary  a 
double  loading  and  unloading  of  the  baggage.  We  crossed 
in  boats,  but  our  animals  had  to  swim.  I  shall  not  easily 
forget  the  transit  of  the  three  donkeys.  They  were  driven 
into  the  stream  as  far  as  whips  would  reach  them,  but 
just  within  their,  depth,  and  beyond  the  reach  of  their 
persecutors'  weapons,  the  trio  unanimously  halted*  Never 
was  the  vis  inertuB  more  strikingly  exemplified.  In  vain 
their  masters  hurled  on  the  patient  beasts  every  form 
of  Christian  and  Moslem  imprecation.  The  donkeys  ^  were 
not  a  penny  the  worse' ;  they  felt  they  had  the  best  of 
the  situation,  and  exhibited  a  stolid  contempt  for  all  the 
uproar  of  which  they  were  the  cause.  At  last  one  of 
the  muleteers  stripped,  and,  entering  the  water,  launched 
the  obstinate  little  brutes,  one  by  one,  by  main  force. 
Once  committed  to  the  deep,  they  swam  bravely,  and 
emerged  on  the  farther  bank  dripping  and  shaking  their 
long  ears  as  if,  after  all,  they  were  the  heroes  of  the  day. 
An  hour's  scamper  over  the  sandy  beach  brought  us  to 
the  mouth  of  'that  ancient  river,  the  river  Kishon.'    It 


f  EGYPT  AND  PALESTINE. 

was,  of  coiirse,  flooded,  and,  considering  the  combination 
of  difficulties  caused  by  a  gale,  a  sandstorm,  helpless  ferry- 
men, and  ropes  breaking  every  minute,  it  was  a  wondet* 
that  we  and  our  mules  were  not  carried  out  to  sea  in  a 
body.  Altogether  our  baggage  was  twelve  hours  in 
getting  over  the  nine  miles  of  flat  ground  between  Acre 
.and  Caifa. 

The  weather  now  changed,  and  continued  fine  for  our 
ride  down  the  travel-beaten  track  that  leads  through 
Nablous  to  the.  capital  of  Palestine.  Our  only  remain- 
ing  difficulty  was  the  mud,  which  made  the  Plain .  of 
Esdraelon  almost  impassable :  now  one  mule,  now  another, 
stuck  in  the  treacherous  quagmire,  but  the  '  deUcate  in- 
struments '  had  been  confided  to  an  animal  equal  to  his 
trust,  which  either  kept  its  legs,  or  sank  in  the  gentlest 
and  most  graceful  manner.  We  reached  Jerusalem  on 
February  18th,  having  been  twelve  days  on  the  road. 

We  quartered  ourselves  in.  the  Damascus  Hotel,  which 
is  fiiirly  comfortable,  and  commands  a  fine  view  of  the 
Mosque  of  Omar  and  Mount  Olivet  from  the  windows  of 
the  adUe^-manger.  As  soon  as  possible  we  enquired  for 
Lieutenant  Warren,  hoping  to  deliver  to  him  in  person 
the  case  of  ^  delicate  instruments,'  and  to  hear  how  their 
internal  organisation  had  borne  the  joumej;  but  he  had 
already  left  Jerusalem  for  the  trip  to  the  east  side  of  the 
{Dead  Sea,  which  ended  so  sadly  in  the  death  of  one  of  his 
companions,  of  Jericho  fever. 

The  English  Vice-Consul  kindly  accompanied  me  when 
I  went  to  present  a  letter  of  introduction  from  M.  Musurus 
(the  Turkish  Ambassador  in  London)  to  the  local  Pasha, 
who  was  most  courteous,  and  promised  to  do  anything 
in  his  power  for  us.  Thus  encouraged,  we  reflected 
.what  boon  we  should  ask.  We  .were  all  somewhat  dis-r 
appointed  with  the  unadventurous  character  of  a  ride 


JiN   IDEA  WORKED   OUT.  9 

throagli  Palestine,  so  little  realising  the  common  idea  of 
Eastern  travel,  and  were  eager  to  seize  the  first  favour- 
able opportunity  to  escape  from  the  beaten  track 
between  Jerusalem  and  Damascus.  When,  therefore,  the 
map  was  produced,  and  the  directness  of  a  route  via 
Jerash,  Bozrah,'and  the  'Giant  Cities'  of  Bashan  was 
pointed  out,  mj  proposal  to  take  that  course  was  ima- 
nimouslj  adopted.  We  had  read  Mr.  Tristram's  most 
interesting  description  of  Jerash,  and  we  purchased,  at 
Jerusalem,  Mr.  Porter's  sensational  account  of  the  ruins  of 
the.  Eauran.  We  knew,  therefore,  something  of  the 
country  we  proposed  to  visit,  and  were  aware  that  to  pass 
from  Jerusalem  to  Damascus  by  the  east  side  of  the  Jordan, 
with  all  the  impedimenta  of  a  dragoman,  was  not  a  matter 
to  be  lightly  imdertaken.  Travellers  who,  like  Mr.  Tristram, 
have  of  late  years  visited  Jerash  and  Amman,  have 
almost  invariably  paid  large  sums  of  money  as  *  backsheesh  * 
to  the  Adwan  and  other  Bedouin  tribes  of  the  Jordan 

■ 

valley ;  while  those  who,  like  Mr.  Porter  and  Mr.  Cyril 
Graliam,  have  explored  the  wilds  of  Bashan  have  generally 
been  Arabic  scholars,  and  have  travelled  with  little  baggage. 
We  could  find  no  record  of  any  traveller  since  Lord  Lind- 
say, in  1887,  who  had  gone  through  to  Damascus  by  this 
route,  although  several  had  penetrated  eastward  from  the 
Jordan  valley  as  far  as  Bozrali. 

Our  dragoman,  greatly  to  his  credit,  at  once  entered 
into  and  heartily  furthered  our  plans,  although  he  warned 
us  of  a  faxit  we  already  knew,  that  an  Arab  escort  was 
both  an  expensive  and  unsatisfietctory  luxury.  An  alterna- 
tive, however,  suggested  itself.  During  the  past  year  (1867) 
the  Pasha  of  Damascus  had  made  an  expedition  against 
the  Trans-Jordanic  Arabs,  had  thrashed  them  soundly,  and 
taken  prisoner  one  -of  the  Adwan  Sheikhs,  who  was  now  in 
durance  at  Nablous.    The  Arab  power  was  in  consequence 


10  EGYPT  AND  PALESTINE. 

somewliat  broken,  and  the  re-establisliment  of  Turkisli 
garrisons  at  Es-Salt  and  Bozrah  kept  the  surronnding  dis- 
tricts in  more  than  the  nominal  subjection  they  had 
previously  shown  to  the  central  authority. 

Elias  recommended  us  to  have,  if  possible,  nothing  to 
do  with  the  Arabs,  but  to  ask  from  the  Pasha  a  sufficient 
escort  of  Turkish  cavalry  to  insure  our  safety.  Just  at 
the  right  moment  he  chanced  to  meet  in  the  bazaars  an 
old  acquaintance,  a  sergeant  of  Bashi-Bazouks,  Tniasim  by 
name.  The  pair  discussed  our  plans,  and  Tniasim  en- 
treated to  be  allowed  to  take  us  in  charge.  One  morning 
our  future  guardian  was  brought,  by  appointment,  to  be 
introduced  to  us,  and  first  impressions  were  most  favour- 
able. To  describe  his  personal  appearance  would  require 
the  language  of  an  Eastern  story-teller ;  I  can  only  cata- 
logue his  beauties  like  a  slave-merchant.  ETia.8im  stood  at 
least  six  feet  two  inches  in  height ;  he  had  fine  features, 
and  was  of  a  fair  but  sunburnt  complexion,  with  curly 
brown  hair,  and  long  tawny  moustaches,  which^curled  be- 
hind his  ears.  We  fell  in  love  with  him  at  first  sight, 
and  were  perfectly  ready  to  promise  that  we  would  ask 
the  Pasha  to  gprant  him  leave  to  accompany  us. 

An  opportunity  of  making  the  request  offered  before 
we  expected  it.  We  were  sitting  in  the  scdle-cb-mayigery 
discussing  our  plans,  when  we  suddenly  observed  a  com- 
motion in  the  street  below.  In  another  minute  the  master 
of  the  house  dashed  upstairs,  in  breathless  haste,  and  an- 
nounced '  His  Excellency  the  Pasha,'  who  had  come, 
attended  by  fifteen  soldiers  and  six  attendants,  to  return 
our  visit.  Unprepared  for  such  an  honour,  we  received 
him  as  well  as  we  could,  but  it  was  not  easy  to  get  the 
coffee  and  sweets  proper  for  the  occasion  on  the  spur  of 
the  moment.  Nothing  could  exceed  the  Pasha's  polite- 
ness; he  accorded  us  any  guard  we  might  choose,  and 


*VIVE  LA  MER  MORTEI'  11 

promised  us  letters  to  the  commanders  of  the  garrisons 
at  Es-Salt  and  Bozrah. 

We  now  definitely  concluded  our  arrangements,  and 
secured  the  escort  of  Khasim,  who  was  to  bring  with  him 
a  second  soldier :  these  two  formed  our  guard  to  Es-Salt, 
where  the  officer  in  command  would,  we  were  told,  give  us 
farther  protection,  if  necessary. 

Eor  the  last  day  or  two  of  our  stay  at  Jerusalem,  we 
were  the  objects  of  much  misplaced  pity  and  well-meant 
advice.  Certain  imdeniable  facts  were  thrust  down 
our  throats  at  every  public  meaL  We  were  reminded 
that  Lieutenant  Warren  was  at  that  moment  paying  the 
Adwan  for  permission  to  travel  on  the  east  side  of  the 
Jordan,  we  were  treated  to  all  the  details  of  the  bargain 
then  being  made,  at  the  rival  hotel,  between  Goblan,  the 
young  Sheikh  of  the  Adwans,  and  two  American  gentle- 
men, who  were  anxious  to  visit  Jerash,  and  all  the 
threats  which  the  former  had  uttered,  on  being  told  that 
some  Englishmen  meant  to  pass  through  his  territory 
without  paying  blackmail,  were  repeated  for  our  benefit.  • 

Despite  all  this,  we  managed  to  keep  up  our  spirits,  and 
even  to  find  a  companion  who  was  ready  to  share  our 
luck,  in  Mr.  Cross,  an  old  Oxford  acquaintance,  who  made 
a  most  welcome  addition  to  our  party.  On  Thursday, 
March  12th,  we  defiled,  an  imposing  train,  through  the 
narrow  streets  of  Jerusalem — Cross,  Williams,  and  the 
dragoman  armed  with  double-barrelled  guns.  Tucker  and  I 
with  revolvers,  and  the  two  Turkish  irregulars  bristling 
with  a  whole  armoury  of  guns,  swords,  and  pistols.  We 
rode  over  to  Bethlehem,  to  my  mind  one  of  the  most 
satisfactory  of  the  *  holy  places  '  of  Palestine,  despite  the 
crowds  of  pert  children,  who,  fearless  of  another  Herod, 
demand  *  backsheesh '  with  Egyptian  pertinacity.  As  we 
rode  on  over  the  bare  hills  to  the  Convent  of  Marsaba,  the 


12  '  EGTPT  AND  PALESTINE* 

beanty  of  the  first  view  of  the  Dead  Sea  so  roused 
Fraii9ois'  enthusiasm  that,  with  somewhat  Irish  bril- 
liancy, he  exclaimed,  *  Vive  la  M^r  Horte ! '  We  slept  in 
the  convent. 

Friday  was  a  gloriously  fine  but  very  hot  day.  No 
one  can  fail  to  be  struck  by  the  views  of  the  bright 
blue  lake  surrounded  by  red  and  yellow  rocks,  and 
the  wastes  of  sand,  every  now  and  then  relieved  by  strips 
of  verdure;  Some  of  the  party,  of  course,  bathed  in  the 
Dead  Sea,  and  we  lunched  at  the  ford  of  the  Jordan, 
which  had  as  little  the  appearance  of  a  ford  as  possible. 
A  turbid  stream  three  feet  deep  was  pouring  round  the 
tree,  under  the  shelter  of  which  travellers  generally  make 
their  midday  halt.  A  hot  ride,  across  a  plain  covered 
with  brushwood,  brought  us  to  the  modem  Jericho.  In 
the  course  of  the  evening  a  troop  of  villagers,  men  and 
women,  came  to  dance  before  us;  the  women  exhibited 
first,  then  the  men,  but  the  performances  were  very 
similar — a  perpetual  swinging  of  the  body  and  clapping 
of  hands,  accompanied  by  a  monotonous  chaunt  of  'Iwa 
backsheesh  0  Howadji ! '  The  people  of  Jericho  bear  a  very 
ill  name,  and  we  took  the  precaution  to  station  Fran9ois 
at  the  door  of  the  second  tent,  to  prevent  robbery.  While 
he  was  keeping  a  look-out  in  front,  some  rascal,  peering 
through  the  opening  at  the  back,  where  the  sides  of  the 
tent  join,  saw  Cross's  watch  lying  on  the'  bed  close  by, 
put  his  arm  through,  and  abstracted  it.  Fortunately,  the 
Sheikh  of  Jericho,  Mahmoud,  had  been  ordered  by  the 
Pasha  to  send  two  of  his  men  with  us  frx>m  Jerusalem,  as 
a  pledge' of  his  protection  during  our  journey  through  his 
territory.  The  Sheikh's  brothers  were'  now  in  the  village ; 
their  responsibility,  therefore,  was  clearly  fixed,  and  we 
sent  off  news  of  our  loss  next  morning  to  the  English 
Cionsul  and  the  Pasha,  by  the  dragoman  of  a  Scotch 


CAPTURE  OF  A  STANDARD-BEARER.  IS 

party  who  were  encamped  near  us  on  their  way  back  to 
Jerusalem.  In  justice  to  the  Turkish  authorities,  I  must 
narrate  the  result  of  our  letters.  So  effectual  a  pressure 
was  put  on  the  Sheikh,  that  he  was  compelled  to  disgorge 
his  prey,  and  on  our  arrival  (five  weeks  later)  at  Beyrout, 
we  found  the  watch  awaiting  us. 

Our  ride  on  Saturday  led  us  off  the  beaten  track  of 
eastern  travel.  We  passed  the  mounds  supposed  to  mark 
the  site  of  Herodian  Jericho,  which  a  body  of  Lieutenant 
Wairen's  workpeople  were  employed  in  excavating.  Their 
labour,  as  we  heard  afterwards,  was  attended  with  but 
trifling  results. 

Our  track  skirted  the  &ice  of  the  hills  on  the  west  side  of 
the  Jordan  valley — ^now  crossing  low  spurs,  now  passing 
through  flowery  dells.  After  traversing  a  wide  plain  we 
approached  the  base  of  a  bold  hill,  which  in  form  reminded 
me  of  Snowdon;  its  sides  were  clothed  in  verdure  of  the 
most  vivid  green.  By  the  roadside  were  seated  a  group  of 
twenty  Bedouins  armed  only  with  clubs.  To  our  intense 
surprise,  Khasim  dashed  in  amongst  them,  and  pounced 
on  one  ragged  old  fellow.  The  man  selected  endeavoured, 
in  vain,  to  kiss  his  captor's  hand  and  soften  his  heart ;  in  a 
minute  his  'kefiyeh '  was  plucked  off  his  head,  and  his  hands 
were  tied  with  it  behind  his  back.  TThaBiTn  then  galloped 
off  in  pursuit  of  the  rest  of  the  party,  who  had  scattered  in 
all  directions ;  he  soon  iietumed  with  a  second  prisoner, 
and  we  rode  on,  driving  the  two  men  before  us. 

We  were  naturally  anxious  for  an  explanation  of  the 
scene,  but  it  was  some  time  before  we  could  come  to  a 
clear  understanding  of  the  facts  of  the  case.  We  gathered 
at  last  the  following  particulars.  In  the  war  last  year  the 
Turks  took  away  their  arms  firom  some  of  the  Adwan,  and 
strictly  forbad  them  to  appear  on  the  west  bank  of  the 
Jordan.     The  party  we  had  come  upon  were  thus  on  for- 


i 


14  EGYPT  AND   PALESTINE. 

bidden  ground,  and  were  doubtless  on  the  look-out  for  some 
defenceless  donkey-rider  going  down  to  Jericho,  whom 
they  might  rob.  The  old  gentleman  first  seized  had  been 
the  standard-bearer  of  the  tribe  during  the  war,  and  was 
a  well-known  reprobate.  After  driving  our  prisoners  for 
several  miles,  as  a  warning  to  them  not  to  be  again  found 
on  the  road,  we,  reflecting  that  the  men  might  be  an 
awkward  encumbrance  on  the  other  side  of  the  river,  inter- 
ceded for  them  with  their  captor;  the  Bedouins  were 
liberated,  and,  having  sufficiently  demonstrated  their  grati- 
tude to  us  by  repeatedly  kissing  our  boots,  made  off  in  the 
direction  taken  by  their  companions. 

The  ford  of  the  Jordan  we  were  now  approaching  is  on 
the  direct  road  fix>m  Nablous  to  Es-Salt,  and  is  guarded  by 
a  few  Turkish  soldiers,  who  keep  in  repair  the  old  ferry- 
boat, which  has  been  stationed  here  to  maintain  the  com- 
munication of  the  outlying  garrison  at  Es-Salt  with  the 
rest  of  Palestine.  The  river  flows  in  a  deep  trench,  a 
quarter  to  half  a  mile  broad,  and  at  least  200  feet  below 
the  level  of  the  rest  of  the  valley.  At  the  foot  of  the  sharp 
descent,  on  a  knoll  overlooking  the  turbid  stream,  we 
found  the  tents  of  the  American  gentlemen,  who,  like  our- 
selves, had  made  up  their  minds  to  visit  the  east  side  of  the 
Jordan.  They  had  contracted  with  young  Goblan  to  pro- 
vide an  Arab  escort  for  thirty  napoleons — a  moderate  sum 
compared  with  those  paid  to  his  father  by  former  travellers. 
The  old  Sheikh  of  the  Adwan  had,  however,  failed  to 
appear,  according  to  the  contract,  to  ratify  his  son's 
bargain,  and  our  acquaintances  naturally  hesitated  to  cross 
the  river  vrithout  him. 

It  was  still  early  in  the  afternoon,  and  we  ordered  our 
^^ggtige  forward  to  cross  at  once,  while  we  spent  a 
pleasant  half-hour  in  the  tent  of  the  Americans.  They  were 
most  luxuriously  provided  for  by  their  dragoman,  a  young 


TH£  JORDAN  FERRY.  15 

and  inexperienced  man,  who  seemed  somewhat  terrified  at 
the  prospect  of  carrying  his  elaborate  hatterie  de  cuisine 
among  the  Arabs. 

The  transit  was,  as  usual,  a  long  business,  and  was  made 
really  troublesome  by  the  swollen  state  of  the  river,  which 
had  lately  overflowed  its  banks  and  cut  off  the  ferry-boat 
from  the  shore  by  creating  between  them  several  yards  of 
mire  and  water,  across  which  we  and  all  our  luggage  were 
carried  on  men's  backs.  .  Fran9ois  was  a  heavy  load ;  his 
porter  was  not  up  to  the  work,  and  the  unlucky  burden  was 
deposited  in  the  thickest  of  the  mire.  He  however,  as 
usual,  was  not  at  a  loss  for  consolation,  and  prided 
himself  on  being  the  only  one  of  the  paxty  who  had 
fulfilled  the  duties  of  a  pilgrim  by  immersion  in  the 
Jordan. 


16  BASHAN. 


CHAPTER   n. 

BASHAN. 

The  English  Soldier — ^A  Mountain  Hide— Es-Salt — ^Lost  on  the  Hills — 
The  Jabbok — Camp  of  the  Beni-Hassan — Suppressing  a  Sheikh — ^The 
Oak  ForesU  of  Gilead— The  Tablelands— An  Uxorious  Sheikh— Derat— 
The  Boman  Boad — ^The  Bobbers  repulsed — Ghusam — Bozrah— Honoured 
Guests — ^A  Bamble  in  the  Buins — Kureiyeh — ^Patriarchal  Hospitality — 
Hebran — ^A  Stone  House — ^Eufr — ^Asoentof  M-Kleib— Suweideh — ^Kunawat 
— ^Noble  Buins — Shuhba — Hades  on  Earth — ^Visiting  Eztraordinazy — 
The  Lejah— A  Lara  Flood — Ahireh — Khubab — A  Bush  to  Arms — The 
Stolen  Mule — ^A  Village  in  Pursuit — Mismiyeh — The  *  Giant  Cities '  are 
Boman  Towns — ^The  Wrath  of  the  Beys — ^A  Friendly  Sulut — ^Eesweh — 
Entrance  to  Damascus. 

OuE  tents  were  pitched,  close  to  the  river,  in  a  pictur- 
esque situation  on  the  eastern  bank.  In  this  our  first 
camp  beyond  Jordan,  we  felt,  if  not  all  the  emotions  so 
eloquently  described  by  the  author  of  *  Eothen  *  on  finding 
himself  in  the  Arab  territory,  at  least  a  pleasant  sensa- 
tion of  having  escaped  from  the  everyday  track  of  travel, 
and  of  being  on  the  edge  of  a  fresh  and  unspoilt  country. 

During  the  evening  our  dragoman  was  exposed  to  the 
tender  solicitations  of  Goblan  junior  (or  *  young  Gobbler,' 
as  Williams  preferred  to  call  him),  who  had,  when  at  Jeru- 
salem, declared  that  we  might  cross  the  Jordan,  but  that 
our  coming  back  again  was  a  different  matter.  He  was 
now  perfectly  civil,  but  represented  that  we  were  robbing 
his  tribe  of  their  prescriptive  dues,  by  refusing  the  escort 
they  would  be  happy  to  furnish,  and  that  any  harm  which 
might  happen  to  us  would  be  on  our  own  heads.     Our 


AN   ENGUSH  SOLDIER.  17 

minds,  however,  were  already  made  up,  and  we  turned  a 
deaf  ear  to  his  arguments. 

March  loth. — Early  in  the  morning  Sergeant  Birtles, 
a  bronzed  English  soldier,  the  aide-de-camp  of  Lieutenant 
Warren,  rode  into  our  camp,  having  travelled  all  night  from 
Nimrin,  where  the  exploring  party  was  detained  by  the 
illness  of  one  of  their  number.  Sergeant  Birtles  had 
ridden  twice  within  the  week  to  Jerusalem  and  back,  to 
procure  a  nurse  and  necessaries  for  the  invalid.  He  was 
entirely  alone,  and  seemed  thoroughly  to  despise  the 
dangers  of  the  road,  as  he  had  proved  on  the  first  occa- 
sion, by  returning  with  a  sister  of  mercy  under  his  sole 
charge. 

The  Sergeant  had  been  up  to  Jerash  with  Lieutenant 
Warren  some  months  previously,  and  gave  us  ficiendly 
warning  against  the  Sheikh  of  Suf  and  his  men,  who 
while  with  them  had  begun  to  show  off  their  pranks,  and 
had  required  to  be  checked  by  a  display  of  revolvers. 
These  were  the  same  villains  who  plundered  Mr.  Tristram 
in  1864.  After  half-an-hour's  talk  with  us.  Sergeant  Birtles 
crossed  the  river,  hoping  by  hard  riding  to  reach  Jeru- 
salem the  same  night.  We  also  mounted  our  horses,  but 
our  train  was  scarcely  in  motion,  when  two  of  the  mules 
stuck  in  a  swamp,  and  had  to  be  unloaded.  A  well- 
marked  track  led  j6^m  the  ferry  to  the  foot  of  the  bluffs 
which  bound  the  river-bed.  Tucker  and  Williams  galloped 
on  ahead,  a  proceeding  which  called  forth  a  remonstrance 
from  Khasim,  who  insisted  that,  on  this  side  of  the  river, 
it  was  unsafe  to  divide  the  party.  A  short  climb  through 
a  curious,  apparently  waterwom,  ravine  brought  us  on  to  the 
plain,  where  we  met  two  picturesque  wayfarers — a  hand- 
somely-dressed Arab  with  a  servant  in  attendance,  both 
bearing  long  spears.  They  returned  our  greeting  with 
a  contemptuous  scowL    A.  little  further  on^  we  received 

0 


18  BASHAN, 

an  enthusiastic  *  bonjour '  from  a  Turkish  lientenant  on 
leave  from  Es-Salt,  who  was  not  a  little  pleased  to  display 
his  slight  knowledge  of  French. 

Our  track  turned  southward,  along  the  opposite  side  of 
the  valley  to  that  which  we  had  ridden  up  the  previous 
day.  The  ground  was  bright  with  scarlet  anemones, 
which  tinted  the  hillsides  a  mile  off;  other  wild  flowers 
grew  in  almost  equal  profusion,  although  they  did  not 
produce  such  a  striking  distant  effect. 

At  last  we  turned  sharply  to  the  left,  and  began  to 
climb,  by  steep  zigzags,  the  bare  hillside.  At  every 
comer  of  the  road  we  extended  our  horizon ;  the  higher 
ranges  of  Central  Palestine  rose  behind  the  hills  which 
dominate  the  Jordan  valley^  and  the  Dead  Sea  came  into 
view  in  the  south.  After  a  considerable  ascent  the  path 
entered  a  glen,  and  wound  round  the  hillsides  at  some 
height  above  the  dry  torrent-bed.  During  our  midday 
halt  our  sportsmen  went  off  in  pursuit  of  partridges,  but 
came  back  empty-handed.  On  reaching  the  head  of  the 
glen,  we  faced  more  zigzags,  up  which  the  laden  mules 
climbed  laboriously ;  they  led  us  to  a  high  brow,  pro- 
jecting from  the  main  range,  which  commanded  the 
finest  view  we  had  seen  in  Syria.  We  overlooked  the 
whole  Jordan  valley  from  the  Lake  of  Tiberias  to  the 
Dead  Sea.  A  comer  only  of  the  former  was  visible,  but 
we  could  see  the  whole  basin  of  the  great  salt  lake,  and 
trace  out  the  long  peninsula  of  El-Lisan,  with  the  far- 
off  southern  shore  beyond  it,  through  the  heat-haze  which 
always  rests  on  these  strange  waters. 

The  hillsides  became  more  broken,  and  the  dwarf  oaks 
which  clothed  them  added  to  their  picturesque  features. 
Circling  round  to  the  south  of  the  highest  portion  of 
Jebel-Jilad,  we  crossed  two  of  its  spurs  with  scarcely 
any  fell  in  |ihe  road  between  them,     Erom  the  second 


ES-SALT.  19 

ridge  a  short  but  sharp  descent  led  to  Es-Salt^  the  ancient 
Bamoth-Gilead.  The  town  is  built  in  a  nook  among  the 
hills,  on  steep  sun-baked  slopes,  uglily  picturesque,  if 
one  may  use  such  a  phrase.  We  found  a  pleasant  camp- 
ing-ground on  a  grassy  ledge  of  the  slope  opposite  the 
town. 

Our  starting-point  in  the  morning  had  been  more  than 
1,000  feet  below  the  sea-level,  and  the  ridge  we  had 
crossed  is  8,676  feet  above  it,  so  that  we  had  made  an 
actual  ascent  of  4,676  feet  from  the  Jordan  valley  to  the 
pass. 

After  a  short  rest  we  walked  over  to  the  opposite  hill,  to 
call  on  the  Bimbashi  (Colonel)  in  command  of  the  garri- 
son, who  received  us  in  his  tent  with  great  politeness. 
He  said  there  was  no  difficulty  in  our  going  to  Bozrah ; 
that  if  we  liked  we  might  have  a  company  of  horse, 
but  that  he  should  be  quite  content  to  send  his  own 
wives  under  the  escort  of  the  two  men  we  had  with  us. 
He  pressed  us  to  stay  at  Es-Salt  a  day  or  two,  which  we 
declined,  and  withdrew  after  a  somewhat  lengthy  inter- 
view. All  our  conversation  had  to  pass  through  two 
interpreters,  being  translated  by  Elias  into  Arabic,  and 
into  Turkish  by  a  servant  of  the  commander.  The  latter 
process  was  doubtless  unnecessary ;  but  the  Bimbashi's 
dignity  would  have  suffered,  in  Oriental  estimation,  had 
he  not  had  his  own  interpreter. 

On  our  return  we  found  the  camp  in  commotion*  Cross 
was  the  only  member  of  the  party  who  strove  to  keep  up 
an  irreproachable  exterior  in  the  wilderness ;  he  generally 
rode  in  a  somewhat  sporting  costume,  crowned  by  a  white 
turban,  the  construction  of  which  cost  Elias  much  time 
and  anxiety  every  morning.  On  the  present  occasion 
Cross  had  entrusted  his  greatcoat  to  Elias  in  the  morning ; 
the  latter  ignorant  or  careless  of  the  respect  due  to  a 

c  2 


20  .  BASHAN. 

garment  better  fitted  for  Pall  Mall  than  Palestine,  had 
stufifed  it  into  a  saddlebag,  whence  it  emerged,  naturally 
sadly  creased.  We  found  its  o>vner  severely  reprimanding 
the  carelessness  of  the  dragoman ;  but  the  effect  of  the 
rebuke  was  rather  lessened  by  the  untimely  mirth  excited 
in  Williams  by  the  forlorn  appearance  of  the  once  shapely 
^oat. 

In  the  course  of  the  evening  the  Bimbashi  sent  us  a 
3heep. 

March  16th. — ^We  broke  up  camp  early,  and  rode  down 
the  glen  under  the  town,  through  a  ruinous  street,  passing 
tombs  and  some  broken  columns  below  the  modem 
JLouses ;  the  bottom  of  the  glen  was  well  irrigated  and 
cultivated.  We  soon  turned  up  a  lateral  ravine,  opening 
on  the  left,  and  followed  it  nearly  to  its  head,  through 
scenery  which  was  quite  savage  for  this  part  of  Syria.  Big 
boulders  lay  about,  and  a  stream  foamed  and  brawled 
amongst  them.  A  steep  climb  led  us  up  to  a  broad  grassy 
tableland,  forming  the  southern  watershed  of  the  Jabbok 
valley.  We  came  occasionally  on  circular  ponds,  exactly 
like  those  to  be  seen  on  the  South  Downs,  of  which  the 
scenery  constantly  reminded  us.  The  road  was  continu- 
ally up  or  down-hill,  till  we  left  on  the  right  the  track  to 
Amman,  and  sweeping  round  a  brow  to  the  north,  gradu- 
ally descended  into  abroad  oval  basin,  environed  by  hills — 
the  greater  part  sown  with  com,  although  no  village  or 
inhabitants  were  visible.  The  drainage  of  this  curious 
hollow,  which  is  called  by  the  natives  El-Bukaah,  or  the 
Little  Plain,  finds  its  way  through  a  narrow  opening  to 
the  Jabbok. 

Having  passed  a  ruin,  apparently  that  of  a  small  build- 
ing, surrounded  by  a  courtyard,  we  traversed  the  whole 
length  of  the  basin  (about  eight  miles),  and  mounted  the 
ridge  dividing  it  from  the  Jabbok  valley.     The  country 


LOST   ON  THE   HILLS.  21 

now  became  more  wooded,  the  principal  tree  being  the 
dwarf  evergreen  oak.  We  sat  down  to  Innch,  on  a  spot 
commanding  a  lovely  view  northwards,  over  a  broken  and 
richly-wooded  landscape,  in  the  centre  of  which,  in  an 
upland  plain,  on  the  i^irther  side  of  the  Jabbok  valley, 
we  could  distinguish  the  golden-coloured  columns  of  the 
great  temple  at  Jerash.  In  the  foreground  were  some 
picturesque  peasants,  natives  of  Es-Salt,  engaged  in 
ploughing  the  ground  with  the  most  primitive  of  agri-* 
cultural  instruments*  We  rode  on  in  a  north-easterly 
direction,  across  an  undulating  country ;  from  the  position 
of  the  Jabbok  valley,  I  fancied  we  must  be  going  too  far 
east;  Elias,  however,  turned  a  deaf  ear  to  my  remon-' 
strances,  and  went  off  in  fatile  pursuit  of  some  partridges. 
The  baggage  Inuled  lingered,  and  for  some  time  our 
cavalcade  was  separated  into  three  detachments,  each  of 
which  had,  more  or  less,  lost  its  way«  A  good  deal  of  time, 
and  much  temper,  was  expended  before  we  rejoined  our 
scattered  forces,  but  luckily  no  foes  were  at  hand  to  profit 
by  such  bad  generalship.  The  glen  through  which  the 
Jabbok  flows  is  narrow,  steep-sided,  and  not  accessible  at 
all  points  for  laden  beasts^  As  we  descended  the  slopes, 
we  passed  many  prostrate  columns  and  blocks  of  marble, 
the  relics  of  some  town  unknown  to  fame. 

Before  making  the  final  descent  to  the  stream,  Elias  and 
I  trotted  off  to  reconnoitre  the  country,  and  look  for  a 
good  camping-ground«  The  day  was  already  £Eir  spent, 
and  we  were  not  best  pleased  to  discover  that  the  grassy 
plain  we  had  previously  fiixed  upon  as  our  halting-place,  at 
the  junction  with  the  Jabbok  of  a  northern  affluent,  was 
occupied  by  an  Arab  encampment.  We  determined, 
notwithstanding^  to  put  a  bold  face  on  the  situation, 
and  adhere  to  our  original  plan*  We  were  too  near  to 
^scape  the  notice  of  the  Arabs,  and  the  best  course  was 


22  BASH  AN. 

to  show  that  we  were  not  afraid  of  them.  We  crossed  the 
Jabbok,  a  clear  trout-stream  hidden  in  a  dense  thicket  of 
oleanders,  and  rode  down  its  right  bank  half  a  mile  to  the 
plain.  Halting  on  its  verge,  we  began  to  unload  our 
mules,  while  Khasim  went  oflF  on  an  embassy  to  the 
Sheikh's  tent,  conspicuous  amongst  the  rest  by  its  size. 
The  fear  of  European  weapons,  and  the  unknown  force  of 
government  at  our  back,  joined  to  the  Oriental  dislike  to 
attax3k  strangers  who  have  assumed  the  character  of 
guests,  overcame  even  the  covetousness  of  a  needy  horde 
of  Bedouins,  and  a  deputation  soon  returned  Khasim's 
visit,  bringing  as  presents  some  milk  and  a  lamb.  For 
the  latter  it  was  afterwards  suggested  payment  would  be 
acceptable. 

Our  hosts  turned  out  to  be  of  the  Beni-Hassan  tribe — 
one  formerly  of  great  power,  but  now  down  in  the  world. 
Their  encampment  consisted  of  thirty-five  long  black 
tents,  each  holding  about  ten  men,  besides  women  and 
children.  It  was  already  evening,  and  the  flocks  were 
being  gathered  in;  tall  camels  strolled  listlessly  about, 
cows  placidly  awaited  their  milking-time,  sheep  and  goats 
hustled  one  another  down  the  slopes,  wiry  little  horses 
grazed,  or  were  picketed,  near  the  tents,  and  an  odd 
donkey  or  two  brayed  a  fussy  welcome  to  his  brothers  in 
our  train,  who  were  not  slow  to  return  the  greeting. 

While  our  dinner  was  preparing,  we  were  surrounded  by 
the  most  iIl-&voured  crowd  I  ever  saw.  The  viUanous 
expression  of  coxmtenance  common  to  almost  all  the  men 
reminded  me  of  the  Sepoy  faces,  as  they  were  drawn  in 
the  illustrated  papers,  at  the  time  of  the  Indian  Mutiny. 
The  Bedouin  dress,  the  long  burnous,  and  kefiyeh  or  scarf 
round  the  head,  though  picturesque,  did  not  lessen  the 
savage  aspect  of  the  assemblage.  All  our  small  belong- 
ings were  objects  of  perpetual  wonder — ^in  particular. 


CAMP   OP   THE   BEXI-HASSAX.  -23 

WiUiams's  carved  pipe  and  Cross's  kid  gloves.  Never 
before  had  the  Beni-Hassan  seen  a  man  with  such  a 
peculiar  skin,  or  one  so  readily  put  on  and  off.  The 
revolvers,  which  appeared  to  go  off  for  ever,  came  in  for 
their  due  share  of  admiration  and  awe.  We  had  some 
difficulty  in  keeping  the  tents  dear,  but  it  was  necessary 
to  draw  a  line  somewhere,  and  we  sternly  refosed  admission 
to  any  but  the  two  chiefs.  The  sheep  was  cooked  entire, 
and  our  muleteers,  with  a  select  circle  of  Beni-Hassan^ 
kept  up  the  feast  round  the  camp-fire  till  a  late  hour. 

March  17th. — ^The  night  passed  peaceably.  At  break- 
fast a  stork  was  brought  in  which  Williams  had  wounded 
by  a  long  shot  the  night  before.  The  poor  bird's  wing 
was  broken,  and  he  hopped  about,  pursued  by  the  Arab 
urchins,  in  a  way  that  was  both  ludicrous  and  painful. 
Elias  had  been  sharply  reprimanded  for  his  wanderings 
on  the  previous  day,  and  warned  that  this  kind  of  thing 
must  not  be  repeated;  he  now  came  with  pride  to  tell 
us  that  he  had  arranged  with  one  of  the  Beni-Hassan  to 
conduct  us  to  Jerash.  He  took  great  credit  for  his  choice, 
having,  as  he  said,  secured  the  greatest  robber  in  the 
tribe.  There  was  wisdom  in  this  odd  recommendation, 
as  the  man  who  had  stolen  most  sheep  was,  by  implica- 
tion, he  who  best  knew  the  roads  and  bye-paths  to  the 
neighbouring  villages. 

Our  guide  led  us  up  a  dell  separated  by  an  intervening 
ridge  from  the  stream  which  entered  the  Jabbok  close  to 
our  encampment.  The  country  was  green  and  well- 
wooded,  and  the  soil  was  free  from  the  detestable  crop 
of  stones  which  Palestine  everywhere  produces.  As  we 
climbed  out  of  the  deep  valley,  the  ridges  of  Jebel  Ajlun 
appeared  behind  the  round  top  of  a  lower  hill,  Neby  Hut, 
crowned  by  the  white  tomb  of  some  Moslem  saint.  An- 
other deep  and  rugged  hollow,  the  edge  of  which  we 


24  BASHAN. 

skirted,  lay  beneath  us  on  tlie  left.     The  landscape  re- 
minded me  much  of  some  of  the  finer  parts  of  South 
Wales,  but  its  beauty  was  marred  by  the  low  clouds  which 
scudded  across  the  sky,  and  promised  us  a  wetting  before 
long.      Near  a   beautiful  fountain,   encased   in    broken 
masonry,  and  ornamented  with  rich  evergreen  shrubs,  the 
source  of  the  before-mentioned  stream,  we  passed  some 
ruins  too  dilapidated  for  our  unskilled  eyes  to  make  any-- 
thing  out  of  them.     They  seemed,  for  the  most  part,  to  be 
the  remains  of  small  houses  built  against  the  rocks,  with 
caves  at  their  back,  which  had  served  for  cellars  or  store- 
houses.   We  rode  up  a  succession  of  picturesque  glades^ 
opening  one  out  of  another,   till  we  reached  a  ridge 
north-east  of  the  tomb-crowned  hill,  and  suddenly  saw 
beneath  us,  close  at  hand,  the  columns  of  Jerash. 
.    The  scene  was  very  striking :  before  us  were  the  remains 
of  a  noble  Homan  town^  its  ruined  walls  four  miled  in 
circumference,  not  only  traceable^  but  in  places   almost 
intact ;  its  public  buildings  still  so  perfect  that,  looking 
round,  one  could  say,  *  Here  is  the  theatre,  there  the  circus^ 
there  the  baths,  there  the  colonnaded  High  Street,  there 
the  later  Christian  cathedral  * ;  for  it  was  only  after  three 
hundred  years  of  Christian  civilisation  that  the  Arabs 
laid  waste  the  city.     The  fertile  land  around  is  still  as 
capable  as  ever  of  cultivation;  but. a  long  period  of  in-t 
security  to  life  and  property  has  be^n  the  ruin  of  Syria, 
and  now  not  a  single  inhabitant  is  to  be  foimd  within  the: 
circuit  of  the  ancient  Gerasa. 

We  rode  through  the  walls  near  their  south-eastern 
angle,  and,  passing  the  massive  ruin  of  a  bath,  crossed  the 
oleander-fringed  brook  which  runs  through  the  centre  of 
the  deserted  city.  A  very  convenient  site  was  selected  for 
our  camp,  in  the  vaulted  chamber  of  a  second  bath,  where 
the  tents  were  sheltered  from  the  thick  drizzle  which  had 


JERASH.  25 

begun  to  fall.  After  an  early  lunch  we  set  out  to  explore 
the  ruins,  which  are  fully  described  by  Mr,  Tristram,  and 
in  Murray's  ^  Handbook  to  Syria.'  We  went  first  to  the 
magnificent  Temple  of  the  Sun,  the  remaining  columns  of 
which,  standing  on  elevated  ground  facing  the  east,  are 
conspicuous  in  all  distant  views  of  the  city.  Near  them, 
in  the  side  of  the  hill,  is  the  largest  theatare.  Beturning 
to  the  great  street,  we  stopped  to  admire  the  exquisite 
carving  of  a  richly-decorated  gateway,  and  then  proceeded 
to  the  '  Forum,'  an  oval  space  surrounded  with  columns* 
On  the  brow  above  it,  near  the  southern  gate  of  the  city, 
stand  another  temple  and  theatre.  The  latter  is  wonder- 
fully little  injured  by  time ;  the  stage  is  ahnost  perfect, 
and  very  tastefully  decorated.  When  will  some  photo-* 
grapher  carry  his  camera  across  the  Jordan,  and  reap 
the  rich^  and  as  yet  almost  untouched,  field  which 
awaits  him  amidst  the  ruins  of  Amm&n,  Jerash,  and 
the  Hauran? 

Outside  the  town,  on  the  top  of  the  ascent  from  the 
Jabbok  vaUey,  stands  a  fine  though  florid  triumphal  arch, 
between  which  and  the  city  is  a  circus.  We  went  down 
to  the  banks  of  the  brook  in  search  of  game,  and  then, 
retracing  our  steps,  found  a  pretiy  waterfall,  and  the 
remains  of  an  ancient  mill.  Having  re-entered  the  town, 
we  crossed  to.  the  eastern  quarter  by  a  fine  bridge  of  three 
arches,  and  explored  its  comparatively  imimportant  ruins. 

In  the  course  of  the  evening  we  had  a  visitor.  We 
were  engaged  in  a  rubber  of  whist,  when  Elias  came  in 
and  announced  that  the  Sheikh  of  a  neighbouring  village 
requested  the  honour  of  an  interview.  We  enquired  his 
name,  and  simultaneously  burst  out  laughing  when  told  it 
was  the  Sheikh  of  Suf,  of  whose  iniquities  we  had  been 
reading  Mr.  Tristram's  account  not  ten  minutes  before. 
We  declined  to  see  him,  but  agreed  to  look  over  his  testis 


•i6  BASHAX. 

monials.  They  extend  over  thirty  years,  and  are  probably 
unique.  One  Englishman  writes  thus  : — *  On  no  account 
have  anything  to  do  with  the  bearer  of  this ;  he  is  a 
thorough  villain  and  awful  liar.*  The  other  writers  are 
more  guarded  in  their  language,  but  they  all  give,  in  effect, 
the  same  advice.  After  amusing  ourselves  by  a  thorough 
inspection  of  the  documents,  we  returned  them  with  a 
message,  '  that  the  Sheikh  of  Suf 's  character  was  already 
too  well  known  among  Englishmen  to  require  to  be  sup- 
ported by  testimonials ;  that  for  ourselves  we  were  travel- 
ling under  the  protection  of  the  Government,  as  he  could 
see  by  our  being  accompanied  by  a  Bashi-Bazouk ;  and 
that  if  he  had  a  commission  from  the  Pasha  to  escort  us, 
it  was  well — otherwise  we  must  decline  his  services.'  On 
the  receipt  of  this  message  the  Sheikh  grew  angry  and 
violent,  and  attempted  to  force  an  entrance  through  the 
archway  of  the  baths  to  our  tent.  This  was  blocked,  except 
in  one  place,  by  stones,  and  Eliasim,  who  had  stationed 
himself  in  the  gap,  put  a  stop  to  the  Sheikh's  proceedings 
by  seizing  him  by  the  beard,  and  waggUng  his  head  with 
one  hand  while  he  boxed  his  ears  with  the  other.  After 
this,  Yusuf  and  his  followers  rode  off,  not  unnaturally  in 
a  huff;  while  Elias  shouted  [after  him,  that  as  he  had 
chosen  to  come  over,  we  should  hold  him  personally  re- 
sponsible if  anything  was  stolen  in  the  night. 

To  avoid  any  such  misfortune,  the  mules  and  horses 
were  picketed  in  a  ruined  chamber  close  by.  We  could 
not  help  speculating  on  the  chance  of  old  Yusuf  seeking 
revenge,  and  congratulated  ourselves  on  the  strength  of 
our  position,  which  was  protected  on  all  sides  by  broken 
masses  of  wall.  The  night  passed  quietly,  except  for  an 
alarm  caused  by  my  jumping  out  of  bed  with  the  idea  that  I 
had  been  hit  over  the  head.  When  a  light  was  procured, 
and  it  was  discovered  that  one  of  the  wooden  poles,  used 


JEBEL   KAFKAFKA.  27 

to  stiffen  the  sides  of  the  tent,  had  suddenly  flapped  in- 
wards and  fallen  across  mj  face,  I  was  roundly  abused  by 
my  companions  for  so  needlessly  disturbing  their  slumbers. 

March  18^A. — To  our  great  delight  the  morning  was 
fine,  for  we  dreaded  a  repetition  of  the  weather  from 
which  we  had  suffered  on  first  landing  at  Beyrout.  We 
had  wished  to  strike  across  as  directly  as  possible  from 
Jerash  to  Bozrah,  passing  through  XTm-el-Jemal,  where 
there  axe  extensive  ruine,  which  were  visited  bj  Mr.  Cyril 
Graham.  Our  Beni-Hassan  guide,  however,  seemed  un- 
acquainted with  this  road,  and  threw  obstacles  in  the 
way  of  its  adoption,  declaring  it  to  be  *  desert,'  and 
infested  at  the  present  moment  by  Beni-Sakhr.  We 
a^eed,  finally,  to  take  a  more  northerly  but  somewhat 
circuitous  route,  by  Er-Remtheh  and  Derat. 
.  We  were  on  the  point  of  starting,  when  four  horsemen 
from  Suf  rode  up;  the  Sheikh  was  not  amongst  them. 
The  newcomers  told  Elias  they  were  going  to  act  as  our 
escort;  he,  by  our  instructions,  replied,  that  if  they  came 
with  us  at  all,  they  would  come  as  far  as  Damascus,  and 
there  be  handed  over  to  the  tender  mercies  of  the  Pasha. 
This  prospect  was  too  much  for  them,  and  they  soon  rode 
off,  to  be  seen  no  more.  We  had  been  careful  to  leave 
the  men  of  Suf  to  suppose  that  we  should  follow  the  route 
taken  by  Mr.  Tristram  to  the  Lake  of  Tiberias ;  and  if  the 
Sheikh  and  his  friends  were  prepared  to  do  ns  any 
mischief,  they  probably  lay  in  wait  on  that  road.  We  set 
out  in  the  opposite  direction,  our  course  being  at  first 
nearly  due  east.  From  the  slopes  behind  Jerash  we  had 
a  most  beautiful  view  of  its  columns.  We  noticed  the 
ruins  of  a  small  temple  situated  a  mile  higher  up  the 
valley,  and  passed  several  fine  sarcophagi,  lying  over- 
turned and  empty  amongst  the  trees. 

For  some  distance  we  rode  through  open  glades,  whera. 


28  BASHAN4      • 

the  Komart  road  was  constantly  visible,  running  parallel 
to  the  more  erratic  tracks  of  modem  travellers.    When 
we  began  to  ascend  the   side  of  Jebel  Kafkafka,  the 
scenery  became  most  picturesque ;  grey  crags  jutted  out 
from  the  hillside,  the  forest  trees  grew  larger,  and  the 
foliage,  although  evergreen  oaks  and  firs  predominated, 
was  more  varied-     The  narrow  glade  by  which  we  climbed 
the    hill    wound    every    moment    between    rocks,    and 
branches  of  trees  overarched    and   shut    in    the  vista. 
Our  long  cavalcade  lent  life  to  the  scene,  which  was  a 
complete  realisation  of  one  of  Salvator  Bosa's  pictures.    It 
was  impossible  not  to  remark  what  an  admirable  place 
this  would  have.been  for  an  ambuscade,  if  the  men  of  Suf 
had  had  the  pluck  to  waylay  us ;  but  beyond  a  solitary  shep- 
herd and  his  flock^  we  saw  no  living  creatures  except  eagles 
and  partridges.     The  sportsmen  of  the  party  knocked 
over  several  of  the  latter.     In  the  wood  the  canteen  m\ile, 
who  was  subject  to  fits  of  obstinacy,  charged  a  tree  and 
upset  hi^  load*      Five  minutes  afber  this  incident  we 
reached  the  top  of  the  pass,  the  height  of  which  must  be 
considerable,  as  we  overlooked  Jebel  Osha  and  the  other 
hills  round  Es-Salt»     The  view  in  this  direction  was  fine ; 
the  depths  of  the  Jordan  valley  were  hidden,  but  we 
easily  recognised  the  Mils  round  Nablous  and  Jerusalem. 
In  the  east^  lower  wooded  ranges  shut  out  aU  distant 
view.     Grass  rides,  at  right-angles  to  the  track  we  were 
following,,  branched  off  constantly  through  openings  in 
the  forest ;  following  one  of  them,  we  descended  intq  the 
Wady  Warran,  a  long  and  tortuous  valley,  the  sides  of 
which  are  clothed   with  park-like  timber,   in  some  in- 
stances of  very  large  size.    The  landscape  was  entirely 
unlike  ordinary  Syrian  scenery,  and  we  could  constantly 
have  fancied  ourselves  in  the  wilder  part  of  an  English 
park,  but  for  the  absence  of  running  water  in  the  bed .  of 


THE   HA  J   ROAD.  29 

the  winter  torrent,  which,  even  at  this  early  season,  con- 
tained only  occasional  pools.  As  we  advanced,  the  hills 
become  lower  and  less  wooded,  until  we  at  last  emerged 
upon  a  vast  undulating  plain,  the  nearer  part  green  grass- 
land, the  more  distant,  rich  brown  loam,  recently  ploughed. 
The  afternoon  was  hot  and  hazy,  and  from  time  to  time 
fine  mirage  effects  were  produced  by  the  state  of  the 
atmosphere.  Er-Bemtheh,  the  only  village  in  sight,  was 
a  long  way  off,  but  was  conspicuous  from  its  position  on 
a  spur  projecting  from  the  low  range  of  Ez-Zumleh  which 
bounded  the  north-eastern  horizon*  On  entering  the  plain, 
our  Beni-Hassan  guide  requested  to  be  allowed  to  return ; 
he  had  committed  some  robberies  lately  in  the  district  we 
'were  entering,  and  was  afruid  to  be  caught  there.  We 
gave  him  eleven  francs  for  his  services,  and  let  him  go. 

Soon  after  he  lefb,  a  long  train  of  camels  met  us,  laden 
with  black  basalt  millstones,  which  seem  to  be  the  princi- 
pal manufacture  and,  except  corn,  the  only  export  of  the 
Hauran. 

Afber  leaving  behind  Jebel  Kafkafka,  the  country  was 
-quite  bare.  With  our  goal  ftill  in  sight,  we  pushed  on  ra- 
pidly, and  brought  a  long  but  fast  day's  ride  to  a  conclusion 
in  capital  time.  Mr.  Porter  says  that  the  dwellers  on  the 
Haj  road  (the  route  of  the  yearly  caiuvan  fr^m  Damascus 
to  Mecca)  are  remarkable  for  their  fanatical  hostility  to 
Europeans ;  we  felt,  therefore,  some  doubts  as  to  what  the 
character  of  our  reception  would  be.  A  meadow  north 
of  the  village,  and  near  the  pond  which  supplied  the  only 
water  in  the  neighbourhood,*  was  selected  for  our  camping 
ground.  After  our  tents  were  pitched,  two  of  the  party, 
finding  that  the  people  appeared  a  remarkably  mild  and 

*  Eastern  trayellers,  who  object  to  swallowing  as  much  mud  and  insect  life 
as  water,  should  provide  themselres  before  leaving  England  with  portable 
filters. 


30  BASHAN, 

inoffensive  thoagh  inquisitive  race,  walked  off  to  explore 
the  village.  It  was  of  the  nsnal  ruinous  character,  and 
we  found  nothing  of  any  interest,  except  the  base  of  a 
black  basalt  column.  At  a  distance  of  about  five  miles  to 
the  north-west,  the  ruins  of  a  large  village  were  con- 
spicuous on  the  plain.  In  the  evening  the  Sheikh  of  the 
place,  a  good-looking  merry  old  gentleman,  visited  us  in 
our  tent.  Strange  to  say,  he  reftised  a  pipe,  on  the  ground 
that  his  three  wives  would  not  let  him  smoke.  With  an 
absence  of  the  usual  Oriental  reserve,  he  entered  into  some 
amusing  details  of  his  domestic  arrangements.  His  wive^ 
had  each  of  them,  he  said,  cost  him  35,000  piastres ;  his 
last  acquisition  was  the  dearest  of  the  three,  and  he  wais 
contemplating  adding  a  fourth  (the  full  number  allowed  to 
orthodox  Mussulmen),  still  dearer.  All  these  ^  dear  things,' 
together,  appeared  to  be  somewhat  too  much  for  the  old 
gentleman,  and  he  seemed  relieved  to  escape  from  home 
and  chat  with  us,  even  though  his  fears  of  being  accused 
of  smelling  of  smoke  prevented  the  enjoyment  of  a  pipe. 

We  asked  when  he  had  last  seen  European  travellers. 
The  Sheikh  replied  that,  three  years  before,  a  party,  in- 
cluding some  ladies,  had  passed,  on  the  way  to  Damascus, 
by  the  direct  road  through  Mezarib,  the  residence  of  the 
Turkish  governor  of  the  Uauran. 

During  the  night  our  second  Turkish  soldier,  who  had 
been  left  behind  at  Es-Salt,  and  had  ridden  on  to  ATnTna.Ti 
instead  of  Jerash,  came  into  camp.  He  was  horribly  afraid 
of  our  anger  at  his  involuntary  desertion,  and  was  in  an 
abject  state  of  contrition. 

Ma/rch  19th. — Before  we  started,  a  caravan  of  400  camels, 
laden  with  com  for  shipment  at  Acre,  passed  by.  It 
struck  us  as  curious,  that  a  land  described,  by  the  latest 
authority,  as  ^utterly  desolate,'  should  be  able  not  only 
to  feed  its  inhabitants,  but  to  send  away  such  quantities 


DERAT.  31 

of  grain.  What  we  saw  later  in  the  day  explained  the 
mystery,  and  proved  how  far  preconceived  ideas  may  lead 
a  writer  into  misrepresentation.  It  was  interesting  to 
watch  the  long  train  defiling  endlessly  over  the  dewy  plain. 
The  camels  were  attached,  head  to  tail,  in  batches  of  about 
twenty  each,  headed  by  their  drivers ;  and  lively  little 
donkeys,  bestridden  by  boys,  trotted  alongside  the  great 
solemn  beasts.  As  the  sun  rose  the  mists  rolled  away,  and 
before  we  started,  the  long  snowy  ridge  of  Hermon  stood 
out  bright  and  clear  against  the  blue  sky.  It  looked 
very  imposing,  though  at  a  distance  of  at  least  fifby 
miles*. 

Our  track  led  in  a  north-easterly  direction,  over  a  chain 
of  low  hills,  where  we  encountered  another  t^^  of  laden 
camels,  and  in  a  short  two  hours  from  Er-Bemtheh,  we 
approached  Derat,  a  large  inhabited  village  of  black  basalt 
houses,  each  surrounded  by  a  high  wall — ^the  lower  six  feet 
of  solid  masonry,  the  upper  part  built  of  loosely-piled 
stones.  Dead  animals — dogs,  horses,  and  mules — lay  about 
the  streets  in  every  stage  of  decomposition,  offending  equally 
the  senses  of  sight  and  smell. 

The  principal  ruin  at  Derat  is  that  of  a  Christian  church. 
A  large  quadrangle,  surrounded  by  cloisters,  leads  into  a 
low-roofed  edifice  supported  by  numerous  columns.  Archi- 
tecture there  is  none,  but  the  building  is  quite  a  museum 
of  capitals  stolen  from  older  edifices.  Derat  is  a  good 
specimen  of  the  modem  architecture  of  the  Hauran.  The 
houses  are  mere  piles  of  ruins.  Having  passed,  perhaps 
by  a  stone  door,  through  the  high  outer  wall,  you  find 
yourself  in  a  small  open  space,  whence  steps  lead  down- 
wards into  sundry  burrows,  half  excavated  in  the  earth, 
half  built  up  and  roofed  in  with  unhewn  stones.  Anything 
more  sombre  and  unhomelike  than  these  piles  of  black 
basalt  boulders  it  is  impossible  to  conceive.    It  would  be 


52  B  AS  EI  AX. 

too  ridiculous  to  imagine  the  sentiment  of  ^  Home,  sweet 
home  ! '  entering  into  the  head  of  an  inhabitant  of  Derat, 
and  most  of  the  villages  of  Bashan  are  similar  to  it.  The 
town  stands  above  a  deep  ravine,  at  the  bottom  of  which 
flows  the  Yarmuk,  the  ancient  Hieromax,  which  we  crossed 
by  a  ford  close  to  the  river-side,  where  we  found  two  fine 
sarcophagi,  one  ornamented  with  a  human  bust,  the  other 
with  lion's  heads.  A  little  above  the  ford  the  Hieromax 
is  crossed  by  a  Boman  aqueduct,  which,  spanning  the 
ravine  by  a  very  bold  bridge,  is  carried  at  least  eighty  feet 
above  the  water.  Our  course  now  lay  almost  in  a  direct 
line  east,  across  a  great  plain ;  on  the  further  side  rose  the 
group  of  Jebel  Hauran,  with  the  conical  peak  of  El-Kleib 
conspicuous  in  their  midst,  and  the  castled  crag  of  Salkhat 
on  a  southern  spur.  We  followed  exactly  in  the  line  of  the  old 
Boman  road,  the  pavement  of  which  was  in  places  intact. 
After  passing  the  ruins  of  Gharz,  where  we  failed  to  discover 
unything  remarkable,  we  rode  on  through  cultivated  land, 
dotted  at  intervals  by  bla<;k  villages.  Presently  ten  horse- 
men appeared  in  the  distance ;  suspecting  their  character, 
we  at  once  fell  back  on  the  baggage.  The  Bedouins 
pdvanced,  then  split  into  two  bodies,  and  wheeled  round 
on  either  flank  of  our  party;  after  an  interval  of  apparent 
indecision,  they  again  united  their  forces.  By  this  time 
we  were  within  300  yards  of  them,  and  could  judge  from 
their  demeanour  that  they  were  out  on  no  lawful  errand. 
Elhasim  rode  forward  to  meet  them,  when  one  of  the  party 
(apparently  the  chief)  saluted  him,  and  they  held  a  parley 
together  in  high  tones.  As  they  rode  alongside,  we  ad- 
mired the  skill  with  which  Khasim  made  his  horse  dance 
round  the  other,  constantly  keeping  his  rifle  pointed  in  the 
face  of  the  Bedouin  chief.  After  a  few  minutes'  conversa- 
tion, Elhasim  rode  back  to  us,  while  the  Arabs  wheeled 
round  and  scampered  away.     We  found  out  that  they  were 


*  Saba,'  a  branch  of  the  great  Anazeh  tribe.  The  gist  of 
their  parley  with  Khasim  was,  that  they  requested  him 
and  his  soldier  to  stand  by  while  we  were  plundered — an 
offer  which  brought  down  on  them  such  indignant  menaces 
from  our  men,  that  having  reckoned  our  force,  and  seen 
that,  though  superior  in  numbers,  they  were  far  inferior  in 
weapons,  they  deemed  it  prudent  to  let  us  go  our  way  in 
peace. 

We  recrossed  to  the  left  bank  of  the  river  by  a  Eoman 
bridge  in  good  preservation.     The  country  was  now  more 
undulating,  and  exceedingly  well-cultivated,  great  pains 
having  been  exjpended  in  irrigating  the  soil  thoroughly, 
by  mean^  of  a  complicated  system  of  water-channels. .  We 
had  some  difficulty  in  persuading  our  men  to  push^  on  to 
Ghusam.      Mohammed,  the  second  Bashi-Bazouk,  was 
anxious  to  turn  off  the  road  to  some  village  with  which 
he  was  acquainted ;  but  we  persisted  in  riding  on,  and  in 
course  of  time  Ghusam  appeared,  though  not  in  the  posi- 
tion assigned  to  it  on  Van  de  Yelde's  map.    The  view 
from  our  camping-ground  was  magpuficent.     We  were  in 
the  centre  of  a  vast  plain,  bounded  on  the  west  and  north 
by  the  mountains  of  Gilead  and  Hermon,  on  the  east  by 
the  Jebel  Hauran,  and  stretching  on  the  south  into  the 
^  vasty  wilds '  of  Arabia.    In  the  distance  the  black  walls 
of  Bozrah  glittered  in  the  evening  sunshine,  like  some 
enchanted   city  of  the  'Arabian  Nights.'    In  our  walk 
round  the  place,  we  noticed  the  remains  of  a  Christian 
church,  with  the  cross   carved  on  the  walls,  some  re- 
servoirs, and  an  old  stone  house,  answering  better  than 
anything  we  had  yet  seen  to  Mr.  Porter's  descriptions. 
A  fine  pair  of  folding  stone  doors,  which  were  thrown 
wide  open  at  our  approach,  gave  access  to  the  Sheikh's 
courtyard,  into  the  walls  of  which  were  built  well^xecuted 
carvings  of  a  vine  and   grapes,  the   common  Ohristiaa 


54  BASHAN. 

emblems.  On  a  raised  terraxje  we  found  carpets  and 
coffee  prepared  for  us  ;  the  conversation  consisted  chiefly 
of  an  interchange  of  the  usual  laborious  compliments, 
but  in  the  course  of  it  we  learnt  that  the  marauding  party 
we  had  met  on  the  march  had  stolen  two  hundred  sheep 
from  the  next  village.  The  scoundrels  must  have  been 
sorely  grieved  when  they  found  that  *  very  strong  man  * 
Khasim  and  twenty-five  barrels  interposed  between  them 
and  the  luggage  of  the  Giaour.  On  our  return  the  Sheikh 
posted  a  guard  round  our  tents,  and  sent  us  a  lamb.  It  was 
an  uncommonly  pretty  little  animal,  and  Cross  was  so  over- 
,come  by  its  winning  ways  that  he  got  up  in  the  night  and 
•let  it  loose;  but  his  kindness  was  useless,  for  the  lamb 
•was  found  in  the  next  field  in  the  morning,  atid  was 
ruthlessly  despatched  and  made  into  cutlets  by  Moham- 
med the  cook. ' 

Ma/rch  20th. — ^This  morning  we  had  a  long  argument 
with  Elias.  He  had  come  to  me  with  several  small  extra 
charges  since  we  crossed  the  Jordan,  and  now  expected 
us  to  pay  the  'backsheesh^  in  return  for  the  Sheikh's 
hospitality.  This  we  declined  to  do,  and  produced  our 
contract,  which  was  fortunately  precise  on  this  question. 
Wishing  to  avoid  a  prolonged  altercation,  I  told  Elias 
he  must  make  a  list  of  all  extra  expenses  h6  wished  us 
to  pay  as  they  arose,  and  on  arrival  at  Damascus  we 
would  show  it  to  Mr.  Rogers,  H.B.M.'8  Consul,  and  abide 
by  his  decision  oti  the  subject.  This  strategy  was  entirely 
successful,  and  from  that  moment  we  never  heard  anything 
morie  of  the  claim  for  extras. 

.  A  ride  of  two  hours  and  a  quarter  over  cultivated  plains 
brought  us  to  the  walls  of  Bozrah.  Passing,  on  the  left,  a 
fine  triumphal  arch,  we  rode  straight  to  the  gates  of  the 
fortress,  over  -  which  the  Turkish  flag  was  flying.  An 
application  to  the  commandant  procured  us  immediate 


BOZRAH.  S5 

admission,  and  a  practicable  passage  having  been  found 
for  the  mules,  we  pitched  our  tents  on  a  level  plot  in  the 
interior  of  the  Roman  theatre.  The  ruins  at  Bozrah  having 
been  lately  and  well  described,  I  shall  uiake  but  a  shoH 
reference  to  our  rambles  through  the  deserted  city. 

Having  first  visited  a  gracefiil  group  of  columns,  we 
followed  one  of  the  principal  streets,  which  was   easily 
traced  by  a  colonnade  of  Koman  date,  filled  in  with  the 
remains  of  later  buildings,  to  the  Great  Mosque.     This 
must  have  been  a  noble  structure,  though,  like  so  many 
other  of  the  Saracenic  masterpieces,  it  is  buUt  mainly 
with  the  materials  of  older  edifices.   The  marble  monolithic 
columns,   some   of  which  have    Boman  inscriptions  on 
them,  are  superb.    There  is  a  good  general  view  from  the 
top  of  the  tower  attached  to  the  mosque ;  I  nearly  got 
shut  up  there,  owing  to  the  swinging-to  of  a  stone  door, 
which  it  required  all  our  united  strength  to  reopen.   On  the 
opposite  side  of  the  street  was  a  bath,  the  walls  of  which  are 
decorated  tastefully  with  inlaid  squares  of  Greek  pattern. 
In  this   quarter    are  the  principal   Christian  churches. 
The  cathedral  must  have  been  a  fine  building,  and  is  ex- 
ceedingly interesting,  as  a  specimen  of  the  way  in  which 
classical  architecture  adapted  itself  to  the  new  religion. 
The  external  wall  is  square,  the  comers  being  occupied 
by  four  chapels ;  internally  the  building  is  circular,  with  a 
lofty  dome.      Frescoes  are   still  traceable  in  the  aisle. 
The  other  two  churches  are  of  smaller  dimensions,  and  of 
that  unlovely  siyle  of  architecture  which  has  beeti  rendered 
familiar  by  the  London  churches  of  sixly  years  ago,  of 
which  they  at  once  reminded  us.     In  one  of  these  build- 
ings, however,  the  roof  was  supported  by  a  pair  of  noble 
arches.     Passing  through  the  part   of  the  town  where 
'the    modem  population  burrows   miserably  among  the 
ruins  of  ancient  splendour,  we  came  upon  a  second  fine 

D  ^ 


3C  BASHAK. 

trimnplial  arcli^  and  the  remains  of  a  palace.  We  found 
oorselyes  finally  near  a  large  reservoir,  in  which  two  of 
the  party  bathed,  while  the  others  returned  to  the  Castle, 
now  close  at  hand.  To  our  great  amusement  the  sentinels 
presented  arms  whenever  we  passed  in  or  out.  The  in- 
terior of  the  theatre,  where  our  tents  were  pitched,  has 
been  more  than  half  filled  by  a  gigantic  storehouse,  but 
the  upper  tiers  of  benches  are  in  splendid  preservation. 
The  stonework  is  very  neatly  finished,  and  the  decorations 
of  the  stage  struck  us  as  being  in  less  florid  style  than 
most  of  the  Koman  remains  in  this  part  of  Syria. 

Various  theories  have  been  broached  to  account  for  the 
strange  conjunction  of  a  theatre  and  a  fortress.  Should 
I  hazard  a  guess  at  the  solution  of  the  problem,  it  would 
be,  that  the  theatre  stood  originally  outside  the  walls  of 
the  town,  and  that  when  the  more  frequent  visits  of  the 
Arabs,  and  the  &iling  strength  of  the  legions,  rendered  it 
liable  to  injury,  the  BtUl-existing  fortifications  were  built 
round  it.  At  night  a  sentry  was  posted  outside  our  tents, 
but  the  quiet  of  the  dark  hours  was  undisturbed  except 
by  a  furious  storm  of  thunder,  lightning,  and  rain.  Cross, 
always  ready  with  sympathy  for  man  or  beast,  pitied  the 
sorrows  of  the  poor  man  on  guard,  and  having  hunted  up 
some  piastres  from  his  coat-pocket,  he  suddenly  appeared 
in  his  night-shirt  at  the  tent-door,  and  presented  them  to 
the  astonished  soldier. 

Mcurch  2l8t, — ^Early  in  the  morning,  we  climbed  up  to 
the  battlements  to  enjoy  the  view  of  the  plain.  Large 
flocks  were  being  driven  out  to  pasture ;  as  we  watched 
them,  and  gazed  over  the  wide  expanse  of  cultivated  land 
we  had  ridden  through  from  Derat,  we  were  naturally 
led  to  contrast  the  facts  under  our  eyes  with  the  desola- 
tion described  by  Mr.  Porter,  and  to  indulge  in  a  hope 
— ^which  even  the  most  ardent  enthusiast  for  the  frOfil- 


II  llrfl-MHW 


JEBEL  HAUBAN.  37 

ment  of  prophecy  might  share — ^that  better  times  may  be 
in  store  for  Bashan. 

Before  leaving  Bozrah,  we  sent  to  thank  the  commandant, 
whom  we  had  not  yet  seen,  for  his  courtesy.  We  were  at 
once  invited  to  visit  him  in  his  quarters,  an  airy  little  room 
on  the  house-roof.  The  commandant  expressed  great  dis- 
appointment at  our  short  stay,  said  that  he  had  meant  to 
o£Eer  ns  an  entertainment,  and  excused  himself  for  not 
having  called  on  the  previous  day,  on  the  ground  that  he 
thbnght  we  shonld  be  tired  after  onr  journey,  and  prefer  to 
repose.  He  prepared  sundry  documents  for  the  villages 
of  the  Jebel,  which  were  handed  over  to  Khasim.  I  do  not 
fancy  they  did  us  much  service,  for  the  Druses  pride  them- 
selve&i  on  maintaining  a  practical  independence  of  the 
Turkish  Pacha  at  Damascus,  and  are  little  disposed  to  obey 
the  orders  of  his  lieutenants. 

•We  were  now  within  the  borders  of  a  district  which  has 
acquired  great  celebrity  &x)m  the  extent  and  peculiar  cha- 
racter of  its  ruins,  and  has  been  recently  brought  into 
prominent  notice  by  the  well-known  Syrian  traveller,  Mr# 
Porter.  A  perusal  of  his  pages  had  set  before  us  the 
exciting  prospect  of  seeing  whole  towns,  deserted  indeed, 
but  so  little  ruined,  that  they  might  be  inhabited  again 
at  a  moment's  notice,  although  said  to  be  of  an  age 
compared  to  which  Pompeii  may  be  considered  a  modern 
city.  We  naturally  laid  our  plans  so  as  to  include  the 
places  considered  most  noteworthy  by  our  predecessors,  and 
arranged  a  zigzag  route  by  which  we  might  in  three  days 
reach  the  northern  extremity  of  the  Jebel  Hauran,  visiting 
Kureiyeh,  Suweideh,  and  Kunawat  on  the  road.  From 
Shuhba  we  intended,  if  possible,  to  foUow  the  plan  which 
Mr.  Porter  found  impracticable,  and  to'  ride  through  the 
centre  of  the  strange  volcanic  district  known  as  the  Lejah, 
and  celebrated  equally  for  the  bad  character  of  its  roads 


39  .      BASHAN. 

and  its  inhabitants.  Onr  first  day's  journey  was  a  short  one, 
for  we  did  not  mean  to  push  beyond  Hebran.  As  we  rode 
out  of  Bozrah,  we  passed  several  small  reservoirs.  On  the 
way,  Elias  told  us  an  amusing  story  of  native  manners. 
The  head-man  of  the  village  had  the  previous  night  given 
a  feast  to  our  muleteers.  One  of  them,  a  Christian  of  the 
Lebanon,  ate  with  a  fork.  *  Mashalla !  *  exclaimed  his  Boz- 
ran  host,  *  what  a  brute ;  he  has  not  yet  learned  to  eat  with 
his  fingers ! ' 

We  rode  across  a  plain  strewn  with  volcanic  boulders, 
with  patches  of  cultivation  between  them.  Here,  for  the 
first  time,  we  saw  the  Druse  women,  with  their  extra- 
ordinary  horns  and  long  white  veils.  The  latter  only 
cover  one-half  the  face,  the  division  being  made  vertically, 
so  as  to  show  one  eye  and  cheek,  instead  of  both  eyes 
and  nothing  else,  in  the  Egyptian  fashion.  The  Druse 
style  leaves  room  for  a  good  deal  of  coquetry,  and  the  girls 
with  any  pretensions  to  good  looks  are  at  no  pains  to 
conceal  them;  but  beauties  are  rare  in  the  Hauran, 
and  the  ugly  women  are,  much  to  the  traveller's  relief, 
uniformly  bashfrd. 

After  fording  a  clear  Welsh-like  stream,  one  of  the 
feeders  of  the  Hieromax,  we  rode  over  a  perfect  wilder- 
ness of  stones  into  Kureiyeh,  It  was  a  marvel  how 
our  animals  kept  their  legs  on  such  ground,  but  it  takes 
a  great  deal  to  puzzle  a  Syrian  horse. 

Under  its  ancient  name  of  Kerioth,  Kureiyeh  is  one  of 
the  places  distinguished  by  having  had  a  special  judg- 
ment pronounced  on  it  by  Jeremiah.  We  explored  its 
ruins  on  foot,  and  found  an  old  tank,  beside  which  is  a 
curious  edifice,  supported  by  stumpy  columns.  We  saw 
no  stone  doors  equal  to  those  at  Ghusam,  and  the  houses 
were  all  more  or  less  dilapidated.  On  the  whole,  though 
we  strove  to  repress  our  feelings,  we  were  decidedly  dis-: 


KUBEIIEH.  3S> 

appointed  with  the  first  of  the  '  Giant  Cities.'  I  thus 
recorded,  on  the  evening  of  the  same  day,  the  impression 
ma<le  on  us  by  the  famous  stone-houses  attributed  by« 
some  recent  writers  to  the  Bephaim  mentioned  in  Deu- 
teronomy :^-*  Among  many  houses,  the  comparatively  re- 
cent date  of  which  is  evidenced  by  fragment]^  of  Boman 
sculpture  built  up  into  the  interior  walls,  a  few  of  earlier 
times  probably  exist.  These  may  be  of  the  time  of  Og, 
or  they  may  not;  there  is  nothing  to^  show  they  were 
built  by  giants.' 

The  Sheikh  of  the  village,  a  powerful  Druse  chieftain, 
was  away,  but  his  steward  pressed  us  hard  to  stay  tO' 
partake  of  a  sheep,  saying,  ^  What  wiU  my  lord  say,  when 
he  returns,  and  finds  travellers  have  passed  his  door  with-' 
out  tasting  food?.  He  will  be  angry  with  me,  and  I  shall* 
have  nothing  to  answer  him.V  Throughout  the  JebeL 
Hauran  we  were  almost  oppressed  by  the  hospitality  of 
the  inhabitants,  and  did  not  find  any  inconvenience  from 
being  unattended  by  a  Druse  escort. 

Hebran  is  in  sight  from  J^ureiyeh,  and  the  track  to  it 
is  a  gradual  ascent.  The  first  half  of  the  way  is  dreary 
and  monotonous,  but,  as  we  neared  our  resting-place, 
dwarf  oaks  clothed  the  hillsides;  and  though,  being 
unprovided  with  magnifying  glasses  or  poetical  imagina- 
tions, we  failed  to  discover  the  '  dizzy  crags '  and  ^  deep 
ravines '  described  by  a  previous  traveller,  the  landscape 
redeemed  itself  from  the  charge  of  actual  ugliness.  We 
met  many  parties  of  villagers  on  the  road — some  re- 
turning from  labour  in  the  fields,  others  driving  laden  don- 
keys. The  position  of  Hebran  itself  is  really  fine.  It  stands 
out  boldly  on  a  spur  of  the  mountains,  if  a  raiige  rising 
less  than  3,000  feet  from  the  tablelands  at  their  base  may 
be  dignified  by  the  name.  From  the  ruined  temple  which 
Qrowns  the  crest,  a  wonderful  panoramic  view  is  obtained 


40  .  BASHAN. 

of  the  plain-coTintrj  of  Baslian.  The  temple  itself  is  not 
very  remarkable,  compared  with  the  ruins  we  afterwards 
saw.  In  the  village  we  found  no  antiquities  worthy  of 
notice,  although  the  inhabitauts  were  very  civil  in  point- 
ing out  any  old  carvings  or  inscriptions  likely  to  interest 
us.  The  younger  portion  of  the  population,  never  having 
seen  so  many  Europeans  before,  thought  us  a  capital  joke, 
and  enjoyed  themselves  immensely  at  our  expense. 

An  isolated  building,  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  to  the 
south-east  of  the  village,  attracted  our  attention,  and  we  were 
well  repaid  for  visiting  it.  As  it  was  the  first  specimen 
of  stone  architecture  we  saw  which  was  at  all  perfect,  I 
will  describe  it  in  detail.  On  the  ground-floor  a  stone 
door  led  into  a  long  room,  the  ceiling  of  which,  made 
of  huge  blocks  of  stone,  was  supported  by  two  circular 
arches.  In  this  instance  I  did  liot  notice  any  stair- 
case, but  ..in  other  buildings  it  was  outside  the  walls ; 
above^jwcase-several  small  rooms,  where  a  giant  must  often 
have  knocked  his  head,  and  one  curiously  small  door^ 
about  four  feet  high.  The  windows  were  closed  by  stone 
shutterSj  which  still  swung  more  or  less  easily  in  their 
sockets^  -         , 

Our  tents  were  pitched  in  a  field  below  the  village^ 
whence  the  view  of  the  conical  peak  of  El-Kleib,  *the 
Little  Heart,'  now  temptingly  near  at  hand,  rising  behind 
low  wooded  hills,  suggested  an  ascent  on  the  following 
morning.  Elias  and  Khasim  went  off  in  the  evening 
to  take  coffee  at  the  Sheikh's,  where,  if  the  account 
Elias  afterwards  gave  was  true,  guests  and  host  must 
have  required  all  their  Oriental  politeness  to  get  through 
the  evening  pleasantly* 

In  the  course  of  conversation,  it  came  out  that  Ehasim, 
in  some  affiuy  with  the  Druses,  had  killed  a  brother  of  the 
Sheikh ;  but  matters  were  squared  by  the  discovery  that 


EASTERN   DIPLOMACY,  41 

the  Sheikh  had  killed  a  near  relation  of  Khasiniy  and 
they  agreed  to  postpone  all  discussion  on  the  subject.  I 
fancy  that  during  the  next  few  days,  Elias's  diplomatic 
talent,  which  was  very  great,  found  constant  employment 
in  keeping  things  smooth  between  our  escort  and  the 
Druses,  who,  living  in  a  normal  state  of  resistance  to  the 
GoTemment,  naturally  look  with  dislike  on  its  officers.  Our 
dragoman  must  have  burthened  his  conscience  with  no 
slight  weight  if  he  really  uttered  half  the  untruths  for 
which  he  afterwards  took  credit.  We  were  represented  by 
him  as  princes,  Williams  being  specially  distinguished  as 
the  American  prince,  while  Elias  modestly  described  himself 
as  a  commissioner  sent  by  the  GoTemment  to  secure  us 
proper  attention,  and  to  report  where  it  was  found  wanting. 
Doubtless  he  played  the  part  well,  for  he  was  a  great 
dandy  in  his  dress,  always  wearing  a  splendid  gold-shot 
kefiyeh,  and,  to  use  his  own  words,  he  had  a  ^  certaine  poll- 
tesse,  tout  a  fait  particuli^re,'  in  the  Arab  tongue. 

March  22nd. — ^This  morning  the  ground  was  hard  with 
white  frost.  This  waa  not  extra^r^ary,  for  we  were  en- 
camped  at  a  height  of  4,000  feet,  and  snow  lay  in  patches 
not  far  above  us.  We  despatched  our  baggage-mules,  under 
Mohammed's  charge,  straight  over  the  hills  to  Kunawat, 
as  we  intended  to  take  a  considerable  circuit  in  order  to 
visit  Suweideh  and  AtiL 

A  sea  of  mist  covered  the  plain  below  us,  and  before  long 
the  fleecy  billows  broke  against  and  rolled  up  the  hillsides, 
enwrapping  ns  in  iheir  chilly  folds.  A  short  ride  across 
a  brow,  covered  with  stunted  oaks,  and  watered  by 
numerous  springs,  brought  us  to  Ku£r.  The  place  must 
have  been  very  large,  to  judge  by  its  ruins,  but  its  in- 
habitants do  not  now  appear  to  be  numerous.  In  a  long 
ramble  in  search  of  the  gates,  10  feet  high,  mentioned  by 
Porter,  I  came  across  relics  of  a  Boman  temple,  many 


42  BASHAN. 

old  houses,  and  a  curious  window,  consisting  of  two  square 
apertures,  with  a  circular  one  in  the  middle,  all  sheltered 
by  a  projecting  eave.  The  doors  turned  out  to  be  7  feet 
high;  they  were  folding,  and  each  half  was  of  a  single 
block ;  they  did  not  fully  fill  the  gateway,  which  was  a  foot 
loftier.  The  ruins  formed  a  perfect  labyrinth,  and  we 
separated,  each  taking  a  quarter  in  order  to  examine  them 
as  thoroughly  as  time  would  permit. 

It  was  but  a  short  distance  to  the  foot  of  El-Kleib, 
5,725  feet,  the  finest  in  form  and  second  in  height  of  the 
summits  of  Jebel  Hauran.  Tucker  and  I  started  on  foot, 
with  Pran9ois,  to  ascend  it,  leaving  the  rest  of  the  party 
with  the  horses.  The  mountain  presents  the  appearance 
of  a  symmetrical  cone  clothed  with  a  dense  forest  of 
evergreen  oak,  except  on  the  south,  where  the  lava  and 
scorisB  are  entirely  bare.  Just  under  the  highest  point 
is  a  small  but  very  perfect  crater.  On  the  summit,  layers 
of  squared  stones,  the  foundation  of  some  ancient  building, 
are  visible.  The  view  must  be  very  striking;  unluckily 
a  dense  mist  hid  it  from  us,  and  we  waited  in  vain  in 
hopes  of  its  clearing  oflF.  In  descending,  we  contrived  to 
miss  our  way,  and  wandered  about  for  some  time,  dis- 
charging revolvers  into  the  fog,  till  we  fell  in  with  some 
peasants  ploughing,  and  managed  to  understand  their 
directions.  Rejoining  our  friends,  we  remounted,  and 
rode  nearly  due  west  to  Suweideh,  one  of  the  chief  seats 
of  the  Druse  power.  When  we  emerged  from  the  cold 
mist  that  had  enveloped  us,  the  country  was  by  no  means 
interesting,  and  we  were  glad  when  Suweideh  appeared  in 
the  distance.  On  arriving  there,  we  avoided  halting 
near  the  house  of  the  chief,  not  wishing  to  waste  time 
in  receiving  his  tedious  hospitality,  and  therefore  cast 
but  a  passing  glance  at  the  ten  columns  of  a  ruined 
temple  close  to  his  door.     Riding  on  through  the  town, 


TEMPLES  AT  ATIL.  43 

we  dismounted  to  visit  the  interesting  remains  of  an  ancient 
house  ;  the  masonry  was  extraordinarily  massive,  like  that 
of  a  Cyclopean  wall,  and  the  building  impressed  us  with 
the  appearance  of  greater  antiquity  than  any  other  we  saw 
in  the  Hauran.  We  then  continued  our  journey,  and 
crossing  the  stream,  which  flows  in  a  deep  bed  on  the  nor^  h 
side  of  the  town,  rode  up  to  a  fine  Soman  tomb,  erected  by 
a  husband  to  his  wife.*  A  broad  track  led  us  over  the 
bare  spurs,  through  which  the  hills  sink  down  into  the 
plain,  to  Atil.  Here  there  are  the  ruins  of  two  diminutive 
but  exquisitely  decorated  temples.  The  immense  size  of 
the  stones  employed  in  the  construction  of  these  small 
baildings  was  very  remarkable.  Close  to  one  of  the 
temples  we  found  some  good  pieces  of  carving — a  winged 
figure  of  Victory,  a  horse,  and  a  fine  head  of  Apollo. 
Nothing  could  exceed  the  intelligence  and  courtesy  of  the 
inhabitants  in  pointing  out  the  Roman  fragments  which 
lay  about  everywhere.  We  were  led,  through  an  excep- 
tionally heavy  stone  door,  into  a  house  of  very  ancient- 
looking  and  massive  masonry,  to  inspect  a  bit  of  the 
frieze  of  one  of  the  temples,  which  was  built  into  the 
interior  wall.  This  must  be  taken  for  what  it  is  worth, 
but  it  aided  to  shake  our  belief  in  the  extreme  antiquity 
of  the  greater  number  of  the  Hauran  ruins.  The  columns 
of  Kunawat  were  already  in  sight  over  intervening  woods, 
and  half-an-hour's  scramble  up  a  rocky  path  brought  us  to 
our  tents,  which  had  been  pitched  in  a  charming  situation 
between  the  town  and  the  beautiful  temple,  which  stands 
apart  from  the  other  ruins  on  the  west. 

Mcurch  2Srd. — Early  in  the  morning,  a  dense  mist  again 
veiled  the  plain ;  Hermon  alone  stood  up  above  it,  flushed 
with  a  sunrise  glow,  and  as  the  bells  of  the  outgoing  flocks 
rang  through  the  air,  we  could  almost  fancy  ourselves 

*  It  is  well  described  in  '  Giant  Cities/  p.  55. 


44  BASHAK, 

in  the  Alps.  Eonawat,  the  ancient  Eenath,  celebrated 
for  the  worship  of  Astarte,  whose  image  now  lies  pros- 
trate before  her  ruined  temple,  is  built  on  the  edge  of  an 
upland  plateau,  on  which  its  principal  group  of  buildings 
stands ;  the  remainder  of  the  place,  enclosed  by  walls, 
runs  down  the  slope,  and  overlooks  the  great  plain.  In 
the  background  rises  a  circle  of  wooded  hills,  and  on  one 
side  a  strong  green  torrent  forces  its  way  in  numerous 
cascades  through  a  narrow  ravine.  On  a  brow  visible  from 
the  plain,  and  forming  a  landmark  for  the  traveller 
approaching  Eunawat,  stands  a  temple  raised  on  a  high 
artificial  platform^  The  wall  and  many  of  the  columns 
have  been  overthrown,  but  enough  is  left  standing  to  form 
one  of  the  most  picturesque  ruins  in  Syria. 

A  little  higher  up  the  hillside  seems  to  have  been  the 
fashionable  cemetery,  and  we  found  numerous  mauso- 
leums scattered  amongst  the  thick  underwood.  Though 
varying  in  size  and  architecture,  they  agree  in  their 
general  form,  which  is  that  of  a  small  square  tower, 
vrith  a  chamber  inside  containing  shelves  for  coffins. 
Entering  the  old  city  walls,  which  are  still  well  preserved, 
we  were  led  to  a  most  remarkable  group  of  ruins,  now 
called  the  Serai,  or  palace.  Here  we  found  the  remains  of 
a  temple,  and  of  an  extensive  building,  or  rather  several 
buildings,  which  must  have  been  used  either  as  a  palace  or 
for  some  public  purpose.  The  richness  of  the  architectural 
ornaments,  and  the  picturesque  irregularity  of  the  whole 
mass,  would  make  these  ruins  beautiful  without  their  addi- 
tional attractions.  The  space  round  them  is  paved,  and 
(as  is  seen  where  the  pavement  has  fallen  in)  supported 
on  the  arches  of  large  subterranean  reservoirs.  The 
streams,  which  formerly  filled  them,  now  burst  out  eyery- 
where  among  the  ruins,  and  cause  the  growth  of  a  mass  of 
vegetation  which  conceals  the  surrounding  desolation  with 


KUNAWAT.  45 

a  mantle  of  greenery,  sucli  as  is  seldom  seen  in  the  East. 
Some  of  the  water  flows  down  a  conduit,  to  work  an  ancient 
mill,  still  perfect,  and  in  use.  It  is  an  old  one-storied 
chamber ;  the  windows  have  the  usual  stone  shutters,  and 
nothing,  except  perhaps  the  millstone,  has  been  changed 
since  it  was  built.  On  the  steep  path  leading  down  into 
the  gorge,  we  remarked  several  fine  stone  doors,  one 
of  which  was  ornamented  with  vine-leaves,  and  another 
with  bosses.  In  the  centre  of  the  town  is  an  old  Christian 
church,  now  used  as  a  storehouse ;  inside  another  build- 
ing we  saw  a  very  flat  arch  of  great  span.  Kunawat 
would  repay  a  much  more  careful  inspection  than  we 
were  able  to  give  it.  Descending  over  a  beautiful  piece 
of  Boman  pavement,  to  the  bridge,  we  turned  aside  to 
inspect  the  remains  on  the  right  bank.  Here  there  is  a 
quaint  little  theatre,  and  a  temple  with  a  fountain  in 
its  centre,  both  on  a  very  small  scale.  Steps  cut  in 
the  rock  lead  up  to  the  brow,  on  which  stood  a  tower- 
tomb.  Kunawat  is  the  religious  centre  of  the  Hauran 
Druses,  and  a  great  Sheikh  lives  here ;  but,  anxious  to 
jspend  all  our  time  in  the  ruins,  we  did  not  make  any 
advances,  and  our  intercourse,  although  friendly,  wad  slight. 
To-day  we  again  sent  our  luggage  on  by  a  short  cut.  The 
ride  down  to  Suleim  is  very  pretty.  Although  there  are  no 
large  trees,  the  environs  of  Kunawat  are  clothed  in  luxuri- 
ant vegetation,  and  the  ground  was  painted  with  anemones, 
varying  between  bright  scarlet  and  pure  white,  through 
numerous  shades  of  pink  and  purple. 

In  the  middle  of  a  wood  we  turned  off  the  path,  to  visit 
an  isolated  ruin  placed  on  a  slight  eminence.  There  was 
a  large  quadrangle,  enclosed  by  walls,  against  one  of  which 
Btood  a  small  building,  with  some  good  carving  on  the 
doorway*  Suleim  is  in  the  bare  country;  its  principal 
attraction  is  a  small  temple  with  an  exquisite  Meze :  w^ 


>«»  •-  li.  ■   I  ai     II     «— ^—a*.   ■  ■  I  1 1 1 II  -     -  -         11    ■  ^  »  ^*V  ^i«M. 


46  BASHAN. 

also  noticed  a  fine  doorway,  over  which  was  a  long  inscrip- 
tion in  Greek  hexameters.  Close  to  the  temple  is  a  sub- 
terranean reservoir  similar  to  those  at  Kunawat.  We 
were  now  approaching  the  boundaries  of  that  curious  tract 
of  country  which  has  been  successively  known  as  Argob, 
Trachonitis,  and  the  Lejah.  In  point  of  fact,  it  is  nothing 
but  a  huge  lava-glacier,  if  one  may  be  pardoned  the  ex- 
pression. The  northern  summits  of  Jebel  Hauran  are  a.U 
volcanic  cones ;  from  these  the  lava-streams  have  issued 
forth,  and  flowing  northwards  have  spread  fanwise  over  a 
.vast  extent  of  country. 

The  limit  of  the  inundation  is  in  general  sharply  defined, 
and  those  who  have  ridden  along  the  borders  of  the  Lejah, 
and  wondered  at  its  broken  crags  and  forbidding  aspect 
of  desolation,  have  not  unnaturally  taken  a  part  for  the 
whole,  and  described  the  entire  tract  as  absolutely  unpro- 
ductive and  desert.  The  wild  and  rapacious  character  of 
the  inhabitants  has  added  to  its  reputation  for  inaccessi- 
bility, and  to  the  vague  feeling  of  terror  vrith  which  it  has 
been  often  associated.  We  were  now  in  fiill  view  of  its 
south-west  border,  and  the  towns  of  Nejran  and  Edrei, 
ithe  latter  celebrated  as  the  capital  of  Og,  were  plainly 
distinguishable.  Our  track  bore  away  to  the  east,-  along 
the  lower  slopes  of  the  hills.  liCaving  on  our  right  the  ham- 
let of  Miurduk,  the  inhabitants  of  which  were  ploughing 
the  neighbouring  fields,  we  soon  entered  a  barren  volcanic 
tract  of  countir.  Our  road  gradually  ascended,  in  the 
direction  of  a  depression  under  the  most  southern  of  the 
three  conspicuous  cones  which  are  the  northern  outposts 
of  the  Jebel  Hauran.  The  surface  over  which  we  were 
riding  was  rocky  and  broken,  and  lava-cragi^  protruded  on 
all  sides,  with  little  beds  of  withered  grass  lying  amongst 
them.  The  desolation  of  the  scenery  increased  as  we 
^vanced,  and    its    effect  was  rather    heightened    than 


■i^^M^kA^' ^^WhP 


SHUHBA.  47 

diminished  by  the  guunt  arches  of  a  long  Boman  aqneduct 
which  had  supplied  the  ancient  Shuhba  with  water  drawn 
from  Abu  Tumeis,  the  fourth  in  height  of  the  summits 
of  Jebel  Hauran.  As  we  rounded  the  south-east  comer 
of  the  volcano,  we  came  suddenly  upon  the  old  gateway 
of  the  !Boman  town,  the  very  name  of  which  has  been 
lost.  Inside  the  walls,  all  was  as  desolate  as  without ;  the 
old  roadway  was  torn  up,  and  the  modem  track  zig- 
zagged in  and  out,  and  up  and  down,  among  the  lava-crags, 
which  were  contorted  into  the  most  extraordinary  forms. 
"What  motive  can  have  led  to  a  large  town  being  built  on 
a  site  so  gloomy,  and  so  little  adapted  to  human  habitation, 
it  is  hard  to  divine.  Its  inhabitants  had  at  least  one  ad- 
vantage ;  the  journey  to  the  shades  must  have  been  robbed 
of  half  its  terrors  to  men  who,  on  their  arrival  in  Hades, 
found  the  scenery  just  like  home,  and  Pluto's  palace  not 
quite  so  sombre-looking  as  their  own  theatre.  In  its 
prosperity  Shuhba  must  have  been  a  strange  city ;  in  its 
desolation  it  is  the  weirdest  spot  imaginable. 

The  ruins  of  the  ancient  town  and  the  modem  village 
do  not  together  occupy  quite  a  quarter  of  the  extent  of 
ground  included  within  the  ancient  walls.  We  found  our 
tents  pitched  in  an  enclosure  near  the  inhabited  houses. 
Our  muleteers  had  managed  to  get  into  a  dispute  with 
the  people  about  the  camping-ground,  and  there  had  been 
some  disturbance ;  the  question  had,  however,  been  referred 
to  the  Sheikh,  who,  on  hearing  they  were  the  servants  of 
Englishmen,  at  once  ordered  all  civility  to  be  shown 
them,  and  on  our  arrival  peace  was  quite  restored. 
.  The  ruins  at  Shuhba  are  not  so  ornate  as  others  in  this 
/country,  but  are  peculiarly  interesting.  There  are  two 
temples,  similar  in  character  to  many  we  had  seen  else- 
where, and  a  mysterious  building  which  looks  as  if  it 
might  have  formed  the  apse  of  a  'basilica,'  and  which 


48  BASHAN. 

seems  to  have  puzzled  most  travellers.  The  four  main 
streets  are  still  easily  traceable,  and,  at  their  point  of 
junction,  the  pedestals,  once  probably  crowned  with  groups 
of  statuary,  are  still  entire.  From  this  point  to  the 
southern  gate  of  the  city,  a  distance  of  full  one-third  of 
a  mile,  the  pavement  is  as  perfect  as  the  day  it  was  laid 
down.  The  baths  were  the  best  preserved  we  had  yet 
seen ;  they  contained  several  large  and  handsome  chambers, 
and  the  stucco  still  adhered  to  the  interior  walls.  Many 
of  the  pipes  remain  in  their  places,  and  the  great  aque- 
duct which  supplied  the  water  still  exists,  and  terminates 
beside  the  building.  We  found  a  staircase  which  led 
us  on  to  the  top  of.  its  arches,  whence  we  had  an  excel- 
lent general  view  of  the  bare  northern  slopes  of  Jebel 
Hauran,  and  the  plain,  dotted  with  conical  mounds,  which 
spreads  to  the  east  of  it.  South  of  the  walls  are  some 
large  open  reservoirs.  On  our  way  back  we  visited  the 
theatre,  which  looks  spacious  externally,  but  the  building 
is  so  exceedingly  solid  that  the  size  of  the  interior  is  dis- 
appointing. The  massiveness  of  the  masonry  and  the 
hardness  of  the  material  (black  basalt)  have  been  the 
causes  of  its  preservation.  The  stage,  the  rooms  and 
passages  behind  it^  are  uninjured,  and  very  slight  repairs 
would  be  wanted  to  make  the  building  again  service- 
able. 

Sheikh  Fares,  who  received  Mr.  Porter  so  hospitably, 
was  dead,  and  had  been  succeeded  by  his  son.  The  Sheikh 
of  Shuhba  is  one  of  the  most  powerful  of  the  Druse  chief- 
tains, and  although  of  late  we  had  made  it  a  rule  to  avoid 
invitations  and  visits  of  ceremony,  we  felt  it  would  be 
wrong  not  to  call  on  him,  especially  as  we  wanted  some 
advice  and  information  as  to  the  best  route  through  the 
ill-reputed  Lejah.  Having  sent  notice  of  our  intention, 
■vfe  went  in  a  body  to  pay  our  respects.    A  large  gateway 


THE   SHEIKH   OF  SHUHBA.  49 

led  into  a  courtyard  surroanded  by  buildings.  As  we 
entered,  seven  dignified  white-turbaned  Druses  bowed  to 
the  ground ;  then  the  Sheikh — a  fine-looking  man  about 
thirty-five  years  of  age — came  forth  to  welcome  us,  and 
ushered  us  into  his  abode.  We  were  received  in  the  winter 
residence,  a  large  ill-lighted  room,  with  a  fireplace  in  the 
centre,  and  divans  round  it.  The  Sheikh  took  his  place  on 
one  side  of  the  fire,  attended  by  a  younger  brother,  and 
several  white-bearded  elders.  We,  with  our  guard  and 
Fran9oi8  in  the  background,  sat  opposite  to  him.  The  room 
was  quite  filled  with  villagers.  The  conversation  opened 
with  the  usual  compliments  and  enquiries  as  to  the  success 
of  our  journey,  but  after  we  had  requested  the  young  brother 
to  sit  down,  which  he  at  first  declined  to  do,  it  diverged 
into  more  general  topics.  We  enquired  as  to  the  poa- 
sibility  of  traversing  the  interior  of  the  Lejah,  and  received 
satisfactory  replies.  We  were  told  that  in  two  days  we 
might  easily  reach  £hubab,  on  the  north-western  border, 
but  that  Ahireh,  half  a  day's  journey  distant,  was  the  only 
stopping-place  on  the  road,  as  Damet-el-Alya  was  now 
uninhabited. 

Meanwhile  coffee  was  prepared.  Among  those  Easterns 
who  maintain  their  primitive  customs,  this  is  a  very  im- 
portant ceremony,  and  must  always  be  performed  in  public. 
The  coffee-maker  is  an  old  servant,  well  practised  in  the 
art,  and  any  fitilure  on  his  part  would  be  considered  a 
disgrace  to  the  whole  household.  In  the  present  case  the 
beans  were  first  roasted  over  the  fire  in  an  open  pan, 
which  the  Sheikh  himself  took  occasionally  into  his  hand 
for  a  moment,  in  order  to  keep  up  the  appearance  of 
serving  his  guests  in  person.  Then  followed  the  pounding. 
This  is  done  in  a  finely-carved  wooden  mortar,  and  must 
require  considerable  dexterity,  as  the  operator  is  expected 
to  beat,  a  lively  march,  like  the  rat-a-tat  of  a  French 

£ 


50  BASHAN. 

drummer.  The  coffee  was  next  boiled  in  a  small  tin-pot,  and 
when  ready  was  tasted  by  the  maker,  to  show  that  it  had 
not  been  poisoned.  The  Sheikh  himself  sweetened  the 
fragrant  beverage,  which  was  handed  round  to  us  in  the 
usual  Eastern  cups.  The  taste  and  aroma  were  delicious, 
but  an  unfortunate  detail  of  etiquette  prevented  our  in- 
dulging in  such  deep  potations  as  we  should  have  liked.  In 
the  filling  of  cups,  as  in  greater  things,  the  Eastern  rule  is 
exactly  the  reverse  of  the  Western.  Instead  of  filling  a 
friend's  glass  to  the  brim,  as  a  mark  of  goodwill,  you  give 
him  a  mere  spoonful  at  the  bottom  of  his  cup ;  to  pour  out  a 
full  cup  is  a  declaration  of  enmity  to  the  man  to  whom  it 
is  presented.  After  the  select  circle  round  the  fire  had 
been  served  twice,  the  coffee  was  sent  round  to  the  crowd 
who- filled  up  the  background.  As  soon  as  the  ceremony 
was  concluded  we  rose  to  go,  but  the  Sheikh  came  out  vrith 
us,  and  showed  us  his  •  summer  residence,  the  fa9ade  of 
which  was  riather  striking.  A  flight  of  steps  led  up  to  a 
portico,  built  to  catch  the  cool  northern  breezes  from  Her- 
mon,  and  supported  by  two  pillars  crowned  by  magnificent 
capitals,  stolen  fi:om  some  ancient  building.  The  interior 
was  gaudily  paintedj  in  the  usual  Eastern  style,  with 
quaint  representations  of  birds  and  beasts ;  built  into  the 
walls  of  the  courtyard  we  noticed  two  pieces  of  sculpture, 
one  representing  a  seated  figure,  the  other  a  winged  wind; 
the  latter  struck  us  as  good. 

On  the  way  back  to  our  tents  we  were  taken  into  a 
camel-stable,  above  the  door  of  which  was  a  beautifuUy- 
cut  Greek  inscription.  Later  in  the  evening  the  Sheikh  and 
his  son,  a  sleepy  boy  of  about  twelve  years  old,  returned 
our  visit.  The  Sheikh  talked  a  great  deal  of  the  constant 
firiendship  which  had  existed  between  the  English  and  the 
Druses,  and  of  his  pleasure  at  seeing  any  members  of  our 
nation  in  the  Hauran.    Our  visitors  stayed  so  long  that  our 


A   LAVA-FLOOD.  51 

stock  of  conyersation  became  completely  ezhauBted,  and 
we  Tvere  immensely  relieved  when  they  departed. 

We  hired  a  Druse  to  guide  us  through  the  Lejah,  as 
Khaaim  was  unacquainted  with  the  paths  in  its  interior, 
and  set  out  on  the  morning  of  the  24th,  which  was  dull 
and  showery.  We  rode  out  of  Shuhba,  by  a  gap  near  the 
north-west  comer  of  the  walls,  and  skirting  the  north 
base  of  the  same  cone  we  had  passed  on  the  previous  day, 
descended  a  long  slope  covered  with  the  most  extraordinary 
lava-streams,  cracked  in  places  exactly  like  the  broken 
portion  of  a  glacier.  Mohamnied,  Khasim's  subordinate, 
managed  to  be  left  behind  for  the  second  time,  and  did  not 
come  up  with  us  tiU  we  had  been  nearly  an  ^hour  on  the 
road.  ETiafflm  meantime  was  alarmed  lest  the  Druses 
should  have  done  him  some  mischiefs.  When  the  truant 
appeared,  he  told  us  that  he  had  been  purposely  mis- 
directed. If  there  was  any  truth  in  his  statement,  which 
I  very  much  doubt,  it  was  the  solitary  unfriendly  act 
we  met  with  among  the  Druses  of  the  Jebel  Hauran, 
whom  we  found  (as  Mr.  Porter  well  describes  them)  ^a 
people  of  patriarchal  manners  and  genuine  patriarchal 
hospitality.' 

The  ground  after  a  time  became  rather  less  rugged, 
and  some  traces  of  cultivation  appeared  before  we  passed 
the  hamlet  of  Selakhid,  a  quarter  of  a  mile  to  the  right. 
Its  Sheikh  rode  out  to  invite  us  to  turn  aside  and  rest  in 
his  house.  He  was  well-mounted,  and  was  a  most  pictu- 
resque figure,  as  he  caracoled  by  our  side,  accoutred  in 
jackboots,  and  clad  in  loose-flowing  garments,  which 
rivalled  the  rainbow  in  their  varied  colours.  Finding  w.e 
were  not  to  be  persuaded,  he  rode  with  us  for  some 
distance,  and  then,  wishing  us  a  prosperous  journey, 
turned  back  to  his  home.  Crossing  the  Boman  high- 
road from  Bozrah  to  Damascus,  which  ran  through  the 

E  2 


62  BASHAN. 

centre  of  the  Lejah,  and  leaving  another  village  behind 
us  on  the  left,  we  came  to  a  tract  bristling  with  lava-crags, 
and  scantily  covered  with  gaunt  deciduous  trees.  This 
kind  of  country  continued  till  we  came  in  sight  of  Ahireh, 
which  is  situated  in  a  sort  of  oasis  with  a  good  deal  of 
corn-land  to  the  westward.  The  village  is  built  at  the 
foot  of  Tell  Ahmar,  a  green  mound  about  the  size  of 
Primrose  Hill,  which  is  crowned  by  a  Mahommetan  *  wely,' 
or  tomb.  It  is  the  highest  eminence  in  the  Lejah,  of 
which  it  commands  a  complete  vifew.  The  proportion  of 
green  grass  and  brown  rock  seemed  pretty  equal :  here  and 
there  a  black  spot  showed  the  position  of  a  village.  We 
spent  the  afternoon  in  rambling  about  among  the  houses  of 
Ahireh,  and  came  upon  four  Greek  inscriptions,  some  he^vy 
stone  doors,  and  fragments  of  carving  from  a  small  temple. 
The  people,  far  from  showing  any  jealousy  of  our  copying 
the  inscriptions,  took  pains  to  point  them  out.  The  only 
other  curiosity  we  lighted  upon  was  a  great  cave,  probably 
used  as  a  tank.  The  Sheikh  of  the  village  came  down  to 
our  tents,  but  his  looks  were  not  prepossessing,  and  we  did 
not  cultivate  his  acquaintance.  He  was,  however,  reputed 
to  be  a  gallant  soldier,  and  a  deep  sabre-cut  across  his  face 
confirmed  his  reputation,  although  it  increased  the  ugli- 
ness of  an  otherwise  ruffianly  countenance. 

Ma/rch  25th. — ^The  night  was  disturbed  by  rain-storms 
and  howling  dogs ;  the  latter  we  quieted  by  firing  off  a 
revolver  at  one  of  the  noisiest.  No  more,  formidable 
animals  made  their  appearance,  and  we  had  not  the  luck 
of  Mr.  Porter  and  his  friends,  who,  during  the  night  they 
spent  within  the  Lejah,  were  surrounded  by  jackals,  wolves, 
and  hyaenas,  and  afterwards  somewhat  naively  congratu- 
lated themselves  on  the  fulfilment  of  Isaiah's  remarkable 
prediction:  ^The  wild  beasts  of  the  desert  shall  also 
meet  with  the  wild  beasts  of  the  island,  and  the  satyr 


THE   LEJAH.  53 

shall  cry  to  his  fellow.'  The  village  Sheikh  had,  as  usual, 
entertained  our  guard  in  the  evening,  and  had  bragged  to 
Khasim  of  his  power,  saying  that  he  might  tell  the  Pasha 
of  Damascus  to  come  with  5,000  men  at  his  back,  and  he 
would  beat  him.  In  the  morning  this  warlike  hero  con- 
descended to  cheat  our  muleteers  out  of  six  francs,  in 
settUng  for  some  provender  they  had  bought;  but  before 
riding  off  we  sent  for  him,  and  told  him  very  plaiiUy  our 
opinion  of  his  conduct. 

The  morning  was  damp  and  lowering,  and  we  made  up 
our  minds  for  a  wet  day,  or  (as  Williams  put  it)  ^  guessed  it 
was  going  to  flop.'  We  were  not  deceived,  and  when  we 
reached  Damet-el-Alya,  were  glad  to  stable  our  horses 
aiid  shelter  ourselTes  in  a  mosque  with  st<;ne  doors  and 
windows,  while  we  ate  our  lunch.  The  pelting  rain  in- 
terfered somewhat  with  our  explorations,  but  I  found  one 
interesting  old  house.  The  folding-gates  of  the  entrance 
arch,  still  in  their  places,  led  into  a  courtyard,  from  which 
several  doors  opened  into  rooms  of  various  sizes.  The 
basement,  ground  and  first  floors  were  all  perfect;  the 
staircase  was,  as  usual,  external.  Our  baggage-mules 
had  gone  on  while  we  rested,  and  we  therefore  shortened 
our  halt,  and  rode  on  in  pursuit,  as  fast  as  the  nature 
of  the  ground  would  permit,  for  the  character  of  the 
district  was  so  bad  that  we  were  uneasy  at  leaving  them 
long  unprotected.  The  interior  of  the  Lejah  is  not  such 
a  desert  as  it  has  been  represented,  and  the  path  was 
decidedly  better  than  the  highway  from  Jerusalem  to 
Nablous.  In  the  wilder  parts  little  green  paddocks  are 
interspersed  between  the  banks  of  lava,  and  we  several 
times  during  the  day  came  upon  considerable  tracts  of 
corn-land.  The  outside  lim  answers  better  to  the  des- 
cription given  of  the  whole  in  Murray's  ^  Syria ' ;  but  even 
here  the  language  must  be  modified,  and  ^  mound '  must 


54  BASHAN. 

be  read  everywhere  for  *  hill,'  and  ^  crack/  or  *  depression/ 
for  ^  ravine.' 

We  met  with  no  dangerous  chai-acters  during  the  day  to 
justify  the  bad  name  the  district  has  acquired — ^perhaps  the 
rain  kept  them  all  at  home  ;  but  so  easy  and  unad venturous 
was  our  progress  that  we  had  some  difficulty  in  realising 
the  fact  that,  with  the  exception  of  Burckhardt  and  Mr. 
Cyril  Oraham,  we  were  the  only  European  travellers  who 
had  succeeded  in  penetrating  into  the  interior  of  the 
Lejah.  As  we  neared  the  edge  of  the  *  black  country ' 
the  scenery  became  wildly  picturesque;  several  villages 
occupied  the  knolls  before  us,  their  dark  towers  at  a 
distance  reminding  us  forcibly  of  feudal  castles.  Tucker 
and  I  turned  off,  under  Khasim's  escort,  to  visit  Zebireh, 
the  nearest  of  these  villages,  and  found  it  entirely  deserted. 
There  were  plenty  of  old  stone  houses,  and  in  one  was  an 
upstairs-room,  with  a  fireplace,  and  stone  window-shutters. 
The  roofs  were  in  some  instances  supported  by  quaint 
pillars,  primitively  constructed  of  stones  of  unequal  sizes, 
piled,  like  cheeses,  one  on  another.  The  manner  of  build- 
ing the  interior  walls  in  these  strange  dwellings  is  very 
curious.  A  framework  is  first  constructed  of  large  stones, 
with  square  pigeon-holes  left  between  them ;  these  are  gene- 
rally filled  up,  but  sometimes  left  open,  when  they  look 
not  unlike  wine-bins.  We  found  here  a  stable  with  a 
stone  manger,  and  also  saw  an  inscription  recording  the 
erection  of  some  monument,  *  on  account  of  the  safety  of 
the  Lord  Autocrator  Severus  Antoninus  Csesar,  Bri- 
tannicus.'  Having  finished  our  explorations  we  remounted, 
and,  leaving  behind  us  several  mounds  covered  with  towers, 
rode  through  a  sort  of  pass  or  gap  in  the  high  bank  of 
lava  which  runs  along  this  side  of  the  Lejah.  In  about 
an  hour  we  reached  Khubab,  situated  on  the  edge  of  the 
plain,  where  our  companions  had  arrived  before  us.   They 


A   RUSH  TO   ARMS.  55 

amused  us  with  the  account  of  a  row,  of  which  they  had 
been  the  cause,  and  which  had  only  just  terminated.  The 
history  of  the  dispute  was  rather  complicated.  The  Sheikh, 
it  seems,  indicated  to  Elias  a  plot  of  ground  where  our 
tents  might  be  pitched,  and  his  son,  a  lad  of  seventeen, 
came  down  to  superintend  the  proceedings.  The  owner 
of  the  ground  and  his  child,  a  mere  boy,  then  appeared  on 
the  scene,  and  objected  to  the  arrangement  which  had 
been  made ;  the  boy,  by  some  remark,  angered  the  Sheikh's 
son,  and  got  his  ears  boxed ;  whereupon  the  outraged 
father  knocked  the  Sheikh's  son  down,  and  made  his  nose 
bleed.  There  was  an  immediate  mel^ ;  swords  were 
drawn,  the  whole  village  ran  together — the  men  with  their 
weapons,  and  the  women  screaming :  but  the  culprit  very 
discreetly  put  an  end  to  the  disturbance  by  running  away, 
and  leaving  the  Sheikh  to  swear  revenge  at  his  leisure. 

The  people  of  Eliubab  call  themselves  Christians,  but 
they  are  dirtier*  and  less  well-to-do  than  their  Druse 
neighbours.  The  women,  who  go  about  unveiled,  are 
peculiarly  hideous. 

March  26th. — When  we  awoke  in  ther  morning,  we  found 
ourselves  v?rapt  in  a  dense  fog,  but  the  mist  soon  cleared 
off,  and  the  day  became  brilliantly  fine.  Our  encampment 
was  surrounded  by  most  peculiar-looking  hillocks  of  lava, 
which,  together  with  house-walls  of  huge  stones,  formed  a 
characteristic  specimen  of  Lejah  scenery.  A  few  minutes' 
ride  brought  us  out  on  the  level  plain.  On  one  side  the  snowy 
mass  of  Hermon  rose  grandly  over  nearer  green  ranges ; 
on  the  other  was  the  rugged  coast  of  the  ^  black  country,' 
which  here  juts  out  in  a  promontory,  and  there  recedes, 
leaving  room  for  a  grassy  bay.  At  the  cross-roads  oppo- 
site Shaarah,  we  met  a  man  riding  furiously  from  the 
plain.  He  shouted  to  us,  in  passing,  that  his  mule  had 
just  been  stolen  by  a  party  of  Arabs,  and  galloped  on  into 


66  BASHAN. 

the  village.  We  halted  on  a  rocky  projecting  brow,  and 
then  waited  to  lunch,  and  see  what  would  happen  next. 
While  Tucker  demolished  the  sardines,  Williams,  who 
even  in  ordinary  life  was  a  martial  personage,  and  Elias, 
who  was  anxious  to  acquire  the  reputation  of  a  fire-eater, 
exchanged  the  shot  in  their  guns  for  bullets^  with  a  mili- 
tary air  which  must  have  struck  terror  into  the  heart  of 
the  boldest  Bedouin.  No  opportunity,  however,  occurred 
for  the  display  of  valour,  and  we  had  to  content  ourselves 
with  the  amusement  of  watching  the  shepherds  driving  in 
their  flocks  hurriedly  &om  the  plain,  and  the  villagers 
issuing  forth  in  twos  and  threes — some  mounted,  some  on 
foot — in  quest  of  the  marauders.  Of  course  nothing  was 
seen  of  them,  and  we  continued,  our  march  in  peace. 

The  track  to  Mismiyeh,  which  is  well  within  the  borders 
of  the  Lejah,  leads  over  very  rugged  ground.  Our  horses 
scrambled  over  great  solidified  waves  of  the  lava-flood, 
divided  by  little  grass-grown  hollows,  in  one  of  which  Elias 
surprised  and  slew  a  partridge.  We  determined  to  pitch 
our  tents  just  outside  the  Roman  temple,  which  is  the 
most  striking  ruin  of  Mismiyeh.  There  was  not  sufficient 
depth  of  soil  to  drive  in  the  pegs,  but  we  tied  the  ropes  to 
big  stones,  which,  answered  all  the  purpose.  Our  ride 
had  not  been  long,  and  we  had  plenty  of  daylight  left  to 
explore  the  place.  The  little  temple  was  the  most  perfect 
we  had  yet  seen ;  part  of  the  portico  was  destroyed,  and 
the  central  dome  had  lallen  in,  otherwise  it  was  in  good 
preservation.  On  either  side  of  the  doorway  were  niches 
for  statues,  under  which  were  carved  the  words  *  Pax '  and 
*  Eisis  *  (sic).  The  building  was  square  externally,  but  a  sort 
of  chancel  was  formed  in  the  interior  by  shutting  off  a 
small  vestry  for  the  priests,  and  a  staircase  which  leads 
on  to  the  roof.  The  dome  was  supported  on  four  columns, 
which  are  all  standing,  and  the  walls  were  decorated  with 


MISMIYEH.  67 

statues.  The  most  striking  feature  of  the  interior  was, 
however,  a  beautiful  fanshell  apse,  in  very  good  preserva- 
tion. From  the  roof  there  is  a  wonderful  panorama,  more 
extensive,  but  resembling  the  view  already  described :  on 
one  side  the  green  plain  and  hills,  backed  by  snowy 
Hermon ;  on  the  other,  the  black  Lejah,  the  most  deso- 
late portion  of  which  is  here  visible,  with  the  summits  of 
Jebel  BLauran  rising  in  the  distance  behind  TeU-Ahmar, 
which  was  easily  distinguished  by  its  white  *  wely.' 

A  further  ramble  was  rewarded  by  several  discoveries,  the 
most  important  being  a  large  house  in  the  Bashan  style  of 
architecture,  but  evidently  of  Koman  date.  An  arched 
gateway  led  into  a  courtyard,  from  which  staircases  gave 
access  to  the  first-floor,  which  contained  one  noble  room — 
the  ceiling  decorated  with  a  fine  cornice,  and  supported 
by  an  arch  eighteen  feet  in  height,  from,  the  floor  to  the 
keystone.  The  fact  of  all  the  roofs  being  constructed  of 
stone  renders  some  such  Bupport  necessary  in  every  room 
of  too  large  size,  to  admit  of  the  heavy  blocks  stretching 
from  wall  to  wall.  We  noticed  curious  recesses  in  the 
walls,  which  may  perhaps  have  been  intended  for  the  Pe- 
nates. This  fine  building  may  have  been  the  residence  of 
the  Boman  governors  of  Trachonitis,  as  Mismiyeh  was,  we 
know,  the  capital  town  of  that  province.  We  saw  some 
well-executed  stone-carving,  such  as  twisted  snakes,  and 
a  double  Greek  pattern,  and  encountered  numerous  stone 
doors.  We  found  one  pair  eight  feet  high,  and  saw  six  in 
situ  in  one  courtyard.  All  that  we  observed  confirmed  our 
opinion  that  the  stone  houses — which,  from  their  peculiar 
construction,  and  especially  from  the  rude  massiveness  of 
their  stone  doors,  window-shutters,  and  rafters,  have  been 
represented  as  of  extreme  antiquity — are  of  comparatively 
modem  date.  Surely  no  one  without  a  preconceived 
theory  to  support,  will  maintain  that  where  every  public 


58  BASHAN. 

building — whether  temple,  theatre,  triumphal  arch,  tomb, 
or  church — is  of  Roman  or  later  date,  the  private  dwellings 
are,  as  a  rule,  1,800  years  older. 

In  the  larger  buildings,  the  frequent  use  of  the  arch,  and 
the  introduction  of  classical  ornamentation,  are  of  them- 
selves proofs  of  a  late  origin,  and  our  wish  to  recognise  in 
the  smaller  and  ruder  houses  the  dwelling-places  of  a  pre- 
historic race,  was  frequently  frustrated  by  the  discovery  of 
friezes  and  classical  inscriptions  built  into  their  interior 
walls.  The  stone  doors  and  shutters,  which  attract  the 
attention  of  all  travellers,  are  characteristic  of  the  country, 
not  of  any  period  in  its  history,  and  we  found  them  alike 
in  the  Boman  temple,  the  Christian  church,  and  the  Sara^ 
cenic  mosque.  The  finest  specimens,  notably  that  of  which 
a  picture  is  given  in  Mr.  Porter's  book,  are  covered  vrith 
Soman  ornaments. 

The  Pentateuch  tells  us  that  Bashan  was  once  inhabited 
by  giants,  and  it  has  been  argued  that  the  size  of  the  stone 
houses  shows  that  they  were  built  by  a  race  of  abnormal 
stature,  and  proves  the  date  of  their  construction.  In 
reality,  however,  the  private  dwellings  are  the  reverse  of 
gigantic,  and  the  rooms  they  contain  are  to  modem  ideas 
smalL  K  gates  are  sometimes  found  eight  feet  in  height, 
they  are  (as  far  as  we  saw)  always  in  positions  where  ani- 
mals as  well  as  men  had  occasion  to  pass  under  them,  and 
those  found  at  the  present  day  in  similar  situations  are 
of  the  same  dimensions.  The  stone  doors  guarding  the  en- 
trances to  the  vineyards  around  Tabreez  are  larger  and 
more  massive  than  any  we  saw  in  Bashan. 

The  extent  and  number  of  the  ruined  towns  are  used  as 
an  argument  that  they  are  the  remains  of  the  sixty  fenced 
cities  conquered  and  destroyed  by  Moses.  Travellers  are 
too  apt  to  forget  that  Syria  formed  a  portion  of  the  Chris- 
tian Empire  of  Constantinople,  and  that  in  the  fifth  century 


THE   WRATH   OP   THE   BEYS.  59 

there  were  thirty-three  Christian  bishops  in  the  Hauran 
alone.  The  population  which  built  the  churches  and  the 
theatreswas  quite  numerous  enough  to  have  filled  the  ruined 
houses  which  now  remain.  If  any  buildings  older  than  our 
era  still  exist  in  the  Hauran,  they  are,  I  believe,  exceptions, 
and  do  not  disprove  our  conclusion  that  a  false  impression 
is  given  by  describing  the  ruins  of  Bozrah,  Eunawat, 
Suweideh,  and  Shuhba — in  fact,  those  of  Roman  provin- 
cial towns — as  ^  Giant  Cities.'  It  is  not  of  Og  but  of  the 
Antonines,  not  of  the  Israelitish  but  of  the  Saracenic 
conquest,  that  most  modem  travellers  in  the  Hauran  will 
be  reminded. 

Mismiyeh  is  inhabited,  at  present,  by  a  few  families  of 
beggarly  Sulut  Arabs,  who  have  so  far  abandoned  the  tra- 
ditions of  their  race  as  to  condescend  to  live  within  walls. 
They  are  great  rascals,  and  much  addicted  to  petty  thieving. 
Our  muleteers  got  into  a  dispute  with  some  of  them  during 
the  afternoon,  whereupon  Elias,  on  his  ovni  responsibility, 
ordered  the  arrest  of  tbe  leading  villager,  and  proclaimed 
that  ^  the  Beys  willed  he  should  be  carried  to  Damascus.' 
The  elders  came  down  to  represent  the  youth  of  the 
culprit,  and  to  beg  Elias  to  deprecate  the  vnrath  of  the 
Beys.  No  reference  was  in  reality  made  to  us,  but  the 
prisoner  was  released,  with  an  admonition  to  the  natives 
in  general,  that  they  had  better  be  careful  for  the  future, 
as  a  word  from  us  to  the  Pasha  would  ensure  their  ruin. 

Ma/rch  27th. — We  now  finally  turned  our  backs  on  the 
Lejah,  and  prepared  to  cross  the  strip  of  ^debateable 
ground '  which  lay  between  us  and  Deir  Ali,  the  fix)ntier 
village  of  the  Damascus  district.  The  plain  across  which 
we  rode  was  for  some  miles  covered  with  scrub,  bright 
yellow  flowers,  and  green  herbage,  on  which  immense 
flocks  of  sheep  and  camels  were  feeding.  We  passed  close 
to  the  tents,  seventeen  in  number,  of  their  owners.    A  tail 


60  BASHAN. 

spear  stuck  into  the  ground  before  the  door  marked  the 
abode  of  the  Sheikh.  He  came  out  and  entreated  us  to 
alight  and  partake  of  coffee,  and  when  we  excused  ourselves, 
brought  out  a  huge  bowl  of  milk.  It  was  rather  a  relief 
to  meet  with  so  pleasant  a  reception,  as  the  Sulut  tribe,  to 
which  these  Arabs  belonged,  bears  anything  but  a  good 
character. 

The  ground  grew  more  stony  and  barren  as  we  ap- 
proached the  foot  of  Jebel  Mania ;  we  noticed  curious  rows 
of  artificial  pools,  made  to  catch  and  retain  the  waters 
of  the  rainy  season,  but  now  dry  and  fallen  into  decay. 
The  first  building  we  came  to  was  an  isolated  farmhouse, 
built  like  a  fortress,  with  strong  iron  gates  to  resist  the 
marauders  of  the  neighbouring  desert.  Another  hour's 
ride  over  a  bleak  plateau,  during  which  Hermon,  now 
comparatively  close  at  hand,  towered  grandly  before  our 
eyes,  brought  us  to  Deir  AJi,  a  large  and  prosperous  Druse 
village.  The  neighbourhood  is  rendered  fertile  by  abun- 
dant springs,  and  for  the  first  time  since  leaving  Bethlehem, 
we  saw  the  fig,  the  vine,  the  olive,  and  the  poplar  growing 
luxuriantly. 

We  lunched  under  the  shade  of  some  gnarled  old  olives, 
finer  specimens  of  the  tree  than  are  usually  seen  in  Syria. 
The  further  ride  to  Kesweh  was  round  the  bare  flanks  of 
Jebel  Mania,  and  had  nothing  but  the  distant  view  of 
Hermon  to  make  it  interesting.  We  saw,  away  to  our  lefb, 
the  great  caravanserai  called  the  Elian  Denun,  where  the 
Mecca  caravan  rests  on  the  first  night  after  its  departure 
from  Damascus.  As  we  neared  the  Nahr-el-Awaj  (the 
ancient  Pharpar),  the  white  clean-looking  houses  and 
minarets  of  Kesweh  appeared  on  its  farther  bank ;  the 
stream  itself  was  hidden  in  the  thicket  of  fiiiit-trees  which 
lines  its  course.  The  river  was  crossed  by  a  stone  bridge; 
but  so  swoUen  were  the  waters,  owing  to  the  recent  rains. 


KESWEH.  61 

and  the  melting  of  tlie  snows  on  Hermon,  that  they 
touched  the  keystones  of  the  arches,  and  looked  as  if  they 
would  soon  carry  away  the  whole  fabric.  Stalls  for  the 
sale  of  provisions  and  saddlery  showed  that  we  had 
entered  a  district  where  there  was  some  security  for  pro- 
perty and  attempt  at  trade ;  a  paved  piece  of  road  bore 
witness  to  the  fact  of  our  being  on  an  old  highway  of  com- 
merce ;  while  the  recently-erected  telegraph-vme  between 
Damascus  and  El-Mezarib,  the  capital  of  the  Hauran, 
proved  that  the  Turks  are  not  altogether  blind  to  the 
advantages  to  be  reaped  from  the  adoption  of  the  dis- 
coveries of  Western  science.  Kesweh  is  a  neat  but  unre- 
markable Syrian  village;  our  tents  were  pitched  on  a 
grassy  brow  before  the  place,  near  some  turban-capped 
tombstones.  Tucker  and  Williams  went  in  pursuit  of 
birds  down  the  banks  of  the  Pharpar,  but  came  back 
empty-handed.  One  of  Eliasim's  pistols  was  stolen  in  the 
night,  but  he  got  it  back  next  morning  by  paying  a  small 
'  backsheesh '  to  the  thief,  or  (as  he  preferred  to  call  him- 
self) finder,  of  the  missing  weapon. 

MojTch  28th. — A  broad  beaten  track  runs  over  the  hilla 
which  separate  the  basins  of  the  Pharpar  and  Abana. 
Winding  through  a  gap  in  the  range,  we  came  in  sight  of 
Dareiya,  a  tovTn  some  miles  west  of  Damascus,  surrounded 
by  orchards.  After  tumiug  to  the  right  we  crossed  a  low 
spur  of  Jebel-el-Aswad,  and  caught  our  first  view  of  the 
city,  spread  out  across  the  plain,  backed  by  a  mass  of 
verdure,  and  the  tawny  slopes  of  Anti-Lebanon.  The 
scene,  though  very  striking,  did  not  impress  us  so  much 
as  similar  views  of  Cairo.  Damascus  is  singularly  poor 
in  the  minarets  which  lend  such  a  charm  to  its  Egyptian 
rival.  While  cantering  carelessly  over  the  flat  expanse 
between  us  and  the  gates,  the  sudden  failure  of  a  stirrup- 
leather  gave  me  a  tumble  upon  the  hard  groimd.    Luckily 


62  BASHAN. 

I  did  not  hurt  myself  seriotislj,  but  neuralgia,  a  stiff 
back,  and  barked  knuckles  served  to  moderate  any  feelings 
of  triumph  at  the  successfdl  conclusion  of  our  novel  journey 
from  Jerusalem,  and  the  opening  of  what  may  prove  a  new 
route  for  Eastern  travellers,  and  I  needed  Fran9ois'  prompt 
consolation,  *Ah,  monsieur,  vous  fiiites  bien  de  suivre 
Pexemple  de  St.  Paul,*  to  reconcile  me  to  the  complication 
of  bodily  ills.  A  review  of  Turkish  troops  was  going  on 
outside  the  city;  the  cavalry  were  remarkably  well- 
mounted. 

After  passing  the  gates  we  rode  along  the  shabby  bou- 
levard which  traverses  the  suburbs,  and  forms  an  entrance 
to  Damascus.  Leaving  the  bazaars  on  our  right,  we  at 
last  reached  Demetrius  Hotel,  a  pleasant  house  built,  in  the 
usual  Damascene  style,  round  a  courtyard  full  of  lemon- 
trees. 

We  remained  a  week  in  these  comfortable  quarters. 
Here  our  connection  vrith  Khasim  ended  as  satisfactorily 
as  it  had  begun,  for  he  was  more  than  contented  vriith  the 
'  backsheesh '  we  gave  him.  Our  Trans- Jordanic  trip  added 
only  5?.  a-head  to  the  usual  dragomanic  expenses,  which, 
considering  where  we  had  been,  and  what  we  had  seen, 
was  a  veiy  small  sum. 


DAMASCUS.  63 


CHAPTEE  ni. 

LEBAKON  AKD  THE  LEVANT. 

Damascus — ^Bazaars  and  Gfardens — An  Enthusiastic  Freemason — Snow- 
storm on  Anti-Lebanon — Baalbec — An  Alpine  Walk — ^The  Cedars — 
Return  to  Beyrout — Cyprus  and  Khodes — Smyrna — The  Valley  of  the 
Maeander — ^Ezcarations  at  Ephesus — Constantinople — The  Persian  Ehan 
— May-Day  at  the  Sweet  Waters — ^Preparations  for  the  Caucasus. 

These  are  very  few  sights  in  Damascus,  unless  one  con- 
siders as  such  the  window  from  which  St.  Paul  was  let 
down,  and  the  tomb  of  the  legendary  porter  who  aided 
his  escape.  The  Great  Mosque  is  fine,  but  not  so  interest- 
ing as  that  at  Jerusalem.  The  commercial  aspect  of  the 
place  is  the  most  striking ;  the  bazaars,  the  rough  wooden 
roofs  of  which  rather  spoil  their  otherwise  rich  effect,  are 
very  extensive ;  and  though  Manchester  goods  meet  you  at 
every  turn,  the  ways  and  manners  of  the  people  are  purely 
Eastern.  It  is  a  very  seductive  place  to  go  shopping  in ; 
Williams  once  spent  a  whole  day  in  a  silk-mercer's  den  in 
the  Great  Khan,  and  came  home  in  the  evening  followed 
by  a  man  laden  with  gorgeous  scarves.  Our  fnend,  despite 
the  time  and  bargaining  his  purchases  had  cost  him,  was 
troubled  with  an  uneasy  suspicion  that,  to  use  his  own 
expression,  *the  old  fellow  had  regidarly  waggled  him.' 
The  gardens  round  the  town  are  rather  orchards  than 
gardens  in  our  sense  of  the  word ;  but  at  this  season,  with 
the  finiit-trees  in  full  blossom,  they  were  very  beautiful, 


64  LEBANON  AND  THE    LEVANT. 

and  it  was  amusing  on  Sunday  to  stroll  amongst  the 
numerous  companies  of  citizens,  sitting  in  circles,  chatting 
and  telling  stories  under  the  shade.  The  fashionable 
ladies'  dress  is  a  white  sheet,  and  a  coloured  handkerchief 
over  the  head ;  but  the  infantine  population  swell  about  in 
scarlet  and  gold  tunics,  and  all  manner  of  *  pomps  and 
vanities.' 

At  thft  table-d'hSte  there  was  much  discussion  about  the 
expedition  which  the  Pasha  was  said  to  be  about  to  make 
to  Palmyra ;  he  proposed  to  spend  a  month  in  the  trip, 
and  to  take  with  him  a  small  army,  including  artillery. 
Some  of  the  travellers  at  our  hotel  were  staying  on  in  order 
to  avail  themselves  of  the  opportunity  of  going  in  his 
suite ;  among  them  was  an  elderly  American,  a  professor 
at  one  of  the  universities  in  the  Western  States,  who  in 
his  quality  of  a  Freemason  had  already  called  on  the  Pasha 
and  Abd-el-Kiider,  both  of  whom  are  brothers  of  the  craft, 
and  now  announced  his  purpose  of  ^  planting  the  banner 
of  Freemasonry  on  the  ruins  of  Paltnyra.'  He  was  unfor- 
tunately prevented  from  fulfilling  his  mission  by  the  Pasha 
abandoning  his  design.  Before  leaving  Damascus  we  had 
the  pleasure  of  seeing  Mr.  Rogers,  the  English  Consul- 
General,  to  whom  we  handed  over  our  letter  to  the  Pasha, 
which  we  had  not  found  an  opportunity  of  presenting, 
with  a  request  that  he  would  use  it  in  securing  for  Khasim 
promotion  to  a  higher  grade,  in  which  we  felt  sure  he 
would  not  dishonour  our  recommendation.  Mr.  Rogers 
kindly  showed  me  some  of  the  most  valuable  trays  of  his 
fine  collection  of  Eastern  coins,  and  also  a  coat-of-mail 
taken  by  the  Pasha  from  an  Adwan  Sheikh  in  the  previous 
year,  and  a  noble  sword,  which,  as  was  recorded  by  an 
inscription  in  gold  letters  on  its  blade,  had  belonged  to  a 
son  of  the  famous  Saladin. 

The  last  days  of  our  stay  at  Damascus  were  so  cold  that 


A  WALK   IN   THE   SNOW. 

'  we'liad  fires  in  our  room.  We  left  on  April  3 
.  travelled  in  tliree  days  along  the  ordinary  track  to  ] 
The  general  character  of  the  Anti-Lebanon  scenerj 
but  there  is  one  charming  spot,  Ashrafiyeh,  perl 
most  picturesque  in  Syria,  and  the  glen  of  the  A 
pretty  for  some  way  above  it.  The  weather  was  c 
misty;  the  night  we  slept  at  Surghaya,  it  first  blew  j 
snowed,  and  when  we  woke  in  the  morning  we  fo 
ground  frozen  hard  outside  the  tent.  In  such  wet 
were  glad  to  take,  shelter  in  a  clean  room  at  '. 
instead  of  tenting,  as  is  the  custom,  in  the  temple  ei 
About  midday  the  snowstorm,  through  which 
ridden  all  the  morning,  passed  over,  and  we  ha 
afbemoon  to  visit  the  ruins.  Magnificent  as  is  the  e 
superb  as  are  the  architectural  details  of  the  great 
,we  agreed  in  thinking  the  general  effect  less  in: 
than  that  of  £!amac. 

The  morning  of  April  6th  was  bright  and  fro 
.the  chain  of  .the  Lebanon  shone  out  clear  on  the 
side  of  the  Plain  of  Coele-Syria.  Its  summits  are 
•and  lack  character,  but  the  effect  of  the  long  stiom 
against  the  blue  sky  was  very  grand.  Tucker  and 
would  never  do  to  let  a  little  snow  prevent  our : 
the  Cedars,  and  we  therefore  arranged  to  divide  c 
into  three  sections.  Williams  and  Cross  started, 
boy  who  owned  their  horses,  to  ride  down  the  ^ 
Shetaw^ra  (pronounced  *  Stora '),  the  halfway  st 
the  DamsLSCus-Beyrout  road;  our  baggage-tr 
ordered  to  Shelfa,  a  village  at  the  foot  of  Lebano] 
Tucker  and  I,  with  Elias  and  Pran9ois,  set  out  for . 
the  highest  hamlet  (5,317  feet)  on  the  eastern  sic 
Cedars'  Pass.  After  crossing  the  plain  we  rode  u] 
ascent,  clothed  with  dwarf  oaks.  Even  below  Ain 
flnow  lay  deeply  in  the  hollows,  and  gave  our  hor 


66  LEBANON  AND  THE  LEVANT. 

trouble.  We  slept  in  a  cottage,  inhabited  by  a  family  of 
about  a  dozen  peasants,  and  an  unknown  but  very  appre- 
ciable quantity  of  insects. 

Ain-Aat  is  situated  on  a  shelf  immediately  under  the 
backbone  of  the  Lebanon.     We  started  for  the  Cedars  at 
6  A.M.,  with  Pran9ois  and  a  villager,  leaving  Elias  behind.  It 
took  one  hour  and  forty  minutes'  sharp  climbing,  up  a  steep 
but  perfectly  e^^y  snow-guUy,  to  reach  the  ridge  (7,624 
feet),  whence  we  looked  down  on  the  Mediterranean.    So  far 
the  snow  had  been  in  excellent  order,  but  on  the  western 
side  of  the  pass,  the  horseshoe  of  mountains,  within  the 
hollow  of  which  the  grove  of  Cedars  stands,  had  shut  out  the 
sun,  and  prevented  the  surface  from  ever  melting  sufficiently 
to  form  a  hard  crust  by  regelation.   Gretting  down  to  and  up 
again  from  the  grove  was  one  of  the  heaviest  three  hours' 
work  I  ever  did.    We  sank  at  every  step  up  to  our  knees. 
The  trees  are  in  very  flourishing  condition,  and  well  repay 
a  visit,  especially  when  seen,  as  we  saw  them,  with  the  snow 
resting  on  their  broad-spreading  branches,  the  only  green 
things  visible  on  the  great  white  slopes.    The  little  chapel 
was  almost  buried  in  snow^  and  it  was  only  just  possible  to 
get  in  at  the  door.    On  our  return  we  met  several  parties  of 
villagers,  who  seemed  equally  surprised  and  pleased  to  see 
travellers  capable  of  walking  over  a  mountain-pass.    We 
were  back  again  at  Ain-Aat  at  12.15  p.m.,  and  in  the  after- 
noon rode  down  to  Shelfa,  a  prettily-situated  hamlet  at  the 
foot  of  the  mountains.    There  we  found  our  tents  pitched, 
and  a  good  dinner  cooking.  I  have  described  our  visit  to  the 
Cedars,  in  order  to  show  that  there  is  often  no  difficulty,  to 
men  of  active  habits,  in  making  the  excursion  when  the 
dragomanic  world  of  Damascus  pronounces  it  quite  impos- 
sible. 

A  day's  ride  through  Ccele-Syria  brought  us  to  Mual- 
lakah,  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Zahleh,  the  most  flourishing 


A   dragoman's   history.  67 

Maronite  town  in  the  Lebanon;  there  we  slept,  and  on 
the  following  day  cantered  along  a  fine  road,  constructed 
bj  a  French  company,  which  crosses  Lebanon  at  a  height 
of  5,176  feet.     The  scenery  reminded  me,  at  times,  of  the 
lower  parts  of  the  Italian  Tyrol.     Beyrout  was  hot  and 
hazy ;  we  never  saw  the  summits  of  Lebanon  dear  till  the 
last  day  of  our  stay,  but  then  the  bay  was  really  beautifuL 
Elisis  during  the  last  three  days,  when  Tucker  and 
I  were  alone  with  him,  grew  more  confidential  than  was 
his  wont,  and  treated  us  to  the  story  of  his  early  life.    A 
native  of  a  village  in  the  Lebanon,  he  had  been  lefb  an  orphan 
at  an  early  age.     His  father  had  been  a  man  of  some 
property,  and  the  riches  Elias  inherited  enabled  him  to 
indulge  to  the  full  his  boyish  taste  for  smart  dress.    To 
this  he  soon  added  a  passion  for  donkeys,  and  gave  laxge' 
sums  for  animals  of  the  best  breed  and  most  showy  ap- 
pearance.   A  fall,  caused  by  the  stumbling  of  one  of  his 
favourites,  disgusted  him  with  donkeys,  and  he  took  to 
horseflesh.     The  pursuit  of  this  last  &i,ncy  had  brought 
him  almost  to  the  end  of  his  inheritance,  when  he  was 
aroused  to  a  sense  of  his  position  by  the  sneers  of  his 
former  friends.     EUas  sold  his  stud,  and  started  afresh, 
until,  having  amassed  sufficient  capital  to  set  up  as  a 
dragoman,  his  love  of  horses  and  out-of-door  life  led  h\m 
into  that  profession.     He  had  now,  he  told  us,  succeeded 
in  buying  back  most  of  the  property  he  had  sold  in  his 
youth,  and  was  a  well-to-do  man. 

Having  paid  off  Elias,  and  arranged  for  the  despatch  of 
our  Damascus  purchases,  to  which  we  added  some  speci- 
mens of  the  work  of  the  Lebanon,  we  embarked  on  board 
an  Austrian  steamer,  and  finally  bade  adieu  to  Syria,  on 
the  afternoon  of  Easter  Sunday,  April  12th. 

Next  morning  we  landed  at  Lamaca,  the  chief  port  of 

Cyprus — a  dull  ugly  town,  where  we  failed  in  our  search 

p2 


68  LEBANON  AND  THE   LEVANT, 

for  good  wine  or  pretty  faces.  Many  of  these  classical 
places  have  nothing  left  but  their  associations.  The  west 
end  of  the  island  and  the  Bay  of  Baffa  (the  ancient  Paphos) 
are  well  seen  from  the  sea.  On  Wednesday  morning  we 
had  two  hours  in  which  to  run  over  Rhodes,  a  most  interest- 
ing old  town,  full  of  monuments  of  the  Knights  Templars. 
Sailing  on  all  day  under  the  lee  of  the  Isles  of  Greece,  we 
found  ourselves  at  sunrise  on  Thursday  steaming  up  the 
Gulf  of  Smyrna ;  the  shores  looked  fresh  and  beautiful,  but 
the  water  was  sadly  discoloured  by  the  recent  floods  of  the 
Hermus. 

Smyrna,  like  Alexandria,  brings  into  vivid  contrast  the 
East  and  West ;  Paris  fashions  and  bearded  camels  come 
into  constant  collision  in  its  narrow  streets.  At  the  theatre 
a  French  company  was  performing  *  La  Belle  Hfl^ne.' 
Homer's  ghost  can  scarcely  view  with  pleasure  his  heroine 
in  the  hands  of  Offenbach.  Our  stay  at  Smyrna — where, 
owing  to  the  kindness  of  friends,  we  enjoyed  most  agree* 
able  society,  and  the  comforts  of  an  .English  home — ^was  a 
very  pleasant  interlude  between  the  mild  roughing  of 
Syria,  and  the  real  hardships  of  travel  in  the  Caucasian 
provinces  of  Russia. 

Ionia,  into  the  interior  of  which  we  made  two  short 
excursions,  is  as  far  superior  to  Syria  in  scenery  as  Kent  is 
to  the  Pays-de-Calais.  Our  first  expedition  was  to  Aidin, 
a  large  and  flourishing  town,  charmingly  situated  under  the 
hills  on  the  north  side  of  the  vaUey  of  the  Mseander,  over 
which  there  is  a  lovely  view  from  the  neighbouring  heights. 

Next  day  we  returned  by  rail  to  Balachik,  and  rode 
thence  to  the  site  of  Magnesia  ad  Meeandrum:  the  broken 
columns  of  a  temple  are  the  principal  remains,  and  there 
was  nothing  to  compare  with  what  we  had  recently  seen  in 
Bashan ;  but  the  ride  was  delightful,  amongst  tall  olives 
and  fig  gardens.     Our  classical  recollections  were  aroused 


EXCAVATIONS  AT  EPHESUS.  69 

by  meeting  a  boy  playing  the  primitive  Pan-pipe,  and  by 
seeing  a  pretty  fountain  at  which  a  bevy  of  nymphs  were 
bathing.  We  got  back  to  Aiasalook  (the  station  nearest 
Ephesus)  in  the  evening,  and  were  kindly  housed  and 
entertained  by  Mr.  Wood,  who  has  spent  some  time  in  ex- 
cavating the  ruins,  with  a  view  to  the  discovery  of  the  site 
of  the  famous  Temple  of  Diana.  Before  his  excavations, 
the  ruins  of  Ephesus  lefb  above-ground  had  suffered  too 
severely,  from  time  and  violence,  to  be  of  great  interest  to 
anyone  but  an  antiquarian ;  much,  however,  has  now  been 
brought  to  light.  The  theatre,  the  scene  of  the  goldsmiths' 
riot,  is  the  most  striking  sight ;  the  stage  has  been  laid 
bare,  and  many  inscriptions  have  been  found.  Some  of  the 
recently  excavated  marbles  are  as  white  as  on  the  day  they 
were  cut.  The  city  was  built  mostly  of  brick,  encased  in 
various  marbles,  of  which  fragments  strew  the  ground  in 
every  direction.  Mr.  Wood  has  also  discovered  a  small 
building,  which,  on  the  strength  of  some  Christian  symbols, 
he  rather  boldly  calls  the  Tomb  of  St.  Luke ;  a  marble  basin 
of  noble  dimensions,  and  a  sort  of '  Yia  Sacra '  outside  the 
walls,  lined  with  sarcophagi  and  funeral  inscriptions.  When 
we  were  there  he  believed  himself  to  have  settled,  vrithin 
a  square  mile,  the  position  of  the  Temple  of  Diana^  and 
seemed  quite  confident  of  turning  it  up  sooner  or  later. 

Our  second  excursion  was  to  Manissa  (Magnesia  ad  Sipy- 
lum),  a  fine  Turkish  town  built  on  a  steep  slope  at  the  base 
of  the  splendid  crags  of  Mount  Sipylus.  We  drove  on  several 
miles,  in  a  Turkish  cart,  to  see  the  statue  called  Niobe,  a 
rude  figure,  probably  of  Egyptian  origin,  carved  on  the  face 
of  a  cliff.  On  the  way  we  had  a  distant  view  of  a  fine  snowy 
mountain,  Boz-Dagh,  far  away  in  the  interior,  beyond 
Sardis.     We  returned  to  Smyrna  the  same  evening. 

On  Saturday,  April  25th,  we  left  Smyrna  on  board  an 
Austrian    steamer   for  Constantinople.     The   boat   was 


■     I       >IM   I 


70  LEBANON  AND   THE  LEVANT. 

crowded  with.  Bussian  pilgrims  returning  from  Jerusalem, 
who  occupied  themselves  alternately  by  eating  salt-fish 
and  fighting";  hideous  females,  perpetually  smoking  cigar- 
ettes, were  strewn  all  over  the  deck,  and  from  time  to 
time  neglected  infants  raised  dismal  howls.  Happily  the 
sea  was  calm;  what  the  state  of  things  must  have  been 
during  the  run  from  Alexandria  to  Bhodes,  when  the  vessel 
encountered  a  severe  gale,  it  was  easy  but  not  pleasant  to 
imagine.  The  poor  pilgrims  had  been  terribly  frightened 
during  the  storm,  but  were  now  rather  elated,  as  they 
attributed  their  safeiy  to  the  prompt  piety  of  a  man  who 
threw  into  the  waves  a  taper  lit  from  a  candle  kindled  in 
its  turn  from  the  sacred  fire  in  the  Church  of  the  Holy 
Sepulchre  on  Easter  Sunday. 

We  entered  Constantinople  at  sunrise  on  Monday,  and 
admired,  as  everyone  must,  the  enchanting  aspect  of  the 
city  from  the  water.    We  spent  six  days  at  the  Hotel  de 
Byzance,  during  which  we  were  fully  occupied  in  sight- 
seeing, and  making  the  necessary  arrangements  for  our 
journey  in  the  Caucasus.  Of  course  we  did  the  *  lions' ;  were 
first  hurried  round  the  mosques,  perhaps  the  most  tiring 
day's  sightseeing  in  the  world ;  and  afterwards  paid  a  quiet 
visit,  by  means  of  *  backsheesh,'  to  Santa  Sophia,  which 
more  than  realised  our  expectations.     While  admiring 
the  effect  of  the  vast  unbroken  area  under  the  dome,  even 
when  merely  dotted  with  the  bright  dresses  of  Turkish 
worshippers,  we  could  form  some  faint  idea  of  what  must 
have  been  the  splendour  of  a  state  ceremonial  of  the  By- 
zantine Court  in  this  noble  basilica.     The  old  walls,  the 
seven  towers,  the  burial-ground  at  Scutari,  all  had  to  be 
visited. 

One  evening  we  were  recommended  by  a  gentleman, 
staying  at  our  hotel,  to  visit  the  Persian  Khan,  to  hear 
the  wailing  for  Hassan.    We  found  a  long  room  deco- 


.A  «•  ^  ^^—  I 


MAY-DAY  AT  THB  SWEET  WATERS.  71 

rated  with  buffets  covered  with  ornamental  glass  and 
candlesticks.  On  the  floor  squatted  at  least  700  high- 
capped  Persians;  in  the  centre  of  the  room  was  a  low 
pulpit,  from  which  a  MoUah  recited  the  piteous  tale  of 
Hassan's  death.  When  he  came  to  an  exciting  point  in 
the  story,  the  audience  wept  and  beat  their  breasts,  or  'oh- 
oh'd '  their  indignation  against  the  murderers,  like  an  elec- 
tion mob  hooting  an  unpopular  candidate.  Excellent 
coff^  and  sherbet  was  handed  round  to  everyone,  in- 
cluding our  own  party^  who  had  been  given  seats  in  a 
recess  commanding  a  full  view  of  all  the  proceedings,  and 
were  treated  in  every  way  with  great  civility. 

Our  row  in  a  caique  to  the  Sweet  Waters  was  well- 
timed*  May-day,  the  date  when  the  picnics  at  the  Sweet 
Waters  usually  begin,  fell  on  Friday,  the  Mahommedan 
day  of  rest,  so  that  the  concourse  was  gi'eater  than  usual. 
Our  caique  jostled  a  crowd  of  boats  filled  with  Turkish 
ladies,  plump  little  dolls  who  make  themselves  &ir  to 
look  upon  by  adding  artificial  brightness  to  their  eyes,  and 
wearing  transparent  veils  over  the  lower  part  of  their 
faces.  Their  balloon-shaped  dresses,  mostly  of  the  brightest 
colours,  present  a  charming  covp-cPcsU  when  massed  in 
groups.  The  Sultan  has  a  villa  up  at  the  Sweet  Waters, 
which  consist  of  a  stream  (about  the  size  of  the  Cherwell 
at  Oxford)  with  a  drive  on  one  side,  and  gardens  on  the 
other.  The  place  is  just  pretty  enough  to  make  it  an  ex- 
cuse for  a  promenade,  whether  by  road  or  water.  There 
were  many  European  carriages  and  Parisian  costumes  on 
the  drive,  the  latter  far  more  extravagant  than  anything 
the  East  can  produce. 

We  were  lucky  in  meeting  at  Constantinople  Mr.  Gifford 
Palgrave,  H.B.M.'s  Consul  at  Trebizonde,  who  was  on  his 
way  home.  When  consul  at  Soukhoum-Kal^  Mr.  Palgrave 
made  several  journeys  into   the  interior,  and  had  been 


72  •      LEBANON   AND   THE   LEVANT. 

twice  to  the  foot  of  Elbruz;  he  was  consequently  able  to 
give  us  much  valuable  information  as  to  the  character  of 
the  country.  But  the  most  important  aid  we  received 
was  the  recommendation  of  a  Mingrelian  servant,  who 
would  act  as  our  interpreter.  The  need  of  some  such 
attendant,  and  the  difficulty  of  finding  one  who  would  fall 
in  with  our  plans,  had  long  been  a  weight  on  our  minds. 
The  man  Mr.  Palgrave  suggested  to  us  was  a  native  of 
Sugdidi,  between  Kutais  and  Soukhoum-Kal^,  and  had 
been  employed  as  cook  in  the  consular  household  at 
Trebizonde.  He  spoke  French,  Eussian,  Turkish,  and 
Georgian, 

I  presented,  at  the  Eussian  Embassy,  the  letters  of  in- 
troduction which  had  been  forwarded  to  me  from  England, 
and  received  from  Greneral  Ignatiefif  much  politeness.  He 
gave  me  letters  to  Count  Leverschoff,  the  Governor  of 
Mingrelia^  and  to  a  gentleman  attached  to.  the  Grand 
Ducal  court  at  Tiflis.  We  were  warned  that  the  country 
was  still  in  an  undeveloped  state,  and  that  we  should  find 
rough  roads  and  meagre  fare,  but  were  also  told  that  the 
worst  danger  to  which  we  should  be  exposed  from  the 
mountaineers  was  having  a  horse  stolen. 

On-  May  1st  we  parted  from  our  friends  Cross  and 
Williams,  who  sailed  for  Italy ;  •  and  on  the  following 
afternoon  embarked,  with  all  our  traps,  on  board  a 
Eussian  screw-steamer,  which  looked  very  small  in  con- 
trast to  the  large  boats  in  which  we  had  voyaged  of  late. 
She  was  named  the  *  Gounib,'  after  the  scene  of  Schamyl's 
last  resistance  and  capture  in  Daghestan.  The  boat  was 
built  more  for  freight  than  passengers,  and  the  accommo- 
dation was  very  scanty.  Tucker  and  I  were  lucky,  however, 
in  getting  a  comfortable  cabin  to  ourselves,  owing  to  the 
courtesy  of  a  Eussian  officer,  who  exchanged  his  berth 
with  one  of  us.  The  deck  was  littered  with  all  sorts  of  odd 


EASZWAKD   HOl  73 

passengers,  bound  for  the  ports  of  Asia  Minor.  The  way 
in  which  an  Eastern,  immediately  he  gets  on  board-ship, 
spreads  his  rug,  wraps  himself  round  in  his  cloak,  and  re- 
signs himself  to  destiny  and  seasickness,  is  worthy  of  all 
praise.  The  vessel  was  delayed  so  long  before  the  mails 
came  on  board,  that  it  was  dark  before  we  got  under 
weigh,  and  we  saw  but  little  of  the  beauties  of  the 
Bosphorus.  Passing  the  lighthouse  which  marks  the 
entrance  to  the  Black  Sea,  we  watched  the  steamer's  head 
swing  sharply  round  to  the  eastward,  and  felt  that  we  had 
abandoned  the  ordinary  track  of  travellers,  and  that  a 
new  stage  in  our  wanderings  had  indeed  been  entered  upon, 


TRAKSCAUOASIA. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

TEAKSOAtrOASIA.* 

On  the  Black  Sea — Trebizonde — Kival  Interpreters — Paul — Bunning  a 
Muck — Eatoum — The  Caucasus  in  Sight — Landing  at  Poti — The  Bion 
Steamer — ^A  DriTe  in  the  Dark — ^Kutais — Count  Leverschoff— Splendid . 
Costumes — Mingrelian  Princesses — Azaleas — The  Valley  of  the  Quirili — 
A  Post  Station — ^The  Georgian  Plains — Underground  Villages — Gk)ri — 
First  View  of  Kazbek— Tiflis— The  Hotel  d'Europe— The  Streets- 
Silver  and  Fur  Bazaars  —  Maps — German  Savants  —  The  Botanical 
Garden — The  Opera — Officialism  Bampant — ^A  False  Frenchwoman — 
A  Paradodnaia — ^The  Postal  System  in  Bussia. 

The  weather  on  the  Black  Sea  was  cold  «nd  rainy,  but 
the  water  was  never  really  rough.  Half  our  fellow-pas- 
sengers were  lEnglish — an  engineer  with  his  wife,  and  two 
young  men  going  out  to  aid  in  the  construction  of  the 
Poti-Tiflis  railroad.  Our  other  companions  were  a  young 
Russian  colonel,  a  little  man  who  talked  familiarly  and 
affectionately  of  *  votre  John  Stuart  Jffill,^  on  the  strength 
of  his  having  read  his  ^  Utilitarianism,'  and  some  Armenian 
merchants,  more  or  less  uninteresting. 

On  Monday  we  called  at  Samsoun,  and  on  Tuesday 
afbemoon  arrived  at  Trebizonde,  where  the  boat  remains 
twenty-six  hours  to  take  in  cargo.  The  weather  was  vile, 
the  rain  falling  like  a  waterspout,  and  we  were  glad  to 
escape  from  the  rather  rough  and  monotonous  Russian 
fare,  and  the  uneasy  roll  of  the  steamer,  to  a  nice  little  hotel 
on  shore,  kept  by  an  Italian,  who  had  served  in  the  Sardinian 

*  The  political  division  of  the  Bussian  empire  ruled  hj  the  Viceroy  of  the 
Caucasus,  extends  from  the  Manytch,  on  the  north,  to  the  Araxes  on  the  south. 
The  provinces  on  the  north  of  the  great  Caucasian  chain  are  called  Ois-Caucasia, 
those  on  the  south  Trans-Caucasia.  Bussians  and  natiyes  of  the  country  never 
restrict  the  name  Caucasus  to  the  mountain-range. 


RIVAL   INTERPRETERS.  75 

army  during  the  campaign  in  the  Crimea.  No  sooner 
had  we  acquainted  the  landlord  with  our  plan  of  travel, 
than  a  candidate  for  the  post  of  interpreter  appeared  in  a 
good-looking  man,  showily  dressed  in  Caucasian  costume. 
His  acquirements,  by  his  own  account,  were  marvellous ; 
he  spoke  perfectly  at  least  seven  languages,  including 
English.  We  thought  he  was  too  much  of  a  dandy  to 
appreciate  such  rough  work  as  we  meant  to  undertake, 
and  were  moreover  unpleasantly  reminded  of  dragomanic 
tyranny  by  his  way  of  saying,  *  I  am  sure  you  cannot  get 
on  without  me ;  you  will  be  very  sorry  if  you  do  not  take 
me.'  We  fortunately  had  an  easy  answer  to  his  impor- 
tunities in  our  previous  understanding  with  Mr.  Palgrave, 
and  we  started  off  through  the  rain  to  find  the  dragoman 
of  the  English  Consulate,  for  whom  we  had  letters.  He  at 
once  sent  for  the  Mingi*elian  whom  Mr.  Palgrave  had  re- 
commended to  us.  He  was  a  handy-looking  fellow,  young 
and  active,  dressed  in  ordinary  European  clothes,  and  he 
was  quite  ready  to  accept  such  an  engagement  as  we 
offered  him ;  so  a  bargain  was  at  once  struck  with  him, 
and  he  promised  to  be  ready  to  start  on  the  following  day. 
On  Wednesday  we  had  a  pleasant  walk  to  an  old  Byzan- 
tine church,  mutilated  and  whitewashed  by  liie  Turks, 
outside  the  town.  Trebizonde  itself  is  a  picturesque 
place.  Its  houses  rise  in  terraces  above  the  water,  on  the 
lower  slope  of  a  bold  green  hill,  backed  by  finely-shaped, 
well-wooded  mountains.  The  modem  town  has  spread 
along  the  coast  on  either  side  of  the  old  fortress,  the  walls 
of  which  are  still  perfect ;  two  ravines,  which  cut  it  off  from 
the  adjacent  slopes,  make  it  a  very  fine  and  strong  position. 
The  great  article  of  manufacture  seems  to  be  wooden 
cradles,  very  gorgeously  decorated ;  we  saw  store  after 
store  full  of  them.  The  bazaars  are  well  stocked  with 
game,  among  which  we  noticed  some  woodcocks,  from  the 
neighbouring  hills.    When  we  were  there  the  place  was 


76  TRANSCAUCASIA. 

very  quiet,  but  shortly  afterwards  its  peace  was  disturbed 
by  a  tragic  incident.  A  Mussulman  fanatic,  either  mad 
or  drunk,  took  it  into  his  head  to  run-a-muck  through  the 
bazaar,  and  so  far  succeeded  in  his  horrid  purpose,  as  to 
stab  no  less  than  seventeen  people  before  he  was  himself 
waylaid  and  despatched  with  a  poleaxe  by  a  discreet 
butcher.  Eleven  of  his  victims  died  of  their  wounds. 
These  outbursts  of  fanaticism  sometimes  occur  among  a 
Mahommedan  population,  but  they  are  quite  exceptional 
phenomena,  and  as  a  rule  your  person  and  pocket  are  far 
safer  in  an  Eastern  city  than  they  are  in  London. 

In  the  afternoon  we  climbed  by  a  steep  path  to  the  Flag- 
staflf  Hill,  behind  the  town,  which  commands  a  very  good 
view  of  the  coast  and  the  mountains  of  the  interior.  The 
brow  was  covered  with  the  most  wonderfully  smooth  turf, 
like  an  English  lawn.  On  the  way  down  we  turned  aside 
to  visit  a  very  curious  rock-hewn  church,  decorated  with 
frescoes,  some  apparently  of  great  antiquity.  We  left  at 
6  P.M.,  and  at  daybreak  next  morning  were  in  the  harbour 
of  Batoum.  The  weather  had  cleared  during  the  night, 
and,  to  our  great  surprise  and  delight,  we  found  ourselves 
for  the  first  time  in  the  presence  of  the  *  mystic  mountain 
range  ^  of  which  we  had  talked  and  thought  so  much,  but 
of  which  we  as  yet  practically  knew  so  little. 

As  we  looked  from  the  deck  of  the  steamer,  our  eyes 
foUowed  a  long  line  of  snowy  peaks,  the  most  western  of 
which  rose  directly  above  the  waters,  like  a  ship  at  sea 
when  only  its  white  sails  are  visible.  Next  to  these  came 
a  cluster  of  fine  rocky  peaks,  which  reminded  me  of  the 
Dolomites  as  seen  from  Venice ;  in  the  centre  the  outlines 
were  tamer,  but  on  the  east  was  a  very  massive  group,  pro- 
bably Eoschtantau  and  its  neighbours,  which  stand  midway 
between  Elbruz  and  Xazbek.  The  harbour  of  Batoum  is 
the  only  safe  one  at  this  end  of  the  Black   Sea;  it  is 


BATOUM.  77 

formed  by  a  long  spit  of  sand,  which  runs  out  in  a  northerly 
direction,  and  the  bay  faces  the  north-west.  The  town  stands 
on  low  ground,  and  is  poorly  built ;  it  is  only  some  twelve 
miles    distant  from   the  frontier  fort  of  St.   Nicholas, 
and  it  seems  curious  that,  in  some  of  their  accessions  of 
territory  on  this  side,  the  Eussians  have  not  managed  to 
obtain  possession  of  the  harbour,  which  would  be  of  great 
value  to  them.   Poti,  at  present  the  port  of  Trans-Caucasia, 
is  a  most  miserable  place,  and  the  bar  of  the  Bion  is  so 
shallow  that  no  vessel  of  any  size  can  cross  it.     All  the 
Black  Sea  steamers,  consequently,  either  stop  at  Batoum 
or  SoukhoTmi-£al6,  and  transfer  their  cargoes  into  smal- 
ler boats.      The   steamer  which  ought  to  have  met  us 
had  not  arrived,  and  we  were  compelled  to  spend  the 
whole  day  at  Batoum.    At  a  brook  in  the  outskirts  of  the 
town  we  found  several  men  engaged  in  capturing  frogs  : 
no  sooner  were  the  victims  secured,  than  they  were  be- 
headed and  skinned;   a  revolting  spectacle  from  which 
we  quickly  fled.     Crossing,  by  a  ruinous  wooden  causeway, 
the  swamp  which  intervenes  between  Batoum  and  the 
lulls,   we  climbed  up  a  projecting  knoll   covered  with 
rhododendrons  in  blossom,  and  crowned  with  beech-trees. 
The  vistas  of  sea  and  coast  through  the  trees^were  exqui- 
site.   A  hamlet  built  on  the  hillside  reminded  me  of  the 
pictures  of   South   Sea  island  habitations;   it  consisted 
of  huts  built  of  rough  interlaced  wood  plastered  with  mud, 
surrounded  by  quaint  little  square  boxes  raised  upon  poles, 
and  looking  like  young  chdiets  starting  for  a  stilt-race.    I 
believe  they  are  used  for  storing  com.    We  made  pro- 
visional arrangements  with  the  Russian  consul  at  Batoum 
to  remedy  our  Mingrelian  servant's  want  of  a  passport, 
and  were  much  ai9used  by  His  name,  which  proved  to  be 
Bakoua  Pipia.  Pipia  was  the  family  title — Bakoua  a  term  of 
endearment  which  he  had  acquired  as  a  boy.  We  preferred 


76  TRANSCAUCASIA. 

to  call  liim  by  the  more  familiar  appellation  of  *  Paul/  by 
which  he  had  gone  when  in  European  service.  In  the 
afternoon  time  hung  heavy  on  our  hands,  and,  having 
exhausted  our  last  *  Saturday  Review,*  we  had  recourse 
to  a  oaf 6^  kept  by  a  Frenchman,  which  offered  some  bad 
beer  and  an  atrocious  billiard-table. 

Towards  evening  the  little  steamer  arrived  from  Poti. 
It  had  been  detained  to  aid  a  vesseL  laden  with  the  iron- 
work  for  the  railroad  bridges,  which  had  stuck  on  the  bar. 
No  certain  intelligence  could  be  obtained  as  to  when  we 
should  start,  and  we  were  finally  allowed  to  turn  in  with 
the  impression  that  we  were  not  to  be  disturbed  till  the 
morning.  The  captain,  however,  changed  his  mind,  and  at 
midnight  we  were  awoke,  and  told  to  go  on  board  the  small 
boat.  Meantime,  Franfois  and  Paul,  in  preference  to 
sleeping  on  the  deck,  had  gone  ashore  to  seek  quarters  in 
the  town,  and  no  one  knew  where  they  were  to  be  found. 
We  ^ent  off  men  to  go  the  round  of  the  lodging-houses, 
and  promenaded  the  quay  ourselves,  shouting  their  names 
and  *  jodelling '  at  the  top  of  our  voices.  All  was  in  vain — no 
trace  or  sign  of  the  truants  was  to  be  had.  The  little 
vessel  got  its  steam  up,  and  we  were  obliged  to  go  on 
board.  Of  course  we  complained  loudly  to  the  officers  of 
their  mismanagement  in  first  giving  notice  that  we  should 
not  leave  till  morning,  and  then  routing  everybody  out  of 
bed  at  midnight.  While  we  were  venting  our  indignation, 
the  ropes  were  cast  loose,  and  the  paddlewheels  began  to 
revolve;  we  had  actually  gone  a  hundred  yards  when 
a  movement  took  place  on  the  shore,  and  the  burly 
outline  of  Fran9ois  was  seen  standing  like  Lord  Ullen, 
when  left  lamenting  on  the  waterside  by  his  heartless 
daughter.  I  made  a  last  energetic  appeal;  the  engines 
were  stopped,  and  the  lost  ones  were  brought  off  rapidly 
in  a  boat.     Pran9ois  nearly  tumbled  into  the  water  in  his 


THE  CAUCASUS  IN  SIGHT.  79 

hurry  to  get  on  deck,  and  both  men  looked,  as  they  well 
might,  very  sheepish  and  ashamed  of  themselves. 

It  was  aboat  2  a.m.  when  we  got  off  from  Batoum.  The 
cold  soon  drove  us  below,  but  we  came  on  deck  again  at 
sunrise,  so  as  to  lose  nothing  of  our  approach  to  the  Cau- 
casian shores.  The  steamer  was  running  quickly  across  the 
fine  bay  which  forms  the  eastern  end  of  the  Black  Sea ; 
behind  us  lay  the  ranges  on  the  Turkish  frontier,  grand 
masses  rising  to  8,000  or  10,000  feet  in  height,  carrying  at 
this  early  season,  and  after  an  unusually  inclement  winter, 
a  great  quantity  of  snow,  but  still  clearly  mountains  of 
the  second  class ;  before  us  rose  ridge  behind  ridge,  until 
behind  and  above  them  all  towered  the  peaks  of  the  central 
chain  of  the  Caucasus,  scarcely  telling  their  height  to  the 
eye  uninitiated  in  mountain  mysteries,  but  showing  us 
plainly  enough  that  we  were  in  the  presence  of  an  array 
of  giants,  armed  in  like  panoply  of  cliff  and  ice  to  those 
we  had  so  often  encountered  in  the  Alps.  One  great  dome 
of  snow,  which  conspicuously  overtopped  all  its  neighbours, 
we  hailed  at  the  time  as  Elbruz,  and  I  do  not  doubt  we 
were  right  in  our  recognition  of  the  monarch.  On  our 
right  lay  a  low  wooded  coast,  the  basin  of  the  Bion ;  a 
group  of  twelve  vessels  anchored  about  a  mile  off  shore, 
and  a  tall  lighthouse  marked  the  mouth  of  the  river  and 
the  position  of  PotL  The  meeting  of  the  fresh  water  and 
the  salt  was  most  curious;  the  Bion  is  at  all  times  a 
muddy  stream,  and  the  line  between  the  brown  and  blue 
water  was  marked  sharply  enough  to  be  visible  frrom  a 
considerable  distance.  The  town  lies  about  half  a  mile  up 
the  Bion,  on  the  southern  bank ;  we  ran  up  alongside  a 
wharf,  close  to  the  custom-house — a  long  log-building, 
where  our  luggage  was  very  leniently  examined,  and  our 
passports  were  taken  away;  we  were  told  they  should  be  sent 
after  us  to  Tiflis.     There  is  no  restriction  against  bringiog 


80  TRANSCAUCASIA. 

arms  into  the  country.  We  had  expected,  on  landing  in 
Eussia,  to  be  struck,  after  the  universal  untidiness  of  the 
East,  by  the  appearance  of  a  well-dressed  European  sol- 
diery, but,  to  our  surprise,  the  men  we  saw  were  clad  in 
worn-out  grey  suits,  and  were  physically  of  the  most 
wretched  appearance.  Partly  owing  to  the  exertions  of 
our  companion  the  Colonel,  the  departure  of  the  river-boat 
np  the  Rion  was  delayed  until  passengers  from  the 
Black  Sea  steamer  could  get  on  board,  and  after  a  stay 
of  only  an  honr  and  a  half,  we  left  Poti  behind  us ;  I  shall 
therefore  i)Ostpone  its  description  till  our  return,  and  at 
once  carry  my  readers  up  the  country*  ^ 

The  voyage  up  the  Rion  from  Poti  to  Orpiri  occupies 
eight  hours,  and  on  a  clear  day,  such  as  we  were  favoured 
with,  is  most  beautiful.  The  stream,  a  short  distance  above 
its  mouth,  makes  several  bends,  each  of  which  discloses  a 
charming  vista.  Thick  forests  clothe  the  banks ;  and  over 
the  trees  glitter  the  peaks  of  *  the  frosty  Caucasus.'  One 
summit,  exactly  at  the  end  of  a  long  reach  of  the  river, 
strikingly  resembled  in  form  the  snowy  side  of  the  Grivola. 
On  the  right  we  had  always  the  Turkish  ranges,  which 
sink  in  beautifrilly-shaped  lulls  into  the  basin  of  the  Rion. 
Eor  the  first  four  hours  of  our  voyage,  both  shores  were 
covered  with  primeval  forests,  and  the  country  was  low 
and  swampy,  the  only  signs  of  life  being  a  few  log-hnts, 
or  a  Mingrelian  horseman  riding  past.  One  man  raced 
the  boat  for  some  way,  and  we  had  time  to  remark  his 
costume.  The  most  striking  part  was  the  long  frock*coat, 
the  breast  of  which  was  decorated  with  a  row  of  cartridge- 
pouches  ;  and  the  ^  baschlik,'  or  Caucasian  hood,  with  two 
long  tails,  used  to  wind  round  the  neck  in  case  of  wet ; 
this,  with  the  big  sheepskin  cloak  common  to  the  country, 
forms  a  most  efficient  protection  even  against  an  Eastern 
deluge.     The  stream,  averaging  from  200.  to  800  yards  in 


THE   RION.  81 

width,  now  bent  to  the  south ;  the  forest  became  thinner, 
and  the  country  more  inhabited,  while  orchards,  fields  of 
Indian-corn,  and  clusters  of  cottages,  appeared  on  either 
shore.  The  lowest  outposts  of  the  southern  hills  here  ad- 
vance dose  to  the  Rion,  above  which  they  rise  in  steep  banks 
covered  with  fine  timber.  Our  Utile  steamer  contained  a 
good  saloon,  where  an  excellent  dinner  was  served  to  a 
very  mixed  company.  The  most  marked  characters  at  table 
were  a  French  baron,  absent  from  home  for  political 
reasons,  who  had  been  down  to  Poti  to  fetch  two  of  Ban- 
some's  ploughs-  for  his  farm  near  Kutais,  a  fat  roaring 
Mynheer- van-Dunk  of  an  official,  connected  with  the  post- 
service,  and  the  captain  of  the  steamboat,  a  little  scrap  of 
a  man,  who  did  his  best  to  be  polite  to  a  very  rough 
English  engineer,  incapable  of  speaking  any  language  but 
his  ovra,  and  labouring  under  the  suspicion,  for  which  he 
probably  had  sufficient  grounds  in  Russia,  that  everyone 
was  taking  advantage  of  him  in  consequence.  The 
amiable  captain  paid  severely  for  his  politeness  to  our 
countryman,  in  being  compelled  to  swallow  a  tumbler  of 
porter,  as  a  proof  of  the  sincerity  of  his  sentiments. 

Before  reaching  Orpiri,  we  noticed,  on  the  hillsides,  the 
road  which  runs  to  Port  St.  Nicholas  through  the  district 
of  the  Guriel,  celebrated  for  the  personal  beauty  and 
picturesque  costumes  of  its  inhabitants.  The  stream  was 
exceedingly  rapid,  and  the  steamer  had  some  difficulty  in 
cutting  her  way  past  the  mouth  of  the  Zenes  Squali  or 
Horse  River,  the  largest  affluent  of  the  Rion.  The  villages 
of  Orpiri  and  Meran  stand  on  either  bank.  The  former — a 
cluster  of  wooden  cottages,  at  one  of  which  food  and  even 
beds  may  be  obtained — is  on  the  right  or  northern  banks 
At  Nakolakevi,  in  this  neighbourhood,  some  antiquaries 
believe  that  they  have  discovered  the  site  of  the  ancient 
Aea,  whence  Jason  carried  off  the  golden  fleece.     Those 

G 


82  TRANSCAUCASIA. 

who  wish  to  read  a  rationalised  view  of  the  early  legends 
of  Colchis,  and  whose  feelings  can  support  the  intelligence 
that  Jason  was,  in  fact,  only  the  first  man  who  made  a  rush 
to  the  diggings,  and  that  Circe  was  Medea's  niece,  a  very 
discreet  young  lady,  who  put  Ulysses'  companions  into  the 
police-station  because  they  got  tipsy  and  riotous,  but  let 
them  out  on  the  entreaty  of  their  insinuating  and  polished 
commander — ^will  find  all  this,  and  much  really  valuable  in- 
formation besides,  in  Dubois  de  Montpereux's  *  Caucase.' 
Meran  is  the  place  of  banishment  of  the  Scoptsi,  a  religious 
sect  whose  tenets  enjoin  self-mutilation.  There  is  no 
mistaking  the  appearance  of  one  of  these  men,  who  have 
all  the  look  of  loutish  old  boys ;  their  faces  resemble  one 
another,  and  change  little  with  years.  They  are  said  to 
make  honest  and  intelligent  servants,  a  rare  article  in  Min- 
grelia,  if  one  may  believe  the  universal  report  of  European 
residents. 

Our  voyage  ended  at  Orpiri,  whence  a  diligence  starts  in 
correspondence  with  the  steamer  to  carry  on  the  passen- 
gers ;  but  all  the  places  had  been  secured  by  telegraph,  and 
not  being  provided  with  a  *podorojno,'  or  order  for  post- 
horses,  we  were  obliged  to  seek  some  other  mode  of  getting 
on  to  Kutais.  A  peasant's  waggon  was  the  only  resource ; 
in  this  we  packed  ourselves  and  luggage,  and  at  6.30  p.m. 
started  to  gain  our  first  experience  of  road-travelling  in 
Caucasia.  Our  vehicle  was  a  long  and  narrow  trough 
covered  with  a  tilt,  and  had  no  springs  or  seat.  It  was 
drawn  by  three  horses,  which  however  did  not  drag  it  at  any 
great  pace.  The  road  was  level  and  straight,  and  as  we 
jolted  slowly  along,  bumping  over  every  stone,  we  all  in 
turn  felt  aweary,  and  wished  we  were  in  bed.  Sometimes 
we  passed  a  village  where  the  lights  showed  that  the  people 
were  still  awake,  and  we  often  met  waggons,  similar  to  our 
own,  journeying  in  the  opposite  direction ;  between  times 


KUTAIS.  83 

there  wad  nothing  to  divert  onr  minds  from  the  perpetual 
croaking  of  the  frogs,  till,  like  Dionysus  in  the  play,  we 
wished  they  and  their  *  quack '  might  perish  together,  by  a 
fate  similar  to  that  we  had  seen  inflicted  on  their  brethren 
at  Batoum. 

Halfway,  one  of  our  horses  had  to  be  shod ;  this  caused 
further  delay,  and  we  only  reached  Kutais  at  1.80  a.m. 
A  slight  descent  leads  into  the  town.  Passing  a  barrier, 
and  crossing  the  Bion  by  a  fine  bridge,  beneath  which  its 
waters  gleamed  in  the  moonlight,  we  drove  up  to  the  Hdtel 
de  Prance,  where,  after  our  week^s  confinement  on  board 
steamers,  we  were  glad  to  install  ourselves  in  a  large  and 
comfortable  bedroom. 

We  spent  the  next  two  days  at  Kutais  in  roaming 
about,  and  making  arrangements  for  the  drive  to  Tiflis, 
where  we  were  anxious  to  arrive  as  soon  as  possible,  in 
order  to  catch  some  of  the  officials  and  residents  to  whom 
we  had  letters,  before  they  all  dispersed  for  the  summer 
to  the  numerous  retreats  in  the  hiOs,  whither  they  fly 
from  the  heat  of  the  Caucasian  capital. 

The  situation  of  Kutais,  which  stands  at  the  point  where 
the  Bion  emerges  from  the  hills  into  the  plain,  is  extremely 
pretty,  although  the  low  wooded  eminences  which  surround 
the  place  shut  out  entirely  the  snowy  chain.  The  view  look- 
ing southwards,  across  the  Bion  basin  to  the  ranges  on  the 
Turkish  frontier  is,  in  a  favourable  light,  very  beautiftil. 
The  main  part  of  the  town,  including  the  bazaar  and  the 
public  gardens,  is  on  a  level  space  on  the  left  bank  of 
the  river.  The  houses  are  all  new  within  the  last  twenty, 
and  most  of  them  within  the  last  ten,  years ;  the  streets 
are  straight,  and  the  shops,  fitted  up  with  glass  windows 
in  the  European  style,  are  under  arcades.  The  principal 
native  articles  of  manufacture  seemed  to  be  silver-work 
(of  which,   however,  the  display  is  inferior  to  that  at 

o2 


84  TRANSCAUCASIA. 

Tiflis),  jet,  and  quaint-coloured  chests.  A  hatter's  shop  at 
Xutais  is  wonderfully  brilliant,  owing  to  the  variety  and 
gorgeous  character  of  the  headpieces  worn  by  the  inhabi- 
tants. The  shops  seemed  well  stored  with  European 
goods,  from  saddles  and  flasks,  to  opera-glasses,  goloshes, 
and  cosmetics.  We  failed,  however,  to  discover  any  of 
the  famous  Circassian  cream,  of  which  Western  ladies  have 
been  known  to  request  Mends  starting  for  the  Caucasus 
to  bring  back  a  store,  in  the  belief  (I  need  scarcely  say 
unfounded)  that  it  is  really  a  product  of  this  country. 

We  walked  out  to  a  botanical  garden  which  has  been 
established  on  the  opposite  bank  of  the  river :  here  there 
are  shady  walks  and  a  greenhouse;  and  although  its 
present  attractions  are  limited,  it  will  no  doubt  develope 
into  a  very  intieresting  collection  of  the  trees  and  plants  of 
the  country.  In  the  afternoon  I  called  on  Coxm^t  Lever- 
schoff,  the  Governor  of  Mingrelia,  who  was  living  in  a 
prettily-situated  villa  outside  the  town,  on  the  Tiflis 
road.  He  was  most  polite,  promised  a  *  crown-podorojno,* 
and  advised  us  to  send  to  the  postmaster  and  order  a  car- 
riage. The  postmaster  kept  Paul  for  two  hours,  and  then 
sent  him  away  with  a  message  that  he  had  no  carriages  at 
home,  and  that  we  must  wait  for  the  next  diligence,  which 
did  not  leave  for  four  days.  Unaccustomed  as  yet  to  the 
difficulties  attendant  on  all  negotiations  with  post-officials, 
and  deluding  ourselves  with  the  belief  that  a  *  crown-podo- 
rojno '  was  treated  with  some  respect  in  Kussia,  we  were 
both  surprised  and  indignant  at  the  reply,  and  I  returned 
to  the  Governor,  to  inform  him  of  the  result  of  my  inquiries. 
I  was  shown  into  a  room  most  gorgeously  decorated  in 
Eastern  style ;  the  vdndows,  still  unfinished,  were  draped 
with  Persian  carpets,  hung  as  tapestry ;  others  were  spread 
over  divans,  and  one  of  the  walls  was  decorated  with  a 
trophy  of  Caucasian  arms,  from  amongst  which  a  chamois- 


'**'*—' '     I         ■■  ■  — *-  -■    ■    .~»;^-->.-.     —...-■ 


■I  —  '^ 


THE   CAUCASIAN   PASSES.  85 

head  looked  down  on  us.  I  was  promised  that  the  hitch  at 
the  post  should,  if  possible,  be  got  over,  and  received  some 
usefiil  information  as  to  the  mountain  districts.  The 
Ck)unt  told  me  that  we  should  find  the  Ossetes  (a  tribe 
living  on  the  north  side  of  the  chain,  in  the  valleys  round 
Kazbek)  the  '  gentlemen '  of  the  Caucasus ;  and  that 
Suanetia,  the  name  given  to  the  upper  valley  of  the  Ingur, 
was  the  most  primitive  and,  in  some  ways,  most  interesting 
district  in  his  government.  He  spoke  in  the  most  glowing 
terms  of  the  scenery  of  those  parts  of  the  coxmtry  which 
he  had  visited,  and  of  the  defile  of  the  Dariel,  the  beauties 
and  horrors  of  which  the  Russians  are  all  fond  of  descant- 
ing on.  From  a  postal  map,  which  he  kindly  got  but,  I 
discovered  that  seven  passes  were  laid  down  over  the  main 
chain  between  Kazbek  and  Elbruz.  One  of  these,  the  Ma- 
misson — running  up  the  valley  of  the  Bion  to  its  eastern 
source,  and  thence  descending  along  the  Ardon  to  Ardonsk, 
near  Yladikaf  kaz — ^is  a  well-known  route,  and  a  caniage- 
road  has  been  traced,  though  never  completed,  over  it.  Of 
the  other  six,  some  at  least,  as  we  found  afterwards,  are  mere 
glacier-passes,  used  only  by  the  people  of  the  country.  All 
this  information  was  quite  new  to  us,  for,  during  the  short 
time  at  our  disposal  before  leaving  England,  we  had  not 
succeeded  in  finding  any  account  of  the  country  between 
Kazbek  and  Elbruz,  and  our  programme  of  ascending  those 
two  mountains,  and  following  out  the  main  chain  between 
.them,  was  based  only  on  the  German  maps  of  the  Caucasus 
which  we  could  obtain  in  London. 

On  Sunday  morning  the  postmaster  came  to  call  on  us, 
to  say  that  he  had  one  carriage  at  home,  which  should  be 
prepared  if  we  liked  it.  We  went  to  inspect  the  proposed 
vehicle — along-bodied  trap,  something  like  a  Swiss  *  berg- 
Y^agen,'  which  had  been  disused  for  some  time,  and  left  out 
in  the  rain ;  consequently  a  small  hay-crop  was  growing 


86  TRANSCAUCASU. 

inside.  The  framework,  however,  seemed  solid,  and  the 
necessary  repairs  being  promised,  we  settled  to  start  next 
morning.  This  was  the  first  illustration  we  had  of  the 
extraordinary  mismanagement  of  the  post-yards  in  the 
Caucasian  provinces.  Every  carriage,  as  soon  as  it  gets 
out  of  order  or  often  before,  instead  of  being  repaired  or 
kept  under  a  shed,  is  left  to  rot  and  to  fall  pieces  in  the 
open  air. 

We  amused  ourselves  during  the  day  by  strolling 
about  the  outskirts  of  the  place,  which  consist  of  detached 
dwellings  surrounded  by  little  gardens,  and  entered  a 
Bussian  church,  where  the  singing  was  remarkably  good. 
On  the  hill  on  the  western  bank  of  the  Bion,  behind 
the  great  hospital  which  overlooks  the  town,  are  the  ruins 
of  a  very  fine  Byzantine  cathedral.  Pour  lofby  pillars, 
still  remaining,  once  supported  a  central  dome.  The 
porch,  now  fitted  up  as  a  chapel,  is  very  curious,  and  we 
remarked  the  ram's  head  introduced  into  its  sculpture, 
as  though  the  legend  of  the  Crolden  Fleece  had  been 
known  and  appreciated  by  its  builders.  In  the  graveyard 
near  is  a  very  pretty  monument,  a  small  bronze  angel 
raised  on  a  pedestal. 

On  our  return  we  found  Count  Simonivitch,  the  police- 
master  of  the  district,  looking  out  for  us :  he  proposed  to 
make  arrangements  for  horses  for  our  use  on  the  morrow, 
if  we  wished  to  visit  the  old  monastery  of  Gelathi,  some 
five  miles  distant ;  but  we  were  anxious  to  arrive  at  Tiflis, 
and  declined  his  kind  offer.  The  Count  proved  an  ex- 
ceedingly pleasant  acquaintance,  and  amused  us  much 
by  his  account  of  journeys  in  which  he  had  accompanied 
Sir  Henry  Bawlinson,  for  whose  knowledge  of  languages 
he  seemed  to  entertain  a  great  respect.  Amongst  other 
anecdotes,  he  told  us  of  a  curious  superstition  stdll  preva- 
lent in  Armenia.     In  that  country  (I  have  forgotten  the 


MINGRELIAN   HEADPIECES.  87 

locality)  is  a  well  named  after  St.  John,  which  is  venerated 
even  by  the  Kurds.  When  the  locusts  eat  up  the  land,  a 
child — too  young  to  have  committed  any  deadly  sin — is 
let  down  into  the  well,  and  brings  up  a  cup  of  water.  The 
holy  water  thus  procured  is  scattered  over  the  fields,  and 
in  a  few  hours  a  miraculous  flight  of  birds  arrives,  and 
eats  up  the  locusts. 

The  public  garden  at  Kutais  is  a  plot  of  ground  the 
size  of  a  large  London  square,  with  walks  down  the 
middle,  and  a  few  trees,  but  no  flowers;  it  is,  in  fact, 
like  an  unkempt  piece  of  the  Regent's  Park.  On  Sun- 
day afternoons,  when  a  military  band  plays,  it  becomes 
a  most  amusing  promenade,  owing  to  the  immense  variety 
of  costumes  which  meet  the  eye.  In  this  part  of  the 
world  fashion  runs  wUd  in  head-dresses.  There  is  first 
the  hideous  Russian  military  cap,  white,  bulging  at  the 
top,  and  much  like  a  baker's,  which  some  of  the  in- 
habitants have  the  bad  taste  to  adopt:  then  there  is 
the  tall  sheepskin  hat,  like  a  lady's  muff  ,set  on  end, 
with  a  round  cloth  cap,  generally  scarlet,  to  crown  the 
edifice ;  this  has  a  smaller  and  humbler  I'elative  of  the 
pork-pie  order,  of  the  same  £a«mily  is  the  Tartar  cap, 
conical  in  form,  like  a  sugarloaf.  Besides  these  the  poorer 
peasants  are  to  be  seen  in  every  variety  of  felt  wideawake, 
from  a  bell-shaped  fancy  article,  with  gilt  braid  and  a 
button  on  the  top,  which  looks  as  if  it  had  been  stolen 
from  the  great  Panjandrum  himself,  to  an  almost  shapeless 
piece  of  battered  material.  But  the  two  most  characteristic 
headpieces  have  yet  to  be  mentioned — ^the  *  baschlik,'  and 
Mingrelian  cap.  The  first  is  a  cloth  hood  with  long 
flappers  attached,  and  is  used  by  both  sexes.  The  men 
wear  them  plain,  but  for  the  ladies  they  can  be  made  as 
gorgeous,  with  gold  embroidery,  as  the  fair  owner  pleases. 
When  worn  with  the  hood  over  the  head,  and  the  flappers 


88  TRANSCAUCASIA* 

allowed  to  fall  loosely  down  the  back,  they  give  a  man  the 
appearance  of  Touchstone  in  the  play,  but  the  native  oftener 
binds  the  ends  up  into  a  happy  combination  of  a  fool's-cap 
and  turban.  The  Mingrelian  cap  is  a  small  oval-shaped 
piece  of  cloth,  or  with  the  higher  classes  of  embroidered 
velvet,  stuck  on  the  back  of  the  head,  and  fastened  by  strings 
under  the  chin.  It  is  about  the  size  of  a  fashionable  lady's 
bonnet,  and  I  am  disposed  to  think  that  some  Parisian 
milliner  must  have  been  thus  £ajr,  and  carried  home  the 
idea  for  Aiture  use. 

A  curious  legend,  illustrating  the  thievish  character  of 
the  race,  even  in  the  first  century,  is  recounted  at  Kutais, 
as  an  explanation  of  the  origin  of  this  peculiar  headpiece. 
The  story  runs  thus : — St.  Peter,  who  is  said  to  have  visited 
the  Black  Sea  shores,  and  first  preached  the  Gospel  there, 
was  one  day  travelling  through  the  Mingrelian  forest. 
The  saint  was  on  foot,  the  heat  was  great,  and  the  road 
long;  he  threw  off  his  hat  and  shoes,  and,  lying  down 
under  the  sljade  of  a  spreading  beech-tree,  fell  fast  asleep. 
Before  long  two  natives,  a  Mingrelian  and  an  Imeritian, 
rode  by.  They  observed  the  sleeping  saint,  and  the  first 
idea  which  suggested  itself  to  their  profane  minds,  was  to 
see  what  they  could  get  out  of  him.  He  had  no  silver 
belt,  not  even  a  dagger,  but  the  discarded  hat  and  shoes 
offered  an  obvious  booty.  The  Mingrelian  secured  the 
hat,  the  Imeritian  the  shoes,  and  the  pair  hurried  off. 
Some  time  afterwards  St.  Peter  awoke,  and  discovered  the 
robbery  of  which  he  had  been  the  victim.  Finding  his 
property  irretrievably  lost,  he  had  recourse  to  the  natural 
consolation  of  cursing  the  thieves,  which  he  did  in  the 
following  form :  *  May  the  posterity  of  him  who  has  taken 
my  shoes  go  for  ever  barefoot !  May  no  son  of  the  man 
who  has  got  my  hat  ever  wear  one  on  his  head !  *  Prom 
that  time  no  Imeritian  peasant  has  ever  had  a  pair  of 


MINGRELIAN   COSTUMES.  89 

shoes  on  .his  feet,  no  Mingrelian  a  sufficient  coyering  for 
his  head. 

All  the  townspeople,  except  the  Russian  officials,  wear 
the  long  cloth  frock-coats,  reaching  considerably  below  the 
knees,  and  confined  at  the  waist  by  handsomely-worked 
silver  belts,  to  which  are  suspended  silver-sheathed 
daggers.  The  row  of  cartridge-pouches  on  the  breast, 
which  is  de  riguefwr  even  for  small  children,  is  made  a 
vehicle  for  much  tasty  ornament,  and  the  binding  of  the 
coat  and  silk  undershirt  is  often  of  silver  or  gold  braid. 
This  costume  gives  an  air  of  immense  height  to  the  really 
tall  and  fine  men,  whom  we  often  met  promenading  in  twos 
and  threes.  The  poorer  folk  cover  their  shabby  garments 
in  great  sheepskin  cloaks,  and  struck  us  as  a  sleepy 
inoffensive-looking  people. 

The  women  show  their  half-civilisation  by  the  harsh 
mixture  of  colours  in  their  dress.  They  are  distinctly  a 
handsome  race,  with  fine  eyes  and  good  complexions ;  but 
after  the  bloom  of  youth  has  passed,  their  features  sharpen, 
and  assume  a  shrewish  air,  which  bodes  ill  for  the  peace 
of  their  husbands*  We  saw  many  faces  which  might 
have  served  as  models  for  Medea,  who,  as  some  of  my 
readers  may  recollect,  is  described  by  Propertius  as  a 
native  of  Kutais.  The  hideous  fashion  of  wearing  a  great 
plait  of  hair,  or  two  corkscrew  ringlets,  over  the  cheeks,  de- 
tracts much  from  the  chamjis  of  the  modem  Mingrelian 
belles,  and  the  unfortunate  spread  of  civilisation  has  led 
them  into  imitations  of  Parisian  costumes  which,  as  they 
are  out  of  date  by  at  least  three  years,  are  likely  to  find  but 
little  favour  in  a  Western  eye.  Large  crinolines,  of  the 
stiffest  make,  were  in  fuU  vogue,  and  a  devoted  husband — 
surely  in  his  honeymoon  ! — ^was  seen  on  one  occasion  riding 
home,  with  his  dagger  and  sword  at  his  side,  brandishing 
proudly  in  his  hand  an  iron  fiumework,  destined  to  support 


90  TRANSCAUCASIA. 

the  heavy  skirts  of  his  spoiise.  The  only  trace  of  local 
costume  worn  by  the  ladies,  besides  the  *  baschlik,'  is  a 
Greek  cap  fastened  on  the  back  of  the  head  by  a  lace  veil 
or  handkerchief. 

Count  Leyerschoff  has  the  reputation  of  being  a  man  of 
progress,  and,  with  the  assistance  of  his  wife,  has  done 
much  to  promote  the  welfare  and  gaiety  of  Kutais,  by 
encouraging  balls  and  theatricals,  making  all  officials 
wear  their  uniforms  in  the  streets,  and  instituting  a  mili- 
tary band  in  the  gardens.  It  was  curious  enough,  among 
such  a  company,  and  after  an  impromptu  burst  of  wild 
harmony,  or  (to  speak  the  truth)  discord,  from  a  party  of 
country-folk,  to  hear  the  band  strike  up  the  fa.mi1iar 
Mabel  waltzes. 

The  hotel  at  Kutais  is  fla^irly  comfortable,  and  English 
tastes  are  well  understood,  owing  to  the  number  of  en- 
gineers who  have  been  out  here  for  the  last  few  years,  to 
direct  the  works  of  the  railroad  now  in  course  of  construc- 
tion between  Poti  and  Tiflis,  which  it  is  proposed  to  con- 
tinue, at  some  future  date,  as  far  as  Baku,  on  the  Caspian. 
The  mistress  is  an  untidy  voluble  Frenchwoman,  and,  as  we 
afterwards  learnt  to  our  cost,  her  promises  are  in  no  way 
to  be  depended  upon. 

On  Monday  morning  our  trap  arrived  at  the  door,  soon 
after  the  appointed  hour.  For  the  first  time  in  our  wan- 
derings, we  assisted  in  making  our  own  seats,  by  twisting 
a  piece  of  rope  in  and  out  of  holes  left  for  the  purpose  in 
the  framework  of  the  carriage,  and  spreading  our  plaids 
on  the  top.  Fran9ois  and  Paul  had  a  wooden  bench  slung 
forward,  and  the  driver  perched  where  he  could.  It  was 
soon  evident,  despite  Fran9ois'  determined  endeavours, 
that  all  our  luggage  could  not  be  carried  with  us ;  and  we 
reluctantly  confided  our  tent,  with  one  of  the  portmanteaus, 
to  the  charge  of  the  mistress  of  the  hotel,  who  promised 


AZALEAS.  91 

faithfully  to  forward  them  that  evening,  by  a  German 
carrier.  The  weather  was  most  lovely,  and  we  set  out  in 
high  spirits,  for  our  vehicle  had  springs  enough  to  save 
us  from  any  painful  jolting,  and  the  road,  for  the  first  two 
stages,  is  excellent.  Passing  the  Governor's  house,  we 
emerged  on  to  a  common,  golden  with  wild  azaleas  in  full 
blossom,  the  perfume  of  which  was  delicious.  Sharp  zigzags 
led  down  the  opposite  side  of  the  hill  to  a  nanx)w  stream, 
over  which  a  new  bridge  was  being  constructed.  The 
road  now  ran  over  low  wooded  hills,  the  last  spurs  of  the 
Caucasus,  and  offered  a  succession  of  charming  views 
towards  the  Turkish  or  (to  use  a  convenient  name  sug^ 
gested  by  Mr.  PaJgrave)  Anti-Caucasian  chain* — ^large 
rounded  moxmtains,  not  unlike  the  Tuscan  Apennines. 
The  whole  scenery  was  delightful,  and  the  country  vividly 
green  and  spring-like — a  striking  contrast  to  the  bare 
brown  regions,  too  common  in  the  East.  The  azaleas, 
however,  formed  the  distinguishing  feature  of  the  day's 
drive ;  the  commons  were  bright  with  them,  the  oak-woods 
sheltered  a  dense  undergrowth  of  them,  and  higher  in  the 
hills  their  golden  blossoms  mingled  with  the  purple 
masses  of  the  rhododendron,  the  white  flower  of  the 
laurel  and  the  hawthorn,  pale  yellow  brooms,  and  beds 
of  the  bluest  forget-me-nots.  We  dipped  into  a  pretty 
wooded  glen,  and  then  came  suddenly  on  the  first  station — 
a  low  white  building,  which  overlooks  the  basin  of  the 
Quirili,  a  great  tributaiy  of  the  Eion,  believed  by  geo- 
graphers to  be  the  ancient  Phasis.  The  postmaster  was 
a  surly  and  impudent  little  monkey,  and  refused  to  give 
us  horses,  on  the  ground  that  our  *podorojno*  was 
made  out  for  two,  instead  of  four,  persons.    We  declined 

*  German  geographers  seem  to  have  adopted  the  epithets  Great  and  Little 
Caucasus,  to  distinguish  the  ranges  south  and  north  of  the  basins  of  the  Kion 
and  the  Kur. — See  Feterman's  '  Geographische  Mittheilunger. 


92  TEANSCAUCASLA. 

to  bribe  him,  and  eyentuallj,  by  the  threat  of  returning  to 
Xutais,  to  lay  a  complaint  before  the  Governor,  brought 
him  to  his  senses.  His  object  was  to  make  ns  take  an 
extra  cart  with  three  horses  for  the  servants,  by  which 
manceavre  he  wonld  have  been  paid  for  six  horses  instead 
of  three. 

The  second  sjtsLge  was  along  the  right  bank  of  the  Qoirili, 
which  now  flows  through  undulating  country.  Snowy 
peaks,  .bold  in  form  but  of  no  great  height  (perhaps  11,000 
feet),  rose  in  the  distance  on  our  lefb.  Near  Simonethi, 
the  second  station,  we  saw  numerous  clusters  of  the  clean 
white  tents  of  the  Bussian  soldiery.  Up  to  this  point  the 
line  from  Poti  will  probably  soon  be  opened ;  but  unless  the 
.works  are  pushed  with  greater  vigour  than  is  now  shown, 
it  will  be  long  before  the  iron  road  pierces  the  Suram  chain, 
and  reaches  Tiflis.  The  earthworks  are  being  constructed 
by  the  soldiers,  who,  besides  being,  as  a  rule,  weak  physi- 
cally,  are  sufficiently  enlightened  to  appreciate  the  prin- 
ciple of  a  fair  day's  work  for  a  fair  day's  pay,  and  naturally 
hold  that  two  copecks  a  day  is  amply  repaid  by  a  very 
little  work  and  a  great  deal  of  shuffling. 

The  road  now  enters  the  Suram  chain  of  hills,  which 
separate  the  basins  of  the  Eion  and  the  Kur,  and  form 
the  watershed  between  the .  Black  Sea  and  the  Caspian, 
and  the  connecting  link  between  the  Caucasus  and  the 
mountains  of  Armenia.  The  Georgian  highway,  which  is 
very  rough  and  bad  for  several  stages,  follows  to  its  head 
one  of  the  main  sources  of  the  Quirili,  which  has  found 
itself  a  way  through  a  long  and  tortuous  valley.  The 
scenery  consequently  changes  every  minute,  and  is  addi- 
tionally  varied  by  frequent  glimpses  up  lateral  glens.  An 
old  castle  guards  the  entrance  of  the  valley ;  higher  up 
the  vegetation  becomes  richer ;  box,  laurel,  and  bays  clothe 
the  banks,  ajid  the  beech  grows  to  a  great  size.    A  stee]> 


VALLEY   ON  THE   QUIRILI.  98 

hill  leads  np  to  a  pictnresque  ivied  tower,  and  a  solitary 
house  stands  on  the  opposite  bank  of  the  stream,  which  is 
suddenly  confined  between  bold  precipices  of  limestone 
crag,  beneath  which  the  road  passes.  The  defile  soon  opens 
out,  and  the  third  station  comes  in  sight.  Here  there  were 
no  horses  to  be  had,  and  after  an  inspection  of  the  stable,  to 
ascertain  that  we  had  been  told  the  truth.  Tucker  and  I  set 
off  up  the  nearest  and  steepest  hillside,  to  while  away  the 
two  hours  we  were  obliged  to  wait.  A  climb  of  nearly  1,000 
feet  up  a  sledge-track  brought  us  to  meadows  where  the 
hay  had  just  been  cut;  we  now.  overlooked  the  lower  hills, 
and  had  a  good  view  of  the  finely-shaped  peaks  which 
stand  in  a  semicircle  round  the  head-waters  of  the  Ardon, 
and  of  an  icy  mass  to  the  west  which  we  could  not  then 
recognise.  We  returned  to  the  station,  to  find  the  expected 
horses  arrived  and  resting.  At  last  we  got  them  put  to, 
and  started.  The  valley,  was  much  narrower;  castles 
peered  at  one  another,  like  the  cat  and  the  mouse  on  the 
Bhine,  from  wooded  knolls ;  and  the  road  was  driven  into 
close  companionship  with  the  foaming  torrent  by  steep 
banks  clothed  in  deciduous  forest  trees.  We  gained  fre- 
quent glimpses  up  lateral  glens  to  the  higher  snow-streaked 
ranges  on  the  south. 

Our  horses  were  tired,  and  it  was  dark  before  we  reached 
the  fourth  station,  fifty  miles  from  Kutais.  It  was  a 
wretched  place,  but  there  v^s  no  alternative ;  so  we 
stopped,  and  were  oishered  into  a  small  room,  clean,  bnt 
furnished  only  with  a  long  bench.  Ham  was  the  only 
food  we  could  procure;  the  posthouse  itself  supplied 
neither  tea,  coffee,  nor  wine,  but  we  got  some  very 
strange  effervescing  drink,  said  to  be  made  from  grapes, 
at  the  village  store.  Although  Caucasian  posthouses 
differ  too  much  in  their  size  and  internal  fittings  to 
admit  of  any  very  accurate  general    description,  they 


94  TRANSCAUCASIA. 

have  all  one  feature  in  common — an  absence  of  comfort 
paralleled  in  England  only  in  second-class  railway  refresh- 
ment-rooms. 

May  12<A. — In  the  morning  our  rug-straps  were 
missing,  a  warning  that  honesty  was  not  a  common  virtue 
here,  and  at  5  a.m.  we  were  obliged  to  depart  without 
them.  The  road,  which  from  this  place  to  Suram  is  very 
good,  continues  to  follow  the  narrow  valley,  although, 
leaving  the  stream,  it  winds  along  the  northern  slopes, 
making  from  time  to  time  a  long  circuit  to  cross  the 
ravine  of  a  lateral  torrent.  The  hills  were  covered  with 
timber,  resembling  that  of  an  English  copse,  and  the 
azaleas  perfumed  the  morning  air.  Clusters  of  untidily- 
built  wooden  cottages  crowned  the  knolls  on  the  opposite 
side  of  the  valley.  We  met  long  files  of  camels  carrying 
merchandise  down  to  the  seacoast ;  many  of  the  young 
animals  were  frisking  about  by  the  side  of  their  dams, 
others,  too  young  to  walk,  travelled  strapped  on  to  their 
mothers'  backs,  where  they  seemed  more  comfortable  than 
might  have  been  expected. 

After  changing  horses  at  a  village  close  to  the  top  of 
the  pass,  we  drove  over  the  green  ridge,  and  looked  for 
the  first  time  into  Georgia.  The  day  was  misty,  but  I 
doubt  if  the  view  is  ever  very  fine,  as  higher  hills  must 
shut  out  the  great  chain  on  the  north.  The  road,  which 
had  been  well  engineered  for  the  last  stage,  made  itself 
supremely  ridiculous  in  the  descent  to  Suram,  by  wan- 
dering aimlessly  backwards  and  forwards  on  the  hillside, 
in  enormous  and  ill-constructed  zigzags,  by  means  of 
which  the  bottom,  with  great  waste  of  time  and  trouble, 
is  reached  at  last.  Suram  was  in  view  from  the  top — 
a  small  town,  gathering  round  a  castle  perched  on  a 
bold  rock,  which  stands  in  the  middle  of  the  valley.  The 
station  is  beyond  the  town,  at  the  junction  of  the  branch- 


THE  GEORGIAN  PLAINS.  05 

road  from  Borjoin  and  Achaltzich,  wliich,  in  company 
with  the  Kur,  here  emerges  from  the  southern  hills 
through  a  narrow  glen.  The  aspect  of  the  country  had 
now  entirely  changed  for  the  worse.  Instead  of  the  varied 
landscape  and  rich  vegetation  of  Mingrelia,  we  had  before 
na  a  rolling  plain  bounded  by  distant  ranges,  so  brown 
and  bare  as  almost  to  make  us  fancy  ourselves  back  in 
Syria  again.     The  '  chaass^,*  aa  the  Russians  invariably 


A.  Goorgiaii  Cbnrch. 

call  a  regularly-made  road,  had  come  to  an  end,  and  we 
wandered  over  the  fields  at  our  driver's  will,  selecting  the 
least  rough  and  muddy  line  of  country  there  might  be 
within  a  quarter  of  a  mile  of  the  telegraph-posts,  which 
marked  our  general  direction.  The  novel  sight  of  village 
churches  was,  however,  a  source  of  interest.  In  Turkey 
they  are  of  course  unknown,  and,  except  at  Kntais,  we 
had   hitherto  seen  little  external  evidence  of  Christian 


96  TRANSCAUCASU. 

worship  in  Mingrelia.  We  also  noticed  villages  of  odd 
underground  houses,  or  rather  burrows,  marked  only  by  a 
brown  dome  of  earth,  and  approached  by  steps  descend- 
ing to  a  sunken  doorway,  somewhat  like  that  of  an  ice- 
house ;  a  hole,  lined  with  basket-work,  serves  as  the 
chimney  to  these  dreary  abodes,  and,  as  Fran5oi8  remarked, 
one  of  the  little  pigs  which  swarm  hereabouts  might 
easUy  tumble  down  and  be  boiling  in  the  pot  before  he 
weU  knew  where  he  was.  Gargarepi  is  a  large  viUage 
buried  in  fruit-trees,  with  a  handsome  church.  The 
drive  into  Gori  was  hot  and  dusty ;  the  road  crosses  the 
Kur,  halfway,  by  a  long  wooden  bridge. 

The  station  at  Gori  is  on  the  right  bank  of  the  river,  but 
the  town  lies  about  half  a  mile  distant,  on  the  opposite  side ; 
it  is  picturesque,  at  a  distance,  owing  to  the  bold  outline 
of  the  castle-hill,  and  the  contrast  of  colours  between  the 
cool  grey  of  the  houses,  the  bright-green  church-towers, 
and  some  red-roofed  buildings  in  the  foreground.  We 
walked  into  the  bazaar  in  search  of  novelties,  but  dis- 
•  covered  nothing  specially  worthy  of  notice,  except  a  glass 
paper-weight  with  the  word  *  BalaMava,'  and  a  picture  of 
our  Light  Brigade  *  sabring  the  gunners  there,'  which  one 
would  scarcely  have  expected  to  find  in  this  part  of  the 
world.  We  visited  a  small  chapel,  built  of  ruddy  stone, 
the  front  decorated  with  a  large  carved  cross.  In  the  in- 
terior  we  were  shown  a  finely-iBuminated  missal,  and  a 
silver  reliquary  with  figures  of  the  Four  Evangelists. 

At  Achalchalaki  we  forded  a  stream,  which  now  covered 
only  a  portion  of  its  wide  stony  bed,  and  the  track  then 
took  for  a  time  to  the  hills  on  the  southern  side  of  the  Kur. 
The  sky  was  clear,  and,  to  our  great  delight,  our  constant 
search  of  the  northern  horizon  was  rewarded  at  last  by 
the  first  appearance  of  Kazbek.  The  mountain  towers 
far  above  all  its  neighbours,  and,  seen  from  the  south. 


MSCIIETI.  97 

shows  two  summits,  of  which  the  eastern  is  evidently  the 
^higher.  We  fancied  it  looked  loftier  than  any  Alpine 
peak  from  a  similar  point  of  view,  and  matle  ourselves 
happy  with  the  belief  that  it  was  too  large  to  be  in- 
accessible on  all  sides.  We  descended  to  a  pretty  village, 
surrounded  by  vines  trailed  in  the  Italian  fashion,  and 
enlivened  by  a  large  encampment  of  railway  workmen,  a 
motley  and  picturesque  crowd  of  Persians,  Georgians, 
Kurds,  and  Russians — each  nationality  easily  distinguish- 
able by  its  peculiar  dress. 

We  now  entered  a  fine  defile ;  the  Kur,  a  smooth  swift 
stream,  flowed  beneath  us  in  a  deep  bed,  with  cliffs  on 
either  side,  perforated  by  numerous  rock-tombs,  for  which 
the  most  inaccessible  positions  had  been  chosen.  Where 
the  Dariel  road  comes  in  from  the  north,  over  a  lofty 
bridge,  stands  the  posthouse  of  Mscheti,  the  first  out  of 
Tiflis.  The  large  building,  with  its  extensive  stabling, 
looked  so  imposing  in  the  dusk,  that  Fran9ois  fancied  he 
must  be  at  home  again,  and  wanted  Paul  to  ascertain  the 
hour  of  the  table-d'hote.  We  had  already  driven  eighty- 
eight  miles,  and,  wishing  to  make  our  entry  into  Tiflis  by 
daylight,  determined  to  sleep  here,  as  we  found  we  could 
get  some  dinner,  and  hire  mattrasses. 

May  lAsth. — ^We  had  a  drive  of  twenty  versts  (or  nearly 
fourteen  miles)  between  us  and  Tiflis ;  the  first  part  was 
exceedingly  rough,  as  the  new  road  and  the  railway  were 
both  in  course  of  construction,  and  the  space  between  the 
river  and  the  hiU  being  limited,  carriages  had  for  the  time 
some  difficulty  to  get  along  anyivhere.  Mscheti,  surround- 
ed, after  the  fashion  of  the  country,  by  battlemented  walls, 
stands  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Kur,  in  a  fine  situation 
.  above  the  junction  of  the  stream  which  comes  down  from 
the  Krestowaja  Gora.  Once  a  large  and  flourishing  town, 
it  is  now  decayed,  but  contains  a  curious  church,  in  which 

H 


«»  •*  ^kM^iA«»«M 


98  TRANSCAUCASIA. 

many  of  the  kings  of  Georgia  are  buried.  A  castle  on  an 
opposite  height  commands  the  pass.  When  the  hills  retire, 
and  the  Kur  bends  southwards,  Tiflis  comes  into  sight  for 
the  first  time.  A  bare  dull-coloured  basin  opened  out 
before  us,  at  the  end  of  which,  about  eight  miles  off,  we 
could  see  the  buildings  of  the  city,  apparently  crowded 
into  a  narrow  space  beneath  the  steep  ridges  which  bounded 
the  view.  A  more  unlovely  spot  at  first  sight  it  is  impos- 
sible to  imagine.  The  road  was  nearly  finished,  but,  with 
the  usual  Bussian  habit  of  leaving  difficulties  till  the  last, 
several  steep-sided  gullies  remained  unbridged.  Just 
at  the  entrance  to  the  town  we  passed  a  monument 
which  records  the  upset  of  a  Czar,  caused  by  one  of  these 
perilous  descents.  Bain  began  to  fall  heavily  as  we  drove 
down  the  long  wide  German-looking  boulevard.  A  sharp 
turn  to  the  left  brought  us  up  to  the  door  of  the  H6tel 
d'Europe,  which  stands  in  an  open  square  at  the  back  of 
the  opera-house,  nearly  in  the  centre  of  the  town. 

We  had  always  looked  on  Tiflis  as  our  dep6t  and  base 
of  operations  during  the  summer  months,  and  we  were 
naturally  anxious  to  ascertain  what  sort  of  quarters  we 
should  meet  with,  as  the  hotels  in  Bussian  towns  are  not 
always  pleasant  resting-places  for  those  unaccustomed  to 
the  ways  of  the  country.  We  were  therefore  delighted  to 
find  that  our  host  and  his  wife  were  French,  and  that  the 
house  was  fitted  up  in  European  style.  The  bedrooms 
were  large  and  amply  famished,  and  the  beds  had  good 
spring  mattrasses,  instead  of  being  (as  usual  in  Bussia) 
mere  sofas  with  hard  leathern  cushions,  and  a  sheet 
spread  over  them.  Moreover,  the  master  of  the  hotel  was 
also  the  head-cook,  and  many  of  our  dinners  would  have 
done  credit  to  a  restaurateur  of  the  Palais  Boyal ;  while 
^  Madame,'  besides  constantly  attending  to  our  comforts, 
was  always  ready  to  help  us  in  our  final  struggle  with 


TIPLIS.  99 

some  greedy  Georgian  or  Armenian,  whose  wares  had 
previously  taken  our  fancy  in  the  bazaars. 

On  this  our  first  visit  we  spent  a  week  at  Tiflis ;  but  after 
our  return  from  Persia,  and  again  ere  setting  out  on  our 
homeward  journey,  we  made  short  halts  in  the  same  com- 
fortable quarters.  I  must  now  endeavour  to  throw  together 
the  impressions  which  were  the  result  of  our  several  visits. 
Our  first  feeling  was,  undoubtedly,  one  of  disappointment. 
We  had  heard  one  way  and  another,  while  in  the  East,  a 
good  deal  ofthe  attractions  of  Tiflis,  and  now  we  found  a 
town,  which  consists  of  a  Bussian  quarter  roughly  hand- 
some, and  ostentatiously  European,  and  two  strangely  in- 
congruous suburbs,  Persian  and  German.  The  covered 
bazaars  of  the  one  are  small  and,  afber  Damascus  and  Con- 
stantinople, comparatively  commonplace ;  the  other  is  neat 
and  snug,  with  its  *biergarten '  and  band,  where  the  German 
mechanic  and  ^  madchen '  promenade  together,  fondly  and 
dully,  as  if  in  their  native  archduchy.  The  environs  of 
the  town  are  certainly  not  commonplace,  but  no  one 
can  call  them  beautiful.  Bare  green  downs  lie  on  the 
left  bank  of  the  Kur,  and  over  the  town  on  the  right  rise 
steep  cliffs  of  clay,  dried  and  parched  up  by  the  suns  of 
many  summers. 

A  better  acquaintance,  gained  by  many  drives  and 
rambles  through  the  town,  greatly  modified  these  first 
impressions.  We  found  that  the  Eussian  quarter  contained 
many  well-built  private  houses  and  excellent  shops,  and  if 
the  bazaars  did  not  make  the  outward  show  of  Damascus 
or  Cairo,  there  was  no  lack  of  temptation  to  spend  money 
within. 

The  first  thing  which  struck  us  in  the  business  quarter  of 
the  town  was  the  eagerness  to  sell  shown  by  the  occupants 
of  the  various  stalls.  In  the  East  you  may  generally  stop, 
and  turn  over  one  piece  of  goods  after  another,  and  their 

H  2 


^fci^  M*  mm»m^»^-^ 


100  TRANSCAUCASIA. 

owner  will  not  deign  to  interrupt  the  enjoyment  of  his 
pipe  until  you  take  the  first  step  by  enquiring  the  price  of 
some  article.  No  such  notions  of  etiquette  restrain  the 
hungry-faced  Georgian  or  Armenian  artificers.  After  our 
first  visit  to  the  Silver  Eow,  our  appearance  was  hailed  by 
a  crowd  of  eager  merchants,  and  we  were  exhorted,  and 
beckoned  to  on  all  sides,  by  rivals  for  our  custom.  The 
shop-fronts  are  about  the  size  of  a  small  cupboard,  and  in 
dark  recesses  behind,  the  workmen,  may  be  seen  hammer- 
ing out  objects  similar  to  those  which  the  master  offers 
you  for  sale.  These  are  of  a  varied  and  attractive  charac- 
ter: there  are  sUver-belts — some  for  men,  consisting  of 
handsome  links  of  solid  silver — others  for  women,  of  lighter 
and  more  delicate  workmanship.  A  common  conceit  is  to 
hang  from  them  a  model  of  a  Caucasian  dagger,  the  size 
of  a  penknife,  neatly  cased  in  its  sheath.  The  GTeorgian 
family  drinking-cups  are  both  quaint  and  handsome : 
some  consist  of  a  cocoanut,  mounted  in  silver-work,  and 
furnished  with  a  long  straight  spout ;  others  have  a  bowl 
entirely  of  silver,  and  a  curiously-twisted  mouthpiece,  with 
three  funnels,  which  must,  one  would  fancy,  be  very  awk- 
ward to  drink  out  of.  They  are  used  chiefly  as  loving- 
cups  at  the  family  picnic  parties,  to  which  the  (Georgians 
are  much  addicted.  The  big  ladles  and  bowls,  hammered 
out  into  quaint  designs  of  birds,  beasts,  and  flowers,  are 
also  exceedingly  handsome.  The  stalls  belonging  to  one 
trade  are  mostly  in  the  same  row ;  close  to  the  silversmiths, 
the  armourers  and  furriers  display  their  respective  wares. 
Here  we  saw  tiger-skins  from  Lenkoran,  on  the  Caspian, 
hung  side  by  side  with  lamb-skins  from  Bokhara,  and 
bear-skins  from  the  neighbouring  mountains;  and  had 
offered  for  our  inspection  a  choice  of  every  size  and  quality 
of  dagger  and  sword,  and  every  variety  of  flint  and  steel 
pistol  and  gim.      One  of  the  traders  boasted  a  medal 


THE  STREET   CROWD.  101 

obtained  the  previous  year,  at  Paris,  for  the  excellence  of  his 
workmanship.  The  number  of  wine-skins  exposed  for  sale 
is  another  curious  feature  of  the  bazaars.  The  skins  are  of 
all  sorts  and  sizes,  from  that  of  an  ox  to  that  of  a  sucking- 
pig.  The  wine  kept  in  them  is  generally  Kakhetie,  the 
produce  of  the  grapes  of  the  Telaw  district,  which  is  very 
cheap,  and  is  said  to  have  the  peculiar  properties  of 
curing  gout  and  never  causing  headaches.  Despite  these 
recommendations,  the  flavour  imparted  by  the  skins  will 
prevent  most  travellers  from  partaking  largely  of  the 
commoner  sorts.  The  best  quality,  after  being  kept  some 
time  in  bottles,  is  a  full-flavoured  wine  much  resembling 
Burgundy. 

We  were  struck  with  the  entire  absence  of  any  Turkish 
element  in  the  crowd,  and  the  consequent  want  of  the 
bright  fezzes  which  give  such  colour  to  the  streets  of 
many  Eastern  cities.  Their  place  is  poorly  supplied  by  the 
tall  cloth-caps  of  the  Persians,  or  the  conical  sheepskins 
of  the  Georgian  and  Armenian  merchants.  On  the  whole, 
we  did  not  see  such  variety  of  costumes  here  as  at  Kutais. 
In  a  town  full  of  government  offices  the  Russian  uniform 
of  course  predominates,  and  the  number  of  unhappy 
creatures  doomed  to  walk  the  streets  with  a  sword  always 
dangling  between  their  legs  is  very  great.  An  occasional 
turbaned  mountaineer  from  Daghestan,  or  a  handsomely- 
accoutred  Ossete,  may  of  course  be  met,  but  here,  as  at 
home,  the  domestic  servants  are  pre-eminent  for  gorgeouiS 
appareL  A  Tiflis  major-domo  is  got  up  regardless  of 
expense ;  his  belt  and  dagger-sheath  are  massively  wrought 
in  silver,  and  his  cartridge-pouches  and  far  hat  are  of  the 
most  elegant  and  expensive  kind.  Such  a  costume  costs 
from  251.  to  40Z.  Winter  is  the  Tiflis  season,  and  tlien,  I 
am  told,  the  variety  of  dresses  is  really  marvellous.  As  it 
was,  Georgian,  Armenian,  Persian,  Russian,  and  German 


102  TRANSCAUCASIA. 

make  up  a  fair  list  of  nationalities,  and  a  member  of  each 
would  probably  be  met  with  in  a  five-minutes'  stroll. 

One  of  our  first  business  visits  was  to  the  Topographical 
Department,  which  was  in  the  same  square  as  our  hotel. 
From  the  officials  there  we  met  with  unvarying  courtesy, 
and  no  difficulty  was  made  in  allowing  us  to  purchase  any 
sheets  we  liked  of  the  Ordnance  or  (as  it  is  generally 
called,  from  being  on  the  scale  of  five  versts  to  the  inch) 
the  Five  Verst  Map.  We  inspected  with  great  interest  a 
beautiful  relief  model  of  the  whole  Caucasus,  constructed 
on  a  large  scale,  a  copy  of  which  has  lately  been  presented, 
by  the  Czar,  to  the  Geographical  Society  of  St.  Petersburg ; 
and  we  were  also  glad  to  add  to  our  collection  a  pano- 
ramic outline  of  the  chain,  giving  the  heights  of  the  prin- 
cipal summits.  These  works  are  most  creditable  to  the 
officers  engaged  in  them,  especially  when  the  scanty  time 
and  means  at  their  disposal  are  taken  into  consideration. 

We  had  brought  with  us  several  letters  of  introduction, 
explaining  the  object  of  our  journey,  to  the  officials 
attached  to  the  Court  at  Tiflis,  and  we  were  disappointed 
to  find  that  the  Grand  Duke  had  already  left  for  Borjom,  his 
summer  residence,  taking  of  course  half  Tiflis  society  with 
him.  We  were  fortunate,  however,  in  meeting  Monsieur 
Barthelemi,  Attache  for  special  missions  to  the  Grand 
Ducal  Court,  who  was  living  at  the  time  in  our  hotel ;  and 
through  his  kindness,  we  were  introduced  to  the  Hussian 
and  German  gentiemen  then  resident  in  Tiflis,  who  were 
best  acquainted  with  the  natural  features  of  the  country. 
We  had  the  good  fortune  to  catch  Herr  Abich,  on  the 
eve  of  his  departure  for  Germany,  fix)m  whom,  in  the  course 
of  a  half-hour's  conversation,  I  obtained  two  hints,  which 
were  both  afterwards  of  the  greatest  service  to  us — ^namely, 
that  there  was  a  very  lofty  n6v6- plateau,  at  the  northern 
base  of  the  summit  of  Kazbek,  and  that  Elbruz  might  be 


GKRMAN  SAVANTS.  103 

attacked,  with  good  prospect  of  success,  from  tlie  gliiciers 
at  the  head  of  the  Baksan  valley.  Herr  Radde,  chiefly 
known  in  England  by  his  Siberian  travels,  although  now 
settled  in  Tiflis,  as  curator  of  the  Museum  of  Natural 
History,  which  has  been  lately  founded,  has  not  given  up 
his  roaming  habits.  He  kindly  presented  us  each  with  a 
copy  of  his  work,  *  Die  drei  Langhochthaler  Imeritiens, 
Eion,  Ingur,  and  Tskenis-Squali,'  the  fruit  of  his  wander- 
ings in  the  southern  Caucasian  valleys.  It  is  the  first 
German  book  which  has  been  printed  at  Tiflis.  The 
museum  has  not  been  long  formed,  but  the  collection  is 
already  most  interesting.  Specimens  of  the  geology, 
natural  history^  the  costumes,  and  household  articles  of 
the  inhabitants  of  the  neighbouring  regions,  are  grouped 
together  as  effectively  as  the  limited  space  will  aUow.  The 
most  striking  object  is  a  magnificent  ^  auruch '  from  the 
mountains  west  of  Elbruz,  a  region  which,  now  it  has 
been  depopulated  by  the  expulsion  of  the  Tcherkessian 
tribes,  will  perhaps  offer  a  safe  asylum  for  some  years  to 
come  to  this  rare  and  noble  beast.  Two  very  well-stuffed 
tigers  from  Lenkoran  occupy  the  middle  of  a  room, 
round  which  are  grouped  bears,  chamois,  and  bouquetins 
from  the  Caucasus. 

One  of  the  pleasantest  of  our  Bussian  acquaintances  at 
Tiflis  was  Greneral  Chodzko,  under  whose  superintendence 
the  Government  Survey  and  the  *  Five  Verst  Map '  of  Trans- 
Caucasia  have  been  executed.  During  the  progress  of  the 
survey  he  ascended  Ararat,  and  remained  camped  for  nearly 
a  week  a  short  distance  below  the  summit,  engaged  in 
scientific  observations.  The  General  had  also  made  at- 
tempts on  Kazbek  and  Elbruz,  but  he  laughingly  admitted 
that  mountaineering  had  been  with  him  rather  a  necessity 
than  a  pleasure;  and  he  strongly  dissuaded  us  from  wasting 
our  time  in  attempting  the  higher  summits,  which,  from 


104  TBA-VSCAUCASIA. 

lii«  experience,  he  thought  would  certainlj  each  take  us  a 
month  to  vanquish,  fvi  anxious  was  Iw  to  put  us  in  the 
ri?tit  waj,  that  h':  dr.;w  for  us  an  itin.-r.iry,  (lie  fatal  ob- 
yudion  to  which  -Ka-x  that  no  one  hut  a  Russian  could 
expect  to  Borrive  sixty  miles  a  day,  for  fire  weeks,  of  post- 
trarellmg  over  the  st«ppe3,  swamps,  and  boulders  which 
axe  called  roads  in  the  Caucaeus,  The  General's  kindness 
did  not  end  here,  for  he  constitnted  himself  our '  cicerone,' 


Tlie  aeorglin  Caatlo,  TlOis, 

and  took  us  a  round  of  all  the  sights  in  Tiflis.  From  the 
Persian  quarter  we  climbed,  by  a  vei-y  steep  road,  to  the 
Botanical  Garden,  which  is  '  sown  in  a  wrinkle  of  the 
monstrous  hill '  overhanging  the  town.  The  southward- 
facing  slope  of  a  narrow  glen  has  been  cut  and  built  up 
into  terraces,  planted  with  rare  trees  and  shrubs,  and  con- 
nected by  vine-trellised  paths  and  flights  of  steps.     Over- 


TUE   BOTANICAL   GARDEN.  105 

head  are  the  rained  towers  of  the  old  Georgian  castle ;  be- 
low, a  stream,  scanty  in  summer,  has  worn  a  deep  ravine, 
the  bare  hillsido  on  the  further  bank  of  which  lends  a  charm, 
by  contrast,  to  the  fresh  vegetation  and  shade  of  the 
garden.  There  are  several  shallow  caves  in  the  rocks 
which  support  the  castle  ruins,  where  the  townspeople  used 
frequently  to  resort  for  family  picnics,  a  kind  of  entertain- 
ment beginning  with  a  light  meal  and  frequent  passage  of 
the  loving-cup,  and  carried  on  by  story-telling,  music,  and 
dancing,  until  late  in  the  evening.^  The  return  home  was 
a  service  of  some  danger,  since  the  road  is  exceedingly 
steep,  and  the  drivers  were  apt  to  refresh  themselves  at  a 
wine-shop  near  the  gates  of  the  garden.  Upsets  and  acci- 
dents used  to  be  of  frequent  occurrence,  and  perhaps  this, 
in  conjunction  with  the  inaking  of  the  new  gardens  near 
the  Grand  Ducal  palace,  has  served  to  render  this  pleasant 
retreat  no  longer  fashionable.  A  zigzag  path  leads  up  to 
the  ridge,  on  the  outmost  crags  pf  which  the  castle  stands. 
A  wall  runs  along  the  top,  and  when  the  door  in  it  was  un- 
locked, a  grand  general  view  of  the  city  burst  upon  us. 
Directly  below  were  the  straight  streets  and  gaily-coloured 
houses  of  the  Sussian  quarter,*  the  bright  roofs  of  which 
formed  a  pleasant  contrast  to  the  cool  grey  of  unbaked 
bricks  in  the  Persian  town.  In  the  distance  we  looked 
straight  up  the  valley  of  the  Kur,  to  the  wooded  hills  be- 
hind Mscheti,  and  (had  it  been  clear)  to  the  snows  of  the 
great  chain.  Whenever  this  is  fi^e  from  clouds  the  double 
head  of  Kazbek  is  a  conspicuous  object  from  Tiflis.  It  is 
seen,  together  with  several  lower  snow-peaks  on  its  left, 
from  the  boulevard,  and  from  many  of  the  houses  in  the 
town.  General  Chodzko  pointed  out  the  watercourses, 
made  partially  for  irrigation,  but  also  to  check  the  floods,  to 

*  The  Czar  has  a  very  pretty  watercolour  drawing  of  one  of  tlieso  parties  in 
his  study  at  Livadia,  the  Empress's  Crimean  villa. 


106  TRANSCAUCASIA. 

which  Tiflis  is  subject  from  the  hills  above.  After  any 
heavy  rain,  torrents  pour  down  every  street,  and  we  were 
told  it  was  no  unusual  thing  for  children  to  be  drowned  in 
the  middle  of  the  city.  We  were  next  taken  to  the  prin- 
cipal covered  bazaar  (an  arcade  about  the  size  of  the 
Burlington),  where  the  goods  exposed  for  sale  are  mostly 
European.  Below  the  castle,  and  between  it  and  a  com- 
manding spur  of  the  opposite  hills,  also  fortified,  the  Kur 
is  so  closely  confined  between  high  banks  as  to  be  crossed 
by  two  bridges  of  a  single  span.  Tall  houses,  with 
balconies  over  the  water,  are  built  on  either  shore,  and  the 
river,  beaten  back  and  turned  at  a  sharp  angle  by  the 
right-hand  bank,  rushes  away  with  a  fine  swirl  of  water, 
which  must  put  a  stop  to  all  navigation.  Wood  is  brought 
down  as  far  as  Tiflis  in  large  timber  rafts  like  those  of  the 
Ehine.  We  often  admired  the  adroitness  of  the  steerers, 
but  the  Kur  is  not  easy  to  navigate,  and  accidents  some- 
times happen.  Near  Gori  we  had  seen  a  crowd  on  the 
river-bajik,  and  been  told  that  a  raft  had  capsized,  and  two 
men  were  drowned.  On  the  left  bank  of  the  river  we 
visited  an  interesting  old  church  inside  the  fort  I  have 
mentioned,  and  a  large  building — partly  used  as  a  ware- 
house, partly  as  offices  by  Persian  traders.  We  returned 
by  the  new  bridge,  a  handsome  stone  structure  of  several 
arches,  at  one  end  of  which  stands  a  statue  of  the  Prince 
Woronzoff,  who  did  so  much  for  Tiflis,  Odessa,  and  the 
Crimea. 

We  went  twice  to  the  Opera,  a  pretty  house  in  Moresque 
style,  and  heard  *  La  Traviata '  and  *  Faust '  very  fairly 
performed  by  an  Italian  company,  but  what  amused  us 
most  was  a  farce,  in  which  an  English  tourist  played  the 
principal  part.  He  was  drawn,  not  after  real  life,  but 
after  the  caricatures  of  the  boulevards,  immensely  tall, 
enveloped  in  a  plaid,   and  with  long   sandy  whiskers. 


OFFICIALISM.  107 

When  he  refused  to  fight  a  duel,  because  the  pistols 
provided  for  him  had  not  been  made  at  Birmmgham,  the 
mirth  of  the  audience  reached  its  climax.  The  rest  of 
the  time,  not  occupied  in  making  arrangements  for  our 
further  journey,  we  spent  in  some  tempting  shops  of  the 
European  style  near  our  hotel,  where  a  greater  choice  was 
to  be  found  than  in  the  bazaars,  though  the  prices  were 
somewhat  higher.  Our  window  Punished  an  amusing 
lounge  at  spare  moments,  for  the  wood- market  was  held 
in  the  square  below,  and  from  an  early  hour  in  the  morning 
it  was  filled  with  carts,  drawn  by  scraggy  buffaloes,  and  a 

constant  jabber  of  bargain  and  sale  went  on  all  day,  wet 

<■ 

or  dry.  Once  we  saw  a  funeral  pass :  the  coffin-Ud  was 
carried  first,  then  the  open  coffin;  the  body  was  gaily 
dressed,  and  covered  with  flowers,  and  the  priests  who 
accompanied  it  raised  a  fine  chant  as  the  procession 
moved  onwards. 

We  arrived  at  Tiflis  on  May  13th;  but  as  Mr.  Moore 
was  not  to  join  us  till  June  20th,  we  had  five  weeks  at 
our  disposal,  and  determined  to  employ  them  in  a  run 
into  Persia,  combined  with  a  visit  to  and,  if  possible,  an 
ascent  of  Ararat. 

Before  we  could  feel  ourselves  in  order  for  this  journey, 
much  had  to  be  done.  Only  those  who  have  been  in 
Russia  can  understand  how  officialism  may  be  brought  to 
bear  on  every  detail  of  travel,  and  a  man  must  go  to  the 
Caucasus  to  9;ppreciate  how  a  great  system  like  the 
Eussian  post,  which  would  be  admirable  if  carried  out 
properly,  can  become,  by  imperfect  organisation,  and  gross 
incapacity  and  dishonesty  on  the  part  of  those  employed, 
a  positive  hindrance  to  travellers. 

Our  most  important  needs  were  to  have  our  passpoi-ts 
properly  signed  for  leaving  and  re-entering  the  Russian 
dominions,   and  to  obtain  an  order  for  horses,  without 


108  TRANSCAUCASIA. 

which  it  was  useless  to  make  enquiries  at  the  post.  Mens. 
Barthelemi  kindly  came  to  our  aid,  and  offered  to  intro- 
duce us  to  the  Governor  of  Tiflis,  who  received  us  most 
cordially,  and  promised  that  all  necessary  documents 
should  be  prepared  forthwith.  In  due  time,  we  received 
special  passports  for  leaving  and  re-entering  Russia,  a 
*  crown-podorojno,'  good  for  all  Trans-Caucasia,  and  an 
order  for  a  Cossack  escort  wherever  it  might  be  needful. 

On  Monday  morning  I  sent  Paul  to  the  post,  to  order 
horses  for  the  next  day,  and  to  ask  some  questions  about 
the  different  kinds  of  carriages  and  their  cost.  He 
returned  with  a  message,  that  we  might  perhaps  have 
horses  in  two  days,  and  no  answer  to  my  enquiries  about 
carriages.  I  immediately  drove  to  the  post;  the  post- 
master was  for  once  at  home,  but  was  excessively  off- 
hand in  his  manner,  and  tried  to  walk  away  while  I  was 
talking  to  him,  a  manoeuvre  only  prevented  by  my  placing 
myself  between  him  and  the  door.  Fortunately,  I  had 
occasion  to  see  the  Governor  that  evening,  and  I  took  the 
opportunity  of  calling  his  attention  to  the  way  in  which  a 
crown-order  was  treated  by  minor  officials.  My  remon- 
strance at  head-quarters  had  its  effect,  and  no  further 
difficulty  was  made  in  providing  us  with  horses ;  but  as  to 
a  carriage,  our  Russian  acquaintances  agreed  in  advising 
us  to  reconcile  ourselves  to  the  carts  of  the  country,  and 
their  reason  afterwards  appeared  in  the  fact,  that  the 
road,  halfway  to  Erivan,  was  for  the  present  impassable 
for  spring-vehicles,  and  that  we  should,  therefore,  accord- 
ing to  the  rules  of  the  post,  have  paid  for  our  carriage 
without  having  the  use  of  it.  Meantime  day  after  day 
had  passed,  and  still  our  luggage  did  not  arrive  from 
Kutais.  We  were  consequently  obliged  to  make  up  our 
minds  to  start  without  our  tent  or  our  mountaineering 
boots,  which  we  Inul  hoped  to  make  use  of  on  Ararat. 


A   'PARACLODNAIA.'  109 

Our  ice-axes,  however,  of  which  we  had  brought  out  only 
the  heads  and  spikes  from  England,  had,  under  Francois' 
supervision,  been  mounted  by  a  French  workman,  and 
were  now  ready  for  use.  The  weather  was  not  brilliant, 
we  were  annoyed  at  the  non-arrival  of  our  luggage,  and 
the  appearance  of  the  trap  provided  for  us  by  the  post- 
master of  the  Transcaucasian  capital  was  admirably 
adapted  to  render  still  more  surly  the  *  winter  of  our 
discontent/ 

A  ^  paradodnaia '  (so  great  a  name  does  the  country 
cart  bear  in  the  Caucasus ;  in  Bussia  proper  it  is  oftener 
called  a  *  telega')  is  the  ordinary  conveyance  of  the  Rus- 
sian posts,  and  the  only  one  to  be  obtained  at  any  but 
the  lai'gest  towns;  even  at  so  considerable  a  place  as 
Erivan,  nothing  else  was  procurable.  This  hatefcd  vehicle 
is  so  bad  as  to  be  almost  beyond  description.  The  body 
of  the  cart  is  sometimes  flat-bottomed,  like  a  punt— some- 
times rounded,  like  a  tub  boat ;  the  boards  of  which  it  is 
composed  are  ordinarily  rotten,  and  nails  stick  out  wher- 
ever they  have  a  chance  of  injuring  the  clothes  or  flesh 
of  the  occupant.  The  driver  sits  on  a  plank  in  front,  while 
the  travellers,  if  they  have  any  experience,  carefully  draw 
and  tighten  a  piece  of  rope,  through  holes  left  for  the 
purpose,  until  a  sort  of  cat's-cradle  is  contrived  at  the 
back  of  the  cart,  on  which  they  spread  their  rugs  and 
seat  themselves.  None  but  a  native  could  bear  to  lie  on 
a  quantity  of  hay  at  the  bottom,  and  allow  himself  to  be 
jolted  like  a  pea  in  a  rattle.  The  body  of  the  cart  rests 
on  two  blocks  of  wood,  which  are  in  their  turn  directly 
supported,  without  any  intervening  springs,  by  four 
wheels  of  the  rudest  construction.  There  are,  however, 
degrees  of  badness  even  in  the  framework  of  a  *para- 
clodnaia ' ;  if  the  framework  and  the  road  are  ordinarily 
bad,  the  jolting  is  painful;  if  either  is  very  bad,  it  is 


no  TRANSCAUCASIA. 

maddening.  The  Inggage,  which  is  generally  stuffed 
under  the  rope-seat,  has,  as  well  as  the  seat,  to  be  re- 
arranged six  or  eight  times  a  day,  as  the  conveyance  is 
changed  at  every  station.  Nothing  of  glass  can  be  carried 
without  breakage,  and  if  the  road  be  muddy,  clothes 
and  face  are  covered  in  five  minutes  with  a  thick  layer  of 
dirt.  Three  horses  draw  these  traps;  the  two  trace- 
horses  are  quickly  fastened  on  either  side ;  the  centre 
B.nima1  goes  between  the  shafbs,  and  over  its  neck  is 
fastened  the  *duga,*  or  wooden  arch,  to  which  one  or 
more  bells  are  attached — ^probably  intended,  by  their  inces- 
sant clang,  to  drown  the  groans  of  the  suffering  travellers. 
Scarcely  a  stage  passed  without  our  having  to  stop  in 
the  middle  of  it,  to  rearrange  this  clumsy  structure,  in 
the  beauty  and  fitness  of  which  the  native  drivers  seem 
to  have  implicit  belief,  and  to  which  they  attach  a  sort  of 
mystic  importance. 

Such  are  the  carts  which  the  Imperial  Government  pro- 
vides for  its  couriers  !  Its  traditional  policy  seems  to  have 
been  to  develope  towns,  and  supply  every  luxury  and  amuse- 
ment for  a  swarm  of  official  drones ;  while  commerce  and 
industry  were  discouraged  by  the  neglect  of  the  communica- 
tions of  the  country,  for  which  the  Government,  by  keeping 
in  its  own  hands  the  entire  management  of  the  roads  and 
postal  system,  had  made  itself  responsible.  What  provision 
it  does  make  I  have  endeavoured  partially  to  show ;  but  it 
would  fill  a  volume  to  narrate  all  our  own  experiences, 
and  the  stories  we  heard  from  other,  and  partly  Russian 
sources,  both  of  the  badness  of  the  roads,  and  of  the 
insolence,  ignorance  of  truth,  and  rapacity  of  the  postal 
officials.  Imagine  a  place  like  Tifiis,  the  residence  of  a 
brother  of  the  Czar,  a  town  of  80,000  inhabitants,  with  a 
large  European  society,  and  an  opera-house,  unconnected 
by  any  pretence  of  road  with  the  Black  Sea  coast,  the 


THE   POSTAL   SYSTEM.  Ill 

Caspian,  or  the  Persian  frontier !  A  more  enlightened 
spirit  now  happily  prevails  in  high  quarters,  and  the 
Lieutenant  of  the  Caucasus  has  ordered  the  construction 
of  roads  to  Kutais,  and  to  Erivan,  while  the  highway  of 
the  Dariel  is  almost  completed ;  but  the  dawn  of  intelli- 
gence is  late,  and  light  spreads  but  slowly  through  the 
dense  mists  of  jobbery  and  peculation  which  impede,  if 
they  cannot  stifle,  the  coming  of  a  better  day  for  this  as 
yet  xmdeveloped  region. 

In  no  country  has  the  transition  from  utter  want  of  the 
means  of  transport  to  the  facilities  of  a  lai^e  railway 
system  been  so  sadden  as  in  Sussia,  and  the  extent  of 
the  change  likely  to  be  produced  there  during  the  next 
few  years  can  scarcely  be  exaggerated.  Amongst  its 
smaller  results  will  doubtless  be  the  sweeping  away  of 
those  petty  but  troublesome  safeguards  with  which  police 
and  post  officials  combine  to  hinder  and  render  disagree- 
able all  travel  in  the  interior  of  the  country. 


112  THE   PERSIAN   POST-ROAD. 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE   PERSIAN   POST-EOAD. 

The  BankB  of  the  Kur — Troops  on  the  March — A  Romantic  Valley — 
Delidschan — A  Desolate  Pass — ^The  Gokcha  Lake — ^Ararat— Erivan — ^The 
Kurds — The  Valley  of  the  Araxes — ^A  Steppe  Storm — A  Dangerous  Ford  • 
NakhitchevauT-A  Money  Queston — ^Djulfa — Charon's  Ferry  and  a  Modem 
Cerberus — A  Friend  in  Need — A  Persian  Khan — ^Marand — Entrance  to 
Tabreez — Chez  Lazarus. 

We  left  TiBis  on  May  20th.  The  road,  once  clear  of  the 
rough  pavement  of  the  capital,  follows  the  valley  of  the  Kur. 
The  suburbs  of  Tiflis  stretch  far  in  this  direction,  and  the 
views  of  the  town  and  castle  from  this  side  are  often  striking. 
At  the  first  station  we  got  a  better  ^paraclodnaia,*  which,  by 
bribery  and  argument  alternately,  we  contrived  to  keep  for 
several  stations,  and  we  further  improved  our  condition  by 
taking  a  second  cart  for  the  men,  which  was  a  great  boon, 
both  to  them  and  to  us,  as  we  had  been  sitting  previously 
in  a  terribly  cramped  position.  The  new  high-road  from 
Tiflis  to  Erivan,  which  will  run  along  the  Kur  valley,  is 
yet  unfinished,  and  we  had  to  make  a  detour  of  four 
stages,  over  low  hills  and  high  plains,  before  we  rejoined 
the  river.  The  steppe  was  fortunately,  for  once,  in  fair 
driving  order,  and  we  made  good  progress.  A  curious 
circiilar  hollow,  containing  a  lake  at  its  lower  end,  is 
crossed  before  reaching  Kody,  the  second  station,  distant 
twenty-seven  versts*  from  Tiflis  by  the  road,  but  only 
twelve  by  the  short  cut  over  the  hills,  which  we  made  a 

*  Three  Russian  rersts  equal  two  miles. 


THE    BANKS  OF  THE  KUR.  113 

great  zigzag  to  avoid.  At  the  third  posthouse  we  crossed 
a  small  stream,  the  Algeth,  and  stopped  half  an  hour  to 
lunch  on  cold  turkey ;  for  we  had  profited  by  experience, 
and  started  well  supplied  with  provisions.  We  now  fol- 
lowed, for  some  twenty-six  versts,  the  valley  of  the  Khram, 
a  large  tributary  of  the  Kur,  which  is  principally  fed  by 
the  streams  from  the  Mokraja  Gora,  and  other  chains 
which  lie  between  Tiflis  and  Alexandrapol ;  their  wooded 
summits,  broken  here  and  there  by  castellated  crags,  formed 
the  southern  horizon.  At  the  Red  Bridge  we  were  de- 
layed for  want  of  horses.  This  brick  structure,  the  centre 
arch  of  which  is  of  considerable  span,  is  a  relic  of  Persian 
rule,  and  is  probably  the  oldest  in  the  country.  It  was 
repaired  by  Bostom,  king  of  Georgia,  in  1647,  and  still 
remains  perfect,  although  it  is  being  slightly  widened  for 
the  new  road.  The  Eussian  engineers  must  have  been 
relieved  to  find  so  substantial  a  structure  ready-made,  as 
bridge-building  is  not  one  of  i their  strong  points,  and  they 
too  often  neglect  either  to  make  proper  approaches,  or  to 
direct  the  course  of  the  stream  with  dykes.  In  conse- 
quence, their  arches  are  often  left  high-and-dry,  with  the 
water  sweeping  over  the  road  a  hundred  yards  on  one  side 
of  them.  We  had  now  returned  to  the  Kur,  which  has 
here  entirely  quitted  the  mountains,  and  entered  on  the 
dull  green  steppes,  through  which  it  winds  a  weary  way 
to  the  Caspian.  Its  bed,  a  belt  of  swamp  and  forest, 
is  considerably  below  the  general  level  of  the  plain, 
which  breaks  suddenly  into  it.  This  part  of  Georgia  is 
exceedingly  wild  and  thinly  populated,  and  forms  the 
borderland  of  the  steppe  country,  inhabited  only  by 
wandering  tribes  of  Turcomans  and  Kurds.  We  passed 
several  underground  villages,  the  existence  of  which  is 
indicated,  at  a  dii^tance,  only  by  a  brown  blotch  on  the 
surface  of  the  plain ;  on  nearer  approach  a  low  mound  of 

I 


114  THE   PERSIAN  POST-ROAD. 

earth,  with  perhaps  a  thin  column  of  smoke  issuing  from 
it,  shows  the  position  of  each  house. 

The  men  wear  the  ^eat  sheepskin  coat  and  the  conical 
fur  hat,  the  women  dresses  of  crimson-lake  hue,  which  lit 
up  wonderfully  the  dull  green  landscape.  Every  half-hour 
we  came  to  a  weird  group  of  ruddy  tombstones,  averaging 
six  feet  high,  and  often  delicately  carved ;  they  resemble 
upright  sarcopaghi  in  shape.  These  strange  graveyards 
make  much  more  show  than  the  villages.  Companies  of 
camels,  their  day^s  work  done,  and  their  heavy  cotton- 
bales  ranged  in  a  circle,  sauntered  lazily  about  in  search 
of  herbage.  G^ily-feathered  birds  perched  on  the  tele- 
graph-wires, which  were  our  constant  companions  and 
guides,  scarcely  cared  to  fly  away  as  we  passed.  It  was 
hard  to  realise  that  it  was  scarcely  twelve  hours  since  we 
had  left  a  town  supplied  with  every  European  luxury. 

The  seventh  station  was  a  mere  Tartar  hut  with  a  large 
underground  stable.  The  post-horses  had  first  to  be 
driven  in  from  the  steppe,  and  then  harnessed ;  a  party  of 
very  merry-looking  natives  did  both  in  less  time  than  an 
ordinary  postmaster  would  have  taken  in  examining  a 
^  podorojno,'  and  reflecting  what  he  should  write  on  the  back 
of  it.  Night  was  now  coming  on,  and  we  quickened  our 
pace.  Lighted  by  a  rising  moon  we  cantered  over  the 
plain,  passed  a  large  stream,  flowing  towards  the  Kur,  by 
a  crazy  bridge,  and  five  minutes  afterwards  alighted,  stiff 
and  weary,  at  the  door  of  the  large  posthouse  of  Aksta- 
finsk,  situated  at  the  junction  of  the  Erivan  and  Elizavet- 
pol  roads,  and  110  versts  from  the  capital.  Unluckily  for 
ns,  a  large  detachment  of  troops,  on  a  roadmaking  expedi- 
tion, had  halted  here  for  the  night,  and  the  resources  of 
the  house  were  employed  in  providing  for  the  comfort  of 
the  officers,  who  occupied  all  the  accommodation.  Under 
such  circumstances  we,  who  wore  neither  official  caps  nor 


TROOPS   ON   THE  MABCH.  115 

decorations,  could  not  expect,  and  did  not  meet  with,  even 
the  commonest  civility  and  thought  ourselves  lucky  when 
the  surly  postmaster,  with  a  very  bad  grace,  accox-ded  us 
permission  to  roll  ourselves  up  in  our  rugs  on  the  floor  of 
his  room — quarters  which  we  shared  with  a  huge  dog  con- 
scious of  fleas,  and  consequently  provokingly  restless  during 
the  dark  hours. 

May  2l8t. — ^We  were  awoke  from  sleep,  if  the  uneasy 
rest  we  obtained  deserved  the  name,  by  a  most  horrible 
discord,  some  idea  of  which  might  be  obtained  by  hiring 
itinerant  performers  on  the  bagpipe  and  barrel-organ  to 
play  different  tunes  simultaneously.  The  soldiery  were 
starting,  and  their  drum-and-fife  band  was  cheering  them 
on  the  road.  I  imagine  that  the  dregs  of  the  Eussian 
army  are  kept  in  Trans-Caucasia ;  anything  more  wretched 
and  sl6venly  than  the  uniforms,  marching,  and  general 
appearance  of  these  men  we  had  never  seen  even  in  Turkey, 
but  the  work  in  which  they  had  been  employed  might 
account  partially  for  their  unsoldierly  aspect,  as  some  of 
the  Bussian  troops  we  saw  afterwards  were  very  different. 

We  changed  our  direction  to-day  from  east-south-east  to 
nearly  due  south,  and  entered  a  valley  among  the  hills 
which  separate  Greorgia  from  Armenia,  the  basin  of  the 
Eur  from  that  of  the  Araxes.  Half  an  hour  was  spent  in 
passing  the  troops  and  their  long  trains  of  baggage-wag- 
gons. The  road  was  narrow  and  bad,  and  our  driver  timid, 
but  at  last  we  left  even  the  vanguard  behind.  Our  course 
lay  along  the  banks  of  the  stream  we  had  crossed  over- 
night, which  were  ornamented  by  magnificent  forest-trees. 
The  morning  was  lovely,  soft  clouds  were  clearing  off  the 
hills  on  the  south,  while  the  snowy  crest  of  the  Eastern 
Caucasus  ran  along  the  northern  horizon,  rising  beyond 
the  Earaja  steppes.  The  next  time  we  saw  it  was  from 
the  slopes  of  Ararat.    The  depression  in  which  the  river 

Z  2 


116  THE   PERSIAN   POST-ROAD. 

flowed  gradually  narrowed  and  deepened,  and  after  leaving 
the  station  where   we    first    changed   horses,  we   fairly 
entered  the  hills.     The  track  was  rough,  the  pace  slow, 
and  the  jolting  incessant.     The  second  station  was  in  a 
considerable  village;    the  houses,  one-storied    and  flat- 
roofed,  were  built  up  the   hillside    in  an   angle  of   the 
beautiful  valley,  the  vdndings  of  which   we  were  now 
following,     XJp  to  this  point  the  scenery  had  reminded  us 
of  some  of  the  more  richly- wooded  parts  of  Wales  on  a 
larger  scale — henceforth  it  grew  bolder,  castellated  crags 
alternated  vnth  forest-clad  slopes,  snow-streaked  summits 
appeared  in   the  background,  the   stream   danced    and 
sparkled  at  our  side ;  every  prospect  was  pleasant,  and  the 
road  alone  veas  vile.     The  mouiitain-sides  were  abrupt  and 
picturesque,  and  the  richness  of  the  vegetation  suggested 
a  comparison  vrith  the  neighbourhood  of  the  Italian  lakes. 
We  were  struck  by  a  very  curious  rock-formation,  which 
at  a  distance  gave  the  face  of  the  clifiPs  and  the  porphyry 
fragments  strewed  at  their  base  the  appearance  of  masonry. 
At  our  third  halting-place,  a  solitary  house,  no  horses 
were  to  be  had  for  two  hours.    During  oar  compulsory  halt 
here  we  were  amused  by  a  struggle  between  a  horse  and  its 
master.      The  animal  bolted  into  the  stream  to  escape 
capture,  and  was  carried  down  for  some  distance  by  the 
force  of  the  current ;  on  regaining  its  feet  it  came  wisely 
to  the  conclusion  that  captivity  was  better  than  a  watery 
grave,  and  quietly  surrendered  to  its  owner.     We  walked 
on  for  five  versts,  leaving  the  men  to  look  after  our  traps. 
This  stage  vms  very  heavy  and  hilly,  and  even  after  our 
conveyances  caught  us  up,  we  often  preferred  to  walk,  ex- 
cept when  for  a  few  versts  we  had  this  advantage  of  a 
finished  piece  of  the  new  road.     The  valley  now  opened 
out,  and  everything  showed  we  were  approaching  a  more 
elevated  region.     We  passed  a  hamlet  on  the  side  of  a 


■  - » »  -.  - 


DELIDSCHAN.  117 

pretty  wooded  basin,  out  of  which  we  climbed  by  a  long 
ascent,  and  then  wound  along,  or  rather  up  and  down, 
the  slopes  into   Delidschan,  a  large  village  situated   at 
the  foot  of  the  pass  into  Armenia,  looking  up   a  wide 
and  somewhat  bare  upland  valley,  along  which  runs  the 
road  to  Alexandrapol.     We   had  only  travelled   sixty- 
eight  versts  during  the  day,  but  it  was  too  late  to  cross 
the  pass.     The  horrible  jolting  of  our  carts  had  given  us 
all  headaches,  and  made  us  feel  generally  out  of  sorts,  and 
we  had  made  up  our  minds  to  give  them  up  and  take  to 
riding,  which  now  indeed  became  a  necessity,  as  the  stage 
over  the  mountain  was  impassable  for  carriages,  owing  to 
the  destruction  of  the  old  track  by  the  works  for  the  new 
road.     Delidschan  turned  out  to  be  the  destination  of  the 
troops  we  had  seen  in  the  morning,  and  there  was  already 
a  considerable  force  collected  in  the  white  tents  pic- 
turesquely grouped  in  the  valley  below.     The  evening 
was  cold,  for  we  were  at  a  height  of.  4,230  feet,  and  we 
were  glad  to  solace  ourselves  after  our  fatigues  with  a 
brew  of  mulled  wine. 

May  22nd, — Heavy  rain  was  falling  when  first  we  looked 
out  of  vnndow,  and  we  set  about  our  preparations  in  a 
gloomy  frame  of  mind.  Our  luggage  was  soon  packed 
on  horseback,  and,  mounted  on  animals  more  used  to 
draw  than  to  carry,  we  formed  a  very  queer  cavalcade 
when  we  started  for  the  ascent  of  the  pass.  Paul,  like 
most  of  his  race,  was  a  good  but  rough  rider,  and 
bullied  his  beast,  until  the  animal  plunging,  and  the 
saddle  turning,  gave  our  friend  a  tumble  and  a  lesson  in 
moderation  which  was  not  unneeded.  The  road  led  up  a 
lateral  glen  of  the  valley  we  had  left,  through  forests 
carpeted  with  cowslips,  and  past  several  villages,  untidily 
built  of  wood.  On  the  bare  slopes,  near  the  top,  we  found 
the  soldiers  at  work ;  they  were  blasting  a  terrace  for  the 


118  THE   PEBSIAN   POST-ROAD. 

new  road,  above  the  line  of  the  old,  which  was  almost 
covered  with  the  fragments  sent  down,  amongst  which 
we  had  to  pick  our  way  under  a  desultory  fire  of  small 
stones  from  above.  The  watershed  between  the  Kur  and 
the  Araxes  is  here  a  broad  grassy  ridge,  on  which  the 
snow  still  lay  in  patches ;  the  rich  herbage  has  given  the 
name  of  the  *  Echak  Meidan,' or  *  donkey's  pasturage,'  to  the 
pass,  from  the  custom  of  wayfarers  to  reward  their  beasts, 
after  the  labour  of  the  ascent,  by  turning  them  out  to  graze. 
It  does  not  seem  to  command  much  view.  For  some  distance 
we  bore  to  the  right,  with  but  little  descent,  nntil  presently 
as  much  of  the  big  Gokcha  Lake  as  the  mists  did  not  en- 
shroud came  into  sight.  Size  seemed  to  be  its  chief  merit ; 
there  was  not  a  tree  to  be  seen,  the  ground  had  a  dull 
and  sodden  appearance  afber  the  heavy  rains,  and  the 
suri'ounding  mountains,  though  many  of  them  are  10,000 
feet  in  height,  produced  but  little  effect  from  being  seen 
over  the  broad  surface  of  a  lake,  itself  6,000  feet  above 
the  sea-level.  The  day  was  very  unfevourable,  and  the  low 
clouds,  which  swept  rapidly  across  the  landscape,  added 
to  its  grim  and  desolate  character.  Here,  as  elsewhere, 
we  noticed  the  great  difference  between  the  northern  and 
southern  slopes  of  the  Anti-Caucasian  chain.  All  the  valleys 
facing  northwards,  towards  the  Kur,  are  full  of  luxuriant 
vegetation ;  while  the  southern  slopes,  falling  to  the  Araxes, 
are  always  bare,  burnt,  and  arid  in  summer,  and  swamps  in 
the  rainy  season.  Tucker's  horse  evidently  had  a  dissipated 
owner ;  it  made  a  dead  halt  at  every  drinking-shop  on  the 
road,  and  its  misdemeanours  culminated  at  a  village  just 
below  the  pass,  where  no  persuasion  could  get  the  brute  past 
a  well-known  halting- place.  It  was  not  a  pleasant  spot  to 
dismount,  for  the  mud  was  deep ;  and  finally,  I  had  to 
return,  to  withdraw  ignominiously  my  friend  and  his  mis- 
guided beast  from  the  scene  of  temptation.  Unavailing 
as  the  hunting-whip  he  always  carried  had  just  proved,  it 


THE   GOKCHA   LAKE.  119 

eflFectually  took  the  bark  out  of  two  dogs  that  ventured  to 
set  up  derisive  howls  at  the  discomfited  horseman. 

Having   reached   a   better    piece  of    road,    we   trotted 
briskly  on  in  pursuit  of  Paul,  who  had  been  sent  ahead 
to   procure   horses    at  the   next   station,   leaving   Fran- 
9ois,  a   safe  but  not  brilliant  rider,  to  keep  an  eye  on 
the  baggage.     The  post-people  refused  to  give  us  riding- 
horses,  on  the  ground  of  having  no  saddles  or  bridles. 
We  had  learnt  by  this  time  to  be  too  glad  to  get  on  any- 
how to  argue  the  question,  and  thankfully  took  posses- 
sion of  the  miserable  ^  paraclodnaia '  provided  us.     The 
posthouse  was  close  to  the  lake,  along  which  our  course 
lay  for  the  next  stage.     The  shores  are  steep,  and  the 
road  consequently  climbs  up,  down,  and  round  the  pro- 
montories, occasionally  venturing  on  a  pitch  about  the 
steepness  of  an  ordinary  house-roof.  A  rocky  island,  about 
a  quarter  of  a  mile  from  the  shore,  and  a  village  built  on 
a  bold  peninsula,  are  the  only  objects  which  seem  worthy 
of  notice.      Elenovka,  situated  at  the  west  end  of  the 
lake,  where  the  shore  is  low,  and  the  waters  find  an  out- 
let, stands  in  a  wide  sea  of  mud,  with  hovels,  arranged 
more  or  less  in  the  form  of  a  street,  scattered  amongst  it. 
A  strong  odour  of  dried  fish  revealed  at  once  the  staple  of 
industry ;  the  salmon-trout  of  the  Gokcha  Lake  are  famous, 
and  are  sent  both  to  Tiflis  and  Erivan.  The  postmaster  was 
a  Jew,  and  talked  a  little  German ;  but  he  had  neither 
horses  nor  *  telegas,'  and  did  not  seem  to  know  when  he  was 
likely  to  have  them.     After  a  delay  of  three  hours  we  got 
two  horses,  and,  with  Paul  as  my  companion,  I  pushed 
forward,  to  make,  if  possible,  all  ready  at  the  next  station ; 
as  we  were  unwilling  to  give  up  the  hope,  faint  though 
it  was,  of  reaching  Erivan  that  night.     Fancy  the  wildest, 
ugliest  part  of  Wales  in  bad  weather,  with  mountains, 
swamps,  and  rainstorms  all  on  an  enlarged  scale,  and  some 
feeble  idea  may  be  formed  of  this  part  of  Armenia,  as  we 


1*20  THE   PERSIAN   POST-ROAD. 

saw  it.  The  track — a  broad  belt  of  mud  streching  across 
the  swampy  downs — was  not  difficult  to  find,  despite  the 
driving  mists ;  the  carcase  of  a  camel,  or  a  dying  horse, 
by  the  wayside,  and  the  telegraph-wires  singing  a  quiet 
tune  of  their  own  overhead,  sufficiently  revealed  the 
whereabouts  of  what  the  Bussians  naively  call  a  road, 
and  illustrated  the  happy  definition  we  afterwards  heard, 
*  TJne  route  de  poste  en  Caucase,  c'est  ou  il  y  a  ni  route  ni 
chevaui/ 

A  short  descent  brought  us  to  Achta,  after  a  ride  of  six- 
teen versts,  during  which  my  steed  and  I,  to  my  great 
surprise,  did  not  once  part  company;  as  trotting  with 
a  saddle  about  the  size  of  a  lady's  bonnet,  and  stirrups 
which  exalt  your  knees  to  the  level  of  your  face,  is  an 
exercise  more  sensational  than  safe.  Tucker,  Fran9oi8, 
and  the  baggage  arrived  in  due  time,  and  we  continued  our 
journey  in  carts.  The  stream  from  the  lake,  reinforced 
by  contributions  fi^m  the  western  range,  flowed  in  a 
deep  depression  on  our  right,  while  we  continued  to 
traverse  the  swampy  downs  which  spread  round  the  base 
of  Ak-Dagh.  So  deep  was  the  mire  that  we  could 
seldom  get  beyond  a  foot's  pace,  and  it  was  dark  ere 
we  reached  the  next  station,  a  lone  house  standing  in  a 
hollow,  near  the  base  of  a  conical  hill  of  apparently 
volcanic  origin.  Soon  after  our  arrival  a  *  tarantasse'  (a 
carriage  with  a  hood  and  rough  springs)  drove  up.  Its 
occupants  were  a  gentleman,  a  member  of  a  Greek  firm 
at  Teheran  and  Tabreez,  who  spoke  a  little  English,  his 
wife,  and  a  lady's-maid.  He  told  us  that  Mr.  Abbott, 
the  English  Consul-General,  was  at  present  at  Urmia,  but 
that  we  should  find  a  hospitable  welcome  at  Tabreez 
from  Dr.  Cormick,  the  English  physician  in  charge  of  the 
heir-apparent  of  Persia,  who  holds  his  court  at  Tabreez. 
He  also  gave  us  a  note  to  an  old  servant  of  his  firm 


VIEW   OF   AKARAT.  121 

residing  at  Djulfa,  on  the  Russo-Persian  frontier,  which 
proved  invaluable.  In  return  he  asked  for  information 
as  to  the  road  we  had  travelled.  We  were  sorry  not  to 
be  able  to  give  a  better  report,  as  he  was  considerably 
perplexed  how  he  should  get  his  wife  and  heavy  baggage 
over  the  pass.  He  started,  however,  next  morning,  to  try 
his  luck,  and  we  afterwards  heard  of  his  safe  arrival  at 
Tiflis. 

May  23rc2. — The  station  supplied  a  comfortless  room, 
where  I  was  privileged  to  enjoy  repose  on  a  sofa  which 
had  once  been  stuffed ;  but  as  the  middle  had,  by  some 
incomprehensible  means,  risen  two  feet  higher  than  either 
end,  my  position  waa  somewhat  constrained,  and  I  envied 
Tucker  his  level,  if  hard,  boards.  The  morning  was 
tolerably  fine,  and  on  starting  we  traversed  uplands  of  the 
same  description  as  yesterday's,  only  that  we  could  now 
distinguish  the  snowy  summits  of  Ak-Dagh  on  the  left, 
and  Alagoz,  with  two  summits  about  the  size  of  the  cone 
of  Fiz  Languard,  perched  on  an  enormously  bulky  base,  on 
the  right.  In  front  a  rise  of  the  ground  shut  out  all  beyond. 
As  we  overtopped  the  brow,  Ararat  burst  suddenly  into 
view — a  huge  but  graceftdly-shaped  mass,  rising  to  a  height 
of  16,916  feet,  from  a  base  of  about  3,000  feet.  It  stands 
perfectly  isolated  from  all  the  other  ranges,  with  the  still 
more  perfect  cone  of  Little  Ararat  (12,840  feet)  at  its  side. 
Seen  thus  early  in  the  season,  with  at  least  9,000  feet  of 
snow  on  its  slopes,from  a  distance  and  heightwell  calculated 
to  permit  the  eye  to  take  in  its  true  proportions,  we 
agreed  that  no  single  mountain  we  knew  presented  such 
a  magnificent  and  impressive  appearance  as  the  Armenian 
giant.  I  can  only  compare  it  to  the  popular  idea  of  Atlas — 
a  huge  head  and  shoulders  supporting  the  sky.  One  is 
ready  immediately  to  admit  that  the  Ark  must  have 
grounded  there,  if  it  grounded  anywhere  in  these  parts. 


122  THE  PERSIAN   POST-KOAD. 

Francois  went  off  at  once  into  somewhat  Colenso-like 
speculations  as  to  the  mode  of  the  elephant's  descent,  and 
how  many  years  the  tortoise  must  have  taken  to  reach  the 
bottom ;  and  he  was  scarcely  satisfied  with  the  suggestion 
that  the  tortoise  turned  on  his  back  and  made  one  Ion  or 
glissade  of  it,  while  a  ^  special '  avalanche  was  engaged  to 
transport  the  more  unwieldy  animals.  As  we  thus  ex- 
amined and  talked  over  the  mountain,  we  were  glad  to 
observe  that,  though  steep,  it  did  not  appear  to  offer  any 
serious  difficulties ;  still  the  quantity  of  snow  was  so  great 
that  we  decided  to  postpone  our  attack  on  it  till  after 
our  return  firom  Persia,  when  we  might  hope  to  find  the 
weather  more  settled,  and  the  slopes  in  better  order  for 
an  ascent.  Ah-eady  we  fancied  we  discovered  a  ^  Grand 
Mulcts  *  in  a  rocky  tooth  which  projected  from  the  eastern 
side  of  the  greater  peak,  and  anathematised  anew  the 
faithless  Frenchwoman  at  Eutais,  by  whose  carelessness 
in  failing  to  forward  our  mountain-tent  we  were  likely 
to  be  prevented  from  sleeping  at  so  great  a  height.  After 
we  had  gazed  our  fill  at  Ararat,  we  noticed  that  away  to 
the  west  spread  the  broad  upper  basin  of  the  Araxes, 
bounded  by  the  snowy  mountains  of  Armenia  and  Kurdi- 
stan. The  last  station  before  Erivan,  perhaps  an  old 
caravanserai,  stands  in  a  most  picturesque  gap,  the  rocky 
sides  of  which  serve  as  a  frame  to  the  stupendous  snowy 
mass  of  the  two  Ararats.  We  were  required  to  write  our 
names  and  nationality,  by  an  officer  of  unusually  courteous 
manner.  A  few  versts  more,  over  bare  downs,  where  herds 
of  camels  were  picking  up  the  scanty  herbage,  or  kneeling 
with  lugubrious  grunts  to  receive  their  loads,  brought 
us  to  a  large  village  on  the  verge  of  the  last  steep  descent 
into  the  valley.  Thence  we  got  our  first  view  of  Erivan ; 
a  grey  flat-roofed  town,  nestling  under  the  shelter  of  the 
hill  we  were  about  to  descend,  and  embowered  in  groves  of 


ERIVAN.  123 

lime  and  acacia — a  pleasing  contrast  to  the  bare  plain 
around.  Wc  were  driven  through  its  wide  streets,  which 
have  the  unkempt  air  of  most  provincial  Eussian  towns, 
to  the  post-station  -,  but  not  liking  the  quarters  there,  we 
insisted  on  returning  to  the  ^  Gostenitza  Ararat,'  where  we 
found  a  tolerable  room,  clean  beds,  and  excellent  food, 
including  even  such  luxuries  as  coffee-ices.  Erivan  is  a 
place  which  belongs  to  no  one  nationality,  but  shows 
in  its  buildings,  and  still  more  in  the  crowd  in  its 
streets,  the  traces  of  several.  Two-storied  stone  houses, 
wide  streets,  an  abundance  of  tow^-carriage8,  and  an 
untidy  public  garden,  where  a  military  band  performs 
every  evening,  mark  the  presence  of  Russian  rulers.  The 
bazaars  are  thoroughly  Eastern,  and  a  stroU  through  them 
will  be  sure  to  afford  some  amusement.  The  large  open 
space  between  the  public  garden  and  the  fortress  was 
always  crowded  with  camels  and  bales  of  merchandise. 
The  principal  mosque,  standing  on  one  side  of  a  quad- 
rangle, is  covered  externally  with  blue  tiles,  which  give  its 
minaret  a  very  bright  appearance.  There  is  a  certain 
Persian  element  about  the  place,  which  manifests  itself 
most  prominently  in  the  paintings  with  which  any  blank 
space  of  wall  was  decorated:  here  of  a  company  of  high- 
capped  horsemen,  there  of  strange  wild  beasts,  amongst 
which  the  Persian  lion — a  near  relation  of  our  red  lions  at 
home,  with  a  sword  in  his  paw,  and  the  sun  rising  out  of 
his  back — took  the  first  place.  Bussian,  Persian,  Ar- 
menian, Kurd,  and  Tartar  jostle  one  another  between  the 
stalls,  and  it  is  strange  to  reflect  on  the  different  pasts, 
and  probable  futures,  of  the  races  they  represent.  Now 
you  pass  an  Armenian  priest  or  merchant,  distinct  in  type 
from  the  Russian — like  the  Greek  clever  and  successful  as 
a  man  of  business,  and  renowned  throughout  the  East  for 
his  sharp  practice,  and  yet,  also  like  the  Greek,  incapable  of 


1-24  THE   PERSIAN   POST-ROAD. 

combining  to  form  a  wise  polity,  and  insensibly  yielding  to 
his  destiny,  soon  to  be  merged  with  the  slower  but  more 
steadfast  fiussian.  By  his  side  may  be  seen  the  Kurd 
chieftain,  from  the  slopes  of  Alagoz,  or  Bingol  Dagh, 
armed  with  a  round  leather  shield  and  dagger,  Turk  or 
Russian,  as  suits  his  convenience — in  reality  paying 
neither  allegiance  nor  dues  to  any  man,  and  looting  what 
he  is,  the  free  Arab  of  the  mountains.  The  strong 
pressure  from  without  is  producing  some  sort  of  union 
amongst  the  Kurdish  tribes;  they  are  constantly  rein- 
forced by  emigrants  from  the  Russian  side  of  the 
Araxes,  and,  if  we  may  believe  one  who  has  had  long  ex- 
perience of  Oriental  races,  it  is  to  them  we  m^'lt  look  for 
the  continuation  of  the  struggle  against  the  northern 
flood,  which  has  now  finally  swept  over  the  Caucasus,  and 
is  breaking  round  the  slopes  of  Ararat. 

In  the  afternoon  we  called  on  the  governor  of  the 
province,  who  spoke  excellent  French,  and  showed  a 
desire  to  render  us  all  the  assistance  in  his  power.  We 
learned  that  the  Araxes  was  impassable,  which  of  course 
confirmed  our  intention  of  postponing  our  visit  to  Ararat. 
The  governor  gave  us  letters  to  the  commander  of  the 
district  of  Nakhitchevan,  and  the  Colonel  of  Cossacks 
stationed  at  Aralykh,  the  frontier-post  on  the  further  side 
of  the  Araxes,  at  the  foot  of  Ararat.  This  letter  we  hoped 
to  use  on  our  return  from  Tabreez.  We  sent  Paul  to 
endeavour  to  procure  some  kind  of  springs  vehicle,  but  no 
such  thing  was  to  be  had  in  Erivan. 

May  2ith, — ^We  were  off  at  4.30  A-M.,  in  the  usual 
*  paraclodnaia  ^ ;  both  the  carts  and  the  road  were  horrible 
for  the  first  four  stages.  The  ruts  in  this  part  of  the 
world  run  across,  instead  of  parallel  with,  the  track,  and 
in  consequence  inflict  a  series  of  short  sharp  jolts  on  the 
unlucky  traveller.     During  the  second  stage  we  passed 


A   STEPPE  STORM.  125 

between  a  successioD  of  orchards  and  vineyards,  nourished 
by  a  careful  system  of  irrigation,  which  has  made  this 
part  of  the  Araxes  valley  like  a  great  garden.  These 
vines  are  locally  reputed  to  be  descendants  of  those 
planted  by  K"oah  after  the  Deluge,  and  some  support  is 
given  to  this  tradition  by  the  fact  that  the  juice  is  still 
famed  among  the  Russian  officers  for  retaining  the  pecu- 
liarly intoxicating  quality  it  possessed  in  the  days  of  the 
Patriarch,  From  Kainirlu,  a  large  village  where  the 
track  to  Aralykh  turns .  ofiF,  the  view  of  the  two  Ararats, 
now  close  at  hand,  is  superb.  The  Little  Ararat,  on  the 
left,  is  a  perfect  cone,  looking  a  volcano  all  over;  the' 
^Ighet  mountain  rises  from  the  gap  between  the  two 
summits,  in  a  long  slope,  broken,  about  8,500  feet  "below 
the  top,  by  a  huge  rock-tooth.  The  snow-dome  falls  away 
gently  towards  the  north  for  some  distance,  and  supports- 
a  large '  n6v^-plateau,  below  which  the  mountaia  breaks 
down  steeply  for  several  thousand  feet. 

We  now  left  cultivation  behind,  and  drove  at  will  over 
the  grassy  steppe,  passing  every  now  and  then  a  group  of 
Turcoman  tentsj  large,  and  comfortable  erections.  A  sheet 
of  dingy  canvas  forms  the  roof,  while  the  sides  are  con- 
structed of  wicker-firatiiework,  hiing  with  gay-coloured 
Qarpets,  woven  by  the  women.  During  the  fifth  stage,  we 
passed  through  a  curious  gap  in  a  range  of  hills,  which  ran 
0ut  from  the  barren 'Chain  on  our  left,  and  came  in  view  of 
a  broad  lagoon  formed  by  the  flooded  Araxes.  Clouds  had 
been  for  some  time  gathering  round  Ararat,  and  now 
slow;ly  detached  themselves,  in  black,  masses,  from  its 
sides.:  We  noticed,  first,  apparent  pufis  of  smoke  on  the 
ftirther  side  of  the  valley ;  then  a  pUlar,  as  of  cloud,  rose 
into  the  air,  and  swept  towards  us  ucross  the  Araxes ;  with 
it  came  the  howling  wind,  lashing  up  the  waters  of  the 
lake ;  and  a  minute  afterwards,  we  were  overtaken  by  a 


\ 


\ 


/ 


/ 


/ 
/ 


126  THE   PERSIAN   POST-EOAD. 

storm  of  rain,  which  laid  the  dust-cloud  which  had  been 
its  forerunner.  The  storm  did  not  last  long,  but  it  made 
a  great  impression  on  us  at  the  time,  though  it  was  a 
trifle  to  one  we  afterwards  encountered.  In  the  worst 
of  the  wind  and  rain,  our  driver  pulled  up  short,  and 
jumped  down  to  secure  two  bales  of  serge  which  had 
fallen  from  the  back  of  some  overburdened  camel,  and  lay 
on  the  steppe  the  prize  of  the  fortunate  first-comer.  The 
driver  of  the  second  cart  claimed  his  share  of  the  booty, 
and  we  were  obliged  to  insist  on  their  postponing  the 
argument  of  the  case  until  our  arrival  at  the  next  station. 
There  we  received  the  unwelcome  intelligence  that  it  was 
140  instead  of  80  versts,  as  we  had  previously  believed, 
fix)m  Erivan  to  Nakhitchevan,  and  that  immediately  before 
us  lay  a  large  river,  now  dangerously  swollen,  which  it  was 
doubtful  whether  we  should  be  able  to  cross. 

Eeflecting  that,  in  the  present  state  of  the  weather,  the 
stream  was  more  likely  to  be  larger  than  less  next  morn- 
ing,* we  determined  to  take  our  chance,  and  declined  to 
follow  the  rustic  policy  of  waiting  till  the  river  should 
sink,  recommended  by  Pran9ois,  among  whose  strong 
points  fording  of  rivers  was  not  included.  We  very  soon 
came  to  the  brink  of  a  formidable-looking  stream,  but  our 
driver  was  plucky,  our  horses  faced  the  water  bravely,  and, 
piloted  by  a  native  horseman,  we  emerged  safely  on  the 
further  bank.  In  the  same  way  we  crossed  a  second 
branch  of  the  river,  and  were  just  congratulating  ourselves 
on  the  ease  ynih  which  we  had  vanquished  the  enemy, 
when  the  third  and  last  branch  came  into  sight,  as  big  as 
the  other  two  put  together.  Before  venturing  on  the 
passage  we  confided  the  saddlebags,  now  our  only  luggage, 
to  a  horseman  who  was  to  precede  us,  and  took  off  our 
boots  and  socks,  in  case  the  water  should  come  into  the 
cart.     The  stream  before  us  was  100  vards  wide,  and  was 


A   DANGEROUS   FORD,  127 

coming  down  from  tlie  hills  in  lumps  of  brown  water. 
Fortunately,  we  had  plenty  of  assistance  in  our  difficulties, 
from  a  band  of  natives  who  were  on  the  look-out  to  earn 
some  honest  copecks.  One  rode  alongside,  to  direct  and 
cheer  the  horses ;  two  others,  half-naked,  hung  on  to  the 
side  of  the  *  paraclodnaia,'  which  met  the  force  of  the 
stream,  and  helped  to  prevent  our  being  borne  away. 

When  all  was  ready  we  plunged  in.  The  stream,  four 
feet  deep,  poured  through  the  cart,  but  the  horses  fought 
gamely,  and  we  soon  found  ourselves  in  shallow  water,  in 
the  centre  of  the  flood;  another  plunge,  another  sharp 
but  short  struggle,  and  we  were  landed  in  safety  on  the 
further  hank.  As  we  looked  back  on  the  cart  containing 
Paul  and  Fran9ois,  still  surrounded  by  the  water,  the  burly 
form  of  the  latter,  standing  erect,  to  escape  wetting,  re- 
minded us  ludicrously  of  Pharaoh  in  the  Ked  Sea,  as  re- 
presented in  children's  Bible-pictures.  After  distributing 
a  well-earned '  backsheesh '  among  the  men  who  had  aided 
us,  we  pursued  our  journey  over  the  wide  dull  plain.  Our 
driver  was,  in  more  ways  than  one,  a  cool  hand ;  and  having 
done  his  business  so  well  in  the  passage  of  the  river,  seemied 
to  consider  he  was  now  entitled  to  take  his  pleasure,  which 
he  did  by  deliberately  pulling  up  at  a  halfway  house,  and 
keeping  us  waiting  while  he  took  a  glass  of  *  vodka  *  and 
smoked  a  pipe.  As  rain  was  again  beginning  to  fall  heavily, 
our  patience  did  not  endure  long,  and  having  captured  our 
sybarite,  we  induced  him  to  hurry  on  to  the  next  station, 
which  was  in  sight,  on  a  low  hill  at  the  further  end  of  the 
plain.  On  arrival  we  were  met  with  the  dismal  intelli- 
gence that  there  was  nothing  to  eat,  but,  like  most  official 
assertions,  this  turned  out  not  to  be  strictly  true;  and 
Paul  succeeded  in  unearthing  new  milk,  tea,  and  eggs — so 
that,  with  the  chickens  and  cheese  we  had  brought  from 
Erivan,  we  made  no  bad  supper.     If  the  sleeping  accom- 


128  THE   PERSIAX   POST-ROAD. 

modation  had  been  better,  we  should  have  had  no  reason 
to  complain.  In  this,  however,  lies  the  cardinal  defect  of 
the  Russian  post-stations ;  in  no  single  one  of  those 
between  Tifiis  and  Djulfa,  a  distance  of  300  miles,  can  a 
mattrass  or  a  blanket  be  procured  for  love  or  money. 
The  eye,  in  its  despairing  search  for  creature-comforts,  is 
met  by  a  wooden  framework  with  a  sloping  board  at  its 
head,  representing  the  pillow  of  civilised  life.  This  is  the 
couch  awaiting  the  traveller,  weary  v^ith  100  versts  of 
road,  which  have  given  him  a  horrible  headache  and  a 
pain  across  the  chest,  and  made  every  joint  in  his  body 
stiff  and  sore.  Stretched  on  one  of  these  barbarous  con- 
trivances, he  shifts  himself  restlessly  from  side  to  side ; 
and  if  he  is  so  lucky  as  to  snatch  a  short  slumber,  still 
urges  in  his  dreams  the  inevitable  *  paraclodnaia '  over  the 
interminable  steppe.  Unwieldy  as  such  an  article  is  to 
carry,  a  mattrass  of  some  sort  is  a  necessity  in  travelling 
in  the  Caucasian  provinces. 

May  2hth. — The  morning  was  clear,  and  the  two  peaks 
of  Ararat,  now  well  behind  us,  and  brought  almost  in 
a  line  with  one  another,  looked  very  imposing.  Two  stages 
separated  us  from  Nakhitchevan ;  the  first  of  fourteen 
versts,  we  accomplished  in  fifty  minutes.  The  ground  was 
soft,  and  the  disagreeables  of  jolting  were  exchanged  for 
the  doubtful  pleasure  of  being  plastered  with  mud.  The 
track  led  up  and  down  over  bare  hiUs ;  every  few  miles 
we  came  to  a  Cossack  station,  one  of  a  chain  extending 
all  along  the  Persian  frontier.  Nakhitchevan  is  a  small 
and  decayed  town,  built  on  a  high  brow  which  overlooks 
the  basin  of  the  Araxes ;  it  boasts  of  a  large  but  now 
ruined  mosque,  a  governor,  a  passport-bureau,  and  a 
custom-house.  We  first  sought  the  untidy  but  not  ill- 
supplied  military  restaurant,  where  we  got  a  good  break- 
fast, and  a  bottle  of  Allsopp's  beer.     Wherever  there  are 


A  MONEY  QUESTION.  I09 

Bussian.  officers  quartered,  there  is  at  least  a  semblance  of 
European  cookery,  and  European  cookery  is  an  excellent 
thing  after  a  course  of  post-station  fare.  We  next  presented 
our  letter  to  the  governor,  a  stout  man,  whose  final  cause, 
as  far  as  we  could  make  out,  was  to  serve  as  a  receptacle 
for  Russian  decorations,  the  rage  for  which,  in  this  country, 
reminded  us  constantly  of  the  South  Sea  Islander's  passion 
for  a  coat  with  brass  buttons  and  a  cocked  hat ;  the  same 
instinct  prompts  both.  He  told  off  two  Cossacks  to  aid 
us  in  crossing  the  streams  which  still  intervened  between 
us  and  Djulfa. 

Officialism,  is  very  rampant  at  Nakhitchevan.  Our  pass- 
ports were  long  retained  and  anxiously  studied  by  clerks 
of  every  deg^e.  After  being  led  from  custom-house  to 
police-office,  from  police-office  to  custom-house,  for  nearly 
two  hours^  till  our  patience  was  wellnigh  exhausted,  we 
were  curtly  asked  by  an  official,  *  how  much  money  we  had 
got  P  '  Being  by  this  time  fairly  irritated,  I  answered,  as 
curtly,  that  he  might  find  out.  Our  inquisitor  persisted, 
and  it  was  not  till  the  officials  found  we  could  be  as 
obstinate  as  they  were,  that  they  condescended  to  explain 
that  a  conyention  existed  between  Kussia  and  Persia,  by 
which  all  money  that  had  been  registered  before  leaving 
the  Eussian  territory  could,  if  lost  by  robbery  on  Persian 
soil,  be  recovered  from  the  Shah's  Government.  As  the 
custom-house  is  twenty-five  miles  distant  from  the  actual 
frontier,  the  money  has  to  be  registered  at  Nakhitchevan, 
where  it  is  tied  up  (in  the  present  instance  in  my  pocket- 
handkerchief)  and  sealed  with  the  double  eagle,  not  to  be 
broken  until  the  moment  before  the  ferry-boat  leaves  the 
Kussian  soil.  This  is  the  official  story ;  the  real  object  I 
believe  to  be,  to  prevent  the  exportation  of  Russian  silver, 
which  is  scarce  enough  already.  When  treated  with 
civility,  we  made  no  further  difficulty,  and  handed  over  our 


130  THE   PERSIAN   POST-ROAD. 

cash.     Our  Napoleons  puzzled  the  officials  greatly,  their 
value  being  utterly  unknown  to  them ;  indeed,  I  believe  they 
had  never  seen  gold  before,  and  the  discovery  of  some  'Victor 
Emmanuels'  in  the  roll  added  greatly  to  their  perplexity. 
At  last  the  formalities  were  completed,  the  Cossack  escort 
arrived,  and  we  started  for   a  forty  versts '  drive  to  the 
frontier-post.     At  the  foot  of  the  hill  on  which  Nakhit- 
chevan  stands  we  encountered  a  stream,  which,  though 
troublesome,  was  nothing  after  our  sensational  feat  of  the 
day  before.     It  had  been  more  than  enough,  however,  for 
some  Armenians,  whom  we  met  just  before  we  reached  it, 
and  who  by  exhibiting  their  soaked  state  tried  to  dissuade 
us  jfrom  attempting  the  passage.     One  of  our  Cossacks  was 
conducting  a  prisoner,  whom  he  drove  at  the  trot — probably 
some  Persian  who  had  committed  a  theft,  or  come  across 
without  a  passport,  and  was  being  relegated  to  his  own  coun- 
try.    The  poor  wretch  was  allowed  to  mount  in  one  of  our 
*  paraclodnaias,'  for  which  he  was  very  grateful.  We  waded 
for  fifteen  versts  across  a  plain  more  than  half  under  water, 
and  then  passed  over  a  low  chain  of  hills,  beyond  which  we 
came  to  the  second  river,  comparatively  a  small  one,  on 
the  further  bank  of  which  stood  the  solitary  posthouse. 
The  whole  scenery  of  the  Araxes  valley  is  wild,  not  to  say 
dreary ;  but  it  is  so  utterly  unlike  anything  we  are  ac- 
customed to  in  Europe,  that  it  has  at  least  the  charm  of 
novelty.     The  landscape  now  grew  more  and  more  savage. 
Ararat,  which  had  long  served  as  a  kind  of  familiar  land- 
mark in  this,  to  us,  unknown  region,  was  lost  to  view 
behind  lower  hills.     In  front  a  wild  confusion  of  moun- 
tains gathered  round  us,  amongst  which  towered  one  huge 
and,  as  one  would  have  said  before  the  fall  of  the  Matterhom, 
inaccessible  rocky  mass,  tower-like  in  form,  and  rising  at 
least  3,000  feet  above    its  base.     The   Araxes  is   here 
obliged  to  force  its  way  through  a  gorge  in  the  hills,  and 


OUE  COSSACK  ESCORT.  131 

the  tributary  we  had  just  crossed  has  a  similar  task.  The 
track  follows  its  channel,  between  two  walls  of  sandstone 
rock,  and  it  is  necessary  twice  to  ford  the  stream.  We 
had  barely  eflfected  the  first  passage  when  the  off-fore- 
wheel  of  our  crazy  vehicle  fell  to  pieces.  Had  it  done  so 
a  minute  earlier,  both  we  and  our  luggage  would  have 
been  drenched,  and,  as  the  current  was  deep  and  strong, 
probably  seriously  injured  by  the  accident.  Fortunately, 
we  were  only  some  six  miles  from  our  destination,  and 
the  road  was  smooth ;  so  we  crowded  into  the  remaining 
cart,  the  harness  of  which  instantly  gave  way  under  the 
extra  strain,  but  was  promptly  repaired. 

As  we  trotted  quickly  down  the  long  slope  which  leads 
to  Djulfa,  we  amused  ourselves  by  contrasting  our  wretched 
trap  and  magnificent  escort.  Had  our  carriage  been  a 
little  better,  we  might  have  &jicied  ourselves  royal  per- 
sonages, with  an  outrider  cantering  in  front,  and  two 
Cossacks  trotting  on  either  side.  The  Cossacks  here  have  no 
fixed  uniform;  their  dress  is  a  conical  Tartar  hat,  a 
cloth  coat,  generally  blue  or  brown,  a  silk  shirt  coming 
down  to  the  knee,  and  long  leather  boots  with  turn-up 
toes.  They  carry  a  more  or  less  extensive  armouiy,  but 
none  have  less  than  a  sword,  gun,  and  pistoL  On  the 
road  they  amused  themselves  and  us  by  feats  of  horseman- 
ship. One  of  them  was  particularly  clever  in  picking  up 
his  gun  from  the  ground  without  dismounting,  and  with 
apparent  ease.  These  men  neither  rise  in  their  stirrups 
EngUsh-fSeLshion,  nor  sit  dose  like  the  Arabs,  but  trot  for 
hours,  alongside  the  *  telega,'  in  a  standing  position.  We 
afterwards  made  trial  of  this  mode  of  riding,  and  Tucker 
asserts  that  he  found  it  a  grateful  change  from  the  ordi- 
nary style,  to  which  a  Tartar  saddle,  short,  narrow,  and 
hard,  is  certainly  very  ill-adapted. 

Djulfa,  the  most  southern  outpost  of  the  Bussian  Empire 

k2 


u«   -  •  - 


132  THE  PERSIAN  POST-ROAD. 

(at  least  on^this  side  of  Bokhara  or  Samarcand),  is  situated 
at  tlie  climax  of  the  wild  scenery  of  the  Araxes  ;  it  might  be 
the  frontier-post  of  the  habitable  world,  and  the  entrance 
to  some  other  region,  snch  as  the  ancients  imagined  Hades. 
A  treeless  plain,  of  a  dreary  brownish-grey,  slopes  down 
to  the  Araxes,  which  flows  out  from  behind  rugged  hills, 
through  which  it  has  forced  a  way  by  some  hidden  cleft. 
Behind  us  were  the  low  red  hills,  and  the  gap  through  which 
we  had  come ;  before  us  a  bold  mass  projected  from  the 
higher  chain  on  the  Persian  side  of  the  river,  which  was 
reft  by  a. gap  exactly  opposite,  and  corresponding  to,  that 
by  which  we  had  entered.  To  the  north-east,  where  one 
anight  have  expected  to  look  down  the  lower  valley,  the 
view  was  suddenly  barred  by  a  grand  snowclad  range,  the 
jsummits  of  which  towered  10,000  feet  above  our  heads ; 
their  lower  slopes  were  as  arid  and  desolate  as  those  above 
the  Dead  Sea.  The  only  signs  of  life  were  the  two  custom- 
houses on  the  opposite  banks,  and  a  few  miserable  buildings 
clustered  round  each.  When  we  reached  the  river's  edge, 
and  gazed  on  the  ferry-boat,  now  rendered  useless  by  the 
flood,  and  the  frayed  and  worn-out  rope,  which  scarcely 
saved  it  from  being  borne  away  towards  the  Caspian,  the 
^militude  of  Hades,  the  Stygian  flood,  and  Charon's  tub, 
was  yet  more  forcibly  recalled  to  our  minds.  On  our 
explaining  our  thoughts  to  Franyois,  he .  carried  out  the 
idea  with  his  usual  readiness,  and  replied  *Oui,  mon- 
sieur, et  je  pense  que  le  voyage  en  enfer  se  fait  en  para^ 
clodnaia ' — an  allusion  to  our  late  sufferings  which  gave  us 
a  hearty  laugh. 

Our  vehicle  pulled  up  before  the  door  of  the  one  good 
house,  where  travellers  are  generally  received  by  the  officer 
in  charge  of  the  station.  We  were  about  to  enter,  and  ask 
for  a  room  and  beds,  when  we  were  met  in  a  most  chilling 
manner  by  a  man  in  uniform,  who  informed  us  that  this 


A   MODERN   CERBERUS.  13S 

was  not  the  place  for  us,  and  in  answer  to  our  enquiries, 
ordered  a  soldier  to  point  out  where  we  might  sleep.  We 
were  accordingly  conducted  to  a  newly-built  and  as  yet 
unfinished  mud  hovel,  scarcely  approachable  for  mire, 
without  door,  window,  or  any  vestige  of  furniture,  except 
a  chimney.  There  was  a  big  puddle  outside  the  door,  and 
the  mud  floor  was  so  damp  that  we  could  stick  our  heels 
into  it  for  some  inches.  Naturally  imagining  there  must 
be  some  mistake,  we  returned  to  the  big  house,  where  I 
succeeded  in  speaking  to  the  head-officer,  who  informed  us 
we  must  put  up  with  what  was  oflfered,  or  shift  for  our- 
selves. Paul  simply  expressed  it,  *  Pardon,  monsieur,  mais 
il  Yous  dit  en  Eusse,  que  si  vous  n'Stes  pas  content^  vous 
pouvez  aller  an  diable.'  We  began  to  think  this  really  was 
Hades,  and  felt  at  a  loss  with  what  sop  to  appease  the 
modem  Cerberus. 

The  Russian  ferry-boat  being  disabled,  and  the  Persian 
not  crossing  till  morning,  we  were  compelled  to  remain 
where  we  were,  and  make  the  best  of  a  bad  job.  We  were 
indebted  to  the  good-nature  of  some  soldiers  (the  Russian 
private  is  almost  invariably  a  kindly  fellow,  ready  to  lend 
a  hand  to  anyone  in  difficulty),  for  a  table,  some  boards 
with  which  we  closed  the  door,  firewood,  rough  rugs  to 
lie  on,  and  some  new  milk.  The  sound  of  merriment  and 
popping  of  corks,  which  greeted  our  ears  when  we  VTalked 
up  to  the  terrace  of  the  chiefs  house,  did  not  lessen  our 
disgust.  He  was  entertaining  a  superior  member  of  the 
official  confraternity,  and  thus  keeping  up  the  character 
for  hospitality,  called  for  by  his  possession  of  a  Persian 
decoration,  nominally  acquired  by  the  exercise  of  that 
virtue,  but  really  by  purchase,  if  Tabreez  talk  was  true. 

May  26th. — We  did  not  pass  a  very  comfortable  night* 
I  left  before  breakfast,  to  try  and  get  our  passports  back 
from  the  officials  who  had  them  to  examine.    Betuming 


134  THE   PERSIAN   POST-ROAD. 

unsuccessful,  I  was  just  detailing  my  experiences  to 
Tucker,  when  lie  was  suddenly  seized  with  a  fainting-fit, 
which  lasted  for  some  time.  When  he  showed  signs  of 
recovering,  I  sent  up  Paul  to  the  large  house  to  say  that 
my  friend  was  ill,  and  to  ask  for  the  loan  of  a  saucepan  to 
make  some  soup  in.  He  returned  shortly,  having  seen  the 
head-officer,  with  the  message  that  they  did  not  keep 
things  to  lend.  Disgusted  at  our  treatment  the  previous 
evening,  I  had  already  written  a  complaint,  which  I  pur- 
posed addressing  to  one  of  our  friends  at  Tiflis.  I  now 
added  this  detail  to  the  catalogue  of  offences,  and,  on  going 
up  a  second  time  to  receive  our  passports,  handed  over  a 
copy  of  it  to  the  officer,  whose  guest  I  had  learnt  spoke 
French,  and  would  therefore  be  able  to  read  it  for  him. 
He  did  not  then,  or  on  our  return,  offer  any  excuse  for  his 
conduct  towards  us ;  and  we  therefore,  carried  out  our 
purpose  of  presenting  the  complaint,  which,  we  were  sub- 
sequently assured,  met  with  attention  at  head-quarters. 

When  the  Persian  ferry-boat  came  over,  about  8  o'clock. 
Tucker  was  fortunately  well  enough  to  walk  dovni  to  it. 
We  embarked  with  a  miscellaneous  company  of  six  don- 
keys, two  horses,  some  ragged  peasants,  and  an  Armenian 
merchant,  who  rode  with  us  up  to  Tabreez.  There  was  no 
rope  to  the  boat,  which  was  only  propelled  by  two  wretched 
apologies  for  oars,  and  the  current  was  so  strong  that  we 
seemed  to  run  a  chance  of  seeing  the  Caspian  shortly. 
The  men  in  charge  knew,  however,  how  to  take  advantage 
of  the  eddies  and  backwaters  of  the  stream,  and  finally 
landed  us  in  safety  on  Persian  soil,  about  three-quarters 
of  a  mile  below  the  custom-house.  The  banks  had  been 
quite  lately  under  water,  and  were  now  an  almost  impass- 
able swamp ;  we  picked  our  way  along  them  some  little 
distance  to  a  sandspit,  on  which  a  number  of  camels  were 
reposing,  until  the  boat  shotdd  be  ready  to  return^     In 


A   FRIEND   IN   NEED.  135 

the  interval  we  hired  some  of  them  to  convey  ns  to  the 

station,  to  which  we  rode  in  an  imposing  caravan,  Fran- 

9ois  leading  the  way  with  great  solemnity.     We  found  the 

head  of  the  custom-house  was  the  man  to  whom  Monsieur 

Ealli  had  told  us  to  apply  for  help.     As  he  spoke  a  few 

words  of  French,  we  were  able  personally  to  explain  our 

needs  to  him ;  and  we  were  at  once  taken  to  his  room, 

where  he  made  a  sofa  for  Tucker  with  his  carpets,  and 

shared  with  us  his  dinner,  a  most  excellent  mutton-broth. 

We  found  that  our  Eussian  paper-money  would-  be  useless 

beyond  the  frontier,  and  consequently  had  to  change  into 

'  tomans  (a  rude  silver  coin  about  the  size  and  value  of  a 

fi'anc)  a  sum  sufficient  for  the  next  two  days'  journey. 

From  Djulfa  to  Tabreez  is  adistance  of  about  ninety  miles, 
which  is  divided  into  four  stages.     In  Persia,  as  through- 
out the  East  where  Eussian  influence  has  not  yet  intro- 
duced that  doubtful  luxury  of  civilisation,  the  'telega,* 
wheeled  carriages  are  the  exception,  and  all  the  traffic  and 
commerce  of  the  country  is  carried  on  horse  and  camel 
back.     The  post-stations  vary  from  sixteen  to  twenty-five 
miles  apart,  and  the  ordinary  plan  is  to  ride  one  stage  in 
the  morning,  rest  in  the  heat  of  the  day,  and  start  again 
with  fresh  horses  towards  evening.     In  this  way  from  forty 
to  sixty  miles  a  day  may  be  ridden  without  too  much 
fatigue.     We  found  no  difficulty  in  obtaining  animals  to 
carry  us  the  first  stage,  which    Tucker  now  felt  himself 
equal  to  undertaking.     There  was  not,  however,  a  spare 
horse  for  the  postboy,  who  had  in  consequence  to  run 
along  by  our  side,  until  we  met  some  return-horses,  one  of 
which  he  mounted.     Our  saddles  were  in  various  stages  of 
decay,  and  of  most  remarkable  construction,  with  narrow 
seats  and  high  peaks  in  front;  the  stirrups  were  ludi- 
crously short,  and  incapable  of  being  lengthened,  so  that 
our  knees  suffered  no  slight  torture  after  we  had  been  a 


136  THE  PEKSIAX  POST-ROAD. 

short  time  on  the  road.  The  horse-traxjk  leads  up  into  the 
elevated  tableland  of  North-western  Persia,  by  a  gentle  but 
continuous  ascent  of  at  least  3,000  feet.  Leaving  on  our 
left  the  isolated  cone  we  had  remarked  from  the  Russian 
bank,  we  rode  along  bare  slopes  in  the  direction  of  the 
only  gap  in  the  chain  before  us.  The  backward  view  was 
very  wonderful ;  a  shelf  at  the  base  of  the  hills  on  our  left 
was  dotted  with  the  bright-green  or  chards  of  several 
villages,  while  below  us  lay  the  trough  of  the  Araxes,  bare, 
brown,  and  hideous,  from  which  the  eye  sought  relief  in  the 
pure  snows  and  noble  forms  of  the  summits  of  Kanudschuch, 
which  looked  from  here  their  ftill  height  of  12,854  feet. 
The  narrow  glen  through  which  our  road  now  lay  was 
sufficiently  picturesque.  The  mountains  on  either  side 
were  covered  with  grass ;  a  little  stream,  with  a  line  of 
trees  along  its  banks,  turned  several  watermills.  Farther 
on  the  crags  became  bolder,  and  we  noticed  an  extraordi- 
nary distortion  of  the  strata.  The  narrowest  point  of  the 
pass  was  defended  by  two  old  towers,  now  in  ruins.  We 
emerged  at  length  on  an  upland  plain  surrounded  by  bare 
hills,  a  description  applicable  to  the  greater  part  of  Persian 
scenery.  The  village  of  Datarzian  soon  came  into  sight 
tmder  the  hillside  on  the  left,  and  the  jGbrst  house  in  it 
proved  to  be  the  post-station.  The  three  we  saw  on  the 
way  to  Tabreez  were  almost  alike,  and  a  description  of 
one  will  serve  for  all.  A  square  building  of  unbaked  mud 
surrounds  the  courtyard,  into  which  you  ride ;  on  three  sides 
are  the  stables,  on  the  fourth  the  rooms  for  the  reception  of 
travellers.  There  are  generally  two — one  on  the  ground- 
floor  beside  the  gateway,  and  the  other  (which  is  cool  and 
airy  in  hot  weather)  built  over  it.  These  rooms  we  found 
quite  bare  of  furniture,  but  had  no  difficulty  in  obtaining 
mattrasses  and  pillows  to  lie  on,  which  both  looked  and 
proved  clean  and  free  from  insects.    Datarzian  is  a  small 


MARAND.  137 

and  poor  village,  but  we  succeeded  in  getting  milk  and 
eggs,  and  Paul  sacrificed  a  fowl. 

May  27th, — The  morning  was  lovely,  and  the  snowy- 
chain  north  of  the  Lake  of  CTrmia,  towards  which  we  were 
riding,  was  a  fine  object  in  the  distance.  Near  at  hand 
there  was  little  to  diversify  the  road,  until  we  came  to  a 
large  ruined  khan,  the  doorway  of  which  was  handsomely 
decorated  with  tesselated  tiles.  Having  traversed  a  water- 
shed, we  descended  slightly,  and  crossed  two  streams,  along 
Ivhich  a  few  trees  and  watermills  were  scattered.  Before  us 
was  a  broad  cultivated  plain,  like  that  of  Coele-Syria.  A 
grove  of  trees  on  its  opposite  side  was  pointed  out  to  us  as 
Maraud,  the  town  at  which  the  road  from  the  Bussian  fron- 
tier joins  the  caravan  route  from  Tabreez  to  Trebizonde. 

A  Persian  town  is  a  very  curious  sight  when  seen  for 
the  first  time.  A  green  grove  appears  in  the  distance  ; 
*  that  is  Maraud,'  says  the  postboy.  As  you  approach  the 
trees  become  distinct;  you  pass  a  few  detached  orchards 
surrounded  by  high  mud  walls,  but  it  is  not  till  you  have 
fairly  entered  the  place  that  any  houses  are  visible.  The 
main  street  of  Maraud  is  shaded  by  trees,  and  watered  by 
a  stream  in  which  the  juvenile  population,  mostly  in  a 
state  of  nature,  were  engaged  in  making  mud-pies.  The 
houses  stand  on  either  side,  all  but  the  poorest  surrounded 
by  gardens,  vineyards,  and  orchards.  They  are  of  one 
story,  and  flat-roofed.  The  walls  are  buUt  of  grey  mud, 
well  smoothed  and  finished  off  (reminding  Tucker  of 
Devonshire  cob),  and  often  slope  inwards  towards  the  top. 
The  windows  are  filled  with  very  neat  wooden  lattice-work 
frames,  the  small  interstices  between  which  are  plastered 
over  with  oiled  paper,  instead  of  glass.  The  women  whom 
we  saw  struck  us  as  exceptionally  hideous ;  the  men  are  an 
active-looking  race,  more  akin  to- one's  idea  of  Hindoos 
tiian  to  the  more  apathetic  Turk.     The  common  people 


13S  THE   PKBSIAN  POST-EOAD. 

and  cliildren  wear  a  kind  of  elongated  nightcap — the  upper 
cla.sses  carry  the  tall  Persian  hat.  We  lunched  off 
*kabol/8 '  (scraps  of  meat  stuck  on  a  stick  and  toasted), 
and  *  kaimak '  (a  kind  of  Deyonshire  cream) ;  our  greatest 
success  was  the  discovery  of  a  bottle  of  wine,  pure  juice  of 
the  grape,  which  owed  little  to  any  skill  in  its  manufac- 
ture. When  we  were  on  the  point  of  starting  an  unex- 
pected question  arose.  At  first  we  were  told  the  next 
stage  over  the  hills  was  dangerous,  on  account  of  brigands, 
and  that  we  must  take  an  escort;  on  our  refusing  to  ac- 
cede to  this  proposal,  it  was  suggested  we  might  go  by  a 
longer  and  perfectly  safe  route,  only  we  should  have  to  pay 
more  for  the  horses.  This  we  also  declined,  and  finally, 
after  much  talk  and  waste  of  time,  were  allowed  to  set 
out.  Our  postboy  led  us,  by  a  track  running  due  south 
into  the  mountains,  up  a  valley  terminating  in  fine  rocky 
clifib.  We  now  found  out  why  the  brigands  had  been 
created ;  it  was  for  the  benefit  of  two  foot- soldiers  on  the 
march  to  Tabreez,  who  were  naturally  anxious  to  do  a  job 
on  the  way  by  protecting  us.  They  were  fine  raw  mate- 
rial— active  fellows  and  splendid  walkers,  unencumbered 
by  any  uniform,  save  an  old  blue  coat  and  a  white  belt,  to 
which  was  hung  a  fiint-and-steel  gun.  Presently  our  path 
turned  east,  and  crossed  a  broad  watershed,  dividing  the 
stream  which  flows  into  the  Araxes  and  the  Caspian,  from 
one  of  the  feeders  of  the  Lake  of  Urmia.  A  bold  summit 
rose  on  our  right  in  rocky  slopes  intersected  by  snow-filled 
gullies ;  on  the  other  side  a  village  in  a  bleak  situation, 
and  a  serrated  ridge  of  rocks,  attracted  our  attention.  A 
long  ride  down  a  dull  winding  valley,  between  barren  and 
ruddy-coloured  hills,  brought  us  to  Sofian,  a  village  at  the 
foot  of  the  mountains,  overlooking  the  salt-plain  which 
extends  to  the  Lake  of  Urmia.  The  people  at  the  post- 
house  were  very  civil,  and  made  us  fairly  comfortable  for 
the  night. 


ENTttANCB   TO   TABREEZ.  139 

May  2Sth. — We  set  out  early  for  our  twenty-four  miles' 
ride  across  the  plain  to  Tabreez,  which  was  already  visible, 
a  dark  green  spot,  in  the  distance.  There  was  nothing 
of  interest  on  the  road,  except  in  the  parties  we  either 
overtook  or  met.  Now  a  gentleman  on  his  travels,  dressed 
in  a  cool  dove-colour  or  grey  coat,  bright  silk  shirt,  and 
tall  hat,  his  horse  covered  with  a  gaudy  saddle-cloth, 
caracoled  past  us,  followed  by  his  servant  with  the  saddle- 
bags ;  now  we  met  a  train  of  donkeys  gaily  decorated  with 
many-coloured  tassels,  and  bustling  along  as  if  they  were 
all  hurrying  to  a  f§te.  To  them  succeeded  a  solemn  train 
of  camels,  swinging,  with  every  sway  of  the  neck,  enor- 
mous bells.  As  we  drew  closer  to  the  city,  we  met  more 
and  more  people  on  the  roads,  and  crowds  of  donkeys 
carrying  brushwood  for  the  use  of  the  brick-kilns  we 
afterwards  passed.  A  brick  bridge  of  many  arches  crosses 
the  considerable  stream  of  the  Aji  Chaa,  which,  rising  at 
the  foot  of  Sawalan  Bagh,  waters  the  environs  of  Tabreez, 
and  finally  loses  itself  in  the  Lake  of  Urmia.  We  now 
entered  the  gardens  of  the  suburbs ;  on  either  hand  rose 
grey  earth-walls,  fifteen  feet  in  height,  with  finit-trees 
raising  their  heads  over  them,  and  vines  pushing  green 
tendrils  through  their  upper  and  less  solidly-built  por- 
tions. The  doors  of  the  vineyards  were  of  stone,  exactly 
of  the  pattern  of  those  in  Bashan,  and  some  of  them  nine 
feet  high.  We  were  amused  to  see  the  primitive  mode  of 
knocking  for  admittance,  by  picking  up  a  stone  from  the 
ground  and  hammering  it  against  the  door.  We  rode  at 
once  to  the  English  Consulate,  which  is  the  handsomest 
house  in  Tabreez,  with  a  pleasant  balcony  and  garden, 
and  large  cool-looking  rooms.  We  found,  as  we  feared 
would  be  the  case,  that  Mr.  Abbott  had  already  left  for 
Urmia.  The  dragoman  of  the  Consulate  (who,  however, 
only  spoke  Turkish)  soon  appeared,  and  requested  us  to 


140  THE   PERSIAN   POST-ROAD. 

make  ourselves  at  home  antil  a  lodging  was  found  for  us. 
I  need  hardly  say  that  there  is  no  hotel  at  Tabreez,  and  it 
is  difficult  for  a  European  traveller  to  acquire  sufficient 
familiarity  with  the  manners  and  customs  of  the  people  to 
be  able  to  put  up  with  any  comfort  at  a  native  khan.  Dr. 
Cormick,  the  English  physician,  who  is  in  charge  of  the 
Shah's  son,  was  unluckily  out  for  the  day  ;  but  a  German 
merchant  came  to  our  aid,  and  we  consulted  with  him  where 
we  should  lodge.  After  a  good  deal  of  doubt  and  delay 
on  the  subject,  it  was  finally  settled,  towards  evening,  that 
we  should  take  up  our  abode  with  a  Nestorian  Christian, 
who  had  been  employed  as  dragoman  by  several  embassies 
going  to  Teheran,  and  was  said  to  speak  English.  We 
were  greatly  amused  by  our  future  host's  manner  of 
introducing  himself :  '  You  come  with  me,  all  right ;  you 
know  me?  I  Lazarus;  find  me  11th  John  in  middle 
chapter ;  aU  missionary  gentleman  know  me,  all  right.' 
*  Old  AU  Eight,'  as  we  irreverently  renamed  this  Scriptural 
character,  led  us  off  to  his  house,  which  was  approached 
by  a  narrow  lane  between  two  high  waUs,  and  a  downward 
flight  of  steps.  The  interior,  however,  was  a  pleasant 
surprise ;  we  found  a  snug  little  room,  ftimished  with 
European  chairs  and  a  table,  ready  for  us.  The  walls 
were  decorated,  in  the  Persian  style,  with  paintings  of 
flowers.  The  windows,  fiJled  in  with  paper — the  universal 
substitute  for  glass  at  Tabreez — opened  out  into  a  little 
garden,  on  the  other  side  of  which  were  some  more  apart- 
ments, in  which  glimpses  of  our  host's  wife  and  daughters 
might  occasionally  be  obtained.  At  night  beds  were  made 
up  for  us  on  the  floor,  and  Lazarus  turned  out  to  be  a  good 
cook,  with  a  special  gift  for  rice-puddings ;  so  that  Paul  for 
a  time  rested  from  his  laboiu's,  while  we  *  fared  sumptuously 
every  day.' 


TABREEZ.  141 


CHAPTEE  VI. 

TABEEEZ,   ARARAT,   AND   THE   GEORGIAN   HILL-COUNTRT. 

The  City  — Brick  Architecture  —  The  Shah's  Birthday  — The  European 
Colony — ^A  Market  Committee — Return  to  rjulfa — A  Dust  Storm — Ford  of 
the  Araxes — Aralykh — Start  for  Ararat — Refractory  Kurds— A  Moonlight 
Climb — Failure — A  Lonely  Perch — ^Vast  Panorama — ^Tucker's  Story — A 
Gloomy  Descent — ^Return  to  Eri^an — ^Etchmiadzin — The  Armenian  Patri- 
arch — A  Dull  Ride — Hammamly — The  Georgian  Hills — Djelaloghlu — 
A  Moist  Climate — Schulaweri — ^Tiflis  again — ^Moore  joins  us. 

Tabreez,  May  28th  to  Jwne  2nd, — ^We  had  come  thus 
far  to  see  a  Persian  citj,  which  we  might  hope  to  find 
more  heyond  the  reach  of  European  influences  than  the 
towns  of  the  Levant^  or  even  Damascus,  the  romance  of 
which  is  fast  yielding  to  the  frequent  invasions  of  Cook's 
tourists.  .Tabreez  far  exceeded  our  expectations.  In 
roaming  about  its  bazaars,  we  felt  the  same  sensation  of 
unreality  as  on  our  first  arrival  at  Cairo,  which,  con- 
sidering what  we  had  seen  in  the  interval,  is  saying  a 
great  deal.  I  will  begin  by  describing  the  view  gained 
firom  one  of  the  house-roofs,  which  form  the  favourite 
lounging-places  of  the  inhabitants.  Thus  viewed,  the  city 
seems  to  divide  itself  into  three  portions.  In  the  centre 
are  the  domed  roofs  of  the  bazaars ;  round  these  is  a  broad 
zone  of  dwelling-houses,  the  grey  of  their  flat  roofs  and 
walls  enlivened  by  the  bright-green  of  the  courtyards,  and 
in  the  nearer  ones  by  the  woodwork  of  the  window-blinds  ; 
outside  stretches  a  ring  of  walled  gardens,  beyond  which 
is  the  bare  country,  characteristic  of  this  part  of  Persia. 
There  are  no  minarets,  and  the  only  conspicuous  building. 


142  TABKEEZ. 

whicli  rises  above  the  level  of  the  low  one- storied  houses, 
is  the  massive  tower  of  an  old  castle,  in  shape  not  unlike 
an  Egyptian  propylon.  The  horizon  is  mountainous  on 
aU  sides.  A  range  of  red  sandstone  rises  above  the  town  on 
the  north  and  east;  in  the  south  are  seen  the  snowy 
summits  of  the  Sultan-Dagh,  which  reach  13,000  feet; 
and  to  the^west  the  eye  sweeps  over  the  plain,  often 
beautified  by  mirage,  extending  to  the  shores  of  the  Lake 
of  Urmia,  the  mountains  beyond  which,  fronted  by  those 
of  the  peninsula  of  Shahi,  close  the  view  in  this 
direction.  Owing  to  the  height  of  Tabreez  (4,000  feet 
above  the  sea-level),  and  the  neighbourhood  of  snowy 
ranges,  the  heat  of  the  sunshine  is  frequently  tempered  by 
cool  breezes,  and  during  our  stay  the  temperature  was 
delicious. 

The  bazaars  were  our  favourite  haunt,  and  where  we 
spent  the  largest  portion  of  our  time.  The  principal  ones, 
where  the  most  expensive  goods  are  sold — the  Bond  Street 
and  Regent  Street  of  Tabreez — are  brick  arcades,  the  roof 
composed  of  a  series  of  small  domes,  through  an  aperture 
in  the  crown  of  which  a  column  of  sunlight  falls  on  the 
goods  exposed  for  sale  below.  In  the  same  stall  you  see 
the  fabrics  of  Lyons  and  Manchester,  lying  side  by  side 
vrith  those  of  Shiraz  and  Ispahan.  Here  you  may  buy  a 
gaudy  French  silk,  or  a  cotton,  in  which  the  Eastiem 
colours  and  designs  are  more  or  less  faithfully  reproduced 
by  a  Lancashire  firm.  We  cast  but  a  passing  glance  on 
such  fabrics,  but  a  gorgeously-embroidered  tablecloth 
from  Bescht,  or  a  beautiful  piece  of  Persian  shawl  from 
Shiraz,  often  made  us  linger  to  chaffer  with  its  owner — 
generally,  happily  for  our  purses,  without  result,  as  the 
Persians  are  shrewder  men  of  business,  and  harder  to 
drive  a  bargain  with,  than  even  the  merchants  of  Cairo  or 
Damascus*     Out  of  these  arcades  open  halls  or  khans. 


BRICK  AKCHITECTURE.  143 

covered  by  large  and  very  flat  brick  domes,  in  tbe  buildiiij? 
of  whicb  the  Persian  architects  greatly  excel.  The 
patterns  introduced  into  the  brickwork,  and  the  viirioty 
and  shape  of  the  arches  which  support  these  halls,  add 
much  to  their  effect.  They  are  the  principal  places  where 
the  wholesale  trade  of  the  city  goes  on ;  round  the  sides 
are  the  shops ;  over  them  a^ain  are  offices,  or  rather  dens, 
where 

*  AboT6  their  merchaiidiM 
The  merchants  of  the  market  sit, 
Lying  to  foolish  men  and  vise,* 

Each  of  these  shops,  vdth  the  den  over  it,  is  encased  by  a 
brickwork  arch,  the  space  inside  the  arch  intervening 
between  the  lower  and  upper  rooms  being  filled  in  with 
neat  woodwork.  The  walls  are  often  hung  with  very 
effective  black-and-white  cotton  drapery,  on  which  tlie 
favourite  device  of  the  Persian  lion,  with  the  sun  rising 
out  of  his  back,  is  displayed.  The  centre  of  the  hall 
is  generally  occupied  by  a  pile  of  carpets,  on  the  top 
of  which  their  owner  is  often  to  be  seen  performing 
his  prostrations.  There  are  other  halls,  entirely  built  of 
wood,  and  supported  by  roughly-finished  poles;  which 
are  as  gaily  decorated  and  as  quaint^  if  not  so  handsome, 
as  the  brick  buildings.  There  are  besides,  in  the  business 
quarter  of  the  town,  numerous  open  squares,  some  of 
them  very  large ;  a  row  of  shops  extends  all  round  them, 
and  at  the  centre  of  each  of  the  four  sides  is  usually  a  brick 
apse,  in  the  form  of  a  gigantic  alcove.  In  the  middle  is 
a  fountain,  and  the  court  is  planted  with  flowering  shrubs, 
such  as  guelder-roses  and  lilacs. 

The  outer  circle  of  bazaars,  for  rough  retail  goods, 
is  mostly  covered  by  picturesque  wooden  roofs.  Here  the 
grocers'  stalls,  tastefully  decorated  with  devices  in  tinfoil, 
and  the  provision-shops,  set  out  with  nosegays  of  butter- 


144  TABREEZ. 

cups,  poppies,  and  clover,  are  a  perfect  blaze  of  colour. 
In  one  of  the  brightest  and  liveliest  alleys  in  the  whole 
bazaar,  you  watch  the  shoemakers,  all  stitching  as  if  the 
pair  of  shoes  in  hand  must  be  sent  home  in  five  .minutes ; 
close  by  are  the  forges,  where  eight  men,  standing  in  a 
circle,  hammer  out,  with  alternate  strokes,  a  mass  of  iron, 
how  each  hammer  ke'Cps  clear  of  the  next  being  a  mystery 
to  the  uninitiated.  Then  there  is  the  carpenters'  roT^, 
the  bookbindera'  row,  the  old  clothes  row,  the  knicknack 
row,  where  you  may  buy  anything,  from  revolvers  to 
Persian  ink- trays,  and  last,  but  not  least  worthy  of  notice, 
the  saddlers'  row.  The  Persians  are  decidedly  a  horsey 
people,  and  have  studied  all  the  requisites  for  a  long  ride. 
The  roof  is  bright  with  saddle-cloths,  some  covered  with 
the  most  beautiful  Bescht  embroidery ;  while  in  the  stores 
you  find  gay  girths,  and  tasselled  bridles,  carpet  saddler 
bags,  and  leather  salt-pouches,  heaped  together  in  pic- 
turesque confusion.  It  was  not  the  season  to  see  the 
fruit  bazaar  in  its  glory,  but.  the  quantity  even  of  nuts 
and  dried  fruits  was  extraordinary ;  they  were  piled  up  in 
ten  rows  of  baskets,  one  behind  another,  on  an  inclined 
plane. 

The  crowd  which  fills  the  streets  of  Tabreez  is  purely 
Eastern;  you  do  not  meet  two  men  in  European  dress 
during  the  day,  nor  do  you  see  the  red  fez  which  lends 
such  life  to  the  cities  of  the  Levant.  The  ordinary 
head-dress  is  the  tall  Persian  hat;  this  is  now  gene- 
rally made  of  cloth,  and  of  moderate  dimensions,  as 
the  Shah  has  published  an  edict  against  the  steeple-like 
edifices  of  Bokhara  lambswool  which  were  formerly  the 
fashion.  Turbans,  dark-blue  or  white,  are  however  fre- 
quent ;  they  are  of  tremendous  dimensions,  and  resemble 
those  in  the  Museum  of  the  Janissaries  at  Constan- 
tinople, fiax  more  than  any  to  be  seen  in  the  streets  of 


THE   BLUE   MOSQUE.  145 

the  Sultan's  capital.  The  colour  of  the  dresses  is  quiet 
compared  to  the  bright  hues  worn  by  the  Turks.  The 
women  are  clothed  in  dark-blue  sacks,  and  have  a  sort 
of  open  crochet-work  window  in  their  veils  for  the  eyes 
to  peep  through.  There  are  said  to  be  many  Georgian  and 
Circassian  beauties  in  the  harems  of  the  wealthier 
merchants,  but  the  chance  traveller  has,  of  course,  no 
opportunity  of  admiring  their  charms.  We  were  im- 
pressed with  the  busy  air  of  the  street  crowds.  Every- 
body walked  £a.8t ;  there  were  comparatively  few  fat  men ; 
friends  met  and  told  one  another  a  good  story,  and  passed 
on,  and  occasionally  some  of  the  younger  sort  indulged  in 
the  innocent  amusement  known  at  the  imiversities  as 
*  bear-fighting/ 

We  took  several  strolls  through  the  outer  quarters  of 
the  town,  where  long  winding  lanes,  with  a  watercourse 
running  down  the  middle,  and  shaded  by  trees,  lead  between 
high  earthen  walls ;  at  the  crossings  is  often  found  a  coffee 
or  rather  tea-house,  for  the  Chinese  drink  supplants  the 
Arabian  in  Persia.  We  noticed  many  carved  blocks  of 
black  basalt  strewn  about,  which  must  formerly  have 
belonged  to  handsome  buildings.  There  is  only  one  interest- 
ing edifice  of  any  antiquity  now  left  in  Tabreez — the  ruin 
known  by  the  name  of  the  Blue  Mosque ;  the  walls  were 
coated  inside  and  out  with  encaustic  tiles,  the  prevailing 
hues  being  Oxford  and  Cambridge  blue.  The  effect  is 
stiU  very  beautiful,  and  before  the  destruction  of  the  central 
dome — caused,  as  we  were  told,  by  an  earthquake — must 
have  been  superb.  The  largest  modem  building  is  the 
custom-house,  which  covers  a  great  extent  of  ground,  and 
consists  of  large  storehouses  supported  on  columns,  and 
roofed  with  small  domes. 

On  Sunday  we  took  tea  in  one  of  the  gardens  of  the 
suburbs.     They  are,  in  fact,  vineyards  with  walks  round 

L 


146  TABBEEZ. 

them  shaded  by  trees,  and  planted  with  rose-bnshes.  The 
owner  charges  a  small  sum  for  admission,  and  your  own 
servant  brings  the  materials  for  your  picnic.  Though 
there  is  no  attempt  at  the  refinements  of  European  gar- 
dening, they  are  pleasant  places  enough  to  while  away  an 
afternoon  in,  and  are  much  resorted  to  for  this  purpose 
by  the  townspeople.  The  Persians  are  great  lovers  of 
flowers :  while  we  were  at  Tabreez  the  single  roses,  red  and 
yellow,  came  into  bloom,  and  were  hawked  about  in  large 
nosegays;  the  pipe-stemsat  the  eating-houseswere  wreathed 
with  them,  and  they  were  made  use  of  in  the  most  tasteful 
way  by  the  common  people.  We  met  a  boy  carrying 
round  a  dish  of  small  trout  for  sale ;  the  fish  were  laid  out 
in  a  pattern  on  green  leaves,  with  lumps  of  ice  and  roses 
placed  between. 

The  day  after  our  arrival  was  the  Shah's  birthday,  and 
we  were  much  interested  in  witnessing  the  departure  of 
the  high  ofiicials  from  a  lev^  held  by  the  Crown  Prince 
in  honour  of  the  occasion.  They  were  mounted  on  gor- 
geously-equipped steeds,  but  were  themselves  dressed  in 
quiet  although  richly-coloured  robes.  We  also  saw  a  turn- 
out of  troops  in  the  courtyard  of  the  palace — scarecrows  of 
soldiers,  scarcely  worthy  of  a  minor  theatre.  We  were 
told  that  the  men  are  personally  brave  when  well  led,  and 
are  capable  of  enduring  great  fatigue  on  very  little  food. 
They  have  only  a  pretence  of  uniform,  are  little  drilled, 
and  in  consequence  do  not  present  a  very  imposing  appear- 
ance. There  are  now,  it  is  said,  600  percussion  muskets 
in  the  whole  force,  and  the  conversion  of  flint  and  steel 
pieces  is  regarded  with  the  same  interest  as  that  of  muzzle- 
loaders  among  ourselves. 

The  little  European  colony  at  Tabreez  soon  found  us 
out,  and  showed  us  the  greatest  hospitality ;  indeed,  we 
dined  out  every  night  but  one  of  our  stay.     The  mixture 


THE  EUROPEAN  KESIDENTS.  147 

of  nationalities  was  most  curious.  There  were  only  two 
English,  subjects — one.  Dr.  Cormick,  the  physician  in 
charge  of  the  Shah's  son,  the  other  a  Maltese.  There 
were,  besides,  some  pleasant  Swiss  gentlemen,  a  French- 
man, and  a  young  Italian,  an  ez-6aribaldian ;  the  latter 
two  kept  up  a  constant  fire  of  good-natured  chaff  on 
.European  politics  in  general,  and  the  relations  between  the 
Pope  and  the  French  Emperor  in  particular.  We  gathered  a 
great  deal  of  information,  which  was  new  to  us,  about  the 
internal  condition  of  Persia  and  its  Goyemment.  Crime 
seems  to  be  repressed  with  a  strong  hand,  and  mth  the 
indifference  to  human  life  common  in  the  East ;  1,200 
executions  have  taken  place  at  Tabreez  in  the  last  nine 
years.*  We  were  told  that  death  is  inflicted  in  the 
quietest  way^  and  that  both  the  headsman  and  his  victim 
behalve  like  perfect  gentlemen.  The  one  lights  his  long 
'  kalian,'  smokes  a  little,  and  passes  it  to  the  other,  who 
has  his  whiff;  and. after  hobnobbing  thus  for  a  while,  the 
agent  of  the  law  remarks,  by  some  Oriental  periphrasis, 
^  Time's  up,'!  and  chops  off  his  companion's  head  with  neat- 
ness and  despatch*  Detected  coiners  still  suffer  the 
penalty  of  having  their  ears  nailed  to  a  post,  and  an 
instance  of  this  pimishment  occurred  during  our  stay,  but 
we  missed  seeing  it.  Of  public  amusements  Tabreez  has 
few  ;  we  were  just  too  late  to  see  a  kind  of  Oriental  mira- 
cle-play, which  had  been  performed  in  one  of  the  squares, 
in  which  Jacob,  Joseph,  and  Solomon,  who  are  equally 
revered  by  Mahommedans  and  Christians,  had  been  brought 
on  the  stage.  One  day  we  stopped  to  look  at  a  tame 
lioness  in  the  street;  the  poor  animal  had  been  partially 
blinded,  and  her  performance  was  not  of  a  very  lively 
character — to  us  at  least,  who  could  not  understand  the 
jokes  of  her  showman.  We  should  like  to  have  visited 
the  Sultan-Dagh  Mountains,  where  the  European  resi- 


148  TABHEEZ. 

dents  are  in  the  habit  of  camping-ont  during  the  hot 
weather ;  to  have  explored  the  peninsala  of  Shahi,  said  to 
afford  the  best  sport  in  this  part  of  Persia ;  and  to  have 
ridden  round  the  southern  shores  of  the  lake  to  Urmia, 
which  was  described  to  us  as  a  very  pretty  place.  A 
colony  of  American  missionaries — who  make  it  their  special 
aim  to  encourage  and  assist  the  Nestorian  Christians 
found  in  this  part  of  Persia — has  settled  there,  and  estab- 
lished schools  and  a  church.  Time,  however,  was  against 
qis,  and  we  made  up  our  minds  to  return  by  the  same 
road  to-  Erivan,  and  not  to  risk  delay  or  stoppage  at  one 
of  the  less-freqiiented  fords  of  the  Araxes. 
'  Before  we  left,  we  were  anxious  to  obtain  some  me- 
mentoes of  our  visit  to  Persia,  and,  afraid  of  coping 
Tmaided  vrith  the  native  merchants,  gave  a  list  of  things 
we  had  remarked  in  the  bazaars,  and  wished  to  purchase, 
to  one  of  the  European  residents,  who  promised  to  put  us 
in  the  way  of  getting  them  at  fair  prices.  We  went  by 
appointment  to  his  office,  where  we  met  a  sort  of  market- 
committee,  each  of  whom  had  brought  something  to  show 
us.  One  man  dealt  in  Shiraz  shawls,  another  in  Bescht 
tablecloths,  a  third  in  Bokhara  lambskins.  There  were 
some  half-dozen  in  all.  They  sat  in  a  semicircle  before 
us,'  and  when  one  brought  out  any  *  choice  article,'  all  the 
rest  nodded  their  heads,  and  uttered  a  deep  *  wa-ah '  of 
admiration.  One  toothless  old  fellow,  a  dealer  in  swords 
and  antiques,  who  might  have  sat  for  a  picture  of  Avarice, 
was  most  demonstrative  in  praise  of  his  neighbours'  wares, 
and  altogether  upset  our  gravity  by  his  pantomimic  ex- 
pressions of  delight.  Our  bargains  were  at  last  con- 
cluded, and  a  box  was  packed  and  directed  to  London, 
not  without  some  fears  (unfounded  as  it  turned  out),  as  to 
whether  we  should  ever  see  it  again.. 

June^  2nd. — ^We  ordered  post-horses   to  be  ready  at 
7  A.M.,  and  succeeded  in  getting  off  an  hour  later,  amidst 


PEBSIAN  SCEKERY.  14Sf 

a  hubbub  of  claims  for  'backsheesh '  from  various  employes, 
who  had,  or  pretended  to  have,  done  something  for  us. 
We  lunched  and  rested  at  Sofian,  and  then  pushed  on  for 
Maraud ;  but  having  discovered  that  there  was  a  second 
road  between  the  two  places,  shorter  but  steeper  than 
that  by  which  we  had  come,  we  insisted  on  taking  it. 
We  soon  turned  off,  with  the  telegraph-wires,  up  a  glen 
to  the  right  of  our  old  track.  Near  its  head  we  reached 
a  village,  surrounded  by  verdant  pastures,  and  guarded 
by  huge  and  very  handsome  dogs,  which  barked  furiously 
at  us  as  we  passed.  Openings  in  the  hills  on  our  right 
were  closed  by  ridges  of  splintered  crags.  Our  pass  was 
already  in  view — a  notch  in  the  range  before  us,  to  which 
the  road  mounted  by  short  steep  zigzags ;  on  our  left  was 
a  wide  pasturage,  covered  with  sheep,  and  backed  by  the 
snowy  peak  which  we  had  seen  £rom  the  other  road.  The 
view  from  the  top  burst  on  us  with  unexpected  beauty. 
Looking  back,  the  foreground  consisted  of  fine  rocks  and 
ruddy  hills ;  beyond  them  lay  Tabreez,  now  thirty  miles 
off,  and  appearing  as  a  dark-green  spot  on  the  plain, 
frt)m  which  a  long  and  uniform  slope  led  up  to  the  base 
of  the  mountains  of  Sultan-Dagh;  on  the  other  side 
we  looked  down  on  Maraud,  and  towards  the  broken 
ranges  which  separated  us  from  the  Araxes  vaJley^  the 
gap  through  which,  leading  down  to  Djulfa,  was  plainly 
visible.  At  a  wayside  spring,  just  below  the  watershed, 
we  met  a  native  of  artistic  tastes,  who,  with  an  apprecia- 
tion of  landscape  beauiy  very  rare  in  the  East,  asked  us 
which  view  we  preferred,  the  Tabreez  or  the  Maraud  side? 
The  posthouse  at  Maraud  was  fall,  but  we  were  taken  in 
by  a  hospitable  native,  whose  house  stood  in  a  pretty  garden, 
from  which  he  brought  us  some  red  and  yellow  roses* 
There  were  some  well-trained  standard  guelder-rose  trees 
in  front  of  the  house.  We  had  a  comfortable  room,  and 
plenty  of  coverlets  for  the  night.    Our  host  enquired  of 


150  ABASAT. 

Paul  if  we  had  come  to  arrange  for  the  constaraction  of  a 
railroad  to  Tabreez,  and  hoped  we  should  make  it  pass 
through  Maraud,  and  that  it  would  soon  be  begun*  One 
was  scarcely  prepared  for  so  keen  an  appreciation  of  the 
advantages  of  quick  communication  in  this  remote  Persian 
town. 

June  Srd. — ^We  rode  down  to  Djulfa,  and  as  we  passed 
the  defile  in  the  range,  that  shuts  in  on  the  south  the 
Araxes  yallej,  the  rock-tower  on  the  Bussian  side  looked 
very  imposing.    We  were  already  descending  towards  the 
Araxes,  when  we  noticed  a  black  cloud  gathering  on  the 
mountains  behind  us,   similar  to,  but  more  dense  and 
inky  than,  that  which  had  pursued  us  on  the  Erivan  and 
Nakhitchevan  road  ten  days  previously.     Feeling  that 
Djulfa,  the  scene  of  our  inhospitable  treatment  .and  of 
Tucker's  iUness,  was  not  a  place  to  arrive  at  drenched  to 
the  skin,  we  increased  our  pace,  and  reached  a  village 
about  three  miles  from  our  destination,  still  uncaught. 
The  storm  was  gaining  fast,  and  looked  so  bad  that  we  set 
off  at  a  gallop.     The  race  that  followed  could  only  be 
described  by  a  mixture  of  the  styles  of  Mayne  Beid  and 
De  Quincey,  to  which  I  am  wholly  unequaL     The  ground 
was  tolerably  fiat,  the  storm  coming  up  rather  on  our 
fiank.      On  making  a  sudden  dip  over  the  bank  that 
bounds  the  actual  trench  of  the  Araxes,  we  saw  that  we 
were  too  late.    The  dust-cloud,  which  rides  on  the  front 
of  these  steppe-storms,  had  crept  round  and  cut  us  off 
from  Djulfa.    In  a  moment  it  was  upon  us,  borne  along 
by  a  wind  which  swept  twigs  and  tufts  of  grass  along  the 
ground,  and  nearly  blew  me  out  of  the  saddle.     The  air 
was  so  thick  that  I  could  only  see  the  two  horses  nearest 
me — one  a  riderless  animal  the  postboy  was  taking  back 
with  him.     Our  beasts  seemed  to  dread  the  storm  as  much 
as  we  did,  and  galloped  at  the  top  of  their  speed.     In  a 


A   DUST-STORM.  151 

minute  our  eyes  were  choked,  and  every  particle  of  clothing 
covered  with  dust.  Then  came  a  second  blast,  and  the 
darkness  grew  deeper,  so  that  we  could  barely  see  the 
ground  under  our  horses'  feet.  I  remembered  that  a 
watercourse  cut  the  plain  close  to  the  station,  and  managed 
to  hit  the  plank-bridge  over  it,  passing  my  companions, 
whose  voices  I  could  hear,  on  the  right.  In  another  minute 
the  first  heavy  drops  fell,  but  at  the  same  moment  the 
Persian  custom-house  loomed  through  the  darkness,  and 
we  were  in  shelter.  Paul  was  the  only  one  of  the  party 
who  got  thrown ;  he  aJmost  rode  against  the  building  with- 
out seeing  it,  and,  his  horse  suddenly  swerving,  he  fell  o£F, 
but  fortunately  without  hurting  himself.  Pran9ois,  as 
usual,  turned  up  among  the  first,  serene  and  unruffled. 
At  the  posthouse  the  accommodation  was  wretched,  and 
the  people  most  inhospitable ;  but  we  had  a  resource  in  our 
former  friend,  who  entertained  us  with  kabobs,  and  a 
bottle  of  excellent  Persian  wine. 

Jwne  4ith. — The  only  acknowledgment  of  his  hospitality 
our  host  would  accept  was  a  scrap  of  paper,  on  which  we 
YH'ote  our  names,  aud  recommended  all  English  passers-by 
to  his  care.  We  had  to  wait  some  time  while  the  ferry- 
boat was  towed  up,  by  bufialoes,  to  the  proper  starting- 
point.  The  river  had  fallen  considerably,  and  there  was 
no  difficulty  in  the  passage.  Our  reappearance  was  evi- 
dently more  of  a  surprise  than  a  pleasure  to  the  Bussian 
officials,  who  had  probably  sohiced  themselves  with  the 
idea  that  they  would  never  hear  or  see  anything  more 
of  us.  Believing  that  the  jolts  of  the  *  telegas'  were 
mainly  responsible  for  my  companion's  previous  illness,  we 
made  a  successful  effort  to  obtain  saddle-horses.  We  were, 
however,  able  to  retain  them  only  for  the  first  stage,  and 
no  entreaties  or  threats  would  induce  the  stubborn  and 
dirty  postmaster  of  the  halfway  station  to  furnish  us  with 


102  ABABAT« 

any  other  means  of  conveyance  tlian  the  hateftil  carts.  We 
arrived  at  Nakhitchevan  in  the  middle  of  the  day,  and  I 
wasted  the  afternoon  in  an  ineffectual  struggle  to  hire 
some  kind  of  spring-carriage.  Having  called  on  the 
governor,  who  expressed  his  readiness  to  do  anything  for 
Tis,I  told  him  that  my  friend  had  been  knocked  up  by  telega- 
travelling,  and  that  we  were  most  anxious  to  hire  a  carriage ; 
but  in  this  particular  he  could  afford  us  no  aid.  There  were 
only  two  carriages  in  the  town— one  his  own,  the  other  an 
old  *  tarantasse,'  which  we  at  first  thought  might  serve  our 
purpose,  but  which  proved  to  have  suffered  so  much  from 
exposure  and  neglect  that  it  was  practically  useless.  Its 
owner  was  a  curious  character.  He  had  been  at  one  time 
in  business  in  London,  spoke  French,  and  a  little  English ; 
but  having  fEiiled,  as  he  gave  us  to  understand,  through  his 
own  extravagances,  he  had  returned  to  Bussia,  and  was  now 
fixed  as  a  sub-official  of  the  custom-house  in  this  remote 
comer  of  the  Empire.  The  poor  man  complained  bitterly  of 
the  dulness  of  his  situation  and  the  barbarism  of  his  com- 
panions, and  sighed  after  the  theatres  and  diversions  to 
which  he  had  been  once  accustomed.  There  was  a  heavy 
thunderstorm  in  the  afternoon,  and  the  continued  uncer- 
tainty of  the  weather  made  us  rather  despondent  about 
Ararat. 

June  oth. — ^We  started  late,  in  the  usual  *  telegas.'  The 
big  river,  which  had  been  so  formidable  ten  days  before, 
was  now  much  lower;  but  we  were  nearly  upset  in  it,  owing 
to  the  stupidity  of  our  driver,  who  let  one  of  his  horses 
flounder  into  a  hole  and  break  the  harness  in  the  middle  of 
the  stream.  At  the  next  station  there  were  no  post-horses, 
so  we  hired  some  peasants'  animals,  and  sent  on  our  men, 
with  instructions  to  procure  and  cook  some  supper  for  us 
at  the  next  station.  We  followed  two  hours  later,  and 
before  we  had  finished  the  long  stage  of  twenty-two  versts 


THE   FORD   OP  THE  ARAXES.  153 

tte  moon  had  risen,  and  the  steppe  looked  wonderfully 
weird  in  its  light,  mth  Ararat  and  Alagoz  looming  like 
ghosts  in  the  background.  We  slept  at  Sadarak,  where 
Paul  and  Pran9ois  had  got  some  supper  ready  for  us. 

June  6th, — ^We  drove  two  stations  to  Kamirlu,  where  we 
were  to  turn  off  for  Aralykh,  the  village  and  Cossack 
station  nearest  Ararat,  separated  from  us  by  ten  versts 
and  the  Araxes.  I  had  a  note  for  the  postmaster,  and  he 
made  no  difficulty  about  giving  us  carts,  although  Aralykh 
is  not  on  a  regular  post-road.  We  soon  saw  we  were 
approaching  the  river,  by  the  swampiness  of  the  ground, 
from  which  the  water  had  but  just  retreated.  The  Araxes 
is  here  divided  into  three  branches  :  the  main  stream  is 
crossed  by  a  ferry-boat;  the  two  smaller  branches  are 
generally  easily  fordable,  but  now  offered  considerable 
difficulty.  At  the  first  our  baggage  was  carried  on  men's 
heads,  who  waded  across  whilst  we  plunged  in,  cart  and 
alL  Though  our  small  ark  was  nearly  floated  away  in  the 
struggle,  we  came  out  in  safety  on  the  other  side.  A 
hundred  yards  further  we  reached  the  second  branch,  the 
only  means  of  crossing  which  was  a  leaky  old  boat,  and 
the  delay  in  the  traffic  caused  a  most  picturesque  scene  of 
nproar  and  confusion.  This  ferry,  though  on  no  great 
caravan  route,  is  much  frequented  by  the  nomad  Kurds, 
who  are  constantly  changing  their  pasture-grounds.  These 
people  are  the  Arabs  of  the  mountains,  and  are  nearly  as 
striking  as  their  better-known  relations.  Hundreds  of 
them  now  lined  the  bank,  in  their  bright  and  picturesque 
costumes,  with  their  tents  rolled  up  ready  for  crossing, 
theii*  wives  and  daughters  seated  on  the  heaps  of  baggage, 
and  their  camels  and  flocks  lying  down  or  straying 
around.  The  men,  who  were  fine-looking  fellows,  wore 
gaj-coloured  di^sses,  aad  ca^ed  queer  old  weapons  in 
their  broad  belts.     The  girls  were  almost  all  pretty  nut- 


154  ARARAT. 

brown  maids,  with  bright  eyes  and  plaits   of  beautiful 
brown  hair,  which  streamed  out  from  under  a  handker- 
chief, and  reached  down  to  the  waist.    They  wore  bright- 
coloured  jackets  and  short  petticoats.     The  men  are  said 
to  be  dangerous  customers,  but  we  always  found  them  very 
civil  and  friendly,  like  most  Mahommedan  country-people, 
and  they  seemed  pleased  to  discover  that  we  were  English. 
In  the  present  instance  they  helped  our  baggage  into  the 
boat,  and  after  some  delay  we  got  across.     Meantime  the 
passage  of  the  flocks  was  amusing.   Hundreds  of  sheep  and 
goats  were  forced  to  face  the  stream  by  shouts  and  pistol- 
shots,  while  boys  and  girls  dashed  into  the  water  to  meet 
and  land  them  safely.     Camels  lined  the  bank,  waiting 
their  turn  with  an  air  of  patient  resignation,  and  two 
huge  sheep-dogs,  off  duty  for  a  time,  beguiled  their  leisure 
hour  with  a  fight ;  three  hundred  yards  off  the  ferry-boat 
moved  backwards  and  forwards  over  the  main  river.     All 
this  made  a  lively  foreground;  and  in  the  distance  stood 
Ararat,  as  usual  wrapped  in  his  afternoon  cloud,  and  the 
two  peaks  of  Alagoz  relieved  against  a  bright-blue  sky. 
It  was  a  picture  one  longed  to  see  transferred  to  canvas, 
by  some  painter  equal  to  the  occasion,  and  we  lamented 
once  more  our  own  incapacity  to  use  brush  or  pencil  to 
any  purpose.     The  ferry-boat,  which  is  large  enough  to 
take  on  board  a  carriage,  and  works  on  a  stout  rope, 
floated  us  easily  over  the  main  stream. 

The  question  now  arose,  how  we  should  get  on  to  Aralykh, 
still  three  miles  off,  as  of  course  our  carts  had  been  lefb 
behind.  There  were  some  Cossacks  in  charge  of  the  ferry, 
and  on  showing  our  letter,  addressed  to  the  Colonel  at 
Aralykh,  their  chief  found  us  a  horse  to  carry  the  baggage. 
As  no  more  animals  were  to  be  had,  we  were  compelled  to 
walk,  in  the  full  heat  of  the  afternoon  sun,  over  the  bare 
sandy  waste  between  us  and  the  village,  which  is  situated  at 


AKALTEH.  155 

the  very  foot  of  the  mountain,  at  the  commencement  of  the 
long  uniform  slope,  which  serves  as  a  pedestal  to  the  upper 
and  more  precipitous  cone.  On  our  arrival,  despite  our  hot 
and  dusty  appearance,  we  were  most  cordially  received  by 
the  officer  in  command  of  this  out-of-the-way  post,  who 
has  a  comfortable  house  and  the  company  of  a  wife  to 
console  him  for  his  banishment  from  civilisation.  He 
insisted  on  giving  up  his  study  to  our  use,  and  at  once  set 
about  making  the  arrangements  for  our  intended  expedi- 
tion, which  were  somewhat  complicated,  as  the  natives  are 
as  yet  little  accustomed  to  travellers  visiting  the  mountain. 
The  Colonel  entertained  us  most  hospitably,  and  insisted 
on  our  allowing  him  to  procure  the  provisions  we  should 
require  for  the  ascent.  Unfortunately,  neither  he  nor  his 
wife  could  speak  any  language  but  Bussian,  which  made 
our  communications  rather  laborious,  especially  for  Paul, 
who  was  in  constant  request  as  interpreter. 

On  the  morning  of  June  7th,  we  set  oS  from  Aralykh 
on  our  expedition  against  Ararat.  We  were  accompanied 
by  a  Kurd  chief,  in  the  Russian  service — ^in  whose  charge 
the  Colonel  had  placed  us — and  his  servant ;  four  Persians, 
the  owners  of  the  horses,  and  three  Kurds,  who  were 
supposed  to  be  mountaineers,  and  capable  of  acting  as 
porters. 

Starting  on  horseback  for  a  *  grand  course '  is  not  quite 
in  accordance  with  Alpine  ideas;  but  when  it  is  remembered 
that  Aralykh  is  only  2,600  feet  above  the  sea,  and  that  the 
lower  slopes  of  Ararat  are  perfectly  uniform,  bare  and 
stony,  we  shall  be  excused  for  avoiding  the  dreary  grind 
up  them,  under  an  Araxes-valley  sun.  At  first  we  kept  a 
course  parallel  to  the  river,  but  soon  turned  towards  the 
great  mountain,  and  began  to  ascend  sensibly.  We  next 
skirted  the  base  of  a  green  bastion  commanding  the  lower 
slopes,  in  the  hollows  and  shelves  of  which  several  groups 


156  ARARAT. 

of  Kurd  tents  were  pitched.  A  somewliat  steep  ascent 
led  up  to  the  green  plain  which  fills  the  space  between  the 
bases  of  the  two  Ararats.  The  Little  Ararat  rose  imme- 
diately before  us  in  an  unbroken  slope  of  about  4,000  feet ; 
it  is  a  typical  volcano,  uniform  on  all  sides,  but  least  steep 
on  the  Turkish,  from  which  a  Eussian  General  is  said  to 
have  ridden  up  on  horseback. 

On  our  right  the  base  and  upper  portion  of  the  cone  of 
the  Great  Ararat  were  visible ;  the  lower  part  being 
masked  by  buttresses,  and  the  whole  mass  most  deceitfully 
foreshortened.  On  a  knoll  about  300  feet  above  the  plain 
we  found  the  group  of  huts  which  have  been  used  as  a 
resting-place  by  most  of  the  explorers  of  Ararat*  These 
queer  dwellings  are  undergrpund  burrows,  constructed  like 
the  villages  on  the  Georgian  steppes.  A  door  of  twisted 
twigs,  on  being  opened,  reveals  a  hole  in  the  hillside, 
which  forms  the  mouth  of  a  long,  winding,  dark  passage 
leading  into  two  or  more  chambers  lighted  by  holes  in  the 
roof.  The  floor  of  these  horrid  caverns  is  the  natural 
soil,  and  their  atmosphere  is  earthy  and  tomb-like,  while 
the  darkness  that  pervades  them  adds  to  their  depressing 
effect.  The  roofs  are  formed  of  branches  covered  with 
turf,  and  as  there  is  nothing  outside  to  distinguish  them 
from  the  solid  ground,  it  is  easy  to  walk  over  them  unawares. 
One  of  our  horses,  while  grazing,  suddenly  sank  into  one 
of  these  dangerous  traps,  and  was  left,  with  only  its  fore- 
quarters  emerging  from  the  ground,  in  a  position  from 
which  it  was  extricated  with  great  difficulty* 

On  the  way  up  we  halted,  and  discussed  our  arrange- 
ments with  the  Kurd  chief.  We  had  been  told  below  that 
we  should  find  all  we  wanted  at  the  huts ;  but  they  now 
proved  to  be  uninhabited,  and  it  was  therefore  necessary 
to  get  a  further  supply  of  bread  at  one  of  the  encamp- 
ments lower  down.     The  porters  wished  also  to  borrow  a 


REFRACTORY   KURDS,  157 

tent.  We  remonstrated  at  the  delay  this  would  occasion. 
It  was  quite  early  in  the  day,  for  we  had  reached  the  huts  at 
11.15  A.M.,  and,  being  anxious  to  sleep  as  high  as  possible, 
we  proposed  to  the  men  that  they  should  go  on  with  us  at 
once,  carrying  our  rugs,  in  which  we  were  prepared  to  pass 
the  night.  We  had  provisions  enough  for  ourselves,  and 
we  pointed  out  to  them,  that  if  they  were  afraid  of  sleeping 
out  at  such  a  height,  or  had  not  sufficient  food  to  last  till 
morning,  they  would  have  time  before  nightfall  to  return 
to  the  huts,  where  they  might  sleep,  and  remount  next  day 
to  fetch  down  our  rugs  and  other  baggage.  The  men,  not 
unnaturally,  were  averse  to  the  double  toil  and  trouble  in- 
volved in  this  plan,  and  utterly  declined  to  carry  it  out,  or 
to  join  us  in  sleeping  out  without  shelter  and  a  further 
supply  of  food.  We  were  therefore  obliged  to  remain  at 
the  huts,  and  await  the  arrival  of  the  tent  and  provisions. 

Our  position  was  curiously  like  and  unlike  many  old 
Alpine  bivouacs.  The  surrounding  pastures  might  have 
been  on  the  Biffelberg,  and  it  was  delightful  to  see  again 
many  well-known  Alpine  flowers.  The  rhododendron  in- 
deed was  sought  for  in  vain,  and  we  were  too  low  for 
gentians  * ;  but  their  lack  was  partially  compensated  by  a 
new  friend,  a  dwarf  wild  hyacinth,  white  delicately  streaked 
with  blue,  which  grew  in  great  profusion.  Little  Ararat, 
however,  was  sufficiently  unlike  a  Swiss  mountain  to  dispel 
any  illusion,  and  if  that  had  not  sufficed,  one  glance  down 
his  side  into  the  brown,  bare,  bumt-up  trough  of  the  Araxes 
would  have  been  enough  to  recall  to  our  minds  the  fact 
that  we  were  in  Asia,  far  indeed  from  the  old  haunts. 

After  midday,  clouds  gathered,  and  Ararat  indulged  in 
his  usual  thunderstorm.  Some  hours  passed,  but  the  men 
did  not  reappear,  and  we  were  getting  more  and  more 
impatient,  when  about  8.80  p.m.  they  came  into  sight, 
followed  by  a  cow,  carrying  one  of  the  regular  Kurd  tents, 

*  We  afterwards  foTind  a  solitary  plant  higher  on  the  mountain. 


15S  ARARAT. 

too  large  to  be  useful  for  mountaineering,  and  too  heavy  to 
be  carried  by  our  men  over  rough  ground.  The  three 
porters  now  professed  themselves  ready  to  go  without  a 
tent,  but  a  second  thunderstorm  delayed  our  start  till  4.30. 
With  fael  we  had  load  enough  for  four  men  ;  but  as  the 
owners  of  the  horses  declined  to  be  of  any  service,  Fran9ois 
and  Paul  had  to  carry  one  of  the  bags  between  them. 

Striking  up  the  spur  behind  the  huts,  we  made  our  way 
as  directly  as  possible  towards  the  mountain,  traversing  a 
good  deal  of  rough  groimd,  and  crossing  several  hollows, 
by  which  we  lost  time,  and  partially  deceived  ourselves  as 
to  the  progress  made. .  ^e  porters  halfiCd  constantly,  and 
our  pace  was  slow ;  in  about  an  hour  and  a  half  afber 
leaving  the  huts,  we  found  ourselves  in  a  hollow  between 
two  spurs,  and  nearly  at  the  snow-level.  Here  the  porters 
stopped,  and  declined  venturing  upon  the  snow.  It  was  a 
good  place  for  a  bivouac,  and,  although  probably  500  feet 
lower,  we  thought  we  were  at  a  height  of  at  least  9,000  feet. 
We  knew  that  the  moon  would  allow  us  to  start  at  mid- 
night, and  anxious  moreover  to  save  our  men  the  fatigue 
of  acting  as  porters,  we  agreed  to  halt.  The  weather 
looked  promising,  so  we  supped  on  *  Liebig '  cheerily 
over  a  bright  fire,  and  then  rolled  ourselves  up  in  our  rugs, 
with  little  misgiving  for  the  morrow,  despite  the  hindrances 
of  the  day. 

Alter  a  sound  sleep  (at  least  I  speak  for  myself)  we 
were  awake  and  stirring  at  11.30  p.m.  We  had  a  glass 
of  hot  wine  all  round,  aud  started  at  12.10  a.m.  The 
first  contretemps  was  the  discovery  that  Pran9ois  had, 
despite  my  warning,  allowed  Paul  to  leave  Tiflis  without 
proper  boots,  and  that  it  was  impossible  he  could  come 
on  with  us.  He  had  set  his  heart  upon  ascending  Ararat, 
and  therefore  very  reluctantly  turned  back. 

After  climbing  two  snow-slopes,  we  gained  a  ridge  com- 


A   MOONLIGHT  WALK.  159 

manding  a  view  of  the  ground  between  us  and  our  moun- 
tain. In  front  lay  a  deep  hollow,  such  as  in  the  Alps 
would  be  filled  by  a  glacier;  the  ridge  along  which  we 
were  proceeding  appeared  to  be  connected  with,  or  rather 
to  form  a  continuation  of  others,  by  which  it  was  pos- 
sible to  make  the  circuit  of  the  hollow,  and  reach  the 
foot  of  the  great  rocks,  which  we  had,  for  convenience  and 
old  acquaintance'  sake,  named  ^  les  Grands  Mulets.' 

In  the  first  hour  and  a  half  we  had  cleared  a  good  deal 
of  ground,  and  I  remarked  to  Tucker  how  well  we  were* 
getting  on,  and  how  ^  fit '  I  felt.     Nemesis  was  at  hand. 
In  another  half-hour,  though  the  ground  was  easy  and 
the  inclination  trifling,  I  began  to  feel  unwell,  and  ex- 
perienced all  the  sensations  of  mountain-sickness,  generally 
ascribed  to  the  rarity  of  the  air.     In  the  present  case, 
too  much  telega-fauvelling  and  want  of  training  supplied 
a  sufficient  .cause.      Meantime   the  moon  was    shining 
gloriously  in  a  cloudless  sky,  lighting  up  the  huge  white 
cone  above  us,  and  the  distant  ranges  beyond  the  Araxes. 
Unluckily,  I  got  worse  instead  of  better,  and  was  obliged 
to  delay  our  progress  by  frequent  halts.     We  were  now 
beginning  to  climb  the  actual    cone,  and  the  rock-ridge, 
though  still  easy,  became  steeper.     When  fairly  on  the 
fiaxje  of  the  *  Grands  Mulcts,'  after  three  hours  of  feeble 
and  intermittent  progress,  *  the  force  of  nature  could  no 
farther  go,'  and  I  sadly  succumbed,  leaving  Fran9ois  and 
Tucker  to  go  on  and,  as  I  hoped,  to  prosper.      This  was 
about  6  A.M.     The  sun  was  already  high,  and  the  air  was 
pleasantly  warm. 

I  was  left  on  a  shelf  of  the  rock  with  a  cup  of  wine  and 
some  food.  For  the  latter  I  felt  no  inclination;  as  for 
the  wine,  it  was  soon  disposed  of  by  my  dozing  off  and 
upsetting  it  with  my  arm,  leaving  barely  a  wineglass- 
fill  of  liquid  as  my  provision  for  the  morning. 


160  ARAB  AT. 

After  tlie  first  doze  I  made  an  attempt  to  follow  mj 
companions,  but  soon  found  it  useless;  so  I  resigned 
myself  to  fate,  and  lay  down,  now  in  one  nook  of  the 
rocks,  now  in  another,  sometimes  dreaming  oddly,  as  one 
does  in  odd  places,  sometimes  gazing  drowsily  over  the 
top  of  Little  Ararat  (12,800.  feet)  into  Persia,  or  over  the 
E^ara  Dagh  ranges  to  the  white  line  of  the  Eastern 
Caucasus.  The  sun  got  very  hot,  and  my  head  ached 
horribly ;  so  I  scrambled  round  the  rocks  to  a  shaded  shelf, 
whence  I  could  see  far  into  Kurdistan,  a  region  of  snowy 
mountains  and  bare  valleys.  A  streak  below  me  was  the 
infant  Euphrates,  but  I  did  not  feel  much  the  better 
for  seeing  it.  Of  the  Garden  of  Eden  no  tradition  seems 
to  linger  even  in  this  land  of  old  stories,  and  if  these 
barren  hills  were  ever  clothed  by  the  groves  of  the  earthly 
Paradise,  the  change  has  been  complete  indeed.  My  state 
of  mind  at  the  time  scarcely  made  me  a  fair  judge  of  the 
view,  but  I  will  try  to  give  the  impression  it  produced  upon 
me,  as  compared  with  European  mountain  panoramas. 
Most  people  have  seen  in  a  sculptor's  studio  a  block  of 
marble  hewn  down  to  the  rough  outline  of  the  group 
which  he  has  it  in  his  mind  to  produce.  From  a  dis- 
tance the  eye  catches  a  certain  grandeur  of  effect  which 
closer  inspection  destroys,  by  revealing  that  the  parts  are 
in  themselves  but  rough  and  shapeless  masses.  So  it  is 
with  these  mountains  of  Kurdistan.  On  them  the  great 
sculptor,  Nature,  seems  to  have  *  tried  her  prentice  hand ' 
before  she  had  learnt  how  to  chisel  out  with  her  graving- 
tools,  frost  and  heat,  the  torrent  and  the  glacier,  those 
exquisite  outlines  of  peak  and  valley  which  are  a  dis- 
tinguishing feature  of  the  Alps  and  the  Caucasus.  The 
first  impression  I  received  was, — what  a  wilderness  of 
mountains ! — ^in  every  direction  nothing  met  the  eye  but 
snowy  masses,   lying  in  heaps  instead  of  ranges.     The 


TUCKER'S  STORY.  Idi 

general  effect  was  exceedingly  grand  and  impressive ;  but 
when  the  details  were  examined  in  search  of  some  beau- 
tiful peak,  the  search  was  in  vain.  The  slopes  were  cha- 
racterised by  dreary  monotony,  and  the  summits  were 
without  form  or  beauty.  One  distant  mass  (Bingol  Dagh  ?) 
alone  deserved  to  escape  the  general  condemnation. 

Time  wore  on,  and  at  length,  about  1.30  p.m.,  a  shout 
above  me  announced  Tucker's  return.  I  augured  ill  from 
it,  for  it  was  not  a  cheerful  *  jodel,'  but  I  retained  a  hope 
that  he  might,  for  my  sake,  be  subduing  his  feelings.  To 
my  surprise,  the  next  shout  came  from  below,  and  I  knew 
that  my  companion  must  have  descended  by  another  route. 
Through  the  light  cloud  that  was  hanging  on  the  moun- 
tain, I  soon  saw  the  two  figures,  and  before  long  had  joined 
them  and  heard  their  storv. 

The  rocks  above  my  halting-place  turned  into  an  arSte, 
cut  into  towers,  separated  by  deep  gaps.  The  climbing 
here  was  exceedingly  difficult,  and  the  passage  of  some  of 
the  gaps  required  both  care  and  steadiness.  Fortunately, 
the  ridge  was  not  very  long,  and  in  an  hour  and  a  half 
from  the  place  where  I  had  stopped,  a  snovn^  saddle  con- 
necting the  rocks  with  the  upper  mass  of  the  cone  was 
gained.  Here  they  rested  for  half  an  hour,  at  a  height 
probably  of  13,800  feet.  Above  them  stretched  inter- 
minable snow-slopes,  seamed  here  and  there  by  rocks,  but, 
unluckily,  rocks  of  an  utterly  useless  description  to  the 
climber.  They  were  not  ridges,  but  disconnected  crags 
of  lava,  suggesting  by  their  fantastic  shapes  the  idea  that 
half  the  animals,  after  leaving  the  Ark,  had  been  petrified 
as  they  came  down  the  mountain.  Here  was  an  elephant, 
glissading  elegantly,  using  his  trunk  for  an  alpenstock ; 
there  a  tapir,  or  some  antediluvian-lookingbeast,  by  whose 
untimely  fate,  now  for  the  first  time  discovered,  naturalists 
have  lost  a  species. 


162  ARARAT. 

Before  long  the  snow  took  the  form  of  hard  nev^,  and  it 
was  necessary  to  cut  steps.  Fran9ois  was  by  this  time  so  ex- 
hausted that  he  could  do  no  more;  Tucker,  however,  pushed 
on  alone,  and  by^  cutting  about  1,000  steps,  succeeded  in 
reaching  a  point  a  little  under  16,000  feet.*  Such  work,  at 
a  height  equal  to  that  of  Mont  Blanc,  cannot  be  continued 
for  ever,  without  long  training ;  his  breath  began  to  fail, 
and  his  head  to  throb  painftdly,  so  that  he  was  obliged 
to  rest  every  twenty  or  thirty  steps.  The  tremendous  stau'- 
case  required  to  reach  the  summit  was  not  to  be  accom- 
plished single-handed,  and  at  12.10  p.m. — after  nearly  four 
hours'  solitary  work,  the  top  looking  as  far  off  as  ever,  and 
clouds  collecting  rapidly  round  the  mountain — ^Tucker 
turned  to  descend.  Having  rejoined  Fran9ois,  they  returned 
quickly  together  down  the  tracks  made  in  the  ascent, 
avoiding  the  rocky  arfete,  by  slithering  down  the  snow- 
slope  on  its  left,  which  had  been  hard-frozen  in  the 
morning. 

We  plunged  gloomily  through  soft  snow,  and  over  the 
tiresome  rough  lava-crags,  and,  despite  the  mists,  found 
it  easy  to  follow  our  old  track  to  the  spot  where  we  had 
left  the  Kurds.  They  now  shouldered  with  ease  the 
burdens  under  which  they  had  groaned  and  staggered  the 
evening  before,  and  led  off  at  a  quick  pace  for  the  huts, 
where  we  arrived  about  6  p.m.,  having  halted  often  on  the 
way.  The  last  part  of  the  walk  was  in  rain,  Ararat 
having  succeeded  in  his  daily  task  of  collecting  a  shower  in 
otherwise  fine  weather.  We  regained  the  huts  at'6.30  p.m., 
having  been  18^  hours  out. 

We  slept  in  the  Kurd  tent — I  badly,  but  Tucker,  as  he 
deserved,  soundly  enough.  These  tents  have  black  roofs, 
like  those  of  the  Arabs,  from  which  they  are  otherwise 

very  different.     Stakes  three  feet  high  are  driven  into  the 

• « 

*  We  estimated  it  afterwards,  carefully,  as  between  1,000  and  800  feet  below 
the  top. 


hA  »m»m^^ 


PREVIOUS  ASCENTS.  I(i3 

ground  in  a  circle,  and  to  the  ends  of  these  the  top  of  the 
tent  is  loosely  fastened.     It  is  afterwards  forced  up  and 
made  taut  by  poles  inserted  underneath.   The  sides  are  then 
filled  in  with  a  roll  of  matting  or  reeds,  through  which 
the  winds  penetrate  far  too  easily.     The  next  morning 
was  fine,  and  the  Kurd  porters,  to  gain  several  more  days' 
pay  (their  object  throughout),  were  willing  to  carry  the 
baggage  anywhere.     Our  provisions,  however,  were  ex- 
hausted, and  we  must  have  waited  a  day  for  a  fresh  supply. 
I  did  not  feel  able  to  try  the  mountain  again  with  any 
chance  of  success,  without  rest  and' good  food,  and  Tucker 
had  done  nearly  enough.    After  an  hour's  debate,  we 
decided  that  we  had  no  ehoice  but  to  descend  to  Aralykh. 
On  the  way  down,  we  had  a  good  deal  of  talk  (through 
Paul)  with  the  Kurd  chief,  who  was  a  good  fellow  in  his 
way.     Though  otherwise  an  intelligent  and  well-informed 
man,  he   shared  the  superstition   prevalent  among   the 
natives  at  the  foot  of  the  mountain,  that  its  top  never 
has   been,  and  never  can  be,  trodden   by  mortal  foot. 
This  belief  is  maintained,  despite  the  two  recorded  and 
undoubted  ascents  of  Herr  Parrot  in  1829,  and  Gene- 
ral Chodzko  in  1850.     Neither  of  them  are  open  to  the 
slightest  doubt.     Parrot  positively  asserts  that,  on  his 
third  attempt,  he  gained  the  actual  summit,  of  which, 
moreover,  he  gives  an  intelligible  description.     Greneral 
Chodzko  led  a  regular  military  expedition   against  the 
mountain,  advancing  slowly,  but  surely,  until  he  pitched 
his  camp  a  few  hundred  feet  below  the  top.    There  he  re- 
mained for  a  week,  engaged  in  scientific  observation.  Both 
these  ascents  took  place  in  the  early  autumn,  when,  owing 
to  the  diminution  of  the  snow,  the  summit  is  most  accessi- 
ble.   Our  Kurd  also  knew  Alagoz  well,  having  been  in  the 
habit  of  feeding  his  flocks  on  the  great  upland  pasturage, 

which  lies  to  the  south  of  the  peaks ;  and  he  confirmed 

u2 


^  ^     ■«.  - 


164  ARARAT. 

General  Chodzko's  account  of  the  existence  of  a  small 
glacier  near  the  top,  by  telling  us  that  there  was  a  river 
there  which  stood  still  on  account  of  the  cold.     General 
Chodzko   ascended   the   highest   peak   of   Alagoz,   when 
employed  on  the  military  map  of  the  Caucasian  provinces, 
in  1847,  .  He. describes  the  top  as  exceedingly  small^  and 
the  final. scramble  as  more  fatiguing  than  difficult.     The 
second  summit  he  pronounces  altogether  inaccessible. 
.    The  dolonel  welcomed  us  back  most   cordially,   and 
invited  us  to  stay  and  rest;  but  we  were  anxious  to  get  to 
Erivan,  and  so,  after  paying  off  our  Kurds,  wished  him 
good-bye,  and  rode  on  to  the  ferry.     The  Persian  owners 
of  the  horses  had  demurred  to  being  taken  on  to  Kamarlu 
as  part  of  the  day's  work,  and  we  had  compromised  the 
question,  by  promising  them  a  *  backsheesh '  on  our  arrival 
there,'.  At  the  ferry  they  refused  to  go  any  further .5  we 
surprised  them  by  paying  no  heed  to  their  noise,  and 
taking  the  horses  over  with  us.    At  the  second  branch  we 
foimd  the  leaky  boat  replaced  by  a  rude  log-raft,  buoyed 
on  inflated  skins,  on  which  we  crossed,  some  Kurds  swim- 
ming our  horses  over.   The  scene  was  otherwise  unchanged, 
except  that  the  Kurd  girls  were  even  prettier  specimens  of 
their  race  than  those  we  had  seen  before.     The  sun  was 
scorchingiy  hot  as  we  rode  into  Kamarlu^  and  we  were 
glad  to  throw  ourselves  down  for  half  an  hour  on  the 
wooden' benches,  in  a  cool  room,  while  our  ^  telegas '  were 
prepiired.     The  Persians  having  persisted  in  their  resolve 
not  to  cross  the  river,  we  left  their  horses  in  the  charge  of 
the  postmaster,  and  set  out  to  drive  the  two  terribly  rough 
stages  into  Erivan,  where  we  arrived,  sore  and  sorry,  about 
sunset^ 

June  IQth  to  12^A,  Erivan, — ^We  sent  out  Paul  to  make 
enquiries,  and  endeavour  to  conclude  a  bargain  for  horses, 
to. enable  us  to  ride  back  to  Tiflis,  by  country-roads,  for  we 


A   RUSSIAN  DOCTOR.  165 

were  quite  determined  to  have  nothing  more  to  do,  for  the 
present,  with  the  post-carriages  of  the  Caucasus.  Our 
plan  was  to  visit  Etchmiadzin,  and  take  from  thence  a 
track  leading  along  the  flanks  of  Alagoz  (which  we  enter- 
tained thoughts  of  attacking),  and  then  passing  through 
the  hill-country  of  Georgia,  and  across  three  ridges,  varying 
between  6,000  and  8,000  feet  in  height,  before  it  finally 
rejoins  the  post-road,  three  stations. out  of  Tiflis.  Paul 
was  successful  in  finding  a  man  in  the  bazaar,  who  agreed 
to  fiimish  us,  at  a  reasonable  price,  with  horses  and  men 
who  knew  the  roads  we  wished  to  follow*  In  the  evening 
of  our  first  day's  rest,  I  was  attacked  .with  a  violent  pain 
at  the.  back  of  the  head,  got  no  sleep,  and  sent  next  morn- 
ing for  the  Russian  doctor.  He.  said  there  was  nothing 
the  matter. with  me,  and  prescribed  a  mild  solution  of 

m 

peppermint,  which  was  neither  nice  nor  useful;  in  the 
evening  he  came  again,  and  ordered  leeches  and  a  mus- 
tard-plaister.  ,  This  vigorous,  treatment  was  effectual;  I 
slept  fairly,  and  got  better  next  day,  so  that  by  the  morn- 
ing of  the  18  th,  I  was  ready  to  make  a  short  stage  of  three 
hours,  on  horseback,  to  Etchmiadzin. .  Tucker,  meantime, 
had  been  busy  in  the  bazaar,  in  getting  a  light  mattrass 
stuffed  and  made.up,  and  in  making  other  small  provisions 
for  our  week's. ride  across  the  hills  to  Tiflis. 

June  \Zih. — The  ride  to  Etchmiadzin,  despite  the 
distant  view  of  Ararat,  is  on  the  whole  a  dull  one.  The 
road  passes  under-  the  fortress  .of.  Erivan,  which  might 
perhaps  be  formidable  to  Asiatic  troops,  and  crosses  the 
stream  from,  the  Gotchka  lake,  which  here .  flows  in  a 
picturesque  ravine.  There  is  an  untidy  botanical  garden 
on  its  further  bank.  For  some  little  distance  out  of  the 
town  the  country  is  cultivated,  but  the  greater  part  of  the 
twelve  miles  is  over  a  bare  and  stony  plain,  broken  half- 
^sj  by  a  village  <a]td  further  on  by  a  Druidic-looking 


166  ARABAT. 

ruin  on  the  left  of  the  road.     The  village  of  Etchmiadzin 
is   conspicuous,   from  a  distance,  by  the  number  of  its 
churches  ;  they  are  of  the  usual  Armenian  style  of  archi- 
tecture, lofty  for  their  size,  with  circular  towers  capped 
by  stumpy  steeples.     The  village  and  bazaar  are  poor,  and 
the  place  is  in  a  very  uninteresting  situation,  on  a  broad 
plain,  watered  by  the  stream,  which  has  its  sources  on  the 
eastern  flanks  of  AJagoz.      The  convent  and  cathedral 
are  within  a  large  fortified  enclosure,  which  has  in  its 
time  resisted  many  attacks  from  the  infidels.     We  were 
assigned  a  room  in  the  convent,  and  the  monks  did  what 
they  could  to  make  us  comfortable.     They  all  wear  the 
Circassian  hood,  or  ^  baschlik,'  which  is  far  more  graceful 
than  the  square  cap  of  the  Russian  priest,  or  the  cowls  of 
European  Orders.     The  cathedral  is  a  quaint  old  building, 
covered  with  elaborate  but  somewhat  barbaric  sculpture, 
and  decorated    internally  with   fine    wood-carving  and 
numerous  pictures  of  saints.     The  greatest  sign  of  pro- 
gress about  the  place  is  a  large  reservoir,  which  has  been 
lately  constructed. 

We  were  invited  in  the  evening  to  take  tea  with  the 
Patriarch.  He  is  a  fine  but  not  intellectual-looking 
man,  with  a  splendid  beard ;  he  was  dressed  in  robes 
of  purple  silk,  and  wore  magnificent  Orders,  some  of 
which  had  been  presented  to  him  on  his  recent  visit  to 
St.  Petersburg.  We  were  introduced  by  an  Armenian 
merchant,  whose  acquaintance  we  had  made  on  the  Black 
Sea,  and  whom  we  now  again  most  opportunely  met. 
'  His  Holiness,'  who  quite  plays  the  Pope  amongst  his 
countrymen,  was  very  affable,  and,  could  he  have  spoken 
any  Christian  language  except  Russian,  would  doubtless 
have  given  us  a  good  deal  of  interesting  information.  As  it 
was,  he  spent  the  best  part  of  an  hour  in  proving  to  his  own 
satisfaction  how  much'  more  charitable  and  tolerant  the 


ETCHMIADZIN.  107 

Armenians  were  than  the  Greeks,  and  how  much  they 
sympathised  with  the  English  in  ecclesiastical  matters. 
Toleration  is  a  virtue  often  found  in  the  weaker  party,  and. 
the  poor  Armenians  need  at  present  all  the  sympathy  they 
can  get,  as  their  Church  is  divided  against  itself — one  party, 
headed  by  the  Patriarch,  acquiescing  in  Biissian  supremacy 
and  interference ;  while  the  other  resents  it,  and  urges  the 
removal  of  the  seat  of  the  patriarchate  to  some  spot 
outside  the  Czar's  dominions.  The  room  in  which  we 
were  received  was  hung  with  a  long  series  of  portraits  of 
(to  us)  imknown  Kings  of  Armenia,  headed  by  the  present 
Czar  of  All  the  Bussias.  On  our  departure  the  Patriarch 
presented  each  of  us  with  his  *  carte-de-visite.'  After  we 
had  returned  to  our  room,  a  secretary  appeared  with  an 
English  document,  which  he  wanted  me  to  copy ;  it  was  the 
receipt  of  a  Calcutta  firm  for  some  money  paid  in  to  the 
Patriarch's  account  by  an  Armenian  missionary  in  1814. 
The  man  was  very  anxious  to  know  if  he  could  get  the 
money  now  by  sending  to  London,  but  we  thought  it  best 
to  decline  giving  an  opinion  on  that  delicate  point. 

June  \4ith. — ^In  the  morning  we  were  shown  the  convent 
library,  which  is  small,  but  contains  some  magnificently- 
illuminated  manuscripts.  A  Bible,  with  numerous  and 
quaint  pictures  of  Old  Testament  history,  was  I  think  the 
handsomest  I  ever  saw.  Our  day's  ride  lay  up  the  valley 
on  the  eastern  side  of  Alagoz ;  the  country  in  general  is 
distressingly  bare,  and  the  track  led  us  over  stony  downs, 
until  it  came  suddenly  to  the  brow  of  a  cliff,  under  which 
flowed  a  stream  in  a  verdant  trough,  with  the  village  of 
Oschagan  on  the  opposite  side.  An  old  bridge  formed 
the  foreground  to  a  picture  which  perhaps  struck  us  more 
than  it  would  have  done  in  a  country  less  generally  mono 
tonous.  The  long  gentle  slope  from  here  up  to  Aschtarak 
was  a  perfect  Eden  contrasted  with   the   bare    wastes 


IGS  THE   GEORGIAN   HILL-COUNTRY. 

beyond.  Careful  irrigation  had  clothed  the  soil  with  a 
rich  mantle  of  vegetation,  vineyards  and  orchards  lined 
both  sides  of  the  path,  and  even  the  dividing  hedgerows 
seemed  to  share  in  the  general  luxuriance.  The  village 
stands  on  a  brow  above  the  sunny  slope  which  supplies  it 
with  com  and  wine,  and  its  inhabitants  have  a  more 
prosperous  air  than  most  of  the  Armenian  peasantry. 
We  made  bur  midday  halt  here,  and  I  was  glad  to  rest  for 
two  hours  in  a  clean  room,  for  my  Erivan  attack  had  lefl>. 
me  somewhat  weak  and  lazy. 

The  only  interesting  features  in  the  latter  part  of  the 
day's  ride  were  the  river-beds — ^picturesque  troughs,  almost 
gorges,  sunk  from  100  to  200  feet  below  the  general  surface, 
with  rugged  volcanic  rocks  cropping  out  from  their  sides. 
We  ascended  all  day,  and  towards  evening  reached  a  high 
plain  partially  cultivated,  and  dotted  with  dismal  villages. 
The  first  we  halted  at  oflfered  such  bad  accommodation  that 
we  rode  on  three  miles  further  to  Alekujak,  which  stands  on 
the  left  bank  of  the  torrent  descending  from  the  Alagoz 
glacier..  Our  quarters  here  were  about  the  nastiest  we  met 
with  during  oiur  whole  joumey^  To  avoid  the  winter-cold  at 
this  height  (about  6,000  feet),  the  houses  are  all  constructed 
on  the  principle  of  a  molehole — one  passage  leading  into  the 
family  apartments,  which  no  stranger  can  enter  on  account 
of  the  presence  of  the  womankind,  another  into  the  stable. 
In  the  latter  we  had  to  lodge  on  a  sort  of  dais,  provided 
with  a  fireplace  and  two  sleeping-mats,  slightly  railed  off 
from  the  horses  and  cows  that  occupied  the  rest  of  the  apart- 
ment. The  only  fuel  obtainable  was  cowdung,  so  that  the 
fire  did  not  add  much  to  the  cheerfulness  of  the  situation. 
What  with  the  stiflingly  pungent  smell  of  the  stalls,  the 
noise  of  the  animals,  and  the  determined  inroads  of  fleas 
and  other  insects,  we  never  passed  a  more  miserable  night. 
.   June  15th. — The  hills  were  covered  with  a  wet  blanket 


ARMENIAN   SCENERY.  1C9 

of  misVand  our  last  hope  of  Alagoz— the  summit  of  which 
(13,436  feet),  a  rock-peak  of  the  Piz  Langnard  type,  had 
shown  for  a  moment  the  previous  evening — was  ex- 
tinguished. We  rode  on  over  intensely  green  upland 
pastures,  surrounded  by,  if  possible,  greener  hills.  Mists 
swept  over  all  their  tops,  and  rain  fell  pretty  steadily. 
We  forded  the  stream  three  times  before  reaching  Kon- 
daksaz,  a  small  village  inhabited  by  Mahommedan  Kurds, 
whereiwe  halted  for  lunch  in  a  stable,  a  shade  better  than 
our  sleeping-quarters..  Alagoz  now  lay  well  in  the  rear, 
and  the  track  leading  over  to  Alexandrapol  tiimed  off  on 
the  left.  A  plain,  on  which  large  herds  of  horses  were 
pasturing, .  was  soon  crossed,  and  we  entered  a  long  and 
narrow  glen;  the  scenery  and  the  weather  were  both  bad 
Scotch,  and  we  could  not  look  forward  with  any  pleasure 
to  the  passage  of  the  watershed  between  the  Kur  and 
Araxes,  which  we  were  now  approaching.  After  passing 
two  villages,  one  on  either  hand,  the  glen  narrowed,  and 
the  track  finally  made  a  sudden  dash  up  the  hillside  on 
the  right,  bringing  us  very  quickly  to  a  grassy  ridge 
7,828  feet  above  the  sea.  We  were  surprised  to  see  a  rapid 
and  long  descent  before  us  on  the  northern  side. 

The  valleys  of  the  tributaries  of  the  Kur  are  everywhere 
much  deeper  cut  than  those  of  the  Araxes,  and  the  Georgian 
highlands  are  consequently  more  picturesque  than  those  of 
Armenia.  Snow  lay  heavily  on  the  pass,  and  we  had 
some  little  trouble  with  our  animals.  The  wild  flowers 
were  lovely,  many  of  them  old  English  friends — such  as 
cowsUps,  primroses,  and  violets.  We  also  found  a  gentian, 
and  saw  again  the  dwarf  hyacinths  of  Ararat.  Two  hours 
below  the  pass  we  came  to  Hammamly,  situated  on  the 
banks  of  a  torrent,  at  the  junction  of  three  valleys.  It  is 
on  the  road  from  Delidschan  to  Alexandrapol,  and  there  is 
^  post-station  in  the  village,  to  which  we  of  course  went. 


170  THE   GEORGIAN  HILL-COUNTRY. 

It  was  pleasant  to  find  a  clean  room  and  a  good  fire,  over 
which  some  mulled  wiije  was  quickly  brewed,  and  proved 
most  acceptable  after  our  wet  and  cold  ride. 

June  16th. — The  mists  clinging  to  the  bare  hillsides 
around  reminded  me  irresistibly  of  Scotland,  and  the 
first  part  of  our  ride  was  through  scenery  very  like  that 
of  the  Grampians.  We  followed  the  post-road  for  some 
distance  down  the  valley ;  occasionally,  near  a  village,  a 
clump  of  trees  broke  the  hillsides,  but  the  general  cha- 
raLcter  of  the  country  was  unchanged.  Several  versts  before 
reaching  Kischlak,  the  next  station,  we  turned  over  a 
brow  on  the  left,  and  entered  a  side-valley,  which  runs  tip 
into  the  hills  in  a  direction  at  right-angles  to  our  previous 
course.  We  soon  came  to  a  village,  tidier  and  more 
habitable-looking  than  the  wretched  places  we  had  seen 
since  leaving  Etchmiadzin.  Above  this  the  hillsides  were 
thickly  wooded,  a  fact  we  appreciated  the  more  from  having 
seen  no  natural  timber  either  in  Armenia  or  Persia. 

A  rough  cart-road  led  us  over  a  grassy  ridge,  the  summit 
of  which  was  covered  in  mists,  and  it  was  not  until  we  had 
descended  some  distance  that  we  gained  our  first  view  of 
Gergeri,  a  large  village  situated  in  a  secluded  basin,  and 
surrounded  by  finely-timbered  hillsides.  Our  horses  waded 
with  difficulty,  through  horrible  mud,  into  the  military  can- 
tonment, which  is  a  short  distance  from  the  village.  We 
found  shelter  from  the  incessant  rain  in  a  small  cottage, 
built  after  the  Russian  style,  and  bearing  evidence,  in  its 
fittings,  of  inhabitants  more  civilised  than  the  Georgian 
peasantry.  Pictures,  mostly  of  a  religious  type,  were  pasted 
on  the  walls,  and  there  was  an  old  family  Bible  on  the  table. 
Having  learnt  with  satisfaction  that  Djelaloghlu,  our 
sleeping-place,  was  only  ten  versts  distant,  we,  after  a  short 
rest,  proceeded  on  our  journey. '  The  road  ascended  a 
small  valley,  with  bold  lulls  on  the  left,  for  some  distance. 


A   MOIST   CLIMATE.  171 

and  then  crossed  a  low  steep  ridge,  from  the  top  of  which 
we  overlooked  a  green  tableland  filling  up  the  space 
between  the  Bezobdal  and  Lelwar  ranges,  both  of  them 
ofifshoots  of  the  Anti-Caucasian  chain.  The  rain  was  falling 
in  torrents,  but,  happily,  Djelaloghlu  was  at  hand.  It  is  a 
place  of  some  size,  laid  out  in  the  straggling  style  common 
in  the  Caucasian  provinces.  Detached  cottages  are  set 
down  in  rows  on  either  side  of  a  broad  street  of  mud.  The 
houses,  individually,  are  quite  as  good  as  an  ordinary 
English  cottage.  Here  there  are,  besides,  large  government 

* 

stores,  and  ofBicers'  quarters,  with  some  pretence  of  a  garden 
in  front  of  them.  We  were  directed  to  the  village  shop,  and 
found  shelter  in  a  sort  of  back-kitchen,  opening  out  of  it, 
which  would  have  been  comfortable  enough,  but  for  the 
chilly  look  given  by  a  damp  earth-floor.     We  shared  our 

in  a  row  along  one  side  of  the  room.  The  presence  of  the 
military  ensured  us  fair  food,  and  we  spent  the  evening  in 
writing  letters,  and  working  ourselves  up  into  an  unusual 
state  of  patriotism,  by  drawing  comparisons  between  a 
Georgian  and  an  English  June — all  in  favour  of  the  latter. 
Calculations  showed  that  rain  had  fallen  on  twelve  out  of 
the  fifteen  days  since  we  left  Tabreez,  and  it  fell  on  each  of 
the  three  foUowing  days  up  to  our  arrival  at  Tiflis. 

June  17  th. — We  meant  to  have  started  early,  knowing 
we  had  a  long  day's  journey  before  us ;  but  in  the  morning 
Paul  complained  of  being  ill,  and  would  do  nothing  but 
groan.  It  turned  out  that  he  had  neglected  our  injimction 
to  change  his  wet  clothes  the  previous  afternoon,  and  had 
consequently  caught  a  chill.  A  strong  *  pick-me-up '  cured 
him  for  the  time,  and  at  8  o'clock  we  set  out  once  more, 
to  face  the  rain  and  mists.  Djelaloghlu  stands  on  the 
brink  of  a  curious  cleft,  the  bottom  of  which  is  at  least 
100  feet  below  the  level  of  the  plain,  and  the  sides  almost 


172  THE   GEORGIAN   HILL-COUXTRY. 

perpendicular.  The  road  dips  down,  by  a  steep  zigzag,  to 
a  bridge  over  the  Debeda.  At  the  top  of  the  ascent  on 
the  other  side  stands  a  fine  old  stone  cross.  For  several 
miles  we  rode  over  a  plain  covered  with  the  most  luxuriant 
herbage,  and  then  entered  a  long  valley  between  bare 
green  hills,  one  of  them  crowned  by  a  tall  wooden  cross. 
At  a  point  were  two  streams  meet  was  a  large  village, 
where  our  men  wanted  to  halt;  but  we,  wishing  to 
reach  Schulaweri  before  nightfall,  refused  to  let  them. 
We  forded  one  branch  of  the  stream  without  much  diffi- 
culty, and  followed  the  other  up  to  its  sources  among  the 
hills.  The  height  assigned,  in  Kiepert's  Map  of  the 
Caucasus,  to  the  pass  we  now  crossed,  is  5,805  feet. 
It  is  probably  picturesque,  but  we  saw,  nothing  but  fog 
and  mist,  till  we  had  descended  several  hundred  feet  on  the 
northern  side,  when  we  found  ourselves  on  a  wooded  slope, 
high  above  the  recesses  of  a  deep  valley.  The  neighbouring 
mountains  were  clothed  in  the  most  beautiful  park-like 
timber.  The  glades  and  grassy  knolls  were  enlivened  by 
Kurd  encampments,  sheep  and  horses  were  grazing  on  the 
fresh  herbage,  and  the  bright  costumes  of  their  owners 
gave  colour  to  the  scene.  At  this  height  the  trees  were 
still  in  their  spring  tints,  and  the  white-thorn  was  coming 
into  full  blossom.  We  noticed  a  great  many  wild  finit 
trees,  especially  pears  and  apples.  After  many  wind- 
ings, the  cart-track  succeeded  in  descending  to  the  side 
of  the  stream,  which  we  followed  for  some  distance  down  an 
exquisitely  wooded  valley.  It  was  our  firdt  introduction  to 
Caucasian  forest  scenery,  and  we  were  constantly  halting 
and  calling  each  other's  attention  to  some  wall  of  verdure, 
built  up  of  gigantic  beech-trees,  or  a  glade  where  gnarled 
old  trunks  and  luxuriant  underwood  afforded  a  subject  for 
the  artist  or  photographer.  The  brown  torrent,  encou- 
raged by  the  recent  rains,  ventured  on  some  remarkable 


SCHULAWERI.  173 

« 

falls ;  at  one  spot  a  tributary  leapt  suddenly  out  of  the 
foliage,  and  tumbled  in  a  sheet  of  foam  into  the  larger 
stream,  forming  one  of  the  most  eftective  ^  water-meets ' 
imaginable.  At  last  the  valley  opened  out  a  little,  and  we 
came  upon  cornfields,  showing  that  habitations  were  not 
very  far  off.  We  halted  at  the  village-store,  a  roadside  hut 
soaked  with  rain,  where  we  had  difficulty  in  finding  a  dry 
comer  to  eat  our  lunch  in.  Here,  nevertheless,  our  horse- 
men wanted  us  to  stop  for  the  night,  and  told  the  usual 
lies  to  induce  us  to  accede  to  their  wishes.  It  was  said 
that  we  had  only  ridden  halfway,  and  therefore  could  not 
arrive  at  Schulaweri  till  long  after  dark,  and  that  there  were 
wicked  people  on  the  road,  which  was  moreover  barred  by 
an  impassable  torrent.  We  were  by  this  time  pretty  well 
used  to  these  bogies,  and  persisted  in  starting  again  as  smn 
as  possible.  The  track  at  once  crossed,  by  a  bridge,  the 
stream  we  had  been  following,  and  then  a  short  but  steep 
climb  led  to  the  summit  of  a  low  watershed,  the  valley  on 
the  other  side  of  which  was  broader  and  more  open  than 
that  we  had  just  left. 

An  utterly-deserted  village  contrasted  strangely  with 
the  smiling  landscape  and  jfrequent  cornfields,  and  the 
hedgerows,  gay  with  flowering  shrubs,  often  reminded  us 
of  England,  to  the  hillier  parts  of  which  the  features  of 
the  country  bear  some  resemblance.  Where  the  valley 
bent  round  to  the  north,  and  contracted  into  a  defile,  we 
encountered  the  terrible  torrent.  The  old  man  in  charge 
of  the  horses  was  much  alarmed,  and  declared  the  water 
ivas  rolling  down  big  stones,  and  that  the  passage  w«s  too 
perilous  to  be  attempted;  but  we  rode  through  with 
perfect  ease,  scarcely  finding  it  necessary  to  lift  our  feet  in 
the  stirrups.  We  had  to  cross  the  stream  three  times,  but 
familiarity,  as  usual,  bred  contempt,  and  even  the  leading 
old  man  did  not  hesitate  twice.     The    hills   gradually 


174  THE  GEORGUy  HILIKJOUNTKT. 

opened  as  we  drew  near  Schnlaweri,  the  situation  of  wMch 
is  very  beautiful ;  the  town  stands  in  the  centre  of  a  richly- 
wooded  basin,  and  is  surrounded  by  walled  vineyards  and 
groves  of  £ruit- trees.  The  ground  on  the  north  falls  in  a 
long  slope  to  the  Khi-am,  and  the  eye  sweeps  over  the  plain- 
country  to  the  chain  of  hills  that  surrounds  Tiflis.  A 
curious  natural  arch,  in  some  castle-like  crags  on  the  top  of 
one  of  the  hills  that  overlook  the  town,  is  a  conspicuous 
feature  of  the  view.  We  were  first  shown  into  a  gloomy 
den,  but  in  a  short  time  got  possession  of  a  clean  though 
bare  room  in  a  two-storied  house,  which  was  but  just 
finished ,  and  still  unoccupied.  We  were  not  sorry,  after  our 
forty  miles*  ride  on  tired  horses,  to  spread  our  mattrass  on 
the  floor,  and  lie  down  to  sleep. 

The  next  morning  (June  18th)  we  rode  out  through  a 
fairly-furnished. bazaar,  and  crossing,  for  the  fourth  and 
last  time,  the  stream  of  the  day  before,  left  the  vineyards 
behind,  and  found  ourselves  on  comland,  where  teams  of 
sixteen  oxen  were  ploughing  furrows,  six  inches  deep,  to 
the  monotonous  chaunts  of  their  drivers.  Under  ordinary 
circumstances  it  is  an  easy  day's  ride  from  Schulaweri  to 
Tifiis,  but  a  flooded  stream  now  barred  the  direct  road, 
and  we  were  obliged  to  make  a  long  circuit  to  the  west  to  • 
find  a  bridge.  The  way  was  enlivened  by  the  frolics  of 
two  half-tipsy  Georgians,  both  riding  on  the  same  horse — a 
form  of  cruelty  to  animals  to  which  the  people  of  this 
coimtry  are  much  addicted.  They  narrowly  escaped 
drowning,  in  an  attempt  to  ford  the  stream,  half  a  mile 
below  the  bridge.  On  the  bank  stood  a  comfortable  farm- 
house, surrounded  by  some  fine  trees,  which  might  have 
been  made  into  a  very  pretty  place.  After  crossing  a 
second  stream,  by  a  new  bridge,  we  at  last  passed,  some 
way  off  on  the  right,  a  large  building,  apparently  an  old 
caravanserai.  We  halted  at  a  village,  meaning  to  lunch ; 
but,  though  there  were  many  vineyards  in  the  neighbour- 


HETUEN  TO  TIFLIS.  175 

hood,  no  wine  was  to  be  had.  The  puzzle  was  explained 
when  we  found  that  the  people  here  were  Mahommedans, 
and  those  of  the  next  hamlet  Christians.  We  rode  on,  and 
in  half  an  hour  found  ourselves  again  on  our  old  track,  at 
the  third  station  from  Tiflis  on  the  Erivan  post-road.  It 
was  ten  versts  on  to  Kody,  where  we  were  obliged  to  sleep, 
for  our  horses, 

'Hollow  pampered  jades  of  Asia, 
Which  could  not  go  but  thirty  miles  a  day,' 

were  completely  played  out  by  their  previous  performances, 
and  plodded  on  at  a  pace  which  was  painful  to  everyone 
concerned. 

There  was  scarcely  anything  eatable  to  be  found  at  the 
station — indeed,  the  postmaster's  only  object  seemed  to  be 
to  get  rid  of  us.  We  consoled  ourselves  with  the  thoughts 
of.  Tiflis,  and  hotel  luxuries  on  the  morrow.  Our  sleep 
was  soon  broken  by  the  howling  of  some  miserable  dogs. 
The  concert  was  so  prolonged  that  my  Mend  finally  lost 
patience,  and  broke  it  up  by  firing  a  revolver  into  the 
middle  of  the  performers,  imluckily  without  fatal  effect. 

Jime  19th.  —  Prom  this  point  we  intended  to  strike 
straight  for  Tiflis  across  the  hills — a  route  which  had  been 
described  to  us  as  both  shorter  and  more  picturesque  than 
the  tedious  approach  by  the  valley  of  the  Kur.  Daring 
the  first  part  of  our  ride  we  were  still  following  the  post- 
road;  the  mud  was  something  indescribable,  and  the 
ground  ordinarily  driven  over  so  heavy  that  the  carts  had 
been  taking  lines  of  their  own  through  the  fields.  The 
postmaster  at  Kody  told  us,  with  apparent  satisfaction, 
that  if  we  had  wanted  *  telegas '  he  should  have  given  us 
five  horses  to  each,  as  a  less  number  could  not  pull  even 
that  light  weight  through  the  slough  of  the  highroad  to 
Persia  and  the  Caspian.  Presently  turning  off  at 
right-angles,  we  struck  up  the  hUlside  on  our  left,  by  a 
steep  horse-path  moimting  beside  a  gully,  in  which  a 


nre  the  Georgian  hill-country. 

quaint  little  village  sheltered  itself.  On  reaching  the  brow 
of  the  hill,  the  whole  of  the  great  city  of  Tiflis  and  the 
course  of  the  Kur  for  many  miles  burst  upon  us  with 
startling  suddenness,  at  least  2,000  feet  below.  The  view  is 
very  striking,  and  when  the  snowy  chain  of  the  Caucasus 
is  clear,  it  must  be  still  more  so.  The  descent  was  long 
and  steep,  down  a  hillside  covered  with  brushwood  and 
broken  by  crags.  We  met  strings  of  donkeys  carrying 
out  goods  from  the  city,  and  passed  others,  laden  with  fire- 
.wood,  going  in  the  opposite  direction,  as  we  rode  down 
through  a  suburb  of  gardens  into  the  Persian  quarter. 
After  Erivan  and  Tabreez,  the  streets  seemed  wonderfully 
European,  with  their  tall  houses,  shops  with  plate-glass 
windows,  and  smartly-dressed  ladies  in  Parisian  costumes. 
The  [Russians  have  spent  a  great  deal  of  money  to  establish 
a  handsome  European  city  south  of  the  Caucasus,  and  they 
have  effected  their  object.  Tiflis  is  undoubtedly  a  success. 
,It  is  polyglot,  but  not  Asiatic ;  and  the  Persians,  like  the 
foreigners  in  Leicester  Square,  keep  their  own  quarter,  and 
even  there  look  shady  and  dull  compared  with  their  coun- 
trymen at  home. 

Tiflis^  June  20th  to  2&th. — ^We  were  delighted  to  rejoin 
all  our  luggage  at  the  comfortable  H6tel  d^Europe,  and  to 
find,  the .  missing  tent  and  portmanteau  arrived  from 
.Kutais.  My  time  during  the  next  few  days  was  spent 
principally  in  visits  to  the  governor  and  postal  officials, 
which  did  not  produce  any  very  great  results.  I  took 
pains  to  explain  our  plan,  which  was  in  itself  sufficiently 
simple — namely,  to  go  to  the  foot  of  Kazbek  by  the  post- 
road,  ascend  if  possible  that  moimtain,  and  then  cross,  by 
two  passes  laid  down  in  the  Russian  maps,  into  the  valley 
of  the  Kion.  To  the  official  mind,  however,  the  unknown 
and  the  impossible  are  coextensive  terms ;  and  while  I  was 
piet  with  the  greatest  personal  civility  and  desire  to  aid 


MOORE   JOINS   US.  177 

US,  I  could  get  no  definite  information,  or  promise  of 
assistance,  beyond  the  j)osthouse  of  Kazbek,  "vvliere  the 
Governor  of  Tiflis  told  me  he  hoped  to  meet  us  in  a  week's 
time.  There  seemed  even  to  be  a  question  whether  we 
should  get  thus  far,  for  at  the  post  our  '  crown-podoroj  no ' 
was  laughed  at,  and  we  were  told  no  carriage  could  be 
promised  us  for  an  indefinite  period. 

The  Grand  Duke  Alexis  (the  son  of  the  Emperor)  was 
expected  from  St.  Petersburg  on  a  visit  to  the  Caucasus, 
and  consequentlj  all  the  official  world  were  in  motion  to 
meet  him,  and  no  one  without  epaulettes  and  a  band  round 
his  cap  had  a  chance  of  meeting  with  the  slightest  atten- 
tion. After  several  eflforts  I  gave  up  the  post  in  despair,  and 
sought  out  a  German  carriage-master,  who  agreed  to  let  us  a 
*  tarantasse '  with  four  horses,  to  travel  voiturier- fashion. 
We  had  also  to  make  several  visits  to  the  police  to  enquire 
about  Fran9ois '  passport,  which  the  officials  at  Poti  had 
promised  to  forward.  The  authorities  would  hold  out  no 
certain  prospect  of  its  restoration,  and  seemed  to  wish  him 
to  buy  of  them  a  Russian  document,  costing  two  roubles,  in 
its  place ;  so  we  commissioned  the  master  of  the  hotel,  who 
was  going  back  to  Europe,  to  stir  up  the  Poti  police,  and 
he  succeeded  in  recovering  the  missing  passport.  Travel- 
lers anxious  to  avoid  that  fever-stricken  swamp,  Poti,  often 
go  straight  through,  trusting  to  the  promise  of  the  police 
to  send  their  passports  after  them — a  promise  which,  in  the 
cases  which  came  under  our  personal  knowledge,  was  in- 
variably broken. 

On  the  20th,  the  day  fixed  on  for  a  rendezvous  with  my 
friend  Moore,  who  was  to  come  out  straight  from  England 
by  the  Danube  and  Constantinople,  a  telegram  from 
Kutais  announced  to  us  the  welcome  news  of  his  arrival 
in  the  country,  and  on  the  21st  he  appeared  in  person, 
having  been  most  fortunate  in  getting  brought  on  from 

N 


178  THE   GEORGIAN   HILL-COUKTRY. 

Poti  by  a  Russian  lady,  who  was  coming  to  live  with  her 
daughter  at  Tiflis.  He  described  the  state  of  the  road  as 
something  awful :  for  half  the  distance  they  had  found  no 
post-horses,  and  had  been  obliged  to  pay  high  prices  for 
peasants'  animals,  brought  in  from  the  fields  to  meet  the 
demand.  The  mud  was  very  bad,  but  not  so  deep  as  it 
had  been  a  few  days  before,  when  a  Russian  family,  whom 
he  met  at  the  third  station  from  Kntais,  had  been  obliged 
to  have  their  carriage  dragged  for  one  stage  by  bullocks, 
and  had  taken  twelve  hours  to  accomplish  sixteen  versts. 
These  unlucky  people,  who  did  not  care  to  pay  for  extra 
horses,  had  taken  five  days  to  get  over  the  hundred 
miles  between  Tiflis  and  the  station  where  Moore  found 
them.  With  our  previous  experience,  we  were  rather  dis- 
mayed to  hear  that  our  friend  had  leffc  one  of  his  port- 
manteaus at  Eutais  in  charge  of  an  official,  to  be  for- 
warded, and  our  fears  were  justified  by  its  non-arrival  for 
three  days  after  it  was  due.  On  its  appearance  our 
preparations  were  quickly  made,  and  our  *  tarantasse '  was 
ordered  to  come  to  the  hotel  at  1  o'clock  on  the  after- 
noon of  the  26th  June. 

Two  days  after  we  reached   Tiflis  Paul  had  declared 
himself  ill,  and,  to  our  great  embarrassment,  had  taken  to 
his  bed ;  he  had  never  entirely  recovered  his  wetting  at 
Djelaloghlu,  and  was  now  suffering  from  a  kind  of  inter- 
mittent fever.     We  felt  sure  that  if  we  could  get  him  well 
enough  to  go  up  with  us  to  the  Kazbek  posthouse,  a  week's 
rest  in  mountain  air  would  restore  his  strength ;  but  his 
illness  was  a  great  discouragement,  just  at  the  moment 
when  we  were  starting  for  the  portion  of  the  journey  in 
which  his  services  were  most  indispensable.     The  doctor, 
whom  we  sent  for,  had  recourse  to  the  Russian  panacea, 
leeches,  which  in  this  case  did  not  do  much  good,  and  it 
was  by  frequent  doses  of  our  own  quinine  that  the  patient 
was  finally  brought  into  a  condition  to  travel. 


START  FOE  THE  MOUNTAINS.  179 


CHAPTER  Vn. 

THE   ERESTOWAJA   GORA  AND   ASCENT  OF   KAZBEK. 

Start  for  the  Mountains — ^The  Pass  of  theCSancasos — ^Kazbek  Post-station 
— The  G-overnors — A  Reconnaissance  in  force — ^Legends — Avalanches — The 
Old  Men's  Ohorus — Men  in  Armoor — Our  Bivouac — ^A  Critical  Moment 
— Scaling  an  leewall — The  Summit — The  Descent — A  Savage  Glen — A 
Night  with  the  Shepherds — ^Return  to  the  Village — Caucasian  Congratu- 
lations. 

When  our  yehicle  drove  into  the  courtjrard,  we,  ignorant 
still  of  the  utter  uncouthness  of  all  Bussian  conveyances, 
were  surprised  to  find  a  mere  shell  of  a  carriage  without 
any  fitments  inside.     However,  by  making  use  of  our  own 
luggage  and  rugs,  we  soon  succeeded  in  heaping  together 
seats,  which,  if  they  had  a  tendency  to  collapse,  were 
luxurious  in  comparison  to  those  of  our  late  'telegas/ 
Amidst  the  good  wishes  of  the  hangers-on  of  the  hotel, 
we  started  on  the  journey  which  was  to  carry  out  the 
object  long  and  anxiously  planned,  and  throughout  aU  our 
wanderings  steadily  kept  in  view,  as  the  centre  and  chief 
aim  of  our  travels — ^the  exploration  of  the  terra  incognita 
of  the  Caucasian  range. 

We  slowly  jolted  over  the  badly-paved  streets  of  Tiflis, 
now  about  to  be  strewn  with  earth  to  spare  the  bones 
of  the  expected  Archduke — a  proceeding  which,  if  the 
weather  held  fine  for  a  few  days,  would  be  certain  to  throw 
dust  even  in  imperial  eyes.  Our  coachman,  a  regular 
Bussian  peasant,  stupid,  obstinate,  and  good-humoured, 
crossed  the  Woronzoff  Bridge  and  took  a  road  along  the 
left  bank  of  the  Kur,  which  passed  through  several 
villages,   and,   though  hilly,  was   more  direct  than   the 

n2 


180  THE   KRESTOWAJA   GORA. 

line  taken  by  the  post-road.  Before  reaching  Mscheti 
we  had  to  cross  the  Aragiii,  a  large  tributary  of  the  Kur, 
one  of  the  branches  of  which  the  Kreuzberg  road  follows 
almost  to  its  source.  On  our  return,  two  months  later,  the 
long  wooden  bridge  had  met  with  the  usual  fate  of  bridges 
in  this  country,  and  was  so  much  damaged  by  floods  as 
to  be  rendered  impassable. 

Mscheti,  if  we  may  believe  Georgian  chronicles,  is  one  of 
the  oldest  towns  in  the  world.  It  is  asserted  to  have  been 
founded  by  Mtskethos,  son  of  Karthlos,  who  lived  in  the 
fifth  generation  after  Noah^  and  who  chose  this  site  on  ac- 
count of  its  beauty  and  natural  strength.  A  little  below  it, 
on  the  top  of  a  green  hill,  are  the  remains  of  an  extensive 
church  and  convent,  from  which  it  is  said  that  a  mystic 
chain  used  once  to  extend  in  mid-air  to  the  cathedral  tower 
of  Mscheti,  and  serve  as  a  means  of  mutual  communica- 
tion for  the  saints  of  either  church.  We  drove  close  under 
the  walls  of  the  old  fortified  cathedral,  where  we  joined 
the  post-road  which  crosses  the  Kur  a  mile  higher  up, 
and  has  to  return  some  distance  to  the  town.  The  Aragui 
here  flows  at  the  base  of  high  blufiEs,  along  the  sides  of 
which  the  road  is  carried.  For  this  stage  and  half  the 
next  workmen  were  employed  on  the  construction  of  the 
new  and  still-unfinished  macadamised  roadway,  which,  as 
soon  as  the  river  allows  it,  descends  to  the  level  ground. 
Sukan,  the  second  station,  is  situated  in  the  centre  of  a 
fertile  basin,  encircled  by  well- wooded  hills,  purple  as  we 
saw  them  in  the  fading  sunset.  Although  not  travelling 
with  post-horses,  our  *podorojno'  gave  us  the  right  to  lodge 
in  the  stations.  Our  reception,  however,  was  at  first  any- 
thing but  hospitable ;  we  were  even  told  to  turn  out,  until 
the  master  found  we  were  willing  to  pay  for  rooms  and  to 
order  supper,  when  he  became  less  bearish  in  his  manners. 

The  stations  on  the  Dariel  road  are  very  diflferent  to  the 


A   CAUCASIAN    POSTHOUSE.  181 

ordinary  type  of  Caucasian  posthouses.  They  are  sub- 
stantial stone  buildings,  with  verandahs,  bow-windows,  and 
sometimes  a  billiard-room.  Their  internal  fittings  by  no 
means  correspond  with  their  pretensions.  Downstairs  the 
rooms  are  furnished  only  with  square  stools,  and  the  usual 
wooden  bedstead.  The  salle-a-manger  is  usually  large, 
with,  in  one  comer,  a  cupboard  containing  a  motley 
collection  of  delicacies,  mostly  liquid — a  sort  of  museum  of 
various  shaped  bottles  labelled  with  the  names  of  the 
choicest  brands.  I  have  seen  in  a  row  *  VeuvQ  Clicquot,' 
*  Ch&teau  Lafitte,'  *  Allsopp's  Pale  Ale,*  *  Guinness'  Stout,' 
and  *  Old  Mad^re'  («ic) ;  there  is  very  seldom  more  than 
one  bottle  of  each.  The  champagne  is  generally  five 
roubles,  and  the  English  beer  one  rouble  fifteen  copecks,  a 
bottle.  A  few  boxes  of  sardines  and  a  plate  of  stale  cakes 
form  a  set-off  to  this  tempting  array.  The  samovar  and 
tea  are  always  forthcoming;  *  borsch,'  or  cabbage-soup,  a 
national  dish  in  Bussia,  is  usually  to  be  had  very  quickly, 
and  sometimes  a  beefsteak  will  be  cooked  if  ordered ;  but, 
as  often  as  not,  there  is  nothing  more  solid  th^Jl  eggs  in 
the  house.  Upstairs  are  a  set  of  rooms  provided  with 
mattrasses,  which  are  charged  for  extra,  such  arrange- 
ments being  considered  quite  unnecessary  luxuries.  It 
was  our  readiness  to  pay  for  these  reserved  apartments 
which  smoothed  away  the  difiGiculties  at  first  made  to  our 
reception. 

Jwne  27th. — We  got  off  at  6  a.m.,  and  enjoyed  the 
beauty  of  a  fresh  clear  morning.  After  a  straight  stretch 
of  several  versts,  the  road  left  the  valley  of  the  Aragui, 
and  turned  up  a  narrow  glen ;  a  long  and  gradual  ascent 
brought  us  to  a  green  tableland,  where  a  little  tarn  ap- 
peared amongst  the  meadows.  The  posthouse  of  Duschet 
stands  by  the  side  of  a  hollow,  but  the  town  lies  on  a 
sloping  hillside,  at  some  distance  to  the  right ;  a  good  many 


]32  THE   KRESTOWAJA   GORA. 

Russians  live  here,  and  we  had  a  letter  for  the  com- 
mandant of  the  district,  who,  we  were  informed,  would 
probably  be  able  to  aid  us  in  our  preparations  for  attacking 
Kazbek.  We  found,  on  enquiry  at  the  station,  that  he, 
like  everyone  else,  had  gone  off  to  meet  the  Grand 
Duke,  so  we  pursued  our  journey  without  delay. 

The  next  stage  was  across  a  ridge,  wooded  to  the  summit 
with  fine  park-like  timber,  and  down  a  long  and  narrow 
glen  on  the  other  side  to  Ananour.     On  the  tongue  of  rock 
projecting  .at  the  mouth  of  the  glen  stands  a  most  pic- 
turesque group  of  buildings,  consisting  of  two  old  churches 
and  a  belfry,  enclosed  by  battlemented  walls  and  towers. 
The  larger  and  more  modem  church  is  decorated  externally 
with  large  and  elaborately-carved  crosses,  and  sculptures  of 
trees  with  animals  feeding  on  their  branches.     The  village 
clusters  round  the  foot  of  the  fortified  mound,  in  a  very 
pretty  position  at  the  junction  of  two  torrents.  The  road  now 
led  up  a  narrow  valley,  the  wooded  slopes  were  frequently 
dotted  with  castles  and  towers,  and  the  vegetation  vras 
richer  than  that  of  a  Swiss,  but  the  rocks  not  so  bold  as 
those  of  an  Italian,  Alpine  valley.     At  Pasanaur,  remark- 
able only  for  a  church  in  the  most  gingerbread  style  of 
Russian  architecture,  the  river  forks,  and  the  road,  follow- 
ing the  western  branch,  enters  a  defile,  above  which  the 
upper  valley,  lying  at  the  foot  of,  and  running  for  some 
way  parallel  to,  the  main  chain,  opened  before  us.  Scattered 
hamlets  and  noble  trees  studded  the  slopes;   the  lower 
wooded    buttresses   of   the   mountains  were    beautifully 
shaped ;  the  higher  ridges  (9,000  to  10,000  feet),  *up  to  their 
summits  clothed  in  green,'  often  ended  in  peaks  of  bold 
outline,  and   picturesque   glimpses   of  the   snowy   chain 
opened  from  time  to  time  up  side-glens.   The  horses,  which 
had  done  seventy-five  uphill  versts  in  the  day,  required  a 
great  deal  of  persuasion  to  trot  the  last  half-hour  into 


THE    TASS   OF   THE   CAUCASUS.  183 

Mleti,  and  we  were  amused  at  the  difference  between  the 
long  guttural  grunts  of  the  Russian  driver,  and  the  sharp 
tones  used  by  an  Italian  voiturier  in  like  circumstances. 
The  station  at  Mleti  is  one  of  the  most  frequented  and 
best  provided  on  the  road. 

June  29>th, — The  ascent  from  Mleti,  up  a  slope  broken  by 
cliffs,  is  steeper  than  any  Alpine  carriage-pass  I  remember, 
except  the  wonderful  zigzags  beside  the  Madesino  Fall,  on 
the  south  of  the  Splugen.  At  one  picturesque  corner  the 
road  is  seen  on  the  top  of  a  cliff  overhead,  and  anyone 
unused  to  mountain  engineering  might  well  wonder  how 
it  got  there.  A  little  fountain,  spurting  up  a  jet  by  the 
wayside,  is  an  incongruous  bit  of  civilisation  in  the  wilder- 
ness. In  mercy  to  the  horses  we  walked,  and  haying 
scaled  the  rocky  mass,  which,  during  the  latter  part  of  our 
drive  the  evening  before,  had  seemed  to  block  the  valley,  we 
found  ourselves  on  grass  slopes  covered  with  azalea-bushes 
and  smaller  flowering  plants.  From  this  part  of  the  road  the 
view  of  the  head  of  the  valley  beneath  is  very  striking.  A 
thin  water£aill  leaps  down  the  opposite  cliffs ;  a  village,  close 
beside  a  curious  isolated  rock,  occupies  the  last  habitable 
spot  in  the  valley,  and  higher  up  a  mere  ravine  runs  under 
the  base  of  a  pointed  peak,  which  rises  above  it  in  grand 
precipices.  A  group  of  houses — consisting  of  barracks,  a 
station,  and  a  wayside  inn — stands  on  the  mountain-side 
about  1,000  feet  below  the  pass,  filling  the  place  of  the 
*  hospice '  on  an  Alpine  road.  I  had  slightly  rubbed  my 
foot  during  the  ascent,  and  therefore  waited  for  the 
carriage,  but  the  rest  of  the  party  walked  on  as  far  as 
Kobi.  We  now  traversed,  at  a  level,  a  steep  hillside  cut 
into  terraces,  and  staked  up  to  prevent  avalauches  from 
gathering  impetus  enough  to  sweep  over  and  carry  away 
the  road.  The  old  horse-path  crossed  the  ridge  at  a  point 
slightly  to  the  east  of  the  course  now  followed.     The  grass 


184  THE   KRESTOWAJA   GORA. 

and  flowers  were  most  luxuriant,  owing  to  the  quantity  of 
springs  which  burst  out  of  the  ground  on  all  sides.     There 
is  little  distant  view  from  the  summit,  on  which  is  a  stone 
refuge.     The  Krestowaja  Goi*a  (or  Kreuzberg,  as  translated 
on  German  maps)  is  the  real  name  of  the  pass  over  the  chain 
of  the  Caucasus   leading  from  Asia  into  Europe;*  the 
ordinary  name  of  *  Dariel '  road  is  only  so  far  appropriate 
that  the   defile  of  Dariel  is  the  most   striking  natural 
feature  between  Vladikafkaz  and  Tiflis.   If  the  pass  of  the 
Splugen  from  Chur  to  Chiavenna  was  ordinarily  termed 
the  ^  Via  Mala  road/  it  would  be  an  exactly  parallel  case. 
The  descent  on  the  north  side  into  the  valley  of  the 
Terek  is  one  of  only  1,500  feet,  but  it  must  be  very  dan- 
gerous in  spring,  as  the  way  lies  down  a  deep  glen  choked 
at  the  bottom  with  the  remains  of  enormous  avalanches, 
which  in  more  than  one  place  still  buried  the  track,  oblig- 
ing a  passage  to  be  cut  through  them.     The  slopes  are  ter- 
raced, to  protect  the  road;  the  idea  of  building  covered 
galleries  has  either  not  occurred  to  the  Russian  engineers, 
or  was  considered  too  expensive  by  the  Government.     It 
must  be  adopted  if  the  pass  is  ever  to  be  kept  open  at  all 
seasons.     Kobi,  the  first  village  on  the  northern  side,  is 
strikingly  situated,  at  the  point  where  the  glen  joins  the 
valley  of  the  Terek.     A  high  cliff  shelters  the  posthouse, 
from  whence  the  summit  of  Kazbek  is  not  in  view,  being 
hidden  by  massive  buttresses.     The  postmaster  here  was 
tipsy.     As  an  English  traveller  mentions  the  same  fact  in 
1837,  and  as  he  was  in  a  similar  happy  condition  upon 

#  I  follow  the  most  emioent  modem  geographers  in  considering  the 
Caucasian  watershed  as  part  of  the  boundary  between  Europe  and  Asia. 
Though  this  conclusion  has  been  for  many  years  generally  adopted,  the  public 
and  their  instructors  are,  as  yet,  scarcely  awake  to  the  necessary  corollary 
that  Mont  Blanc  and  Monte  Rosa  must  be  regarded  as  usurpers,  and  that 
Elbniz  and  Kazbek,  Koschtantau  and  Dychtau,  are  entitled  to  precedence  on 
the  roll  of  European  mountains. 


THE   TEREK   VaLLEY.  185 

our  two  subsequent  visits,  a  week  and  two  months  later,  it  is 
fair  to  suppose  that  the  complaint  is  chronic.  The  scenery 
of  the  valley  of  the  Terek  is  entirely  different  from  that  on 
the  south  side  of  the  pass:  treeless  valleys,  bold  rocks,  slopes 
of  forbidding  steepness  (even  to  eyes  accustomed  to  those 
of  the  Alps),  and  stone-built  villages. scarcely  distinguish- 
able from  the  neighbouring  crags,  but  for  the  one  or  two 
towers  of  defence  which  rise  above  the  clustering  hovels, 
are  the  main  features  of  the  sixteen  versts'  drive  from 
Kobi  to  Kazbek.  A  bold  pinnacle  of  rock  on  our  right 
reminded  me  of  a  Tyrolese  dolomite,  while  the  trough-like 
character  of  the  valley,  and  the  stem  barrenness  of  the 
scenery,  carried  Moore's  thoughts  back  to  Dauphin^. 

We  passed,  halfway,  a  hamlet  bearing  the  familiar 
name  of  Sion,  behind  which  a  few  trees  had  been  planted, 
the  only  ones  in  the  vicinity.  Clouds  as  yet  prevented 
our  catching  any  glimpse  of  the  snows  of  Kazbek,  but  did 
not  hide  the  lower  mountains.  The  village  is  in  a  fine 
position,  backed  on  the  east  by  very  stfeep  grass  and  rock- 
slopes,  the  supports  of  a  massive  rock-peak  of  at  least 
12,000  feet  in  height.  •  Soon  after  our  arrival,  the  clouds, 
which  up  to  this  time  had  filled  the  glen  opening  opposite 
the  posthouse,  rolled  away,  and  revealed  at  its  head  Mount 
Kazbek,  a  magnificent  mass  of  rock  and  snow,  towering 
thousands  of  feet  above  all  the  neighbouring  summits. 
The  form  of  the  mountain-top  is  that  of  a  steep-sided 
dome ;  the  uppermost  crags,  which  break  through  the  ice, 
are  of  a  horseshoe  form,  and  are  curiously  prominent  in 
all  views  of  the  mountain  from  the  east,  and  even  from 
Vladikafkaz.  We  were  glad  to  find  the  posthouse  in  the 
charge  of  a  civil  couple,  a  man  and  his  wife,  the  latter  of 
whom  spoke  a  little  German.  The  charges  were  high, 
but  we  had  no  otlier  ground  of  complaint,  and  enjoyed 
during  our  stay  plentiful  food,  fair  wine  (selected  from  the 


186  THE   KRESTOWAJA   GORA. 

the  usual  medley  in  the  cupboard)  and  much  civility. 
Although  a  very  cursory  inspection  of  the  mountain 
suggested  several  routes,  offering  a  fair  chance  of  reaching 
the  summit,  yet  it  was  felt  that  to  make  the  assault 
without  a  previous  reconnaissance  would  be  unadvisable, 
bearing  in  mind  especially  our  utter  want  of  training. 
Paul  was  therefore  told  to  find  a  native  who  would 
accompany  us,  in  the  morning,  to  some  point  of  sufficient 
elevation  to  command  an  uninterrupted  view  of  the  moun- 
tain, and  at  the  same  time  to  accustom  our  muscles  to  the 
work  before  them.  In  due  course  he  reappeared,  with  a 
good-looking  man  known  as  Alexis,  who,  he  said,  was  a 
mighty  hunter,  and  knew  more  about  the  mountains  than 
anyone  else.  This  worthy  seemed  to  our  eyes  a  feeble 
creature,  but  as  no  one  else  was  forthcoming,  and  it  was  not 
probable  that  we  should  put  his  ability  to  a  very  severe 
trial,  he  was  engaged  to  be  our  pioneer  on  the  morrow. 

Jwfie  29<A. — We  were  up  betimes,  and  starting  before 
6  A.M.,  on  as  fine  a  morning  as  ever  rejoiced  the  heart  of  a 
mountaineer,  climbed  to  an  old  church  perched  on  a  lofty 
brow  1,500  feet  above  the  village.  This  building  is  re- 
garded with  great  reverence  by  the  inhabitants,  and  is 
made  an  object  of  pilgrimage ;  but  their  religious  feelings 
do  not  prompt  them  to  keep  it  in  repair,  and  the  interior 
is  in  a  very  desolate  and  ruinous  state.  In  Klaproth's 
time  it  was  the  practice  to  open  it  only  once  a  year,  but 
the  attendant,  who  had  joined  us  on  our  way  up,  made  no 
difficulty  about  admitting  us,  although  to  open  the  door 
he  had  first  to  gain  admission  by  getting  in  himself  through 
one  of  the  windows — no  easy  task.  From  the  enclosure 
round  the  church  we  could  see  the  ground  between  us 
and  the  base  of  the  great  mountain.  Just  opposite,  and 
easily  accessible  from  where  we  stood,  a  snow-clad  peak, 
evidently  commanding  a  view  of  Kazbek,  offered   itself 


A   RECONXAISSANCE   IN   FORCE.  187 

as  a  suitable  goal  for  our  morning  walk.  The  way 
to  it  lay  up  a  broad  grassy  ridge  adorned  by  rhodo- 
dendrons with  large  white  flowers,  several  kinds  of  gen- 
tians, and  many  other  plants  which  lack  of  botanical 
knowledge  prevents  my  naming.  We  had  not  undeiTated 
Alexis'  capacity :  so  long  as  the  way  lay  over  grass  he  went 
well  enough,  but  on  reaching  the  snow  he  stopped 
abruptly,  and  declined  to  go  any  further,  so  we  left  him 
with  Paul  at  the  foot  of  the  final  ascent.  A  climb  up 
steep  snow-slopes  succeeded  by  easy  rocks  led  to  the 
summit,  which  was  more  of  a  ridge  than  a  peak,  and  over 
10,000  feet  in  height.  Kazbek  was  now  directly  opposite 
us,  a  long  glacier  streaming  round  its  south  flank,  and 
ending  at  our  feet.  Prom  this  point  of  view  we  saw  the 
second  or  western  summit,  which  (totally  invisible  from  the 
station)  here  appears  equal  in  height  to  the  eastern. 
This  was  a  source  of  perplexity.  Opinions  were  divided 
as  to  the  relative  claims  to  superiority  of  the  two  peaks ; 
and  although  the  majority  were  inclined  to  award  the 
palm  to  the  eastern  summit,  there  was  sufficient  doubt 
about  the  matter  to  leave  us  all  well  pleased  at  the  dis- 
covery, that  from  the  glacier  on  the  southern  flank  of  the 
mountain^  the  gap  between  the  two  peaks  appeared  to  be 
accessible  by  a  series  of  crevasse-broken  but  easily  sur- 
mountable slopes,  merging  in  a  steep  wall  of  snow  or  ice, 
only  partially  visible,  and  as  to  the  exact  character  of  which 
it  was  difficult  to  judge  accurately.  As  any  mistake  with 
regard  to  the  real  culminating-point  would  be  very  annoy- 
ing, and  it  was  clear  that,  once  on  the  ridge,  we  should 
have  only  to  turn  right  or  left,  as  might  seem  advisable,  it 
was  unanimously  agreed  that  this  route  should  be  tried — 
an  additional  argument  in  its  favour  being  supplied  by 
the  evident  existence,  high  up  on  the  left  bank  of  the 
glacier,  of  several  excellent  sites  for  a  bivouac. 


IbS  ASCEXT  OF  KAZBEK. 

With  the  great  mountain  full  in  view,  I  may  now  briefly 
advert  to  the  position  it  holds  amongst  Caucasian  summits, 
and  to  the  legends  with  which  it  has  been  connected.  From 
the  earliest  times  Kazbek  has  taken  a  place  in  history,  and 
has  somewhat  unfairly  robbed  its  true  sovereign,  Elbruz,  of 
public  attention.  Situated  beside,  and  almost  overhang- 
ing, the  glen  through  which  for  centuries  the  great  high- 
road from  Europe  into  Asia  has  passed,  it  forces  itself  on 
the  notice  of  every  passer-by.  The  traveller — who,  even  if 
blessed  with  a  clear  day,  sees  Elbruz  only  as  a  huge  white 
cloud  on  the  southern  horizon,  as  he  jolts  over  the  weary 
steppe — is  forced  to  pass  almost  within  reach  of  the  ava- 
lanches that  fall  from  his  more  obtrusive  rival.  It  is  not 
difficult,  therefore,  to  see  why  Kazbek  has  become  thus 
famous,  why  the  mass  of  crag  on  the  face  of  the  moun- 
tain, so  conspicuous  from  the  post-station,  is  made  the 
scene  of  Prometheus'  torment,  or  why  a  later  superstition 
declares  that  amongst  these  rocks,  a  rope,  visible  only 
to  the  Elect,  gives  access  to  a  holy  grot,  in  which  are  pre- 
served the  Tent  of  Abraham,  the  Cradle  of  Christ,  and 
other  sacred  relics. 

We  were  told  by  Mons.  Eliatissian,  an  Armenian  gentle- 
man, who  has  spent  many  months  in  examining  the  vici- 
nity of  the  mountain,  and  in  making  scientific  observa- 
tions on  its  glaciers,  that  the  Ossetes  occasionally  call 
Kazbek,  Beitlam  and  Tseristi  Tsoub  (*  Christ's  Mountain ') 
— names  which  seem  connected  with  these  traditions. 
On  the  top  of  Elazbek  is  said  to  stand  a  splendid  crystal 
castle,  and  near  it  a  temple,  in  the  middle  of  which  hovers 
a  golden  dove.  The  mountain  has  undoubtedly  been 
held  in  reverence  for  many  centuries  by  the  neigh- 
bouring population,  and  it  is  not  only  the  native  in- 
habitants who  have  associated  it  with  superstitious 
legends.     A  traveller  in  1811  breaks  forth,  on  reaching  the 


A   MONASTIC   LEGEND.  189 

station  of  Kazbek,  into  the  following  rhapsody  :  '  Alternate 
sensations  of  awe  and  rapture  quickly  succeed  each  other 
in  this  ancient  land  of  enchantment :  it  was  assuredly  in 
these  abodes  that  Medea  compounded  her  love-potions  and 
her  poisons ;  here  it  was  that  Prometheus  received  the 
reward  of  his  bold  impiety ;  this  is  the  very  birthplace 
of  magic;  and  it  is  from  these  lofty  peaks  that  the  im- 
mense roc  used  to  take  its  flight,  intercepting  the  rays  of 
the  sun/ 

Mons.  Khatissian  also  informed  us  of  the  existence  of 
human  habitations,  now  deserted,  at  a  height  of  11,000 
feet,  on  the  eastern  flanks  of  the  mountain.  These  consist 
of  cells,  half  hewn  from  the  solid  rock,  half  built  up  of  the 
rough  boulders  which  abound  in  the  neighbourhood, 
amongst  which  a  cross  of  white  porphyry  still  remains. 
Here,  according  to  tradition,  once  lived  a  band  of  monks. 
The  superior  was  renowned  for  his  austere  life  and  stem 
piety,  and  a  daily  miracle  proved  his  claim  to  the  title  of 
saint.  At  daybreak  a  ray  of  light  penetrated  through  an 
aperture  in  the  waU,  and  illumined  the  darkness  of  his  cell. 
In  the  centre  of  this  ray  the  holy  man  was  accustomed  to 
lay  the  volume  he  was  studying,  which  remained  suspended 
in  the  air  without  any  apparent  support.  The  high  claims 
of  their  superior  to  their  reverence  could  not,  however,  re- 
concile some  of  the  younger  monks  to  the  severe  discipline 
he  imposed  upon  them.  By  the  machinations  of  these 
wicked  men,  the  saint  was  exposed  to  a  temptation  similar 
to  that  of  St.  Anthony,  but  unhappily  with  a  different  result. 
The  suspension  of  the  miracle  followed ;  the  heavy  volume, 
when  laid  in  its  accustomed  place  on  the  sunbeam,  fell 
with  a  crash  to  the  ground.  The  Abbot,  overcome  by 
the  malice  of  his  enemies,  retired  to  a  cave  still  higher  on 
the  mountain,  to  pass  the  remainder  of  his  life  amidst 
perpetual  snows.  The  monks,  freed  from  all  restraint,  gave 


190  ASCEXT  OF  KAZBEK. 

themselyes  up  to  tlie  license  for  which  they  had' schemed, 
until  at  last  the  anger  of  Heayen  was  aroused  bj  their 
misdeeds.  A  fearfdl  storm  fell  on  the  mountain,  the  cells 
were  destroyed,  and  nothing  more  was  ever  seen  or  heard 
of  their  inmates.  So  firmly  is  this  story  still  believed,  and 
so  great  is  the  reyerence  felt  by  the  peasants  for  the  once 
holy  place,  that  Mons.  Ehatissian  had  the  greatest  diffi- 
cully  in  persuading  anyone  to  conduct  him  to  the  mined 
cells ;  and  his  guide,  when  induced  to  yenture,  fell  on  his 
knees  at  eyery  other  step,  imploring  Heayen  to  oyerlook 
their  presumption.  A  heayy  rain-storm  the  following 
eyening,  which  threatened  destruction  to  the  hay-haryest, 
was  attributed  by  the  villagers  to  the  Diyine  wrath  at 
Mons.  Ehatissian's  explorations,  and  he  was  recommended 
by  the  late  Prince  S^azbek  to  leaye  at  night,  if  he  wished 
to  escape  personal  yiolence. 

The  accuracy  of  the  aboye  legend  is,  I  fear,  rather 
impugned  by  the  fact  that  a  lady,  who  published  her 
'  Letters  from  the  Caucasus '  in  1811,  actually  saw  one 
of  the  last  of  these  recluses,  of  whom  she  does  not  seem 
to  have  formed  a  yery  favourable  opinion.  I  quote  her 
own  words : '  I  had  often  heard  of  hermits,  but  had  never 
seen  one.  Learning,  while  at  Kazbek,  that  I  could 
satisf/  my  curiosity,  I  went  to  visit,  in  a  cell  not  far 
from  that  place,  one  of  these  sloths,  who  are  such  vast 
pretenders  to  piety.  I  was  surprised  to  find  a  healthy 
young  man :  his  hermitage  is  hollowed  out  of  the  rock, 
where,  thanks  to  the  superstition  of  the  people,  who  look 
upon  him  as  a  saint,  he  lives  in  abundance.  Should  he 
ever  be  canonised,  I  shall  not  indulge  much  hope  from  his 
mediation ;  for  I  saw  nothing  in  this  recluse  but  a  cunning 
rogue,  and  that  sort  of  address  by  which  the  lazy  feed  on 
the  simplicity  of  others.* 

The  name  by  which  the  mountain  is  now  known,  and 


IXUNDATIONS.  19 

which  has  been  apparently  accepted  by  geographers,  to 
the  exclusion  of  several  more  or  less  unpronounceable 
native  titles,*  is,  like  Elbruz,  of  Russian  origin.  A 
certain  Prince  Kazbek,  or  Kasibeg,  who  lived  in  the 
village  of  St.  Stephen  (the  present  Kazbek),  was  one  of 
the  first  of  the  mountaineers  to  perceive  that  his  best 
policy  was  to  recognise  a  foM  accompli,  to  embrace  Chris- 
tianity, and  to  acquiesce  in  Bussian  supremacy.  He 
received  his  reward ;  the  conquerors  have  given  him  im- 
inortality,  by  conferring  his  name  upon  the  village  in  which 
he  lived,  and  upon  the  great  mountain  by  which  it  is 
overhung. 

Even  with  the  Russians — who,  as  a  race,  have  no  feeling 
for  mountains,  and  regard  them  more  as  barely  tolerable 
eccentricities  than  as  admirable  beauties  of  nature — Kaz- 
bek has,  during  the  last  twenty  years,  excited  a  good  deal 
of  attention.  The  creation  of  an  ice-barrier  across  the 
torrent  issuing  from  the  great  glacier  of  Devdorak,  on  the 
north-eastern  flank  of  the  mountain,  has  from  time  to 
tune  caused  calamities  wrongly  attributed  by  the  Russians 
to  avalanches.  On  our  arrival  in  the  Caucasian  provinces, 
the  first  thing  we  were  told  was,  *  Oh,  you  are  just  in 
time  to  see  the  great  avalanche  from  Kazbek.'  Some 
years  ago  the  Dariel  road  was  swept  away,  and  a  similar 
catastrophe  was  considered  probable  during  the  coming 
summer.  Everyone  in  Tiflis  was  talking  of  it,  but 
happily  it  never  came  off,  and  we  learnt  from  Mons. 
Khatissian  that  some,  at  least,  of  the  historical  ava- 
lanches are  apocryphal.  The  record  of  one  (in  1842)  is 
preserved  in  the  official  archives  at  Tiflis,  where  the 
reports  of  the  officers  stationed  at  the  Dariel  fortress,  and 
commissioned  by  the  then  Viceroy  to  ascertain  the  immi- 

*  Mquinvsri  is  the  best  known. 


192  ASCENT   OF   KAZBEK. 

nence  of  the  impending  danger,  still  exist.  Mons.  Kliatis- 
sian,  with  some  trouble,  discovered  the  officer  whose  reports 
were  fullest  and  most  intelligible.  He  asked  for  further 
details  as  to  the  nature  of  the  catastrophe.  The  Colonel 
was  at  first  confused  and  ambiguous,  but  soon,  with  an 
air  of  frankness,  exclaimed,  '  I  will  tell  you  the  real  statue 
of  the  case — I  was  never  near  the  mountain  at  all.'  *  But 
here  I  have  an  elaborate  description  of  the  state  of  the 
glaciers,  with  your  signature  ? '  *  That  is  very  possible. 
You  see,  I  received  orders  from  Tiflis  to  go  and  report 
on  the  state  of  the  mountain.  Why  should  I  peril  my 
life  to  no  purpose?  I  could  not  avert  the  danger,  so  I 
wrote,  and  said  the  mountain  was  much  as  usual.  Then 
I  got  second  instructions;  I  was  to  go  in  person  and 
send  a  full  detailed  report  of  the  exabt  nature  of  the 
danger  to  be  apprehended.  I  started;  I  climbed  into 
that  horrible  glen ;  I  saw  precipices  overhanging  my 
head — torrents  roaring  at  my  feet.  Suddenly  I  came  in 
view  of  a  whole  mountain  of  ice,  already  torn  into  ftag- 
ments  by  the  steepness  of  the  slope  to  which  it  clung. 
To  advance  was  certain  death.  I  reflected  on  my  wife 
and  children,  fled  back  to  the  road  as  quickly  as  possible, 
and  reported  that  the  expected  avalanche  had  fallen,  and 
that,  happily,  no  one  was  the  worse  for  it.'  ^Then,' 
asked  Mons.  K.,  *  the  celebrated  avalanche  of  1842  never 
existed  but  on  paper — in  fact,  is  your  creation  ?  '  ^  Ex- 
actly, Monsieur,'  was  the  reply. 

Preserved  in  the  same  office  is  a  scheme  for  preventing 
the  recurrence  of  the  danger,  which,  for  its  happy  audacity, 
deserves  mention.  An  engineer  proposed  to  build  a  wall 
in  front  of  the  glacier,  to  prevent  its  further  advance. 
That  inundations  issuing  from  the  glen  of  Devdorak  have 
from  time  to  time  seriously  injured  the  Dariel  road,  is 
undoubted;  but  the  notion  of  their  recurrence  at  fixed 


PREVIOUS  ATTEMPTS.  193 

intervals,  and  the  supposition  that  the  injury  was  caused 
by  avalanches,  are  equally  ridiculous.* 

Attempts  to  ascend  Kazbek  have  not  been  numerous. 
Klaproth  claims  to  liave  got  halfway  up,  but,  as  he  admits 
that  he  did  not  reach  the  snow-level,  the  halfway  did  not 
amount  to  much.  In  1811,  the  well-known  German  tra- 
veller Parrot  made  a  series  of  most  determined  attempts 
to  reach  the  summit,  by  the  same  route  we  adopted ;  but  he 
was  compelled  to  retreat  from  the  foot  of  the  icewall  by 
bad  weather,  and  the  fears  of  his  companions.  About 
1844,  Herr  Moritz  Wagner  ascended  *  to  the  lower  limits 
of  eternal  snow,'  to  use  his  own  words — a  very  moderate 
measure  of  success,  upon  which  some  German  and  English 
newspapers  lately  claimed  for  him  the  honours,  such  as 
they  are,  of  the  first  ascent.  Several  half-hearted  attempts 
to  climb  the  mountain  have  been  made  of  late  years  by 
Russian  officers,  but  with  very  little  success,  owing  to  the 

*  Mons.  E.  Favre,  of  Geneva/a  weU-known  geologist  who  visited  theDevdorak 
glacier  a  few  weeks  after  ourselves,  came  to  the  following  conclusion  as  to  the 
nature'of  the  catastrophe.  No  avalanche,  he  says,  could  without  the  aid  of 
water  traverse  the  space  between  the  end  of  the  glacier  and  the  Terek,  and 
he  accounts  for  the  disasters  which  have  taken  place  in  the  following  way. 
He  believes  the  Devdorak  glacier,  to  which  he  finds  a  parallel  in  the  Itofen 
Veniagt  glacier  in  the  (Etzthal  Alps,  to  be  subject  to  periods  of  sudden 
advance.  During  these  the  ice  finds  no  sufficient  space  to  spread  iteelf  out  in 
the  narrow  gorge  into  which  it  is  driven,  and  is  consequently  forced  by  the 
pressure  from  behind  into  so  compact  a  mass  that  the  ordinary  water-channels 
are  stopped,  and  the  whole  drainage  of  the  glacier  is  pent-up  beneath  its  surface. 
Sooner  or  later  the  accumulated  waters  burst  open  their  prison,  carrying  away 
with  them  the  lower  portion  of  the  glacier.  A  mingled  fiood  of  snow  and  ice, 
increased  by  earth  and  rocks  torn  from  the  hillsides  in  its  passage,  sweeps  down 
the  glen  of  Devdorak.  Issuing  into  the  main  valley  it  spreads  from  side  to 
side,  and  dams  the  Terek.  A  lake  is  formed,  and  increases  in  size  until  it  breaks 
through  its  barrier,  and  inundates  the  Dariel  gorge  and  the  lower  valley. 

Mons.  Favre  has  also  printed  a  paper,  entitled '  Les  Causes  des  Avalanches  du 
Glacier  du  Kasbek,  par  le  Colonel  Statkowski,  extrait  du  Journal  du  Ministere 
des  Voies  et  Communications,  1866,*  which  contains  an  explicit  statement  as  to 
the  most  recent  catastrophe.  The  Colonel  says :  *  The  last  avalanche  of  the 
Glacier  of  Devdorak  fell  in  1832.  In  1842  and  in  1855  similar  disasters  were 
expected,  but  did  not  take  place.' 

O 


i 


194  ASCENT   OF   KAZBEK. 

exaggerated  fears  of  their  native  guides,  and  their  own  lack 
of  proper  mountaineering  gear — such  as  rope,  ice-axes,  and 
spectacles.  Hence  we  found  in  the  Caucasus  a  wide- 
spread belief  in  the  inaccessibility  of  the  peak,  and  we 
were  regarded  at  Tiflis  with  a  mixture  of  amusement  and 
pity,  as  ^  the  Englishmen  who  were  going  to  try  and  get 
up  B[azbek,'  and  had  the  audacity  to  expect  to  succeed, 
where  Captains,  Colonels,  and  even  Generals  of  the  Im- 
perial Bussian  Service  had  failed. 

We  spent  a  pleasant  hour  on  our  lofty  perch,  and  then, 
by  a  *  rapid  act '  of  what  may  be  called  *  snowmanship,' 
rejoined  Paul  and  Alexis.  The  snow  being  in  excellent 
order,  we  sat  down,  one  behind  the  other,  at  the  foot  of 
the  rocks,  and  letting  go,  slid  with  great  velocity  to  the 
base  of  the  peak,  where  our  companions  were  waiting 
for  us.  They,  never  having  seen  such  a  performance 
before,  were  horror-struck  at  our  apparently  headlong 
descent,  and  could  scarcely  believe  their  eyes,  when  the 
confused  heap,  in  which  we  landed,  resolved  itself  into 
its  component  parts,  apparently  none  the  worse.  By 
2  P.M.  we  were  back  at  the  posthouse,  and  were  de- 
lighted to  find  that  the  Governor  of  Tiflis  had  arrived, 
accompanied  by  Colonel  Soubaloff,  the  Commandant  of 
Duschet.  They  had  come  thus  far  to  welcome  the  two 
Grand  Dukes,  who  were  about  to  pass  on  their  way  to 
Tiflis.  The  acquaintance  of  the  Governor  of  Tiflis  we  had 
already  had  the  pleasure  of  making,  and  both  he  and  the 
Commandant  entered  heartily  into  our  plans,  and  ren- 
dered us  all  the  aid  in  their  power  in  making  our  arrange- 
ments. 

The  most  experienced  mountaineers  of  the  village  were 
at  once  summoned — to  wit,  three  aged  men,  all  more  or 
less  lame  or  blind,  who  in  the  way  they  nodded  their  heads 
together,  and  by  their  occasional  outbursts  of  eloquence, 


A  SWORD-DANCE.  I9J 

reminded  iis  forcibly  of  the  old  men's  clioms  in  'Faust.'  We 
at  last  settled  with  them  to  take  four  men  as  porters,  at 
two-and-a-half  roubles  (seven  shillings  each)  a  day.  They 
were  to  follow  where  we  led,  and  to  pitch  our  little  tent 
where  we  directed.  I  must  do  them  the  justice  to  say  that 
they  carried  out  their  part  of  the  bargain  with  an  honesty 


and  good-humour  which  led  us  to  form  an  unluckily  pre- 
mature estimate  of  the  general  character  of  the  people 
with  whom  we  should  afterwards  have  to  deal. 

In  the  evening,  through  the  kindness  of  the  Command- 
ant of  Duschet,  we  had  an  opportunity  of  witnessing  a 
sword-dance,  performed  by  some  mountaineers,  habited  in 


196  ASCENT  OP  KAZBEK. 

complete  suits  of  chain-armour,  who  had  come  down  from 
a  neighbouring  village  to  greet  the  Grand  Dukes.  They 
carried  small  round  shields,  like  those  of  the  Kurds,  which 
they  used  very  cleverly  to  parry  the  blows  of  their  assail- 
ants; the  principal  feat  seemed  to  be  for  one  man  to 
defend  himself  against  the  assault  of  two  enemies. 

m 

June  SOth. — Having  marshalled  our  porters,  who  had  a 
horse  to  help  in  carrying  the  luggage  as  far  as  possible, 
we  started  on  our  ascent  of  Kazbek,  receiving  a  parting 
benediction  from  the  two  officials,  who  came  out  into  the 
balcony  to  see  us  off.  Instead  of  climbing  to  the  old 
church,  we  took  a  path  to  the  right,  which  led  us  into  the 
glen  opposite  the*  station,  and  we  then  passed,  over  rough 
ground  beside  the  torrent,  to  the  point  where  the  streams, 
coming  respectively  from  the  Ortzviri  glacier,  and  from  the 
smaller  ice-stream  which  descends  from  the  east  face  of  the 
mountain,  unite.  A  narrow  track  mounted,  by  zigzags,  the 
bluff  which  projects  between  the  two  branches  of  the  glen. 
A  long  and  steep  ascent,  which  was  beguiled  by  the  variety 
and  beauty  of  the  flowers,  led  up  to  a  gently-sloping  mea- 
dow, such  as  in  the  Alps  would  have  been  occupied  by  a 
group  of  chalets,  a  little  beyond  which  the  horse  was  left, 
although  he  might  have  gone  farther  without  difficulty. 
We  were  now  close  to  the  spout  of  the  Ortzviri  glacier, 
which,  as  before  mentioned,  sweeps  round  the  southern  flank 
of  Kazbek,  and,  despite  many  remonstrances  from  the 
porters,  already  getting  beyond  their  beat,  we  climbed  on, 
up  the  steep  slopes  on  its  left  bank,  until  at  2.30  p.m. — at  a 
height  of  11,000  feet — we  found  a  most  suitable  spot  for  a 
bivouac.  It  was  a  mossy  plot,  in  a  hollow  protected  on 
one  side  by  the  moraine,  on  the  other  by  the  great  southern 
spur  of  Kazbek.  Here  we  pitched  our  tent,  and  under 
Fran9ois'  superintendence  established  our  cuisine,  which 
turned  out  some  excellent  soup,  broiled  ham,  and  a  brew 


AN  EARLY   START.  197 

of  mulled  wine.  We  shoiild  have  been  happy  enough,  but 
for  the  very  doubtftd  appearance  of  the  weather.  Soon 
after  our  arrival  there  was  a  sharp  shower  of  rain,  followed 
by  hail,  succeeded  in  its  turn  by  a  violent  wind,  which,  when 
we  retired  for  the  night,  about  7  o'clock,  was  roaring  in  a 
way  suggestive  of  anything  rather  than  an  ascent  of 
Kazbek  next  morning. 

July  lit. — The  cold  in  the  night  was  not  excessive,  and 
we  slept  in  a  broken  sort  of  way  till  1  a.m.,  when  we 
rose,  and  began  to  prepare  for  a  start ;  but  it  was  not  until 
2.45,  after  more  than  the  usual  petty  delays,  that  we — ^that 
is  Moore,  Tucker,  and  I,  vrith  Pran9ois — were  fisiirly  oflf  on 
our  adventure.  Before  leaving  the  tent  we  had  by  pre- 
arrangement  fired  off  a  pistol,  to  give  notice  to  the 
porters,  who  had  retired  to  lairs  at  some  little  distance, 
and  out  of  sight;  but  no  one  answered,  and  we  heard 
nothing  of  them  until  we  were  just  starting,  when  there 
was  a  distant  howl,'  to  which  we  in  our  turn  made  no 
response,  the  fact'being  that  we  were  not  anxious  for  the 
company  of  bur  friends,  who  in  any  serious  difficulty 
would  probably  have  been  more  of  an  hindrance  than  help. 
We  therefore  started  alone,  carrying  only  our  rope,  and 
sufficient  provisions  for  the  day. 

Our  camp  must  have  been  very  close  to  the  deserted 
cells,  afterwards  described  to  us  by  Mons.  Elhatissian,  and 
it  ia  qtiite  possible  that  the  porters,  who,  we  remarked 
at  the  time,  went  off  with  the  air  of  knowing  what  they 
were  about,  and  did  not  waste  time  in  looking  for  .holes 
among  the  rocks  close  at  hand^.  may  have  sought  shelter 
in  them.  Such  conduct  would  not  agree  with  the  super- 
stitious fears  the  natives  are  said  to  feel  of  the  spot,  but 
our  men  may  have  thought  that,"  having  gone  so  far 
already,  it  did  not  much  matter  what  they  did  further. 
The  morning  was  calm  and  lovely,  and  we  fully  enjoyed 


198  ASCENT   OF   KAZBEK. 

the  moonliglit  view  of  the  great  glacier  and  ice-iuaiied 
peaks  around,  and  the  glorious  sunrise-flush  which  soon 
succeeded  it.  We  mounted  along  gentle  siiow-slopos 
between  the  glacier  and  the  mass  of  Kazbek,  and  gradually 
rounded  the  base  of  the  eastern  peak  of  the  mountain. 
Arrived  at  some  rocks,  beyond  which  the  tributary  glacier 
from  between  the  two  summits  joined  the  main  stream, 
we  halted  to  put  on  the  rope,  and  Moore  left  his  new 
Cardigan  waistcoat  imder  a  rock,  intending  to  pick  it  up 
on  our  return.     As  will  be  seen  we  never  did  return. 

We  nowbegan  to  climb  the  face  of  the  moxmtain — at  first 
by  rocks,  afterwards  by  broken  slopes  of  neve — ^and  gained 
height  rapidly,  bearing  somewhat  towards  the  base  of  the 
western  summit.     At  6.30  a.m.  we  were  at  an  altitude  of 
14,800  feet,  only  1,800  feet  below  the  top.     At  this  time 
the  view  was  magnificent  and  perfectly  clear ;  some  fine 
snowy  peaks,  which  we  afterwards  knew  better  as  the  Adai 
Khokh  group,  were  conspicuous  to  the  west ;  to  the  south 
the  eye  already  ranged  over  the  main  chain  of  the  Caucasus, 
and  across  the  valley  of  the  Kur,  to  the  hills  beyond ;  while 
behind  the    rugged  ridges  which   rise   on  the   east   of 
the  Terek  valley,   the  peaks  of  Daghestan  raised  their 
snowy  heads.      From  this  point  our  difficulties  began ; 
the  crevasses   became    lai^e,    and   had    to  be  dodged. 
Fran9ois  resigned  the  lead  to  Tucker  for  forty  minutes, 
during  which  the  favouring  snow-slope  was  exchanged  for 
blue  ice,  covered  with  a  treacherous  four  inches  of  loose 
snow.     The  work  of  cutting  steps  became  laborious,  and 
Fran9ois  presently  resumed  the  lead.     An  incident  soon 
occurred  which  might  have  been  serious.    A  bergschrund, 
a  huge  icicle-fringed  crack  in  the  ice,  three  to  four  feet 
wide,  of  which  the  upper  lip  was  about  five  feet  above 
the  under,   barred  our  progress.     Fran9ois  was   first,  I 
followed.  Tucker  was  behind  me,  and  Moore  last.    We 


A    CRITICAL   MOMENT.  199 

had  all  passed  the  obstacle  without  serious  difficulty,  when 
the  rope,  which  in  the  passage  had  got  somewhat  slack, 
was  discovered  to  have  hitched  itself  round  one  of  the  big 
icicles  in  the  crack.  Tucker,  having,  from  the  position  in 
which  he  was  standing,  in  vain  tried  to  unhitch  it,  began 
to  cut  steps  downwards  to  the  upper  lip  of  the  crevasse. 
At  no  time  is  it  an  easy  thing  to  cut  steps  in  ice  beneath 
you ;  try  to  do  it  in  a  hurry,  and  what  happened  in  this 
ca«e  is  almost  sure  to  occur.  The  step-cutter  overbalanced 
himself,  his  feet  slipped  out  of  the  shallow  footholds,  and 
he  shot  at  once  over  the  chasm ;  of  course  the  rope  im- 
mediately tightened  with  a  severe  jerk  on  Moore  and  my- 
self, who,  though  very  insecurely  placed,  fortunately  were 
able  to  resist  the  strain.  Tucker  had  fallen,  spreadeagle- 
fashion,  with  his  head  down  the  slope,  and  we  had  to  hold 
for  many  seconds  before  he  could  work  himself  round  and 
regain  his  footing. 

The  escape  was  a  very  narrow  one,  and  we  had  reason 
to  be  thankful  that  neither  the  rope  nor  our  axes 
had  failed  us  at  so  critical  a  moment.  So  startling 
an  occurrence  naturally  shook  our  nerves  somewhat, 
but  little  was  said,  and  our  order  being  re-established, 
we  attacked  the  exceedingly  steep  ice-slope,  which  sepa- 
luted  us  from  the  gap  between  the  two  summits.  For 
the  next  four  hours  there  was  scarcely  one  easy  step. 
The  ice,  when  not  bare,  was  thinly  coated  with  snow.  A 
long  steep  ice-slope  is  bad  enough  in  the  first  state,  as 
mountain-climbers  know,  but  it  is  infinitely  worse  in  the 
second.  In  bare  ice  a  secure  step  may  be  cut ;  through 
loose  incoherent  snow  it  cannot.  Fran9ois  went  through 
the  form  of  cutting,  but  it  was  of  little  use  to  the  two 
front  men,  and  none  at  all  to  those  in  the  rear.  In  many 
places  we  found  the  safest  plan  was  to  crawl  up  on  our 
hands  and  knees,  clinging  with  feet  and  ice-axes  to  the 


200  ASCENT   OF   KAZBEK. 

slippery  staircase.  It  has  always  remained  a  mystery 
to  us  how  we  got  from  step  to  st^p  without  a  slip.  The 
difficulties  of  the  feat  were  increased  by  a  bitter  wind, 
which  swept  across  the  slope  in  fitful  blasts  of  intense 
fury,  driving  the  snow  in  blinding  showers  into  our  faces 
as  we  crouched  down  for  shelter,  and  numbing  our 
hands  to  such  a  degree  that  we  could  scarcely  retain  hold 
of  our  axes. 

Time  passes  rapidly  in  such  circumstances,  and  it  was 
not  until  11  A.H.,  when  Fran9ois  was  again  exhausted 
by  the  labour  of  leading,  that  we  gained  the  saddle 
between  the  two  summits.  There  was  no  doubt  now  that 
the  eastern  peak  was  the  highest ;  at  this  we  were  well 
pleased,  as,  in  such  a  wind  as  was  raging,  the  passage  of  the 
exceedingly  narrow  ridge  leading  to  the  western  summit 
would  have  been  no  pleasant  task.  Snatching  a  morsel 
of  food,  we  left  Pran9ois  to  recover  himself,  and  started 
by  ourselves,  Tucker  leading.  The  final  climb  was  not 
difficult ;  a  broad  bank  of  hard  snow  led  to  some  rocks ; 
above  lay  more  snow,  succeeded  by  a  second  and  larger 
patch  of  rocks  (where  Pran9ois  rejoined  us),  which  in  their 
turn  merged  in  the  final  snow-cupola  of  the  mountain.  A 
few  steps  brought  us  to  the  edge  of  the  southern  cUffe,  along 
which  we  mounted.  The  snow-ridge  ceased  to  ascend, 
and  then  fell  away  before  us.  It  was  just  midday  when  we 
saw  bwieath  us  the  valley  of  the  Terek,  and  knew  that  the 
highest  point  of  Kazbek  was  under  our  feet.  The  cold, 
owing  to  the  high  wind,  would  not  allow  us  to  stop  on  the 
actual  crest ;  but  we  sat  down  half  a  dozen  feet  below  it, 
and  tried  to  take  in  as  much  as  possible  of  the  vast  pano- 
rama before  us. 

Clouds  had  by  this  time  risen  in  the  valleys,  and  covered 
the  great  northern  plain,  but  the  mountain-peaks  were  for 
the  most  part  clear.   The  apparent  grandeur  of  the  ranges 


A   COUNCIL   OP   WAR.  201 

to  the  east  was  a  surprise.  Group  beyond  group  of  snowy 
peaks  stretched  away  to  the  far-off  Basardjusi  (14,722 
feet),  the  monarch  of  the  Eastern  Caucasus.  Nearer,  and 
therefore  more  conspicuous,  was  the  fine  head  of  Schebulos 
(14,781  feet).  On  the  western  horizon  we  eagerly  sought 
Elbruz,  but  it  was  not  to  be  found ;  whether  veiled  by 
clouds,  or  hidden  behind  the  Koschtantau  group,  we  could 
not  say.  We  fiincied  afterwards  that  we  recognised 
Kazbek  from  Elbruz :  of  course  in  this  case  the  converse 
is  possible.  Except  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  Eazbek, 
there  seemed  to  be  but  few  and  small  glaciers  nearer  than 
the  Adai  Khokh  group,  on  the  further  side  of  the  Ardon 
valley. 

After  a  stay  of  about  ten  minutes,  we  quitted  the  sum- 
mit, where  it  was  impossible  to  leave  any  trace  of  our  visit. 
We  could  not  spare  an  ice-axe,  to  fix  upon  the  snow-dome, 
and  the  rocks  were  too  big  to  use  for  building  a  stone 
man.  In  a  quarter  of  an  hour  we  regained  the  gap,  and 
then  held  a  council.  From  the  commencement  of  our 
difficulties  our  minds  had  been  troubled  about  how  we 
should  get  down,  though,  fortunately  for  our  success,  they 
had  been  more  pressingly  occupied  with  the  business  of 
the  ascent.  Now,  however,  the  question  had  to  be  fairly 
faced  —  how  were  we  to  descend  the  ice-slope  we  had 
climbed  with  so  much  difficulty  ?  With  a  strong  party — 
that  is,  a  party  with  a  due  proportion  of  guides,  and  -sVhen 
good  steps  can  be  cut — ^there  is  no  more  delicate  mountain- 
eering operation  than  the  descent  of  a  really  steep  ice- 
slope.  Our  party  was  not  a  strong  one,  and  on  this  pai-ti- 
cular  slope  it  was  practically  impossible  to  cut  steps  at  all. 
A  bad  slip  would  result  in  the  roll  of  the  whole  party  for 
at  least  2,000  feet,  unless  cut  short  by  one  of  the  numerous 
crevasses  on  the  lower  part  of  the  mountain.  The  exact 
manner  of  its  termination  would,  however,  probably  be  a 
matter  of  indifference  when  that  termination  came. 


202  ASCENT   OF   KAZBEK. 

We  were  unanimously  of  opinion  that  an  attempt  to 
return  by  our  morning's  route  would  end  in  disaster,  and 
that  a  way  must  be  sought  in  another  direction.     This 
could  only  be  on  the  northern  flank  of  the  mountain,  and  it 
was  satisfactory  to  see  that,  for  a  long  distance  on  that 
side,  there  was  no  serious  difficulty.   A  steep  slope  of  snow 
(not  ice)  fell  away  from  our  feet  to  a  great  n^ve-plateau, 
which  we  knew  must  pour  down  glaciers  into  the  glens 
which  open  into  the  Terek  valley  below  the  Kazbek  station. 
A  very  few  minutes'  consideration  determined  us  to  follow 
this   line,  abandoning  for  the  time   our  camp  and  the 
porters  on  the  south  side  of  the  mountain.     The  first  hun- 
dred feet  of  descent  down  the  hard  snow-bank  were  steep 
enough ;  I  was  ahead,  and  neglected  to  cut  good  steps,  an 
error  which  resulted  in  Moore's  barometer  getting  a  jolt 
which  upset  it  for  several  hours.    Happily,  the  little  thing 
recovered  during  the  night,  and  told  us  our  approximate 
heights  for  many  a  day  afterwards.     Very  soon  the  slope 
became  gentle  enough  to  allow  us  to  dispense  with  axe- 
work,  and  we  trudged  straight  and  steadily  downwards, 
until  we  were  almost  on  the  level  of  the  extensive  snow- 
fields  upon  which  we  had  looked  from  above.     Here  we 
again  halted,  to  consider  our  further  course.     We  were  on 
an  unknown  snow-plain,  at  a  height  of  14,000  feet  above 
the  sea,  and  it  was  most  undesirable  to  hazard  our  chance 
of  reaching   terra  cognita  ere  nightfall  by  any  rash   or 
hasty  move.     One  plan  suggested  was  to  turn  to  the  left, 
and  cross  a  pass  we  had  good  reason  to  believe  connected 
the  plateau  we  were  on  with  the  neve  of  the  glacier  by  which 
we  had  ascended.     This  course,  if  successfully  carried 
out,  would  have  brought  us  back  to  our  tent  and  baggage, 
but  its  probable  length  was  a  fatal  objection.     Eventually 
we  determined  to  keep  nearly  due  north,  across  the  snow- 
field,  towards  a  ridge  which  divides  two  glaciers  flowing 
into  different  branches  of  the  glen. of  Devdoi-ak.   We  des- 


THE   DESCEiVT.  203 

ceudcd,  for  some  distance  under  the  rocks,  along  the  left 
bank  of  the  most  southerly  of  the  two  glaciers,  until  the  ice 
became  so  steep  and  broken  that  further  prcjgress  promised 
to  be  difficult ;  we  therefore  halted,  while  Fran9ois  climbed 
up  again  to  the  ridge,  and  made  a  reconnaissance  on  its 
northern  side. 

After  some  delay,  a  shout  from  above  called  on  us  to 
follow,  and  we  rejoined  Pran9ois,  after  a  sharp  scramble, 
at  the  base  of  a  very  remarkable  tower  of  rock  which 
crowns  the  ridge,  and  is  visible  even  from  the  Dariel  road. 
It  will  be  useful  as  a  finger-post  to  future  climbers. 

The  view  of  Kazbek  from  here  is  superb;  its  whole 
north-eastern  side  is  a  sheet  of  snow  and  ice,  broken  by  the 
steepness  of  the  slope  into  magnificent  towers,  and  seamed 
by  deep-blue  chasms.  We  were  glad  to  find  that  there 
was  a  reasonable  prospect  of  descending  from  our  eyrie  to 
the  lower  world  without  too  much  difficulty.  The  crest 
of  the  ridge  between  the  two  glaciers  fell  rapidly  before 
us,  and  offered  for  some  way  an  easy  route.  We  followed 
it — sometimes  crossing  a  snowy  plain,  sometimes  hurrying 
down  rocky  banks — until  we  saw  beneath  us,  on  our  left,  a 
series  of  long  snow-slopes  leading  directly  to  the  foot  of 
the  northern  glacier.  Down  these  we  glissaded  merrily, 
and  at  5.30  halted  on  the  rocks  below  the  end  of  the  glacier, 
which  was  of  considerable  size,  and  backed  by  two  lofty 
summits.  The  view  of  the  lower  part  of  the  glen  was  shut 
out  by  a  rocky  barrier,  and  before  we  reached  its  brow, 
mists,  which  we  had  previously  observed  collecting  in  the 
hollow,  swept  round  us,  and  for  the  next  two  hours  we 
were  enveloped  in  a  dense  fog.  A  long  snow-filled  gully 
brought  us  to  the  bottom  of  the  gorge,  of  which  we  could 
see  but  little,  owing  to  the  unfortunate  state  of  the 
atmosphere.  It  must  be  of  the  most  savage  description. 
The  torrent  was  buried  under  the  avalanclics  of  many 


204  ASCEXT   OF   KAZBEK. 

^vinters  ;  huge  walls  of  crag  loomed  through  the  mist,  and 
pressed  us  so  closely  on  either  side,  that,  but  for  the  path 
aflforded  by  the  avalanche  snows,  we  should  have  been 
puzzled  to  find  a  means  of  exit.  This  aid  at  last  failed 
us,  the  stream  burst  itself  free,  and  tumbled  into  a  gorge. 
After  a  laborious  scramble  for  some  distance  over  huge 
boulders,  we  found  it  impossible  to  follow  it  any  farther, 
and  therefore  made  a  sharp  but  short  ascent  to  the  right, 
when  Fran9ois  happily  hit  on  a  &int  track,  which  led  us 
by  steep  zigzags  into  the  same  glen  again,  at  a  lower 
point.  After  more  than  once  missing  and  re-finding  the 
path,  we  rounded  an  angle  of  the  valley,  and,  the  mists 
having  lifted  somewhat,  saw  that  we  were  close  to  the 
junction  of  our  torrent  with  that  from  the  main  Devdorak 
glacier.  On  the  grassy  brow  between  the  two  streams 
cows  and  goats  were  grazing,  and  as  it  was  now  7.46  p.m., 
we  debated  on  the  propriety  of  stopping  here  for  the 
night.  The  question  was  decided  by  the  information  we 
got  from  the  herdsmen,  an  old  man  and  two  boys,  who 
proved  to  be  very  decent  fellows.  All  communication, 
except  by  pantomime,  was  of  course  impossible;  but 
necessity  sharpens  the  vrits,  and  we  gathered  fi^m  them, 
without  much  difficulty,  that  the  Devdorak  torrent  was 
bridgeless  and  big,  and  that  they  had  fresh  milk,  and 
would  allow  us  to  share  their  shelter.  It  was  only  a 
hollow  under  a  partially  overhanging  cliff  surrounded  by 
a  low  wall,  which  was  but  a  jwor  protection  against  the 
attacks  of  inquisitive  sheep  and  goats,  who  invaded  us 
several  times  during  the  night,  and  succeeded  in  carrying 
off  and  eating  some  gloves  and  gaiters.  Despite  these 
inroads,  and  a  Scotch  mist,  which  fell  pretty  heavily  from 
time  to  time,  we  managed,  vrith  stones  for  pillows  and  our 
mackintoshes  spread  over  us,  to  snatch  a  good  deal  of 
sleep. 


RETURN   TO   THE   STATION.  205 

July  2nd. — As  we  had  not  even  taken  off  our  boots,  the 
preparations  for  our  start  in  the  morning  did  not  occupy 
long.  Our  aged  host  accompanied  us  to  the  Devdorak  tor- 
rent, which  at  this  time  of  day,  before  the  heat  of  the  sun 
had  melted  the  upper  snows,  could  be  waded  without  serious 
dijfficulty;  and  one  of  the  boys  volunteered  to  accompany  us 
to  the  post-station,  and  relieve  Fran9ois  of  some  of  our 
traps.  A  well-marked  path  led  us  over  grassy  knolls  con- 
siderably above  and  to  the  right  of  the  united  torrents.  On 
a  brow  near  stands,  we  were  afterwards  told,  a  pile  of  stones 
resembling  in  shape  an  altar,  and  covered  with  the  horns 
of  chamois  and  bouquetin.  This  is  a  spot  held  sacred  by 
the  pagan  inhabitants  of  the  neighbouring  village  of 
Goslet,  and  once  a  year  they  all  repair  hither,  sing  strange 
chants,  and  make  their  offerings  to  the  genius  lod.  His 
name,  according  to  our  informant,  is  Daba,  and  that  of  the 
tribe  who  worship  him  is  Kists.  Before  very  long  the  defile 
of  the  Dariel  opened  beneath  us,  and  a  short  descent 
brought  us  to  the  Terek.  We  kept  for  half-a-mile  on  the 
lefb  bank,  along  a  meadow  covered  vdth  old  tombstones, 
and  then  crossed  by  the  bridge  close  to  the  stone  hovels  of 
Goslet,  situated  in  a  most  savage  nook  at  the  mouth  of  a 
ravine.  We  had  still  a  long  uphill  pull  of  eight  versts  (5^ 
miles)  to  the  village  of  Kazbek ;  but  towards  the  end  we 
were  able  to  cut  short  the  zigzags  of  the  road,  and  about 
9  A.M.  aroused,  vrith  our  best  *  jodels,'  the  people  of  the  post- 
station.  Our  arrivul  did  not  at  first  create  much  excite- 
ment ;  everyone  seemed  to  take  it  as  a  matter  of  course  that 
we  had  not  been  to  the  top  of  the  mountain,  but  equally  as  a 
matter  of  course  that  we  should  say  we  had.  The  first  thing 
to  be  done  was  to  rout  up  Paul,  who,  still  unable  to  shake  off 
his  fever,  was  in  a  very  stupid  and  gloomy  mood,  expecting 
death  hourly.  Through  him^we  sent  up  a  messenger  to 
look   for  our  porters,  whom  we  had   left  encamped,  at 


•206  ASCENT   OP   KAZBEK. 

a  height  of  11,000  feet,  the  previous  morning.  The  com- 
mission was  promptly  executed,  and  in  the  course  of  tlie 
evening  the  porters  returned,  bringing  in  safety  all  our 
belongings.  Even  a  pair  of  spectacles,  mislaid  in  the  hurry 
of  a  start  in  the  dark,  had  been  picked  up,  and  were  now 
restored  to  their  owner.  The  men,  who  naturally  had  sup- 
posed us  lost,  and  felt  uneasy  as  to  what  the  authorities 
would  say  to  their  having  allowed  us  to  go  on  alone,  were 
overjoyed  to  see  us  again,  and  now  simultaneously  talked, 
kissed,  and  hugged  us  all,  including  Franfois.  The  excite- 
ment among  the  villagers  grew  intense ;  the  porters  told 
them  that  we  had  disappeared  up  the  mountain,  and  that 
our  tracks  were  visible  to  a  great  height  on  the  southern 
face ;  the  shepherd-boy,  who  had  arrived  with  us,  was  a 
witness  to  our  mysterious  appearance  on  the  other  side  the 
same  evening.  The  two  facts  showed  that  we  must  have 
crossed  the  mountain  very  near  the  top,  and  been,  at  any 
rate,  thousands  of  feet  liigher  than  those  before  us,  and 
we  suddenly  found  ourselves  installed  as  heroes,  instead  of 
humbugs,  in  the  public  opinion  of  Kazbek  village.  Two  of 
the  porters  even  thought  it  worth  while  to  allege  that, 
searching  for  us  on  the  second  day,  they  had  followed  in  our 
footsteps  to  the  top;  but  this  bold  fiction  was  only  intended 
to  raise  their  reputation  at  home,  and  they  did  not  press  it 
on  our  acceptance,  or  make  it  the  ground  of  any  money- 
claim. 

The  old  men's  chorus,  by  whose  help  our  first  arrange- 
ments were  made,  came  in  during  our  supper,  when 
more  kissing  and  hugging  had  to  be  endured.  The  chief  of 
the  party  was  very  excited  and  enthusiastic  in  his  con- 
gratulations, and  dilated  at  length  on  the  Generals  and 
Colonels,  who,  with  companies  of  Cossacks  to  aid  them,  had 
desired  to  do  what  we  had  done,  and  had  failed.  We  tried 
to  explain  to  him  the  use  of  the  rope  and  the  ice-axe,  and  to 


PUBLIC   OPINIOX.  207 

show  that  such  aids  were  much  more  useful  ou  a  snow- 
mountain  than  any  number  of  Cossacks.  The  Grand  Dukes 
had  passed  during  our  absence,  and  had  carried  away 
the  ofl&cials  with  them ;  we  had  promised  to  let  them 
know  how  we  fared,  and  accordingly  wrote  a  short  account 
of  the  *  happy  despatch '  of  Kazbek,  which  we  sent  to  the 
Commandant  of  Duschet,  leaving  it  to  his  discretion  to 
publish  it  in  the  KafhaZy  the  official  journal  of  Tiflis. 

In  that  publication  it  finally  appeared,  and  contributed 
in  no  slight  degree  to  the  reputation  of  modern  Mun- 
chausens,  which  before  leaving  the  country  we  had  suc- 
ceeded in  establishing. 


208  THE   TEREK   VALLEY. 


CHAPTER  VIIL 

THE  VALLEYS  OF  THE  TEEEK,  AEDON,  AND  EION. 

A  Geographical  DisqniBition — ^The  Upper  Terek— Savage  Scenery — Fero- 
cioufl  Dogs — Abano — A  Dull  Walk— Hard  Bargaining — An  Unruly  Train 
— A  Pass — Zacca,  on  the  Ardon — A  Warm  Skirmish  and  a  Barren  Victory 
— ^An  Unexpected  Climb — ^The  Lower  Valley-^A  Russian  Road — Teeb — 
The  Ossetes — ^The  Mamisson  Pass — Adai  Khokh — A  Shift  in  the  Scenery  — 
— G-urschari — The  Boy-Prince — An  Idle  Day — View  from  the  Rhododen- 
dron Slope — Glola — ^The  Pine-Forests  of  the  Rion — Chiora. 

July  3rd. — It  was  less  than  a  week  since  we  had  left 
Tiflis,  and  already  the  first  piece  in  oar  programme  was 
accomplished,  and  the  most  formidable  of  the  two  great 
peaks  we  had  pledged  ourselves  to  attack  successfully 
disposed  of.  We  had  now  to  turn  our  thoughts  to  the  less 
imposing,  but  really  far  more  difficult,  task  of  making  our 
way  along  the  foot  of  the  main  chain  of  the  Caucasus, 
from  Kazbek  to  Elbruz,  a  distance,  as  the  crow  flies,  of 
120  miles.  Before  leaving  England  we  had  studied 
German  maps,  which,  although  shown,  by  better  acquain- 
tance with  the  country,  to  be  often  inaccurate,  yet  gave  a 
sufficiently  correct  idea  of  the  disposition  of  the  upper 
valleys,  on  either  side  of  the  watershed,  to  enable  us  to 
form  a  plan  for  our  proposed  *  high-level  route.'  Since 
landing  at  Poti,  we  had  learnt  that  the  Mamisson,  one  of 
the  passes  we  intended  to  cross,  was  well  known  to,  and 
occasionally  used  by,  the  Russians,  as  a  route  between 
Vladikafkas  and  Kutais.  Beyond  this  we  could  gain  from 
the  officials  little  information,  and  the  plan  of  the  journey 


PLAN   OP    OPERATIONS.  209 

we  had  worked  out  was  scouted  by  them  as  impracticable. 
A  volume  given  me  by  Herr  Eadde,  containing  the  account 
of  his  explorations  in  the  higher  valle3'S  of  Mingrelia, 
showed  us  that  he  had  traversed,  at  different  times,  all  the 
country  west  of  the  Mamisson,  to  a  point  south  of  Elbruz, 
with  the  exception  of  one  short  link,  between  the  valleys 
of  the  Rion  and  Zenes-Squali.  It  is  one  thing  to 
make  excursions  from  a  base  to  which  you  can  return  for 
supplies,  and  where  you  can  leave  much  of  your  baggage, 
and  another  to  push  on  firom  point  to  point,  carrying 
everything  with  you,  and  harassed  by  the  constant 
difficulty  of  engaging  fresh  porters.  We  saw  no  reason, 
however,  to  give  up  our  original  plan,  despite  the  small 
encouragement  it  had  received  from  others,  and  accord- 
ingly were  ready  on  the  morning  after  our  return,  from 
the  ascent  of  Kazbek,  to  drive  back  to  Kobi,  where  we  pur- 
posed to  bid  farewell  to  post-roads  and  such  civilization 
as  they  carry  with  them,  and  to  adventure  ourselves 
among  the  primitive  paths,  and  native  inhabitants  of  the 
mountains. 

Before  I  enter  upon  the  account  of  our  journey,  and  its 
various  adventures,  I  must  ask  my  readers  to  open  the 
map,  and  to  look  at  the  disposition  of  the  ridges  and 
valleys  amongst  which  we  are  about  to  wander  together. 
It  will  be  seen  that  the  watershed  of  the  Western  Cauca- 
sus, from  a  point  south  of  Elbruz  to  the  Adai  Khokh 
group,  on  the  west  of  the  Ardon  vaUey,  is  an  uninterrupted 
and  tolerably  straight  ridge,  which  nowhere  sinks  below 
10,000  feet,  and  is  traversed  only  by  glacier-passes,  some  of 
them  practicable  indeed  to  Caucasian  horses,  but  even 
those  equal  to  the  well-known  Theodule  in  the  extent  of 
snow  and  ice  to  be  crossed.  This  central  mass,  according 
to  the  testimony  of  recent  geologists,  confirmed  in  most 
parts  by  our  own  unskilled  observation  is  mainly  composed 

p 


2;o  THE  TERCK   VALLEY. 

of  ^du\U%  On  either  side,  but  more  especially  on  the  south, 
the  up[jer  valleys  are  troughs  running  parallel  to  the 
central  chain,  and  thereby  aiding  the  traveller  who  wishes 
to  explore  it.  These  upper  basins  are  enclosed  between 
the  main  chain  and  the  lower  but  very  considerable  lime- 
stone ridges,  which  guard  both  its  flanks.  The  rivers 
rising  in  the  glaciers  of  the  central  mass  are  consequently 
compelled  to  make  their  way  to  the  low  coimtry  by  deep 
gorges  cut  through  the  lateral  ranges.  In  this  part  of  the 
chain,  that  is  from  Suanetia  on  the  west,  to  the  eastern 
source  of  the  Bion,  the  relations  of  the  watershed  and 
the  two  lateral  ridges,  though,  sometimes  interrupted  or 
rendered  indistinct  (as  by  the  sources  of  the  Zenes-Squali, 
on  the  south,  or  by  the  great  promontory  of  Dych-Tau  on  the 
north),  are  on'  the  whole  easily  traceable.  The  next  section 
eastwards  presents  at  first  sight,  on  the  map,  a  curiously 
changed  aspect ;  the  watershed  having  for  so  large  a  space 
run  from  north-west  to  south-east,  bends  suddenly  due 
south,  and  sinks  to  the  comparatively  low  gap  of  the 
Mamisson  Pass.  After  a  few  miles  it  resumes  its  former 
direction,  but  entirely  fails  to  recover  its  former  grandeur, 
and  although  the  peaks  rise  frequently  to  heights  of  11,000 
and  12,000  feet,  they  support  but  few  and  small  glaciers, 
while  the  passes  between  them  vary  from  7,500  feet,  the 
height  of  the  Krestowaja  Gora,  to  9,000  feet.  North  of  this 
insignificant  watershed,  we  find  a  line  of  summits  averag- 
ing at  least  14,000  feet,  and  terminating  in  the  noble 
outwork  of  Kazbek,  16,540  feet.  A  second  glance  at  the 
map  shows  that  these  grand  peaks  are  in  an  exact  line 
with  the  glacier-crowned  chain  which  forms  the  watershed 
further  west,  and  that  the  ridge  which  now  divides  the 
basins  of  the  Kur  and  the  Terek  is,  in  fact,  the  con- 
tinuation of  the  southern  lateral  range.  I  have  only 
further  to  point  out  that  the  head- waters  of  the  Terek  and 


A   FRESH   START,  211 

the  Ardon  are  divided  by  a  low  ridge,  which  couuects  the 
Kazbek  group  with  the  watershed.  If  thus  much  of  the 
geography  of  the  Western  Caucasus  has  been  made  clear, 
my  readers  will  be  as  well  able  to  see,  as  we  were  when 
we  left  Kobi,  the  obvious  line  of  march  for  a  party  who 
wished  to  follow  as  closely  as  possible  the  foot  of  the 
main  chain,  where  the  finest  scenery  might  be  expected  to 
be  found.  Our  plan  was  to  ascend  the  Terek  to  its  source, 
cross  to  the  Ardon,  descend  the  eastern,  and  mount  the 
western  branch  of  that  river,  traverse  the  main  chain  by 
the  Mamisson  Pass,  and  then  work  across  the  upper  basins 
of  the  Rion  and  the  Ingur,  between  which  several  ridges 
separating  the  sources  of  the  2^nes-Squali  barred  the  way, 
and  enclosed  glens  seemingly  without  inhabitants. 

I  have  here  attempted  to  give  some  idea  of  the  physical 
configuration  of  that  part  only  of  the  Caucasus  which  we 
visited,  and  have  not  entered  into  details  of  the  com- 
plicated system  of  mountains  and  river-basins  of  Daghe- 
stan,  famous  as  the  last  refuge  of  Schamyl  and  the  scene 
of  his  final  capture. 

We  started  from  Kazbek  station,  on  July  3rd,  in  grand 
style.  Our  turn-out  consisted  of  the  best  pair  of  telegas 
we  met  with  in  Russia,  with  good  horses,  which  had 
drawn  the  Grand  Dukes  two  days  previously,  and  had,  in 
consequence,  their  harness  still  intertwined  with  gay  rib- 
bons. The  day  was  gloomy,  and  before  long  the  rain,  of 
which  during  the  month  we  were  destined  to  have  more 
than  our  share,  began  to  fall  in  torrents,  so  that,  despite 
mackintoshes,  we  arrived  at  Kobi  wet  through.  The 
postmaster  was  in  his  usual  state  of  intoxication,  but  we 
succeeded  in  getting  a  fire  lighted,  and  then  sent  for  the 
head  of  the  Cossacks  stationed  there,  who  had  been 
ordered  by  the  Conunandant  of  Duschet  to  have  horses 
ready  to  carry  our  baggage.    We  found  that  two  animals 

P  2 


212  TIJE  TEEEK   VALLEY. 

« 

had  been  procured,  but  that  they  could  not  go  with  us 
beyond  Ees,  the  highest  village  in  the  Terek  valley, 
the  pass  from  which  into  Dwaleth,  as  the  Upper  Ardon 
valley  is  called,  was  said  to  be  impracticable  for  laden 
animals.  The  rain-storm  having  passed  over,  we  set  out 
on  foot,  with  our  baggage  packed  on  the  two  horses, 
which  were  accompanied  by  their  owners. 

The  portion  of  the  valley  immediately  above  Kobi  is  bare 
and  uninteresting ;  long  and  steep  grass-slopes  shut  in  the 
view,  and  no  snowy  peaks  are  visible.  We  walked  along 
swampy  meadows  as  far  as  a  spot  where  the  valley  forks, 
and  the  main  torrent  comes  out  of  a  narrow  opening  on 
the  left.  Our  path  then  followed  the  left  bank  of  the 
Terek,  through  a  long  and  savage  but  scarcely  picturesque 
defile.  Huge  -avalanches  had  fallen  in  spring  down  the 
gullies,  and  in  many  places  still  covered  the  path ;  fromi 
the  traces  we  saw  here  and  elsewhere  of  their  ravages, 
far  exceeding  the  devastations  caused  by  similar  agency 
in  the  Alps,  we  were  led  to  suppose  that  the  winter  snow- 
fall is  heavier  in  the  Caucasus  than  in  Switzerland. 
Mineral  dprin'gs  abounded,  some  of  which  were  impregnated 
with  iron,  and  coloured  the  ground  for  many  yards  round 
their  source.  An  abominable  stench  which  pervaded  one 
part  of  the  defile  probably  arose  from  a  sulphur  spring, 
although  Paul  tried  to  persuade  us  it  was  caused  by  the  decay 
of  thevegetation  lying  amongst  the  debris  of  the  avalanches. 
We  emerged,  after  a  time,  into  the  upper  valley — an  open 
basin  perfectly  bare,  and  surrounded  by  uniform  slopes 
capped. by  rock-peaks  of  a  very  commonplace  character. 
The  nearer  beauties  of  nature  were  more  conspicuous,  and 
the  carpet  of  flowers,  which  almost  hid  the  grass  under  our 
feet,  consoled  us  for  the  rather  disappointing  tameness  of  the 
general  scenery.  As  we  suddenly  turned  a  comer,  we 
came  upon  a  group  of  natives  sitting  on  a  bank  of  turf. 


OSSETB   VILLAGES.  313 

and  amusing  themselves  with  music  and  singing.  They  — 
were  a  handsome  set  of  men,  tall  and  military-looking, 
dressed  in  the  usual  long  frock-coat  and  high  fiir  hat  of 
the  Ossetes,  and  carrying  about  their  persons  the  indis- 
pensable variety  of  swords,  daggers,  guns,  and  pistols. 
They  rose  to  meet  us,  and,  ailer  a  few  minutes'  friendly 


conversation,  we  passed  on  our  way.  After  a  walk  of 
three  hours  from  Xohi,  we  came  in  eight  of  Kektris  and 
Abano,  two  villages  about  half  a  mile  apart,  and  both 
on  the  left  side  of  the  valley.  There  being  no  wood  in 
this  district,  the  houses  are  entirely  built  of  stone :  they 
are  generally  gloomy-looldng  masses  of  roiigh  masonry, 
in  which  small  holes  are  left  for  the  windows ;  but  the 
peculiar  character  of  the  villages  is  given  by  the  number 
of  towers,  which  are  often  found  in  the  proportion  of  two 
towers  to  three  houses.     There  is  nothing   picturesque 


214  THE  TEREK  VALLEY. 

in  these  primitive  fortresses,  which,  from  their  walls 
sloping  inwards  towards  the  top,  closely  resemble,  from 
a  distance,  a  collection  of  exaggerated  brick-kilns ;  many 
of  them  are  in  ruins.  In  passing  through  Kektris  we 
were  put  in  bodily  fear  by  the  dogs — a  magnificent 
race,  as  big  as  the  St.  Bernard,  and  of  the  same  colour, 
but  with  shaggier  coats  and  even  more  sagacious  faces. 
The  narrow  lane  wound  along  between  the  houses,  on 
the  roofs  of  which  our  enemies  took  their  stand,  greeting 
us  with  savage  barking  and  every  demonstration  of  a 
desire  to  rush  down  and  eat  us.  I  believe,  however,  that 
this  ferocity  is  more  apparent  than  real.  At  Abano  our 
horsemen  selected  a  lodging  for  us  at  the  house  of  the 
wealthiest  man  in  the  village,  where  we  found  a  clean 
upper  Toom  with  two  bedsteads.  Supper  was  promised, 
and  we  had  nothing  to  complain  of  in  our  reception,  .as 
a  samovar  was  quickly  brought  and  a  fowl  slaughtered  for 
our  benefit. 

July  Asth. — In  the  morning  a  dispute  arose  with  our  host 
as  to  the  payment  we  should  make,  and  we  were  obliged  to 
resist  his  excessive  demands.  The  Yalley  did  not  increase 
in  interest  as  we  mounted  it.  There  are  few  duller  walks 
in  a  mountain  country  than  that  from  Abano  to  Gumara ; 
the  trough  of  the  Terek  is  bare,  and  destitute  of  any  natu- 
ral attractions,  and  a  glimpse  of  the  fine  snowy  head  of 
Gumaran  Khokh,  up  a  side  glen,  forms  but  a  momentary 
relief  to  the  general  dulness.  This  part  of  the  Kazbek 
group  deserves  exploration;  its  glaciers  and  ridges  are 
laid  down  in  the  vaguest  way  on  the  Five  Verst  Map,  and 
the  only  fact  I  can  state  concerning  it  is,  that  it  sends  out 
a  large  ice-stream,  known  as.the  Gumaran  glacier,  the  head 
of  which  probably  abuts  on.  that  of  Orzviri.  iVom  hence 
to  Hes  the  distance  was  not  great,  and  the  change  in  the 
scenery  showed  that  we  were  drawing  close  to  the  head  of 


A    LONG    ARGUMENT.  215 

the  valley.  The  slopes  became  less  uniform,  while  bolder 
and  loftier  summits  rose  around  us.  The  hamlet  of  Ees, 
where  our  baggage-horses  were  to  be  left,  is  a  cluster  of 
stone  hovels,  perched  one  above  the  other  on  a  steep  hill- 
side. We  unladed  our  packs  in  the  middle  of  it,  and 
sitting  down  on  some  stones  began  our  lunch,  while  the 
question  of  porterage  was  discussed  with  the  inhabitants, 
who  of  course  soon  gathered  round  us.  They  were  a 
handsome  but  ruffianly-looking  lot,  but  we  had  become 
too  much  accustomed  during  the  last  six  months  to  find 
ourselves  among  queer  company  to  think  much  of  their 
appearance.  The  first  demand  made  was  that  we  should 
hire  ten  men  to  carry  our  luggage  to  Zacca,  the  highest 
village  in  the  Ardon  valley,  and  that  we  should  pay 
them  two  roubles  apiece,  which  would  have  made  the 
whole  sum  twenty  roubles,  or  21.  15s.  We  offered  them 
half,  which  they  at  first  contemptuously  refused,  but  finally 
accepted,  when  we,  as  a  stratagem,  ordered  the  horses  to  be 
reladen,  and  pretended  to  be  about  to  return  the  way  we 
had  come.  The  packs,  which  were  ludicrously  light  (not 
above  one-third  of  the  weight  ordinarily  carried  by  Swiss 
peasants),  naving  been  with  much  difficulty  and  loss  of 
time  adjusted,  we  started  for  the  pass,  which  was  now 
visible  in  front  of  us.  A  strong  stream,  flowing  out  of  a 
snowy  hollow  in  the  northern  chain,  had  to  be  crossed,  and 
gave  some  trouble  to  those  who  attempted  to  perform  the 
feat  dryshod.  The  men  made  the  passage  an  excuse  for 
a  long  delay  while  they  rean'anged  their  shoes. 

The  sandals  of  the  mountaineers  of  the  Caucasus  are 
too  peculiar  to  be  passed  over  without  a  description.  A 
tangle  of  leather  bands  is  stuffed  with  dry  grass  and 
bound  round  the  foot,  so  that  the  sole  is  renewable  at 
pleasure ;  these  remarkable  boots  seem  to  be  everlasting, 
and  at  the  same  time  to  afford  the  feet  sufficient  protection 


216  THE   TEREK   VALLEY. 

fi'om  rocks  and  cold.  For  a  long  time  we  thought  they 
would  fail  when  brought  into  contact  with  snow  and  ice, 
but  the  way  in  which  the  men  of  Pari  crossed  the  steep 
snow-slopes  between  the  valleys  of  the  Nakra  and  the 
Baksan  in  them,  quite  disabused  our  minds  of  this  pre- 
judice. Such  being  the  ordinary  style  of  shoe  of  the 
country,  it  may  be  imagined  what  surprise  our  double- 
soled  and  heavily- nailed  English  boots  created,  and  we 
used  often  to  hold  np  our  feet,  as  a  show,  in  the  villages, 
while  some  arithmetical  genius  endeavoured  to  count  the 
nails  in  the  soles.  The  last  sandal  having  been  satisfac- 
torily strapped  and  re-arranged,  our  train  moved  on. 

The  path,  a  fairly-marked  one,  steadily  rose  above  the 
Terek,  the  highest  source  of  which  was  now  in  sight,  issuing 
from  a  small  glacier  at  the  base  of  Zilga  Khokh,  a  fine  peak 
at  the  point  where  the  ridge  over  which  our  pass  lay 
joins  the  watershed.  Numerous  springs  burst  out  of  the 
hillside,  and  their  channels  were  bright  with  masses  of  the 
yellow  blossoms  of  the  ranunculus.  The  final  climb  to  the 
pass  was  up  a  steep  slope  of  shale,  on  which  a  good  deal  of 
snow  was  still  lying.  Our  native  companions  were  silly 
enough  to  prefer  a  straight  course  to  the  well-made 
zigzags  of  the  path,  the  pains  expended  on  the  construction 
of  which  caused  us  some  surprise;  the  rest  of  the  party,  how- 
ever, stuck  to  the  zigzags,  except  Moore,  who  kept  with  the 
porters,  in  order  to  have  an  eye  on  their  dealings  with  our 
goods.  As  they  soon  lost  breath,  and  wanted  every 
minute  to  sit  down,  he  had  enough  to  do  to  drive  them 
before  him,  and  his  difficulties  suggested  to  our  minds  a 
comparison  between  his  present  position  and  that  of  Enid 
when  driving  the  unruly  steeds  before  her  through  the 
vmste.  By  our  several  routes  we  all  arrived  at  nearly  the 
same  point  on  the  ridge,  which  is  over  10,000  feet  in 
height.     The  actual  crest  was  bare,  but  plenty  of  snow  lay 


ZACCA.  217 

around ;  there  was  nothing,  however,  to  prevent  horses,  so 
accustomed  to  snow-work  as  those  of  the  Caucasus,  fi-om 
crossing  the  pass.  The  view  looking  back  towards 
Kazbek,  and  forwards  to  what  must,  I  suppose  in  deference 
to  the  Five  Verst  Map,  be  called  the  Adai  Khokh  'group, 
ought  to  have  been  fine ;  but  unluckily  clouds  hid  all  the 
more  distant  summits,  and  we  saw  little  more  than  the 
bold  mass  of  Zilga  E[hokh  close  at  hand  on  the  south. 
This  summit  (12,645  feet)  was  ascended,  in  1852,  by  General 
Chodzko,  who  spent  several  days  near  the  top  for  the 
purpose  of  the  government  survey.  He  describes  the 
expedition  as  a  difficult  one,  and  seems  to  have  encountered 
considerable  glacier  obstacles.  The  path,  on  the  western 
side  of  the  pass,  first  bore  away  to  the  right,  and  then 
descended  rapidly  into  a  green  basin,  such  as  is  familiar 
to  aJl  Alpine  travellers ;  a  pass  lower  than  that  we  had 
just  crossed  led  out  of  it  on  the  south,  across  the  water- 
shed, immediately  to  the  west  of  Zilga  Eliokh. 

We  looked  forward  with  mingled  pleasure  and  dread  to 
the  necessity  of  making  fresh  arrangements  for  the  trans- 
port of  our  baggage.:  on  the  one  hand  we  were  only  too 
delighted  to  be  rid  of  the  Bes  men,  who  had  been  most  pro- 
'  vokingly  insolent  during  the  descent;  on  the  other,  we 
dreaded  a  prolonged  wrangle  before  a  fr^sh  bargain  could 
be  concluded.  On  reaching  Zacca  we  succeeded  in  finding  a 
house,  the  owner  of  which  was  willing  to  get  us  something 
to  eat,  and  on  a  raised  terrace  outside,  we  sat  down  and  col- 
lected together  our  luggage.  A  crowd  immediately  sur- 
rounded us,  and  soon,  not  content  with  staring,  pushed  in 
and  jostled  us  so  roughly,  that  we  asked  the  man  who  had 
promised  to  secure  us.  some  bread  whether  he  could  not 
also  find  us  a  room  to  rest  in.  He  pointed  out  one  close 
by,  and  by  stationing  Fran9ois  at  the  door,  we  managed 
to  free  ourselves  from  the  inquisitiveness  of  the  mob,  and 


218  THE   ARDON    VALLEY. 

to  confine  our  visitors  to  a  select  few  of  the  eldera,  whom 
we  entertained  by  displaying  some  of  our  European  knick- 
knacks^  such  as  knives,  telescopes,  and  portable  drinking - 
cups.     As  soon  as  we  had  got  all  our  goods  into  our  own 
hands,  Paul  was  given  the  10  roubles  to  pay  to  the  porters. 
This  was  handed  over,  and  at  first  quietly  accepted,  but 
they  soon  began  to  clamour  for    an    extra    rouble   as 
backsheesh,  or  trinkgeld,  or  whatever  is  the  Ossete  synonym 
for    those  well-known  terms.     We  having  just   sought 
refuge  from  the  jabber  and  jostling  of  the  outside  crowd, 
were  not  drawn  out  again  by  the  every-day  sound  of  angry 
voices,  and  it  was  not  till  the  row  became  serious  that  we 
sallied  forth,  Moore  and  Tucker  going  first.     They  found 
the  Ees  men  hustling  Paul,  who  was  sputtering  with  rage, 
while  the  villagers  looked  on  and  laughed.     When  my 
friends  appeared,  one  of  the  scoundrels  snatched  at  Paul's 
sheepskin  cloak,  and  then  they  all  hastily  retired,  carrying 
it  v^ith  them*     This  was  the  state  of  the  matter  when  I 
came  upon  the  scene,  and  saw  Paul  fiuntically  excited,  and 
our  late  porters  standing  in  a  knot  on  the  path,  fifty  yards 
ofiF,  with  our  cloak  in  their  possession.     Knowing  nothing 
of  what  had  gone  before,  and  remembering  the  effect  any 
decided  course. of  action  generally  has  with  Easterns,  I 
fancied  a  prompt  move  would  settle  the  question,  and  ac- 
cordingly ran  up  to  the  men  of  Res,  and,  taking  hold  of  the 
cloak,  motioned  to  them  to  drop  it.     They  had  no  such 
intention,  and  began  instead  to  pommel  me  in  their  own 
way,  which  fortunately  was  a  very  harmless  one,  consisting 
of  roundabout  pats  on  the  top  of  the  head.      This,  no 
doubt,  is  an  effectual  mode  of  bonneting  an  adversaary 
who  wears  a  tall  sheepskin,  but  it  is  singularly  harmless 
to  a  man    with  a   hard  wideawake.     In  self-defence    I 
was  obliged  to  let  go   the  cloak,  and  in  a  few  seconds 
my  friends  came  to  the  rescue.  Tucker  hitting  straight 


A   BARREN   VICTORY.  219 

into  the  eyes  of  the  thieves,  while  Moore  charged  down 
the  hill  with  the  point  of  his  ice-axe  directed  full  at  their 
stomachs,  and  Fran9ois  lent  the  weight  of  his  elephan- 
tine  bulk  to  the  united  onset.     After  Tucker  had  been 
rolled  down  the  embankment  on  which  the  skirmish  took 
place,  and  some  dozen  blows  had  been  planted  fairly  in  the 
thieves*  faces,  the  foe  suddenly  fled,  and  did  not  stop  till 
they  had  put  the  river  between  themselves  and  us.     We 
thus  remained  masters  of  the  field,  but  the  enemy  had  all 
the  fruits  of  victory,  as  they  got  clear  off  with  their  booty ; 
we  consoled  ourselves,  however^  in  the  smallness  of  our  loss, 
and  in  the  fact  of  our  retaining  a  very  fine  staff  which  Paul 
had  borrowed,  and  which  afterwards  served  him  as  an 
alpenstock  during  our  whole  journey. 

Our  next  move  was  to  turn  to  the  chief  of  the  village 
and  ask  how  it  was  that  he  stood  by  and  allowed  strangers 
to  be  robbed,  whilst  his  own  people  aided  and  abetted 
the  thieves  P  The  only  reply  of  this  specimen  of  nature's 
nobility  was,  that  if  we  would  give  him  something  for  his 
trouble  he  would  get  us  back  the  cloak,  an  offer  which  I 
need  hardly  say  we  declined  to  accept.  The  looks  of  the 
population  were  not  friendly,  and  we  came  to  the  conclusion 
that  it  was  better  to  submit  to  extortion  in  engaging  horses, 
than  by  delay  to  run  any  risk  of  further  robbery.  We 
consequently  agreed  with  two  handsome  smartly-dressed 
fellows  to  start  down  the  valley  at  once,  with  two  horses. 
We  were  heartily  glad  to  shake  the  dust  of  Zacca  off  our 
feet,  and  to  feel  ourselves  once  more  on  the  road  with 
only  two,  instead  of  ten,  of  these  impracticable  mountaineers 
to  deal  with.  The  valley  is  treeless,  but  the  scenery  is  far 
superior  to  that  of  the  Upper  Terek.  The  slopes  are 
varied  and  broken,  jagged  peaks  show  at  the  head  of 
lateral  glens  on  the  south,  and  clusters  of  houses,  each 
dominated  by  one  or  more  towers,  are  perched  on  every 


220  THE   ARDON   VALLEV. 

defensible  rock-knoll.  We  climbed  on  to  a  level-topped 
green  brow  at  some  height  on  the  left  bank  of  the  stream, 
then  made  a  dip  into  a  lateral  ravine,  on  the  opposite 
bank  of  which  we  passed  another  hamlet.  The  map  showed 
that  this  was  the  last  of  the  upper  cluster  of  villages,  and 
after  some  discussion  we  halted  a  few  minutes  further  on 
at  a  solitary  house  by  the  wayside.  A  large  empty  bam 
was  our  quarters  for  the  night,  and  as  we  were  able 
to  add  eggs  and  milk  to  the  provisions  we  carried  with 
us,  we  did  not  fare  badly  for  supper.  The  position  of 
affairs  during  the  evening  was  not  pleasant,  as  the  manner 
of  our  horsemen  was  insolent  and  suspicious,  and  led  us 
to  apprehend  an  attack  in  the  night.  In  order,  therefore, 
to  let  them  see  that  we  were  prepared  to  meet  it,  we 
had  a  grand  review  of  our  forces  before  retiring — ^that 
is  to  say,  we  ostentatiously  fired  and  reloaded  our 
three  revolvers,  a  performance  which  excited  considerable 
astonishment.  The  baggage  was  all  collected  at  one 'end 
of  the  bam,  and  we  slept  lightly;  but  the  night  passed 
without  disturbance,  and  I  hope  our  suspicions  of  the  men 
may  have  been  unfounded. 

Jvly  5th. — ^We  had  only  engaged  our  horsemen  for  the 
previous  evening,  but  being  unable  to  find  others,  we  wtre 
obliged  to  retain  their  services  at  their  own  valuation; 
which  was  of  course  an  extravagant  one.  We  expected  to 
have  an  easy  stroll  down  one  branch  of  the  Ardon  and  up  the 
other  to  the  foot  of  the  Mamisson  Pass,  and  meant  to  sleep 
at  one  of  the  villages  on  its  eastern  side.  Our  first  inten- 
tion had  been  to  leave  Paul  and  the  heavy  baggage  at 
Dalla-Kav,  at  the  fork  of  the  torrents,  and  ourselves  to 
descend  the  main  valley  for  some  distance,  and  then  turn 
up  a  lateral  glen,  which  appears  from  the  Five  Verst  Map 
to  be  well  wooded,  and  to  contain  at  its  head  the  largest 
glacier  of  the  Adai-Khokh  group,  over  which  we  might 


AN   UNEXPECTED   CLIMB.  221 

have  found  a  way  back  across  the  mountains  to  our  luggage. 
After  the  specimen  the  Ossetes  had  just  given  us  of  their 
gentlemanlike  behaviour,  it  seemed  imprudent  to  separate 
our  party,  and  to  leave  our  goods  for  an  uncertain  length 
of  time  at  their  mercy  ;  so  this  idea  was  given  up,  and  we 
determined  to  push  on,  in  the  hope  that  the  inhabitants 
of  the  Rion  valley  would  prove  more  friendly  than  their 
neighbours,  and  that  from  it  Adai  Khokh  might  be  acces- 
sible. We  crossed  the  stream  by  a  narrow  footbridge 
immediately  below  our  night-quarters.  The  sheep  and 
goats  were  at  the  same  time  starting  for  the  pasturage, 
and  it  was  amusing  to  watch  the  way  in  which  they, 
hustled  one  another  in  their  eagerness  to  pass.  The 
sheep  would  follow  peaceably  enough  for  a  minute,  until 
an  old  goat  made  a  dash  into  the  crowd,  upset  a  lamb  or 
two  into  the  water,  and  not  unfrequently  overbalanced 
himself  and  got  a  ducking.  The  stream  was  strong 
enough  to  give  the  poor  lambs  a  good  tossing  before  they 
got  on  their  legs  again,  and  came  out  dripping  and 
bleating  from  their  morning  bath. 

Nothing  is  more  annoying  than  a  mountain  in  your 
way  when  you  have  no  reason  to  expect  it,  and  it  was. 
not  without  careful  enquiry  into  the  necessity  of  the 
exertion  that  we  consented  to  leave  the  valley,  which 
our  horsemen  assured  us  contracted  below  into  an 
impassable  gorge,  and  set  our  faces  against  a  mountain- 
side of  2,500  feet.  A  good  horsepath,  mounted  at  first 
by  very  steep  zigzags,  and  then  gradually  crept  along  the 
top  of  a  grassy  ridge,  and  round  the  head  of  a  hollow,  to 
the  summit  of  a  spur  about  9,800  feet  in  height,  whence 
we  looked  down  into  another  side-glen  of  the  Ardon.  This 
point  commanded  an  admirable  panorama  of  the  extra- 
ordinary chaos  of  mountains  and  network  of  ravines 
which  form  the  upper  eastern  basin  of  the  Ardon.     This 


22-2  THE   AEDOX  VALLEY. 

river,  like  the  Eion,  is  formed  by  two  torrents  running 
parallel  to  the  main  chain  as  far  as  their  junction,  whence 
their  united  streams  turn  suddenly  at  right-angles  to 
their  former  course,  and  force  a  way  through  the  deep 
cleft  which  divides  the  Adai  Eliokh  and  Kizbek  groups. 
The  range  between  the  Mamisson  and  Zilga  Khokh  was 
clear,  and  presented  a  line  of  bold  rocky  summits  separated 
by  deep  gaps,  offering  passes  of  fix)m  8,000  to  10,000  feet 
in  height  into  the  southern  valleys.  The  mountain-range 
on  the  north  is  on  a  far  grander  scale,  but  clouds  unluckily 
hid  all  the  tops  of  the  Adai  Ehokh  group,  and  we  could 
see  only  the  tail  of  one  glacier. 

At  the  base  of  the  projecting  mass  on  which  we  stood, 
was  a  deep  valley  terminated  by  a  rocky  cirque,  above 
which  a  remarkably-pointed  peak,  called  Tau  Teply,  showed 
itself  through  the  mists.  When  the  clouds  blew  off, 
we  saw  that  the  sharp  rock-cone  was  supported  by  a  long 
icy  ridge,  depriving  the  mountain  of  some  of  its  ap- 
parent boldness  of  outline.  We  were,  not  unnaturally,  in 
the  constant  habit  of  comparing  Caucasian  with  Swiss 
scenery,  as  the  best  means  whereby  to  confirm  or  correct 
our  first  impressions.  Thus  far  we  were  agreed  that  in 
form  the  Caucasian  peaks  were  at  least  as  bold  as  the 
summits  in  the  most  serrated  portion  of  the  Alpine  range. 
The  features  missing  in  the  valleys  of  the  Terek  and 
Ardon  are  large  glaciers  and  forests.  The  earth's  surface 
must  be  wonderfully  broken  to  render  a  district  absolutely 
bare  of  trees  anything  but  monotonously  savage ;  despite 
therefore  some  striking  views,  at  points  where  lofty  peaks 
close  either  end  of  the  valley,  the  sceneiy  of  the  Upper 
Ardon  must  be  characterised  as  on  the  whole  dull. 

There  was  a  good  deal  of  snow  on  the  path,  but  it  was 
tolerably  hard,  and  did  not  cause  any  difficulty  to  the 
horses.     After  a  last  glance  at  the  mountain-encii-cled  den 


A   QUAINT   INTERIOB.  223 

from  which  we  had  just  made  our  escape — ^probably  one 
of  the  most  out-of-the-way  corners  of  the  Caucasus — wc 
commenced  the  long  but  pleasant  descent  which  led  down 
into  the  lower  valley.  The  hillsides  were  gay  with  flowers ; 
near  the  snow  we  found  gentians  of  two  sorts,  the  common 
Alpine  variety,  and  one  of  a  duller  blue ;  further  on  masses 
of  the  white  Caucasian  rhododendron,  interspersed  with 
pink  ox-eyed  daisies  and  orange-coloured  poppies,  made 
us  remark  the  curious  difference  in  hue  of  the  same  flowers 
at  home  and  in  the  Caucasus. 

The  village  at  which  we  determined  to  make  our  mid- 
day halt  is  built  on  a  narrow  bog's-back,  projecting  be- 
tween two  streams.    The  people  seemed  a  shade  more 
civilised  than  those  we  had  left,  and  we  were  soon  received 
in  the  house  of  one  of  the  villagers.    A  large  and  dark 
entrance,  in  which  all  sorts  of  implements  were  stored, 
led  to  a  more  cheerful  room,  one  side  of  which  opened 
on  a  balcony  overlooking  the  torrent.    The  articles   of 
furniture  in  the  Ossete  houses  are  few  but  quaint;  the 
greatest  amount  of  pains  is  bestowed  on  the  cradles  and 
armchairs.     The  former  are  elaborately  ornamented ;  the 
latter  are  broad  and  shallow,  with  a  low  carved  back 
suited  for  Darby  and  Joan  to  sit  in  together,  but  quite 
incapable  of  being  used  as  places  of  rest.     The  tables  are 
in  shape  something  between  three-legged  stools  and  the 
low  velvet-covered  pieces  of  furniture  now  in  fashion  in 
London.    In  an  inner  room  there  were  two  raised  couches, 
over  which  the  arms  of  the  master  of  the  house  were  hung 
up  against  the  wall.    A  large  herd  of  horses  was  feeding 
in  the  meadows  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river,  where 
we  also  noticed  a  cluster  of  men  whose  number  gradually 
increased  during  our  stay.    We  met  with  nothing  but 
civility  from  our  hosts,  and  our  horsemen  were  treated  most 
liberally;  when  one  of  them  had  tossed  off  his  fourth  tumbler 


{224  THE   ARDON  VALLET. 

of  *  vodka '  as  though  it  had  been  water,  without  being 
apparently  in  the  least  the  worse  for  it,  we  thought  it  about 
time  to  be  off.  We  descended  to  the  stream,  and  crossed 
by  a  bridge  to  the  meadow  on  its  opposite  bank.  The 
group  which  we  had  before  noticed  now  advanced  towards 
us,  and  a  grizzled  old  gentleman  asked  to  see  our  permit 
to  travel.  Thinking  that  a  British  Foreign-office  passport 
might  be  beyond  his  comprehension,  and  at  the  same  time 
not  wishing  to  raise  p*  needless  difficulty,  I  offered  for 
inspection  an  old  *  crown-podorojno.*  We  were  surrounded 
for  some  minutes  by  a  curious  crowd,  but  in  due  time  the 
paper  was  restored,  the  chief  professed  himself  perfectly 
satisfied,  and  we  went  on  our  way  unmolested. 

After  crossing  a  tributary  stream,  and  passing  another 
gloomy-looking  village,  we  had  a  dull  but  easy  walk  along 
level  meadows  to  the  fork  of  the  valley.  The  numerous 
villages,  alike  in  their  rude  stone  houses  and  frequent 
towers,  are  invariably  perched  on  the  hillsides,  and  often 
on  the  isolated  promontories  of  rock  which  form  one  of 
the  peculiar  features  of  this  district.  The  defile  through 
which  the  Ardon  flows  out  to  the  north  seemed  to  be 
wooded  in  its  lower  portion,  but  the  western  arm  of  the 
upper  valley  was  as  bare  as  that  we  had  just  traversed ; 
we  crossed  its  torrent  by  a  bridge,  and  mounted  the  further 
bank  to  reach  the  track  of  the  projected  carriage-road 
from  Yladikafkaz  to  E!utais  over  the  Mamisson  Pass. 
The  road  has  been  traced,  and  partly  cut  along  the  hill- 
sides, but  as  wherever  a  mass  of  rock  required  blasting, 
nothing  has  been  done,  it  is  of  course  impassable  for 
vehicles  :  moreover,  in  many  places  torrents  and  earthslips 
had  already  half  destroyed  the  track,  which  appeared  to  have 
been  abandoned  to  its  fate.  I^admaking  is  not  a  Russian 
virtue,  and  the  authorities  are  so  little  accustomed  even 
at  home  to  see  anything  which  would  be  called  a  road  in 


THE   MAMISSON    ROAD.  225 

Western  Europe,  that  they  are  naturally  slow  in  the 
appreciation  of  the  necessity  of  good  highways  in  the 
Caucasus.  If  military  purposes  demand  a  means  of  com- 
munication, soldiers  are  set  to  work,  and  one  sufficient  for 
the  momentary  need  is  constructed;  had  all  the  roads 
which  have  been  traced  and  cut,  at  immense  cost  both  of 
money  and  laboTir,  been  finished  and  kept  in  repair,  tiie 
Western  Caucasus  would  now  be  very  fairly  provided  with 
routes  practicable  for  light  carriages,  and  much  more 
would  have  been  done  towards  the  civilisation  of  the 
country.  The  road  now  in  question  has  some  chance  of 
completion,  owing  to  its  obvious  importance  a^  the  shortest 
line  fix)m  Yladikafkaz  to  the  Black  Sea  coast.  The  Viceroy 
of  the  Caucasus  passed  this  way  in  September  last,  and 
liis  visit  may  perhaps  have  the  effect  of  giving  the  needed 
impulse  to  the  local  authorities.  There  was  absolutely 
nothing  to  look  at  during  the  walk  up  the  western  arm  of 
the  Ardon  to  Teeb.  The  track  mounted  gradually  along 
the  northern  side  of  the  valley,  passing  above  several 
villages  surrounded  by  fields  of  barley  enclosed  by  untidy 
fences.  We  met  a  drove  of  colts  being  taken  southwards 
for  sale ;  the  Eiabarda,  a  district  of  which  I  shall  presently 
have  more  to  say,  is  celebrated  for  its  breed  of  horses,  and 
exports  large  numbers  annually  to  the  markets  of  Tiflis  and 
Eutais. 

Teeb  consists  of  several  hamlets  scattered  on  the 
hillside  above  and  below  the  road ;  we  sent  Paul  to  recon- 
noitre, and  waited  to  learn  the  result  of  his  enquiries, 
which  proved  satisfactory,  and  we  were  installed  in  a  clean 
little  room  on  the  housetop.  The  people,  living  on  a 
frequented  path,  and  having  had  troops  quartered  near  them 
for  many  months,  were  more  accustomed  to  see  passers- 
by,  and  less  churlish  than  those  of  the  other  branch  of  the 
valley.     There  was  even  a  priest  in  the  village,  who  talked 

Q 


220  THE   ARDON  VALLEY. 

Russian,  and  assisted  Paul  in  his  search  for  fowls  and 
eggs,  and  his  enquiries  after  fresh  horses.  The  men  who 
had  come  with  us  from  Zacca  had  evidently  got  beyond 
their  home- circle,  and  did  not  find  anyone  to  treat  them 
to  *  vodka';  they  consequently  wanted  to  take 'up  their 
quarters  with  us,  but  we  told  them  plainly  that  we  thought 
them  no  better  than  thieves,  and  wished  to  see  no  more  of 
them.  Having  received  their  pay,  they  loitered  about  the 
place  for  some  time,  casting  longing  glances  at  our 
numerous  belongings ;  but  finding  we  were  on  the  watch, 
and  that  there  was  no  chance  of  carrying  off  a  field-glass 
or  revolver,  the  objects  which  they  looked  at  most  cove- 
tously, they  took  their  departure  before  nightfall. 

July  6th. — Paul  had  found  two  honest-looking  men, 
who  were  willing  to  come  with  us  for  three  roubles  (eight 
shillings)  a  day,  for  man  and  horse.  This  was  much 
above  the  price  of  the  country,  but  was  only  half  of  what 
we  had  given  the  Zacca  men,  and  we  gladly  concluded  the 
bargain;  our  new  attendants  turned  out  pleasant  and 
obliging,  and  we  kept  them  with  us  for  several  days. 
Teeb  was  one  of  the  few  places  we  had  halted  in  since 
leaving  the  Dariel  road,  where  we  had  no  reason  to  com- 
plain of  churlishness  or  extortion  of.  some  sort;  and  the 
friendliness  of  the  villagers  caused  us  to  modify  the  other- 
wise universal  condenmation  we  felt  disposed  to  pronounce 
against  the  Ossetes,  of  whom  we  now  took  leave  for  the 
present.  This  tribe,  one  of  the  most  famous  of  the 
Caucasus,  was  converted  at  a  very  early  period  to  Chris- 
tianity, which  they  continue  to  profess,  although  they 
trouble  themselves  little  about  either  its  letter  or  spirit. 
Their  worship  is  mixed  up  with  sacrificial  feasts,  appa- 
rently of  pagan  origin,  and  the  doctrines  they  hold  are 
compatible  with  a  severe  law  of  vengeance,  resulting  in 
long   and  bloody  feuds  between  families   and   villages. 


OSSETE    COSTUMES.  227 

There  seems  to  bo  no  poor  claas  among  tliem ;  sill  the  men 
we  saw  were  well  and  even  handsomely  dressed.  The  tall 
sheepskin  hat  isnniversal,  and  yreat  attention  is  bestowed 
on  the  numerous  ornamental  details  of  their  costume. 
The  cartridge -boxes  on  the  breast  are  often  inlaid  with 
silver,  and  when  they  go  abroad  they  invariably  wear  a  belt 
(generally  silver),  to  which  is  attached   a  double-edged 


da^er  like  the  Roman  short-sword,  enclosed  in  an  orna- 
mental sheath ;  on  the  other  side  hangs  a  heavy  flint  and 
steel  pistol,  in  addition  to  a  variety  of  smaller  necessaries, 
such  as  a  leather  case  for  tinder  and  flints,  a  knife,  and  a 
little  box  of  oxidised  silver  prettily  worked,  in  which  they 
keep  the  grease  to  anoint  their  bullets.     Their  dresses  are 


228  THE    ARDON    VALLEY. 

usually  in  good  condition,  and  a  shabby  or  poor -looking 
man  is  hardly  to  be  met  with.  Altogether  it  is  impos- 
sible not  to  admit  that  their  external  appearance  is  some 
excuse  for  the  title  of  *  Gentlemen  of  the  Mountains,' 
which  Count  Leverschoff  gave  them. 

We  were  still  at  some  distance  from  the  head  of  the 
valley,  the  scenery  of  which  continued  to  be  of  the  same 
monotonous  description.  About  half  an  hour  above  Teeb 
there  was  a  fine  view,  looking  back  towards  a  great  snow- 
crowned  mass,  a  western  outpost  of  the  Eazbek  group. 
The  track,  gradually  ascending  by  a  uniform  gradient 
above  the  torrent,  made  long  and  frequent  circuits  round 
lateral  ravines,  until,  after  passing  several  villages,  the 
head-waters  of  the  Ardon  opened  before  us,  and  the  long 
straight  valley  broke  up  into  several  glens,  running  up 
into  a  semicircle  of  peaks,  several  of  which  were  re- 
markable for  their  bold  pyramidal  forms.  Our  road 
turned  up  the  northern  of  these  glens,  and  wound  along 
its  side  for  some  distance,  almost  at  a  level,  until  a  huge 
snow-drift,  which  rose  in  a  wall  across  the  track,  capped 
with  an  overhanging  cornice,  forced  the  horses  to  descend 
into  the  bottom  of  the  glen,  while  we  kept  along  the 
line  of  the  intended  carriage-road.  The  snow  was  just 
melting  oflf  the  turf,  and  the  flowers  were  exceedingly 
beautiful.  We  were  pleased  to  find  the  homely  cowslips 
and  primroses,  mixing  with  gentians  and  other  alpine 
plants ;  but  the  newest  sight  to  us  was  the  mass  of  snow- 
drops which  whitened  the  ground,  in  many  places  proving 
their  claim  to  their  Friench  name  of  perce-neigey  by  pushing 
their  green  leaves  and  clustered  blossoms  through  the  still 
unmelted  snowdrifts. 

We  saw  beneath  us  a  large  troop  of  natives,  who  had 
crossed  the  pass  in  an  opposite  direction,  and  were  making 
their  midday  halt.     The  ridge  was  now  in  view,  and  over 


A   SHIFT   IN   THE   SCENERY.  229 

it  a  bold  peak,  evidently  belonging  to  the  mass  designated 
Adai  Khokh  in  the  Tive  Verst  Map,  shot  up  in  the  most 
alarming  way  through  the  clouds.  Before  beginning  the 
final  zigzags  the  road  makes  a  wide  sweep  to  the  right,  to 
cross  the  stream  flowing  from  a  small  glacier  which  fills 
up  the  angle  between  the  ridges  at  the  head  of  the  glen. 
The  snow  had  entirely  covered  all  the  excavated  track  near 
the  top,  and  had  not  a  path  been  by  this  time  trodden  out 
of  the  steep  drift  which  had  accumulated  under  the  actual 
ridge,  our  horses  might  hare  had  difBcnlty  in  getting  np. 
Owing  to  the  position  of  the  pass,  there  is  little  distant 
view  to  the  west,  and  the  Eion  valley  is  still  hidden ;  but 
the  head  of  a  glen,  containing  one  of  the  sources  of  the 
Glola-Squali  (one  of  the  feeders  of  the  Rion)  was  at  our  feet, 
and  above  it  rose  the  stupendous  eastern  peak  of  Adai 
Khokh,  towering  above  several  neighbouring  summits.  A 
very  steep  and  much-crevassed  glacier,  the  largest  we  had 
seen  since  leaving  Kazbek,  poured  down  into  the  valley, 
and  we  agreed  that  there  was  little  prospect  of  any 
successful  climbing  in  this  direction.  A  heavy  shower 
soon  blotted  out  the  view.  The  road  descended  in  a 
series  of  very  long  and  gentle  zigzags,  now  obliterated  by 
snow;  the  winter-fall  had  been  heavier  this  year  than 
usual,  but  it  is  probable  that,  should  the  carriage-road 
ever  be  established,  this  part  of  it  will  have  to  be  roofed 
over  with  galleries,  which  there  would  be  no  difficulty  in 
making  with  so  much  wood  close  at  hand.  We  jumped 
a<)ross  the  small  stream,  and  on  its  opposite  bank  passed  a 
well-built  house,  erected  for  the  accommodation  of  the 
officers  in  charge  of  the  soldiers  who  traced  the  road.  I 
met  one  of  these  officers  afterwards,  and  he  descanted 
eloquently  on  the  hardships  he  had  endured  while  living 
for  three  months  (as  he  phrased  it)  on  a  glacier.  The 
stream  tumbled  quickly  down  into  a  deep  ravine ;  the  road 


230  THE   RION   VALLEY. 

followed  it  more  leisurely,  sweeping  over  fine  pasturages. 
Suddenly  we  came  to  the  comer,  where  the  hillsides 
trended  away  to  the  west,  and  looked  down  for  the  first 
time  on  a  large  portion  of  the  upper  Rion  basin,  in  which 
term  I  include  the  valley  of  its  first  considerable  tributary, 
the  Glola-Squali.  Few  people  who  have  not  seen  an 
absolutely  treeless  district  can  appreciate  the  magical 
effect  of  coming  out  of  one,  suddenly,  into  a  densely-forested 
region.  Below  us  was  the  head  of  a  deep  valley,  the 
slopes  covered  with  birch  and  ash,  mingled  lower  down 
with  noble  pines,  the  dark  green  of  which  came  out  in 
strong  contrast  to  the  lighter  foliage.  Spur  behind  spur, 
ridge  behind  ridge,  carried  the  eyes  up  to  a  cluster  of 
finely-shaped  peaks  on  the  southern  side  of  the  river, 
which,  like  the  Ardon,  is  enclpsed  by  mountain-ranges,  and 
finds  an  outlet  through  a  narrow  gorge.  We  stood  for 
some  time  in  delight'Cd  surprise,  and  agreed  that  we  had 
never  seen  a  landscape  more  beautiful,  lit  up  as  it  was  by 
the  afternoon  sun,  which  had  burst  through  the  clouds, 
and  was  shining  with  that  special  brilliancy  so  common  in 
the  interval  between  heavy  storms.  We  soon  found  our- 
selves among  the  trees.  Scattered  birches  first  hung  their 
graceful  branches  over  the  path ;  the  mountain-ash  next 
appeared,  accompanied  by  many  varieties  of  flowering 
shrubs,  and  by  flowers  (such  as  campanulas  and  wild  roses) 
the  presence  of  which  betokened  a  more  genial  soil  and 
climate. 

From  its  position  on  the  map  we  had  counted  on 
Gurschavi  as  a  desirable  resting-place,  and  when  the 
hamlet  came  in  sight,  its  lovely  position  determined  us  at 
once  to  make  it,  if  possible,  our  headquarters  for  a  day  or 
two.  A  dozen  wooden  cottages,  more  resembling  an  untidy 
Swiss  village  than  the  stone  fortresses  of  the  Ossetes,were 
perched   on  the  edge  of  a  triangular  meadow  projecting 


^'M     Ut'-J 


GURSCHAVI.  231 

from  tlie  base  of  the  mountain.  No  less  than  three  glens 
opened  up  behind  it,  all  more  or  less  tempting  to  an 
explorer,  and  in  front  the  position  commanded  a  wide  view 
of  the  basin  of  the  Rion  and  the  peaks  on  its  southern 
side.  The  main  chain  was  hidden  by  the  intervening 
buttresses.  The  road  makes  an  immense  zigzag  down  the 
valley  to  reach  the  bottom  of  the  ravine  under  the  village ; 
but  after  running  down  a  short  cut,  and  climbing  some  200 
feet  on  the  other  side,  we  found  ourselves  close  to  the 
houses,  which  are  surrounded  by  a  remarkably  fine  planta- 
tion of  stinging-nettles.  There  was  no  one  loitering  out- 
side, so  we  put  our  heads  into  the  nearest  cottage,  and 
found  a  large  low  room  with  a  few  benches  and  stools, 
which  opened  into  another  with  a  fireplace  in  the  centre, 
occupied  by  two  old  women,  to  whom  Paul  addressed 
himself.  At  first  there  seemed  likely  to  be  some  difficulty, 
as  Caucasian  etiquette  prevented  our  lodging  in  the  same 
house  as  the  beauties  before  us ;  but  we  had  spied  out  a 
very  unexpected  luxury,  in  some  joints  of  beef  hanging  up 
to  one  of  the  rafters,  and  were  quite  determined  not  to  be 
put  off.  Opposite  the  cottage  was  a  well-built  barn;  on  this 
we  set  our  eyes  as  a  likely  resting-place,  and  miade  our 
way  into  it.  A  heap  of  hay  filled  one  comer,  and  the 
place  looked  quite  habitable,  although  somewhat  glooomy 
from  the  want  of  a  window.  More  natives  soon  turned  up, 
and,  finding  we  should  be  contented  with  the  accommoda- 
tion of  the  bam,  they  set  to  work  with  a  will  to  make  the 
place  as  comfortable  as  possible.  One  swept  it  out, 
another  fetched  a  bench,  and  Paul  found  everybody 
willing  to  aid  him  in  his  culinary  operations.  While  he 
prepared  a  steak,  we  sent  Francois  to  cut  some  young 
nettles,  which,  when  chopped  up  and  boiled,  make  an 
excellent  vegetable,  scarcely  distinguishable  from  spinach. 
The  hamlet  was  a  small  one,  and  during  all  the  time  of 


232  TUB   RION   VALLEY. 

our  stay  there  we  saw  scarcely  more  than  twenty  people. 
They  were  not  dressed  in  the  showy  style  of  the  Ossetes ; 
their  clothes  were  old  and  sometimes  ragged,  and  their 
cartridge-pouches  made  of  horn  and  wood,  while  their  belts 
were  of  plain  leather,  and  the  daggers  hung  from  them  in 
sheaths  equally  unomamented.     The  *  swell '  of  the  place 
seemed  to  be  a  lad  of  14,  a  round-faced  fellow,  just  like  an 
English  schoolboy,  who  wore  a  wonderful  wideawake  hat, 
with  a  broad  brim  swelling  out  into  a  circular  crown, 
divided  by  braid,  and  shaped  like  an  orange.     He  took  •  a 
great  interest  in  us  and  our  doings,  and  *  fagged  *  several 
*  lower  boys,'  whom  he  kept  in  great  subjection,  to  fetch 
us  anything  he  thought  we  should  want.     In  return  we 
amused  him  by  displaying  our  knives,  field-glasses,  and 
other  knick-knacks,  so  that  I  believe  our  visit  was  a  great 
source  of  enjoyment  and  enlightenment  to  him.     To  us  it 
was  a  great  relief  to  get  among  a  colony  of  simple  peasants, 
and  to  be  freed  from  the  numerous  restraints  of  travelling 
among  the  *  gentlemen '  of  Ossetia.      We  passed  a  very 
comfortable  night,  though  my  mind  was  a  good  deal  dis- 
turbed by  discovering  the  loss  of  my  revolver,  which  I  now 
remembered  I  had  unfastened,  and  must  have  left  behind, 
near  the  house  at  the  foot  of  the  Mamisson  Pass.     We 
determined  that,   if  the  weather  was  fine,   Moore  and 
rran9ois  should  go  the  next  day  on  an  exploring  expedi- 
tion up  to  the  foot  of  the  chain,  while  Tucker  and  I  (both 
having  rubbed  heels)  should  stop  at  home,  and  see  to  the 
preparation  of  an  extraordinary  banquet. 

July  7th. — The  morning  was  not  very  promising,  but 
Moore  and  rran9ois  set  out,  in  the  hope  that  the  weather 
would  clear  up.  However,  it  came  on  to  rain  heavily, 
and  we  stay-at-homes,  rather  congratulating  ourselves  on 
our  superior  position,  settled  down  very  contentedly  to 
write  up  letters  and  read  Shakspeare,   a  Globe  edition 


A   RECONNAISSANCE.  233 

of  whose  works  formed  the  bulk  of  our  travelling  library. 
Our  companions  did  not  return  till  late  in  the  afternoon, 
bringing  with  them  my  revolver,  but  without  having 
gained  much  additional  information  about  the  mountains. 
They  had  taken  shelter,  during  the  worst  of  the  storm, 
in  the  house  before  mentioned,  and  then  climbed  the 
ridge,  between  two  of  the  sources  of  the  Glola-Squali,  to 
a  height  of  about  11,000  feet.  The  ground  was  covered 
with  snow  of  the  most  extraordinary  pink  or  rather  brick- 
red  hue,  a  phenomenon  we  noticed  frequently.  It  is  of 
very  rare  occurrence  in  the  Alps,  and  when  seen  there, 
the  pink  tinge  is  not  generally  so  vivid.  Clouds  had 
hidden  everything  except  the  tail  of  a  glacier  on,  their 
left,  so  that  we  could  form  no  definite  plans,  and  had 
nothing  to  do  but  to  wait  till  the  weather  cleared. 

July  8^A. — The  rain  was  over  when  we  awoke,  and  the 
bright  morning  sunshine  poured  down  upon  the  rich 
basin  below  us,  and  brought  out  fresh  beauties  of  colour 
and  distance  in  its  wooded  slopes.  The  peaks  overhead 
stood  out  boldly  against  the  blue  sky,  and  everything 
looked  fresh  and  inviting.  It  was  manifestly  a  day  for 
la,  view.  Our  chief  object  was  to  inspect  the  southern 
face  of  the  Adai  Khokh  group,  and  to  ascertain  if  there 
was  a  reasonable  prospect  of  effecting  any  high  passes 
or  ascents  in  it.  The  best  way  to  go  seemed  to  be  up 
the  hillside  behind  Gurschavi,  as  we  knew  that  we  must 
soon  gain  a  sufficiejit  height  to  see  the  great  chain  over 
the  grassy  buttresses  which  now  hid  it  from  us.  At  the 
back  of  the  cottages  is  a  burial-ground,  marked  by  some 
tall  tombstones,  where  the  *  rude  forefathers  of  the  hamlet 
sleep'  under  the  shade  of  fine  trees.  We  kept  along 
the  edge  of  the  little  plateau  on  which  Gurschavi  stands, 
until  we  came  to  a  bridge  over  a  stream  flowing  out  of 
a  recess  in  the  south-eastern  angle  of  the  ranges  which 


234  THE   RION    VALLEY. 

enclose  this  end  of  the  Rion  basin.      The  scale  of  the 
scenery,  the  richness  of  the  vegetation,  but,   above  all, 
the  ruddy  colouring  of  a  set  of  rock-teeth  which  sprang 
suddenly  out  of  the  slopes  on  the  eastern  bank,  reminded 
me  strongly  of  several  similar  scenes  amongst  the  Dolo- 
mites of  the  Italian  Tyrol.     A  woodman's  path  ran  along 
beside  the  torrent,  but,  as  it  did  not  gain  height  rapidly 
enough  for  us,  we  turned  straight  up  the  slopes.     For 
about  1,000  feet  we  scrambled  up  amongst  the  beautiful 
forest-trees,  growing  with  a  luxuriance  and  variety  un- 
equalled in  the  Alps.     The  imderwood  was  so  dense  that 
we  had  often  difficulty  in  pushing  our  way  up  through 
it,   and  were   glad  to  help  ourselves   up  by  the  tough 
branches  of  the  white  rhododendrons,  which  grew  in  great 
quantities,  and  were  now  in  full  blossom.     Through  the 
tree-tops  snowy  peaks  were  seen  from  time  to  time,  and 
when  we  found  a  bank  where  no  branches  intercepted  the 
panorama  of  the  main  chain,  now  full  in  view  opposite 
to  us,  we  thought  it  better  to  halt  and  make  our  observa- 
tions, rather  than  to  push  further  up  the  hiUside.     The 
chain  was  not  cloudless,  but  thanks  to  a  strong  wind, 
which  was  blowing  in  the  upper  region,  we  got  a  view, 
at  one  moment  or  another,  of  every  section  of  it,  although 
the  whole  was  never  quite  clear  at  the  same  time.     The 
first  and   most   striking   of  all   the   summits  before   us 
occupied  the  position  assigned  on  the  Five  Verst  Map 
to  the  peak  of  Adai  Khokh.*    Three  long  ribs  of  rock 

*  Tnilsas  Mta  of  Herr  Badde.  Caucasian  nomenclature  is  at  present  in  a 
state  of  hopeless  confusion.  It  has  seemed  to  me  best  to  follow  in  most  case^ 
the  authority  of  the  Fiye  Verst  Map,  which  the  traveller  will  probably  have  in 
his  hand.  Herr  Radde,  who  frequently  differs  from  it,  has  not  as  yet  published 
the  result  of  his  researches  in  the  form  of  a  corrected  map  of  the  Central 
Caucasus.  I  have  avoided,  as  far  as  possible,  encumbering  my  pages  with  such 
unpronounceable  names  as  Sagebigora,  Chrowlioto,  Sarziwisdsiris  Mta, 
Sopchltigoiam  Mta.  All  of  these  peaks  look  down  on  the  sources  of  the 
Bion. 


A   GRAND   PANORA^IA.  235 

and  ice  rau  up  into  a  sharp  point,  and  created  one  of  the 
most  striking  mountain-forms  I  ever  saw.  The  rocks  on 
the  left-hand  or  north-west  rib,  seen  though  a  telescope, 
were  of  the  most  formidable  character,  some  of  them 
appearing  actually  to  orerhang;  and  the  other  sides  of 
the  mountain  were  so  sheeted  with  ice  as  to  be,  if  not 
absolutely  inaccessible  (a  word  which  had,  perhaps,  best 
be  banished  nowadays  from  a  mountaineer^s  dictionary), 
practically  so  for  our  party.  Separated  by  a  deep  gap 
from  its  slenderer  neighbour  rose  a  double-headed  mass, 
supported  by  huge  and  fiiuitastically-broken  buttresses  of 
rock.  Huge  s6racs  hung  in  a  curtain  under  its  crest,  and 
raked  the  lower  snow-slopes.  These  two  summits  are  pro- 
bably nearer  16,000  than  15,000  feet;  to  the  west  of  them 
the  chain  sinks  considerably,  and  a  succession  of  snowy 
eminences,  none  of  them  sufficiently  marked  to  arrest  the 
attention,  are  connected  by  icy  ridges,  steep  and  high 
enough  to  present  a  serious  obstacle  to  anyone  wishing 
to  make  a  pass,  and  discover  what  lies  beyond  and  behind 
them.  Masses  of  rock  abutting  on  the  main  ridge  divided 
the  basins  of  sundry  small  glaciers  which  filled  the  hollows 
at  its  foot.  On  the  left,  the  isolated  snowy  tower  of 
Tau  Burdisula  formed  a  striking  termination  to  the 
group. 

We  were  completely  puzzled  to  know  what  use  to 
make  of  the  knowledge  we  had  now  gained  of  the  neigh- 
bouring mountains.  The  first  point  settled  was,  that 
the  two  big  peaks  must  be  let  alone,  and  we  inclined 
to  a  suggestion  made  by  Moore,  that  we  should  crosd 
over  to  the  northern  side,  and  back,  by  two  glacier-passes. 
The  Five  Verst  Map  showed,  on  the  west  side  of  Tau 
Burdisula,  a  pass  called  Per  Gurdzieveesk,  leading  from 
Chioi'a  to  the  valley  of  the  Uruch.  We  thought  we 
detected  a  weak  point  in  the  mountain- wall  before  men- 


236  TUE   EION   VALLEY. 

tioned  east  of  Tau  Burdisula,  from  which,  if  it  should 
prove  accessible  from  the  northern  side,  we  could  be  sure  of 
effecting  a  descent  into  the  Eion  valley.  It  was  finally 
decided  that  we  should  return  quickly  to  Gurschavi, 
collect  our  baggage,  and  go  down  to  Glola  to  sleep. 
Prom  there  to  Chiora  must,  we  knew,  be  an  easy  day, 
and  from  that  village,  if  the  weather  continued  fine, 
we  could  cross  the  known  pass  to  the  XJruch.  Its  track 
on  the  north  side  was  shown  by  the  map  as  running  along 
the  side  of  a  large  glacier,  the  head  of  which  must  be 
behind  the  gap  in  the  ridge  we  had  already  observed, 
as  likely  to  give  a  passage  to  the  south  side.  This  scheme 
had  the  advantage  of  leaving  us  the  alternative,  in  case 
of  bad  weather,  or  any  other  hindrance  to  its  execution, 
of  returning  over  the  same  pass  we  had  crossed  by,  and 
regaining  our  base.  The  decision  once  made  was  promptly 
acted  on,  and  we  raced  down  through  the  wood  to  the 
village.  Our  Teeb  horsemen,  whom  we  still  had  with 
us,  soon  got  the  animals  ready,  and  our  goods  packed  on 
their  backs.  Before  we  left,  a  sickly-looking  man,  who 
was  suffering,  as  far  as  we  could  judge,  from  consumption, 
was  brought  to  us  to  be  cured.  Of  course  we  could  do 
nothing  really  for  the  poor  fellow,  but,  willing  to  give  him 
satisfaction,  as  well  as  to  keep  up  our  own  credit,  we  un- 
locked our  little  medicine-case,  and  poured  him  out  a  dose 
of  chlorodyne.  The  dram  was  carefully  drained,  and  as 
soon  as  the  patient  felt  its  warmth,  he  gratefully  rubbed  his 
stomach,  and,  pouring  a  few  drops  of  water  into  the  cup,  he 
drank  them  off,  in  the  hopes  of  catching  any  lingering 
flavour.  Our  fai'ewell  to  the  boy-prince  and  the  rest  of  the 
village  was  most  cordial,  and  the  payment  we  offered  was 
this  time  accepted,  with  real  demonstrations  of  surprise  and 
pleasure  at  its  amount.  Amidst  universal  hand-shaking-, 
and  expressions   of  hopes  that  we   should  come   again 


TElItOURH   THE   FX)REST.  237 

another  year,  we  mode  our  way  out  of  the  Tillage,  our 
regret  at  leaving  which  was  only  tempered  by  Paul's 
an  noun  cement  that  we  had  eaten  up  all  tlie  beef.  The  prinoe 
and  a  friend  accompanied  na  down  to  the  road,  where  they 
took  a  final  leave,  and  we  saw  no  more  of  the  joliiest  boy 
in  the  Caucasus.  The  road  down  the  valley  keeps  on  the 
left  bank  of  the  river,  and  has  to  make  long  circuits  round 


the  ravines  which  fmrow  the  lower  slopes,  above  which 
sharp  8now-Btreaked  summits  •  peered  from  time  to  time 
between  the  trees.  The  torrent  falls  very  rapidly ;  the  road 
descends  more  gently  through  the  moat  magnificent  pine-  ' 
forest,  varied  with  birch,  poplar,  and  elm ,  and  carpeted  with 
moss  and  a  variety  of  subalpine  Bowel's.     Before  reaching 

*  The  Wallalsch ibis  Mia  of  Hrrr  Badde;  the  niunes  Dekmis-Zweri  nnd 
Oeske  appear  on  tlie  Five  VorsI  Map. 


238  THE   RION   VALLEY. 

the  point  where  the  largest  tributary  of  the  Glola-Sqnali 
flows  out  of  a  glen  running  deep  into  the  heart  of  the  main 
chain,  road  and  river  are  again  on  a  level.  The  afternoon 
was  beautiful,  and  we  enjoyed  a  superb  view  of  the  two 
peaks  of  Adai  Klokh,  which  exactly  fill  the  opening.  The 
right-hand  ridge  of  the  eastern  peak,  seen  from  here,  is  a 
most  exquisitely  sharp  and  thin  snow  arete,  and  its  sides 
are  of  a  steepness  appalling  to  anyone  who  has  ever 
allowed  the  idea  of  climbing  them  to  enter  his  head. 

An  artist  might  sit  down  at  this  spot  within  ten  yards  of 
thfe  road,  and  paint  a  perfect  picture,  without  putting  in  a 
foreground,  or  in  any  way  improving  on  nature.  The  foam- 
ing torrent,  and  the  rich  foliage  near  at  hand,  the  wooded 
slopes  in  the  middle  distance,  and  the  gigantic  mountain- 
forms  which  close  and  crown  the  view,  are  worthy  of  a 
master-hand,  and  the  rough  outline  sketch,  which  was  all 
we  could  carry  away  with  us,  can  give  but  a  faint  idea  of 
the  scene.  Every  bend  in  the  road  opened  some  fresh  vista 
of  wood,  water,  and  snow.  The  floor  of  the  valley  had  now 
widened,  and  the  forest  soon  gave  way  to  hayfields,  in 
which  parties  of  women  and  girls  were  at  work.  Having 
brought  on  the  scene  the  far-famed  beauties  of  the  Cauca- 
sus, this  would,  I  feel,  be  the  place  for  romance.  Unluck- 
ily, like  one  of  our  American  friends,  who,  being  called  on 
to  admire  an  Egyptian  sunset,  declared  ^  skyscapes  were 
not  in  his  line,'  descriptions  of  female  beauty  are  not  in 
mine,  and  I  have  the  further  plea  that  in  this  instance 
I  should  have,  not  to  describe,  but  to  invent.  The  forms 
and  faces  of  the  women  who  left  their  work  to  stare  at  the 
unprecedented  sight  of  three  English  mountaineers,  had 
lost,  by  exposure  to  weather  and  field  labour,  any  traces  of 
comeliness,  and  the  group,  but  for  certain  details  of  dress, 
was  just  such  as  might  be  met  with  in  any  Swiss  valley. 

Before  long  Glola  came  into  sight  on  the  opposite  side 


GLOLA.  239 

of  the  river,  built  at  the  mouth  of  a  tributary  stream,* 
which  had  its  source  in  a  glacier  of  the  main  chain,  a  por- 
tion of  which  was  for  a  few  minutes  visible,  and  with  which 
we  were  destined  in  a  few  days  to  become  better  ac- 
quainted. The  bridge  above  the  village,  which  existed 
at  the  time  of  Herr  Radde's  visit,  had  gone  the  way  of 
all  Caucasian  bridges;  and  we  had  to  make  a  circuit, 
which  cost  an  extra  ten  minutes,  to  reach  its  successor, 
built  half  a  mile  lower  down  the  stream,  there  flowing  in 
a  wide  stony  bed,  and  then  to  return  up  the  opposite 
bank.  Glola  is  more  like  a  Swiss  village  than  any  we  saw 
before  or  afterwards ;  the  houses  are  all  built  of  wood,  and 
have  overhanging  eaves,  balconies,  and  roofs  laid  with 
stones,  in  the  fashion  of  those  of  the  Canton  Berne,  although 
without  any  of  their  elaborate  carving  and  general  air  of 
finish.  The  place  is  sheltered  behind  a  projecting  cliff,  and 
on  a  brow  above  it  are  the  ruins  of  an  old  castle,  which  add 
considerably  to  its  general  effect.  We  were  first  led  to  a 
cottage,  which  had  such  an  indescribable  air  of  griminess 
and  dirt  about  it,  that  we  altogether  declined  to  take  up 
our  quarters  there.  We  soon  settled  on  an  apparently 
uninhabited  outbuilding,  attached  to  one  of  the  larger  ' 
houses,  where  we  found  a  small  room  with  some  hay  for 
our  beds,  and  a  broad  balcony  with  a  table  and  benches, 
which  served  us  as  a  sitting-room.  Paul  had  to  do  his 
cooking  in  the  adjoining  house,  and  I  believe  the  presence 
and  interruptionfl  of  certain  well-meaning  old  women  put 
him  out ;  whatever  was  the  cause,  we  had  to  wait  till  long 
after  dark  before  we  got  our  dinner.  Such  incidents  seem 
almost  too  trifling  to  record,  but  they  serve  to  remind  one 
of  what  is  often  lost  sight  of  afterwards-^the  difference 
between  travel  in  a  country  organised  for  pleasure-visitors, 
and  one  entirely,  so  to  speak,  in  a  state  of  nature.  We  got 

*  The  Schunilu  Squali  of  Raddo.    • 


240  THE    RlOX    VALLEY. 

our  food  at  last,  accompanied  by  a  rare  luxury,  a  bottle  of 
wine.  We  had  not  seen  such  a  thing  since  leaving  Kazbek, 
and  what  was  now  brought  us  under  the  name  of  wine  was 
a  muddy  liquor  which  owed  little  to  the  skill  of  its  maker, 
but  was,  at  any  rate,  unadulterated  juice  of  the  grape,  a 
recommendation  quite  sufficient  to  Tucker  and  myself.  The 
people  of  Glola  were  of  the  same  type  as  those  of  Gur- 
schavi — homely  peasants,  who  wore  the  usual  style  of  dress, 
crowned  by  felfc  hats  of  various  .and  sometimes  intensely 
comical  shapes.  We  were  regaled  with  new  bread,  one  of 
the  few  delicacies  of  the  country,  which  we  found  almost 
everywhere.  The  bread  of  the  Caucasus  is  peculiar,  and 
would  be  considered  detestable  by  many  people,  but  I  must 
own  to  giving  it  a  decided  preference  over  the  sour  black 
loaves  of  the  German  Alps.  The  peasants  never  think  of 
baking  until  they  actually  want  food ;  sufficient  for  the  day, 
or  rather  for  the  meal,  is  provided,  and  when  more  is 
wanted  it  has  to  be  made  afresh.  The  general  shape  of 
the  loaves  is  round  and  flat,  and  a  hungry  man  can  eat  two 
or  three  of  the  ordinary  size  at  a  meal.  Some,  however, 
are  of  a  more  substantial  nature,  and  have  a  layer  of 
melted  cheese  inside  them,  and  these,  when  hot,  are  by  no 
means  despicable.  Most  of  the  varieties  of  cakes  are  made 
of  barley,  aod  are  brown  in  colour,  very  close,  and  more  or 
less  heavy ;  they  vary,  of  course,  according  to  the  quality  of 
the  flour  used,  and  the  skill  of  the  maker.  Here  we  found 
another  kind,  made  of  indian-com,  pleasant  to  the  eye  and 
palate,  but  very  difficult  of  digestion. 

July  9th, — ^The  night  destroyed  an  illusion  which  for  a 
full  week  we  had  cherished  most  fondly.  Hitherto  we 
had  been  entirely  exempt  from  the  pest  of  insects,  and  we 
laid  ourselves  down  to  rest  absolutely  without  suspicion  of 
the  misery  in  store  for  us.  Tucker,  famed  for  his  suffer- 
ings in  Swiss  ch&lets,  was  the  first  to  be  attacked ;  the  noise 


FOREST   SCENERY.  241 

consequent  on  the  pursuit  in  which  he  was  engaged 
aroused  nie ;  once  awake,  to  sleep  again  was  impossible, 
and  we  all  lay  tossing  and  growling  until  moraing  put  an 
end  to  our  tortures. 

The  day  was  again  fine.  The  view  from  Glola,  down  the 
valley  towards  the  Schoda  chain,  was  very  striking,  and  in 
the  opposite  direction  rose  the  two  peaks  of  Adai  Khokh, 
grandly  defiant  as  ever.  We  had  no  unpleasantness  at 
parting,  and  flattered  ourselves — alas  !  how  vainly — that 
our  difficulties  with  uncivil  and  extortionate  villagers  were 
over,  and  that  henceforth  we  should  be  free  jfrom  those 
petty  vexations  which  destroy  half  the  pleasure  of  travel. 
Having  recrossed  the  same  bridge,  and  rejoined  the  new 
road,  which  does  not  pass  through  Glola,  we  soon  again 
entered  the  heart  of  the  primeval  forest,  where  the 
overhanging  arch  of  foliage  entirely  shaded  us  from  the 
sunshine ;  the  woodcutter's  axe  seldom  thins  these  glades, 
for  the  needs  of  the  scanty  population  of  the  upper  valley 
are  small,  and  the  lower  district  of  the  Badscha,  between 
here  and  Kutais,  is  so  richly  wooded  that  no  one  has 
occasion  to  come  here  for  timber.  The  passer-by  may 
see  illustrated  the  whole  life  of  a  tree,  from  it-s  first  stage 
to  the  last:  the  cone  just  dropped  on  the  ground,  the 
tender  sapling,  the  forest  giant  spreading  its  branches  in 
every  direction,  and  the  trunk,  broken  and  rotten,  pros- 
trate on  the  ground  and  gradually  mouldering  away  into 
the  soil,  from  which  a  fresh  generation  wiU  soon  spring. 

A  sharp  hour's  walk  below  Glola  brought  us  to  the 
mouth  of  the  narrow  defile  through  which  the  collected 
waters  of  the  Rion  basin  make  their  escape.  Three 
streams  join  to  form  the  river  just  above  the  gorge :  the 
largest,  the  true  source  of  the  Rion,  comes  dovni  the 
western  arm  of  the  valley,  from  the  mountains  behind 
Gebi ;  the  Glola-Squali,  known  also  by  the  less  euphon- 


242  THE   RION   VALLEY. 

ious  name  of  the  Dschandschaclii-Squali,  flows  to  meet 
it  from  the  east,  and  between  them  a  smaller  stream 
cuts  its  way  directly  down  from  a  glacier  in  the  main 
chain,  through  a  narrow  opening  in  the  lower  hills.  A 
bridge  crosses  the  Rion,  a  short  way  below  the  double 
confluence,  and  on  a  plot  of  level  ground  close  to  the  river- 
bank  stands  a  house,  evidently  of  Russian  construction, 
but  now  falling  rapidly  into  decay.  Having  made  a  con- 
siderable bend  into  the  mouth  of  the  defile,  and  crossed  the 
united  streams,  we  turned  up  a  path  which  led  along  the 
right  ba4k  of  the  true  Rion,  through  woods  as  dense  as 
before,  although  the  single  trees  were  not  so  fine  as  those 
which  grow  on  the  opposite  slopes.  The  path  was  level 
for  some  distance,  until  it  mounted  a  spur  of  the  Schoda 
chain,  which  nearly  barred  the  valley. 

The  sunny  slopes  were  converted  into  meadows  and  corn- 
fields, and  dotted  with  dark-brown  hay  chMets,  scarcely  a 
quarter  of  the  size  of  those  in  the  Alps.  A  solitary  pine,  of 
great  size  and  perfect  shape,  marked  the  top  of  the  ascent, 
beyond  which  we  came  in  sight  of  Chiora  and  a  stretch 
of  the  upper  valley,  in  which  the  river,  to  judge  by  the 
width  of  its  stony  bed,  is  accustomed  to  commit  great 
ravages,  and  to  change  its  course  very  frequently.  Arrived 
opposite  the  village,  which  is  prettily  situated  on  a  gentle 
southward-facing  slope  of  cornfields,  we  found  that  there 
was  no  bridge  where  one-half  of  the  stream  now  flowed, 
and  we  had  consequently  to  wait  while  our  Norsemen  sought 
the  best  ford,  and  then  to  ride,  one  by  one,  through  the 
water.  It  was  a  long  time  before  we  got  the  baggage  fairly 
to  the  other  side,  and  the  heat  of  the  sun,  reflected  from  the 
stones  of  the  river-bed,  made  the  delay  anything  but 
pleasant. 

Chiora  is  built  in  a  totally  different  style  to  Glola  and 
Gurschavi.  The  houses  are  all  of  stone,  two-storied, 
with   sloping  roofs,  scarcely  any  eaves,  and  very  small 


CHIORA.  243 

holes  for  windows.  On  our  arrival,  we  were  conducted 
to  a  shed,  open  on  one  side  to  the  air,  where  we  were 
requested  to  wait  till  quarters  were  prepared  for  us.  In 
the  meanwhile  the  whole  village  gathered  round  to  stare 
at,  and  no  doubt  criticise,  the  extraordinary  beings  who  had 
come  to  visit  them.  Paul  went  off  to  survey  our  intended 
lodging,  and  came  back  very  disconsolate,  for  first  appear- 
ances certainly  were  not  cheerful.  The  interior  of  all  the 
houses  seemed  the  same — a  couple  of  ill-lighted  rooms  with 
rough  stone  walls,  with  wooden  pegs  stuck  into  their  cre- 
vices, from  which  hung  clothes,  sheepskin  cloaks,  and 
various  household  and  field  implements.  It  was  too  dark 
inside  either  to  write  or  read,  so  we  removed  our  mattrass 
to  a  rough  wooden  balcony  projecting  from  the  front  of  the 
house,  whence  there  was  a  beautiful  view  down  the  valley, 
closed  by  the  dark  forests  opposite  Glola,  and  the  serrated 
summits  of  the  Wallatschibis  Mta.  A  very  sharp  rock- 
peak,  rising  over  the  southern  slopes  immediately  opposite 
the  village,  is  in  shape  an  almost  exact  model  of  the 
Eothhom  from  Zermatt ;  we  saw  afterwards  that  it  is  an 
impostor,  being  in  fact  only  the  end  of  a  long  and  narrow 
ridge  running  towards  the  vaUey  fix)m  one  of  the  chief 
summits  of  the  range  between  Grebi  and  Oni. 

In  order  to  put  into  execution,  as  soon  as  possible,  the 
plan  formed  on  the  rhododendron  slope  above  Gurschavi,  of 
effecting  two  passes  across  the  main  chain,  we  made  en- 
quiries among  the  villagers  as  to  the  Gurdzieveesk  Pass, 
which  proved  well  known  to  them :  at  first  they  asserted  it 
took  two  days  to  reach  the  other  side  of  the  mountain,  but 
on  being  pressed,  they  admitted  that  a  good  walker  might 
do  it  in  one.  Our  only  diflSculty  was  in  settling  the  terms  on 
which  a  peasant  would  accompany  us  to  the  snow-level  on 
the  southern  side,  and  in  making  up  our  minds  what  instruc- 
tions to  give  Paul,  whom  we  meant  to  leave  in  charge  of  our 

r2 


244  THE   EION  VALLEY. 

baggage.  Both  questions  were  settled  before  nightfall ;  a 
native  agreed  to  be  ready  to  start  with  us  at  half-past  1  a.m., 
and  we  determined  that  Paul  should  hire  a  horse  and  go 
on  to  Gebi,  which  was  only  an  hour's  walk  farther  up  the 
valley,  there  to  await  our  return. 

The  people  of  Chiora  were  less  simple  and  kindly  than 
those  of  Gurschavi  and  Glola ;  but  we  had  no  reason  to 
complain  of  any  inhospitable  conduct,  beyond  the  usual 
desire  to  make  a  good  bargain,  and  get  as  much  as  they 
could  out  of  us.  Their  impression  of  our  position  was 
shown  by  a  request,  made  to  us  in  the  course  of  the 
evening,  that  on  our  return  to  Kutais,  we  would  repre- 
sent to  the  Governor  of  Mingrelia  the  unfair  distribution 
of  the  mountain  pasturages,  by  which  the  neighbouring 
villages  got  more  than  their  share,  and  Chiora  had  not 
enough  for  its  flocks  and  herds.  According  to  Paul,  we 
were  generally  believed  to  be  officials  employed  on  some 
survey,  or  such-like  mystery  of  civilisation,  the  existence 
of  which  was  known  to,  though  its  benefit  was  beyond 
the  comprehension  of,  the  common  Caucasian  intellect. 


CAUCASIAN  SHEPHERDS.  245 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE  GLACIEES  AND  FOBESTS  OP  THE  CENTEAL  CAUCASUS. 

Caucasian  Shepherds — A  Lovely  Alp — Sheep  on  the  Glacier — A  New  Pass 
— A  Snow  Wall — A  Bough  Glen — ^The  Karagam  Glacier — Bivouac  in  the 
Forestr— An  Icefall— A  Struggle  and  a  Victory-— The  Upper  Snowfields 
—The  Watershed  at  lastr-Check— A  Useful  Gully— An  Uneasy  Night 
— Glola  again — ^Pantomime — Gebi — Curious  Villagers — A  Baigain  for 
Porters — ^Azalea  Thickets— The  Source  of  the  Bion— Bank  Herbage 
— Camp  on  the  Zenes-Squali — A  Low  Pass — Swamps  and  Jungles 
—Path-finding— The  Glen  of  the  Scena— Wide  Pasturages— The  Naksagar 
Pass. 

July  lOf  A. — ^We  made  a  late  supper,  or  early  breakfast, 
soon  after  midniglit,  and  having  insisted  on  the  peasant 
who  was  to  accompany  us  sleeping  in  the  same  house, 
found  no  difKculty  in  starting  at  the  hour  appointed. 
Before  separating  from  Paul,  we  told  him  to  explain  fully 
to  our  guide  the  part  we  expected  him  to  perform,  and 
the  pay  we  should  give  him  if  he  fulfilled  it  to  our  satis- 
faction. This  was  a  necessary  precaution,  as  we  had  no 
means,  except  signs,  of  communicating  with  our  companion, 
who  only  knew  the  Georgian  dialect  commonly  spoken  on 
the  south  side  of  the  chain.  We  climbed  the  hillside 
immediately  behind  Chiora,  soon  leaving  below  us  the 
cultivated  fields,  and  finding  ourselves  on  grass-covered 
slopes,  adorned  with  clusters  of  trees  in  the  manner  of  an 
English  park.  Shepherds'  fires  shone  here  and  there 
through  the  darkness,  and  our  guide  took  us  round  in 
order  to  pass  near  some  of  his  Mends,  who  were  camping- 
out  with  their  flocks.  The  peasants  of  the  Caucasus  do 
not  take  nearly  so  much  pains  as  those  of  the  Alps  to 


246  CAUCASIAN   GLACIERS  AND   FORESTS. 

provide  themselves  with  a  substantial  shelter  while  spend- 
ing the  summer  on  the  mountains.  It  is  onlj  rarely,  and 
in  certain  districts,  that  huts  at  all  resembling  the  Swiss 
chalets  are  met  with.  I  only  recall  three  instances — two 
in  the  Uruch .  valley,  and  one  close  to  the  source  of  the 
Bion.  In  general  the  herdsmen  are  contented  with  a 
slight  shelter,  constructed  of  a  few  boughs  and  a  sheep- 
skin, which  can  afford  very  little  protection  in  bad  weather. 
Close  at  hand  a  forked  stake  is  driven  into  the  ground,  on 
which,  if  the  owner  is  at  home,  he  hangs  his  gun.  This 
and  a  milking-pail  constitute  nearly  all  the  furniture  of  a 
Caucasian  shepherd,  who,  as  the  flock  under  his  charge  con- 
sists mostly  of  sheep,  oxen,  and  horses,  is  spared  the  deli- 
cate and  complicated  cares  of  a  large  dairy  establishment. 

Having  passed  the  last  of  the  shepherds'  bivouacs, 
we  steadily  followed  the  somewhat  steep  zigzags  of  the 
sledge-path,  imtil  it  surmounted  a  brow  which  had  pre- 
viously cut  short  our  view.  Dawn  had  not  yet  broken,  and 
the  graceful  forms  of  scattered  copses  of  birch  and  fir 
fonned  a  fairylike  foreground  to  a  long  moonlight  vista 
up  the  Tchosura  to  the  glaciers  and  snowcapped  summits 
of  the  main  chain.  Deep  below,  in  the  dark  shadow  of 
the  valley,  the  white  towers  of  Gebi  were  distinguishable, 
and  behind  us  the  bold  peaks  of  the  Schoda  chain  stood 
out  against  a  sky  paling  with  the  first  approach  of  day- 
break. A  herd  of  horses,  disturbed  by  our  early  move- 
ments, trotted  off  across  the  hillside,  which  now  became 
more  open. 

The  path  still  mounted,  and  soon  even  the  birch,  the 
tree  always  found  nearest  the  snow  in  these  regions, 
was  left  behind.  A  host  of  alpine  flowers,  amongst 
which  the  white  rhododendron  was  again  conspicuous, 
covered  the  ground,  only  just  free  from  snow,  which 
still  lay  in  deep  drifts  in  the  hollows.    The  path  for  a 


A   LO^^:LY  ALP.  247 

long  time  followed  a  ridge,  narrow  at  first,  but  gradu- 
ally broadening  into  grassy  undulations ;  on  one  side  the 
ground  broke  away  suddenly  towards  the  Rion,  on  the 
other  it  sank  more  gradually  into  a  barren  recess,  a  branch 
of  the  Tchosura  valley,  above  which  rose  a  steep-sided 
range  covered  with  small  glaciers.  The  height  of  8,500 
feet  we  had  already  gained  was  sufi&cient  to  give  us  a  good 
panorama  of  the  Upper  Bion  basin,  which  served  to  con- 
firm our  previous  estimate  of  its  beauty.  The  ridge  we 
were  walking  along  now  bent  round  to  the  northward, 
and  separated  the  water  flowing  down  into  the  lUon  at 
Gebi  from  the  upper  basin  of  the  stream,  which  joins  the 
river  close  to  its  meeting  with  the  Glola-Squali.  Far 
below  us,  on  our  right,  we  looked  down  into  a  deep  wooded 
defile,  the  outlet  through  which  this  stream  escapes.  Here 
the  track  began  to  descend,  but  first  made  a  long  sweep 
round  the  hillside,  before  finally  plunging  into  the  beauti- 
fully-timbered little  plain,  at  the  mouth  of  the  narrow  glen 
which  leads  up,  due  north,  to  the  Gurdzieveesk  Pass. 

Knowing  that  this,  the  chief  part  of  the  daj^'s  walk, 
was  still  before  us,  w6  grudged  bitterly  the  2,000  feet  of 
height  thus  lost,  and,  having  now  been  five  hours  on  the 
march,  determined  to  stop,  and  open  our  provision- wallet. 
The  beauty  of  the  spot,  and  a  spring  bubbling  up  under 
a  clump  of  alders,  formed  additional  inducements  to  a 
halt.  The  level  meadow  in  which  we  were  sitting  was 
partially  covered  with  trees ;  the  glades  were  filled  with 
lush  herbage,  and  bright  with  many  flowering  plants. 
Grassy  ridges,  rising  above  the  level  of  the  forest,  but 
not  reaching  that  of  perpetual  snow,  shut  off  this  se- 
questered nook  from  the  lower  valley,  and  immediately 
overhead,  on  the  east  of  the  narrow  trench,  which  offered 
a  way  up  to  the  crest  of  the  mountains,  the  steep  snowy 
sides   and  tower-like   summit  of  Tau  Burdisula  caught 


•248  CAUCASIAN   GLACIERS  AND   FORESTS. 

the   eye.     The   glen    up   which   our  path   lay  was  soon 
terminated,   by   a   steep   glacier  falling  over  in  a  long 
icefall   from    the    unseen    snowfields    above.      The    rich 
pasturages  of  this  beautiful  plain,  and  the  surrounding 
slopes,  are  not  allowed  altogether  to  run  to  waste ;  we 
passed  herds  both  of  horses  and  oxen,  and  saw  smoke 
rising  from  the  bivouacs  of  the  peasants  in   charge  of 
them.     Steep  walls  of  rock  hem  in  the  upper  portion  of 
the  glen,  and  the  glacier-torrent  has  covered  the   space 
between  them  with  granitic  boulders,  amongst  which  we 
picked  our  way. 

A  long  and  gradual  ascent  to  the  foot  of  the  glacier 
was  followed  by  a  very  steep  but  easy  climb  up  the  slopes 
of  snow  and  rock  on  its  right.     Halfway  up  we  stopped, 
and  while  resting  saw  to  our  surprise  a  large  flock  of 
sheep,  accompanied  by  their  dogs  and  shepherds,  descend- 
ing  towards   us.      The   animals   hurried  and  slid  down 
the  snow  at  a  great  pace,  apparently  anxious  to  jBnish 
their  march,  and  reach  the  tempting  herbage,  already  in 
sight  below  them.     The  dogs  were  fine  animals,  but  some- 
what savage,  and  not  at  all  disposed  to  acquiesce  quietly 
in  our  presence;  they  were  called  off  by  their  masters, 
with  whom  we  were,  of  course,  unable  to  hold  any  com- 
munication.    Our  Chiora  peasant  now  expressed  by  signs 
his  wish  to  return,  so,  having  given  him  a  good  day's  walk, 
we  paid  him  aU  he  asked  for,  and  let  him  go. 

For  some  distance  further  the  ascent  was  very  rapid,  still 
over  alternate  beds  of  shale  and  snow.  At  last  we  were 
on  a  level  with  the  top  of  the  icefall,  and  looked  into  the 
deep  n6v6-filled  basin  which  feeds  it.  We  had  not  carefully 
followed  the  sheep-track,  and  on  looking  back  saw  that  it 
had  turned  sharp  up  the  slopes  to  the  left,  some  distance 
behind.  Although  it  would  have  been  perfectly  easy  to 
regain  it,  the  course  up  the  glacier  to  its  head  was  so  far 


A  ^'E^r  pass.  249 

the  most  obvious  that  we  adopted  it  without  much 
thought.  The  upper  snowfield  was  more  extensive  than 
it  looked  from  below,  and  rose  in  a  succession  of  gentle 
steps,  each  more  or  less  broken  by  large  crevasses.  These, 
with  the  safeguard  of  the  rope,  we  found  no  difficulty  in 
turning,  and  came  at  last  in  sight  of  the  point  at  which 
we  should  hit  the  ridge — a  well-marked  and  striking  gap 
between  two  rocks  at  the  extreme  head  of  the  snowy 
basin.  The  glacier  scenery  was  wild,  but  not  particularly 
grand ;  the  summits  around  us,  which  cut  off  all  distant 
view,  were,  with  the  exception  of  Tau  Burdisula,  of  no 
great  height,  and  even  that  did  not  look  very  imposing 
from  this  side.  The  trudge  over  the  last  snowfield  was 
heavy,  and  we  began  to  count  the  number  of  steps,  and  to 
wonder  how  many  more  would  be  necessary  to  get  over 
what  seemed  to  the  eye  a  very  small  distance.  When  (at 
12.30)  we  reached  the  gap,  and  found  shelter  under  some 
rocks  from  the  cold  blast  which  was  blowing  through  it, 
we  congratulated  ourselves  on  having  perpetrated  that 
delight  of  Alpine  climbers,  a  new  col,  though  whether 
our  notch  would  prove  one  was  still  a  question.  A  snow 
couloir  fell  away  rapidly  for  some  hundred  feet  between 
splintered  towers  of  rock,  and  then,  the  angle  becoming 
still  steeper,  was  lost  to  sight,  and  the  eye  descended  to  a 
tolerably  level  and  smooth  glacier  backed  by  an  icy  ridge, 
equal  in  height  to  that  on  which  we  were  sitting.  Up 
the  glacier  a  long  procession  of  sheep  was  slowly  wending 
its  way  towards  the  regular  pass,  in  the  track  of  those 
we  had  encountered  in  the  morning.  The  northern  side, 
although  easy  to  a  mountaineer,  seemed  to  be  defended  by 
a  crevasse  large  enough  to  form  a  serious  obstacle  to 
sheep  and  dogs.  The  bold  rock-shapes  in  the  foreground, 
and  the  wildness  of  the  whole  view,  entirely  confined  to  the 
snow-region,  and  devoid  of  any  touch  of  softness,  reminded 


250  CAUCASIAN    GLACIERS   AND    FORESTS. 

US  of  those  Alpine  subjects  with  which  all  who  are 
acquainted  with  Mr.  Walton's  drawings  must  be  familiar. 
Before  attempting  the  doubtful  descent  we  *jodeled' 
and  fired  off  our  revolvers,  to  attract  the  attention  of  the 
shepherds,  who  halted  for  some  minutes  to  watch  us.  Even 
a  common  snow-slope — and  this  was  by  no  means  a  common 
one — ^looks  remarkably  like  a  wall  when  seen  from  any  point 
nearly  opposite  it ;  I  fancy,  therefore,  that  our  performance 
during  the  next  half-hour  must  have  been  fully  as  exciting 
and  gratifying  to  the  spectators  as  those  of  Blondin  and 
Leotard  are  to  a  London  crowd.  Fortunately,  the  snow 
was  in  perfect  order,  firm  enough  to  hold  without  being  too 
hard  to  dig  steps  into  with  the  foot,  and  with  ordinary 
care  there  was  little  risk  in  the  descent  on  to  the  glacier, 
notwithstanding  the  really  formidable  angle  of  the  slope, 
which  was  equal  to  that  of  the  last  piece  of  the  Wetter- 
horn,  but  about  2,000,  instead  of  700,  feet  in  height. 
rran9ois  took  exactly  the  right  course,  and  by  swerving 
to  the  left,  about  halfway  down,  avoided  an  overhanging 
mass  of  s6rac,  which  would  have  brought  us  to  a  sudden 
check.  Once  on  the  level  of  the  glacier,  we  had  nothing  to 
do  but  to  follow  its  course,  which  led  us  in  a  north-easterly 
direction.  The  ice  being  covered  with  a  tolerably  thick 
layer  of  dirty  snow,  and  almost  free  from  crevasses,  our 
progress  was  rapid,  and  we  were  enabled  to  make  use 
of  the  smooth  surface  to  the  point  where  the  glacier 
terminated,  and  the  stream  issuing  from  it  struggled,  with 
only  partial  success,  to  free  itself  from  the  snow-beds 
which  still  strove  to  bury  it  from  the  light  of  day.  When 
we  had  once  got  below  the  snow-limit,  which  is  compara- 
tively low  in  this  rock-encircled  and  sunless  glen,  the 
walking  became  very  rough.  Huge  boulders,  fallen 
from  the  cliffs  above,  strewed  the  ground,  and  offered 
under  their  sides  lairs,  evidently  often  made  use  of  by 


THE   KARAGAM   GLACIER.  251 

shepherds  or  travellers  desirous  to  cross  the  glacier  while 
the  snow  was  hard,  a  precaution  almost  essential  for 
people  to  whom  the  use  of  a  rope  is  unknown.  We  were 
too  eager  to  gain  a  view  of  the  ice-stream,  which  we 
knew  from  the  map  must  fill  the  hollow  in  which  the  glen 
at  last  merges,  to  take  advantage  of  any  of  these  bivouacs. 
Scattered  firs  made  their  appearance,  relieving  the  other- 
wise desolate  character  of  the  scenery,  and  the  Caucasian 
rhododendron  covered  the  ground,  filling  up  the  crannies 
between  the  rocks  with  its  thick  branches. 

There  were  now  some  slight  traces  of  a  path,  and  we  came 
suddenly  upon  two  peasants  (probably  natives  of  Zenaga, 
the  highest  village  in  this  branch  of  the  Uruch  valley)  and 
a  donkey,  the  object  of  whose  mountain  excursion  we  were 
unable  to  ascertain,  owing  to  our  ignorance  of  the  Caucasian 
dialects.  The  two  parties  having  satisfied  each  other,  by 
a  close  mutual  inspection,  that  no  harm  was  intended  on 
either  side,  separated ;  the  peasants  taking  a  track  leading 
towards  the  valley,  while  we  went  forward  in  search  of  a 
point  which  might  overlook  the  great  glacier,  and  afford 
some  insight  into  the  chances  of  our  proposed  vejitiire  on 
the  morrow.  An  isolated  grassy  knoll,  just  in  the  mouth 
of  the  glen,  seemed  the  spot  most  likely  to  offer  the  view 
we  wanted,  and  the  scene  which  burst  upon  us  on  reaching 
it  so  far  exceeded  and  differed  from  our  expectations  that, 
at  first,  we  could  hardly  realise  its  magnificence.  The 
whole  bed  of  the  valley  into  which  the  glen  falls  is  filled 
by  an  immense  glacier  only  surpassed  in  the  Alps  by  the 
Aletsch.*     Its  head  was  hidden  behind  nearer  buttresses, 

*  Herr  Abich  aUudes  to  this  glacier  in  the  following  tenns : — *  A  superb 
glacier  of  the  first  class  descends  on  the  north  from  the  Adai-Khokh  group 
between  the  ridges  of  Bordjoula  and  of  Saourdaour.  It  is  the  Khaltschi- 
Don  gbicier.  It  is  at  least  1,600  feet  broad,  and  traverses  the  forest  region  for  a 
great  distance.  Approaching  the  village  of  Zenaga,  it  descends  to  a  level  of 
5,700  feet,  the  lowest  point  known  to  be  reached  by  any  Caucasian  glacier.' 


252  CAUCASIAN   GLACIERS   AND   FORESTS. 

but  we  had  a  good  view  of  the  ranges  on  its  right  bank.* 
Opposite  rose  a  high  and  steep  mountain-wall ;  higher  up, 
looking  in  a  south-easterly  direction,  an  odd  tower-shaped 
rock  appeared  in  front  of  a  long  curtain  of  ice,  surmounted, 
on  the  right,  by  a  taU  gracefully-shaped  peak,  and  on  the 
left  by  a  serrated  ridge,  in  which  tooth  succeeded  tooth  in 
the  most  formidable  array.  Following  with  the  eye  the 
course  of  the  ice-stream,  to  the  point  where  it  made  a 
pudden  plunge  into  a  branch  of  the  valley  of  the  Uruch, 
we  looked  over  the  great  waves  which  marked  the  com- 
mencement of  the  fall,  and  saw,  beyond  and  far  below 
them,  a  tolerably  wide  valley.  Its  slopes  were  wooded 
with  firs,  and  we  could  distinguish  some  cultivated 
land ;  the  northern  horizon  was  formed  by  rugged  peaks, 
too  low  to  carry  perpetual  snow.  The  summit  of  one  ©f 
them  bears  a  striking  resemblance  to  a  castle  with  a  taU 
turret  at  one  of  the  angles. 

Our  position  was  much  the  same  with  regard  to  our 
proposed  pass  as  that  of  a  traveller  at  the  Montanvert 
intending  to  cross  the  Col  du  G6ant.  We  had  ascer- 
tained that  the  great  glacier  marked  in  the  map  existed, 
and  was  in  reality  far  larger  than  it  was  represented ; 
but  we  could  see  nothing  of  its  upper  portion,  and  could 
only  be  certain  that  it  poured  out  of  a  gap  just  visible 
on  the  right  of  the  great  snow-peaks.  These  oflfered 
us  a  puzzle,  which  our  united  endeavours  failed  to 
solve,  as  it  was  impossible  to  identify  them  with  any  of 
the  summits  we  had  studied  from  the  south,  while  we 
found  it  hard  to  believe  that  such  lofty  peaks  did  not 
form  part  of  the  watershed.  This  problem  was  left  to 
time  to  solve,  and  we  came  to  the  conclusion  that, 
though  we  had  gained  no  positive  information  as  to  the 
possibility  of  crossing  the  chain  by  the  great  glacier, 

*  The  torrent  issuing  from  it  is  called  the  Xaragam,  a  name  which  seems  the 
most  appropriate  for  the  glacier. 


A   NIGHT   IN  THE   FOREST.  253 

yet  appearances  were  sufficiently  encouraging  to  justify  our 
resolving  to  make  the  attempt.  We  accordingly  set  to 
work  to  search  for  a  suitable  spot  for  a  bivouac.  There  were 
plenty  of  boulders  strewn  about,  capable  of  affording  more 
or  less  shelter,  but  there  was  no  water;  therefore  we 
reluctantly  decided  that  we  must  descend  the  steep  fir-clad 
bank  below  us  to  the  side  of  the  stream  flowing  from  the 
Gurdzieveesk  Pass,  which  here  runs  in  a  narrow  channel 
between  the  hillside  and  the  huge  lateral  moraine  of  the 
Karagam  glacier.  We  had  not  gone  far  when  Fran9oi8, 
fortunately,  hit  upon  a  spring,  and  as  there  was  a  tolerably 
level  and  sheltered  spot  of  ground  not  far  off,  we  at  once 
settled  to  remain  there  for  the  night.  The  first  thing  to 
do  was  to  cut  a  quantity  of  young  fir-branches,  to  serve  for 
beds,  and  to  eject  sundry  small  boulders,  which  inconveni- 
ently contracted  our  not  over-large  sleeping-phtce.  We 
next  proceeded  to  unpack  our  provisions,  to  count  over 
and  apportion  our  store  of  bread,  and  to  hunt  out  certain 
rare  delicacies,  which  had  been  specially  reserved  for  some 
such  occasion  as  the  present.  Our  dinner  was  of  the 
most  recherche  description :  a  first  course  of  sardines  was 
followed  by  chicken,  and  a  box  of  pdte  de  foie  gras,  one  of 
two  purchased  at  Tiflis,  which,  spread  not  too  thickly  over 
slices  of  Caucasian  loaves,  proved  a  '  lingering  sweetness 
long  drawn  out '  to  all  of  us. 

It  was  very  difficult  to  realise,  as  we  sat  and  chatted 
round  the  log -fire  which  Fran9ois  had  prepared,  how  far  we 
really  were  from  home,  and  that  our  resting-place  was  not 
some  old  Alpine  haunt  from  which  we  should  cross  on  the 
morrow  to  Zermatt  or  Grindelwald.  In  reality  our  posi- 
tion was  sufficiently  strange,  unable  as  we  were  to  hold  any 
conversation  vrith  the  people  of  the  country,  and  separated 
from  our  interpreter  and  luggage  by  a  long  day's  journey 
and  a  great  range  of  mountains.     Its  discomforts  and  un- 


254  CAUCASIAN   GLACIERS  AND   FORESTS. 

certainties  were  not,  however,  sufficient  to  counterbalance 
the  pleasure  derived  from  the  sense  of  novelty  and  adven- 
ture, and  the  only  real  subject  of  anxiety  which  disquieted 
us  was  the  state  of  Tucker's  heels,  both  of  which  he  had 
rubbed  raw  during  the  day's  walk.  Moore  was  fortunately 
provided  with  plaister,  and  the  failure  of  the  natural  was 
supplied  by  an  artificial  coating.  When  daylight  faded 
away  we  arranged  our  side-bags,  the  only  luggage  we 
carried,  as  pillows,  and  soon  fell  off  to  sleep. 

July  Wth. — Our  sheltered  position,  combined  with  the 
fineness  of  the  weather  and  a  good  fire,  which  was  kept 
up  nearly  all  night,  prevented  our  suffering  from  cold, 
and  I  have,  seldom  enjoyed  sounder  sleep  than  I  did  in 
this  bivouac  in  .the  fir-forest.  We  were,  in  fact,  almost 
too  comfortable,  for  no  one  stirred  before  daybreak,  and  it 
was  not  till  half-past  three  that  our  preparations  were 
concluded,  and  we  were  ready  to  start  for  the  unknown 
region  in  which  the  great  ice-stream  flowing  under  our 
feet  had  its  origin.  We  had  previously  discussed  the 
question,  whether  it  would  be  better  to  descend  on  to  the 
glacier  or  to  keep  along  its  left  bank,  and  had  decided  in 
favour  of  the  latter  course,  notwithstanding  the  necessity 
it  involved  of  partially  retracing  our  steps,  in  order  to 
cross  the  stream  flowing  from  the  Gurdzieveesk  glen. 
The  circuit  necessary  to  effect  this  passage  cost  us  an 
hour's  most  toilsome  walking.  The  place  at  which  we 
jumped  the  stream  was  one  not  to  be  generally  recom- 
mended, as  it  was  necessary  to  advance  to  the  point  of  a 
smooth  and  slippery  rock,  and  jump  from  thence  on  to 
the  farther  side.  The  jump  itself  was  easy,  but  the  ^  take- 
off'  was  so  bad,  and  the  consequences  of  a  slip  into  the 
rapid  torrent  would  have  been  so  serious,  that  no  small 
care  was  necessary.  After  a  tiresome  scramble,  amidst 
rhododendron    bushes   and    over   large   and    frequently 


THE   GREAT   ICEPALL.  255 

loose  boulders,  we  were  heartily  glad  to  meet  with  a 
distinct  though  narrow  path  leading  in  the  direction  we 
wished  to  follow.  Aft^r  mounting  for  some  distance,  b}' 
steep  zigzags,  up  a  bank  broken  by  crags  and  covered 
with  underwood,  we  found  ourselves  on  a  sloping  pas- 
turage by  the  side  of  the  Karagam  glacier,  the  fall  of 
which  towards  the  valley  was  here  very  considerable.  In 
about  two  hours  from  our  bivouac  we  had  gained  a  pro- 
jecting brow,  which  had  hitherto  cut  oflf  the  view  of  the 
upper  glacier.  To  our  surprise,  we  found  here  a  small 
stone-buUt  hut  and  enclosure,  used  by  the  shepherds 
during  the  summer  months,  but  not  yet  inhabited. 

We  now  saw  how  the  gap  on  the  right  of  the  great 
snowy  peaks  was  filled,  and  in  what  manner  the  glacier 
descended  from  the  upper  snowfields.  A  second  and 
previously  invisible  peak  appeared  further  to  the  west,  and 
through  the  deep  hollow  between  it  and  the  summits  we 
had  admired  on  the  previous  afternoon  poured  the  main 
body  of  the  ice-stream,  in  a  frozen  cataract  of  the  greatest 
and  (I  speak  for  myself)  most  repulsive  beauty.  So  great 
was  the  impression  made  on  my  mind  by  the  tangled 
web  of  crevasse  and  s^rac,  that  I  expressed  seme  hesitation 
as  to  the  prudence  of  our  attempting  to  force  a  passage  ; 
my  doubts,  however,  were  promptly  suppressed  by  Fran9ois, 
who  gave  a  very  decided  opinion  in  favour  of  the  practica- 
bility of  the  icefall.  The  shepherd's  path  still  remained 
faithfril,  and  conducted  us  easily  along  the  slopes  above 
the  glacier,  which  are  deeply  seamed  by  numerous  water- 
courses. Before  reaching  the  foot  of  the  icefall,  a  level 
space  is  found  between  the  moraine  and  the  hillside, 
where  the  ground  is  covered  with  soft  turf,  and  a  little 
stream  has  space  to  dance  along  between  grassy  banks, 
and  to  expand  itself  in  places  into  crystal  pools.  The 
saucy  water-nymph  played  us  a  sorry  practical  joke,  by 


256  CAUCASIAN   GLACIERS    AND    FORESTS. 

tearing  Tucker's  drinking-cup  out  of  his  hand,  and  hurry- 
ing off  with  it.  The  cup  was  of  no  value  in  itself,  but  we 
could  ill  spare  it  at  the  time.  Two  lateral  glaciers  coming 
from  either  side  join  the  Kara  gam  immediately  below 
the  icefall,  but  neither  of  them  is  of  considerable  size. 
The  path,  which  had  hitherto  served  so  well,  now  came  to 
an  end,  where  low  stone  walls  built  under  an  overhanging 
boulder  showed  its  object,  and  indicated  the  occasional 
visits  of  shepherds  and  their  flocks  to  the  grassy  slopes 
which  rose  above  the  glacier  on  our  right.  We  here  took 
leave  of  vegetation  and  terra  firma^  which  we  were  not 
again  to  tread  until  we  reached  the  valley  of  the  Rion. 
In  crossing  the  moraine  we  did  not  take  the  best  possible 
course,  and  had,  in  consequence,  to  walk  along  the  narrow 
ridge  of  a  pile  of  rubbish,  which  formed  quite  a  typical 
arfite,  and  would,  if  provided  with  proper  precipices,  have 
been  most  sensational. 

The  foot  of  the  icefall  was  soon  reached,  and  the  way  in 
which  it  could  best  be  attacked  became  obvious.  The 
lower  portion  promised  to  be  tolerably  plain  sailing ;  but 
it  was  evident  that,  after  a  time,  it  would  be  necessary  to 
bear  to  the  left,  on  which  side  alone  the  upper  maze  of 
crevasses  appeared  at  all  assailable.  The  ice,  which  was 
almost  level  where  we  first  entered  on  it,  soon  began  to 
rise  before  .us,  and  the  surface,  although  not  as  yet 
seamed  by  any  deep  chasms,  became  uneven  and  slippery. 
Having  reached  the  beginning  of  the  real  work,  where  it 
was  necessary  to  put  on  the  rope,  we  took  the  opportunity 
of  halting  to  eat  a  second  breakfast,  to  which  a  rivulet, 
just  unloosed  by  the  returning  warmth  from  its  night's  im- 
prisonment, contributed  most  usefully.  A  teetotaller  would 
have  a  decided  advantage  over  his  winebibbing  com- 
panions in  Caucasian  mountaineering ;  the  general  impossi- 
bility of  obtaining  drinkable  wine  or  spirit  in  any  of  the 


AN   ICY   LABYRINTH.  267 

upper  valleys  is  a  rather  serious  matter  to  men  taking  liard 
exercise,  and  accustomed  to  some  such  support. 

The  real  work  of  the  day  now  began.  At  first  it  did  not 
seem  likely  to  prove  very  serious,  for  we  found  little  snow- 
valleys  which  led  past  and  round  the  towers  of  broken  ice, 
and  enabled  us  to  turn  the  huge  chasms  which  ran  across  the 
slope  to  left  and  right  of  us.  Our  prospects  of  success  began, 
however,  to  look  very  questionable  when  these  chasms 
became  more  continuous,  and  cutting  in  half  the  snowy 
dells  forced  us  to  plunge  into  the  intricate  labyrinth  of 
ice-towers  and  crevasses,  in  our  endeavour  to  force  a  way 
through  the  tortuous  mazes  of  the  feill.  The  difficulties 
of  a  broken  glacier  have  been  often  and  well  described 
by  Alpine  travellers,  and  those  which  we  now  encountered 
presented  no  particular  feature  of  novelty.  They  were, 
however,  the  most  numerous  and  complicated  of  their 
kind  any  of  us  had  ever  battled  with.  Once,  after 
straggling  through  trenches,  up  walls,  and  under  towers 
of  blue  crystal,  fair  to  the  eye,  but  liable  at  any  minute 
to  topple  over,  and  therefore  to  be  avoided  or  hastily 
passed  by,  we  came  to  a  great  chasm,  which  at  first  sight 
seemed  impassable.  Behind  us  was '  clean  starvation,'  for 
our  stock  of  provisions  would  not  hold  out  over  another 
day.  The  only  alternative  course  was  to  descend  to  the 
village  of  Zenaga,  and  try  by  signs  to  procure  food  there, 
at  the  risk  of  being  arrested  as  suspicious  characters,  and 
sent  down  to  give  what  account  of  ourselves  we  could  at 
the  nearest  Cossack  outpost.  Our  situation,  therefore,  gave 
us  every  inducement  to  persevere,  if  not  at  all  hazards,  at 
least  as  far  as  prudence  would  permit. 

A  snow-bridge,  which  elsewhere  might  not  have  been 
approved  of  as  fitted  for  public  use,  was,  under  the  cir- 
cumstances, voted  worth  trying,  and  Fran9ois  went  ahead, 
to  make  such  improvement  in  the  footway  >^£(  the  axe 

s 


258  CAUCASIAN   GLACIEBS  AXD   FORESTS. 

could  effect.  This  was  not  much,  and  the  deficiencies 
of  the  frail  structure  were  too  serious  to  be  supplied  bj 
any  ingenious  contrivances.  We  had  to  descend  a  bank 
of  ice,  six  feet  high,  to  reach  the  level  of  the  snowy  crest, 
fully  twenty  feet  in  length,  which,  like  an  arch  of  Al  Sirat, 
was  flung  over  the  icicle-fringed  chasms  yawning  to  un- 
known depths  on  either  hand.  The  top  of  this  crest  was 
uneven,  and  about  the  middle  of  the  bridge  an  accurately- 
measured  and  delicately-managed  jump  was  requisite  to 
Teach  two  pigeon-holes,  cut  by  Francois  for  ike  feet,  on 
the  further  side  of  an  awkward  gap.  Then  each  walked 
careftdly  for  several  yards,  like  a  cat  along  the  top  of  an 
old  and  rotten  wall,  to  the  point  where,  instead  of  abutting 
against  the  steep  snow-bank  on  the  opposite  side  of  the 
crevasse,  the  bridge  broke  down  altogether,  making  a 
second  and  still  more  awkward  jump  necessary.  The 
man  in  front,  having  made  the  leap  and  anchored  himself 
in  the  snow-bank,  turned  round  and  grabbed  tight  hold 
of  the  arm  of  the  next — a  desirable  precaution,  as  a  little 
too  much  impetus  m%ht  have  thrown  the  jumper  backwards 
into  the  chasm.  Steps  were  then  cut  on  to  a  promontory 
of  ice  separating  the  big  crevasse  from  a  smaller  relation, 
which  was  not  beyond  a  straight-forward  jump,  more 
formidable  in  appearance  than  reality,  as  the  landing-place 
was  good.  We  were  now  in  a  position  to  take  advantage 
of  a  series  of  connected  ridges,  by  which  we  made  our 
way  back  into  one  of  the  snow-filled  depressions  we  had 
found  usefiil  earlier  in  the  day.  For  half  an  hour  good 
progress  was  made ;  then  again  for  half  an  hour  we  did 
little  but  wander  up  and  down,  seeking  some  exit  from  a 
fresh  labyrinth,  and  almost  despairing  of  final  success.  The 
s^rac  scenery  throughout  was  of  the  grandest  description, 
and  we  were  constantly  forced  to  admire  the  beauty  of  our 
stubborn  foes,  the  icicle-fringed  and  blue-eaved  crevasses. 


THE   TOP   OF  THE   FALL.  259 

and  to  wonder  at  the  curious  forms  and  grouping  of  the 
frozen  towers  and  pinnacles. 

As  time  went  on  we  could  see,  by  the  diminished  pro- 
portions of  the  ridges  behind  us,  and  the  change  from 
the  clear  crystal  substance  of  the  lower  glacier  to  the 
half-formed  ice,  or  rather  *  n^v6,'  of  the  upper  regions, 
that  we  were  slowly,  but  surely,  drawing  near  the  top 
of  the  feU.  We  were  rashly  congratulating  ourselves  on 
having  achieved  the  victory,  when  a  fresh  obstacle  ap- 
peared— a  great  split  in  the  surface,  with  an  upper 
lip  ten  feet  higher  than  the  lower.  Pran9oi8  made 
some  foothold  on  the  further  side  with  his  axe,  jumped 
across,  and  attempted  to  work  himself  up  the  face  of 
the  perpendicular  upper  lip,  while  we  watched  his  pro- 
ceedings with  some  anxiety  from  an  insecure  situation  on 
the  lower  bank.  After  several  vain  endeavours  to  wriggle 
or  work  himself  up,  he  gave  in.  It  was  no  easy  matter  to 
get  back  again,  but  he  managed  it  by  a  skilfril  tumble ; 
then  with  gloomy  forebodings  were  traced  our  steps,  until, 
several  hundred  yards  to  the  left,  where  the  crevasse  was 
lost  in  a  big  hoUow,  we  found  a  part  of  the  wall  of  loose 
floury  snow,  up  which  there  was  no  serious  difficulty  in 
forcing  a  passage.  The  steepest  part  of  the  icefall  was 
now  fairly  below  us,  but  we  were  still  unable  to  see  far 
ahead,  as  a  line  of  broken  waves  of  n^v^  separated 
us  from  the  unknown  land  above.  Though  our  course 
was  still  necessarily  zigzag,  and  occasionally  subject 
to  an  annoying  check,  the  first  chapter  of  difficulties 
was  overcome.  The  soft  state  of  the  snow,  intf>  which 
we  sank  at  every  step,  now  seemed  likely  to  prove  a  less 
exciting  but  scarcely  less  serious  hindrance  to  our  pro- 
gress. Fran9oi8  having  of  late  had  more  than  lus  share 
of  work,  Moore  relieved  him  by  taking  the  lead,  and  soon 
enforced  his  request  that  we  would  keep  the  rope  taut, 

8  2 


2G0  CAUCASIAN   GLACIERS  AND   FOEESTS. 

by  sinking  up  to  his  shoulders  in  a  concealed  crevasse. 
Not  long  after  this  incident,  the  slope  before  us  lessened, 
and  the  view  of  the  upper  region,  to  which  we  had  been 
anxiously  looking  forward  for  so  many  hours,  burst  upon 
us.  It  was  now  1.30  p.m.,  and  we  had  therefore  spent  six 
hours  in  fighting  our  way  up  the  icefall,  the  height  of 
which,  from  the  rough  measurements  possible  with  our 
aneroid,  we  estimated  at  but  little  under  4,000  feet.  The 
famous  ^seracs'  of  the  Gol  du  Geant  are  child's-play 
-when  put  in  comparison  with  these  Caucasian  rivals,  and  I 
think  it  very  possible  that  a  party  endeavouring  to  force 
this  passage  at  a  later  period  of  the  summer  might  meet 
with  a  signal  repulse. 

Our  feelings,  on  viewing  the  new  scene  revealed  to  us, 
were  those  of  mingled  admiration,  astonishment,  and  per- 
plexity. Like  Jack  wheii  he  had  climbed  his  beanstalk, 
we  were  a  good  deal  taken  aback  by  the  strange  region 
in  which  we  found  ourselves,  and  not  a  little '  puzzled 
what  to  do  next.  Before  us  stretched  a  vast  reservoir 
of  snow,  which  soon  split  into  two  bays,  running  respec- 
tively east  and  south.  The  eastern  branch  broke  down 
upon  the  other  in  a  grand  fall  of  s^racs ;  its  head  was 
surrounded  by  a  number  of  magnificent  rock-peaks,  in- 
cluding amongst  them  the  mass  which  had  presented  so  im- 
posing an  appearance  from  our  bivouac,  not  at  all  dwarfed 
by  nearer  approach.  The  surface  of  the*  southern  bay  was 
almost  a  dead  flat,  hemmed  in  by  icy  ridges,  the  summits 
of  which  scarcely  attained  the  dignity  of  separate  moun- 
tains. The  extent  of  these  snowfields  was,  to  us  who  had 
to  make  our  way  to  the  other  side  of  them,  almost 
appalling ;  hoW  much  of  the  effect  they  produced  on  our 
minds  was  owing  to  the  exciting  struggle  we  had  gone 
through  to  attain  them,  it  is  of  course  impossible  to  say. 
I  suppose,  if  the  first  men  who  saw  the  upper  regions  of 


THE    WATERSHED   AT   LAST.  ^61 

the  Aletsch  glacier  had  come  upon  them  by  the  Jungfrau 
Joch,  they  would  have  been  likely  to  exaggerate  their 
effect.  A  similar  allowance  must  be  made  for  us.  The 
principal  cause  of  perplexity  was  our  inability  to  recognise, 

m 

in  any  of  the  peaks  now  in  sight,  the  two  summits  of 
Adai  E!hokh,  so  conspicuous  from  the  eastern  branch  of 
the  Bion  basin,  and  which  we  had  hitherto  confidently 
reckoned  on  as  landmarks.  Each  had  a  different  theory, 
but  there  was  no  time  to  stop  and  argue  it  out ;  so  we 
agreed,  by  a  majority  of  voices,  to  put  our  trust  in  the 
compass,  and  push  up  the  southern  bay,  as  that  direction 
must,  we  believed,  ultimately  bring  us  to  a  point  overlook- 
ing the  Rion  valley. 

There  are  no  incidents  to  relate  in  a  three-hours'  tramp 
across  a  soft  snov^eld,  but  such  an  operation  is  not  to  be 
lightly  estimated,  because  it  occupies  but  a  brief  space  in 
the  narration.  Each  in  turn  took  the  arduous  task  of  lead- 
ing— no  slight  exertion,  when  the  leader  sank  at  every  step 
nearly  up  to  his  knees.  The  mountain  we  had  seen  from 
the  bivouac  now  towered  grandly  in  our  rear,  its  western 
summit  offering  a  striking  resemblance  to  the  Matterhom 
from  Breuil.  In  front  the  monotonous  snow-plain  seemed 
more  endless  the  further  we  advanced;  on  the  left  hummock 
after  hummock  was  passed,  while  on  the  opposite  side  some 
projecting  rocks  were  for  long  our  goal.  They  were  reached 
and  left  behind,  and  still  there  was  no  change  in  the  same- 
ness of  the  view,  except  the  more  prominent  appearance  of 
a  considerable  mountain  on  the  right,  which  now  revealed 
itself  as  our  old  acquaintance.  Tan  Burdisula,  under  a  new 
aspect.  At  last,  about  4  p.m.,  we  reached  an  almost 
imperceptible  watershed,  first  indicated  by  the  appearance 
of  the  blue  ridges  of  the  far-off  Achaltzich  mountains  over 
the  neighbouring  snows. 

For  some  distance  the  fall  was  as  slight  as  the  rise  had 


ummmmmah^ 


'262  CAUCASIAN   GLACIEKS   AKD   FORESTS. 

been  on  the  other  side ;  then  the  slope  suddenly  steepened, 
and  we  recognised  for  the  first  time  our  exact  position.  From 
our  feet  a  glacier,  a  small  portion  of  the  outflow  of  the 
*  shining  tablelands  '  we  had  been  traversing,  poured  down 
into  the  glen,  the  torrent  of  which  joins  the  eastern  Bion 
at  Glola.  We  were,  in  fact,  standing  on  the  very  snows  of 
which  we  had  caught  a  glimpse  when  entering  that  village 
a  few  days  before.  The  natural  course  was  to  find  a  way 
down  this  glacier ;  but  after  a  few  hundred  feet  of  easy 
descent,  it  toppled  over  in  a  tremendous  icefall,  apparently 
as  long  as,  and  a  good  deal  steeper  than,  the  one  we  had 
ascended  with  so  much  difficulty.  Once  entangled  in  this 
complicated  labyrinth,  there  seemed  little  prospect  of 
getting  free  of  it  before  dark,  even  if  the  passage  proved 
practicable  at  all.  We  took  therefore  what,  although  its 
adoption  disgusted  me  at  the  time,  was,  I  believe,  the 
only  sensible  course,  and  deliberately  returning  to  the  Col 
mounted  the  slopes  to  the  east,  and  crossed  a  snowy  head 
which  projected  above  the  top  of  the  icefall. 

There  was  still  a  moot  point  to  be  decided — ^whether  we 
should  endeavour  to  get  down  the  mingled  rocks  and  snow- 
slopes  on  the  left  of  the  icefall  into  the  glen  leading  directly 
to  Glola,  or  whether  we  should  bear  still  more  to  the  east, 
and  descend  into  one  of  the  branches  of  the  wide  valley 
which  leads  up  to  the  base  of  Adai  Eliokh.  Whichever 
course  we  decided  on,  it  was  necessary  first  to  traverse 
diagonally  a  series  of  steep  slopes,  overhanging  ground 
above  tlie  glacier,  which  might  for  all  practical  pur- 
poses be  considered  as  a  precipice.  The  sur&ce  was 
soft,  and  we  had  no  trouble  in  step-cutting ;  but  the  snow 
more  than  once  showed  a  disposition  to  crack  and  slide 
downwards  in  masses,  leaving  bare  a  substratum  of  ice, 
which,  to  anyone  versed  in  mountaineering  craft,  was 
unpleasantly  suggestive.     We  instinctively  held  our  axes 


THE   DESCENT.  .  263 

with  a  firmer  grasp,  and  congratulated  ourselves  that 
there  was  no  weak  brother,  or  lumbering  porter,  likely  to 
test  the  power  of  a  slip  in  carrying  down  with  a  run  the 
whole  upper  layer  of  snow.  We  were  well  pleased  to  reach 
a  rib  of  rocks,  and  to  clamber  down  them  for  some  little 
distance ;  and  having  by  this  time  decided  at  any  rate  to 
examine  the  descent  into  the  eastern  valley,  we  made  our 
way  over  some  safer  slopes  to  the  crest  of  the  ridge  in  that 
direction. 

The  fall  of  the  ground  on  the  eastern  side  was  undeni- 
ably steep,  and  an  extremely  ugly-looking  *  couloir,' 
opening  immediately  at  our  feet,  did  not  offer  a  tempting 
exit.  Francois  promptly  pronounced  against  this  side  of 
the  ridge;  I  was  not  satisfied  vrith  the  grounds  of  his 
verdict,  and  untying  the  rope  scrambled  down  a  few  feet 
to  gain  a  better  view.  My  investigation  was  rewarded  by 
the  discovery  of  a  second  snow-gully,  which  ran  up  and 
terminated  against  a  buttress  a  hundred  feet  below,  and, 
after  falling  for  some  distance  in  a  direction  parallel  to 
the  ridge  we  were  on,  turned  sharply  at  right-angles  and 
was  lost  to  sight.  As  far  as  could  be  seen,  it  offered  not  only 
a  practicable  but  an  easy  line  of  descent,  which  I  pointed 
out  to  Fran9ois,  who  suggested  the  possibility  of  the 
lower  portion  being  precipitous.  We  agreed,  however, 
that  all  the  indications  went  to  show  this  to  be  exti^emely 
unlikely,  and  that  no  more  promising  way  out  of  our 
difiGiculties  offered  itself. 

The  view  before  us  had  been,  during  the  last  hour, 
one  of  surpassing  beauty ;  while  we  slowly  descended  a 
projecting  buttress,  our  position  gave  us  a  raking  view 
of  the  peaks  of  the  main  chain,  and  we  were  at  the 
same  time  at  a  sufficient  elevation  to  overlook  the 
whole  of  the  southern'  sub-Caucasian  district.  The  Ead- 
scha  lay  at  our  feet,  a  labyrinth   of  green  ridges  and 


264  .       CAUCASIAN   GLACIEBS  AND   FORESTS. 

dark  forest-clad  ravines,  through  the  oenire  of  which  the 
Rion  finds  a  devious  waj  to  Kutais  and  the  Mingrelian 
lowlands.  The  waters  of  the  river  flashed  in  the  sunshine, 
and  pointed  out  the  deep  cleft  through  which  it  passes 
before  reaching  Oni.  On  the  one  side  rose  the  imposing 
mass  of  the  Schoda ;  on  the  other  was  a  cluster  of  snowy 
peaks,  remarkable  for  their  elegant  pyramidal  outlines, 
situated  to  the  south-east  of  Gurschavi,  and  separating 
some  of  the  headwaters  of  the  Ardon  and  the  Bion.  Far 
away  in  the  west  a  high  glacier-crowned  chain  arrested 
the  attention ;  reference  to  the  map  showed  that  it  must  be 
the  Leila  mountains,  which  form  the  southern  boundary 
of  Suanetia.  The  mists,  which  some  hours  earlier  had 
been  sufficiently  numerous  to  cause  anxiety,  had  now 
melted  away,  and  left  the  blue  sky  unclouded.  It  was  a 
perfect  summer's  evening,  and  the  sloping  rays  of  the  sun, 
already  sinking  rapidly  towards  his  rest,  flooded  and 
transfigured  the  wide  landscape  with  a  golden  glory,  which 
overcame  the  indifference  to  the  charms  of  nature  too 
often  brought  on  by  fatigue,  and  roused  us  to  make 
constant  appeals  to  one  another  to  admire  some  freshly- 
discovered  beauty. 

A  very  short  scramble  down  the  crags  brought  us  to 
the  head  of  the  gully,  where  we  were  delayed  by  an 
incident  we  regarded  only  as  ludicrous  at  the  time,  but 
which  caused  us  a  provoking  loss.  In  stepping  off  the 
rocks  on  to  the  snow,  Tucker  suddenly  subsided  into  a 
deep  hole,  the  existence  of  which  was  concealed  by  a  thin 
and  treacherous  crust.  He  went  down  at  least  ten  feet 
below  the  surface,  and  the  chasm  was  so  narrow  that 
considerable  exertion  was  required  to  haul  him  out 
again.  It  was  not  discovered  till  some  time  afterwards 
that  an  excellent  telescope  had  been  wrenched  off  his 
shoulders   in   the  struggle.     It  was   an  illustration  of 


RETURN   TO   EARTH.  265 

the  proverb,  *  Misfortunes  never  come  single/  and  we  could 
only  console  ourselves  with  the  obvious  reflection  that  it 
was  impossible  for  us  to  go  on  losing  a  drinking-cup  and 
telescope  every  day.  The  snow  in  the  upper  part  of  the 
gully  was  rather  hard ;  but  by  keeping  close  to  the  side, 
and  digging  steps  with  our  heels,  we  got  along  capitally, 
and  soon  reached  the  comer,  whence  we  saw  a  straight 
unbroken  trough  leading  down  to  the  base  of  the  cliffs,  and 
on  to  a  snowfield  which  stretched  down  to  green  pastur- 
ages. We  felt,  for  the  first  time,  that  the  fight  was  over, 
and  the  victory  won,  in  so  far  that  we  were  secure  of 
sleeping  below  the  forest  level  on  the  southern  side  of  the 
chain,  of  which  there  had  been,  up  to  this  moment,  con- 
siderable doubt.  We  were  as  pleased  at  the  prospect 
of  a  bivouac  on  the  turf,  in  the  place  of  a  night  spent 
in  kicking  our  heels  against  frozen  rocks,  or,  worse  still, 
in  the  bosom  of  a  crevasse,  as  an  Alpine  traveller  is  at 
unexpectedly  discovering  a  good  hotel  where  he  only 
looked  for  a  poor  chfilet.  We  slid  merrily  down  the 
snow-gully,  in  the  track  of  a  gigantic  snowball  which 
was  now  reposing  at  the  bottom.  Having  observed  from 
above,  that  by  traversing  the  slopes  to  the  right,  we 
should,  without  the  need  of  any  further  ascent,  cross  a 
low  ridge  dividing  two  hollows,  and  enter  the  one  most 
likely  to  lead  directly  towards  the  valley,  we  heroically 
withstood  our  disposition  to  go  straight  down  to  the 
grass,  and  kept  for  some  time  at  a  level,  at  the  cost  of 
half-an-hour's  rather  tiresome  walking. 

At  last  the  head  of  the  hollow,  still  covered  vrith  fast- 
melting  snow,  was  reached ;  here,  as  in  many  other  places, 
the  red  colour  of  the  surface  attracted  our  notice.  Where 
the  snow  no  longer  lay,  its  meltings  made  the  turf  a 
perfect  playground  for  watercourses,  through  which  we 
splashed  on,  anxious  to  gain  the  forest  before  nightfall. 


2«^  CAUCASIAN   GLACIERS   AXD    FOEESTS. 

Tlie  first  Hign  of  life  was  a  tr^Kip  of  horses;  a  little  lower 
a  diHtinct  path  api/'Jin^l,  which  we   gladly  uccej»ted   as 
our   f^irle   until    it   lirouji^ht  us  to  a    brow  some  heij^ht 
above  the  stream,  and  then  turned  away  down  a  sIoj>e  to  the 
left.     It  was   already   growing   dusk,  and  we   had  just 
entered  the  highest  copse   of  birches ;     water  was,   of 
course,  a  necessary   adjunct   to   our  halting-place,   and 
hesitating  to  leave  the  stream,  still  close  at   hand,  we 
determined  to  go  down  through  the  copse  and  sleep  at 
its  foot,  beside  the  water.     The  chief  objection  to  oar 
camping-ground   proved  to  be   the   absence  of  even   a 
square  foot  of  level  soiL    After  treading  down  the  long 
grass,  it  was  necessary  to  break  off  branches  and  lay 
them  on  the  lower  side  of  the  spot  selected  by  each  for 
his  bed,  to  prevent  the  sleeper  rolling  away  down  the 
slope.     Having  lighted  a  fire,  we  ransacked  our  bags,  laid 
together  what  little  provision  there  was  left,  and   set 
aside  one  roll  for  the  morning ;   the  next  thing  was  to 
divide  the  rest  into  portions;  each  man  got  a  slice  of 
bread  about  two  inches  square,  and  half  the  limb  of  a 
chicken.     After  this  frugal  supper  had  been  disposed  of, 
we  covered  ourselves  as  far  as  possible  with  our  mac- 
kintoshes, and  lay  down  to  court  sleep,  but  we  had  not 
long  dozed  off,  when  several  big  drops  of  rain  effectually 
I'oused  us.      A  thunder-shower  had  blown  up,   and  the 
dark  clouds  which  obscured  the  moon  held  out  very  un- 
pleasant threats  of  a  ducking.     Luckily,  they  passed  off 
without  any  serious  fall  of  rain,  and  having  exchanged 
mutual  grumbles,  we  again  drew  up  our  mackintoshes 
over  our  faces,  and  relapsed  into  uneasy  slumbers,  or  reflec- 
tions on  the  work  done  and  the  sights  seen  during  the 
past  two  days. 

The  object  of  our  double  passage  of  the  mountains  had 
been  to  discover  what  lay  behind  the  great  snowy  wall 


RESULTS   OF   THE   EXPEDITION.  267 

which  bounds  every  northward  view  from  the  Upper 
Rion,  and  to  learn  something  of  the  breadth  and  character 
of  this  portion  of  the  Caucasian  wat/Crshed.  The  result  of 
our  expedition  was  satisfactory,  for  it  enabled  us  to  form 
a  tolerably  correct  idea  of  the  general  character  of  the 
chain  westwards  from  the  Mamisson  Pass  to  the  sources 
of  the  Rion.  Tau  Burdisula  may  be  taken  as  a  point  of 
division ;  from  it  to  the  Koschtantau  group,  the  central 
ridge  is  too  narrow  to  support  any  vast  snowfields  or  first- 
class  glaciers,  while  to  the  east  of  it  the  chain  branches  into 
a  network  of  ridges,  the  spaces  between  which  are  filled 
by  vast  n^v^-reservoirs,  of  which  the  Karagam  glacier  is 
only  one  of  the  outlets.  No  attempt  to  distinguish  these 
ridges,  or  to  name  the  numerous  peaks  which  rise  out 
of  them,  has  been  made  by  the  authors  of  the  Five  Verst 
Map  ;  but  the  portion  of  the  chain  between  Tau  Burdisula 
and  the  Mamisson  Pass,  from  the  number  and  height  of  its 
summits  and  the  size  of  its  glaciers,  forms  undoubtedly  one 
of  the  most  remarkable  mountain-groups  of  the  Caucasus. 
July  12th, — Our  quarters  were  not  so  luxurious  that  we 
cared  to  remain  in  them  longer  than  necessary,  and  we 
rose  at  daybreak.  Our  breakfast  was  workhouse  fare, 
stale  bread  and  water,  and  very  little  of  the  former.  It 
did  not  take  long  to  dispose  of,  and  we  were  glad  to  set 
out  and  shake  oflT,  by  a  brisk  walk  down  to  the  valley,  the 
chill  and  stifiness  produced  by  our  night's  lodging  and 
previous  hard  work.  We  soon  lost  sight  of  the  track  of 
the  previous  evening,  and  ran  down  the  steep  and,  at 
first,  only  partially-wooded  slopes  in  search  of  another. 
Before  very  long  we  lighted  on  a  broad  path,  which,  after 
skirting  the  hillside  for  some  little  distance,  descended  by 
a  succession  of  steep  zigzags  to  the  stream,  which,  rising 
in  the  glaciers  of  Adai  Khokh,  joins  the  Glola-Squali 
between  Gurschavi  and  Glola.     When  we  got  fairly  into 


268  CAUCASIAN   GLACIERS    AND   FORESTS. 

the  forest,  the  variety  of  the  foliage  and  the  beauty  of 
the  wild  flowers  gave  us  a  constant  interest.  Dwarf 
honeysuckles,  campanulas,  and  wistarias  were  abundant, 
and  the  tiger-lilies  shot  up  in  clusters,  each  spike  bearing 
from  two  to  seven  blossoms.  Near  the  stream  the  sombre 
foliage  of  the  pines  added,  by  contrast,  to  the  eflfect  of  the 
deciduous  forest.  Shortly  before  crossing  the  Glola-Squali 
to  the  Mamisson  road,  we  met  a  party  of  peasants  appa- 
rently going  to  look  after  their  flocks,  and  armed,  as  usual, 
with  daggers. 

We  arrived  at  Glola  in  four  hours  from  our  bivouac, 
and  going  at  once  to  the  house  where  we  had  before  found 
lodging,  attempted,  by  the  aid  of  a  few  Russian  words  and 
a  great  deal  of  pantomime,  to  explain  our  wants  to  the 
people.  Necessity  is  a  wonderful  sharpener  of  the  wits,  and 
we  all  got  on  famously  by  the  language  of  signs ;  but  there 
was  no  question  as  to  who  was  the  leading  pantomimist  of 
the  company,  and  we  thought  Moore  perfect  in  his  grand 
performances  of  milking  the  cow  and  mimicking  a  hen's 
cackle,  in  order  to  procure  us  milk  and  eggs,  until  our  friend 
surpassed  himself  by  ^riding  a  cockhorse '  on  an  ice-axe,  and 
prancing  about,  in  order  to  intimate  our  wish  for  horses  to 
carry  us  to  Gebi.  Pantomime,  on  the  part  of  the  villagers, 
explained  that  the  horses  were  all  on  the  mountain,  but 
should  be  fetched.  We  waited  for  them  so  long  that  after 
we  had  finished  our  meal,  Moore  and  I  lost  patience  and 
walked  ofi\,  leaving  Fran9ois  with  Tucker,  whose  heels, 
although  they  had  carried  him  pretiy  well  across  the  pass, 
were  still  in  a  tender  condition.  When  the  horses  came  at 
last,  the  mistress  of  the  house  presented  Tucker  with  two 
loaves,  made  of  a  better  quality  of  flour  than  the  common 
bread,  and  sent  her  son  in  charge  of  the  animals. 

The  day  was  fine,  and  the  heat  in  the  valley  was  great. 
.We  retraced  our  footsteps  of  the  previous  Thursday  until 


ARR'VAL  AT   GEBI.  209 

opposite  Chiora,  where,  instead  of  fording  the  river,  we  kept 
along  the  path  which  continues  to  follow  its  right  bank. 
The  valley,  although  of  considerable  width,  is  almost 
entirely  filled  by  the  stony  bed  of  the  Rion,  and  the  path,, 
forced  to  wind  over  the  spurs  of  the  southern  range,  is  in 
consequence  very  uneven.  After  turning  the  base  of  a  pro- 
jecting and  densely-wooded  ridge,  about  halfway  between 
Chiora  and  Gebi,  the  valley  ceases  to  be  entirely  devastated 
by  the  torrent,  and  the  path  becomes  level.  It  is  shaded  by 
thickets  of  alders  and  hazel,  the  stems  of  which  were  girt 
round  by  wild  hops.  Before  reaching  Gebi,  four  streams, 
issuing  from  as  many  lateral  glens  of  the  Schoda  chain,  had 
to  be  crossed — a  matter  of  some  difficulty,as  the  popular  idea 
of  a  bridge  in  the  £ion  valley  seems  to  be  a  thin  and  rough 
branch  laid  from  bank  to  bank,  to  traverse  which  success- 
fully requires  some  training  in  the  customs  of  the  country. 
The  glimpses  of  luxuriant  foliage  and  snowy  peaks  up  these 
side-glens  more  than  repaid  us  for  the  trouble  we  ex- 
perienced vTith  their  torrents.  The  last  and  largest,  the 
Latkischora,  which  falls  in  nearly  opposite  Gebi,  has  a 
wide  and  stony  bed,  and  a  considerable  volume  of  water. 
The  Bion  itself  is  crossed  by  a  wooden  bridge  before 
entering  the  village,  which  stands  most  picturesquely  on  a 
steep-sided  promontory  on  the  left  bank  of  the  river,  and 
just  above  its  junction  with  the  Tchosura,  the  stream 
flowing  out  of  the  valley  we  had  looked  down  into  from 
the  slopes  above  Chiora. 

G^bi,  unlike  the  other  villages  of  the  Bion  valley,  is  pro- 
vided with  towers  of  defence  similar  to  those  which  are  uni- 
versal in  Suanetia.  These  towers  are  built  of  large  unevenly- 
shaped  blocks  of  stone,  and  the  walls  cx)ntract  towards  the 
top,  which  is  covered  with  a  sloping  roof  of  wood  or  slate, 
like  that  often  put  on  an  unfinished  church-tower  at  home. 
They  add  much  to  the  picturesque  effect  of  the  place,  which. 


270  CAUCASIAN  GLACIERS  AND   FORESTS. 

from  a  distance,  looks  like  a  large  feudal  castle.  Some 
of  the  houses  are  built  in  a  knot,  as  closely  as  possible 
together ;  others  are  scattered  round  an  open  space  like  a 
village-green.  In  the  centre  of  this  we  observed  a  small 
wooden  building,  round  which  was  gathered  a  crowd  of 
idlers ;  we  rightly  surmised  that  Paul  had  taken  up  his 
quarters  there,  and  was  now  the  centre  of  attraction.  He 
was  of  course  delighted  to  see  us,  having  spent  three 
rather  melancholy  days,  surrounded  by  the  inquisitive  and 
troublesome  villagers ;  no  difficulties  however  had  arisen, 
and  the  lodge  which  had  been  assigned  to  him  was  far 
more  comfortable  than  we  had  any  right  to  expect.  It 
consisted  of  two  rooms  and  a  balcony ;  in  the  outer  apart- 
ment there  was  a  bench  and  a  fireplace ;  the  inner  we 
constituted  our  bedroom.  We  never  entirely  satisfied 
ourselves  as  to  the  use  to  which  the  building  was  com- 
monly put,  but,  as  far  as  we  could  understand  the  explana- 
tion given  through  Paul  by  the  villagers,  it  was  designed  as 
a  kind  of  court-house,  where  the  elders  might  meet,  and 
any  public  business  be  transacted. 

A  tall  fine-looking  peasant,  the  headman  of  the  place, 
came  formally  to  bid  us  welcome,  and  to  assure  us  that  all 
our  wants  should  be  supplied.  A  high  sheepskin  hat  dis- 
tinguished him  from  the  general  crowd,  numbering  at  least 
150  men  and  boys,  who,  attracted  by  our  arrival,  had 
formed  a  circle  outside  the  door  to  watch  our  proceedings- 
There  was  even  a  greater  variety  of  head-gear  amongst 
the  peasants  of  Grebi  than  in  the  bazaar  of  Kutais.  Some 
carried  the  *  baschlik  'with  the  hood  over  the  head,  and  the 
point  turned  upwards  like  a  fool's-cap  5  a  few  wore  the  small 
Mingrelian  bonnet,  almost  invisible  in  the  middle  of  their 
heavy  shocks  of  hair ;  the  greater  number  had  soft  felt  wide- 
awakes— a  bell-shape  was  perhaps  the  most  fashionable,  but 
no  two  could  be  found  exactly  alike.     Even  the  boys  were 


A   CURIOUS   CROWD.  271 

armed  with  daggers,  and  many  of  the  men  carried  their 
guns  in  sheepskin  cases  across  their  backs ;  their  clothes 
were  for  the  most  part  soiled  and  ragged.  Though  not,  on  the 
whole,  a  fine-looking  race,  like  the  Ossetes,  they  did  not 
bear  in  their  faces  any  peculiai'ly  vicious  expression,  beyond 
an  air  of  lazy  stupidity.  One  or  two  of  the  men  wore 
Eussian  medals,  showing  their  complete  and  voluntary 
acknowledgment  of  the  Government.  We  found,  invaria- 
bly, that  in  proportion  as  the  natives  are  brought  into 
contact  with  their  rulers,  they  improve  in  manners  and 
civilisation,  and  that  the  districts  which  the  Eussians 
have  left  to  take  care  of  themselves  are  those  in  which 
the  old  customs  of  petty  warfare,  robbery,  and  murder  still 
prevail. 

Our  dress,  our  accoutrements,  and  our  luggage  proved 
inexhaustible  sources  of  amusement  to  the  large  circle  of 
which  we  were  constantly  the  centre.  What  caused  the 
greatest  excitement  was  the  sight  of  our  pocket-handker- 
chiefs, and  our  manner  of  using  them.  Upon  «the  first 
occasion  of  blowing  our  noses,  a  roar  of  admiration  burst 
forth,  and  afterwards  the  slightest  sign  of  a  repetition  of 
the  performance  sufficed  to  raise  a  murmur  of  excitement 
amongst  the  expectant  crowd. 

We  had  always  intended  to  halt  at  least  a  day  at 
Gebi,  and  if  possible  to  make  it  our  headquarters  for 
some  excursions  amongst  the  mountains  round  the  sources 
of  the  Bion,  where  in  most  maps  the  name  of  Pass-Mta 
(said  to  be  derived  from  Phasis-Mta?)  is  prmted  across 
the  main  chain,  in  a  way  to  indicate  the  existence  of  a 
noteworthy  peak.  Tucker  and  I  agreed  that  a  day's  dolce 
far  niente  would  be  very  pleasant,  but  Moore,  whose 
energy  was  still  unspent,  hankered  after  a  mountain,  and 
settled,  if  the  night  was  fine,  to  start  at  2  a.m.  with 
Fran9ois,  and  climb  the  Schoda  (11,128  feet),  the  bold 


272  CAUCASIAN    GLACIERS   AND   FORESTS. 

« 

summit  of  which  rises  above  the  lower  ridges  on  the  south 
of  Gebi,  and  must,  from  its  isolated  position,  command  a 
perfect  panorama  of  the  main  chain.  Our  plans  for  the 
morrow  being  thus  fixed,  we  postponed  the  settlement  of 
our  further  arrangements,  and  retook  possession  of  our 
mattrass  with  great  satisfaction. 

July  ISth, — The  weather  changed  during  the  night,  and 
Moore  was  prevented  from  starting  for  his  proposed  expe- 
dition. In  the  morning  it  rained  heavily,  and  our  day- 
was  spent  chiefly  in  cooking  a  sheep  we  had  purchased, 
and  discussing  the  means  of  getting  across  the  wild 
country  at  the  sources  of  the  Zenes-Squali  to  Jibiani,  the 
highest  hamlet  in  Suanetia,  close  to  the  glaciers  of  the  In- 
gur.  The  height  of  this  place  (7,064  feet)  suggested  to  us 
the  idea  of  a  sort  of  Pontresina,  whence  we  should  be 
able  to  make  a  series  of  excursions  into  the  great  mass 
of  mountains  marked  on  its  north  in  the  Five  Verst 
Map.  Elated  by  the  successful  accomplishment  of  the 
two  glacier-passes,  we  planned,  about  this  time,  various 
magnificent  expeditions,  which  weather  and  other  hin- 
drances ultimately  defeated.  We  were  desirous  of  coming 
to  such  an  arranj^ement  with  our  porters  as  might  enable  us 
to  camp  for  a  day  or  two  at  the  sources  of  the  Eion, 
and  see  what  excursions  could  be  made  there.  It  was, 
however,  so  difficult  to  make  the  peasants  understand  our 
intentions,  and  to  prove  to  them  that  if  they  sat  and 
smoked  all  day,  while  we  climbed  a  hill,  they  were  not 
entitled  to  the  same  pay  as  if  they  were  carrying  our 
luggage  over  a  stiff  pass,  that  we  gave  up  the  attempt  in 
despair;  and  finally  arranged  to  engage  seven  men  as 
porters,  at  1  rouble  and  20  copecks  a  day  apiece,  as  far  as 
Jibiani,  a  journey  which  they  assured  us  was  generally  made 
by  hunters  in  three  days.  We  enquired  about  a  pass 
named  in  the  Five  Verst  Map,  and  laid  down  as  leading 


A    BRIDGE   IN   DANGER.  273 

up  the  glen  of  the  Tchosura,  and  over  the  main  chain, 
into  the  valley  of  the  Uruch ;  it  was  described  as  very 
much  of  the  same  character  as  the  Gurdzieveesk  Pass.^' 

The  heavy  rain,  which  continued  to  fall  all  day,  caused 
the  Rion  to  rise  very  rapidly,  and  to  threaten  with  de- 
struction the  bridge  below  the  village,  the  centre  pile  of 
which,  a  clumsily-constructed  wooden  breakwater,  was 
exposed  to  the  full  force  of  the  current.  The  danger  of 
the  whole  structure  roused  the  people  from  their  usual 
laziness,  and  delivered  us  for  a  time  from  the  constant 
crowd  of  lookers-on.  The  whole  population  trooped  down 
to  the  bank,  and  carried  stones,  to  fill  up  the  interior  of 
the  framework  which  supported  the  centre  of  the  bridge, 
in  order  to  give  it  weight  to  resist  the  violent  attacks  of 
the  stream.  Their  efforts  were  successful  for  the  moment, 
and  the  weather  clearing  up  late  in  the  afternoon,  the 
river  gradually  subsided. 

Having  cooked  the  necessary  supply  of  meat,  purchased 
some  luxuries — su:ch  as  sugar,  and  muddy  grape-juice, 
here  called  wine — and,   as  we  thought,  concluded  our 

*  These  two  passes  are  laid  down  by  Klaproth,  in  the  map  appended  to  his 
*  Voyage  au  Mont  Caucase/  published  in  1823,  and  he  describes  at  some  length 
his  journcT'  across  them  in  the  year  1809.  Starting  from  Mozdok,  on  the  north 
side  of  the  chain,  he  ascended  the  Umch  yalley,  and  crossed  the  Qebi-Ga  Pass, 
1x>  which  he  givos  the  name  of  Tziti-Klong,  but  which  is  no  doubt  the  pass  of  the 
Five  Verst  Map,  above  referred  to.  He  descended  the  Rion  valley  as  far  as  Oni, 
but  was  deterred  from  going  further  by  the  disturbed  state  of  the  country,  and 
therefore  retraced  his  steps,  regaining  the  Uruch  valley  by  a  pass  which  can 
be  no  other  than  the  Gurdzieveesk.  In  both  cases  the  details  of  the  actual 
passage  of  the  chain  are  very  meagre  and  unsatisfactory,  but  many  particulars 
are  given  of  the  valleys  on  either  side  which  could  scarcely  have  been  acquired 
by  hearsay.  The  part  of  the  story  most  hard  to  believe  is  that  horses  were 
got  over  both  passes ;  so  far  as  the  Gurdzieveesk  is  concerned,  we  should  certainly 
have  declared  it  impracticable  even  for  the  steeds  of  the  Caucasus. 

Dubois  de  Montpereuz  denies  the  truth  of  Klaproth's  statement  on  the 
authority  of  the  inhabitants  of  Mozdok ;  but  they. were  little  likely  to  know 
anything  about  the  matter,  and  I  do  not  think  their  opinion  is  of  much  value. 

T 


274  CAUCASIAN   GLACIERS   AND    FORESTS. 

arrangements  for  porters,  we  announced  our  intention 
of  setting  out  next  morning,  and  dismissed  our  visitors. 

Jvly  14th. — The  weather  was  still  showery  and  un- 
settled. Our  first  question  with  the  villagers  was  on  a 
claim  for  higher  payment  for  our  food  and  lodging,  which 
was  at  first  laid  at  nearly  double  the  sum  we  offered, 
but  was  very  soon  brought  down,  by  firm  resistance  on 
our  part,  to  a  petition  for  an  extra  rouble.  The  next 
difficulty  raised  was  one  less  easy  to  settle  satisfactorily. 
The  seven  porters  for  whom  we  had  agreed  struck,  on  the 
ground  that  our  luggage  was  the  load  of  ten  men. 
Anxious  to  smooth  matters,  we  conceded  this  point,  and 
allowed  them  to  fetch  three  of  their  friends,  whereon  the 
whole  team  struck  again  for  higher  pay.  This  we  abso- 
lutely refused,  declaring  that,  if  farther  difficulties  were 
made,  we  would  ride  down  to  Oni,  and  report  their 
behaviour  to  the  Commandant.  The  ten,  finding  that 
we  could  be  as  obstinate  as  themselves,  gave  in,  after 
a  long  and  irritating  wrangle,  and  agreed  to  come  at  the 
pay  previously  promised.  At  last  all  the  packs  were 
separated,  and  each  man's  burden  tied  up  into  a  form 
convenient  for  transport.  After  watching  the  ten  defile 
before  us,  and  seeing  that  nothing  was  left  behind,  we 
followed.  Having  crossed  the  bridge,  all  the  men  sat 
down,  and  held  a  protracted  council  with  some  friends 
who  joined  them,  as  to  which  path  they  should  take, 
while  we  fumed  with  useless  impatience. 

The  ordinary  path  up  the  valley  follows  the  left  side  of 
the  Biion,  on  which  there  is  a  good  deal  of  cultivation  for 
some  distance  above  Gebi ;  but  news  having  been  brought 
in  of  the  destruction  of  the  upper  bridge,  our  porters  had  at 
once  crossed  to  the  right  bank,  and  were  now  discussing 
how  they  might  best  make  their  way  along  it.  When  the 
council  was  at  last  over,  we  were  led  by  a  narrow  footpath, 


THE   WESTERN   RION.  275 

which  mounted  steeply  through  the  forest.  After  climb- 
ing several  hundred  feet,  we  left  it,  and  plunged  into 
a  dense  underwood  of  azalea-bushes,  now  nearly  out  of 
blossom,  through  which  we  gradually  fought  our  way  back 
to  the  level  of  the  Rion.  The  boulders  of  the  river-bed 
afforded  a  less  fatiguing  path,  and  did  not  hinder  our  ad- 
vance so  much  as  the  tangled  thickets  into  which  we  were 
often  forced  to  enter.  Torrents,  emerging  from  lateral 
glens  on  the  south,  barred  our  way,  and  at  first  we 
expended  much  ingenuity  in  attempts  to  cross  them  dry- 
shod,  by  extemporising  'bridges  with  a  fallen  tree,  or 
attempting  impossible  jumps.  As  each  of  us  in  turn 
failed  and  got  wet,  we  gave  up  the  struggle  against  our 
too  numerous  foes,  and  quietly  waded  through.  After 
3^  hours  of  very  slow  and  tiring  progress,  aggravated 
by  the  sight  of  meadows  and  a  fair  path  on  the  opposite 
bank  of  the  river,  we  came  to  the  broken  bridge,  and 
joined  the  usual  track  up  the  valley.  There  was  now  a 
pause  of  some  duration  in  our  struggle  with  untamed 
nature.  It  was,  however,  quite  impossible  to  make  up 
for  lost  time  by  a  spurt,  as  our  train  of  porters  absolutely 
refused  to  be  hurried,  and  treated  our  remonstrances  with 
utter,  although  good-humoured^  contempt. 

The  scenery  of  this  portion  of  the  valley  does  not  equal  in 
grandeur  that  of  the  eastern  branch,  but  the  woodland 
effects  are  very  beautiful,  and  quite  unlike  anything  in  the 
Alps.  Dense  forests  of  deciduous  trees,  amongst  which  the 
beech  and  the  maple  are  conspicuous,  clothe  the  lower 
mountain-sides,  which  conceal  all  view  of  the  snowy  chain. 
Pines  gradually  disappear,  and  none  are  found  near  the  head 
of  the  valley.  On  a  high  bank  on  the  right  of  the  Rion,  op- 
posite its  junction  with  the  Zopkhetura,  a  tributary  which 
nearly  doubles  its  volume,  are  some  fields,  the  highest  culti- 

T  2 


276  CAUCASIAN  GLACIEBS  AND  FORESTS. 

vated  land  of  the  inhabitaiits  of  Gebi.  Bude  wooden  bnts 
have  been  constructed  by  the  peasants,  as  shelters  for  the 
night  when  they  come  up  either  to  sow,  or  to  gather  in  their 
crops.  The  valley  now  makes  a  sudden  bend  to  the  north, 
and  several  small  streams  fall  into  it  from  the  surrounding 
mountains.  The  path  becomes  very  uneven,  winding  up 
and  down  on  the  steep  broken  slopes  on  the  right  side  of 
the  river,  which  flovra  rapidly  in  a  broad  stony  channel. 
Before  long  the  track  was  altogether  lost,  and  we  followed 
out  the  ideas  of  the  leading  porter  as  to  the  best  line 
of  march — ^now  forcing  our  way  through  the  forest,  now 
scrambling  over  the  boulders  of  the  river-bed.  Several 
strong  torrents  had  to  be  waded,  and  the  heavy  rain 
which  began  to  fall  completed  our  wetting,  and  made  us 
look  forward  vdth  some  dread  to  camping-out. 

The  valley  contracted  almost  to  a  gorge  before  it  opened 
out  slightly,  and  left  space  on  the  right  bank  for  a  meadow 
and  two  log-huts,  which  mark  a  summer  station  of  the 
herds,  known  to  the  natives,  according  to  Herr  Badde,  by 
the  name  of  Sassagonelli.  The  huts  were  in  a  very  dirty 
and  dilapidated  condition,  and  we  decided  at  once,  despite 
the  wet,  to  pitch  our  tent,  and  leave  such  accommodation 
as  they  offered  to  the  men.  It  is  not  a  pleasant  thing  to 
put  up  even  so  small  and  easily-managed  a  tent  as  ours 
was  in  pouring  rain.  We  had  brought  away  v^ith  us  from 
Gebi  a  winebagful  of  the  liquid  called  vmie  in  these  parts, 
and  we  now  had  some  of  it  mulled,  in  which  form  it  was  by 
no  means  nasty,  notwithstanding  a  strong  flavour  of  gutta- 
percha. We  had  taken  over  eight  hours  to  reach  Sassa- 
gonelli from  Gebi,  and  it  grew  dusk  soon  after  our  arrival ; 
so  soon  therefore  as  we  had  supped,  we  tied  up  the  tent- 
door,  wrapped  ourselves  round  in  our  rugs,  and  made 
things  as  snug  as  possible  for  the  night.  Our  men  foxmd 
at  least  shelter  inside  the  hut,  which  some  of  the  porters 


TllK   SOURCES  OF   THE   lUOK.  277 

4 

shared  with  them.  As  a  rule,  the  inhabitants  of  this 
country  care  little  for  any  fui-ther  protection  from  the 
elements  than  their  big  sheepskin  *  bourcas/  which  can 
be  arranged  so  as  entirely  to  envelope  the  figure,  and 
may  very  likely  have  given  rise  to  the  fable  that  the 
Caucasians  are  in  the  habit,  when  on  the  march,  of  carry- 
ing vdth  them  small  tents,  and  taking  shelter  in  them 
from  the  rainstorms,  for  which  these  mountains  are  justly 
celebrated. 

July  lAstk. — The  morning  was  fair,  and  the  clouds  were 
blowing  off  the  surrounding  summits  when  we  emerged 
from  our  tent.  The  view  up  the  valley  was  closed  by  the 
snov^y  mass  of  the  Edenis-Mta,  and  a  small  glacier  which 
descends  from  its  flanks.  The  meaning  of  this  name  is 
the  Mountain  of  Paradise,  and  a  tradition,  similar  to  that 
told  of  the  ^  Grand  Paradis  ^  in  the  Graian  Alps,  is  related 
by  the  inhabitants  concerning  it.  The  track  we  now 
followed  abandoned  the  deep-cut  channel  of  the  Bion,  and 
climbed  the  very  steep  grass  slopes  of  the  range  on  the 
west.  Even  the  birch  was  soon  left  below,  and  we  found 
ourselves,  after  a  long  ascent,  on  a  wide  sloping  pasturage 
enamelled  vdth  alpine  flowers,  except  in  the  hollows 
where  the  snow  still  lay  unmelted.  The  roots  of  the  Eion 
valley  were  now  at  our  feet ;  above  them  the  main  chain 
rose  in  a  steep  vrall  of  rock,  over  which  the  two  glaciers  in 
which  the  river  has  its  source  poured  in  narrow  and 
not  very  imposing  icefalls.  To  the  west  the  view  was 
limited  by  the  ridge  we  had  to  cross,  but  behind  us,  over  a 
gap  in  the  lower  hills,  rose  a  serrated  icy  crest,  the  sum- 
mits of  which,  although  not  on  a  scale  of  grandeur  com- 
parable to  Adai  Khokh  and  its  neighbours,  would  be 
considered  fine  mountains  aoiywhere  in  the  Alps. 

Moore  had  been  altogether  upset  by  the  hot  brew  of  gutta- 
percha-flavoured  grape-juice  in  which  we  had  indulged  on 


278  CAUCASIAN   GLACIERS   AND   FORESTS. 

the  previous  night,  and  had  great  difficulty  in  making  any 
progress  ;  so  Tucker  and  I  pushed  on  by  ourselves,  leaving 
Fran9ois  to  help  our  friend,  and  Paul  to  keep  an  eye  on 
the  team  of  porters.      We  walked  briskly  over  the  wide 
Alp,  anxious  if  possible  to  reach  the  ridge  (called   by 
Badde  the  Goribolo  Hohe)  before  the  clouds  had  again 
shrouded  the  mountain-tops.    In  this  we  were  unsuccessful. 
The  pasturages  were  of  great  extent,  and  were  linked  to 
the  chain    separating    the   Bion  and   Zenes-Squali    by 
a  long  flat-topped  ridge,  the  ascent  from  which  to  the 
actual  pass  was  very  considerable.     One  of  the  porters  had 
pointed  out  to  us  the  spot  we  were  to  make  for,  a  rocky 
eminence  considerably  to  the  right  of  the  lowest  point  in 
the  ridge.     On  reaching  it  we  found  that  the  mists  had 
already  enveloped  all  the  western  chain,  and  that  our  hopes 
of  learning  something  of  Koschtantau  and  its  neighbours 
were  disappointed.    We  had,  however,  a  good  view  of  the 
western  end  of  the  Bion  basin,  and  of  the  picturesquely- 
shaped  summits  of  the  Schoda  chain.    At  our  feet  on  the 
west  was   a  short  glen,  running   down  to  the  wooded 
ravine  of  the   Zenes-Squali ;    a  spur  parallel  to  that  on 
which  we  stood  separates  the  two  sources  of  that  river. 
A  faintly-marked  zigzag,  by  which  the  peasants  of  the  Rion 
valley  reach  the  upper  snowfields,  and  pass  over  them 
to  the  pasturages  round  the  headwaters  of  the  Tcherek, 
on  the  north   side  of  the  mountains,  could  be  traced 
climbing  the  steep  slopes  of  the  main  chain  on  the  west  of 
the  Rion  sources.    The  pass  is  probably  free  from  serious 
difficulty,  as  cattle  are  sometimes  *  lifted '  over  it,  but  it 
must  lead  across  a  wide  expanse  of  snow  and  ice. 

It  will  be  seen,  on  any  of  the  modem  maps  of  the  Cau- 
casian provinces,  that  it  is  at  this  point  of  the  chain  that 
the  name  Pass-Mta  is  printed,  in  characters  which  seem  to 
indicate  the  position  of  a  peak  only  inferior  in  height  and 


THE   PASS-MTA.  279 

importance  to  Elbruz  and  Kazbek.  We  could  see  nothing 
of  the  kind,  and  Radde,  who  climbed  as  far  as  the  pastur- 
age, and  was  lucky  in  a  clear  day,  asserts  that  the  Pass- 
Mta  of  the  inhabitants  of  Gebi  is  nothing  more  than  a 
rocky  buttress  projecting  from  the  main  chain.  Oar  pre- 
decessor states  this  clearly  in  the  following  passage : — ^  One 
is  very  much  surprised,  after  having  looked  out  so  long  on 
the  journey  for  the  Pass-Mta,  to  find  in  it  nothing  impos- 
ing or  out  of  the  common.  It  is  far  inferior  in  height 
not  only  to  the  Edenis-Mta,  but  also  to  the  Lapuri  (a 
summit  lying  &rther  to  the  north-west),  and  the  flattened 
dome  to  which  it  rises  scarcely  attains  the  height  of  the 
snow-line.  Its  distinguishing  characteristic  is  that  it 
pushes  forward  from  the  main  chain,  here  represented  by 
the  Lapuri  and  Edenis-Mta,  and  thus  encloses  the  source 
of  the  Bion  on  one  side,  while  the  ridge  called  Goribolo 
shuts  it  in  on  the  other.' 

The  solution  of  the  apparent  inconsistency  between  the 
wide  reputation  of  the  mountain  and  its  real  insignificance 
is  not, I  think,  difiicult  to  discover;  to  us,  at  least,  the  follow- 
ing e^lanation  seems  sufSicient  and  satisfactory.  The  name 
of  Pass-Mta  has  been  applied,  by  the  people  on  the  south 
side  of  the  chain,  to  the  mountain  they  cross  in  going  over  to 
the  Tcherek.  The  traveller  on  the  hills  which  gird  the 
lowlands  of  Mingrelia  on  the  south,  sees,  when  looking  at 
the  opposite  chain  of  the  Caucasus,  a  great  snowy  mass  mid- 
way between  Kazbek  and  Elbruz.  He  does  not  know  its 
name,  and  can  find  no  one  to  tell  him,  but  by  the  map  he 
makes  out  that  it  must  be  somewhere  near  the  soiurce  of  the 
Bion :  the  only  mountain  well  known  there  is,  he  is  told, 
the  Pass-Mta,  so,  putting  two  and  two  together,  he  settles 
that  the  great  wall  of  ice  which  has  attracted  his  atten- 
tion, and  which  is  in  reality  the  southern  face  of  the 
Koschtaniau  group,  must  be  the  Pass-Mta  of  the  people 


2S0  CAUCASIAN   GLACIERS   AND   FORESTS. 

of  Gebi.*  This  portion  of  the  chain  is  the  one  which 
seems  most  completely  to  have  puzzled  geographers,  and 
many  books  and  maps  &11  into  the  serious  error  of  repre- 
senting the  Zenes-Squali  as  rising  entirely  on  the  southern 
side  of  a  spur  of  the  main  chain.  They  thus  deceive  a 
traveller,  by  giving  the  idea  that  only  one  ridge  separates 
the  sources  of  the  Bion  and  Ingur,  whereas  it  is  in  reality 
necessary  to  cross  no  less  than  three  in  going  from  one  to 
the  other. 

We  had  been  full  half  an  hour  on  the  top  before  the 
porters  came  up,  escorted  by  Paul ;  Moore  and  Fran9ois 
were  not  far  behind,  and  we  all  made  our  midday  meal 
together.  When  it  was  time  to  think  of  pursuing  our 
journey,  we  enquired  what  course  was  usually  taken  in 
descending  to  the  Zenes-Squali :  the  porters  pointed  out  a 
long  and  manifestly  absurd  circuit,  involving  a  considerable 
further  ascent  along  the  ridge  on  our  right.  There  was 
no  difficulty  in  going  down  the  steep  shaly  rocks  and  snow- 
filled  gullies  immediately  below  us,  into  the  head  of  the 
valley ;  but  when  we  intimated  our  intention  of  doing  so, 
the  men  gave  us  to  understand  that  if  we  liked  to  risk  our 
lives,  they  did  not  mean  to  peril  their  ovm,  and  that 
nothing  should  induce  them  to  follow  us. 

Having  fixed  as  our  meeting-point  the  junction  of  the 
stream  in  the  glen  below  us  with  the  eastern  Zenes-Squali, 
we  abandoned  our  train  to  the  consequences  of  their  folly, 
and  set  off  down  the  rocks,  which  were  perfectly  easy  to 
anyone  of -mountaineering  habits.  A  short  scramble 
enabled  us  to  get  into  a  snow-filled  trough,  down  which 
we  slid  rapidly,  until  the  foot  of  the  declivity  was  reached, 
and  the  gully  came  to  an  end  amongst  stones  and  uneven 

*  X  have  been  confirmed  in  this  iheoiy,  since  I  wrote  the  abbvei  by  seeing,  in 
the  Atlas  to  Dubois  de  Montpereux*  *  Caucase/  a  profile  of  the  Caucasian  chain,  in 
which  the  outline  of  Tau  Totonal  and  the  Jibiani  peaks  is  clearly  given,  and  the 
name  Paes-Mta  is  applied  to  them. 


DENSE   VEGETATION.  281 

ground,  cut  into  deep  furrows  by  the  melting  of  the  winter 
snows.  At  first  the  vegetation,  amongst  which  we  again 
found  ourselves,  took  the  form  of  stunted  bushes,  the 
tangled  branches  of  which  might  occasionally  trip  us 
up,  but  offered  no  material  impediment  to  our  progress. 
As  the  trees  grew  thicker,  and  no  trace  of  path  appeared, 
we  wete  glad  to  take  advantage  of  the  partially  dry  bed  of 
a  torrent,  which  was  narrow  enough  to  permit  of  our 
jumping  from  side  to  side  as  occasion  required*  When  it 
joined  the  main  stream,  and  no  space  was  left  between 
the  foaming  waters  and  the  steep  bank,  we  were  obliged 
to  enter  the  wood.  First,  we  forced  our  way  through  a 
dense  thicket,  where  we  had  to  push  aside  the  upper 
branches  with  our  arms,  whilst  we  scrambled  as  best  we 
could  in  and  out  of  deep  rivulet-beds,  and  over  or  under 
the  trunks  of  partially-fallen  or  prostrate  trees.  On 
emerging  into  a  glade,  we  did  not  find  our  condition  much 
bettered  by  the  change.  Although  at  a  distance,  and 
when  seen  from  above,  the  smooth  and  flowery  surface  had 
suggested  no  dij£culties,  we  now  found  that  it  was  com- 
posed of  a  dense  growth  of  umbelliferous  plants,  growing 
to  an  average  height  of  six  feet  above  the  ground.*  We 
were  at  first  at  a  loss  whether  to  admire  the  extraordinary 
luxuriance  of  the  cloak  which  nature  has  spread  over  'the 
soil  in  this  mountain  region,  or  to  grumble  at  the  toil  it 
cost  us  to  make  each  step  in  advance ;  but  the  latter  senti- 
ment soon  gained  the  mastery. 

Moore,  unwell  as  he  was,  could  not  maintain  the  exertion 

*  According  to  Horr  Radde  (who  is  an  eminent  botanist),  this  phenomenon  of 
the  vegetable  world  is  thus  produced : — '  The  frosts  of  autumn  kill  down  the 
summer's  growth,  and  leave  it  rotting  on  the  ground ;  the  rich  soil  formed  by 
its  decay  is  covered  by  the  winter  snows,  often  to  a  depth  of  thirty  feet.  As  spring 
advances,  the  water  of  the  melting  snow  percolates  the  groimd,  and  when  it  is 
at  last  laid  bare  to  the  warm  rays  of  a  Caucasian  sun,  the  herbs  spring  from 
the  saturated  soil,  as  from  a  hotbed.'  Whatever  may  be  the  cause,  it  is  certain 
that  the  2^ne8-Squari  would  gain  a  prize  for  weeds  anywhere. 


982  CAUCASIAN    GLACIEHS   A.\D   >X)RKSTS. 

without  repose,  and  we  left  him  to  follow  at  hia  leisure  in  our 
trail,  which  once  made  was  far  too  broad  to  be  missed. 
TreiiJiiig  down  ruthieasly  under  our  feet  alike  the  dense 
masses  of  hemlock  and  the  tall  spikes  of  goi^eous  tiger- 
lilies,  we  slowly  drew  near  to  the  junction  of  the  two  glens. 
In  the  thickest  of  the  wood  we  came  upon  a  track  which 
seemed  somewhat  too  broad  for  that  of  a  man;  it  led  us  to  a 
hollow  trunk,  the  home  of  a  bear ;  but  the  brown  gentleman 


was  out  for  his  afternoon's  stroll,  and  we  had  not  the  plea- 
sure of  making  his  acquaintance,  although  we  raliontly 
took  the  covers  off  our  ice-axes,  and  got  ready  our  revolyers, 
in  case  of  a  chance  encounter  with  a  cub.  We  were  never 
lucky  enough  to  see  a  bear,  except  in  captivity,  while  in 
the  Caucasus  :  indeed,  we  scarcely  saw  any  wild  animals, 
much  to  our  surprise,  as  we  hod  been  told  that  bears. 


CA.MP   OX    THE   ZENES-SQUAH.  283 

bouquetin,  and  chamois  abounded  on  the  higher  moun- 
tains. It  must  be  remembered  that  we  never  went  out  of 
our  way  to  look  for  game  ;  of  its  existence  there  can  be 
no  doubt,  and  this  very  glen  is  a  favourite  hunting-ground 
with  the  inhabitants  of  Laschketi,  the  highest  village  in 
the  valley,  who  come  here  in  winter  on  snow-shoes.  They 
form  a  party,  consisting  of  as  many  as  forty  or  fifty  hunters, 
surround  a  large  tract  of  country,  and  drive  the  game  to- 
gether. In  this  way  thirty-one  bouquetin  were  killed  in 
one  day  in  the  winter  of  1863  ■  64. 

We  halted  where  the  valleys  met  on  a  large  level 
meadow,  of  course  covered  with  a  crop  of  tall-stemmed, 
broad-leaved  herbage,  on  the  banks  of  the  eastern  branch 
of  the  Zenesr-Squali.  The  valley  is  closed  by  a  rocky 
cirque,  the  centre  of  which  is  occupied  by  the  Lapuri 
glacier,  terminating  abruptly  on  the  edge  of  a  cliff,  down 
which  the  stream  makes  its  way  in  a  bold  leap.  After 
waiting  for  more  than  two  hours  without  seeing  or  hearing 
anything  of  the  porters,  whose  figures  had  been  visible  on 
the  skyline  long  after  we  had  reached  the  bottom  of  the 
glen,  we  reflected  that  we  should  be  unable  to  push  any 
further  that  evening,  and  that  it  would  be  as  well  to  make 
*what  preparations  we  could  for  our  bivouac.  A  spring  of 
clear  water,  which  burst  out  of  the  stony  channel  of  the 
Zenes-Squali,  served  to  fix  the  position  of  our  camp,  and 
we  proceeded  to  cut  down  the  herbage,  dig  up  stones 
with  our  ice-axes,  and  level  the  inequalities  of  the  soil. 
We  finished  our  work,  and  still  no  porters  arrived; 
at  last,  after  we  had  waited  for  them  four  hours,  our 
shouts  were  answered,  and  we  distinguished  the  train 
rambling  leisurely  along  on  the  opposite  bank  of  the  river. 
We  called  to  them  to  recross  the  stream,  to  do  which  they 
were  obliged  to  extemporise  a  bridge  by  throwing  a  fallen 
log  across  it.     No  rain  had  fallen  during  the  day,  and  our 


284  CAUCASIAN   GLACIERS   AND    FORESTS. 

camp  was  consequently  more  enjoyable.  Paul,  with  the 
aid  of  our  little  kitchen,  prepared  us  a  capital  dinner  of 
soup,  cold  mutton,  broiled  ham,  and  tea,  which  even 
Moore — who  had  by  this  time  risjoined  us,  and  recovered 
from  his  sickness — was  able  to  enjoy.  During  the  night 
we  were  pestered  by  swarms  of  mosquitoes,  and  small  but 
very  venomous  black  flies,  which,  despite  all  pur  endeavours, 
found  their  way  into  the  tent,  and  most  effectually  mur- 
dered sleep. 

July  15th. — The  valley  was  filled  with  clouds,  which 
threatened  rain  before  the  day  was  much  older.  We 
packed  up  our  tent,  and,  afber  the  usual  delays,  got  off 
about  7.15  A.M.  At  once  crossing  the  river,  we  struck 
the  bed  of  a  smaU  stream  descending  from  a  hoUow  in 
the  range  on  the  west  side  of  the  valley.  The  stones  in 
the  channel  were  of  no  great  size,  and  we  made  compara- 
tively rapid  progress,  ascending  gradually  until  the  woods 
on  either  side  thinned,  and  we  found  ourselves  in  a  recess 
surrounded  by  steep  but  not  lofty  ridges  of  a  loose 
shaly  rock.  The  deeply-indented  gap,  through  which 
we  must  pass  to  reach  the  valley  of  the  western  Zenes- 
Squali,  was  now  clearly  visible  in  front ;  the  ascent  to  it  was 
at  first  up  an  exceedingly  steep  grass-slope  utterly  path-' 
less,  and  for  the  last  150  feet  by  a  narrow  trough.  How 
Herr  Radde's  guides  can  by  any  possibility  have  succeeded 
in  getting  horses  over  this  pass  we  could  never  understand, 
although  the  feats  performed  by  Caucasian  steeds  are 
truly  marvellous,  whether  on  snow  or  rock. 

When,  in  two  hours  from  our  camp,  we  reached  the 
summit  of  the  Noschka  Pass  (8,460  feet),  we  found  that 
there  was  a  snow-filled  trough  on  the  farther  side  exactly 
similar  to  that  by  which  we  had  ascended.  The  view 
must  at  all  times  be  limited  by  the  higher  ranges  close  at 
hand,  and  now  even  the  summits  of  these  were  concealed 


SWAMPS   AND   RAIN.  285 

by  clouds.  The  porters  again  pretended  to  think  the 
direct  descent  too  steep,  but,  with  the  results  of  the  day 
before  as  an  argument  in  our  favour,  we  were  not  disposed 
to  let  them  have  their  own  way,  and  insisted  on  their 
taking  advantage  of  the  route  nature  had  provided  in  the 
snow-gully  at  our  feet.  Having  started  the  whole  troop — 
who  descended  with  an  air  of  the  greatest  trepidation,  and 
screamed  with  fiight  when  one  of  us  above  dislodged  a 
small  stone  which  fell  amongst  them — ^we  followed  our- 
selves by  a  rapid  glissade,  but,  warned  by  previous  ex- 
perience not  to  leave  the  porters,  we  accommodated  our  pace 
to  theirs,  which  was  in  consequence  somewhat  improved. 

A  long  wooded  slope  led  down  to  the  western  Zenes- 
Squali.  The  herbage  was  as  rank  and  the  woods  as 
thick  as  on  the  day  before,  but  we  avoided  some  of 
the  fatigue  by  allowing  the  whole  train  of  twelve  men 
to  march  before  us,  and  taking  advantage  of  the  trail 
thus  formed.  We  got  on  at  a  very  fair  pace  down  to 
the  left  bank  of  the  stream,  into  which  a  pretty  water- 
fall tumbled  from  the  opposite  hillside.  The  skirt  of  the 
Maschquar  glacier,  from  which  it  takes  its  rise,  was  visible 
under  the  clouds  at  the  head  of  the  valley.  The  whole 
afternoon,  from  12  till  6.15  p.k.,  was  spent  in  forcing  our 
way  down  the  wildest  valley  we  met  with  in  the  whole 
course  of  our  wanderings.  There  was  no  trace  of  path, 
so,  following  the  custom  of  the  country,  we  clambered 
for  some  distance  over  the  boulders  in  the  channel  of  the 
river,  and  when  this  was  impossible,  forced  our  way 
through  the  virgin  forest  which  lines  its  banks.  Dense 
thickets,  prostrate  logs^  and  swamps  into  which  we  sank 
deep  at  every  step,  were  the  leading  features  of  the  walk, 
while  the  same  luxuriant  vegetation  which  we  had  before 
encountered  was  everywhere  remarkable. 

Heavy  rain  now  began,  and  continued  to  fall  for  the  rest 


286  CAUCASIAN   GLACIEBS   AND   FORESTS. 

of  the  day.  Our  guides  seemed  confident  in  their  knowledge 
of  the  right  direction  through  this  wilderness,  and  tramped 
on  with  praiseworthy  perseverance,  diverting  the  tedium  of 
the  march,  sometimes  by  raising  awild  monotonous  chaunt,* 
led  by  one  man,  with  a  refrain  taken  up  in  succession  by 
his  companions — sometimes  by  excursions  in  quest  of 
the  stalks  of  a  huge  umbelliferous  plant,  for  which  their 
appetite  seemed  insatiable.  Each  man  must  have  cut  and 
peeled  for  himself  seyeral  poimds  of  this  juicy  but  tasteless 
vegetable  food  in  the  course  of  the  day.  When  it  became 
necessary  to  cross  the  river,  the  water  was  too  deep  and 
violent  to  be  forded,  but  a  young  tree  was  soon  felled,  and 
laid  across  to  enable  us  to  pass.  The  valley,  the  configura- 
tion of  which  is  most  incorrectly  represented  in  the  Five 
Verst  Map,  now  broadened  out,  and  a  cirque  crowned  by 
snowy  peaks  and  some  small  glaciers  opened  on  the  right. 
A  densely-wooded  spur  projected  from  the  main  chain, 
turning  the  course  of  the  valley  we  were  following  more 
directly  south,  and  separating  it  from  the  glen  of  the 
Scena.  The  scenery  here  is  probably  very  striking  in  fine 
weather.  We  .passed  a  hunter's  lair  sheltered  under  a 
bank,  and  soon  afberwards  noticed  the  ruins  of  a  tower 
rising  out  of  the  dense  forest,  and  affording  a  proof  that 
these  solitudes  have  not  always  been  so  deserted  as  they  are 
now.  On  our  right,  deep  channels  were  cut  through  the 
friable  soil  by  the  glacier-streams,  the  passage  of  which 
cost  us  a  good  deal  of  time  and  trouble.  We  had  now 
attained  a  height  of  from  500  to  800  feet  above  the  river, 
and  a  bend  in  its  course  enabled  us  to  look  down  to  its 
junction  with  the'  Scena,  the  point  fixed  on  as  the  probable 
limit  of  our  day's  walk.    The  slopes  we  were  traversing 

*  ITcrr  Kadde  has  been  at  the  pains  to  collect  and  translate  many  of  these 
songs,  which  seem  to  possess  more  meaning  and  merit  than  would  be  imagined 
by  a  person  hearing,  for  the  first  time,  the  succession  of  gutturals  and  unc3uth 
exclamations  of  which  they  consist. 


A   SAVAGE   SCENE.  287 

were  exceedingly  steep,  and  it  was  an  immense  relief  when 
our  porters  happily  hit  on  a  faint  hunter's  trail,  which, 
though  frequently  lost,  was  always  recovered  after  a  slight 
delay.  The  channel  of  the  river  beneath  us  was  narrowed 
into  a  gorge,  and  the  opposite  mountain-side  was  even 
steeper  than  that  we  were  laboriously  traversing.  As  we 
drew  near  to  the  angle  of  the  mountain^  which  projects 
over  the  confluence  of  the  Scena  and  the  western  Zenes- 
Squali,  pines  mingled  with  the  deciduous  trees,  and  lower 
down  their  gigantic  cones  of  sombre  foliage  clothed,  from 
top  to  bottom,  the  sides  of  the  tremendous  ravine  into 
which  the  vaUey  contracted. 

The  scene,  which  revealed  itself,  bit  by  bit,  through 
the  breaks  in  a  dense  veil  of  mist,, was  one  of  the  most 
savage  of  its  kind  imaginable,  and  totally  unlike  anything 
I  had  ever  seen,  except  in  some  of  the  mountain  landscapes 
of  Gustave  Dor6.  Meantime  the  rain  fell  in  merciless 
torrents,  which  even  the  thickest  pine-branches  could  only 
partially  keep  out.  It  seemed  as  though  we  should  never 
reach  the  entrance  of  the  Scena  valley,  but  at  last  the 
comer  of  the  mountain  was  turned,  and  we  began  to  de- 
scend 5  the  forest  grew  thicker,  and  a  few  hundred  feet 
above  the  stream,  we  found  a  group  of  pines  so  dense  that 
a  patch  of  ground  beneath  them  was  still  fairly  dry,  and 
promised  to  afford  our  men  a  better  resting-place  than 
they  could  have  hoped  for.  The  first  thing  to  do  was  to 
set  up  the  tent  as  quickly  as  possible,  no  pleasant  or  easy 
task,  when  the  ropes  and  strings  were  all  in  a  soppy 
condition.  Once  inside,  we  tried  to  put  on  dry  clothes, 
the  waterproof  saddlebags  having  gallantly  withstood  the 
rain,  and  preserved  their  contents  from  wet.  Our  tent 
was  always  small,  and  the  sloping  sides,  which  in  fine 
weather  could  be  stretched  taut,  were  apt  when  wet  to  flop 
heavily  against  our  faces  whenever  we  attempted  to  sit  up. 


218  CAUCASIAN'   GLACIERS   A.VD    FOEESTS. 

in  a  way  calculated  to  test  the  temper  of  eren  a  Mark 
Tapley,  This  inconTenience  much  hampered  the  pro- 
ceediD)^  of  the  two  outsider,  one  of  whom  expressed  in 
no  measured  terms  bis  disgust  at  the  situation,  and  his 
wish  that  he  was  enjoying  the  creatore-comforts  of  Pati- 
gorslc.  The  man  in  the  middle  saw  things  in  a  more  cheer- 
ful light,  and  the  spirits  of  all  were  a  little  raised  by  the 


Oiu  Cunp-On  Id  tbe  Fomt. 

arriTal  of  Paul  with  some  broiled  ham  and  tea.  The  porters 
had  made  a  roaring  fire  in  the  centre  of  the  dry  plot,  and 
the  glimpse  of  the  group  of  picturesque  peasants  clustered 
round  the  blaze,  and  the  dark  background  of  pines, 
revealed  te  us  as  our  tent^door  was  thrown    open,   was 


s^ 


THE   GLEN    OF   TUB   SCENA.  289 

enough  to  repay  us  for  all  the  disagreeables  of  the  day. 
Wrapping  ourselves  round  in  the  driest  folds  of  our  rugs, 
which  shared  in  the  general  humidity,  we  composed  our- 
selves for  the  night,  in  hopes  that  the  rainstorm  of  the  day 
had  been  too  heavy  to  last. 

July  17th. — The  morning  was  cloudy,  but  not  actuallj' 
wet.  Our  porters  assured  us  that  we  should  arrive  early 
in  the  afternoon  at  Jibiani,  and,  in  the  still  unsettled  state 
of  the  weather,  we  looked  forward  with  pleasure  to  the 
prospect  of  again  sleeping  under  a  roof.  We  had  now  to 
mount  the  valley  of  the  Scena,  the  most  western  of  the 
three  principal  sources  of  the  Zenes-Squali.  Our  course 
lay  at  first  almost  due  west,  but  after  a  time  the  valley 
bent  round  to  the  north,  and  we  began  to  ascend  rapidly 
""  by  the  side  of  the  stream,  which  foams  at  the  bottom  of  a 
deep  and  narrow  cleft.  For  the  first  half-hour  we  were  in 
the  forest,  which  was  composed  of  noble  pines,  though  the 
trees  were  not  equal  in  size  to  those  on  the  farther  side 
of  the  river.  A  narrow  path,  always  ill-defined  and  in 
places  scarcely  traceable,  led  across  meadows  of  the 
rankest  herbage,  gay  with  subalpiue  flowers,  lilies,  lupins, 
and  vetches,  which  showered  down  heavy  drops  on  us  as  we 
passed.  The  ruins  of  a  village,  or  some  huts,  could  be 
distinguished  amongst  the  trees  on  the  opposite  side  of 
the  valley.  To  our  surprise  the  path  grew  more  distinct 
the  further  we  went,  and  gradually  assumed  the  character 
of  a  sledge-track.  It  led  through  thickets  of  underwood, 
and  over  much  marshy  ground,  the  source  of  numerous 
springs,  which  hurry  to  reinforce  the  torrent,  here  leaping 
noisily  over  the  granite  boulders  it  has  brought  down  with 
it  fix)m  the  central  chain. 

When  we  reached  the  level  ground  at  the  actual  head  of 
the  valley,  we  found  that  the  bridge  over  the  Scena,  which 
the  peasant  who  acted  as  guide  assured  us  had  existed  when 

u 


290  CAUCASIAN  GLACIERS  AND   FORESTS. 

he  last  maxie  this  journey,  was  now  no  more,  and  that  we 
must  make  the  best  of  our  wfiy  through  the  water.  The 
stream  proved  fordable,  but  the  streng-th  and  speed  of  the 
current  were  so  considerable,  that  some  care  was  needful 
to  avoid  missing  one's  footing  {imongst  the  boulders.  The 
scenery  at  the  source  of  the  Scena  must  be  very  imposing  in 
clear  weather.  The  usual  clouds  cut  off  all  view  of  the  sum- 
mits, but  did  not  conceal  the  twin  icefalls  of  the  Koriildii 
glacier,  which,  unlike  the  other  glaciers  of  the  Zenes-Squali, 
survives  its  fall,  and  re-makes  itself  at  the  bottom  of  the 
glen.  It  is  surrounded  by  abrupt  snow-streaked  cliffe  of 
great  height.  The  track,  now  broad  and  distinct,  turned 
sharply  up  the  steep  western  hillside,  and  raised  us  to  the 
verge  of  a  wide  upland  pasturage,  surrounded  by  compara- 
tively low  ridges.  The  slopes  were  bare  of  trees,  but 
covered  with  rhododendron-bushes,  and  with  a  beautiful 
herbage,  short  in  comparison  to  that  found  lower  down  in 
the  valley,  but  capable  of  feeding  immense  herds  of  cows 
and  goats.  It  was  the  sort  of  scene  which  in  the  Alps 
would  have  been  enlivened  by  numerous  chSlets,  but  here 
there  was  nothing  of  the  sort,  and  Pran9ois,  who  longed 
to  tmnsport  the  whole  hiUside  within  reach  of  Chamonix, 
was  loud  in  his  lamentations  over  the  shortcomings  of  a 
population  who  could  allow  such  natural  riches  to  run  to 
waste. 

The  stream  which  waters  these  pasturages  bears  the 
name  of  Lastilagel.  It  has  three  sources,  and  there 
is  more  than  one  way  of  crossing  from  its  basin  to  the 
headwaters  of  the  Ingur.  We  descended  somewhat,  in 
order  to  cross  the  main  stream,  which  flows  in  a  deeply- 
cut  channel,  and  having  made  our  midday  halt  on  its 
banks,  climbed  a  long  and  steep  zigzag,  firom  the  top  of 
which  the  path  bore  away  at  a  level,  on  the  left  of 
the  most  southern  source  of  the  Lastilagel.     The  snow 


THE  NAKSAGAR  PASS.  291 

had  apparently  melted  very  recently,  and  the  ground 
wa-s  saturated  with  moisture.  The  stream  we  had  followed 
is  nourished  by  the  springs  of  an  upper  level  of  pasturages, 
rising  to  a  broad  saddle  which  forms  the  Naksagar  Pass 
(8,818  feet) — the  watershed  between  the  Ingur  and  the 
Zenes-Squali.  The  pass  itself  is  so  broad  and  flat  at  the  top, 
that  it  is  difficult  to  tell  the  exact  moment  when  the  summit 
is  reached.  Boimd  grass-covered  hills  shut  in  the  view  on  all 
sides ;  the  sledge-track  goes  downhill,  at  first  very  gently, 
afterwards  more  rapidly,  but  there  is  no  point  where  the 
descent  can  be  called  steep.  The  stream,  which  rises  on  the 
west  side  of  the  pass,  and  joins  the  Ingur  at  Jibiani,  is 
called  the  Quirischi.  The  path,  becoming  broader  and 
more  beaten  as  it  draws  nearer  the  village,  clings  to  the 
BlopeB  OB  the  right  bank  of  the  torrent,  which  is  joined  bj 
another  flowing  tlm)ugh  a  short  glen  froxa  the  steep  and 
jagged  flanks  of  the  Ugua. 

Signs  of  an  inhabited  coimtry  now  followed  one  another 
in  rapid  succession.  Large  herds  of  heifers  were  feeding 
on  the  slopes,  the  projecting  knolls  were  crowned  with 
stonemen,_and  we  passed  presently  a  hut  near  which  was 
a  cluster  of  women  and  boys,  wilder  and  more  unkempt- 
looking  specimens  than  any  we  had  yet  seen.  A  tall  tower, 
a  portion  of  a  now  ruined  castle  (said  to  have  been  built 
by  Queen  Thamara),  appeared  perched  on  a  commanding 
knoll  on  fh.e  left  bank  of  the  stream,  and  gave  us  the  first 
warning  of  our  approach  to  Jibiani.  Our  Gtebi  porters, 
instead  of  seeming  anxious  to  finish  their  job,  took  every 
possible  occasion  to  loiter  on  the  road,  and  we  vainly  endea- 
voured to  incite  the  slow  unwilling  train  to  a  final  spurt. 
Our  entrance  to  Jibiani,  and  the  commencement  of  our 
Suanetian  experiences,  will  be  best  placed  at  the  beginning 
of  a  new  chapter.r 


u  2 


292  SUANETIA. 


CHAPTEE  X. 

SUANETIA. 

*  Free  Suane.tia,  Past  and   Present — Herr  Radde's  Experiences — ^Physical 

•  Features — Fortified   Villages— Jibiani^Pious    Savages — A    Surprise — 
,    Glaciers  of  the  Ingur — ^Petty  Theft — Threats  of  Robbery — ^ Alarms  and  Ex- 

.  cursions — A  Stormy  Parting — ^The  Horseman's  Home — ^The  Ruined  Tower 
-^A  Glorious  Icefall — Adisch — Sylvan  Scenery-^The  Mushalaliz — Suni — 
Tips  and  Downs — ^Midday  Halt — ^Latal — ^A  Suanetian  Farmhouse — ^Murder 
no  Crime — ^Tau  Totonal — A  Sensation  Scene — The  Caucasian  Matter- 
horn — ^Pari  at  last — Hospitable  Cossacks. 

SuANETiA  is  the  geneitil  name  bestowed  by  geographers  on 
the  upper  valley  of  the  Ingur,  and  is  derived  from  the  in- 
'habitants,  who  from  very  ancient  times  have  been  called 
the  Suani,  or  Suanetians.  This  people  is  not,  however, 
entirely  confined  to  the  valley  of  the  Ingur,  as  many  of 
the  higher  villages  on  the  Zenes-Squali  are  occupied  by 
the  same  race.  Their  inhabitants  are  now  distinguished 
from  their  neighbours  round  the  sources  of  the  Ingur,  as 
the  Dadian's  Suanetians,  from  having  been  subject  to  a 
native  prince  who  bore  the  title  of  Dadian.  His  authority, 
or  that  of  other  members  of  the  same  family,  extends  over 
the  western  portion  of  the  Ingur  basin ;  but  the  groups  of 
hamlets,  which  cluster  thickly  in  the  network  of  glens 
containing  the  sources  of  the  stream,  are  at  the  present 
time  independent,  and  are  known  as  Free  Suanetia. 

Since  Itussia  has  succeeded  in  converting  her  long  nomi- 
nal suzerainty  over  the  Caucasus  into  real  dominion,  the 
native  princes  have  naturally  been  treated  by  her  simply 
as  landed  proprietors  with  certain  manorial  rights.     Con- 


SUANETIAN   HISTORY.  293 

stantin  Dadisch-Kilian,  the  Suanetian  prince,  resident  at 
Pari,  was  about  eight  years  ago  suspected  of  some  intrigue, 
and  was  in  consequence  summoned,  by  the  Governor  of 
Mingrelia,  to  meet  him  at  Kutais.  He  obeyed  the  sum- 
mons, and  was  told  that  he  must  leave  his  home  and  live  for 
the  future  in  Eussia.  High  words  ensued ;  the  Russian 
officer  was  firm,  the  Prince  grew  violent,  and  finally,  draw- 
ing his  dagger,  stabbed  and  killed  the  Grovemor.  He 
escaped  for  the  moment,  but  was  ultimately  taken  and  shot 
at  Kutais.  His  former  residence.  Pari,  was  selected  as  the 
Bussian  military  post  in  Suanetia,  and  for  a  short  time  the 
whole  district  was  kept  under  control  by  a  considerable 
force.  The  expense  and  difficulty  experienced  in  carrying 
out  the  improfitable  task  of  preserving  order  in  this  moun- 
tain fastness  appear  to  have  disgusted  the  Government, 
which  probably  thought  that  if  the  free  Suanetians  were 
left  to  fight  out  their  quarrels,  the  race  would,  like  Kil- 
kenny cats,  soon  be  self-exterminated.  Whatever  the 
motive,  the  troops  were  withdrawn,  and  ten  Oossacks, 
stationed  at  Pari,  are  the  entire  executive  force  at  the 
disposal  of  the  chief  of  the  district,  and  the  upper  or 
western  valleys  are,  for  all  practical  purposes,  independent, 
and  at  full  liberty  to  follow  their  own  wicked  ways  of  theft 
and  murder,  to  their  hearts'  content. 

This  is,  I  believe,  a  correct  description  of  the  present 
state  of  the  country.  Its  past  history  is  obscure  and  com- 
plicated, and  I  cannot  pretend  to  have  made  any  very  deep 
researches  concerning  it.  Suanetia  seems  usually  to  have 
been  united  with  Mingrelia,  but  at  times  to  have  been 
treated  as  a  province  of  the  Imeritian  kingdom.  The  interr 
nal  disorder  to  which  Imeritia  was  the  prey,  and  the 
weakness  of  its  rulers,  aided  the  Suanetians  in  establishing 
their  independence. 

At  the  end  of  the  fom'teenth  century,  they  made  a  sue- 


29*  SUANETU- 

cessful  foray  into  the  Eadscha,  and  burned  Kutais ;  worsted 
in  the  field,  they  were  again  compelled  to  submit  to 
Imeritia,  and  a  prince  was  imposed  on  them,  whose  usual 
residence  was  on  the  Zenes-Squali.  During  the  fifteenth 
century,  we  again  find  the  Suanetians  at  war  with  their 
southern  neighbours.  After  ten  years'  hard  fighting,  they 
were  forced  to  surrender  the  Upper  Bion  district,  as  the 
penalty  for  the  murder  of  an  Imeritian  prince.  Traces  of 
their  former  connection  with  Suanetia  may  still  be  re- 
cognised in  the  style  of  building  and  the  towers  of  Chiora 
and  Gebi,  and  their  inhabitants  are  still  looked  upon  by 
the  population  of  the  Sadscha  as  a  foreign  race.  By 
degrees  the  people  about  the  Ingur  sources  established 
their  independence,  but  members  of  the  princely  family, 
Iniown  by  the  title  of  Dadisch-Eolian,  were,  at  the  time  of 
the  establishment  of  the  Russian  dominion^  still  regarded 
as  the  feudal  chiefs  of  the  lower  villages  on  the  Ingur, 
and,  as  such,  took  the  oath  of  allegiance  to  the  Czar. 

Ethnologists  seem  to  have  come  to  the  conclusion  that  the 
Suanetians  are  a  branch  of  the  Georgian  family,  and  a  study 
of  their  language  has  convinced  Herr  Eadde  that  it  has 
much  in  common  with  the  Imeritian  and  Mingrelian  dia- 
lects. When  it  is  remembered  that  in  the  eleven,  upper 
communities  on  the  Ingur,  after  the  successful  assertion  of 
their  independence,  a  fugitive  from  the  lower  country  could 
obtain  not  only  immunity  from  punishment  for  past  offences, 
but  also  personal  liberty,  and  freedom  from  princely  exac- 
tions, it  will  not  be  thought  wonderful  that  the  population 
of  this  district  at  the  present  day  bears  marks  of  a  mixed 
origin. 

Thus  much  for  the  history  of  Suanetia.  As  to  the  character 
of  the  people,  I  shall  quote  Herr  Eadde,  the  latest  traveller 
in  this  country,  and  the  only  one,  1  believe,  who,  aided  by 
all  the  facilities  the  Bussian  authorities  could  give  him. 


HERE   RADDE'S   EXPERIENCES.  295 

and  by  his  knowledge  of  the  native  dialects,  has  set  him- 
self seriously  to  work  to  study  the  customs  and  manners  of 
this  sequestered  mountain-tribe.     This  gentleman  arrived 
at  Jibiani  in  company  with  a  native  priest,  who  served  as 
his  introducer  to  the  villagers.     He  found  them  engaged 
in  hostilities  vrith  the  neighbouring  hamlet  of  Murkmur, 
and  men  wounded  in.  the  skirmishes,  which  were  of  con- 
stant occurrence,  were  brought  in  from  time  to  time  during 
his  stay.     The  Herr  was  here  robbed  of  a  horse,  which  was 
only  recovered  after  much  trouble.     To  avoid  the  scene  of 
battle,  instead  of  descending  the  valley,  he  made  his  way 
across  the  mountains,  and  slept  in  the  open  air,  in  order 
to  pass  through  the  village  of  Adisch  by  night,  on  account 
of  the  ill-name  borne  by  its  inhabitants.  At  Pari,  the  former 
residence  of  the  native  princes,  and  present  post  of  Eussian 
Cossacks,  he  stayed  for  some  days,  collecting  information 
as  to  the  language,  ballads,  and  customs  of  the  country. 
The  result  of  his  experiences  and  researches  he  sums  up 
in  the  following  words : — *  Amongst  the  Suanetians  intelli- 
gent faces    are   seldom  found.     In  their    countenances 
insolence  and  rudeness  are  prominent,  and  hoary-headed 
obstinacy  is  often  united  to  the  stupidity  of  savage  animal 
life.     Amongst  these   people,  individuals   are  frequently 
met  with  who  have  committed  ten  or  more  murders,  which 
their  standard  of  morality  not  only  permits,  but  in  many 
cases  commands.     They  are  of  a  taciturn  disposition,  and 
their  manner  when  endeavouring  to  impose  upon  strangera 
is  most  disagreeable.' 

I  may  add  to  this  the  opinion  of  Malte  Brun,  who  says 
of  the  Suanetians  : — *  Nothing  can  equal  their  want  of 
cleanliness,  their  rapacity,  and  their  skill  in  making 
weapons.  We  may  consider  the  Pthirophagi,  or  eaters  of 
vermin,  who  according  to  Strabo  inhabited  this  country, 
as  the  progenitors  of  the  Suanes.'     No  character  can  be 


*■  • '  »•. 


296  SUANKtiA. 

more  accurate,  only  that  at  the  present  day  the  relations 
of  the  vermin  and  the  population  have  been  reversed. 

The  nature  of  the  country  has  no  doubt  had  a  great 
share  in  forming  the  savage  and  wild  character  of  its 
inhabitants.     A  large  basin,  forty  miles  long  by  about 
fifteen  broad,  is  shut  in  on  all  sides  by  glacier-crowned 
ridges,  and  the  only  access  to  it  from  the  outer  world  is  by 
means  of  a  narrow,  and  at  times  impassable,  ravine,  or  over 
lofby  mountain-passes.     The  main  chain  of  the  Caucasus 
forms  its  boundary  on   the   north,   and   this  reaches  its 
greatest  elevation  and  true  central   point  in  the  huge 
glacier-seamed,  peak-surmounted  wall  which  towers  over 
the  sources  of  the  Ingur.     Tau  Totonal  (or  Tetnuld)  must 
be  over  16,000  feet,  and  the  summits  of  the  serrated  range, 
which  stretches  from  it  to  the  east  for  several  miles,  do 
not  average  less  than  15,000  feet  in  height.    Three  glaciers, 
the  Nuamquam,  the  Goroscho,  and  the  Adisch,  pour  down 
from  this  wall  into  three  separate  glens.     They  descend 
to  a  level  of  about  7,000  feet,  which  may  be  taken  as  the 
lowest  point  reached  by  glaciers  on  the  southern  side  of 
the  Caucasus.   The  chain  between  Tau  Totonal  and  TJschba 
(called  also  Besotch-Mta  by  Badde)  makes  a  semicircular 
sweep  to  the  north,  and  at  least  two  considerable  glaciers, 
the  G^tun  Tau  and  the  Thuber,  descend  from  it  into  the 
Mushalaliz  branch  of  the  main  valley.     TJschba  itself  is  a 
gigantic  promontory,  standing  out  between  the  glens  of  two 
of  the  northern  tributaries  of  the  Ingur;  like  so  many  others 
of  the  great  peaks,  it  does  not  seem  to  be  on  the  water- 
shed, but  it  is  the  only  one  I  know  that  is  on  the  southern 
side. 

A  long  lateral  ridge,  forming  the  western  boundary  of 
the  Nakra  vaUey,  through  which  one  of  the  best-known 
passes  leads  to  the  northern  side  of  the  mountains,  runs 
out  at  right-angles  to  the  central  chain,  and  forms  the 


NATURAL   FEATURES.  297 

limit  of  Suanetia  on  the  west.  Its  spurs  are  separated 
from  those  of  the  Leila  mountains,  which  intervene  on  the 
south  between  Suanetia  and  the  lower  country,  only  by 
the  deeply-cut  and  densely-wooded  gorge  through  which 
the  Ingur  makes  its  escape.  The  Leila  chain  is  of  con- 
siderable height;  several  of  its  peaks  exceed  12,000  feet, 
and  the  glaciers  on  its  northern  flanks  are  by  no  means 
despicable.  Its  formidable  barrier  runs  in  an  unbroken 
line  along  the  south  bank  of  the  Ingur,  and  is  con- 
nected at  the  source  of  that  river  with  the  main  ridge 
of  the  Caucasus,  by  a  grass-covered  range  (crossed 
by  us  in  passing  from  the  Zenes-Squali  to  Jibiani), 
which  thus  completes  the  circle  of  mountain  barriers 
with  which  nature  has  fortified  this  region.  The  topo- 
graphy of  the  interior  of  the  Tipper  Ingur  basin  is 
exceedingly  complicated,  and  can  only  be  understood  by 
carefiil  study  of  a  map.  The  stream  of  the  Ingur  flows 
generally  along  the  foot  of  the  Leila  range ;  the  country  to 
the  north,  between  it  and  the  main  chain,  is  divided  by 
spurs,  none  of  which  attain  the  snow-level,  into  rayines 
and  meadow-basins,  through  which  flow  tributary  streams 
coming  from  the  glaciers  above.  These  are  of  a  greater 
size,  and  descend  lower  into  the  valleys,  than  anywhere 
else  on  the  southern  side  of  the  Caucasus. 

The  foregoing  description  vdll  have  prepared  my  readers 
for  the  character  of  the  people  whom  we  are  about  to 
encounter,  and,  if  read  vrith  a  map,  may  assist  those  who 
care  to  follow  our  wanderings  through  the  intricacies  of 
the  Ingur  sources.  We  had  not  had  time  to  study 
attentively  Herr  Eadde's  volume  before  leaving  Tiflis,  and 
had  no  reason  to  anticipate  a  worse  reception  or  greater 
difficulties  than  we  had  previously  met  with;  so  that, 
wearied  out  with  the  dawdling  ways'  and  monotonous 
chants  of  our  Gebi  men,  we  had  looked  fonvard  with 


•293  SUANETIA. 

some  pleasure  to  dismissing  them,  and  making  a  fi'esli 
start.  We  hoped  to  spend  several  days  at  Jibiani,  and  to 
make  it  our  headquarters  for  the  exploration  of  the 
surrounding  mountains.  The  Five  Verst  Map  showed  us 
that  behind  the  watershed  of  the  main  chain,  situated  on  a 
northern  spur,  stood  two  great  peaks,  Koschtantau  and 
Dychtau,  respectively  17,096  and  16,926  feet  in  height — 
both  therefore  higher  than  Kazbek ;  and  our  object  was 
to  gain  the  watershed,  at  some  point  whence  we  might 
enjoy  a  view  of  these  giants,  and  of  the  glaciers  surround- 
ing them.  It  was  therefore  with  feelings  of  pleasiu*e, 
unmixed  with  any  apprehension,  that  we  hailed  our  first 
glimpse  of  Jibiani,  Tschubiani,  and  Mnrkmur,  a  community 
known  collectively  by  the  name  of  Uschkul. 

Most  of  the  villages  in  Suanetia  are  in  clusters  of  two  to 
four,  and  go  by  a  collective  name,  distinct  fix)m  the  indivi- 
dual appellation  of  each  knot  of  houses.  Adisch  is,  I  think, 
a  solitary  exception  to  this  rule.  Jibiani  and  Tschubiani 
are  built  on  the  projecting  brow  above  the  junction  of  the 
Quirischi  with  the  infant  Ingur,  which  has  here  run  but  afew 
miles  from  its  cradle  in  the  glaciers  of  Schkari  and  Nuam- 
quam,  at  the  base  of  the  great  chain.  Murkmur  is  a  little 
lower  down,  and  on  the  opposite  or  right  bank  of  the 
united  torrents.  The  appearance  presented  by  these 
hamlets  was  most  strange  and  picturesque.  The  meadows 
at  our  feet  were  dotted  by  an  array  of  stone-built  towers, 
irregularly  grouped — some  of  them  white,  but  the  majority 
of  various  shades  of  dinginess.  In  the  three  villages, 
all  of  which  were  in  sight  at  the  same  time,  there 
cannot  have  been  less  than  sixty  towers.  The  only  com- 
parison which  win  give  an  idea  of  the  appearance  from 
a  distance  of  these  fortified  Suanetian  villages  (for  they 
are  all  alike),  is  to  picture  a  group  of  square-sided  armless 
-windmills,  closely  crowded  together,  and  surrounded  by 


JIBIANI.  299 

low  stone-built  bams  with  sloping  roofs.  The  situation 
of  Jibiani  is  not  striking,  when  the  peaks  of  the  Nuam- 
quam  are  veiled  in  clouds.  The  slopes  above  the  village 
are  rounded  and  bare,  or  only  partially  clothed  with  low 
brushwood,  and  the  traveller  fancies  himself  carried  back 
to  the  valley  of  the  Ardon  or  Terek. 

Our  porters  volunteered  to  introduce  us  to  the  inhabi- 
ta^te,andtoaidu8mobtamiiig8omekmdoflodging.  On 
first  entering  the  place  we  did  not  find  many  of  the  house- 
owners  at  home.  The  first  bam  that  was  offered  us 
we  declined,  on  account  of  its  gloomy  and  dirty  appearance; 
a  second  was  then  shown,  which  was  a  shade  cleaner, 
although  scarcely  less  gloomy,  owing  to  the  extraordinary 
smallness  of  the  loopholes  which  served  as  windows.  It  had, 
however,  the  advantage  of  a  smooth  plot  of  grass  outside  the 
door,  where  we  could  sit  in  the  sunshine,  when  there  was 
any.  Our  parting  with  the  Gebi  porters  was  of  a  very 
friendly  character.  They  were  in  a  hurry  to  start  on  their 
return,  so  we  paid  them  at  once,  giving  each  man  a  trifle 
over  the  contract  price,  which,  after  the  numerous  dif- 
ferences  we  had  had.  on  the  road,  was  more  than  they 
expected.  Though  lazy  and  stupid,  they  were  free  from 
more  active  vices,  and  were,  in  fact,  far  more  of  fools 
than  knaves.  Having  purchased  some  provision  for  their 
return  march,  of  the  high  price  of  which  they  loudly 
complained,  the  ten  set  off  the  same  evening,  unwilling 
apparently  to  trust  themselves  a  minute  longer  than  they 
.could  help  to  the  friendly  disposition  of  the  Jibiani 
populace. 

A  crowd  of  villagers  had  by  this  time  collected  on  the 
green  outside  our  quarters,  and  formed  a  circle  round 
us.  We  were  struck  at  once  with  the  wholly  savage 
aspect  of  the  assemblage,  especially  of  the  children, 
who  pressed  to  the  front  to  stare  at  us.     The  men,  and 


300  8UANETIA. 

even  boys,  were  all  anned  with  daggers  j  many  also  had 
pistols  attached  to  their  belts,  or  guns,  in  sheepskin  covers 
slung  across  their  shoulders.  Their  clothes  were  far 
shabbier  and  more  tattered  thaji  those  of  the  peaaants  of 
the  Bion  valley ;  the  ordinary  Caucafiian  type  of  costume 
was  still  distinguishable,  but  the  coats  were  often  sleeve- 
less,  and  the  headpiece  waa  nothing  more  than  a  bit  of 
rag  tied  into  the  form  of  a  turban.  Some  of  the  men  wore 
sheepskin  caps  turned  inside  out,  a  peculiar  arrangement. 


which  at  the  same  time  shaded  their  eyes,  and  added  to 
the  uncouth  ferocity  of  their  appearance.  The  women 
were  uniformly  ugly,  and  their  dress  presented  no  peculiar 
character  to  attract  attention ;  it  was  simply  a  shapeless 
bundle  of  rags.  The  children  were  wild-looking  raga- 
muffins, with  matted  locks,  and  ran  about  half-naked,  clad 
in  one  tattered  garment  of  old  cloth  or  sacking ;  some  of 


PIOUS  SAVAGES.  801 

the  girls   had   the   most   savage  faces,  more   like  bnite 
animals  than  human  beings. 

We  told  Paul  he  must  set  to  work  to  get  us  some  dinner, 
and  for  this  purpose  it  was  necessary  to  purchase  food  of  the 
villagers,  as  we  had  eaten  up  the  sheep  killed  at  Gebi. 
We  were  dismayed  at  being  refused  milk  or  cheese — 
butter  is  unknown  in  this  part  of  the  country — on  the 
very  unexpected  ground  of  its  being  a  fast-day  of  the 
Church.  Jibiani  was  scarcely  the  place  where  one  would 
have  looked  to  find  the  outward  forms  of  religion  scrupulous- 
ly observed,  and  the  rule  of  fasting  seemed  to  be  peculiar,  as 
we  were  allowed  to  purchase  fowls  and  eggs.  There  was 
no  fireplace  or  chimney  in  our  bam,  so,  to  avoid  filling  the 
place  with  smoke,  Paul  endeavoured  to  do  his  cooking  in 
an  open  shed  close  by.  Each  little  purchase,  such  as  eggs 
and  firewood,  had  to  be  paid  for  separately,  and  at  once ;  no 
change  could  be  obtained,  and  although  we  were,  fortu- 
nately, fairly  supplied  with  small  ten  and  twenty-copeck 
pieces,  it  was  ofben  difficult  to  make  up  the  exact  sums 
called  for.  As  a  rule,  in  the  Central  Causasus,  all  the 
natives,  though  preferring  silver,  will  take  the  Bussian 
paper-money,  only  the  notes  must  be  new;  if  in  the 
slightest  degree  torn,  they  are,  in  nine  cases  out  of  ten, 
absolutely  refused. 

Paul  was  much  hampered  in  his  movements  by  the  crowd  ^ 
of  stupidly  curious  men  and  inquisitive  children,  and  we 
agreed  that  in  future  cooking  must  be  done  inside  the 
barn,  even  at  the  expense  of  a  little  discomfort  from 
smoke.  The  furniture  of  our  quarters  consisted  of  a  long 
wooden  bench,  and  a  layer  of  hay  in  one  comer,  the  thick- 
ness of  which  was,  at  our  request,  doubled  by  a  fresh  im- 
portation. There  was  no  bolt  to  our  door,  and  as  long 
as  daylight  lasted  we  were  more  or  less  troubled  by  visi- 
tors, who  dawdled  in  and  out,  and  stood  by  the  half-hour. 


902  SUAyETIA. 

gazing  at  our  proceedings  with  an  air  of  absolute  stupidity 
which  was  provoking  to  witness.  When  we  got  rid  of 
them  for  the  night,  we  drew  the  bench  across  the  door, 
piled  our  baggage  in  the  comer  close  to  us,  and  with  our 
revolvers  under  our  heads  dropped  off  to  sleep. 

July  18th. — Pran9oi8,  who  was  the  first  to  go  out  in  the 
morning,  came  back  with  the  intelligence  that  there  was 
'  quelque  chose  a  voir.'  On  our  following  him  out  of  the 
bam,  and  looking  towards  the  head  of  the  valley,  where 
on  the  previous  afternoon  nothing  but  clouds  had  been 
visible,  our  eyes  were  greeted  by  an  enormously  high 
mass  of  rock  seamed  with  snow  and  ice.  Over  break- 
fast we  held  a  consultation  as  to  our  arrangements, 
and  agreed  that,  at  all  events,  the  day  must  be  spent  at 
Jibiani,  and  that  we  might  walk  up  towards  the  sources 
of  the  Ingur,  and  gain  a  view  of  the  glaciers  from  which 
it  rises,  while  Paul  and  Pran9ois  were  employed  in  clean- 
ing and  mending  the  parts  of  our  equipment  which  had 
been  injured  in  our  journey  from  Gebi,  and  in  bargaining 
for  and  cooking  a  sheep.  On  a  knoll  above  the  village 
stands  the  church  of  Jibiani,  which,  like  all  those  in 
Suanetia,  is  a  low  square  building  without  tower  or  belfry. 
Badde  met  with  some  opposition  when  he  proposed  to 
enter  it,  and  we  did  not  attempt  to  do  so.  According  to 
him,  the  interior  contains  a  collection  of  the  horns  of 
chamois  and  bouquetin,  two  crosses  on  either  side  of  the 
altar,  and  some  remains  of  rude  frescoes  on  the  walls. 

The  path,  after  mounting  for  some  little  distance  on  the 
left  bank  of  the  stream,  crossed  it  by  a  bridge,  from  which 
there  was  a  picturesque  view  down  the  cleft  through  which 
the  water  finds  a  channel.  On  the  way  we  passed  herds  of 
cattle,  all  bullocks,  and  families  of  lean  pigs,  wandering 
about  the  hillside.  The  head  of  the  valley  is  occupied 
by  a  wide  bare  pasturage,  above  which  the  central  chain 


THE   GLACIERS   OF   THE   INCUR.  303 

rises  in  a  gigantic  wall,  supporting  two  glaciers,  the 
Sclikari  and  the  Nuamquam.  An  hour's  walk  above  the 
village  was  sufficient  to  give  us  a  perfect  view  of  this  great 
mountain  '  cirque.'  The  prospect  from  a  scenic  point  of 
view  was  superb,  but  offered  very  little  encouragement  to 
a  sober-minded  mountaineer.  Opposite  us  the  range  was 
crowned  by  a  massive  rock-peak,  and  the  lines  of  icefall 
and  prepicice  on  both  sides  of  it  seemed  equally  inacces- 
sible. If  anyone  ever  gets  over  to  the  north  side  of  the 
chain  from  this  point,  it  will  be  by  a  route  as  unpromising 
at  first  sight  as,  and  probably  more  difiiciilt  in  the  passage 
than,  the  face  of  Monte  Bosa  above  Macugnaga ;  indeed, 
the  Italian  side  of  Monte  Bosa  is  the  only  mountain-wall 
in  the  Alps  on  a  scale  to  vie  with  this  part  of  the  Cau- 
casian chain.  Finding  the  clouds  were  already  covering 
the  summits,  and  that  we  should  gain  nothing  by  pushing 
our  researches  further,  we  lay  down  on  the  turf  for  some 
time,  and  gave  oiu^elves  up  to  the  enjoyment  of  the 
double  luxury  of  fine  scenery,  and  freedom  from  persecution 
by  inquisitive  natives. 

The  reflection  that  we  had  all  our  arrangements  to 
make  for  our  journey  to  Pari,  at  the  further  end  of  the 
valley,  and  that  our  men  had  better  not  be  left  alone 
with  the  villagers  longer  than  necessary,  somewhat 
hastened  our  return.  We  found  Francois,  as  usual  on  a 
rest-day,  immersed  in  the  cares  of  the  laundry ;  Paul  was 
in  a  state  of  just  irritation  at  the  proceedings  of  the  people, 
but  had  made  considerable  advances  towards  an  arrange- 
ment which  seemed  likely  to  render  our  further  journey 
easy.  A  man  had  come  to  him,  and  offered  to  provide,  by 
the  next  morning,  two  horses  to  carry  our  luggage.  This 
worthy's  name  sounded  like  Islam,  and  he  recommended 
himself  as  the  inhabitant  of  a  lower  and  less  barbarous 
village,  as  having  been  for  some  time  in  the  service  of  a 


304  SUANETIA. 

native  prince,  and  as  being  now  in  receipt  of  a  pension 
for  services  rendered  to  the  Russian  Government.  We 
were  only  too  glad  to  secure  his  assistance,  and  willingly 
ratified  the  bargain  entered  into  by  Paul. 

During  our  absence,  the  tent,  our  mattrass,  and  other 
articles,  which  were  still  damp  after  the  rainstorms  of  the 
Zenes-Squali,  had  been  put  out  to  dry  in  the  sunshine. 
The  villagers  took  advantage  of  the  numerous  objects 
which  divided  the  attention  of  our  men  to  commit  sundry 
petty  thefbs :  some  English  string,  a  couple  of  spoons, 
a  stray  volume  of  Tennyson,  and  a  tent-pole,  made  up  the 
list  of  our  losses;  the  latter  was  the  most  important, 
as,  from  its  peculiar  construction,  it  would  have  been  im- 
possible to  replace  it. 

During  the  afternoon,  the  behaviour  of  the  crowd  on 
the  grassplot  round  our  barn  became  more  and  more 
unpleasant;  familiarity  was  evidently  producing  its  pro- 
verbial result,  and  we  began  to  wonder  what  would  be 
the  upshot,  and  whether  the  success  of  petty  theft 
would  encourage  attempts  at  open  robbery.  For  some 
time  we  were  amused  in  watching  the  athletic  sports 
of  the  juvenile  portion  of  the  population,  who  were  en- 
joying themselves  on  a  piece  of  level  ground  on  the 
opposite  side  of  the  sunken  lane  which  led  up  to  our  bam. 
The  popular  game  seemed  to  be  for  one  boy  to  seize 
another's  head-gear,  and  retain  possession  of  it,  by  flight 
or  struggles,  as  long  as  possible.  Girls  as  well  as  boys 
took  part  in  the  amusement,  which  was  of  a  very  violent 
and  noisy  description,  and  was  at  times  enlivened  by  a 
general  scrimmage,  which  reminded  me  of  a  *  rouge '  in 
an  Eton  football  match.  Unfortunately,  the  game  was  too 
exhausting  to  be  long  continued,  and  when  the  players 
joined  the  group,  already  sufficiently  rude  and  troublesome, 
which  surrounded  us,  we  found  it  necessary  to  carry  in  all 


ALARMS   AND   EXCURSIONS.  305 

our  possessions,  and  to  retire  ourselves  into  the  shelter  of  our 
barn,  unless  we  wished  to  incur  further  loss,  and  to  submit 
to  a  close  overhauling  of  our  own  persons,  and  such  things 
as  we  carried  about  them.     When  the  populace  understood 
that  there  was  nothing  more  to  be  seen  outside,  they  came 
to  the  natural  conclusion  that  they  had  better  follow  us 
in,  and  we  soon  found  ourselves  sitting  in  a  knot  in  front 
of  our  possessions,  and  closely  pressed  upon  by  a  growing 
crowd — some  of  the  people  simply  sucking  their  thumbs 
and  staring  in  stupid  astonishment,  while  others,  more 
lively,  pointed  in  our  faces  the  finger  of  covetousness,  or  of 
scorn,  as  the  case  might  ba.     These  persecutions  grew  too 
troublesome  to  be  borne  without  a  protest,  so,  wanting  to 
eat  our  supper,  we  called  the  owner  of  the  bam,  and  told 
him  that  we  desired  to  be  left  alone,  and  that  the  crowd 
must  and  should  turn  out.     Finding  that  we  might  repeat 
this  sentiment  as  often  as  we  liked  without  result,  we 
took  active  measures,  walked  the  people  out  before  us, 
and   shut  the  doors.      After  some  talking  and  jeering 
outside  they  were  violently  kicked  open.    We  again  shut 
them,  but,  expecting  the  offence  would  be  repeated,  I 
waited  close  by,  and  sallying  out  unexpectedly,  caught 
a  boy  in  the  act ;  the  culprit  was  summarily  collared  and 
shaken,  whereupon  he  made  feeble   demonstrations  with 
his  pistol,  but  took  care  for  the  future  to  keep  in  the 
background.     Two  or  three  men,  from  time  to  time,  took 
opportunities  of  intruding  themselves,  but  at  last,  having 
ordered  the  horseman  to  be  ready  for  an  early  start,  we 
succeeded  in  shutting  ourselves  up  for  the  night.     Before 
doing  so,  however,  Moore  went  outside,  fired  off  the  five 
barrels   of   his   revolver  in   rapid   succession,   and  then 
ostentatiously  reloaded  it — a  demonstration  which  produced 
for  the  time  all  its  intended  effect,  for,  although  sounds  of 


S06  SUANETIA. 

talking  and  wrangling  were  audible,  we  were  free  from 
further  annoyance. 

July  19th. — ^After  the  turn  things  had  taken  on  tlie 
previous  evening,  we  made  up  our  minds  that  we  could 
scarcely  expect  to  get  away  without  a  dispute,  and  we  held 
ourselves  in  readiness  for  what  might  occur.  We  were 
up  early,  and  found,  to  our  disgust,  that  it  was  raining 
heavily.  Presently  the  horseman  appeared,  and  announced 
that  he  could  not  get  a  second  horse,  and  that  we  must 
hire  porters  to  carry  part  of  our  baggage.  Unwilling  to 
place  our  power  of  effecting  a  start  at  the  mercy  of  Jibiani 
men,  as  we  must  have  done  had  we  consented  to  this  pro- 
position, we  determined  to  carry  the  extra  saddlebags  on 
our  own  shoulders.  It  was  now  suggested  that  we  might 
get  back  the  tent-pole  by  a  small  payment ;  the  old  story 
of  the  London  dog-stealer  was  reproduced,  and  we  were 
asked  to  believe  that  it  had  been  found  by  a  native  of  the 
next  hamlet,  Tschubiani,  who  would  be  happy  to  restore 
it,  for  a  consideration.  We  consented  to  place  the  sum 
demanded  in  the  hands  of  the  horseman,  the  only  one  of 
the  crowd  over  whom  we  had  any  hold,  and,  after  some 
parley  and  delay,  the  missing  stick  was  returned.  Mean- 
while  we  were  assailed  on  all  sides  by  clamours  for  money : 
one  man  wanted  a  ridiculous  sum  for  some  loaves  he  had 
brought  us,  another  asked  their  weight  in  Russian  paper 
for  his  eggs,  a  third  had  a  large  bill  for  firewood,  and  the 
master  of  the  bam  required  an  extortionate  price  for  our 
lodging.  Some  of  these  demands  we  resisted,  others  we 
partly  conceded — at  the  same  time  finishing  as  quickly  as 
possible  the  packing  of  our  saddlebags,  and  taking  care 
to  keep  them  under  our  eyes. 

The  conduct  of  our  horseman  caused  us  much  uneasiness, 
as  he  refused  to  put  our  luggage  on  the  horse,  pretending 
that  the  villagers  would  not  allow  him  to  do  so  until  we 


A  STORMY   PARTING.  307 

had  yielded  to  their  claims.     At  last,  chiefly  by  our  own 
exertions,  the  horse  was  loaded,  and  then,  having  paid 
everyone  who  had  any  fair  claim,  we  agreed  to  make  a 
decided  effort  to  start.     One  of  us  was  to  lead  the  horse, 
for  it  was  evident  its  master  could  not  be  relied  on ;  the 
others  were  to  carry  saddlebags,  and  keep  together  as 
much  as  possible.     Lifting  our  luggage  on  our  shoulders, 
we  prepared  to  leave  the  bam  in  a  body,  but  our  two  men 
foolishly  loitered,  to  make   sure  that  nothing  was  left 
behind.     The  natives  took  advantage  of  the  blunder,  and 
immediately  shut  them  in :   looking  round,  we  saw  the 
state  of  the  case,  and  ran  a  tilt,  with  our  ice-axes,  at  the 
wooden  doors,  which  were  rudely  constructed,  divided  in 
the  middle,  and  opened   inwards;   the  blow  sent  them 
flying  back  at  once.     Fran9ois,  who  was  close  by  inside, 
endeavoured  to  come  out,  when  a  peasant  put  himself  in 
the  way ;  but  I  suddenly  brought  the  cold  barrel  of  my 
revolver  into  contact  with  the  scoundrel's  cheek,  on  which 
he  retreated  hastily.     Fran9ois  escaped,  and  Paul  was 
allowed  to  follow  him.     Once  more  united,  and  forming  a 
kind  of  square,  with  the  horse  in  the  centre,  our  saddlebags 
on  our  shoulders,  and  our  revolvers  in  our  hands,  we  des- 
cended into  the  hollow  lane  which,  led  out  of  the  village. 
Some  of  the  inhabitants,  yelling  and  jabbering,  jumped 
down  in  front  to  bar  the  way ;  others  brandished  swords, 
daggers,  and  pistols  on  either  wall ;  a  few  ran  off,  making 
signs  that  they  would  fetch  their  guns;  while  the  women, 
screaming  and  endeavouring  to  restrain  the  fiiry  of  their 
relations,  added  by  their  wild  cries  and  gestures  to  the  con- 
fusion of  the  scene. 

Whether  their  interference  was  due  to  any  kindly  feeling 
towards  us,  or  to  a  fear  lest  our  revolvers  should  make 
victims  of  their  friends,  we  never  knew.  The  crisis  was 
really  serious,   and  a  peaceful  solution  seemed  abnost 

X  a 


308  SUAKETIA. 

hopeless,  when  a  trifling  demand,  screamed  out  by  a  man 
on  the  right-hand  wall,  suggested  to  us  an  imitation  of 
our  predecessor  Jason's  policy  in  the  same  country.     We 
scattered  our  dragon's-teeth,  in  the  shape  of  two  or  three 
small  copect-pieces,  among  the  group,  and  our  foes  began  to 
scramble  and  squabble ;  their  attention  being  for  a  moment 
diverted,  we  pushed  on  as  rapidly  as  possible,  and  before 
they  had  recovered  their  surprise  at  our  sudden  move, 
were  clear  of  the  village.     A  portion  of  the  crowd  came 
in  pursuit,  but  two  of  us  faced  round  in  the  narrow  path, 
and  brought  them  to  a  halt  until  the  horse  had  gained  a 
slight  start,  when  we  followed  it.     We  passed  hurriedly 
through  Tschubiani,  where  most  of  the  inhabitants  seemed 
to  be  out,  or  amongst  the  Jibiani  crowd.     The  owner  of 
the  horse  had  rendered  us  no  assistance,  and  was  now 
loitering  somewhere  out  of  sight ;  the  villagers,  who  fol- 
lowed us,  motioned  us  to  halt,  but  we  kept  straight  on, 
and  having  crossed  the  bridge,  passed  underneath  the 
houses  of  Murkmer,  and  along  the  bank  of  the  stream. 
We  were  row  in  open  country,  and  might  consider  our- 
selves fairly  out  of  the  clutches  of  the  men  of  Jibiani. 
Paul  told  us,  that  when  he  was  released  from  the  bam,  the 
villagers  said  to  him,  *  If  it  was  not  for  those  wonderful 
pistols  of  yours,  we  would  have  tied  you  all  up,  and  taken 
everything  you  had,'   and  there   is   no   doubt  that  our 
revolvers  alone  saved  us  from  open  robbery.     The  know- 
ledge that  you  have  fifteen  barrels  at  your  disposal  has 
a  moral  effect  even  on  the  most  barbarous  race.     The 
difficulty  lies  in  enforcing  the  impression  while  keeping 
clear  of  actual  fighting.     Had  a  shot  been  fired,  we  must 
inevitably  have  lost  our  luggage,  and,  considering  the  odds 
against  us,  might  have  had  great  difiiculty  in  effecting  our 

own  escape. 

The  horseman  now  came  up,  of  course  professing  entire 


h«  «  -^     ^»^m  .  AJk«- 


THE    HORSEMANS   HOME.  309 

ignorance  and  innocence  as  to  the  whole  proceedings. 
With  him  were  two  natives  of  Davkar,  a  lower  village, 
who  had  volunteered  to  carry  our  saddlebags  ;  but  tlie 
sum  they  asked  was  so  ridiculous,  that  we  had  declined 
their  services.  Now  they  would  have  been  very  glad  to 
relieve  us  of  our  loads  for  a  quarter  of  the  payment 
previously  demanded. 

Near  Murkmer  there  is  a  good  deal  of  cultivated  ground, 
but  the  valley  soon  narrows  into  a  defile,  and  the  well- 
beaten  path  attains  a  great  height  on  its  northern  side. 
The  loose  soil  of  the  mountain-slopes  has  been  worn  by 
the  spring-torrents  into  deep  gullies,  out  of,  or  round, 
which  we  were  frequently  forced  to  make  long  ascents  or 
circuits.  The  scenery  gradually  improved,  and,  although 
no  snowy  ranges  were  in  sight,  the  clumps  of  fir  and  other 
trees  which  dotted  the  sides  of  the  gorge,  and  the  frequent 
bends  in  the  deep  bed  of  the  stream,  combined  to  form  a 
varied  and  interesting  series  of  landscapes.  The  rain  of 
the  early  morning  had  ceased,  and  the  sun  now  shone 
out  hotly  between  the  clouds,  lighting  up  the  long  reaches 
of  the  Ingur,  which  wound  along  the  bottom  of  the  green 
gorge.  The  second  group  of  villages,  known  collectively 
as  Kal,  now  appeared  before  ns,  built  on  opposite  hillsides, 
above  the  junction  of  a  northern  tributary  with  the  glen  of 
the  Ingur.  The  towers  were  not  quite  so  numerous  as  at 
U8chkul,but  were  still  sufficiently  so  to  give  each  knot  of  ha- 
bitations the  appearance  of  a  castle  rather  than  of  a  village. 

On  the  further  side  of  the  valley  we  noticed  a  solitary 
building,  which  is  called  on  the  Five  Verst  Map  a 
monastery,  but  we  could  obtain  no  certain  informa- 
tion about  it  through  Paul,  and  it  was  too  far  out  of 
the  way  to  visit.  The  nearest  hamlet,  Davkar,  was  situated 
at  the  foot  of  the  hill  on  the  banks  of  the  river,  and  we 
had  to  make  a  long  descent  to  reach  it.     Here  our  horse- 


310  SUAXETIA. 

man  lived,  and  we  hoped  bj  his  aid  to  obtain  a  second 
horse  to  carry  on  our  goods.     Having  eaten  our  lunch  in 
a  bam  similar  to  our  late  lodging,  we  commenced  nego- 
tiations for  our  further  journey ;  but  though  there  are  plenty 
of  horses  in  the  country,  they  had  all  been  sent  to  the 
upper  pastures,  and  there  was  not  one  to  be  found.  Two  men, 
however,  were  ready  to  carry  the  load  between  them,  and 
we  should  have  had  little  difficulty  in  settling  terms  but 
for  the  interference  of  the  horseman.     He  caused  a  hitch 
in  the  arrangement,  and,  when  we  told  him  to  stand  aside, 
snatched  his  old  flint-and-steel  pistol  from  his  belt^  and 
brandished  it  in  our  faces.      Finding  that   his   conduct 
provoked  more  laughter  than  fear,  and  not  exactly  know- 
ing what  to  do  with  his  weapon,  he  walked  off  in  a  huff. 
There  were  only  about  a  dozen  people  in  the  hamlet,  so 
there  was  no  risk  of  a  row;  but  we  were  in  considerable 
difficulty  as  to  how  to  get  forward,  and  were  obliged  to 
condescend  to  cajole  Islam  back  into  a  good  humour.     This 
Moore  successfully  effected,  and  we  concluded  an  agree- 
ment that  we  should  be  taken  in  three  days  to  Pari,  and 
should  employ  two  porters  untila  second  horse  was  met  with. 
We    were   surprised  to    hear    that    the    direct    path 
down  the  glen  of  the  Ingur  was  impassable  for  horses, 
and  that  we  must  mount  the  valley  of  the  Kalde-Tshalai, 
opening  behind  the  village,  to  its  head,  and  then  cross  a  pass 
to  Adisch;  but  as  this  route  promised  to  fulfil  our  purpose 
of  seeing  as  much  as  possible  of  the  country,  we  made  no 
objection  to  its  adoption.     The  natives  proposed  to  start  at 
once,  and  spend  the  night  near  the  head  of  the  valley,  where 
they  knew  of  a  shelter.     We  willingly  agreed,  and,  about 
3.30  P.M.,  again  set  out,  to  reclimb  the  steep  path  we  had 
descended  to  reach  Davkar,  until  a  grassy  brow  was  gained, 
high  above  the  junction  of  the  valleys.     Here  the  paths 
forked,  and  we  followed  the  one  which  mounted  beside  the 


THE   GOROSCHO   GLACIER.  311 

KlaJde-Tshalai.  The  scenery  of  the  lateral  glen,  which 
runs  due  north  towards  the  base  of  the  snowy  chain,  is 
very  grand,  the  torrent  flowing  in  a  deep  channel  between 
precipitous  walls  of  rock.  At  one  spot  a  bridge  leaps 
boldly  from  side  to  side ;  at  another,  two  streams  fall  in 
showers  of  spray  into  the  bottom  of  the  cleft. 

Our  men  did  not  take  us  across  the  bridge  to  Agran,  a 
village  on  the  opposite  slope,  probably  to  avoid  any  chance 
of  a  disagreeable  encounter ;  for  they  asked  Paul  not  to 
mention  where  they  came  from  if  we  met  any  villagers,  as 
the  relations  of  Davkar  and  Agran  were  not  friendly.  We 
kept  up  along  an  ill-marked  track  until,  above  the  gorge, 
the  remains  of  a  winter  avalanche  bridged  the  torrent, 
and  enabled  us  to  join  the  more  beaten  path  on  the 
opposite  side  of  the  valley.  The  glen  widens  out  near  its 
head,  and  the  pasturages  are  strewn  with  granite  boulders, 
transported  by  ice  or  water  from  the  central  chain.  A 
small  ruined  tower  appeared  before  us,  and  was  pointed 
out  as  our  resting-place  for  the  night,  and  a  recess  in  the 
hillside  on  the  east  marked  the  course  by  which  a  pass 
practicable  for  horses  leads  directly  to  Jibiani.  The  large 
Goroscho  glacier  pushed  its  terminal  moraine  far  down  into 
the  head  of  the  valley,  and  we  could  see  through  the  clouds 
that  the  mountain-wall  rose  precipitously  above  it.  The 
tower  housed  our  men ;  we  preferred  to  pitch  our  tent  under 
the  shelter  of  a  low  stone  wall  by  which  it  was  surrounded. 

July  2Qlh. — The  morning  was  fine,  and  only  a  few  fleecy 
vapours  hung  upon  the  range  at  the  head  of  the  valley. 
The  cliffs  above  the  Groroscho  glacier  are  very  similar  in 
character  to  those  which  overhang  its  next  neighbour  on 
the  east,  the  Nuamquam,  but  the  shapes  of  the  peaks 
which  crown  them  are  even  more  varied  and  picturesque. 
The  lower  portion  of  the  glacier  is  level,  but  its  upper 
snows  descend  in  torn  and  tangled  networks  of  towers  and 


312  SUANETIA. 

crevasses,   which    offer  little   temptation   to   an   assault. 
Nowhere  in   the   Alps   have   I   seen   any   barrier  which 
approaches  the  apparent  impracticability  of  this  portion  of 
the  central  ridge  of  the  Caucasus ;  between  Tau  To  tonal 
and    the   sources    of    the    Ingur    its    magnificence   can 
scarcely  be  overrated.     The  ease  of  our  start,  and  the 
absence  of  any  crowd  of  greedy  peasants,  was  a  pleasant 
change  from  the  annoyances  of  the  previous  day.     Our 
course  was  clear  enough ;  a  double  track,  which  showed 
that  the  Suanetians  drag  sledges  over  the  pass,  ascended, 
in  well-turned  zigzags,  the  flowery  slopes  of  the  ridge, 
known   by  the   unpronounceable    name   of  Dschkjiimer, 
which   separates   the   Ealde   and   Adisch  valleys.     Like 
most  mountain  walks,  the   ascent  is   divided  into  three 
stages — a  steep  climb,  then  a  gentle  rise  over  shelving 
pasturages,  followed  by  a  short  pull  up  to  the  final  ridge. 
It  took  us  two  hours  to  reach  the  top  of  the  pass  from 
the  tower.     During  the  last  few  minutes  of  the  ascent,  an 
apparently  lofty  snow-peak  showed  just  enough  of  its  head, 
over  the  bank  we  were  climbing,  to  stimulate  our  curiosity, 
but  in  no  way  prepared  us  for  the  magnificent  scene  which 
burst  into  view  from  the  summit.     The  first  thing  which 
fixed  our  attention  was  the  icefall  of  the  Adisch  glacier.  "'^ 
Unlike  the  glaciers  supplying  the  two  eastern  sources  of 
the  Ingur,  which  are  fed  only  by  the  snow  lodged  on 
shelves   of    the    cliffs  that  surround  them,  the  Adisch 
glacier  is  the  outflow  of  large  reservoirs  of  frozen  snow, 
invisible  from  below,  and  lying  at  the  back  of  the  line  of 
precipitous  peaks  we  had  been  gazing  up  at  with  so  much 
awe  and  admiration  for  the  last  two  days. 

*  Kadde  mentions  a  second  name,  Gatuntan  glacier.  Is  not  Gatnntan  a 
corruption  of  Koschtantau,  and  do  not  the  snovflelds  which  feed  the  icefall 
surround  the  base  of  Koschtantau  ?  These  are  questions  for  an  explorer.  The 
Kussian  engineers  gave  up  this  part  of  the  chain  as  a  bad  job,  and  the  Five  Verst 
Hap  is  quite  umntelligible. 


A    GLORIOUS   ICEFALL.  .313 

Over  a  break  in  the  battlements  of  tliis  mountain-wall, 
the  ice  pours  down  into  the  bottom  of  the  Aclisch  valley, 
in  a  fall  which,  for  its  height,  breadth,  and  purity,  exceeded 
anything  we  had  seen  elsewhere,  either  in  the  Alps  or  the 
Caucasus.  We  estimated  the  height  of  the  frozen  cascade 
at  4,000  feet,  or  little  more  than  that  of  the  Karagam 
glacier,  up  which  we  had  forced  our  way ;  but  the  fall  now 
before  us  was  far  more  broken,  and,  in  our  judgment,  abso- 
lutely impracticable.  From  side  to  side  stretched  deep-blue 
chasms,  the  space  between  them  filled  up  by  a  very  maze 
of  tottering  pinnacles  and  moated  towers.  The  whole 
surface  was  of  dazzling  whiteness,  similar  to  that  of  the 
Bosenlaui  glacier,  before,  disgusted  by  being  treated  as  a 
grotto  by  troops  of  tourists,  it  withdrew  to  the  upper  world. 
At  the  foot  of  the  fall  the  glacier  re-makes  itself,  and 
spreads  out,  with  a  crimpled  but  otherwise  unbroken  sur- 
face, into  a  fanlike  tail,  the  symmetry  of  which  is  slightly 
marred  by  a  projecting  hillside.  By  some  strange  mistake, 
the  Five  Yerst  Map  marks  a  known  pass  straight  up  the 
centre  of  the  icefall ! 

Two  mountains,  worthy  of  their  post,  stand  like  giant 
sentinels  to  guard  either  side  of  this  crystal  staircase, 
let  down  to  common  earth  from  the  ^shining  table- 
lands,' untrodden  as  yet  by  human  foot,  which  lie  in 
the  heart  of  the  Koschtantau  group.  On  the  west  is 
Tau  Totonal,  an  elegant  snow  pyramid,  resting  on  a 
broad  rocky  base ;  on  the  east  is  a  rock-peak  of  some- 
what inferior  height,  but  of  bolder  form.  Behind  us  the 
Goroscho  glacier,  at  the  foot  of  which  we  had  slept,  and 
the  battlemented  wall,  which  stretches  away  to  the  eastern 
source  of  the  Ingur,  were  still  visible.  In  the  glen  at  our  feet, 
which,  ran  nearly  south-west,  we  could  see  the  towers  of 
Adisch,  and  we  were  high  enough  to  command  a  wide 
view  over  the  densely-forested  ridges  of  Western  Suanetia, 


3J4  SUANETIA. 

to  the  mountain  ranges  that  encompass  it.  Had  it  not 
been  for  the  clouds,  which  persisted  in  haunting  us,  we 
must  have  seen  TJschba,  and  it  would  be  worth  the  wliile 
of  any  future  traveller  to  examine  carefully  the  horizon 
in  this  direction,  and  make  sure  whether  the  dome  of 
Elbruz  does  not  appear  above  the  main  chain. 

We  had  followed  in  the  ascent,  and  now  overtook  two 
peasants,  a  man  and  woman,  who  were  on  their  way  to 
Adisch.  The  man  was  inclined  to  be  sociable,  and  was 
greatly  delighted  by  being  allowed  to  look  at  the  view 
through  our  field-glasses.  In  return  we  examined  his  gun, 
the  barrel  of  which  was  very  long  and  elaborately  orna- 
mented. It  was  arranged  that  the  woman  should  descend 
to  Adisch  by  a  short  cut,  and  tell  the  people  there  to  begin 
baking  some  bread  for  us,  in  order  that  we  might  not 
have  so  long  to  wait  for  our  midday  meal.  A  capital 
path  bearing  towards,  and  consequently  afltording  a  constant 
view  of,  the  glacier,  led  down  into  the  valley.  We  followed 
it  across  a  mountain-side,  spotted  with  the  large  cream- 
coloured  blossoms  of  Caucasian  rhododendron,  which  gave 
place  lower  down  to  birch- bushes.  We  found  the  torrent 
too  strong  to  be  easily  forded,  but  the  friendly  native, 
to  whom  we  had  talked  on  the  top,  had  hurried  down  before 
us,  and  caught  one  of  the  horses  grazing  near  at  hand,  on 
which  each  of  us  in  turn  rode  across  behind  him.  The 
fall  of  the  glen  was  very  gradual,  but  a  bend  to  the  west 
soon  hid  the  glacier,  and  there  was  for  some  distance  little 
to  remark  in  the  features  of  the  surrounding  scenery.  The 
first  habitation  we  came  upon  was  a  solitary  tower,  from 
which  a  similar  one  was  visible  on  the  crest  of  the  ridge  we 
had  crossed ;  and  it  struck  us  as  extremely  probable  that 
the  ruined  building  we  had  camped  beside  was  one  of  a 
chain  of  towers,  which  had  served  in  olden  times  as  beacons, 
or  fire-telegraphs,  from  valley  to  valley.    On  the  opposite 


ADISCH.  315 

side  of  the  stream  scattered  trees  made  their  appearance, 
and  our  attention  was  attracted  to  a  deep  hollow,  or  cut, 
in  the  gi'ound,  such  as  is  called  a  ^  graben  '  in  the  German 
Alps,  where,  owing  to  the  friable  nature  of  the  soil,  the 
rains  have  washed  away  the  surface  and  laid  bare  the  skele- 
ton of  the  mountain.  Large  herds  of  horses  and  oxen  were 
feeding  on  the  grass-slopes  on  the  right  bank  of  the  torrent. 
Adisch,  which  had  been  hidden  for  some  time,  came 
suddenly  into  view  round  a  comer,  finely  situated  on  the 
sloping  hillside,  at  some  height  above  the  bottom  of  the 
valley,  beside  a  torrent  descending  from  the  snowy  spurs  of 
Tau  Totonal,  a  glimpse  of  which  is  the  only  hint  of  the 
nearness  of  a  mighty  mountain-chain. 

We  had  outwalked  our  men  and  the  luggage,  and  sat  down 
to  wait  for  them  on  a  knoU  opposite  the  village,  which  con- 
sisted, as  usual,  of  a  cluster  of  square  stone  houses,  inter- 
spersed and  surrounded  by  towers,  many  of  which  were  in 
ruins.  By  the  time  Paul  came  up  we  were  surrounded  by  an 
excited  circle  of  juveniles,  to  whom  our  equipments  were 
as  marvellous  and  entertaining  as  a  conjuror's  box.  Our 
boots  were  perhaps  the  greatest  source  of  amusement,  and 
the  children  were  never  tired  of  attempting  to  count  the 
number  of  nails  in  them.  Entering  the  village,  we  were 
led  through  it  to  a  house  at  the  farther  end,  where  we 
were  invited  to  sit  down  on  some  logs  of  wood,  under 
the  shelter  of  a  projecting  balcony,  which  was  very  con- 
venient, as  a  heavy  shower  had  just  commenced.  Paul 
went  into  the  house  to  see  how  the  baking  was  getting 
on,  whilst  we  did  our  best  to  entertain  and  cultivate  friendly 
relations  with  the  crowd  which,  as  a  matter  of  course, 
gathered  round  us. 

We  thought  the  Adischers,  as  a  race,  more  intelligent  in 
their  looks  than  our  late  hosts  of  Jibiani,  and  ^  their 
manner  in  dealing  with  strangers '  was  certaialy  less  dis- 


316  SUANETIA. 

agreeable.  Tliey  did  not,  however,  inspire  us  with  the 
amount  of  confidence  requisite  to  induce  us  to  use  their 
villaore  as  a  base  for  the  attack  of  Tau  To  tonal,  and  to  leave 
our  luggage  at  their  mercy  during  our  absence.  .  From  the 
character  we  afterwards  found  them  to  deserve,  our  caution 
was  fortunate.  We  were  obliged  occasionally  to  ask  the 
crowd  to  leave  us  a  little  breathing  room,  but  they  quite  took 
the  point  of  the  suggestion,  that  the  wider  the  circle  the 
more  would  be  able  to  see,  and  both  parties  were  perfectly 
good-humoured.  Paul's  appearance  with  the  first  batch  of 
l3av3s  was  greeted  with  enthusiasm,  for  the  rations  served 
out  at  breakfast  had  been  scanty,  and  we  were  all  ravenous. 
The  flat  unleavened  cakes  of  the  Caucasus  are  very 
palatable  when  hot,  and  have  the  advantage  of  being 
seldom  sour,  like  the  detestable  black  bread  common  in 
Russia.  On  the  present  occasion  we  made  short  work 
of  the  first  baking,  and  were  perfectly  ready  for  a  second 
supply  of  a  superior  character,  with  a  layer  of  warm 
cheese  in  the  centre,  very  nice  and  indigestible. 

When  the  time  for  payment  came  there  was  of  course 
a  difficulty,  or  would  have  been  one,  had  we  not  preferred 
to  pay  three  times  their  value  for  the  loaves  we  had 
consumed,  rather  than  engage  in  another  dispute.  It  did 
not  seem  to  us  a  case  where,  in  the  interest  of  future  travel- 
lers, we  were  bound  to  resist  extortion ;  and  we  preferred 
laying  ourselves  open  to  the  ordinary  charge  against 
Englishmen  of  raising  prices  wherever  they  go,  to 
running  the  risk  of  being  stuck  by  the  dagger  of  an 
indignant  Adischer  for  the  sum  of  sixpence.  Despite, 
however,  our  peace-at-any-price  policy,  we  were  followed 
out  of  the  village  by  one  man,  with  an  absurd  demand,  to 
which  we  refused  to  listen. 

The  valley  of  the  Adisch-Tshalai  below  the  village 
is   contracted  to  a  mere   gorge,  the  sides  of  which   are 


THE   MUSIIALALTZ.  317 

rugged,  broken,  and  picturesquely  woof^ed  with  firs,  pines, 
birch,  and  ash.  The  track  which  leads  from  the  upper  glen 
to  the  lowervalleys  makes  a  very  long  and  sleep  ascent,  in 
order  to  avoid  the  circuits  that  would  otherwise  be  necessary 
to  cross  lateral  ravines.  A  characteristic  of  the  paths  run- 
ning parallel  to  the  course  of  the  Ingur,  from  the  upper 
to  the  lower  end  of  Suanetia,  is  that  they  are  always  up- 
hill ;  at  least,  the  ascents  are  so  numerous  and  long,  that  at 
the  end  of  the  day,  the  impression  left  on  the  mind  of 
the  traveller  by  the  intervening  descents  is  almost  effaced. 
The  track,  passable  for  sledges,  along  which  we  were  now 
strolling,  in  the  wake  of  our  baggage-horse,  rises  steadily 
towards  a  solitary  tree  which  stands  up  as  a  beacon  on 
a  projecting  brow,  marking  the  limit  of  the  forest,  and 
the  point  at  which  a  sudden  sweep  must  be  made  to  the 
right,  to  avoid  a  series  of  deeply-cut  water-channels,  which 
fall  into  the  gorge  of  the  Adisch-Tshalai.  From  hence 
we  could  see,  in  the  distance,  the  hamlet  of  Suni,  one  of 
the  community  of  Tzurim,  the  resting-place  for  the 
night  chosen  by  our  horseman  and  porters.  It  was 
perched  on  a  meadow-terrace,  high  above  the  junction  of 
the  Adisch-Tshalai  and  the  Ingur,  both  of  which  flow 
through  deep  wooded  gorges.  In  this  direction  the  dis- 
tant view  was  closed  by  the  snowy  heads  of  the  Leila  range. 
Still  maintaining  our  height,  we  wound  above  the  heads 
of  the  ravines,  until  we  found  ourselves  on  the  watershed 
between  the  northern  district  of  Mushalaliz,  the  largest 
and  most  thickly-populated  of  all  the  Suanetian  valleys, 
and  the  glens  of  the  Adisch-Tshalai  and  Ingur,  on  the 
south.  The  ridge  separating  the  two  basins  sank  at  our 
feet  into  a  densely-wooded  brow,  broken  awaj-  into  pre- 
cipitous ravines  on  the  south,  but  falling  more  gently 
towards  Mushalaliz  on  the  opposite  side.  Several  miles 
further  west  the  ridge  again  rose  into  gracefully-shaped 


SI  4  SUAXETIA. 

ernincTic^jH,  ^yf-Sorc  it  finally  sank  down  to  the  h(A  of  the 
Inipir  at  Latal,  vrh^fre  the  Mushjilaliz  torrent  joins  the 
m^in  j-tnarn.  Tlie  diH^int  Kuminit.s  of  the  Leila,  with 
their  for^-'Tonnd  of  worried  i^ortrt's  and  villaire-dotted 
Hloj>eH,  formed  a  landscaj^e  which  anj-where  else  would 
have  abrjorljed  our  attention;  but  we  were  now  more 
anxiouH  minut^ily  U)  examine  the  details  of  the  main  chain^ 
which  swept  round  the  northern  side  of  the  Mushalaliz 
valley,  a  broad  green  expanse  relieved  by  the  white  towers 
of  many  villages.  Two  large  ice-streams  filled  deep 
trenches  in  the  mountains,  and  terminated  amongst  the 
lofty  cliffs,  which  close  abruptly  the  head  of  the  valley. 
The  lower  portion  of  the  western  glacier  presents  a  flat 
dirty  surface,  and  is  fed  by  two  large  icefalls,  the  origin 
of  which  was  lost  in  cloud ;  the  second  slides  out  a  long 
twisting  tongue  of  ice,  which  descends  below  the  level 
of  the  forest. 

We  now  followed  the  top  of  the  wooded  brow.  The 
combination  of  an  exquisite  woodland  foreground  with 
varied  and  magnificent  distant  views  rendered  this 
portion  of  our  day's  journey  the  most  lovely  walk  we 
/had  ever  taken.  It  is  quite  impossible  to  convey  in 
'  words  any  idea  of  the  beauty  of  the  landscape,  or  the 
grandeur  of  scale  which  placed  the  scenery  beyond  com- 
parison with  any  of  the  show-sights  of  Switzerland. 
Wofxls  of  ash,  hazel,  and  fir  alternated  with  coppices  of 
laurel,  white  rhododendron,  and  yellow  azaleas,  the  scent 
of  which  perfumed  the  air.  Tall  tiger-lilies,  one  of  the 
characteristic  flowers  of  the  Caucasus,  shot  up  their 
tawny  spikes  through  the  rich  herbage,  while  dark-blue 
lupins  and  hollyhocks  challenged  their  supremacy  over  the 
humbler  flowers — campanulas,  bluebells,  and  cowslips — 
which  carpeted  the  ground.  Every  break  in  the  wood 
afforded  a  glimpse,  now  over  the  pine-fringed  gorges  to 


SUNI.  811) 

the  white-crested  Leila  mountains,  now  down  upon  the 
green  Mushalaliz,  with  its  sparkling  stream  and  castellated 
hamlets,  and  across  it  to  the  peaks,  precipices,  and  glaciers 
of  the  central  chain.  We  wandered  on,  feeling  as  if  we 
had  broken  in  on  enchanted  ground,  and  that  it  was  all 
too  beautiful  to  be  real.  The  nature  of  the  path  did  not 
disturb  the  even  tenor  of  our  thoughts  ;  its  makers,  with 
remarkable  ingenuity,  had  carried  it  first  on  one,  then  on 
the  other,  side  of  the  brow,  and  it  was  for  a  long  time 
almost  level  and  free  from  stones.  At  length  it  turned 
down  the  northern  side  of  the  ridge,  as  if  to  descend  to 
Mushalaliz ;  but,  desirous  of  gaining  Suni,*  in  the  other 
valley,  we  plunged,  under  the  guidance  of  our  porters, 
into  the  thickets,  and  soon  hit  another  track  remounting 
to  the  left). 

Just  below  the  watershed  a  clear  little  tarn  nestled 
among  the  trees.  We  crossed  several  wooded  spurs 
before  we  reached  the  verge  of  the  meadows  on  which 
Suni  is  built.  The  views,  looking  back  towards  Tau 
Totonal  and  up  the  valley  of  the  Adisch-Tshalai,  were 
wonderfully  fine,  their  effect  being  heightened  by  the 
rapid  sweep  of  afternoon  rain-clouds  across  the  sky,  and 
the  bright  gleams  of  sunshine  which  shone  out  between 
them.  Just  before  emerging  from  the  wood  the  horse 
slipped  on  a  miry  bank,  where  the  rains  had  carried  away 
the  path,  and  fell  several  feet  into  a  sort  of  slime-pit. 
Happily,  he  neither  damaged  himself  nor  the  saddlebags, 
beyond  covering  both  with  mud.  The  fields  around  Suni 
are  more  like  Alpine  meadows  than  is  usual  in  this 
country;  they  are  carefully  irrigated  by  a  system  of 
water-channels,  and  are  fenced  off  from  the  surrounding 
pasturages.  There  are  fewer  towers  here  than  in  the 
upper  villages,  and  the  population  is  in  appearance  more 

*  .Spelt  thus  on  the  map»  but  generally  pronounced  Snr^ni. 


320  8UANETIA. 

like  that  of  tlie  Bion  valley.  The  character  they  bear  is 
not  quite  so  bad  as  that  of  their  neighbours  of  the  upper 
glens,  but  they  seem  to  lead  the  same  violent  quarrelsome 
life,  full  of  petty  squabbles,  in  which  it  is  perhaps  difiELcult 
to  draw  the  line  between  war  and  murder. 

We  had  eagerly  caught  at  the  proposal  that  we  should 
seek  lodgings  with  a  priest,  but  his  house  was  shut  up  and 
deserted,  and  we  were  taken  on  to  a  neighbouring  cottage. 
The  first  room  offered  to  us  was  large,  gloomy,  and  stable- 
like; when  our  eyes  grew  accustomed  to  the  darkness,  we 
found  that  the  furniture  consisted  of  two  or  three  curiously- 
carved  armchairs,  of  the  broad  and  shallow  shape  com- 
mon in  the  Caucasus,  and  a  hay-bed  covered  with  some 
cloths  of  very  decided  uncleanliness.  Mysterious  sounds 
issued  from  one  comer  of  the  apartment,  occupied  by  a 
row  of  wooden  hutches,  also  a  good  deal  carved.  They 
proved  to  be  occupied  by  an  old  sow,  whose  dwelling  we 
were  to  have  the  honour  of  sharing.  Thinking  we  might 
go  further  and  fare  better,  we  asked  what  was  above  the 
pigstye,  and  found  a  hay-bam,  clean,  and,  if  draughty,  at 
least  free  from  the  stifling  atmosphere  which  had  driven 
us  from  below.  Here  we  took  up  our  quarters  and  spent 
the  night,  sleeping  on  the  hay. 

J'oly  21«i. — The  first  matter  which  required  our  atten- 
tion was  the  reorganisation  of  our  baggage-train.  The 
two  Davkar  porters,  who  had  carried  heavy  loads,  and 
walked  fairly  well,  did  not  care  to  go  further  from  home 
without  an  increase  in  the  rate  of  pay,  and  the  master  of 
the  house  seemed  desirous  to  supply  a  second  horse  and 
come  with  us.  As  a  matter  of  course,  when  the  arrange- 
ment was,  as  we  thought,  concluded,  the  fellow  struck  to 
see  if  he  could  not  get  more ;  but  we  finally  succeeded  in 
settling  the  business,  paid  off  the  porters,  and  started 
afresh  with  our  new  companion.     The  weather  was  still 


UPS  AND   DOWNS.  321 

the  same— hot  gleams  of  sunshine  alternating  with  ^harp 
showers — ^but  to-day  the  sunshine  predominated.  The 
distance  in  a  straight  line  from  Suni  to  the  next  group  of 
villages  is  not  great,  but  we  were  two  hours  traversing 
it,  partly  owing  to  the  immense  circuits  made  by  the  path 
round  lateral  ravines ;  it  is  compelled  to  keep  at  a  high 
level  on  the  rugged  hillside,  as  the  bottom  of  the  glen  is 
only  wide  enough  for  the  Ingur,  which  flows  for  miles 
through  a  gorge  clothed  by  thick  pine-forests.  The  chief 
cause,  however,  of  our  slow  progress  during  this  and  the 
succeeding  day  waa  the  absurd  behaviour  of  our  two  horse- 
men, who  dawdled  along  at  their  horses'  heads  at  a  pace 
of  scarcely  two  miles  an  hour,  and  resented  the  remon- 
strances made  by  Paul  to  the  extent  of  drawing  their  pis- 
tols on  him. 

The  position  of  the  hamlets  constituting  El  is  pictu- 
resque ;  they  stand  at  diflferent  heights  on  a  sunny  slope, 
which  falls  into  the  gorge  of  the  Ingur  from  the  wooded 
crest  of  the  ridge  dividing  it  from  the  Mushalaliz  valley- 
They  are  surrounded  by  fields,  and  the  products  of  the 
soil— hemp,  Indian  com,  and  various  kinds  of  grain- 
showed  that  we  were  gradually  approaching  a  milder 
climate.  We  descended  (I  believe  unnecessarily)  in  order 
to  pass  through  a  lower  hamlet,  at  which  one  of  our  horse- 
men had  a  message  to  leave,  and  then  faced  a  steep  and 
apparently  interminable  climb,  through  a  beautiful  forest, 
thick  enough  to  shut  out  all  but  occasional  glimpses  into 
the  bed  of  the  Ingur.  The  only  new  feature  in  the  foliage 
was  the  prevalence  of  pines,*  which  are  seldom  found  near 
the  heads  of  the  Caucasian  valleys.  Numerous  sledge-tracks 
branched  off  up  the  hill,  and  fear  of  missing  the  way  obliged 
us  to  keep  close  company  with  our  sluggish  horsemen. 

*  Pinus  sylvestris,  Abies  Nordmanniana,  and  Abies  oiientalis  are,  according 
to  Radde,  found  in  the  Suanetian  forests. 


322  SUANETIA. 

At  last,  when  we  had  all  begun  to  grumble  at  the  toil  and 
trouble  of  descending  a  Suanetian  valley  by  a  succession  of 
climbs  of  2,000  feet  each,  we  came  upon  a  glade  in  the  wood, 
evidently  a  favourite  halting-ground  with  the  peasants  of 
the  neighbouring  villages.  A  fringe  of  pines  and  birches 
surrounded  the  level  plot  of  smooth  greensward  and 
screened  off  the  hot  sun,  the  perfume  of  azaleas  filled  the 
air,  and  the  eyes  rested  on  the  noble  picture  made  by  the 
deep  pine-clad  gorge  beneath,  and  the  central  mass  of 
the  Leila  chain  directly  opposite  us.  ^  Three  silent  pinnacles 
of  aged  snow '  sent  down  long  snake-like  glaciers  towards 
the  Ingur,  one  of  them  being  a  remarkable  specimen  of 
what  is  technically  known  as  a  ^  glacier  remani^/  A  wall 
of  rock  lying  across  its  path  scotches  but  cannot  kill  the 
glacier-snake ;  as  the  ice  slides  steadily  downwards,  masses 
fall  over  the  cliff  in  the  form  of  avalanches,  and  form  a 
fresh  glacier  below,  which  creeps  down  some  distance 
further  towards  the  forests.  A  thick  girdle  of  pines  clothed 
the  lower  slopes,  which  are  broken  by  rocky  spurs  dividing 
the  beds  of  the  several  glacier-fed  torrents.  Eor  once  we 
w^re  glad  to  see  the  horsemen  halt  and  unload  their 
anipials,  A  fire  was  soon  lighted  with  moss  and  pine- 
chips,  and  Paul  and  Fran9ois  busied  themselves  cooking 
^kabobs,'  while  we  reclined  on  the  turf,  regarding  the 
jnountain-tops,  more,  I  fear,  in  the  spirit  of  lotos-eaters 
than  i^i  that  befitting  members  of  the  Alpine  Club.  Un- 
doubtedly the  difiicultie?  of  everyday  travel  in  the  Cauca- 
sus exhaust  much  of  that  energy  which  finds  vent  in 
Switzerland  in  scaling  the  highest  peaks,  but  even  in 
the  Alps  there  are  moments  when  it  is  pleasant 

'  To  watx;h  tho  long  bright  river  drawing  slowly 
His  waters  from  the  purple  hill,' 

without  any  thoughts  of  scaling  the  silent  pinnacles  in 
the  distance. 

When  the  time  came  to  pursue  our  journey,  we  bade  a 


A    LOVELY    GLADE.  823 

lingering  farewell  to  the  lovely  glade,  and  surrendered 
ourselves  again  to  the  annoyances  of  everyday  life,  and 
the  penance  of  accommodating  our  movements  to  the 
pace  of  our  horsemen.  After  winding  now  up,  now  down, 
through  the  forest,  we  came  suddenly  on  open  hay  fields, 
in  the  midst  of  which  rose  a  group  of  towers,  most  of  them 
in  ruins.  Several  of  the  houses  were  still  inhabited,  and 
a  group  of  peasants — all,  as  a  matter  of  course,  wearing 
daggers — were  at  work  haymaking.  They  soon  gathered 
round  us,  and  inspected  with  interest  our  revolvers  and 
field-glasses ;  so  far  as  pantomime  could  carry  it,  our 
intercourse  was  of  the  most  friendly  chara<5ter.  Our  tail, 
which  as  usual  we  had  left  behind,  came  up,  and  the 
horsemen  seemed  rather  to  look  dov^n  upon  our  new 
acquaintances,  who,  I  suppose,  had  not  committed  murders 
or  robberies  enough  to  entitle  them  to  rank  among  the 
upper  classes  of  Suanetia. 

Thus  far  we  had  been  all  day  climbing  round  the 
irregularities  of  the  steep  slope  which  forms  the  north 
side  of  the  valley  of  the  Ingur ;  now  the  path  turned  over 
its  summit,  and  began  slowly  to  descend  towards  the 
torrent  issuing  from  the  basin  of  Mushalaliz,  which  we 
had  looked  down  upon  the  previous  afternoon.  The  last 
yiew  of  the  Leila  summits,  before  we  lost  them  behind 
the  ridge,  was  exceedingly  beautiful.  We  soon  found 
ourselves  in  a  fold  of  the  hills,  surrounded  by  grassy 
eminences,  which  cut  oflF  the  view  of  the  valley,  but  were 
not  high  enough  to  shut  out  the  snowy  buttresses  of 
XJschba  and  the  summits  near  it.  Clouds  hid  the  actual 
peaks,  and  prevented  us  from  distinguishing  their  forms 
or  making  any  estimate  of  their  height.  We  traversed  a 
succession  of  meadows  alive  with  haymakers,  and  set  in 
frames  of  hazel  and  birch  copses,  through  which  we  had 
occasionally  to  force  our  way,  keeping  close  company  with 

Y   2 


324  Sl'ANETIA. 

a  purling  Kireairi,  the  imago-  of  an  English  brook.  This 
d^;lightful  HCMnHvy  huiUnl  ior  a  considerable  space,  as  far 
aM  the  verge  of  the  d<.-;-''^'nt  to  the  Mushalaliz  torrent. 
Here  we  rest^jd  for  som*;  minutes  under  the  shade  of  a 
Uj^^eh-grove,  before  running  down  the  steep  path,  which 
bore  obliquely  along  the  hillside,  covered  as  usual  with  a 
thick  mantle  of  greenery ;  the  bay,  the  labnmnm,  and 
the  wild  honeysuckle,  now  mingled  with  the  shrubs  of 
the  higher  regions — the  rhododendron  and  azalea — ^form- 
ing a  dense  underwood  on  either  side  of  the  way,  which 
was  overshadowed  by  beeches  and  hazels. 

A  crazy  but  most  picturesque  bridge  spans  the  narrow 
clefb  in  which  flows  the  stream  issuing  from  the  Mushalaliz. 
The  Caucasian  cattle  have  stronger  nerves  than  those  of 
the  Zillcrthal,  in  the  Tyrol,  where  a  boarding  is  put  up  on 
one  side  of  any  lofty  bridge,  lest  a  cow  should  be  alarmed, 
or  take  a  suicidal  fancy  to  leap  into  the  foaming  torrent. 
Here  not  only  is  there  no  railing,  but  numerous  holes  are 
I(»ft  in  the  wooden  framework  of  the  floor,  and  it  is  won- 
derful that  the  animals  do  not  often  break  their  legs.  A 
slight  rise  on  the  further  side  brought  us  to  the  level  of 
tlie  fertile  strip  of  ground  lying  between  the  Ingur  and 
the  northern  slopes,  on  which  are  situated  the  hamlets  of 
tlio  Latal  community.  The  houses  are  scattered  among 
the  fields,  and  look  less  like  fortresses  or  dungeons  than 
those  of  the  upper  valley;  while  the  fields  are  surrounded 
with  neatly-woven  fences  and  tall  trees,  amongst  which 
wo  saw,  for  the  first  time,  walnuts  groXving  in  clumps  by 
the  side  of  the  path.  The  height  is  only  4,500  feet,  and 
the  produce  of  the  fields  and  the  abundance  of  fruit-trees 
boar  witness  to  a  milder  climate.  Tobacco,  Indian  com, 
millet,  peas,  and  beans  are  extensively  cultivated,  and  the 
grass  crops,  which  the  peasants  were  now  busy  mowing, 
fioemod  very  rich. 


A   SUANETIAN    FARMHOUSE.  3S55 

The  people  in  the  fields  were  a  wild-looking  race, 
and  the  women  had  the  rough  inquisitiveness  of  savages. 
Fran9ois'  personal  appearance  seemed  to  take  their  fancy, 
but  though  flattered  at  their  admiration,  he  was  not 
disposed  to  return  it.  We  none  of  us  lost  our  hearts 
to  the  female  portion  of  the  population  on  the  south 
of  the  Caucasus;  the  vaunted  and  undoubted  beauty 
of  the  Greorgian  race  cannot  withstand  the  exposure  to 
weather,  and  the  field-work  at  an  early  age,  which  is  the 
lot  of  the  women  of  the  mountain  tribes,  and  the  traveller 
who  wants  to  see  the  houris  with  whom  popular  fancy 
peoples  the  country  had  better  stay  at  Kutais  or  Tiflis. 
We  passed  through  several  clusters  of  houses,  and,  having 
left  behind  us  a  knoll  crowned  by  one  of  the  small  square 
chapels  characteristic  of  this  region,  were  led  by  our 
horsemen  to  an  isolated  farmhouse..  The  <>wner  was  out 
haymaking,  and  his  wife,  a  hideous  old  shrew,  would  not 
open  the  door  to  so  large  a  party  of  strangers  without 
leave  from  her  lord.  After  a  long  delay,  during  which 
we  had  nothing  to  do  but  to  watch  the  clumsy,  heavily- 
laden  carts,  drawn  by  oxen,  bringing  in  the  hay,  an  old 
peasant  arrived,  and  we  were  admitted  within  the  gates. 

We  found  a  regular  farmyard,  stocked  with  pigs  and 
poultry,  and  guarded  by  a  dog.  The  building  consisted 
of  two  or  three  rooms  on  the  ground-floor,  and  a  large 
bam,  full  of  new  hay,  which  we  appropriated  to  our  use. 
A  projecting  balcony  afforded  us  a  sunny  spot  on  which 
to  spread  our  mattrass,  while  waiting  the  result  of  the 
always  lengthy  preparations  for  dinner.  So  peaceful  and 
pastoral  was  the  scene  before  our  eyes,  that  it  was  difficult 
to  realise  how  many  deeds  of  warfare  and  bloodshed  had 
taken  place  here,  even  within  the  last  few  years.  The 
inhabitants  of  Latal  were  formerly  engaged  in  constant 
struggles  against  the  Dadisch-Kilians,   whose  authority 


326  SUANETIA. 

extended  over  tlie  neighbouring  communities  of  Gegeri 
and  Betscho  on  the  west  and  north.  Five  years  ago  they 
were  at  strife  with  the  nearest  village  of  the  Lendjer 
group,  in  the  Mushalaliz  valley.  Herr  Radde  thus  de- 
scribes his  reception  at  Latal,  and  the  character  he  heard 
of  its  inhabitants : — 

*  We  found  shelter  in  the  courtyard  of  an  old  Suanetian 
castle,  with  a  friendly  priest  who  came  from  Imeritia,  and 
had  spent  a  year  and  a  half  as  a  missionary  amongst 
the  Suanetians.     He  had  brought  his  wife  with  him,  and 
built  himself  a  small  cottage  in  the  inner  court,  which 
was  surrounded  by  a  high  wall  of  defence.     The  account 
he  gave  of  the  progress  of  Gk)d's  word  among  the  Suane- 
tians was  very  disheartening.     They  are  deaf,  he  said,  to 
all  instruction ;  only  by  kindness  can  they  in  some  degree 
be  drawn  towards  it.-    They  dread  being  subjected  to  a 
conscription,    and    distrust  all  opportunities  offered  of 
bettering  themselves.     Despite  the  frequent  church-ser- 
vices, generally  held  here  on  Saturdays  and  Sundays,  they 
remain  strangers  to   church  principles.     They  show  no 
desire  to  allow  their  children  to  learn  the  Georgian  lan- 
guage, although  the  Government,  partly  by  the  appointed 
priest,  partly  by  a  school  lately  established  at  Pari,  has 
provided  them  the  means  of  doing  so.     In  Latal,  as  in 
most  of  the  villages  of  upper  independent  Suanetia,  it  is 
difficult  to  find  a  man  who  has  not  committed  one  or 
more    murders;    for  instance,  two  brothers,   who  lived 
near  the  priest,  were  well  known  to  have  killed  seven 
or  eight  Suanetians.      They  were  two  hearty  old  men, 
with  fearfully  savage  countenances.     At  night  every  man 
drives  his  cattle  into  the  courtyard,  and  carefully  secures 
the  great  wooden  doors  of  the  outside  wall.* 

We  witnessed  an  illustration  of  the  practice  last  alluded 
to,  in  the  return  of  the  cows  shortly  before  sunset,  and 


A    MYSTERY   S0UT5D.  327 

took  care  to  secure  draughts  of  fresh  milk  as  soon  as  pos- 
sible. The  arrival  of  strangers  did  not  seem  *to  surprise 
the  peasants  here  so  much  as  in  the  upper  villages,  and 
we  enjoyed  comparative  priva<;y ;  although  we  heard 
afterwards,  from  Paul,  that  our  real  character  was  a 
subject  of  deep  discussion  between  our  horsemen  and 
our  host^s  family.  We  were  not  exactly  like  Bussiaus, 
and  bore  no  resemblance  to  the  only  other  class  of  visitors 
with  whom  they  were  acquainted — the  inhabitants  of  the 
north  side  of  the  chain,  who  are  said  to  cross  here  by  the 
Thuber  glacier,  either  on  business  to  dispose  of  their  mer- 
chandise— iron,  salt,  and  sheepskin  cloaks — or  attracted  by 
the  apples  and  pears  which  abound  in  this  neighbourhood. 
Altogether  they  were  fairly  puzzled,  until  our  Davkar 
horseman  hit  on  a  happy  solution  of  the  mystery,  and 
pronounced  us  to  be,  beyond  doubt,  wandering  Jews,  on 
the  ground  of  our  not  observing  church-fasts. 

As  the  evening  closed  in,  the  clouds  melted  away  from 
the  summits,  and,  to  our  surprise,  at  the  head  of  the 
Mushalaliz,  Tau  Totonal  shone  out,  a  silvery  spear,  poised 
at  an  amazing  height  in  the  air,  the  point  of  which  flushed 
rosy  as  the  sun  sank  in  the  west.  Immediately  opposite 
us  stood  the  glacier-crowned,  forest-girt  Leila  mountains, 
one  of  their  summits  curiously  resembling  in  shape  Monte 
Bosa  from  the  Gomergrat.  It  was  one  of  those  heavenly 
evenings  which  come  once  or  twice  in  a  summer,  when 
the  whole  atmosphere  seems  steeped  in  roses  and  purples. 
An  hour  after  we  had  been  lost  in  admiration  of  the 
sunset  scene  we  were  all  writhing  in  slow  torments  in  the 
hayloft,  devoured  by  hungry  insects',  and  half  suffocated 
by  smoke,  which  rose  through  the  floor  from  the  room 
underneath. 

July  22nd. — The  morning  was  cloudless,  and  the  great 
white  peak  of  Tau  Totonal  looked  superb  against  the  blue 


fikj.  When  the  time  came  for  starting,  the  old  farmer, 
who  had  been  our  host,  claimed  an  exorbitant  recompense. 
We  offered  him  half  jia  much  ai>ain  as  was  du.?,  but  he 
thrt-w  down  fhe  rouble-notes  on  the  floor  with  contempt. 
Taking  no  notice,  we  continued  to  load  the  horses,  and, 
after  a  good  deal  of  bluster,  he  came  to  his  senses.  We 
amused  ourseives  at  parting  by  drawing  out  a  British 
paBsport,  a.  docament  certainly  seen  for  the  first  time  in 


Suanetia,  and  bidding  Paul  tell  him  that  he  little  thought 
whom  he  had  entertained  unawares.  The  lion  and  the 
unicorn  worked  the  effect  intended,  and  our  host  forgot 
hia  threats  of  not  allowing  us  to  leave  till  his  demands 
were  satisfied  to  the  full,  and  bade  us  farewell  with  an  air 
of  mingled  fear  and  relief. 

The  path  down  the  Ingur  has  to  cross  another  steep  ridge 
to  reach  the  next  basin,  that  of  Betscho,  watered  by  a  tor- 
rent flowing  due  south  from  the  central  chain.     The  climb 


THE   CAUCASIAN   MATTERHORN".  :)29 

Up  the  hillside  was  hot  and  severe,  past  another  hamlet  of 
the  Latal  group,  clinging  to  a  slope  so  steep  that  it  looked 
as  if  the  houses  rniist  soon  slip  down  and  join  their  neigh- 
bours on  the  flat  gi-ound  below.  Above  it  the  path  winds 
along  the  slopes,  through  young  woods  of  beech,  oak,  hazel, 
and  aspen,  until  the  summit  of  the  spur  separating  Latal 
from  Betscho  is  attained.     Just  before  reaching  it  we  sat 


down  to  admire  the  outline  of  Tan  Totonal  and  the 
southern  face  of  the  mountains  above  Jibiani,  which  had 
come  into  sight  over  the  lower  ranges,  ■  Nearer,  and 
scarcely  less  beautiful,  the  range  of  the  Leila  formed  a 
second  picture,  which  elsewhere  would  have  riveted  the 
attention.  A  shout  from  Moore,  however,  hurried  me 
on   to   where   he  was  sitting  with    Francois,   100  yards 


330  SUAXETIA. 

in  advance,  apparently  gazing  in  a  state  of  astonish- 
ment, that  for  the  moment  rendered  them  unable  to  ex- 
press their  feelings,  at  some  castle  in  the  air. 

On  reaching  my  companions  I  was  at  no  loss  to  discover 
the  cause  of  their  emotion.  Due  north,  above  the  low  wood 
of  the  adjoining  hillside,  shot  up  two  towers  of  rock,  one 
slightly  in  advance  of  the  other,  forming,  as  regards  height, 
steepness,  and  outline,  beyond  all  comparison  the  most 
wonderful  mountain  mass  we  had  ever  beheld.  Tier  above 
tier  of  precipices  rose  straight  up  from  the  valley,  cul- 
minating in  two  tremendous  towers,  separated  by  a  deep 
depression.  The  twin  summits  resembled  one  another  in 
form,  and  appeared  to  be  long  roof-like  ridges,  falling  away 
in  slopes  of  mingled  rock  and  ice  of  terrific  steepness. 
The  idea  of  climbing  either  of  them  seemed  too  insane  to 
be  so  much  as  suggested,  and  even  the  lower  spurs  of  the 
mountain  above  the  meadows  of  Betscho  are  so  tremendous 
that  it  looked  as  if  a  stone  dropped  from  the  top  of  either 
of  the  peaks  would  scarcely  stop  rolling  before  it  reached 
the  valley.  There  waa  no  mistake  about  it,  the  Caucasian 
Matterhom  was  found  at  last,  only  here  we  had  one  Mat- 
terhom  piled  on  another,  and  then  multiplied  by  two.  It 
was  a  sensation  scene  of  Nature's  own  devising.  The 
name  of  the  mountain  was  unknovni  to  us  at  the  time ; 
it  was  unmarked  on  the  map,  and  our  horsemen  were 

• 

sulky  and  uncommunicative.  We  learnt  afterwards  that 
it  is  generally  called  XJschba — ^  usch,'  in  Georgian,  means 
rain  or  storm,  so  that  this  seems  to  be  a  parallel  instance  to 
the  Swiss  Wetterhom.  The  two  peaks  also  resemble  one 
another  in  being  great  promontories  projecting  from  the 
main  chain  and  immediately  overhanging  the  valleys  at 
their  feet,  so  that  they  are  likely  to  be  the  heights  round 
which  clouds  first  gather. 

Our  natural  course  was  to  descend  as  soon  as  possible  to 


THE   BETSCHO   VALLEY.  331 

the  Betscho-Tshalai,  and  follow  the  main  valley  of  the 
Ingur.  Our  horsemen,  who  were  more  insuflferably  in- 
dolent and  impudent  than  ever,  refused  to  take  a  track 
leading  apparently  in  the  right  direction,  and  conducted 
us  instead  by  a  path  up  the  Betscho  glen.  The  way  was 
through  a  wood  of  copper-beech  and  aspen,  where  the 
branches  formed  a  frame  to  the  majestic  TJschba,  whose 
base  we  were  approaching.  The  men  had  told  us  we 
should  be  in  Pari  by  the  middle  of  the  day,  and  trusting 
to  their  account  we  had  not,  as  usual,  brought  provisions 
with  us.  Having  already  been  out  three  hours,  and  ap- 
pearing by  the  map  to  be  little  nearer  our  destination  than 
at  starting,  we  sent  Paul  into  the  nearest  village  to  see  if 
he  could  get  any  bread ;  he  succeeded  in  purchasing  one 
loaf,  which  had  a  medicinal  taste,  as  if  flavoured  with 
castor-oil,  and  was  only  made  eatable  by  extreme  hunger. 
The  villages  of  Betscho  are  castellated ;  one  of  them,  the 
Mazer  of  the  Five  Yerst  Map,  is  of  large  size,  and  looks  very 
picturesque  from  a  distance.  Turning  at  length  down  the 
glen,  we  retraced  our  steps  at  a  lower  level  along  the  grassy 
banks  of  the  Betscho-Tshalai,^  until  nearly  opposite  a  ham- 
let named  Doli,  on  the  right  bank  of  the  stream,  to  which  we 
crossed  by  a  good  bridge.  As  long  as  we  were  in  the  Betscho 
glen,  the  forest  was  still  dense,  and  the  foliage  varied ; 
but  when,  after  a  tedious  ascent,  we  rounded  the  brow 
that  overlooks  the  junction  of  the  streams,  and  turned 
along  the  hillsides  above  the  Ingur,  the  character  of  the 
scenery  underwent  a  sudden  change.  At  the  western  ex- 
tremity of  Suanetia  the  Ingur  flows  in  a  deep  defile,  be- 
tween the  projecting  bases  of  the  main  chain  and  the  Leila 
mountains.  All  the  villages  are  built  at  a  height  of 
from  2,000  to  3,000  feet  above  the  stream,  on  the  northern 

*  Called  Bodra  by  the  people  of  Pari. 


332  SUANETIA. 

ftlopcs,  which  arc  composed  of  a  verj  friable  slaty  rock, 
in  which  every  torrent  has  cnt  itself  a  deep  channel.  The 
coiiHtantly-recurring  necessity  of  making  the  circuits  of 
these  ravines  renders  the  walk  from  Doli  to  Pari  extremely 
laborious. 

The  afternoon  was  hot,  and  the  succession  of  hay  and 
cornfields,  dotted  with  poor-looking  stone  houses,  through 
which  our  road  lay,  was  a  bad  exchange  for  the  timber  to 
which  we  had  become  accustomed.     The  path  climbed 
higher  and  higher,  till  at  last  it  crossed  a  bare  slate-bank, 
which  broke  the  uniformity  of  the  hillside,  and  gained  a 
knoll,  whence  we  looked  across  a  wide  and  tolerably  level 
terrace,  watered  by  a  torrent  and  supporting  several  vil- 
lages.    Pari,  however,  was  not  amongst  them,  and  the 
meadows  had  to  be  crossed  and  a  second  brow  gained 
before  the  resting-place  to  which  we  had  been  looking  for- 
ward for  the  last  few  days  came  into  sight.     Between  us 
and  it  was  another  deep  ravine.     Two  of  the  party  tried  a 
short  cut,  with  the  usual  result,  and  reached  the  torrent 
only  after  a  stiff  scramble  through  thickets  which  were 
very  nearly  impassable.     There  was  no  bridge,  and  some 
waded  through  the  water,  while  others  rode  over  on  one 
of  the  horses.     Close  to  the  torrent  a  ferruginous  mineral 
spring,  slightly  effervescent   and  very  palatable,  bursts 
from  the  ground. 

A  last  ascent  brought  us  up  again  to  the  level  of 
Pari,  and  we  reached  the  hamlet  —  for  it  is  nothing 
more — tired  and  hungry,  about  4.30  p.m.  Its  position 
is  surpassed  in  beauty  by  many  of  the  villages  we  had 
lately  rested  in.  The  Ingur  flows  out  of  sight  at  the 
bottom  of  a  deep  gorge,  and  the  hillside  on  which  Pari 
stands  is  capped  by  rocky  summits  little  exceeding  the 
snow-level.  The  horizon  is  formed  on  the  west  by  a  long 
spur  of  the  main  chain,  which  runs  out  at  right-angles 


ARRIVAL   AT   PARI.  333 

from  it,  and  forms  on  this  side  the  boundary  of  Suanetia ; 
between  its  lower  slopes  and  the  final  spurs  of  the  Leila, 
the  Ingur  finds  its  way  out  to  the  low  country  through  a 
deep  and  densely-wooded  gorge.  The  first  building  in  the 
hamlet  was  a  whitewashed  house,  built  in  the  manner  of 
ordinary  civilised  dwellings,  with  a  little  garden  at  the 
back.  A  hundred  yards  farther  we  came  to  an  open  space 
surrounded  on  three  sides  by  buildings,  and  on  the  fourth 
by  the  ruinous  and  blackened  walls  of  the  late  residence  of 
Constantin  Dadisch-Kilian,  the  native  prince  who,  as  has 
been  before  related,  some  eight  years  ago  murdered  the 
Governor  of  Mingrelia  at  Kutais.  The  village  is  composed 
chiefly  of  mean-looking  cottages,  without  the  tall  towers 
of  defence  characteristic  of  Free  Suanetia.  We  told  our 
horseman  to  take  us  to  the  quarters  of  the  Eussian  Cos- 
sacks who,  since  the  crime  of  Constantin  and  the  confis- 
cation of  his  property,  have  been  stationed  here  to  keep  a 
watch  over  the  district.  The  full  force  consists  only  of 
ten  men,  and  is  of  course  too  small  to  preserve  order 
except  in  the  immediate  neighbourhood,  where  the  power 
which  they  merely  represent  has  been  once  felt,  and  is 
now  better  appreciated. 

Herr  Eadde's  account  of  the  policy  adopted  by  the 
Russian  Government  towards  the  wild  mountaineers  of 
Suanetia  is  very  curious.  ^  It  is  remarkable,'  writes 
the  Herr,  *  how  here  too  the  Government  deals  on  a 
policy  of  mildness  with  tlie  wildest  mountain-tribes. 
When  it  is  borne  in  mind  that  Free  Suanetia  contains  a 
thousand  armed  men,  there  can  be  no  doubt  to  what  issue 
energetic  measures  would  lead.  It  is  only  by  patient  per- 
suasion, and  an  avoidance  of  aU  misunderstandings, 
that  the  government  can  be  carried  on  in  outlying  dis- 
tricts. With  such  obstacles  to  contend  with,  the  results 
must  necessarily  be  slow,  but  they  are  more  certain  than 


334  SUANETIA. 

those  an  energetic  military  discipline  would  produce. 
The  upper  valley  of  the  Ingur  is  incapable  of  maintaining 
a  great  military  force,  and  the  natural  difficulties  which 
here  oppose  the  transport  of  food  and  ammunition  would 
render  its  maintenance  exceedingly  costly.  For  what 
good  end  would  a  military  force  keep  in  subjection  the 
neglected  but  conquered  Suanetians  ?  Murder  would  not 
be  prevented,  agriculture  or  cattle-breeding  encouraged. 
The  perseverance  and  tenacity  with  which  the  Grovemment 
adheres  to  its  principles  must  in  time  tame  these  wild 
Suanetians.  They  will  by  degrees  adopt  the  Georgian 
faith  and  language,  and  accustom  themselves  to  a  more 
peaceable  existence.' 

How  much  of  the  mildness  of  their  rulers  the  people 
owe  to  the  military  difficulties  mentioned  above,  and  how 
much  to  the  real  belief  of  Russian  officials  in  a  conciliatory 
policy,  it  would  perhaps  be  unkind  to  enquire.  Paul  told 
us  that  at  one  time  the  Government  had  collected  a  small 
house-tax  from,  the  Suanetians,  but  for  the  last  year  or 
two  they  have  been  relieved  from  even  this  slight  mark  of 
subjection.  Arrived  at  the  Cossacks'  quarters,  we  rejected 
the  officiousness  of  our  Davkar  horseman,  who  now  strove 
to  render  himself  important,  and  sent  Paul  to  represent 
who  we  were  and  what  we  wanted.  The  chief  of  the  out- 
post was  away,  but  his  place  was  filled  by  a  very  civil 
fellow,  who  at  once  found  us  lodging  in  the  now  confis- 
cated dwelling-house  of  one  of  the  native  princes. 

Our  rooms  were  on  the  first-floor,  which  was  approached 
by  an  outside  staircase.  The  skill  in  wood-carving  common 
to  so  many  mountain  populations  was  conspicuous  here,  in 
the  elaborate  ornamentation  of  the  roof  of  the  principal 
apartment,  and  of  the  spacious  balcony  which  was  our 
favourite  lounge.  Our  lodgings  were  quite  bare,  but  a  fire- 
place gave  our  men  the  necessary  facilities  for  cooking. 


HOSPITABLE   COSSACKS.  335 

Nothing  could  exceed  the  kindness  and  readiness  to  meet 
our  wants  shown  by  the  Cossacks,  and  we  rejoiced  in  our 
deliverance  for  a  time  from  the  constant  struggle  with  the 
barbarous  natives.  When  our  Davkar  horseman  came  to 
be  paid,  he  had  the  impudence  to  ask  for  a  present,  a 
demand  which  we  promptly  crushed  by  threatening  to 
inform  the  Cossacks  that  he  had  drawn  a  pistol  on  us. 
No  more  was  heard  of  one  of  the  greatest  scoundrels  we 
ever  had  to  deal  with,  and  he  left  the  village  soon  after- 
wards. We  slept  as  usual  on  our  mattrass,  but  with  a 
pleasant  sense  of  security  which  had  been  wanting  since 
our  arrival  at  Jibiani. 

July  23rd. — The  day  was  spent  in  idleness,  while  col- 
lecting information  and  preparing  provisions  for  our 
further  journey.  We  had  now  reached  a  point  due  south 
of  Elbruz;  it  was  therefore  necessary  to  turn  north,  and 
cross  the  main  chain,  in  order  to  reach  the  foot  of  the 
great  mountain.  We  had  been  unable,  either  at  Tiflis  or 
Kutais,  to  obtain  any  information  as  to  the  passes  leading 
from  Suanetia  to  the  northern  valleys,  and  were  naturally 
anxious  to  learn  the  character  of  the  difficulties  we  might 
expect  in  completing  the  only  link  now  wanting  in  our 
mountain  route  from  Elazbek  to  Elbruz.  The  Cossacks 
told  us  that  there  were  two  passes  used  by  the  people,  and 
practicable  for  cattle,  though  too  rough  for  horses.  The 
one  they  recommended  us  to  take  leads  fix)m  the  head  of 
a  glen  called  Nakra,  which  joins  the  Ingur  valley  below 
Pari,  and  we  were  told  that  by*  this  pass  Uruspieh,  the 
chief  village  of  the  Upper  Baksan,  could  be  reached  in 
three  days.  The  usual  need  of  porters  arose,  but  the 
chief  Cossack  undertook  to  find  some  for  us,  and  shortly 
introduced  two  pleasant-looking  men,  with  whom  we  made 
an  agreement  that  they,  with  five  friends,  should  carry 
our  baggage  to  Uruspieh  for  six  roubles  (seventeen  shU- 


Zyc,  .SIANKTIA. 

lings;  apiec/:;.  A  man  wa«  sent  up  to  the  pasturages  to 
buy  us  a  sbeep,  for  tho  price  of  which  our  provider  the 
CoftftO^rk  apolo^'-i.s'.'d,  alU^irha:  as  its  cau.se  tliL*  rapacity  of 
the  villagers,  which  made  living  at  Pari  exceedingly  dear. 
There  was  no  shop  in  the  Suanetian  capital,  where  wine, 
sugar,  and  butter  are  unknown  luxuries,  but  we  laid  in  a 
store  of  what  provisions  we  could  set  hands  on.  Our 
hopes  of  honey,  a  dainty  for  which  the  district  is  cele- 
brated, and  which  it  exports  to  the  neighbouring  pro- 
yinces,  though  long  deferred,  were  finally  fulfilled*  During 
the  day  we  devoted  much  thought  to  the  subject  of  dinner. 
Moore's  hungry  eye  having  observed  an  old  pig  with  a 
large  young  £a.mily,  he  prevailed  on  Faal  to  procure  the 
slaughter  of  two  of  the  innocents,  and  we  looked  forward 
to  them  as  a  welcome  relief  to  a  long  course  of  tough 
mutton  and  tougher  fowls.  Notwithstanding  the  unusual 
appliances  at  Paul's  disposal,  the  dish  was  not  a  success. 

My  friends  varied  their  amusements  by  taking  a  Russian 
steam-bath,  in  a  little  building,  specially  coi^tructed.  for 
the  purpose,  opposite  our  house.  What  tortures  they 
underwent  I  never  clearly  learnt,  but  they  came  out 
looking  half-boUed  and  as  red  as  lobsters.  A  considerable 
fire  is  necessary  to  heat  the  building,  and  as  large  logs 
are  scarce  and  dear  at  Pari,  owing  to  the  imperfect  means 
of  transport,  although  the  forests  are  barely  three  hours 
distant,  all  the  CJossacks  got  a  steam  afterwards,  and  were 
glad  thus  to  enjoy  their  sole  luxury  at  our  expense. 


PARI  TO   PATIGORSK.  337 


CHAPTER  XL 

PEOM  PAEI  TO  PATIGOBSK,  AND  ASCENT  OP  ELBRUZ. 

A  Captive  Bear — Moore  Harangaes  the  Porters — Camp  in  the  Forest — 
A  Plague  of  Flies — Lazy  Porters — A  Nook  in  the  Mountains — Cattle 
Lifting — Across  the  Chain  in  a  Snowstorm — A  Stormy  Debate— A  Log 
Hut— Baksan  Valley — Uruspieh — ^The  Ghiest  Hoose^Villany  Rewarded — 
Minghi-Tau— An  Idle  Day — An  Enlightened  Prince — Passes  to  the  Karat- 
chai — ^Tartar  Mountaineers — A  Night  with  the  Shepherds — ^A  Steep  Climb 
— Camp  on  the  Rocks — Great  Cold — On  the  Snowfield — In  a  Crevasse — 
Frigid  Despair — ^A  Crisis — Perseverance  Rewarded — ^The  Summit — Pano- 
rama— The  Return — Enthusiastic  Reception — The  Lower  Baksan — A  Long 
Bide — A  Tcherkess  Villsge — Orassy  Downs — Zonitzki — Patigorsk. 

Jvly  2AtK — It  is  not  such  an  easy  matter  in  the  Caucasus 
as  in  Switzerland  to  start  in  the  morning  at  the  hour  fixed 
overnight.  Our  new  troop  of  porters  had  to  be  gathered 
together  £rom  their  respective  abodes^  and  each  article  of 
the  luggage  lifbed,  in  order  to  test  its  weight,  before  the 
business  of  arranging  the  burdens  could  proceed.  More 
than  half  was  placed  on  the  back  of  a  ridiculously  small 
donkey,  a  meek-looking  specimen  of  his  race,  with  long 
ears  given  to  flap  uncertainly  backwards  and  forwards. 
This  aniTna.]  was  to  accompany  us  for  some  hours,  to  re- 
lieve our  porters  of  a  portion  of  their  burden. 

On  parting  we  presented  the  chief  Cossack  with  an 
English  knife,  with  which  he  was  very  much  pleased,  and 
we  had  consequently  to  submit  to  a  repetition  of  the 
hugging  and  kissing  business  so  popular  abroad,  and 
particularly  in  Russia,  but  which  is  not  appreciated  by 
the  reserved  and  unsympathetic  Anglo-Saxon.  Bidding 
farewell  to  the  kindly  Cossacks,  we  took  a  path  which 
connects  Pari  with  the   few  villages  to  the  west — the 

z 


33«  FROM  PARI  TO   PATIG0R8K. 

laHt  in  Snanr^tia,  above  the  defile  of  the  Ingur.  Tliese, 
like  the  capital,  are  built  on  terraces,  high  above  the  river, 
an^l  K/rj;arat/fd  from  one  another  by  deep  and  broad  ravines- 
A  dencription  of  the  details  of  our  morning's  walk  would  be 
nearly  an  wearisome  as  was  the  reality;  there  was  little 
change  in  the  character  of  the  views,  and  our  time  was 
chiefly  spent  in  going  down  and  up  steep  zigzags.  So 
great  were  the  circuits  we  were  obliged  to  make,  and  so 
dawdling  were  our  porters,  that  it  was  time  for  a  midday 
halt  before  we  reached  the  last  hamlet  built  on  the  southern 
slope  of  the  spur  that  projects  on  the  eastern  side  of  the 
entrance  to  the  Nakra  valley.  We  sat  down  under  the  shade 
of  a  large  tree,  above  the  houses,  from  which  the  villagers 
soon  crowded  round  us ;  with  them  came  a  small  bear,  led 
by  a  troop  of  boys,  who  cuffed  and  dragged  about  poor  Bruin 
very  mercilessly.  A  short  and  gentle  ascent  over  rich 
meadows  brought  us  to  the  top  of  the  spur,  whence  there 
was  a  fine  view.  At  a  great  depth  beneath  us  lay  the 
glen  of  the  Kakra,  backed  by  snow-streaked  ranges,  and 
clothed  with  the  finest  pine-forests  we  had  yet  seen.  The 
single  trees  were  magnificent,  and,  standing  some  distance 
apart,  rose  above  the  other  foliage  in  distinct  dark-green 
cones.  The  scene  strongly  resembled  some  represented  in 
photographs  of  the  Himalayas,  and  was  exceedingly  strik- 
ing. Turning  southward,  we  had  before  us  the  deep  cleft 
in  the  hills  which  forms  the  gate  of  Suanetia,  and  affords 
an  outlet  to  the  river  and  the  road  to  Sugdidi,  a  smaU  Ab- 
kasian  town,  halfway  between  Kutais  and  Soukhoum-Kal6. 
Our  Pari  porters  showed  so  strong  a  disposition  to 
walk  in  the  ways  of  the  men  of  Davkar — that  is,  to 
dawdle  on  for  ten  minutes,  and  then  sit  down  and  chat 
for  fifteen — that  we  took  the  opportunity  of  their  suggest- 
ing that  the  sum  fixed  on  as  their  pay  was  insufficient,  to 
read  them  a  lecture.   Sitting  in  a  row,  we  summoned  them 


THE   TEA-PLANT.  339 

before  us,  and  told  them,  through  Paul,  that  we  wished  to 
know,  once  for  all,  whether  they  meant  to  carry  out  the 
a^jreement  they  had  made  with  us.  If  the}'  were  dissatis- 
fied, and  wished  to  be  off  it,  we  were  willing  to  return  to 
Pari,  but,  in  that  case,  we  should  pay  them  nothing.  The 
porters  one  and  all  declared  that  they  wished  to  come  on, 
and  were  quite  satisfied  with  the  terms.  Having  been  then 
treated  to  a  spirited  harangue  from  Moore,  on  the  *  whole 
duty  of  man '  in  connection  with  mountain-walking,  and  the 
advantages  they  would  reap  from  behaving  well,  the  troop 
resumed  their  OGiarch.  For  some  distance  the  path,  which, 
though  broken  in  places,  was  very  distinct,  skirted  the.  hill- 
side ;  but  at  last,  by  a  steep  and  sudden  descent  through  a 
grand  forest  of  pines  and  beeches,  the  bottom  of  the  Nakra 
valley  was  gained.  Beneath  the  close  branches  of  these 
trees  underwood  seldom  flourishes,  and  the  ground  was 
carpeted  with  a  soft  moss,  like  that  of  an  English  glade. 
.  On  reaching  the  banks  of  the  torrent,  we  turned 
up  the  valley  by  a  beaten  track,  which,  but  for  the 
occasional  obstruction  of  a  fallen  tree,  would  have  been 
practicable  for  horses — now  through  the  thick  wood,  now 
across  glades  where  the  rich  herbage  recalled  to  our 
recollection  the  weeds  of  the  Zenes-Squali.  One  of  the 
porters  brought  us  the  branch  of  a  small  shrub,  with  the 
explanatory  remark  ^tchai,'  and  we  recognised  the  tea- 
plant.  We  had  already  been  informed  at  Pari  of  its  exis- 
tence in  the  neighbourhood,  and  the  Cossacks  there  told  us 
thatsome  of  their  predecessors  had  turned  the  leaves  to  prac- 
tical account,  and  acquired  sufficient  skill  to  manufacture 
out  of  them  a  very  tolerable  beverage.  We  caught  occa- 
sional vistas  of  the  foaming  torrent  of  the  Nakra,  which 
falls  in  a  prolonged  rapid,  dashed  into  sheets  of  white  foam, 
over  the  granite  boulders  it  has  brought  down  with  it  from 
the  central  chain.     The  blue  sky  was  bright  overhead,  and 

z2 


340  FROM   PARI  TO  PATIGORSK. 

the  sun's  rays  very  powerftil ;  we  longed  for  a  photographic 
camera  to  turn  them  to  account,  and  fix  some  of  the 
pictures  of  wood  and  water  that  constantly  met  our  eyes. 

At  an  earlv  hour  in  the  afternoon,  our  porters  surprised  us, 
hy  sitting  down  on  the  banks  of  the  torrent,  at  a  spot  where 
the  roar  of  the  water  was  so  loud  that  it  was  difficult  to 
carry  on  any  conversation,  and  proposing  we  should  remain 
there  for  the  night.     We  refused  to  listen  to  the  proposi- 
tion, and  prevented  its  renewal  by  walking  on,  at  a  pace 
which  the  men  were  xmable  or  unwilling  to  keep  up  vrith. 
About  5  P.M.  we  found  a  position  suitable  for  a  camp, 
on  the  further  side  of  some  clear  springs,  which  were  sur- 
rounded by  dense  herbage,  rich  in  flowering  plants.     Here 
our  tent  was  soon  set  up.  and  Paul  had  a  roaring  fire  of 
logs  to  cook  by.     After  a  good  dinner  we  flattered  ourselves 
we  should  spend  a  quiet  night ;  but  at  sunset  the  odious 
hum  of  the  mosquito  commenced,  and  we  were  attacked  by 
the  venomous  little  insects,  as  well  as  by  swarms  of  a 
small  black  flj ,  no  bigger  than  a  pin's  head,  but  armed  with 
a  sharp  sting.    Our  Pari  men  now  told  Paul  that  the  people 
of  the  last  village  we  had  halted  at  purposed  following  us 
and  stealing  our  goods  during  the  night,  and  that  we  had 
better  divide  our  baggage  amongst  them  to  guard.     Peel- 
ing sure  that,  if  any  robbery  was  attempted,  it  would  be 
with  the  connivance  of  our  attendants,  we  ordered  all  the 
baggage  to  be  piled  against  the  opening  of  the  tent,  and 
told  them  that  our  fifteen  barrels  would  be  fired  without 
warning  if  we  heard  anyone  stirring  near  it.    Although  no 
robbers  appeared,  the  night  did  not  pass  wholly  without 
alarm.     The  silence  of  the  forest  was  broken  by  a  loud 
crash,  like  a  rattle  of  musketry,  which  we  found,  in  the 
morning,  had  been  caused  by  the  fall  of  a  large  tree  within 
fifty  yards  of  our  camp. 

July  2bth. — Our  rest  was  disturbed,  and  before  the  early 


LAZY  PORTERS.  341 

sunshine  lit  np  the  pine-forests  on  the  opposite  slopes,  we 
were  up,  and  woefully  detailing  to  one  another  the  suffer- 
ings of  the  night.  Fran9ois'  eyes  were  almost  closed  by 
the  bites  of  the  small  flies,  and  all  the  party  were  more  or 
less  disfigured.  As  soon  as  the  porters  had  finished  tying 
up  their  loads,  and  could  be  persuaded  to  put  them  on 
their  backs,  we  started.  On  leaving  Pari  we  had  under- 
stood that  we  should  cross  the  pass  on  the  second  day ;  but 
our  men  now  declared  it  would  be  impossible  to  do  more 
than  reach  the  southern  foot  of  the  last  ascent  before  night- 
fall. Having  passed  through  a  belt  of  pines,  we  entered  a 
region  of  scantier  and  less  lofty  vegetation,  and  saw,  for 
the  first  time,  the  range  of  cliffs  which,  to  all  appearance, 
closes  the  head  of  the  glen.  The  hillsides  were  now  steep, 
and  slopes  of  debris,  brought  down  by  avalanches  fi:om  the 
hollows  in  the  mountains  overhead,  extended  down  to  the 
torrent.  Numerous  and  clear  fountains  sprang  out  of  the 
ground,  and,  dammed  by  the  surrounding  blocks,  formed 
crystal  pools,  the  banks  of  which  were  adorned  by  clusters 
of  lilies  of  the  valley.  Two  pretty  cascades  dashed  down 
the  rocks  on  either  side  of  us,  but  lacked  body  of  water  to 
rank  as  firstrate  waterfalls.  The  lasfc  birches  grew  in  the 
hollow  at  the  foot  of  the  cliffs  which  had  barred  our  view 
all  the  morning. 

We  now  saw  that  the  Five  Verst  Map  was  entirely  wrong 
in  its  representation  of  this  part  of  the  chain.  The  offi- 
cers employed  on  the  survey  evidently  contented  them- 
selves with  a  distant  view  of  the  Nakra  valley,  and,  de- 
ceived by  appearances,  have  in  consequence  represented  its 
head  as  a  symmetrical  horseshoe  basin.  In  reality  the 
sources  of  the  stream  lie  in  a  recess  of  the  mountains  un- 
seen from  below,  and  therefore  ignored  on  the  map.  The 
way  to  it  lay  up  a  steep  slope  on  the  left  bank  of  the  tor- 
rent, which  is  joiued  by  a  good-sized  tributary,  pouring 


342  FROM   PAEI   TO   PATIGOESK. 

over  the  cliffs  on  the  opposite  side,  from  a  glacier  only  a 
portion  of  which  was  visible.  In  this  direction  our  porters 
asserted  a  pass  to  exist,  leading  to  the  villages  on  the 
headwaters  of  the  Kuban,  in  the  Karatchai  district. 

It  was  only  midday,  but  our  lazy  troop  wanted  to  halt 
for  the  afternoon,  alleging  that  it  was  impossible  to  cross 
the  pass  before  evening,  and  that  if  they  went  any  further 
they  should  be  frozen  during  the  night.  With  much  per- 
suasion we  prevailed  on  them  to  follow  us  for  two-and-a-half 
hours  more.  A  sharp  ascent,  marked  with  the  last  traces  of 
a  path  on  this  side  of  the  pass,  brought  us  to  the  level  of  an 
upper  valley,  for  some  distance  bare  of  herbage,  and  covered 
with  the  snow  and  rocks  of  spring-avalanches.  The  direc- 
tion of  this  trough  is  for  about  two  miles  due  east,  when  it 
splits  into  two  glens,  running  respectively  north  and 
south,  of  which  the  former  is  the  most  considerable. 
Having  crossed  the  stream  by  a  snow-bridge,  we  came  to  a 
grass-slope,  broken  by  projecting  boulders,  just  at  the 
junction  of  the  glens.  It  was  difficult  to  find  a  plot 
of  turf  for  the  tent,  and  we  were  obliged  to  dislodge  the 
porters  from  a  noble  bivouac  they  had  appropriated  to 
themselves  under  a  huge  boulder,  where  alone  the  ground 
was  level.  When  the  tent  was  put  up  the  space  proved 
ample  for  aU. 

The  view  from  our  '  gite,'  which  was  entirely  surrounded 
by  snowy  mountains,  was  very  grand.  Deep  beneath  lis 
lay  the  lower  2^akra  valley^  the  range  on  its  western  flank 
crowned  by  a  fine  ice-coated  peak,  occupying  the  position 
of  the  Tau  Borkushel  of  the  map.  The  stream  we  had 
lately  crossed  had  run  but  a  short  course  since  leaving  its 
cradle — a  glacier  flowing  round  the  base  of  a  very  remark- 
able mountain,  the  perpendicular  cliffs  of  which  were  over- 
hung by  an  ice-cornice  of  enormous  thickness.  The  head 
of  the  glen,  on  the  north,  was  also  closed  by  a  glacier ; 


CATTLE-LIFTIKG.  343 

the  route,  however,  does  not  lead  over  it,  but  mates  for  a 
gap  between  two  rocky  eminences  in  the  chain  on  its  east. 
The  afternoon  sun  beat  full  against  the  face  of  the  rock 
under  which  our  tent  was  pitched,  and  the  heat  inside  the 
canvas  was  great.  I  rashly  sought  coolness  in  a  shady 
nook  in  the  rocks,  and  thereby  caught  a  chill,  which,  on  the 
top  of  a  previous  slight  indisposition,  made  me  for  a  time 
very  unwell.  Wrapping  myself  up  as  warmly  as  possible 
in  my  plaid,  I  took  at  intervals  small  doses  of  chlorodyne, 
a  medicine  which  throughout  our  journey  we  found  of  the 
greatest  service. 

Towards  evening  we  observed  four  men,  armed  with 
guns  and  swords,  and  driving  eleven  cows,  descending  from 
the  direction  of  the  pass  at  a  hurried  pace.  Paul  enquired 
of  our  men  where  they  came  from,  and  was  told  that  they 
were  natives  of  Lashnush,  who,  according  to  custom,  had 
been  on  a  cattle-lifting  expedition  over  the  pass,  and  were 
now  returning  with  their  unlawfully-gotten  booty,  stolen 
from  one  of  the  herds  belonging  to  the  Tartars  of  the 
Upper  Baksan.  Our  porters  naturally  felt  uneasy  ss  to 
the  reception  they,  as  the  countrymen  of  the  thieves, 
would  meet  with  on  the  north  side,  and  we  had  great 
difficulty  in  persuading  them  to  proceed  any  further.  We 
succeeded,  however,  in  convincing  all  but  one  hoary-headed 
old  rascal  that  the  fact  of  their  being  with  us  would  be  a 
conclusive  proof  of  their  innocence.  The  man  in  question 
knew,  apparently,  that  his  character  would  not  bear  exa- 
mination, and,  conscious  probably  of  some  recent  mis- 
demeanour, begged  to  be  allowed  to  return — adding  that 
his  two  sons,  who  were  also  with  us,  would  share  his  load 
between  them.  To  this  family  arrangement  we  of  course 
made  no  objection.  The  sunset  hues  were  gorgeous,  but 
too  vivid  to  promise  a  continuance  of  the  fine  weather  of 
the  last  two  days. 


344  PEOM   PARI  TO  PATIGOSSK. 

July  26ih. — The  weather  had  changed  during  the  night, 
clouds  were  creeping  up  from  the  south,  and  the  morning 
promised  U>  grow  worse  rather  than  better.  Pain  and 
constant  sickness  had  driven  away  sleep,  and  I  felt  much 
more  fit  to  lie  in  bed  than  to  cross  a  pass ;  but  it  was  ab> 
solutely  impossible  to  remain  where  we  were,  and  the  idea 
of  returning  to  Pari,  now  a  long  day's  walk  in  the  rear, 
was  insupportable,  besides  offering  few  advantages  over 
the  only  alternative  course — ^that  of  reaching  the  watershed 
before  bad  weather  came  on.  We  therefore  started,  and 
although  at  first  I  could  scarcely  crawl  along,  even  with 
the  help  of  Tucker  and  Fran9ois,  necessity  proved  a  won- 
derful spur ;  my  strength  gradually  returned,  and  each  step 
gained  towards  the  top  of  the  pass  was  an  encouragement 
to  further  progress. 

Above  our  bivouac  the  head  of  the  valley  was  paved 
with  snow ;  the  surface  had  not  frozen  in  the  night,  and 
its  softness  added  considerably  to  my  troubles.  In  an 
hour's  time  we  reached  the  point  where  the  glen  is 
quitted,  and  the  traveller  desirous  to  cross  the  chain  must 
climb  the  steep  banks  of  grass  on  his  right.  These  lead 
him  to  the  edge  of  a  considerable  snowfield,  which  fills  a 
recess  in  the  rocky  ridges  on  the  southern  side  of  the  pass. 
The  gap  in  the  crest  before  us  was  marked  by  two  stone- 
men,  and  we  had  a  further  guide  in  the  deep  trail  of  the 
cattle  that  had  passed  the  previous  afternoon.  The  clouds 
now  swept  up  round  us,  the  wind  howled  dismally,  and,  as 
we  drew  near  the  top,  heavy  snow  began  to  fall.  The 
change  in  the  weather  was  a  great  disappointment,  for  we 
had  been  looking  forward,  ever  since  leaving  Pari,  to  the 
view  of  Elbruz  during  the  descent,  and  all  hopes  of  seeing 
it  were  now  at  an  end. 

When  we  reached  the  top,  there  was  nothing  for  it  but 
to  sit  down  with  our  backs  to  the  snowstorm,  and  munch 


THE   BAKSAN   VALLEY.  345 

a  crust  of  bread  before  descending.  A  few  flowering 
plants  were  growing  on  the  rocks,  at  a  height  of  over 
10,500  feet.  On  the  north  side  is  a  small  glacier,  steep 
enough  in  places  to  admit  of  glissades,  but  so  thickly 
covered  with  snow  that  few  crevasses  were  visible.  The 
falling  sleet  soon  turned  into  heavy  rain,  which  followed 
us  for  the  rest  of  the  day.  The  stream  which  flows  from 
this  glacier  is  very  soon  lost  to  sight  under  another  and 
very  extraordinary  ice-stream,  which  seems  to  be  fed  entirely 
by  the  avalanches  falling  from  the  cliffs  of  a  great  moun- 
tain, now  partially  hidden  by  clouds,  but  afterwards  well 
known  to  us  by  the  name  of  Tungzorun.  Like  Uschba, 
unmarked  in  the  Five  Yerst  Map,  it  is  probably  the  second 
in  height  of  the  mountains  of  the  main  chain  west  of  the 
Koschtantau  group. 

The  glen  on  this  side  of  the  pass  runs  directly  north, 
and  the  path,  marked  out  at  first  by  occasional  stonemen, 
soon  becomes  very  distinct.  We  kept  along  the  western 
slopes  at  some  height  above  the  glacier,  which  is  covered 
by  debris,  and  has  a  dirty  appearance ;  its  tongue  curls 
over  a  steep  brow,  and  at  its  lower  end  meets  the  highest 
firs.  Beneath  us,  under  the  clouds,  we  could  see  the  green 
Baksan  valley;  but  opposite,  where  Elbruz  should  have 
displayed  his  fall  height,  nothing  met  the  view  but  a  sea 
of  mist,  from  which  two  glacier-tongues  protruded  only  at 
intervals.  A  descent,  rapid  at  the  last,  brought  us  to  the 
banks  of  the  Baksan.  Its  upper  valley  is  a  trough,  with  a 
level  floor  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  in  width,  through 
which  the  three  streams  flowing  respectively  from  the 
glaciers  of  Elbruz  and  Tungzorun,  and  from  the  larger 
ice-stream  which  fills  the  head  of  the  valley,  run  parallel 
for  some  distance  before  joining.  It  is  covered  with  a 
thick  forest  of  firs,  which  in  this  district  entirely  take 
the  place  of  pines.     Our  men  turned  several  hundred 


346  FROM   PARI   TO   PATIGORSK. 

yards  out  of  the  way,  to  visit  a  very  rudely-constructed 
and  now  deserted  log-hut,  where,  in  partial  shelter  from 
the  incessant  rainstorm,  we  ate  some  food. 

Not  altogether  to  our  surprise,  the  porters  refused  to 
re-shoulder  their  packs,  and  demanded  immediate  payment, 
declaring  that  they  had  fulfilled  their  contract  to  take  us 
over  to  Baksan,  and  persistently  ignoring  the  express 
stipulation  we  had  made  with  them,  that  Baksan  was  to 
be  taken  as  meaning  the  chief  village  in  the  upper  valley. 
One  of  the  men,  who  had  been  disagreeable  in  his  manner 
throughout,  now  became  very  violent,  and  made  pretence 
of  drawing  his  dagger.  Moore  took  the  leading  part  in 
the  diplomacy  on  our  side.  His  policy  was  to  ignore  the 
ruffian,  and  refuse  to  have  dealings  with  any  but  the  two 
men  with  whom  we  had  first  made  the  agreement  at  Pari, 
who  were  far  the  best  of  the  party,  and  little  disposed  to 
join  in  the  violence  of  some  of  their  companions.  The 
rage  of  the  chief  ruffian  at  being  ignored  was  ludicrous, 
but,  after  a  long  and  wearisome  wrangle,  the  malcontents 
gave  in,  and  the  train  again  got  into  motion — the  virtue  of 
the  well-disposed  men  being  confirmed  by  the  promise  of 
an  extra  rouble  on  our  arrival  at  Uruspieh,  if  no  further 
questions  occurred. 

Although  we  had  no  more  rows,  the  delays  to  which  we 
were  subjected  were  frequent  and  vexatious.  It  is  a  trial  of 
temper  to  sit  on  a  log,  wet  through,  out  of  sorts,  and  in  a 
pouring  rain,  while  half  your  attendants  hurry  off  without 
apparent  purpose,  and  the  remainder  reftise  to  stir  until 
their  companions  return.  We  learnt,  afterwards,  that  the 
men  were  looking  for  the  shepherds,  whom  they  knew 
to  be  somewhere  in  the  neighbourhood  with  their  flocks. 
Having  been  living  for  the  last  three  days  on  the  pro- 
visions they  carried  with  them  from  home — which  consisted 
only  of  coarse  flour,  baked  every  evening  on  hot  stones  by 


A  LOG-HUT.  847 

a  wood-fire — they  naturally  wished  to  have  a  good  meal, 
and  were  now  anxious  to  purchase  a  lamb  for  their  supper. 
We  could  not  at  the  time  understand  their  motive,  which  for 
some  unknown  reason  they  were  unwilling  to  explain,  and  we 
naturally  grew  very  wroth  at  the  constantly-recurring  halts. 
After  a  long  walk,  in  a  deluge  of  rain,  through  dripping 
fir-forests,  we  reached  a  log-hut,  well-built,  and  fortunately 
quite  watertight.  We  were  glad  enough  to  find  a  resting- 
plOfCe  where  we  could  get  off  our  wet  clothes,  and  warm 
9urselves  round  a  roaring  fire.  Our  rugs  we  generally 
managed  to  keep  dry,  by  rolling  them  up  inside  the  mat- 
trass,  so  we  had  something  besides  the  ground  to  lie  on. 
Milk  and  cheese  were  procured  from  the  shepherds,  and 
after  an  attempt  to  make  a  brew  of  arrowroot,  the  results 
of  which  were  not  wholly  satisfactiory,  we  rolled  ourselves 
up  in  one  corner  of  the  hut,  and  enjoyed  a  tolerable  night's 
rest. 

Brnmg  the  evening  we  liad  some  amusing  conreraation 
with  our  men.  We  found  that  the  names  ^  England '  and 
*  English  *  conveyed  no  idea  to  their  minds,  and  that  the 
only  peoples  of  which  they  had  any  knowledge  were  Rus- 
sians, Turks,  ajid  *  Franghi '  (foreigners).  After  this  it 
was  rather  startling  to  be  suddenly  asked,  what  we  con- 
sidered the  best  form  of  government?  Moore  shirked 
the  question  by  replying  that  certainly  that  form  of  go- 
vernment could  not  be  considered  good  under  which  the 
people  of  one  vaUey  could  carry  off  cattle  belonging  to  the 
inhabitants  of  another — ^an  answer  which,  when  interpreted 
by  Paul,  seemed  to  tickle  our  friends  amazingly,  and  to 
be  considered  fully  adequate. 

July  27th. — The  morning  was  fine,  and  we  started  hope- 
fully. We  were  led  by  a  circuitous  track  along  the  north- 
ern hillside,  owing  to  our  men's  ignorance  of  the  direct 
path  down  the  valley.    The  forest  comes  to  an  end  sud- 


348  FHOM  PABI  TO   PATI60BSK. 

dcnlj,  and  is  succeeded  by  green  meadows,  amongst  which 
stand  several  groups  of  buildings,  answering  to  Alpine 
chalets.  Tliey  were  long,  low,  and  irregular-shaped  huts, 
built  of  very  massive  unsmoothed  fir  Jogs,  with  flat  grass- 
grown  roofs.  The  first  we  came  to  were  uninhabited^ 
The  Baksan  valley,  after  running  for  some  distance  north- 
east, bends  northwards,  and  then  a^in  resumes  its  former 
direction.  At  the  elbow  it  is  joined  by  two  tributary 
glens— one  on  the  right,  running  up  towards  the  main 
chain ;  another  a  mile  lower  on  the  left,  which  leads  to^ 
wards  the  foot  of  Elbruz.  Opposite  the  first  opening 
there  was  an  exceedingly  striking  view  of  a  cluster  of 
snowy  peaks,  remarkable  for  their  fantastic  forms  and 
close  grouping. 

A  farmhouse,  apparently  the  highest  permanent  habi- 
tation in  the  valley,  is  situated  opposite  the  mouth  of  this 
glen ;  in  a  small  enclosure  at  the  back,  potatoes  and  other 
kinds  of  vegetables  seemed  to  flourish.  We  kept  along 
the  left  bank  of  the  Baksan,  and  presently  crossed  the 
powerful  torrent  which  flows  from  the  eastern  icefields  of 
Elbruz,  but  the  gap  out  of  which  it  fiows  is  not  wide 
enough  to  admit  of  any  view  of  the  great  mountain.  We 
succeeded  in  finding  an  old  man  at  one  of  the  huts  built 
beside  the  torrent,  and  in  obtaining  a  bowl  of  fresh  milk 
— a  rare  luxury  in  the  Caucasus,  where  it  is  generally 
turned  sour  directly,  and  is  then  very  unpalatable.  The 
lower  portion  of  the  walk  from  this  point  to  Uruspieh  is 
undeniably  dull,  the  principal  feature  being  a  bold  rock- 
wall  on  the  right-hand  side  of  the  valley,  which  rises  just 
above  the  snow-level.  The  mountain-sides  are  no  longer 
wooded,  and  have  an  arid  burnt-up  appearance.  An 
enormous  barrier,  abutting  on  the  northern  chain,  very 
similar  in  form  to  the  Kirchet  above  Meyringen,  blocks 
the  valley,  and  the  path  has  to  climb  over  it.     From  the 


ARRIVAL   AT   URUSPIEII.  349 

brow,  XTnispieli  is  seen  for  the  first  time,  still  separated 
from  the  traveller  by  a  long  streteh  of  level  ground.  The 
rotul,  now  passable  for  narrow  carts,  crosses  the  Baksan 
at  the  base  of  the  mound,  and  traverses  a  succession  of 
meadows  on  the  right  bank,  recrossing  only  just  before  it 
enters  the  village  of  Uruspieh.  The  character  of  the  houses 
is  entirely  diflFerent  from  the  Suanetian  fortresses^  and  far 
less  picturesque;  built  on  a  gentle  slope,  the  low  fiat- 
roofed  buildings  are  scarcely  distinguishable  at  a  distance, 
and  offer  no  external  attractions  on  nearer  approach.  A 
strong  torrent,  flowing  out  of  a  ravine  in  the  northern 
hillside,  cuts  the  village  in  half;  to  the  south  another 
lateral  valley  opens  towards  the  main  chain,  and  some 
snowy  summits  are  visible  at  its  head. 

The  view  of  the  Baksan  valley  is  closed  by  the  icy  mass 
of  Tungzorun,  which  from  here  rather  resembles  in  form 
the  Zermatt  Breithom.  These  distant  vistas  rescue 
Uruspieh  from  the  charge  of  positive  ugliness,  which  will 
certainly  be  brought  against  it  by  those  visitors  from 
whom  clouds  veil  everything  but  the  brown  barren  slopes 
immediately  surrounding  the  village.  A  large  building, 
just  beyond  the  bridge,  was  the  abode  of  the  princes  of 
the  Uruspieh  family,  who  have  given  their  name  to  the 
place.  A  group  V7as  gathered  round  the  door ;  the  men 
were  dressed  in  the  tall  sheepskin  hats  and  long  coats  of 
the  country,  and  our  porters'  equipments  seemed  shabby 
when  brought  into  contrast  with  their  silver-mounted 
daggers  and  handsome  cartridge-pouches. 

We  were  naturally  most  anxious  as  to  what  the  charac- 
ter of  the  people  would  turn  out,  as  upon  it  depended 
whether  we  should  be  able  to  attack  Elbruz  at  once,  or 
whether  we  must  descend  to  Patigorsk,  and  make  the 
mountain  the  object  of  a  separate  expedition  from  thence. 
Happily  our  hopes,   founded   on   the   favourable   report 


nr/)  FROM   PARI  TO   PATIGOBSK. 

^iv^jM  by  ihfi  Cohhuc^ch  at  Pari  of  the  people  of  Baksan 
iihd  iha  Karai/^baiy  wf5re  not  dfxnncA  to  be  disappointed. 
Hhuic,  villa^cTH  r;airie  forward,  and  at  once  conducted  us 
Ut  a  clean -looking  cottage,  which  proved  to  be  a  regular 
^ucHiy-liouMc.  It  a^ntained  two  rooms,  the  inner  one  pro- 
vided with  a  wrx)den  divan  in  one  comer.  The  walls  and 
roof  were  ^x^nstmctc^d  of  the  most  massive  fir-trunks^  and 
tlie  ruddy  hue  of  the  timber,  combined  with  the  scrupulous 
cleanliness  of  the  floor,  gave  a  snug  appearance  to  our 
quart^srs.  The  princes,  it  was  intimated,  would  soon  pay 
UM  a  visit,  and  in  the  meantime  we  hastened  to  settle 
with  the  Pari  men,  who  seemed  anything  but  at  ease,  and 
anxious  to  set  off  home  again  as  soon  as  possible. 

As  paymastr*r  of  the  forces,  I  had  told  out.  the  neces- 
sary quantity  of  notes,  separating  them  into  the  proper 
sharcH  for  each  man,  and,  with  Paul's  aid,  was  in  the  act 
of  distributing  the  money,  when  there  was  a  stir  at  the 
further  end  of  the  room,  and  the  princes  entered.  In  the 
consequent  confusion,  Paul  allowed  one.  porter  to  secure 
two  shares,  and  of  course,  when  the  turn  of  the  last  man. 
came,  there  was  nothing  left  for  him.  I  felt  certain  I  had 
liauded  over  the  proper  amount  of  notes,  but  the  porters 
all  protesttnl  that  each  had  only  his  own  share.  The 
matl-or  was  suddenly  settled  by  a  villager  stepping  forward, 
und,  to  our  great  amusement  and  delight,  pointing  out  the 
noisy  ruflian,  who  had  given  us  so  much  trouble  on  the 
rojul,  as  the  recipient  of  the  double  portion.  The  money 
wiw  at  once  taken  from  him,  and  he  seemed  too  doubtful 
UH  to  his  position  to  venture  on  any  resistance,  although 
he  indulged  in  a  display  of  indignation,  and  pretended  to 
be  rtMidy  to  be  searched.  Finding,  however,  that  he  wa« 
an  obj(H»t  of  universal  laughter,  even  to  his  companions, 
ho  speedily  n^treatod,  and  we  heard  no  more  of  him. 
Villiuiy  having  tlius  mot  with  its  deserts,  we  rewai'ded 


AN   ENLIGHTENED   PRINCE.  351 

the  comparative  virtue  of  the  two  men  who  had  held  aloof 
in  the  dispute  at  the  head  of  the  valley  with  an  extra 
rouble,  and  the  whole  troop  departed,  after  much  hand- 
shaking. 

All  our  attention  was  now  due  to  the  princes,  to  whom 
we  apologised  for  the  disturbed  state  in  which  they  had 
found  us.  Our  hosts  were  three  brothers,  tall  fine- 
looking  men,  with  open  and  kindly  countenances,  and 
dressed  in  the  full  Caucasian  costume.  The  younger 
brother,  Hamzet,  had  been  for  some  time  in  the  Bussian 
service,  and  spoke  Bussian  fluently.  The  interview  com- 
menced with  the  usual  enquiry  as  to  our  nationality: 
instead  of  the  stolid  ignorance  exhibited  by  the  Mingre- 
lians  at  the  mention  of  the  English  name,  Hamzet's  face 
at  once  brightened  up,  and  he  exclaimed,  *  Anglicany, 
karasho  (good),  Williams  Pasha,  Kars,  karasho/  It  was 
quite  like  coming  back  into  the  world  again,  from  some 
region  where  everyone  had  been  asleep  for  600  years,  to 
find  men  acquainted  with  the  events  of  the  Crimean  War. 

We  recoimted  our  ascent  of  Kazbek,  and  our  journey 
across  the  country  (at  both  of  which  great  surprise  was 
expressed),  and  then  explained  our  wish  to  attempt  Elbruz. 
The  princes,  while  admitting  Kazbek  to  be  the  more  pre- 
cipitous mountain,  expressed  great  doubts  of  our  reaching 
the  top  of  Elbruz,  adducing  the  very  good  argument  that 
no  one  had  ever  done  so.  They  promised  to  send  for  the 
peasants  who  had  accompanied  former  Bussian  travellers 
bent  on  exploring  the  mountain,  and  said  we  should  be 
taken  at  least  as  far  as  anyone  had  been  before  us. 

Ararat  was  not  unknown  to  the  princes,  and  they  were 
aware  of  the  legend  by  which  the  Caucasian  mountain  is 
connected  with  the  Armenian.  According  to  local  tra- 
dition, the  Ark  grazed  on  the  top  of  Elbruz  before  finally 
resting  on  Ararat.     The  correct  appreciation  of  the  rela- 


352  PROM   PARI  TO   PATIGORSK. 

tive  heights  of  the  two  monntains  might  fairly  be  used 
as  an  argument  for  the  truth  of  the  story.  K  it  meets 
with  general  acceptance,  we  are  ready  cheerfully  to  waive 
any  claims  to  the  honour  of  the  first  ascent  of  Elbruz  in 
favour  of  the  crew  of  the  Ark,  or,  as  Fran9oi8  happily 
phrased  it,  *  la  fitmille  Noah.' 

Our  hosts  were  acquainted  with  the  name  of  Elbruz,  but 
it  had  to  be  translated  to  the  circle  of  villagers,  who  only 
knew  the  mountain  as  Minghi-Tau.  The  introduction 
having  been  thus  happily  effected,  our  new  friendship 
was  cemented  by  the  timely  arrival  of  a  trayfiil  of  tea  and 
cakes,  which  were  placed  on  a  low  three-legged  stool,  which 
served  as  a  table. 

The  princes  requested  us  to  ask  for  whatever  we  wanted, 
and  offered  to  supply  us  with  food  as  well  as  lodging.  Un- 
willing to  put  them  to  unnecessary  trouble  on  the  one 
hand,  and  also  preferring  Paul's  cookery  to  the  hunches 
of  boiled  mutton  which  form  the  staple  dish  of  a  Caucasian 
cuisine,  we  asked  only  that  our  servant  might  be  aided  to 
procure  what  was  wanted.  In  this  way  we  were  able  to 
pay  for  the  large  stock  of  provisions  necessary  for  a  cam- 
paign of  at  least  four  days  against  Elbruz.  Paul  found 
aJl  sorts  of  luxuries,  including  butter,  potatoes,  and  sugar— 
the  latter  coming  from  the  princes'  household — to  all  of 
which  we  had  long  been  strangers.  Having  drunk  nothing 
but  tea  and  water  since  leaving  Kazbek,  with  the  exception 
of  the  muddy  wine  of  Glola,  we  welcomed  enthusiastially 
a  villager  who  brought  us  some  very  fair  native  beer. 
This  is  probably  the  liquid  referred  to  by  old  Klaproth, 
who  mentions  that  the  beer  made  by  the  Karatchai  and 
Baksan  people  *  is  nearly  equal  to  London  porter,'  although, 
in  that  case,  either  the  London  brewers  must  have  im- 
proved since  his  time,  or  the  native  manufacture  deterio- 
rated.   We  were  supplied  at  night  with  the  unwonted 


A   SUANETiAN    PRINCE.  353 

luxury  of  pillows  and  sheets,  and  were  thus  able  to  sleep 
out  of  our  clothes  for  the  first  time  since  leaving  Kazbek. 
It  is  a  curious  fact,  the  reason  of  which  we  failed  to  com- 
l^rehend,  that  while  in  the  Mahommedan  districts  cushions 
in  abundance  are  generally  found,  they  seem  utterly  un- 
known in  the  nominally  Christian  parts  of  the  country. 
The  reason  is  obscure,  but  the  fact  remains  that,  whether 
at  Christian  villages  or  Russian  post-stations,  the  traveller 
must  carry  his  own  mattrass,  or  be  content  to  lie  on 
boards, 

July  28th. — The  day  was  given  up  to  eating  and  doing 
nothing,  which  we  succeeded  in  enjoying  thoroughly.  Re- 
lays of  tea  and  cakes  filled  up  the  intervals  between  heavier 
meals,  and  the  spare  time  left  at  our  disposal  was  spent  in 
sunning  ourselves  at  the  door  of  the  cottage,  or  in  conver- 
sation with  our  hosts,  who  introduced  us  to  a  visitor,  a 
Suanetian  prince  of  the  Dadisch-KHian  family,  allied  to 
them  by  marriage.  He  was  probably  one  of  the  rulers  of 
Betscho,  the  branch  of  the  Ingur  valley  lying  at  the  base 
of  Uschba,  as  Radde  mentions  their  connection  and  fre- 
quent intercourse  with  the  tribes  on  the  north  side  of 
the  chain.  The  Suanetian  was  haughtily  aristocratic  in 
his  personal  appearance  and  manners,  and  his  presence 
seemed  rather  a  restraint  on  everybody  else.  He  was  tall, 
with  regular  features,  but  a  very  unintellectual  expression 
of  countenance,  and  a  supercilious  dandified  air,  which 
would  have  done  credit  to  a  man  more  accustomed  to 
civUised  life. 

The  native  princes  were  far  better-informed  men  than 
any  we  had  yet  met  in  the  mountains.  Only  two  days' 
journey  from  Patigorsk  and  Kislovodsk,  Uruspieh  is  fre- 
quently visited  by  Russian  travellers  or  officials,  and  even 
the  rambling  photographer  has  carried  his  camera  thus  far. 
The  last  visitors  had  been  two  Frenchmen  in  search  of  rare 

A    A 


8.54  FROM   PARI  TO   PATIGORSK. 

woods,  who  had  come  here  to  see  what  they  could  find.  We 
heard  of  them  elsewhere,  and  idtimately  saw  their  pur- 
chases on  the  quay  at  Poti,  on  the  point  of  being  shipped. 
The  people  are  thus  brought  into  contact  with  the  Euro- 
pean world,  but  its  rumours  echo  faintly  in  this  remote 
corner  of  the  continent.  The  princes  themselves  are  men 
of  taste :  one  is  a  good  musician  ;  the  other,  whose  mind 
seemed  to  be  of  a  practical  turn,  has  gained  some  informa- 
tion during  his  Russian  service  beyond  that  of  a  purely 
military  character.  Accustomed  at  home  to  nothing  but 
the  perishable  cream-cheeses  which  are  alone  made  in  the 
Caucasus,  he  had  been  struct  by  the  *  Gruyfere  *  eaten  in 
Russia,  and  had  set  to  wort  to  imitate  it  vdth  very  toler- 
able success.  Before  our  departure  we  saw  also  a  number 
of  improved  carts,  which  had  been  constructed  under  his 
directions,  to  replace  the  clumsy  machines  formerly  in  use 
The  facts  connected  with  our  country  most  deeply  im- 
pressed on  his  mind  were,  that  it  had  produced  a  great 
dramatic  author  named  Shatespeare,  and  that  Englishmen 
lived  entirely  on  beefsteats  and  porter;  he  was  profuse  in  his 
apologies  at  being  unable  to  supply  us  with  our  national 
food,  and  offered  to  send  up  to  the  pasturage  and  have 
a  buUoct  slaughtered,  a  proposal  the  execution  of  which 
was  only  prevented  by  our  declaring  ourselves  quite  con- 
tented with  the  sheep  we  had  just  bought. 

We  endeavoured  to  extract  as  much  information  as  pos- 
sible as  to  the  customs  and  mode  of  life  of  the  people,  but 
it  is  very  difficult  to  talt  on  any  but  the  simplest  subjects 
through  an  uneducated  interpreter.  The  sum  of  what  we 
gathered  was,  that  the  natives  of  this  and  the  upper  val- 
leys next  to  the  east  consider  themselves  a  distinct  race 
from  the  Tchertesses,  who  dwell  on  the  verge  of  the 
steppes  and  in  the  mountains  to  the  westward.  The 
people  here  claim  to  be  the  old  inhabitants,  and  to  have 


THE   PRINCES   OP  URUSPIEH.  855 

been  dispossessed  of  their  ancient  supremacy  when  the 
hordes  of  Tcherkesses  from  the  Crimea  inundated  the 
country.  Their  language  is  Tartar,  and  their  religion,  as 
far  as  they  have  any,  is  Mahommedan  ;  the  princes  seemed, 
however,  to  be  very  broad  and  tolerant  in  their  views.  The 
imperial  sway  of  Russia  does  not  press  hardly  on  these 
mountaineers,  who  pay  only  a  light  house-tax,  are  exempt 
from  conscription,  and  are  too  remote  to  be  exposed  to 
those  petty  restraints  which  a  once-free  people  often  find 
the  hardest  to  bear.  Their  local  government  has  been 
generally  described  as  feudal ;  it  seemed  to  us  that  patri- 
archal would  be  the  more  fitting  word.  The  princes  are 
the  recognised  heads  of  the  community ;  they  live  in  a 
house  four  times  the  size  of  any  other  in  the  village,  they 
are  richest  in  flocks  and  herds,  and  on  them  falls  the  duty 
of  entertaining  strangers ;  but  their  word  is  not  law,  and 
they  can  only  persuade,  not  compel,  their  poorer  neigh- 
bours to  cany  out  their  wishes. 

We  acquired  some  geographical  information  as  to  the 
neighbouring  mountains.  There  are  two  routes  into  Sua- 
netia — the  one  by  which  we  had  come,  through  the  Nakra 
valley;  and  another  leading  up  the  glen,  due  south  of 
Uruspieh,  and  crossing,  as  far  as  we  could  understand,  to 
the  Betscho  district.  This  last,  though  higher  than  that 
which  we  had  crossed,  was  said  to  be  practicable  for 
horses.  The  traveller  desirous  of  reaching  tJteohkulan,* 
the  principal  village  in  the  Karatchai  district,  has  the 
choice  of  skirting  the  northern  or  southern  flanks  of 
Elbruz.  K  prepared  to  imdertake  on  foot  a  glacier- 
pass,  he  will  go  up  to  the  sources  of  the  Baksan,  and 
traverse  the  range  connecting  Elbruz  with  the  watershed, 
to     the  Upper   Kuban.      If  he  prefers   a  less  toilsome 

*  Quite  unconnected  with  Uschkul,  the  collective  name  of  the  highest  group 
of  hamlets  in  Suanotia,  of  which  Jibiani  is  one. 

▲  A  2 


856  FROM   PARI   TO    PATIGORSK. 

journey,  he  will  ride  over  two  northerly  spurs,  descending 
between  them  to  cross  the  valley  of  the  Malka.  By  either 
route  Utschkulan  can  be  reached  on  the  third  day.  The 
Malka  is  the  stream  which  rises  in  the  northern  glacier 
of  Elbruz,  and  it  is  from  its  head  that  most  of  the  Rus- 
sian explorers  have  viewed  the  mountain,  and  that  the 
first  and  most  famous  attempt  to  reach  its  top  was  made, 
by  the  expedition  under  the  command  of  General  Em- 
*manuel,  in  1829.  There  was  a  report  in  the  village  that 
some  Russian  officers  had  lately  been  seen  on  the  Malka, 
and  we  felt  some  alarm,  lest  the  news  of  our  success  on 
Kazbek  had  stirred  up  the  officials  to  endeavour  to  antici- 
pate us  by  a  prior  assault  on  Elbruz.  We  never  heard 
anything  further  of  our  supposed  rivals,  and  if  there  was 
any  truth  in  the  story,  it  referred,  I  believe,  only  to  a 
pleasure-party  who  had  come  up  from  Kislovodsk  to  look 
at  the  mountain.* 

The  princes  promised  that  the  necessary  attendants  for 
our  expedition  should  be  ready  early  in  the  morning,  and 
also  that  they  would  supply  us  with  large  loaves,  better  fit 
for  carrying  than  the  small  crumbly  cakes  usually  eaten  in 
the  villages.  The  terms  asked  by  the  men  who  were  to 
act  as  porters  were  two  roubles  apiece  for  each  day,  to 
which  we  made  no  objection.  In  the  evening  we  were 
amused  by  the  athletic  sports  of  the  youngsters  who  were 
gathered  outside  our  door.  Two  boys  began  wrestling, 
and  were  incited  to  the  most  valorous  struggles  by  the 
promise  of  a  twenty-copeck  piece  to  the  winner.     The 

*  Any  monntaincers  who  risit  the  Caucasus  are  Iik<^ly  to  go  to  Unispieh,  and 
I  may  therefore,  while  on  the  subject  of  the  routes  leading  to  it,  suggest  an  ex- 
pedition which,  in  point  of  interest  and  fine  scenery,  would,  I  am  sure,  repay  a 
mountaineer,  and  is  very  unlikely  to  prove  impracticable,  or  even  difficult. 
It  is  to  ascend  thevalley  opening  due  south  of  the  village,  and,  turning  to  the 
right  from  its  head,  effect  a  pass  over  the  glaciers  into  the  glen,  the  torrent  of 
which  joins  the  Baksan  halfway  between  Uruspieh  and  its  source. 


CEDSPIEII  BEAfTT.  357 

villagers  were  constantly  passing  and  repassing  in  front  of 
oor  door,  and  we  had  ample  opportunities  of  studying 
their  characteristics.  Tlie  men  were  a  fine  race,  with  a 
very  high  type  of  countenance.  The  women  we  saw  were 
prematurely  old  and  wrinkled,  with  the  exception  of  the 
quite  young  girls,  who  were  many  of  them  pretty  little 
things,  with  close-fitting  caps  hung  round  with  coins,  and 
lonEf  elf-locks  streaming  out  from  heneath.   The  men  can- 


not posBesB  all  the  beauty  of  the  race;  but  as  this  is  a 
Mahommedan  country,  the  young  wives  and  marriageable 
maidens  are  probably  kept  more  or  less  in  seclusion. 

July  2Qth. — As  usual  in  the  morning,  although  we  got 
tip  and  breakfasted  early,  the  porters  did  not  appear  till 
two  hours  later,  and  then  only  dropped  in  one  by  one.  The 
bread  too  had  not  been  baked,  and  it  was  not  till  8.30  a.m. 


358  FROM   TABl  TO  PATIGOBSK. 

that  all  our  preparations  were  completed.     We  had  with 
ns  five  natives,  who  put  the  greater  part  of  their  loads, 
for  the  present,  on  the  backs  of  two  horses,  which  were 
to  go  with  us  as  far   as   the   highest  pasturage.      Our 
companions  were  equipped  with  poles,  armed  with  tre- 
mendous iron  spikes  about  two  feet  long,  gradually  taper- 
ing to  a  point,  and  a  species  of  '  crampon,'  to  attach  to 
the  heel  in  climbing  ice  or  slippery  turf.     They  soon 
proved  themselves  tax  better  walkers  than  any  we  had  yet 
had  to  do  with,  and  we  retraced  our  steps  up  the  valley 
at  a  very  tolerable  pace.    Our  plan  had  been  to  turn  up 
the    glen    leading    to   the    eastern    glacier    of   Elbruz, 
which,  by  the  map,  is  manifestly  the  most  direct  route  to 
the  mountain,  and,  ovring  to  our  difficulty  in  conversing 
with  the  porters,  it  was  not  till  the  point  where  we  pro- 
posed turning  off  was  reached  that  we  found  their  inten- 
tions differed.    They  declared  that  we  must  go  up  the 
main  Baksan  valley  to  its  head,  and  then  turn  to  the  right, 
in  order  to  reach  the  south-eastern  Elbruz  glacier.    The 
objections  to  the  route  we  proposed  were  diverse ;  there 
were  no  shepherds  in  that  direction,  there  was  no  path  up 
the  glen,  and  it  made  such  a  circuit  that  it  would  take 
three  days  to  reach  the  foot  of  the  mountain.     The  first 
two  reasons  were  plausible ;  the  third  was  ridiculous,  and 
entirely  contradicted  by  the  views  we  subsequently  had  in 
the  course  of  the  ascent. 

As  soon  as  we  imderstood  the  points  of  the  case,  we 
acquiesced  in  our  men's  wishes,  and  continued  in  oar  old 
tracks  up  the  valley,  occasionally  profiting  by  their  local 
knowledge  to  make  short  cuts  through  the  wood.  Close 
to  the  hut  where  we  had  spent  the  night  after  crossing  the 
range,  wild  strawberries  grew  in  great  profusion,  but,  gene- 
rally speaking,  they  do  not  abound  in  this  country.  A  bend 
in  the   direction  of  the .  valley  hides  its  head  from  the 


^Jm 


FIBST  SIGHT  OF  ELBRUZ.  359 

traveller  until  he  has  rounded  a  projection  of  the  northern 
mountain-side,  the  base  of  which  the  stream  hugs  so 
closely,  that  the  path  is  obliged  to  wind  along  the  slopes 
overlooking  the  thick  fir-wood  beneath.  Here  we  met 
some  hunters  driving  two  donkeys,  each  laden  with  a  fine 
bouquetin,  recently  killed  on  the  edge  of  the  glacier.  The 
head  of  one  carried  a  noble  pair  of  horns,  but  the  second 
was  a  comparatively  young  animal.  Having  at  length 
turned  the  comer,  we  saw  before  us  the  source  of  the 
Baksan,  a  large  glacier  filling  the  head  of  the  valley.  At 
a  deserted  hut  we  halted  for  a  consultation,  and  our  men 
gave  us  the  choice  of  turning  up  a  glen  opening  on  our 
right,  or  going  still  farther  up  the  valley.  We  decided  on 
taking  the  former,  as  being  the  most  direct  course. 

The  climb  into  the  glen  was  rather  rapid ;  above  us,  on 
the  left,  rose  a  striking  mass  of  columnar  basalt  strangely 
contorted,  and  of  a  deep  ruddy  hue.  The  long  grass  was 
full  of  snakes,  which,  as  a  rule,  are  rarely  found  in  the 
Caucasus.  One  of  the  porters  beckoned  me  to  follow  him 
a  few  feet  up  the  slope  above  the  path,,  and  pointed  out 
a  flattened  snow-dome,  just  visible  over  the  top  of  the  fine 
icefall  that  closed  the  glen,  as  ^  Minghi-Tau.'  This  was 
our  first  sight  of  Elbruz  since  we  landed  in  the  Caucasus, 
our  only  previous  glimpse  of  the  mountain  having  been 
from  the  Black  Sea  steamer,  when  approaching  Poti. 
B[alf-an-hour's  walk  below  the  end  of  the  glacier,  we  found 
the  shepherds,  who  had  fixed  their  quarters  in  a  level 
meadow,  which  we  reached  in  nine  hours  from  XJruspieh. 
In  order  that  we  might  be  within  easy  reach  of  capital  milk, 
cheese,  and  ^kaimak*  (a  species  of  Devonshire  cream) — 
delicacies  of  mountain  life  which  had  been  long  wanting 
on  the  south  side  of  the  chain— our  tent  was  pitched  close 
to  the  herdsmen's  bivouac.  The  sheep,  apparently  dis- 
turbed by  the  novel  erection  which  disfigured  their  restincr- 


360  FBOM   PARI   TO   PATIGORSK. 

place,  determined  to  get  rid  of  it,  and  spent  the  greater 
part  of  the  night  in  charging  down  on  the  sides  of  our 
«helter.  Fortunat<;ly,  an  Alpine  tent  is  not  easily  upset, 
but  our  slumbers  were  constantly  broken  by  the  uneasy 
consciousness  of  an  angry  animal  butting  within  a  foot 
of  our  heads. 

July  30th. — ^The  morning  was  fine,  and  the  cold  wind 
seemed  likely  to  be  the  harbinger  of  a  spell  of  settled 
weather.  We  did  not  expect  a  long  day's  work,  as  we 
were  already  at  a  height  of  about  8,000  feet,  and  were  not 
likely  to  find  an  eligible  spot  for  our  tent  above  12,000 
feet.  Wq  started,  however,  in  fair  time,  in  order,  in  case 
of  need,  to  be  able  to  push  on,  and  reconnoitre  the  work 
before  us.  The  horses  came  on,  for  half  an  hour,  to  the 
foot  of  the  glacier,  which  has  retired  considerably  of  late 
years ;  there  are  distinct  ancient  moraines,  now  overgrown 
with  herbage,  a  quarter  of  a  mile  in  advance  of  the  present 
termination  of  the  ice.  Crossing  the  torrent,  which  was 
divided  into  several  branches,  we  began  to  ascend  the 
steep  hillside  on  the  right  of  the  icefall,  which  is  tolerably 
clean,  and  finely  broken  into  towers  and  pinnacles.  After 
some  time  a  line  of  crags  appeared  to  bar  the  way ;  they 
are,  however,  easily  turned  in  one  place,  near  a  little  fall 
which  tumbles  in  a  pretty  shower  of  water-rockets  over 
the  almost  perpendicular  strata  of  basaltic  rock.  Above 
this,  gentian-studded  slopes  of  short  turf  were  soon  suc- 
ceeded by  alternate  beds  of  snow  and  boulders,  extending 
to  the  foot  of  a  steep  bant,  from  the  top  of  which  we 
gained  a  clearer  insight  into  the  configuration  of  the 
mountain-side. 

We  were  on  a  rocky  ridge,  the  summit  of  which,  still 
some  six  hundred  feet  above  our  heads,  confines  the  upper 
snowfield,  which  overflows  towards  the  Baksan  by  two 
channels — one,  the  icefall  beside  which  we  had  ascended ; 


■  ■■■■■A-J 


A    LOFTy   BIVOUAC.  3GI 

and  a  second,  farther  west,  and  neurer  the  head  of  the 
valley.  The  porters  had  made  a  long  circuit  in  order  to 
avoid  the  steep  bank  we  had  just  climbed,  and  were  now 
out  of  sight.  Moore  was  unwell,  and  had  walked  thus  fai- 
with  much  difficulty  ;  Tucker,  Fraii9ois,  and  I  therefore  set 
oflF  to  climb  the  ridge  before  us,  in  the  hopes  of  finding  a 
suitable  spot  for  a  bivouac  near  its  summit.  The  boulders 
were  very  big,  and,  although  there  was  no  difficulty  in 
scrambling  over  them,  it  was  long  before  we  could  find  a 
plot  of  ground  six  feet  square  which,  by  any  stretch  of 
language,  could  be  called  level.  When  we  at  last  succeeded, 
we  announced  the  fact  by  a  shout  to  our  Mend  below,  and 
hastened  on  to  see  what  was  above.  The  highest, rocks 
were  soon  passed,  and  a  further  climb  of  about  fifty  feet 
brought  us  to  the  level  of  a  great  snowfield,  surrounding 
the  final  cone  of  Elbruz,  which  rose  immediately  before  us, 
resembling'  in  shape  an  inverted  tea-cup.  The  mountain 
appeared  to  have  two  summits,  of  nearly  equal  height, 
and  both  easy  of  access  to  anyone  accustomed  to  Alpine 
climbing. 

Thoroughly  satisfied  with  our  inspection,  we  returned 
to  the  spot  we  had  chosen  for  our  tent,  and  set  vigor- 
ously to  work  to  make  the  surface  level.  To  effect 
this  we  dug  out,  vrith  our  ice-axes,  nearly  a  foot  of 
stony  earth  at  the  upper  side,  and  spread  it  below — 
increasing  the  breadth,  which  was  insufficient,  by  breaking 
off  masses  of  rock  on  one  side,  and  throwing  them  dovni  on 
the  other.  We  then  completed  and  filled  up  the  interstices 
of  the  natural  wall  of  rock  to  windward,  and,  having  finished 
our  labours,  sat  down  very  contentedly  to  admire  our  handi- 
work, and  await  the  long-delayed  arrival  of  the  rest  of  the 
party.  At  last  our  porters  came  up,  und  the  tent  was 
pitched.  The  evening  view  from  our  eyrie — the  height 
of  which  was  about  12,000  feet — was   superb.     Looking 


S62  ASCENT  OP   ELBRUZ. 

nearly  south,  across  the  trough  of  the  Baksan  to  the  cen- 
tral chain  opposite,  the  square-headed  Tungzorun  rose 
grandly,  its  cliffs  capped  with  a  huge  cornice  of  ice,  and  a 
broad  stainless  glacier  streaming  down  one  of  its  flanks. 
Further  east,  in  a  double-toothed  giant,  we  recognised  our 
startling  Suanetian  acquaintance  Uschba,  bearing,  it  is 
true,  more  ice  on  his  northern  side,  but  quite  as  inac- 
cessible in  appearance  as  from  the  south. 

Our  enjoyment  of  the  scene  was  interrupted  by  a  perfectly 
unforeseen  disturbance.  Our  porters  presented  a  demand  for 
their  first  two  days'  pay ;  we  reminded  them  that  they  had 
distinctly  agreed  that  the  settlement  was  to  be  delayed 
until  our  return  to  Uruspieh,  but  at  the  same  time  offered 
the  money  in  two  notes.    They  refused  it,  and  required 
that  each  man  should  be  given  his  exact  portion ;  we  told 
them  we  had  not  sufficient  small  notes  with  us,  on  which 
they  announced  their  intention  of  returning  home,  and 
leaving  us  to  get  our  luggage  back  as  best  we  could.   Such 
unreasonable  conduct  could  only  be  met  with  contempt, 
and  we  answered  that  they  might  do  as  they  pleased  ;  that 
we  should  start  soon  after  midnight,  and  should  return  in 
the  afternoon,  and,  unless  our  goods  were  carried  safely 
down  to  the  shepherds'  bivouac  before  nightfall,  should 
pay  them  nothing ;  we  added,  that  if  any  of  them  were 
willing  to  attempt  the  ascent  it  would  give  us   great 
pleasure,  and  that  they  should  have  every  assistance  fix)m 
our  rope  and  ice-axes.  On  receiving  this  message  from  Paul 
the  five  all  departed,  as  they  would  have  had  us  believe, 
never  to  return ;  but  in  less  than  half  an  hour  they  came 
back,  like  boys  who  had  had  their  sulk  out,  and  made  a 
half  apology  for  their  behaviour.    This  difficulty  being 
satisfactorily  smoothed  over,  the  men  retreated  to  lairs 
somewhat  lower  down  the  hillside,  while  we  prepared  for 
the  night.     Paul  had,  contrary  to  our  advice,  insisted  on 


INTENSE  COLD.  3GS 

coming  with  ns ;  he  was  so  anxious  to  ascend  the  famous 
mountain,  which  he  had  lived  near  and  heard  talked  of 
all  his  life,  that  we  did  not  like  to  check  his  enthusiasm, 
especially  as  there  seemed  no  reason  why  he  should  not 
accomplish  his  desire.  The  night  promised  to  be  cold, 
and  we  invited  Fran9oi8  to  come  inside  the  tent — which,  as 
we  had  proved  on  Elazbek,  would  at  a  pinch  accommodate 
four — ^while  Paul  found  a  sheltered  couch  in  a  trench  we 
had  dug  at  the  head  of  the  tent. 

Jvly  .31«^.— The  cold  during  the  night  was  so  intense, 
that  the  water  in  a  gutta-percha  bag,  which  we  had  filled 
overnight  and  hung  within  the  canvas,  was  frozen  before 
morning  into  a  solid  sausage  of  ice,  and  in  consequence, 
having  no  firewood  with  us,  we  could  procure  nothing  to 
drink.  At  2.10  A.M.,  having  attached  ourselves  with  the 
rope,  in  the  knowledge  that  terra  firma  would  soon  be  left 
behind,  we  set  out  alone,  the  natives  not  answering  to  our 
shouts.  In  climbing  the  steep  snow-banks  which  lead  to 
the '  grand  plateau,'  Paul  slipped  about  helplessly,  and 
Tucker  had  almost  to  drag  him  for  some  distance. 
When,  in  a  quarter  of  an  hoar,  we  reached  the  edge  of 
the  great  snow-plain,  Elbruz  loomed  before  us,  huge  and 
pale,  but,  to  our  surprise  and  disgust,  partially  shrouded  by 
a  black  cloud.  The  walking  was  now  easy,  and  we 
tramped  on  in  solemn,  not  to  say  surly  silence,  our  ice- 
axes  under  our  arms,  and  our  hands  in  our  pockets.  We 
were  well  protected  firom  the  severe  cold  by  Wekh  wigs, 
scarves,  cardigans,  and  muffetees,  though,  owing  to  our  men 
having  mislaid  my  gaiters,  I  offered  one  weak  point  to  the 
enemy's  attack. 

A  few  benighted  people  still  reiterate  the  assertion 
that  the  true  beauty  of  nature  ceases  at  the  snow-level, 
and  that  those  who  go  beyond  it  get  no  reward  for  their 
pains  except  the  satisfaction  of  having  treated  a  great 


364  ASCENT '0:P   ELBKUZ. 

mountain  as  a  greased  pole.  As  we  tramped  over  the 
snowfields  of  Elbruz,  I  could  not  help  wishing  we  had  some 
of  these  unbelievers  with  us,  because,  while  they  would 
have  been  compelled  to  admit  the  startling  grandeur  of 
the  situation,  the  intense  cold  would  have  inflicted  on 
them  a  just  punishment  for  their  past  ofltences.  The 
last  rays  of  the  setting  moon  lit  up  the  summits  of  the 
main  chain,  over  the  gaps  in  which  we  already  saw 
portions  of  the  southern  spurs.  The  icy  sides  of  XJschba 
and  Tungzorun  reflected  the  pale  gleam  of  the  sky ;  a 
dark  rock-peak  further  west  stood  in  deep  shadow.  We 
were  high  enough  to  overlook  the  ridges  that  run  out 
from  Elbruz  towards  the  north-east,  in  which  direction  a 
dark  band  of  vapour,  illuminated  by  fitful  flashes  of  sheets 
lightning,  overhung  the  distant  steppe-  The  thick  black 
cloud  was  still  on  the  mountain  before  us ;  otherwise  the 
sky  overhead  was  clear,  and  the  stars  shone  out  with  pre- 
tematural  brilliancy. 

Near  the  point  where  the  snow  began  to  slope  towards 
the  base  of  the  mountain,  the  crisp  surface  broke  under 
my  feet,  and  I  disappeared,  as  suddenly  as  through  a  trap- 
door, into  a  concealed  crevasse.  Paul,  who  was  next 
behind  me  on  the  rope,  was  horror-struck,  and  his  first 
impulse  was  to  rush  to  the  brink  to  see  what  had  become 
of  me,  a  course  of  proceeding  which  had  to  be  summarily 
checked  by  my  companions.  The  crevasse  was  one  of 
those  which  gradually  enlarge  as  they  descend,  but  the 
check  given  by  the  rope  enabled  me  at  once  to  plant  my 
feet  on  a  ledge  on  one  side,  and  my  back  against  the  other. 
The  position  was  more  ludicrous  than  uncomfortable.  I 
had  both  hands  in  my  pockets,  and  my  ice-axe  under  my 
arm ;  and  owing  to  the  tightness  of  the  rope,  and  the 
cramped  space,  it  was  not  easy  to  make  the  axe  serviceable 
without  fear  of  dropping  it  into  the  unknown  depths  below. 


FRIGID    DESPAIR.  865 

The  snow-crust  on  the  side  of  the  hole  I  had  made  broke 
away  beneath  my  arms  when  I  first  tried  to  raise  myself 
on  it,  and  it  cost  us  all  a  long  struggle  before  I  was 
hauled  out  and  landed  safely. 

The  slopes  now  steepened,  the  cold  grew  more  intense, 
and  the  wind  almost  unbearable,  so  that  altogether  the 
prospect  was  far  from  cheering.  The  morning  star  aroused 
us  to  a  temporary  enthusiasm  by  the  strange  accompani- 
ments and  brightness  of  its  rising.  Heralded  by  a  glow 
of  light,  which  made  one  of  the  party  exclaim,  *  There 
comes  the  sun!  *  it  leapt  forth  with  a  sudden  splendour 
from  amidst  the  flashes  of  lightning  playing  in  the  dark 
cloud  that  lay  below,  shrouding  the  distant  steppe.  The 
shock  was  but  momentary,  and  we  soon  relapsed  into  a 
state  of  icy  despair,  which  was  not  diminished  by  the 
sudden  desertion  of  Paul,  who,  fairly  beaten  by  the  intense 
cold^  turned  and  fled  down  our  traces.  For  hour  after 
hour  we  went  on  without  a  halt,  hoping  that  the  sun 
would  bring  with  it  an  increase  of  warmth. 

A  sunrise  viewed  from  a  height  equal  to  that  of  the  top  of 
Mont  Blanc  is  a  scene  of  imearthly  splendour,  of  which  words 
can  convey  but  a  feeble  impression.  A  sudden  kindling  of 
the  eastern  ranges  first  warned  us  to  be  on  the  watch ;  in 
a  moment  the  snow  upon  which  we  were  standing,  the 
crags  above  us,  indeed  the  whole  atmosphere,  were  suffused 
with  rose-pink.  The  cloud  on  the  summit^  which  had 
changed  from  black  to  grey  as  daylight  dawned,  now  caught 
the  pervading  flush,  and  suddenly  melted  away,  like  a 
ghost  who  had  outstayed  his  time.  As  the  hues  faded, 
the  sun's  orb  rose  in  the  east,  and  flooded  us  with  a  stream 
of  golden  rays,  which  were  soon  merged  in  the  clear 
light  of  day.  There  was  no  increase  of  warmth  as  yet, 
and,  despite  the  improved  look  of  the  weather,  it  became 
a  serious  question  whether  we  could  go  on.     By  7.30  a.m. 


366  ASCENT  OF  ELBRUZ. 

we  were  at  a  height  of  over  16,000  feet,  and  had  now 
reached  the  rocks  which  form  the  upper  portion  of  the 
cone.  Finding  what  shelter  we  could  among  them,  we 
stood  shivering,  kicking  our  feet  against  the  rock,  and 
beating  our  fingers,  to  preserve  them  if  possible  from 
frostbite,  while  the  debate,  as  to  whether  we  should  turn 
back  or  not,  was  carried  on  in  voices  almost  inaudible  from 
the  chattering  of  our  teeth.  On  the  one  hand,  the  wind 
did  not  abate,  and  the  risk  of  frostbites  was  growing 
serious;  Tucker  and  Pran9ois  had  no  sensation  in  their 
fingers,  and  my  toes  were  similarly  affected.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  rocks  were  less  cold  to  the  feet,  and  gave 
some  shelter  from  the  weather.  Looking  back^  we  saw, 
to  our  surprise,  two  of  the  porters  advancing  rapidly  in 
our  footsteps.  We  had  almost  decided  to  turn  whcA  they 
came  up  to  us,  looking  fairly  comfortable  in  their  big 
sheepskin  cloaks,  and  quite  unaffected  by  the  cold.  A 
third,  however,  who  had  started  with  them,  had,  like  Paul, 
given  in.  I  said,  *  If  a  porter  goes  on,  I  will  go  with  him.' 
*K  one  goes,  all  go,'  added  Moore.  The  decision  was 
accepted,  and  we  again  set  our  faeces  to  the  mountain. 

Prom  this  time  the  cold,  though  severe,  ceased  to  be 
painful.  A  long  climb  up  easy  rocks,  mostly  broken 
small,  with  here  and  there  a  large  knob  projecting  from  the 
surface,  brought  us  to  the  foot  of  a  low  cliff,  to  surmount 
which  a  few  steps  were  cut  in  an  ice-couloir,  the  only 
approach  to  a  difiiculty  on  the  mountain.  Arrived  on  the 
top  of  what  had  for  long  been  our  skyline,  we  saw  as 
much  more  rock  above  us.  Doubts  were  even  now  felt, 
and  expressed,  as  to  our  success.  We  persevered,  however, 
making  but  few  and  short  halts,  until  the  base  of  some 
bold  crags,  we  had  taken  long  to  reach,  was  passed. 
Almost  suddenly,  at  the  last,  we  found  ourselves  on  a  level 
with  their  tops,  and  stepped  on  to  a  broad  crest,  running 


PANORAMA   FROM   THE  SUMMIT.  367 

east  and  west.    We  turned  to  the  left,  and  faced  the 
wind,  for  a  final  struggle.     The  ridge  was  easy,  and,  led 
by  the  porters,  we  marched  along  it  in  procession,  with 
our  hands  in  our  pockets,  and  our  ice-axes  under  our 
arms,  until  it  culminated  in  a  bare  patch  of  rock  sur- 
rounded by  snow.      This   summit    was   at  one  end  of 
a  horseshoe  ridge,  crowned  by  three  distinct  eminences, 
and  enclosing  a  snowy  plateau,  which,  even  to  our  unlearned 
eyes,  irresistibly  suggested  an  old  crater.    The  rocks  which 
we  picked  up,  and  carried  down  with  us,  are  of  a  volcanic 
character.    We  walked,  or  rather  ran,  round  the  ridge 
to  its  extremity,   crossing  two  considerable  depressions, 
and  visiting  all  three  tops ;  under  the  farthest,  a  tower 
of  rock,  we  found  shelter  and  a  quite  endurable  tem- 
perature.     There  we    sat  down,   to  examine,   as   far  as 
possible,  into  the  details  of  the  vast  panorama.     The  two 
natives  pointed  out  the  various  valleys,  while  we  en- 
deavoured to  recognise  the  mountains.    Light  clouds  were 
driving  against  the  western  face  of  the  peak,  and  a  sea  of 
mist  hid  the  northern  steppe — otherwise  the  view  was 
clear.    Beginning  in  the  east,  the  feature  of  the  panorama 
was  the  central  chain  between  ourselves  and  Kazbek.     I 
never  saw  any  group  of  mountains  which  bore  so  well  being 
looked  down  upon  as  the  great  peaks  that  stand  over  the 
sources    of  the  Tcherek  and   Tchegem.     The  Pennines 
from  Mont  Blanc  look  puny  in  comparison  with  Kosch- 
tantau  and  his  neighbours  from  Elbruz.     The  Caucasian 
groups  are  finer,  and  the  peaks  sharper,  and  there  was  a 
suggestion  of  unseen  depth  in  the  trenches  separating 
them,  that  I  never  noticed  so  forcibly  in  any  Alpine  view. 
Turning  southwards,  the   double-toothed  XJschba  still 
asserted  himself,  although  at  last  distinctly  beneath  us ; 
the  greater  part  of  the  summits  and  snowfields  of  the 
chain  between  us  and  Suanetia  lay,  as  on  a  relieved  map. 


368  ASCENT   OF   ELBRL'Z. 

at  OUT  feet,  and  we  could  see  beyond  them  the  snowy- 
crested  Leila,  and  in  the  far  distance  the  blue  ranges  of 
the  Turkish  frontier,  between  Batoiiin  and  Achaltzich. 
Shifting  again  our  position,  we  looked  over  the  shoulders 
of  a  bold  rock-peak,  the  loftiest  to  the  west  of  Elbruz,  and 
endeavoured  to  make  out  the  Black  Sea.  Whether  the  level 
grey  surface  which  met  our  eyes  was  water,  or  a  filmy  mist 
hanging  over  its  surface,  it  was  impossible  to  distinguish. 
The  mists,  beating  below  on  the  slope  of  the  mountain^ 
hid  the  sources  of  the  Kuban,  but  we  looked  immediately 
down  upon  those  of  the  Malka.  On  this  side  the  slope 
of  the  mountain  seemed  to  be  uniform  for  nearly  10,000 
feet;  and  although  there  is  nothing  in  its  steepness  to 
render  an  ascent  impossible,  the  climb  would  be  very  long 
and  toilsome. 

We  were  not  hungry,  and,  if  we  had  wished  to  drink 
anyone's  health,  we  had  nothing  to  drink  it  in ;  so  we  gave 
vent  to  our  feelings,  and  surprised  the  porters,  vrith  *  Three 
times  three,  and  one  more  ! '  in  honour  of  the  old  mountain, 
which,  by  the  help  of  vrind  and  cold,  had  made  so  good  a 
fight  against  us.  We  then  hurried  back  to  the  first 
summit,  on  which,  as  it  seemed  somewhat  the  highest, 
Pran9ois  had  already  set  himself  to  work,  to  erect  a  small 
stone-man. 

At  this  period,  some  one  remembered  that  we  had  for- 
gotten aU  about  the  rarity  of  the  air ;  we  tried  to  observe 
it,  but  failed,  and  I  think  the  fact  that,  at  a  height  of 
18,500  feet,  no  single  man,  out  of  a  party  of  six,  was  in 
any  way  affected,  helps  to  prove  that  mountain-sickness  is 
not  a  necessary  evil,  and  that  it  only  affects  those  who  are 
in  bad  training,  or  out  of  sorts,  at  the  time.  Such  is  my 
experience,  so  far  as  it  goes,  having  only  twice  suffered 
from  it — once  in  an  attempt  on  the  Dent  Blanche,  on 
the   first  day   of  a   Swiss   tour,    and    again  on   Ararat, 


RAPID   DESCENT.  369 

when  quite  out  of  condition.  We  reached  the  top  of 
Elbruz  at  10.40,  and  left  a  few  minutes  after  11  a.m.  We 
had  some  difficulty  in  reconciling  the  appearance  of  the 
top  of  the  mountain,  when  seen  from  a  distance,  either  on 
the  north  or  south,  with  its  actual  shape.  Prom  Poti,  or 
Patigorsk,  Elbruz  appears  to  culminate  in  two  peaks  of 
apparently  equal  height,  separated  by  a  considerable 
hollow.  The  gaps  between  the  summits  we  visited  are 
not  more  than  150  feet  deep,  and  we  were  surprised  at 
their  being  so  conspicuous  fix)m  a  distance.  In  walking 
round  the  horseshoe  ridge,  we  naturally  looked  out  to  see 
if  there  was  not  some  other  summit,  but  none  was  visible ; 
and  on  the  west  (where,  if  anywhere,  it  should  have  been 
found),  the  slopes  appeared  to  break  down  abruptly  towards 
the  Karatchai,  and  there  were  no  clouds  dense  enough  to 
have  concealed  any  eminence  nearly  equalling  in  height 
that  upon  which  we  stood. 

The  ascent  from  our  bivouac— one  of  6,500  feet,  or 
800  feet  more  than  Mont  Blanc  troia  the  Grands  Mulcts — 
had  occupied  7^  hours,  with  very  few  halts ;  the  return 
was  accomplished  in  four  hours,  and  might  have  been  done 
much  faster.  The  rocks  were  so  easy,  that  bat  for  the 
trouble  of  coiling  up,  and  then  again  getting  out  the  rope, 
we  should  have  hurried  down  without  it.  Some  little 
care  was  necessary,  on  the  part  of  those  in  the  rear,  to 
avoid  dislodging  loose  stones,  and  Moore  got  a  nasty  blow 
on  his  finger  from  one,  the  effects  of  which  lasted  for 
many  weeks.  At  about  one  o'clock  we  sat  down  on  the 
spot  where  we  had  held  our  debate  in  the  morning,  and 
made  the  first  regular  meal  of  the  day.  We  now,  too, 
broke  the  icicles  off  our  beards,  which  had  been  thus 
fringed  since  3  a.m.  We  observed  from  hence  that 
the  eastern  glacier  of  Elbruz  flows  from  the  same  n^v6 
as  the  ice-streams  that  descend  to  the  sources  of  the 

B  B 


870  ASCECT  OP   ELBRUZ. 

Baksan,  and  that  there  was  no  apparent  difficulty  in 
following  it  into  the  head  of  the  glen  from  which  we  had 
originally  proposed  to  attack  the  mountain.  The  snow 
was  still  in  good  order,  owing  to  the  extreme  cold,  and  we 
slid  quickly  down — the  two  natives,  though  declining  to 
be  attached  to  our  rope,  gladly  accepting  the  suggestion 
that  they  should  hold  it  in  their  hands.  When  ascending 
in  our  tracks,  they  had  seen  the  hole  made  by  my  dis- 
appearance in  the  crevasse,  and  the  lesson  was  not  lost 
upon  them.    . 

A  cloud  which  had  formed  in  the  valley  now  swept 
up,  and  enveloped  us  for  half-an-hour,  but  we  found 
no  difficulty  in  steering  our  way  through  the  layer  of  mist 
into  bright  sunshine.  We  arrived  at  the  bivouac  to  find 
that  Paul  had  already  left  with  the  baggage,  and 
we  soon  followed,  leisurely  descending  the  steep  slopes 
beside  the  icefall.  The  stream,  which  yesterday  burst 
from  the  foot  of  the  glacier,  had  changed  its  source,  and 
to-day  spurted  in  a  jet  from  the  top  of  a  bank  of  ice. 
The  heat  of  the  afternoon  had  swollen  its  waters,  and  we 
found  some  difficulty  in  crossing  them.  The  two  natives 
had  arrived  before  us,  and  told  their  story  to  their  com- 
panions and  the  shepherds,  who,  having  made  up  their 
minds  that  we  should  never  be  seen  again,  were  surprised 
and  seemingly  pleased  to  welcome  us,  not  only  safe  but 
successful  On  our  appearance  in  camp  we  had  to  submit 
to  the  congratulations  of  the  country,  offered  in  their 
usual  form  of  hugging  and  kissing. 

August  let. — ^We  were  too  stiff,  after  our  long  exposure 
to  cold,  to  rest  very  easily,  and  were  ready  to  start  on  our 
return  to  Uruspieh  at  an  early  hour.  Our  men,  however,  had 
other  plans,  and  we  found  that  they  meant  to  kill  and  eat  a 
sheep  before  leaving.  Wishing  to  take  our  time  on  the 
road,  we  left  them  to  follow;  but  I  no  sooner  attempted  to 


RECEPTION   AT   URUSPIEH.  371 

walk  than  one  of  my  ankles  became  painful,  as  if  it  had 
been  badly  sprained,  and  I  was  therefore  obliged  to  stop, 
and  mount  one  of  the  horses  we  had  brought  up  from  the 
village.  The  pain  and  stiffness,  no  doubt  resulting  from 
the  cold,  gradually  wore  oflf,  and  I  was  glad  to  dismount 
halfway.  The  train  of  porters  overtook  us  about  an 
hour  out  of  XJruspieh,  and  we  walked  in  together.  I 
never  saw  better  walkers  than  these  Tartars,  not  only  on 
a  hillside,  but — what  is  even  more  remarkable  amongst 
mountaineers — ^upon  fiat  ground.  They  gave  us  a  start, 
and  caught  us  up  easily  in  the  ascent  of  Elbruz,  and  now, 
when  Tucker,  wishing  to  try  their  mettle,  put  on  a  spurt 
across  the  meadow,  they  walked  with  apparent  ease  at  a 
pace  of  five  miles  an  hour,  and  soon  caused  our  friend  to 
repent  the  trial  of  speed  he  had  rashly  provoked.  These 
men  are  the  raw  material  out  of  which  Caucasian  guides 
will  have  to  be  made,  and,  if  the  great  language  difficulty 
could  be  overcome,  there  is  no  reason  why  they  should 
not,  with  a  little  practice  in  ice-craft,  become  firstrate 
companions  for  a  traveller  wanting  to  explore  the  glaciers 
of  this  part  of  the  chain. 

We  entered  XJruspieh,  and  reached  the  guest-house 
almost  unobserved;  but  we  had  not  been  there  niany 
minutes  before  our  native  companions  spread  the  news  of 
our  return,  and  a  crowd  of  excited  villagers  flocked  into  the 
room.  Several  minutes  passed  before  the  story  was  fiilly 
understood:  our  burnt  faces,  and  the  partially-blinded 
eyes  of  the  two  men  who  had  accompanied  us,  were 
visible  signs  that  we  had  in  truth  spent  many  hours  on  the 
snowfields,  and  the  circumstantial  account  and  description 
of  the  summit  given  by  the  porters  seemed  to  create 
a  general  belief  in  the  reality  of  the  ascent.  The  scene 
was  most  entertaining.  The  whole  male  population  of 
the  place  crowded  round  us  to  shake  hands,  each  of  our 

B  b2 


^L-i»*»^- 


372  ASCZ^T  OF  ELBRUZ. 

companions  found  himself  a  centre  of  attraction,  and  the 
air  rang  with  ^  Allah  '-seasoned  phrases  of  exclamation  and 
astonishment,  mingled,  as  each  newcomer  entered,  and 
required  to  hear  the  tale  afresh,  with  constant  reiterations 
of  *  Minghi'Tau ! ' — a  Cimiliar  name,  which  sounds  far  more 
grateful  to  mj  ear  than  the  heavj-syllabled  Elbruz. 

We  underwent  a  crossfire  of  questionings  as  to  what  we 
had  found  on  the  top,  and  had  sorrowfully  to  confess  that  we 
had  seen  nothing  of  the  gigantic  cock  who  lives  up  aloft,  and 
is  said  to  salute  the  sunrise  by  crowing  and  flapping  his 
wings,  and  to  prevent  the  approach  of  men  to  the  treasiure 
he  is  set  to  guard,  by  attacking  intruders  with  his  beak 
and  talons*  We  could  not  even  pretend  to  have  had  an 
interview  with  the  g^nts  and  genii  believed  to  dwell  in  the 
clefts  and  caverns  of  Elbruz,  concerning  one  of  whom 
Haxthausen  relates  the  following  legend : — *  An  Abkhasian 
once  went  down  into  the  deepest  cavern  of  the  mountain, 
where  he  found  a  powerful  giant,  who  said  to  him,  "  Child 
of  man  of  the  upper  world,  who  hast  dared  to  come  down 
here,  tell  me  how  the  race  of  man  lives  in  the  world  above  ? 
Is  woman  still  true  to  man  9  Is  the  daughter  still  obedient 
to  the  mother  ?  "  The  Abkhasian  answered  in  the  affirma- 
tive, whereat  the  giant  gnashed  his  teeth,  groaned,  and 
said,  "  Then  must  I  still  live  on  here  with  sighs  and  lamen- 
tation!'*' The  giant  lost  an  opportunity  when  I  was  in  the 
crevasse ;  for  had  he  then  put  the  same  questions  to  me,  an 
old  *  Saturday  Review  *  might  have  been  found  in  my 
pocket,  the  perusal  of  a  famous  article  in  which  would 
have  clearly  justified  him  in  considering  his  period  of 
punishment  at  an  end. 

The  princes,  of  course,  came  to  talk  the  expedition  over 
with  us,  and  seemed  much  struck  by  what  they  heard  of 
the  use  we  had  made  of  our  mountaineering  gear,  of  which 
they  had    before    scarcely  comprehended    the    purpose. 


■.J3 


AN  IDLE   DAY.  373 

Hamzet^s  enthusiasm  was  boundless ;  he  strolled  in  and 
out  perpetually,  repeating  each  time  the  magic  word 
^  Minghi-Tau ! ' — till  at  last  he  achieved  an  astonishing 
linguistic  feat,  and  showed  at  the  same  time  a  surprising 
acquaintance  with  the  manners  of  Western  Europe,  by  con- 
fidentially suggesting,  *  Minghi-Tau, — London*  champagne 
fruhstuck,  karasho.'  He  had  evidently  not  been  in  the 
Russian  service  for  nothing. 

We  went  to  bed  with  a  weight  off  our  minds,  feeling 
that,  come  now  what  might,  the  three  great  objects  of  our 
journey — the  ascents  of  Eazbek  and  Elbruz,  and  the 
establishment  of  a  high-level  route  between  them — were 
fully  accomplished.  Conscious  virtue  now  proposed  to 
reward  itself,  and  after  a  month  of  hard  work,  poor  living, 
and  no  accommodation,  attended  at  times  by  considerable 
anxiety  as  to  the  successful  issue  of  our  projects,  we  looked 
forward  with  pleasure  to  a  period  of  enjoyment  of  the 
luxuries  of  civilisation  at  Patigorsk,  the  watering-place  of 
the  Northern  Caucasus. 

Aiyvst  2nd. — ^We  had  naturally  imagined  that,  with  the 
friendly  aid  of  the  princes  at  our  back,  we  should  have  no 
difficuliy  in  procuring  horses  to  ride  down  the  two  days* 
journey  to  Patigorsk.  Such,  however,  was  not  the  case ; 
the  old  leaven  of  covetousness,  which  seems  inherent  in  the 
Caucasian  mountaineer,  again  came  to  the .  surface ;  the 
price  asked  was  absurd,  and  the  arrangements  were  further 
complicated  by  the  necessiiy  of  making  a  bargain  with 
two  or  three  men,  owing  to  no  single  peasant  having  suffi- 
cient horses  for  our  whole  party.  The  princes  possessed 
influence,  though  no  authority,  and  by  their  aid  an  arrange- 
ment was  finally  concluded.  We  were  asked  by  several 
of  the  wealthier  villagers,  and  received  a  formal  application 
from  one  of  the  princes'  servants,  to  know  if  we  had  any  gold 
or  silver  pieces  with  us,  that  we  would  exchange  for  Russian 


374  FROM   PAKI  TO   PATIGOBSK. 

paper.  In  tliis  cotmtry  eyery  man  is  his  own  banker,  and 
either  carries  his  balance  on  his  person,  melted  into  the 
form  of  gold  ornaments  for  his  belt  or  dagger-sheath,  or 
else  hangs  it  in  a  row  of  gold  coins  on  his  wife's  forehead. 
The  day  was  superb,  but  we  were  too  lazy  to  go  up  a  hill, 
even  for  the  sake  of  seeing  Elbruz. 

August  3rd. — Our  start  was  to  hare  been  early,  but,  as 
usual,  delay  arose  fix)m  various  causes.  We  were  anxious 
to  acknowledge  the  hospitality  shown  to  us,  but  the  means 
at  onr  disposal  were  limited ;  at  last  we  determined  to 
quiet  our  consciences,  when  our  hosts  came  to  see  ns  off, 
by  presenting  a  compressible  drinking-cup  to  Ismail,  the 
eldest  brother.  We  were  on  the  point  of  departure,  when 
the  princess,  his  sister,  sent  down  a  servant  with  a  special 
request  (translated  to  ns  apologetically  by  Paul),  that  we 
would  leave  behind  for  her  use  an  article  of  toilet,  one  of 
the  very  few  we  possessed,  which  she  had  seen  and 
admired.  The  princess's  wish  was  of  course  gratified,  and 
the  object  on  which  she  had  set  her  affections — a  large 
bath-sponge — was  yielded  up  to  her. 

Two  of  the  princes  presented  us  with  their  cartes-de- 
visite,  taken  at  Fatigorsk,  and  accepted  ours  in  return ; 
then,  after  exchanging  hearty  farewells,  we  left  Uruspieh 
behind  us,  and  took  the  road  leading  down  the  valley. 
Our  course  lay  along  the  banks  of  the  Baksan  for  the  whole 
day,  during  which  (between  8.30  a.m.  and  9.30  p.m.)  we 
accomplished  a  distance  of  fifty  miles — a  good  ride,  on 
native  saddles,  for  men  who  had  not  been  on  horseback 
for  weeks ;  but  the  excellence  of  the  road  aided  us  much 
in  getting  through  the  day's  work.  The  valley  of  the 
Baksan,  as  yet  the  most  visited  in  the  Caucasus,  is  also 
the  dullest,  and  its  scenery  cannot,  by  any  stretch  of  cour- 
tesy, be  called  either  grand  or  beautiful.  For  some  dis- 
tance   below  Uruspieh,  the  valley  preserves   the  same 


THE   BAKSAN  VALLEY.  375 

general  character  and  direction ;  the  riversides  are  culti- 
vated, and  farmhonses  are  seen  every  half-hour ;  the 
lower  slopes  of  the  mountains  are  scantilj'  wooded  with 
firs.  A  narrow  gorge,  from  the  upper  end  of  which  the 
traveller  obtains  his  last  and  finest  view  of  Tungzorun, 
leads  into  a  wide  green  basin,  hemmed  in  on  the  north  by 
clifPs,  the  tawny  hue  and  bold  outlines  of  which  reminded 
us  of  pictures  of  Sinaitic  scenery.  The  landscape  was  for  a 
time  perfectly  bare.  On  the  right,  in  recesses  of  the  hills, 
we  passed  two  villages,  from  one  of  which  a  low  pass  leads 
over  into  the  valley  of  the  Tchegem,  the  next  tributary 
of  the  Terek  on  the  east.  The  path  then  enters  a  second 
defile,  longer  and  more  picturesque  than  the  first,  and 
rendered  pleasing  to  the  eye  by  abundant  vegetation, 
which  suddenly  succeeda  to  the  utter  bareness  of  the  glen' 
above.  We  thought  a  hamlet  at  its  lower  extremity 
would  be  our  journey's  end,  but  found  there  was  stiU  a 
ride  of  some  hours  before  us. 

After  crossing  the  river  twice,  by  new  and  solidly-built 
bridges,  the  track  leads  across  a  wide  grassy  plain,  sur- 
rounded by  ridges  which  no  longer  deserve  the  name  of 
mountains.  Copious  springs  of  the  clearest  water  burst  out 
of  the  ground,  and  nourished  a  tall  and  rank  herbage,  the 
home  of  myriads  of  insects,  which  persecuted  most  cruelly 
both  our  horses  and  ourselves.  A  perfect  plague  of  horse- 
flies swarmed  around  us,  and  the  backs  of  our  coats  were  so 
thickly  covered  with  the  insects  that  the  cloth  was  scarcely 
visible.  At  the  lower  end  of  this  plain  a  considerable  tribu- 
tary joins  the  Baksan,  on  the  left,  and  close  to  the  junction 
stands  a  group  of  old  tombs,  concerning  which  the  natives 
tell  numerous  legends.  After  wading  the  tributary,  we  had 
still  a  long  stretch  of  comland  to  traverse,  before  reaching 
Ataschkutan.  As  night  came  on,  and  the  moon  rose,  the 
coolness,  and  relief  from  our  insect  tormentors,  were  very 


376  FROM   PARI  TO   PATIGORSK, 

pleasant.  At  last  lights  appeared,  and  we  rode  along 
the  outskirts  of  a  large  and  scattered  village,  composed  of 
low  houses,  each  standing  apart  from  its  neighbour,  and 
surrounded  by  its  own  garden. 

We  had  now  entered  the  country  of  the  Tcherkesses,  the 
most  famous  tribe  of  the  Caucasus,  from  whom  the  whole 
mountainous  region  between  the  Black  and  Caspian  Seas  is 
often  yaguely,  and  very  incorrectly,  called  Circassia.  We 
were  to  lodge  at  the  prince's  house,  situated  at  the  farther 
end  of  the  village,  within  an  enclosure  surrounded  by  bams 
and  outbuildings.  ,The  interior  bore  witness  to  Russian 
influence.  For  the  first  time  dince  leaving  Kobi,  we  found 
chairs  and  tables,  knives  and  forks,  and  other  luxuries  of 
Western  life ;  indeed,  the  room  we  slept  in  would  have 
been  perfectly  European  in  its  appearance,  but  for  the 
illuminated  texts  of  the  Koran  hung  up  against  the  walls. 
The  prince  was  a  good-looking  youth,  of  apparently  less 
than  average  intelligence ;  in  our  case,  at  least,  he  meddled 
only  to  muddle.  Our  horsemen,'  dissatisfied  with  the  bar- 
gain the  TJruspieh  princes  had  led  them  into,  struck  for 
higher  pay,  which  we  refused  to  give,  trusting,. somewhat 
rashly,  to  find  others  without  difficulty.  In  the  morning 
the  prince  seemed  unable  to  give  us  any  help,  and  declared 
there  were  no  horses  unemployed,  an  assertion  which  was 
hardly  uttered  when  we  saw  a  drove  of  at  least  two 
hundred  on  the  opposite  bank  of  the  river. 

A  peasant  having  offered  to  provide  a  bullock-cart  and 
one  horse  to  take  us  to  Zonitzki,  the  nearest  post-station, 
forty  versts  off,  we  accepted  his  offer  as  the  simplest  means 
of  escape  fix>m  our  difficulty,  and  set  out  in  this  novel 
style.  The  road  led  for  many  miles  over  rolling  hills, 
which,  but  for  the  luxuriant  herbage  with  which  they  were 
covered,  might  have  been  taken  for  part  of  the  South 
Downs  of  Sussex,  the  level  steppe  in  front  looking  from  a 


FRANfOIS   IN   DIFFICULTY.  377 

distance  not  unlike  the  sea.  To  the  south  we  had  occasional 
glimpses,  through  the  clouds,  of  the  snowy  chain  we  were 
leaving.  Our  progress  was  delayed  by  the  breakdown  of 
the  cart,  which  its  owner  happily  succeeded  in  exchanging 
for  another  we  found  on  the  road.  Now  up  and  now  down, 
we  traversed  for  hours  the  same  description  of  country, 
passing  between  meadows  of  gigantic  weeds,  amongst 
which  the  wild  sunflower  had  the  pre-eminence.  Lunch 
took  place,  under  the  shadow  of  the  cart,  beside  a  muddy 
brook,  the  only  water  we  saw  for  miles.  Our  progress 
throughout  the  day  was  of  the  slowest  description ;  one  of 
us  rode  the  horse  in  turn ;  the  others  either  walked  or  took 
lifts  in  the  bullock-cart,  which  creaked  slowly  along  at 
about  two  miles  an  hour.  We  had  one  good  laugh  to 
relieve  the  dulness  of  the  ride.  Fran9ois,  whose  notions 
of  horsemanship  are  practical  but  not  scientific,  was  about 
to  mount  the  horse,  when  he  felt  that  the  stirrup  was 
weak.  He  met  the  difficulty  without  hesitating  for  a 
moment,  by  going  round  to  the  other  side  and  mounting 
with  the  left  leg  foremost,  consequently  with  his  face 
to  the  tail.  This  result,  however,  had  been  foreseen,  and, 
with  a  dexterity  for  which  we  were  imprepa^d,  the  rider 
wriggled  himself  round  in  the  saddle,  quite  unconscious  of 
the  amusement  his  proceedings  had  afforded  to  the  party  in 
the  cart. 

As  we  drew  near  the  river  Malka  the  hills  sank,  and  the 
country  became  well  cultivated,  the  grain  principally 
grown  beiag  a  kind  of  spelt.  The  view  was  very  striking 
from  the  brow  above  the  slight  descent  to  the  ford. 
On  the  river-bank  was  a  large  Tcherkess  village,  and 
before  us  a  vast  plain — golden  in  parts  with  uncut  corn, 
dotted  in  others  vnth  the  small  ricks  into  which  the 
peasants  first  heap  it — ^stretched  to  the  horizon.  A  group  of 
bold  hiUs  rose  like  islands  in  the  distance,  in  the  loftiest 


378  FHOM   PARI  TO   PATIGOKSK. 

of  which  we  at  once  recognised  Beschtau  (4,694  feet), 
an  isolated  summit  rendered  famous  by  several  of  the 
early  travellers  in  this  country,  and  not  far  distant  from 
our  goal — Patigorsk.  Only  ten  versts  now  intervened 
between  us  and  Zonitzki,  the  green-cupola'd  church  of 
which  marked  its  position  long  before  we  reached  it.  There 
was  no  difficulty  in  obtaining  ^  troikas/  though  there  was 
no  regular  posthouse,  and  the  fdnctions  of  head  of  the  post 
were  exercised  by  the  village  schoolmaster.  Excited  at  our 
gradual  return  to  civilisation,  and  at  the  discovery  of  a  shop, 
we  rashly  ordered  a  bottle  of  wine,  but  failed  in  the  attempt 
to  swallow  the  vinegar  which  bore  the  name.  While  our 
carts  (the  too  well-remembered  *  paraclodnaia ')  were  being 
prepared,  we  sat  in  a  farmyard,  where  we  were  entertained 
with  tea  and  bread  by  a  funny  old  Bussian  woman,  whose 
life  seemed  troubled  by  her  pigs — lean  and  hungry  beasts, 
that  gathered  round  us  in  a  circle,  waiting  to  pick  up  the 
crumbs  of  our  repast. 

The  red  and  purple  tints  of  a  gorgeous  sunset  were 
slowly  fading  away,  and  the  symmetrical  form]  of  Besch- 
tau stood  out,  as  a  dark  mass  against  the  lustrous  sky,  as 
we  left  Zonitzki.  Before  the  light  was  too  far  gone,  we 
caught  sight  of  Elbruz  looming  indistinctly,  like  a  huge 
pale  shadow,  on  the  southern  horizon.  As  the  twilight 
grew  deeper  the  moon  rose,  and  lighted  us  on  our  way 
across  the  grassy  steppe.  In  spite  of  the  jolting,  we  dozed  for 
three  hours  at  the  bottom  of  the  cart,  and  were  only  aroused 
by  finding  ourselves  in  the  broad  street  of  a  village  we  at 
first  thought  to  be  Patigorsk;  it  was,  however,  only  its 
suburb,  the  Cossack  'stanitza'  of  Groriatchevodsk.  No 
bridge  crosses  the  stony  bed  of  the  Podkumok,  a  tributary 
of  the  Kuma,  one  of  those  streams  which  contradict  the 
poet's  assertion,  that 

Even  the  weariest  river 
Winds  somewhere  safe  to  sea, 


■  f  I...  .  ~»^- 


7  ;i 


THE  CAUCASIAN  CAPUA.  379 

by  perishing  miserably  in  the  vast  steppe  which  stretches 
inland  from  the  north-western  shores  of  the  Caspian.  We 
drove  slowly  through  the  ford,  gazing  with  wondering 
eyes  at  what  looked  to  us,  unused  to  any  building  larger 
than  a  Tartar  *  aoul,'  the  temples  and  palaces  covering  the 
opposite  hillside.  Our  driver,  lashing  his  horses  into  a 
final  spurt,  galloped  up  a  street  lined  with  two-storied 
European  houses,  past  dozens  of  shop-signs,  and  then  round 
a  sharp  comer,  where  the  blue  domes  of  the  cathedral, 
surmounted  by  chain-hung  crosses  of  gold,  glistened  in 
the  moonlight.  To  our  astonishment  the  horses  turned 
into  the  courtyard  of  a  massive  building  with  an  Ionic 
portico,  and  we  found  that  this  palatial  pile  was  the  hotel. 
Never  probably  before  this  night  had  such  a  queer-looking 
crew  demanded  admission  of  Mademoiselle  Caruta,  the 
daughter  of  the  worthy  Italian  who  owns  the  establishment. 
With  a  discrimination  which  did  her  great  credit,  she  recog- 
nised at  once  our  true  character,  showed  us  rooms,  and  sug- 
gested, in  Circean  tones,  that  we  should  probably  like  some 
supper.  It  was  11  p.m.,  and  we  had  thought  that  our  travel- 
worn  garments  would  not  be  exposed  to  public  gaze  till  the 
next  morning,  when  we  might  in  some  degree  have  furbished 
them  up.  To  our  surprise  the  restaurant  was  crowded  with 
Bussian  officers  in  full  uniform  (when  are  they  not? )  and, 
worse  still,  ladies  in  evening  costumes.  Dazzled  by  the 
blaze  of  candles  and  looking-glasses,  and  puzzled  by  the 
profusion  of  good  things  suddenly  placed  at  our  disposal, 
we  retired  hastily  to  the  nearest  table,  and  having  ordered 
our  food,  tried  to  look  as  if  we  were  not  conscious  of  being 
dusty,  travel-stained,  and  about  the  colour  of  Bed  Indians. 
The  contrast,  characteristic  of  Russia,  between  an  excess 
of  luxury  and  a  lack  of  the  commonest  articles  of  civilisation, 
is  seen  in  its  most  exaggerated  form  in  the  Caucasian  pro- 
vinces. As  we  sat  surrounded  by  all  the  luxuries  of  civilisa- 


380  FBOM   PARI  TO   PATIGORSK. 

tion,  and  supplied,  by  assiduous  waiters,  with  delicately- 
cooked  dishes  and  brimming  glasses,  from  which  the  cham- 
pagne flowed  gratefully  down  our  throats,  the  adventures  of 
the  past  four  weeks  seemed  to  us  as  a  tale  that  is  told, 
and  we  could  scarcely  believe  how  short  a  time  before  high 
sheep's  brains  had  been  regarded  as  a  delicacy,  and  a  pair  of 
shooting-boots  and  a  revolver  as  a  luxurious  pillow. 


EEiT-r 


HISTORY   OF   FATIGORSK.  38l 


CHAPTER  Xn. 

PATiaOBSK   AND   THE   TOHEEBK  VALLEY. 

The  Cancasisn  Spas — Their  History  and  Development — View  from 
Machoacha — ^The  Patients — ^Essentaky — ^Kislovodsk — The  Narzan — 
Hospitable  Keception — A  Fresh  Start— A  Bussian  Farmhouse — By  the 
Waters  of  Baksan — ^Naltschik — ^The  Tcherek — Oamp  in  the  Forest — ^A 
Tremendous  Goige— Balkar — ^A  Hospitable  Sheikh — ^The  Mollah — Gloomy 
Weather — A  Solemn  Parting — Granitic  Cliffs — Karaoul — A  Mountain 
Panorama — Sources  of  the  Tcherek — The  Stuleveesk  Pass — Koschtantau 
and  Dychtau — A  Noble  Peak — Our  Last  Camp. 

August  Mh  to  9th. — We  spent  five  days  very  pleasantly 
in  resting  fix>ni  our  fatigues,  and  enjoying  the  good  things 
brought  within  our  reach  in  the  Caucasian  Capua,  of 
which  I  must  now  give  some  account.  The  history  of  the 
mineral  waters  to  which  Patigorsk  owes  its  existence  is 
curious,  as  illustrating  the  state  of  the  country  during  the 
last  century,  and  the  gradual  steps  by  which  the  Bussian 
conquests  have  been  extended  and  consolidated.  In  1717 
the  court-physician  of  Peter  the  Great  reported  on  the 
rumoured  existence  of  mineral  springs  in  the  country  of 
the  Tcherkesses,  but  no  Eussian  could  then  visit  them.  In 
1780  the  fortress  of  Constantinogorsk  was  established, 
four  versts  from  the  present  site  of  Patigorsk,  to  check 
the  constant  raids  of  the  Tcherkesses. 

Klaproth  visited  the  sulphur-springs  in  1807,  and  gives 
a  vivid  and  amusing  description  of  the  troubled  lives  led  by 
the  poor  patients  at  that  time.  During  the  day  the  bathers 
sojourned   in  huts   built   round  the  source,   which    was 


382  PATIGOBSK. 

conducted  into  a  clumsily-hewn  basin,  capable  of  containing 
six  persons  at  a  time.  At  night  thej  returned  to  the 
adjacent  fortress,  under  the  escort  of  a  strong  armed  force  ; 
for  the  country  was  still  kept  in  alarm  by  continual  raids 
of  the  Tcherkesses,  who  found  the  trade  of  catching  and 
obtaining  ransoms  for  prisoners  as  lucratiye  as  the  Nea- 
politan brigands  do  at  the  present  day.  As  the  historian 
of  the  waters  naively  remarks,  it  is  easy  to  imagine  that, 
perfect  repose  of  mind  being  an  essential  part  of  the  cure, 
the  patients  did  not  benefit  by  it  as  much  as  they  might 
have  done  under  more  favourable  circumstances.  Still, 
despite  all  hindrances,  the  popularity  of  the  springs  in- 
creased, and  so  early  as  1811,  two  hundred  Bussian 
families  were  drawn  together  to  the  spot. 

In  1812,  an  employ^  at  Constantinogorsk  built  the  two 
first  houses  on  the  site  where  Patigorsk  now  stands.  In 
1«29  the  transfer  of  the  official  portion  of  the  population 
of  Georgievsk  to  Stavropol  gave  a  new  impulse  to  the 
growth  of  Patigorsk,  which  received  many  of  the  former 
inhabitants  of  Georgievsk,  a  town  in  an  unhealthy  situar 
tion,  only  occupied  on  account  of  its  supposed  strategic  im- 
portance. In  1819  the  first  regular  bath-house  was  erected. 
Between  this  date  and  1830,  the  town  as  it  now  stands 
was  created — partly  by  imperial  ukases  and  grants,  partly 
by  the  favour  and  influence  of  successive  governors  of 
the  province.  It  was  during  this  period  that  the  hotel, 
the  public  gardens,  the  bath-buildings,  and  the  roads  in 
the  neighbourhood,  were  for  the  most  part  constructed. 
In  1837  the  Emperor  Nicholas  visited  the  Caucasus, 
and  made  an  annual  grant  of  8,000  roubles  for  the  main- 
tenance and  improvement  of  the  bathing  establishment. 

Patigorsk  is  the  centre  of  the  group  of  mineral  springs, 
and  the  point  on  which  the  Government  has  concen- 
trated   its    efforts   to   create   a   national    bathing-place, 


THE   CAUCASIAN   SPAS.  383 

worthy  to  rank  with  those  of  Western  Europe.  It  is  not, 
however,  the  only  spot  where  mineral  springs  have  been 
brought  within  the  reach  of  the  invalids ;  the '  Eaux  mine- 
rales  du  Caucase '  comprehend  three  other  gi-oups  of  sources 
— ^Gteleznovodsk,  ferruginous  springs  ;  Essentuky,  alkaline  ; 
and  Kislovodsk,  acidulated  carbonic.  Our  visit  to  the 
two  latter  I  shall  presently  have  occasion  to  describe. 
Geleznovodsk  we  did  not  see ;  it  lies  at  some  distance 
north  of  the  others,  and  nearer  the  base  of  Beschtau ;  on 
the  road  to  it,  the  colony  of  Karras,  once  inhabited  by 
Scotch  missionaries,  is  passed.  The  threatened  extinction 
of  the  original  stock  led  to  the  introduction  of  some 
German  Lutherans,  between  whom  and  the  Scotch  such 
internal  feuds  arose,  that  the  Government  withdrew  their 
support  from  the  mission.  In  1858  there  was  only  one 
living  representative  of  the  original  colonists,  named 
Galloway. 

Fatigorsk  itself  is  one  of  the  most  curious  phenomena 
of  the  Caucasus,  and  its  incongruities  were  perhaps  more 
apparent  to  us,  coming  upon  it,  as  we  did,  fresh  from 
the  mountains.  The  first  feature  about  the  place  that 
strikes  one  with  surprise  is,  that,  though  standing  far 
away  from  the  last  swells  of  the  great  range,  in  the  centre 
of  a  bare  and  featureless  plain,  it  yet  contrives  to  be 
pretty.  Its  attractions  are  due  to  its  position  on 
the  side  of  a  lofty  isolated  hill,  Machoucha  by  name, 
which  has  been  planted  of  late  years  with  wood.  The 
Fodkumok  flows  round  the  southern  base  of  the  hill,  on 
the  lower  slopes  of  which  the  town  is  built ;  the  hotel 
and  best  quarter  are  su£Sciently  high  to  command  from 
their  windows  a  noble  panorama  of  the  snowy  chain — 
from  Elbruz,  standing  out  like  a  sentinel  on  the  west,  to  the 
more  distant  summits  of  Dychtau  and  Koschtantau,  on  tbe 
east.     The  distance  to  Elbruz  is  about  the  same  as  that  of 


384  PATIGORSK, 

Mont  Blanc  from  Geneva ;  the  other  mountains  are  from 
twenty  to  forty  miles  further  away.  The  principal  bath- 
houses, and  the  gardens  which  surround  them,  are  situated 
in  a  sheltered  hollow  on  the  side  of  Machoucha.  A  long 
boulevard,  shaded  by  a  double  avenue  of  trees,  which  have 
already  reached  a  very  tolerable  size,  leads  up  to  the  bath- 
buildings  :  the  gardens  are  well  laid-out,  provided  with 
numerous  seats,  and  adorned  with  summer-houses,  and 
some  curious  statues  with  Greek  inscriptions  found  in  the 
country.  Nothing  can  exceed  the  cleanliness  and  comfort 
of  the  baths,  those  appropriated  to  the  ladies  being,  with 
a  thoughtful  consideration  for  the  weakness  of  the  sex, 
even  provided  with  large  looking-glasses.  On  one  side  of 
a  grotto,  just  behind  the  public  library  and  reading-room, 
stands  a  brazen  tablet,  on  which  is  recorded  the  expedition 
of  General  Emmanuel  to  the  foot  of  Elbruz  in  1829,  the 
attempt  and  failure  of  the  German  savants  to  reach  the 
top,  and  the  supposed  success  of  Killar  in  doing  so.  The 
story  is,  of  course,  written  in  Russian  characters ;  we  asked 
our  companion.  Dr.  Smirnov,  the  head-physician,  what  it 
meant,  and  his  reply  was,  ^  Bah  !  c'est  une  bfitise.'  Our 
own  reasons  for  doubting  Elbruz  having  found  its  Jacques 
Balmat  in  Killar,  I  have  entered  into  elsewhere.* 

The  ridge  which  forms  the  southern  boundary  of  the 
hollow  in  which  the  baths  are  situated  is  of  a  very  extraor- 
dinary character.  According  to  Dr.  Smirnov,  whose  theory 
was  certainly  confirmed  by  the  appearance  of  the  surface,  it 
has  been  entirely  formed  by  the  deposit  of  the  sulphur- 
springs  during  past  ages.  The  handsomest  building  connect- 
ed with  the  waters  is  the  Elizabeth  Gallery,  a  long  arcade, 
from  beneath  the  arches  of  which  a  fine  view  of  the  town 
and  the  plain  below  is  obtained.  A  zigzag  path,  shaded  by 
thick  oak  copses,  has  been  made  to  the  top  of  Machoucha 

*  See  Appendix  I. — ♦The  Elbruz  Expedition  in  1829.' 


VIEW   FROM  MACHOUCHA.  385 

(3,258  feet),  whither  we  climbed  one  cloudless  morning, 
and  enjoyed  a  perfect  view  of  the  great  chain,  from 
Kazbek,  the  crest  of  which  was  just  distinguishable  among 
the  slanting  rays  of  the  newly-risen  sun,  to  the  double- 
headed  Elbruz.  The  ugly  little  molehill,  called  the 
Yutskaia  Gora,  which  from  the  town  cuts  off  some  of  the 
lower  portion  of  the  mountain,  is  completely  sunk,  and 
the  whole  8,000  feet  of  ud broken  snowslope,  falling  towards 
the  valley  of  the  Malka,  exposed  to  view.  The  monarch  of 
Caucasian  and  European  mountains  brooks  no  rivalry; 
clothed  in  his  wide-spreading  ermine  mantle,  he  stands 
forth  a  burly  but  not  undignified  sovereign,  taller  by  the 
head  and  shoulders  than  any  of  his  neighbours.  The 
sharper  peaks  of  Dychtau  and  Koschtantau  are  so  distant 
that  none  but  a  trained  eye  is  likely  to  appreciate  their 
real  height  and  beauty,  and  few  who  had  not  known  them 
before  would  have  noticed  the  twin  summits  of  Uschba 
shooting  up,  keen  as  ever,  over  the  intervening  ranges.  On 
the  north,  Beschtau  was  of  course  conspicuous ;  elsewhere 
the  prospect  extended  over  a  boundless  steppe,  dotted  by 
isolated  mounds  like  the  '  tells '  of  the  Syrian  desert. 

A  carriagerroad  has  been  lately  completed  round  the 
base  of  Machoucha,  forming  a  pleasant  afternoon's  drive 
for  Patigorsk  society.  We  followed  it  as  far  as  the 
sulphur-spring,  called  by  Eussians  *The  Proval.'  It  is  a 
natural  grotto  of  the  form  of  an  inveiied  funnel,  at  the 
bottom  of  which  is  a  deep  well  of  sulphur-water.  A 
Moscow  merchant,  who  had  benefited  by  the  Patigorsk 
springs,  rendered  the  grotto  accessible,  bj'^  having  a  passage 
cut  to  it  through  the  hillside  at  his  own  expense.  Owing 
to  its  distance  from  the  town,  and  the  similarity  of  the 
water  to  others  nearer  at  hand,  it  is  now  little  used. 

The  hours  kept  by  the  patients  are  very  remarkable. 
They  dine  from  12  to  4  p.  m.,  and  sup  from  8  p.  m.  to  1  a.m.  • 

c  c 


386  PATIGORSIL 

but  despite,  or  rather  perhaps  lecause  of,  their  dissipated 
hours  tWlook  as  sick  and  miserable  a  collection  of  n  en 
L  I;  oft^n  sees.  Their  days  are  spent  in  drmkxng  the 
"aters  a^d  taking  baths,  or  dawdling  about  the  g^dens 

Iltag  cigarettes,  and  listening  te  the  strains  of  mdxtexy 
smoking  cig  ^^  ^  ^^^j  ^^j^^ ,  ^  tij^ 

music.    At  the  time  ui  «»"  „^™-^  +/»  he 

latest  musical  novelty  in  the  Caucasus,  aoid  seemed  to  be 
very  popnlar.  The  attrax^tions  of  the  town  axe  not  great ; 
7LIL,  besides  the  boulevard  aad  the  tUIbb  on  the 
;kide  above  it,  of  one  long^^g  ^^^,^Z 

rTel  Llintl  Z:  r  :-  -  the  un.dy 

fashion  common  in  Russia.  ,      .    .r,^  Ka^oar 

We  occupied  our  time  in  roaming  about  the  b^, 

and  laying  in  stores  for  another  week  in  the  mountains 
^d  o^onally  went  into  the  fruit-maxket  to  buy  one  of 
Z:  huge  water-melons  which  form  ihe  staple  article  of 
food  of  the  people  of  ihe  countey.    The  discovery  of  a 
photographer  afforded  us  sbme  amusement,  a*  ^^^  e^^r- 
SSr^iBt  ha^  been  as  fax  as  Uruspieh,  aad  had  teien 
Sroscopic  views  on  the  road,  many  of  which  we  were 
;td  to  purchase.      On  the  whole,  the  attxa,^oi«  of 
latigorsk!  to  a  parsing  ixaveller,  are  quickly  exha^st^ 
but  our  stay  wa«  rendered  exceptionally  plea«uit  by  the 
kindness  of  Dr.  Smimov,  the  resident  physician  m  chaxge 
^the  bathing  establishmente,  who  beaxs  Ihe^to  En^sh 
ears,  odd-soux^ding  title  of  civil-general.     On  our  eaOling 
This  house.  Dr.  Smimov  told  us  that  he  had  a^a^ 
heard  ftom  St.  Petersburg  of  our  probable  visit,  and  had 
emected  us  for  some  weeks. 

To  the  bathers  Patigorsk  is,  I  fear,  sometimes  slow,  aaid 
the  Government  will  scarcely  succeed  in  their  desire  to  at- 
tra^t  hither  any  large  portion  of  the  crowd  of  Russians  who 
annuaUy  Visit  the  German  Spaa,  until  it  possesses  not  only 


ESSBl^TUKY.  387 

railway  communication  with  Central  Russia,  but  also  the 
gambling-tables,  which  are  apparently  necessary,  as  a  men- 
tal fillip,  to  the  complete  success  of  all  water-cures.  The 
weather  during  our  stay  was  continuously  cloudless ;  night 
and  morning  the  serrated  array  of  the  Caucasus  invited  us 
to  return  into  its  recesses.  Patigorsk,  owing  to  its  position 
on  a  southern  slope,  is  decidedly  a.  hot  place ;  and  the 
constant  sunshine  drove  many  of  the  invalids  and  all  the 
visitors  to  Kislovodsk,  where  a  short  course  of  the  waters 
is  generally  prescribed  after  the  sulphur-springs  have  had 
their  effect.  Dr.  Smirnov  proposed  that  we  should  make  a 
day's  excursion  to  Kislovodsk,  a  suggestion  we  were  glad 
to  adopt,  more  especially  as  all  trouble  was  taken  off  our 
hands  by  the  kind  loan  of  the  doctor's  open  carriage. 
Moore  was,  unfortunately,  too  unwell  to  accompany  us ; 
but  Tucker  and  I  set  out,  at  5  a.m.  on  the  morning  of 
the  7th,  with  four  horses  harnessed  abreast,  in  the  usual 
Russian  Cushion* 

The  road  (I  speak  as  a  Russian]  is  simply  a  portion  of 
the  steppe  where  carriages  ordinarily  pass.  It  leads 
through  a  military  cantonment,  a  row  of  tidy  cottages 
surrounded  by  huge  sunflowers,  and  then  strikes  across 
the  plain  in  a  south-westerly  direction  towards  a  green 
oasis  already  visible  in  the  distance.  On  the  north  the 
symmetrical  form  of  Beschtau  is  more  than  usually  con- 
spicuous ;  its  loftiest  summit  is  surrounded  by  four  minor 
ones,  so  that,  from  every  point  of  view,  the  mountain  bears 
the  same  appearance^  and  may  be  compared  to  a  Russian 
church  with  its  four  small  cupolas  clustering  round  the 
central  dome.  In  the  opposite  direction,  the  snowy  heads 
of  Elbruz  are  constantly  in  sight,  over  the  lower  ridges 
that  bound  the  plain  on  the  south.  It  is  seventeen  versts 
from  Patigorsk  to  Essentuky,  formerly  a  frontier-post, 
then  a  Cossack  '  stanitza,'  and  now  a  bathing-place.    The 

o  c  S 


d*a  PATIGOESK. 

most  has  been  made  of  an  onpictnresqae  situation,  bj 
planting  the  ground  round  the  springs,  and  laving  out 
winding  walks  under  the  tre€^    The  morning  band  was 
plajing  at  the  time  of  our  ariiTal,  and  we  met  numerous 
patients  ramUing  about  the  park,  through  which  we  our- 
selTes  strolled.    The  character  of  the  landscape  changes, 
and  the  road  enters  a  shallow  yallej,  where  the  Podkomok 
flows  between  low  rounded  hills,  broken  here  and  there  bj 
projecting  masses  of  white  rock.    The  country  is  ooTered 
with  green  pasturage,  but  entirelj  bare  of  trees.     The 
ruins  of  old  fortifications,  still  visible  here  and  there  on 
the   flat  hilltops,  are  records  of  the  long  period  during 
which  this  was  debateable  ground  between  the  Cossack  and 
Tcherkess.     We  met  on  the  waj  the  omnibus  which,  for 
the  couTenience  of  patients,  performs  a  daily  joumej  be- 
tween EisIoTodsk  and  Patigorsk,  and  vice  versa.     The 
^  stanitza '  of  Kislovodsk,  with  its  green-domed  church,  is 
left  behind  on  the  right,  and  the  road,  quitting  the  valle j 
of  the  Podkumok,  crosses  a  low  hill,  and  soon  descends  to 
the  baths,  which  have  grown  up  round  the  most  &inous 
spring  of  the  Caucasus.     Kislovodsk  is  thirteen  versts 
beyond  Essentuky,  and  is  situated  in  a  narrow  glen  sur^ 
rounded  by  low  hills,  which  deprive  it  of  any  extended 
view ;  it  owes  its  only  claims  to  beauty  to  the  rich  vegeta- 
tion with  which  the  care  of  successive  governors,  aided 
by  the  natural  fertility  of  the  soil,  has  endowed  it.    A 
fine  avenue  of  poplars  leads  up  to  the  baths ;  the  wood 
beyond  consists  chiefly  of  acacias. 

We  were  driven  to  the  '  Hotel  de  la  Couronne,'  kept  by 
the  same  manager  as  the  hotel  at  Patigorsk,  where  we 
found  Dr.  Smimov,  who  proposed  that  we  should  at  once 
visit  the  baths.  The  building  which  now  covers  the 
famous  Narzan  is  in  a  style  very  far  in  advance  of  what 
one  would  expect  to  find  in  so  remote  a  position.     It 


KISLOVODSK.  389 

owes  much  to  the  care  of  the  late  Prince  WoronzoflF,  the 
general  benefactor  of  Southern  Russia,  whose  works  and 
name  are  equally  remembered  at  Tiflis,  Odessa,  and  in  the 
Crimea.  The  centre  of  the  entrance-hall  is  occupied  by  an 
hexagonal  basin  ten  feet  in  diameter,  in  approaching  which 
a  slight  fizzing  sound  reaches  the  ear.  This  proceeds  from 
the  great  spring,  which  bursts  out  of  the  ground  with 
astonishing  force,  and  is  dignified  by  the  Tcherkess  name 
of  the  Karzan,  or  *  Giant's  draught.*  The  whole  surface 
of  the  basin  is  in  a  constant  state  of  effervescence,  owing 
to  the  escape  of  the  carbonic  acid  gas,  and  its  appearance 
resembles  nothing  so  much  as  a  gigantic  goblet  of  very 
effervescent  seltzer-water.  A  long  arcade,  open  on  the 
south  to  the  sunshine,  offers  a  promenade  to  the  patients ; 
the  baths  occupy  portions  of  the  same  building,  and  there 
is  a  small  swimming-bath,  with  numerous  separate  ones,  in 
all  of  which  the  arrangements  are  of  the  best  description. 
We  took  advantage  of  Dr.  Smimov's  proposal  that  we 
should  test  the  effects  of  the  waters ;  he  warned  us  to  keep 
our  heads  Y^ell  above  the  surface,  a  precaution  necessary, 
from  the  quantity  of  carbonic  acid  evolved.  We  found  our 
dip  both  invigorating  and  appetising,  and  returned  quite 
prepared  to  do  justice  to  the  sumptuous  lunch  provided  by 
the  doctor,  who,  however,  annexed  one  condition  to  the 
entertainment — ^that  in  the  matter  of  drinks  we  should 
obey  implicitly  his  prescription.  This  proved  to  be  a 
mixture  of  champagne  and  the  water  of  the  Narzan,  a 
preparation  requiring  skUl,  principaUy,  in  maintaining  the 
just  proportions. 

The  park — which,  ovring  to  its  shade  and  coolness,  makes 
Kislovodsk  a  favourite  summer  resort  with  all  the  officials 
of  Cis-Caucasia,  and  even  with  those  of  Tiflis — had  next  to 
be  visited.  The  first  person  we  met  was  an  old  acquaint- 
ance. General  Orlovski,  the  Governor  of  Tiflis,  from  whom 


890  •  PATIGORSK. 

we  had  parted  at  Kazbek  posthouse ;  we  were  still  more 
surprised  to  see  with  him  Prince  Ismail  of  Uruspieh,  whose 
talents  as  a  musician  make  his  assistance  valuable  in  the 
concerts  which  often  take  place  here.  We  failed  to  dis- 
cover precisely  on  what  footing  he  stood  with  the  Sussian 
oflEicers,  but  the  impression  left  on  our  minds  was,  that 
the  invitation  he  received  amounted  to  a  command,  and 
that  the  Prince  met  vrith  little  superfluous  courtesy  from 
the  habitues  of  the  baths,  to  whose  amusement  he  was 
invited  to  contribute. 

The  little  stream  which  flows  through  the  bottom  of  the 
glen  is  liable  to  sudden  floods,  and,  despite  the  enbankments 
by  which  it  is  restrained,  had  lately  broken  loose,  and 
done  considerable  damage.  We  were  shown  over  a  botani- 
cal garden,  where  the  gardener  cut  and  presented  to  us  a 
beautiful  bouquet  of  flowers.  The  walks  through  the 
woods  extend,  on  either  bank  of  the  stream,  for  at  least  a 
mile  above  the  hotel ;  they  are  nicely  kept,  and  deliciously 
cool  in  hot  weather.  For  those  who  do  not  require  sulphur- 
baths,  I  have  no  doubt  that  Kislovodsk  is  a  far  more 
enjoyable  summer  retreat  than  Patigorsk. 

We  had  heard  at  Patigorsk  that  General  Loris-Melikov, 
the  military  governor  of  Cis-Caucasia,  was  staying  at 
Kislovodsk,  and  we  were  anxious  to  call  on  him,  to  obtain 
such  aid  and  advice  as  he  could  give  in  carrying  out  our 
plans  for  the  next  fortnight.  In  one  of  the  detached 
cottage  villas,  built  for  the  accommodation  of  visitors  (as 
the  *  H8tel  de  la  Couronne,*  in  fact  nothing  more  than  a 
handsome  restaurant,  contains  no  bedrooms)  we  found  the 
General.  An  Armenian  by  birth,  he  is  one  of  the  numer- 
ous instances  of  the  success  attained  in  foreign  service  by 
that  clever  nation,  which,  like  the  Greek,  seems  capable  of 
doing  well  everywhere  except  at  home.  We  were  received 
very  courteously,  my  maps  were  soon  spread  out,  and  we 


PLANS   FOR   THE   FUTURE.  391 

pointed  out  the  route  we  wished  to  take.  Our  plans  were 
afterwards  so  fully  carried  out  that  I  may  here  repeat,  for 
the  benefit  of  my  readers,  what  was  then  explained  to  the 
General. 

We  had  selected  Naltschik,  a  small  town  and  military 
post  at  the  foot  of  the  mountains,  distant  some  eighty 
versts  from  Patigorsk,  as  our  new  base  of  operations; 
thence  we  desired  to  push  up  the  eastern  arm  of  the 
Tcherek  (to  be  distinguished  from  the  better-known 
Terek,  of  which  it  is  a  tributary),  and  cross  from  its  head, 
by  a  pass,  called  *  Per  Stuleveesk  *  in  the  map,  to  the  head- 
waters of  the  Uruch,  the  valley  into  which  we  had  already 
looked  down  from  the  icefall  of  the  Karagam  glacier. 
After  following  this  river  for  some  distance,  we  proposed  to 
turn,  by  a  track  crossing  low  spurs,  to  Ardonsk,  the  second 
station  on  the  post-road  on  this  side  of  Yladikafkaz. 
Our  object  in  adding  this  supplementary  piece  to  the  pro- 
gramme with  which  we  left  England,  was  to  gain  some 
knowledge  of  the  scenery  and  geography  of  the  great 
mountain-group  under  the  southern  face  of  which  we  had 
rambled  in  Eastern  Suanetia.  Viewed  on  the  map,  this 
group  appeared  to  resemble  in  shape  the  letter  T,  the  top 
bar  being  represented  by  the  watershed,  from  a  point 
above  Jibiani  to  Tau  Totonal,  and  the  downstroke  by  a 
gigantic  spur,  in  which  are  situated  the  second  and  third 
summits  of  the  Caucasus— Koschtantau  and  Dychtau. 

Had  not  what  we  had  already  accomplished  been  known, 
our  wish  to  penetrate  the  recesses  of  the  mountains  would 
not  have  been  so  easily  believed,  and  greater  difficulties 
might  probably  have  been  suggested.  The  most  useful 
piece  of  information  we  obtained  was  that  the  Stuleveesk 
Pass  was  practicable  for  horses — a  very  important  fact, 
as  it  obviated  the  necessity  of  again  encumbering  our- 
selves with  a  troop  of  porters,  and  suggested  the  pleasing 


3>2  PATIGOKSK. 

possibilitr  of  hiring  horses  at  Xaltschit  for  the  whole  jonr- 
nej  to  Ardonsk.  The  General  kindly  promised  to  write  to 
Naltschik,  and  tell  the  Commandant  there  to  expect  us,  and 
to  take  care  that  hors«:*s  were  forthcoming  on  our  arrival. 
He  ako  wrote  to  his  subordinate  at  Patigorsk  to  help  us  in 
hiring  a  carriage  for  the  drive  to  Naltschik,  the  direct  road 
between  the  two  places  not  being  famished  with  post- 
horses*  We  took  leave  well  satisfied  with  the  result  of  our 
interview,  though  our  minds  were  slightly  troubled  by  a 
spectre  raised  by  something  the  General  had  said  about 
providing  us  with  a  ^  specialist/  who  would  tell  us  where  to 
go  and  where  not  to  go,  a  kind  of  Mentor  who  would  have 
found  himself  sadly  out  of  place  in  our  party.  The  threat- 
ened companion,  however,  perhaps  fortunately  for  himself 
was  never  assigned  us. 

Our  carriage,  which  was  awaiting  our  return  to  the  hotel, 
took  us  quickly  back  to  Patigorsk.  The  hurry  of  our 
driver  caused  the  only  mischance  of  the  day.  Dr.  SmimoT 
had  told  us  that  General  Chodzko  (who,  it  will  be  remem- 
bered, is  the  head  of  the  Russian  Survey  which  executed 
the  Five  Verst  Map,  and  who  had  shown  us  much  civility 
at  Tiflis)  was  staying  at  Essentuky.  Our  coachman  had 
been,  as  we  believed,  instructed  to  take  us  to  the  General's 
lodgings,  and  as  he  drove  on,  we  assumed  that  the  house 
must  be  at  the  Patigorsk  end  of  the  scattered  village ;  it  was 
not  till  we  were  fairly  beyond  the  place  that  we  discovered 
he  had  no  intention  of  stopping  at  all.  Our  ignorance  of 
Bussian  made  the  mistake  irreparable,  and  we  much 
regretted  thus  to  have  lost  the  opportunity  of  talking  over 
our  experiences  with  one  of  the  few  Russians  who  have  any 
real  knowledge  of  the  interior  of  the  Caucasian  chain. 

On  the  following  morning,  the  military  commandant  of 
Pa,tigorsk  called,  and  proffered  his  assistance  in  any 
arrangements  we   might  wish  to  make.     Paul  and  the 


A   FRESH   START.  393 

officer's  servant  set  ofiF  together  to  find  a  carriage-master 
and  make  an  agreement  with  him ;  bat  we  did  not  gain 
much  from  the  aid  of  the  military,  as  the  price  asked 
was  exorbitant,  and  we  could  obtain  no  abatement.  The 
8th  was  spent  in  replenishing  our  exhausted  stores  with 
such  articles  as  the  bazaar  could  supply ;  but,  beyond  the 
most  commonplace  necessaries,  we  found  little  in  the  shops 
except  sweetmeate,  which  existed  in  every  variety,  from  the 
wooden  box  of '  rahat-lakoum'  to  the  gilded  case  of  Moscow 
candied  finits.  If  the  supply  for  sale  is  any  index  to  the 
amount  consumed,  the  baths  must  have  a  wonderful  effect, 
not  only  in  sharpening  the  appetites  of  the  inhabitants  of 
Patigorsk  for  sweet  things,  but  also  in  strengthening  their 
digestions. 

Augtist  9th, — In  order  to  avoid  the  heat  of  a  drive  across 
the  steppe  in  the  burning  sunshiae,  we  did  not  set  out 
till  four  o'clock  in  the  afbemoon.  During  the  day  the 
aspect  of  the  weather  had  changed,  and  the  sky,  hitherto 
unclouded  during  our  stay,  was  hidden  by  dark  masses  of 
vapour,  which,  shortly  before  the  time  fixed  for  our  start, 
discharged  themselves  in  pouring  rain.  The  turn  of  affairs 
was  not  pleasant,  but  we  found  consolation  in  the  thought 
that  we  might  have  been  worse  off,  and  that,  in  such 
weather,  a  watertight  ^  tarantasse '  was  luxury  compared  to 
an  open '  telega.'  Bidding  farewell  once  more  to  civilisation, 
we  drove  out  into  the  desolate  and  now  muddy  steppe.  In 
no  other  European  country  but  Bussia  is  the  transition  from 
the  comforts  and  even  luxuries  of  the  towns  to  the  bar- 
baric lack  of  roads,  bridges,  and. every  necessary  of  inter- 
course, in  the  country,  so  marked.  No  Bussian  poet  could 
have  written,  *  God  made  the  country,  but  man  made  the 
town,'  for  such  a  sentiment  would  have  seemed  to  his 
countrymen  to  savour  of  the  grossest  impiety.  The  country, 
at  any  rate  in  the  steppe  districts  of  Russia,  is  a  wide 


»4  THE  TCEEREt   VALLET. 

featureless  plain ;  the  road — a  mere  track,  convert*^  into  a 
sea  of  mud  in  winter,  enreloped  in  a  dust -cloud  in  summer 

— is  often  rendered  wholly  impassable  bj  unbridg^^ij  and 
flooded  liTers.  Some  such  reflections  passed  tbrou:^h  cur 
minds  as,  having  left  behind  us  fire  minutes  before  the 
handsome  rooms  of  the  '  Hotel  de  la  Couronne,'  we  found 
onrselTeSy  after  fording  the  Podlnunok,  plunging  into  the 
mud  on  its  farther  bank.  As  far  as  Zonitzki,  we  drove 
along  the  same  track  as  that  bj  which  we  had  arrired  ; 
thence  we  strack  more  to  the  east,  and  at  last,  after  being 
refused  admission  into  one  farmhoose,  on  the  very  reason- 
able gronnd  that  the  owner  had  that  day  buried  his  wife, 
we  came  to  a  halt,  shortly  before  midnight,  at  another  on 
the  banks  of  the  Malka,  It  was  inhabited  by  a  family  of 
colonists,  kind  homely  people,  like  most  Sussian  peasants 
not  connected  with  the  postal  senrice.  The  'tarantasse' 
was  put  np  in  a  shed  in  the  yard,  while  we  were  introduced 
into  the  best  room  of  the  farmhouse,  which  was  clean  and 
tidy,  but  terribly  dose  and  hot,  where  we  passed  the  short 
portion  of  the  night  still  remaining. 

Augud  lOlh. — ^At  5  a^k.  we  were  again  on  the  road. 
The  sky  was  overcast,  and  we  saw  nothing  of  the  moun- 

,  tains  all  day ;  but  the  absence  of  oppressive  heat  was  a 
great  comfort,  and  almost  reconciled  ns  to  the  loss  of 
view.  Crossing  the  Malka  by  a  bridge,  the  track  led  us  over 
low  bare  hills,  until  the  banks  of  the  Baksan  were  reached, 
where  at  a  walled  Cossack  station,  a  remnant  of  past  and 
more  turbulent  times,  we  learnt,  to  our  dismay,  that  the 
bridge  had  just  been  carried  away,  by  the  floods  caused 
by  the  previons  night's  rain ;  it  was,  however,  sugorested 
that  if  we  could  wait  a  couple  of  hours,  it  would  probably  be 
made  passable.  In  a  shop  opposite  the  station,  we  found 
a  room  in  which  we  sat  down,  while  the  '  samovar '  was 
heated,  and  some  eggs  boiled.     More  than  the  appointed 


A   DIFFICULT  FORD.  805 

time  elapsed,  and  yet  no  satisfactoiy  intelligence  came 
from  the  bridge ;  we  settled,  therefore,  to  drive  down  and 
ascertain  the  real  state  of  the  case,  and  whether  it  was  not 
possible  to  ford  the  stream.    We  found  that  the  central  pile 
of  the  bridge,  with  the  roadway,  had  been  swept  clean  away; 
and  as  there  seemed  no  prospect  of  a  speedy  repair  of  the 
damage,  there  was  nothing  to  be  done  but  to  encounter 
the  muddy  flood.     After  our  June  experiences  in  the 
Araxes  valley,  this  seemed  to  us,  though  a  formidable,  by 
no  means  a  terrific  task,  and  we  encouraged  our  driver,  by 
every  means  in  our  power,  to  dare  the  deed.    He,  however, 
did  not  view  the  matter  in  the  same  light,  and  entirely, 
refused  to  adventure  his  precious  life,  except  under  the 
guidance  of  three  Tcherkesses,  who  had  just  ridden  up 
and  offered  their  assistance, — for  a  consideration.    After 
some  delay,  a  bargain  was  struck,  and  driving  some  little 
distance  up  the  stony  river-bed,  we  forded  successfully, 
though  not  without  serious  difficulty,  the  first  branch ;  the 
second  was  easier,  but  the  third  was  too  much  for  our 
driver's  pluck,  and  he  flatly  refused  to  go  a  yard  further. 
We  were,  therefore,  obliged  to  unpack  all  our  baggage,  and 
to  ride  across,  carrying  it  on  the  horses  of  the  Tcherkesses. 
The  force  of  water  was  really  formidable,  and  the  vriry 
little  steeds  had  some  difficulty  to  maintain  their  footing. 
Safely  landed  on  the  further  side,  we  had  still  to  wait 
until  sufficient  horses   could  be  found,  in  the  adjacent 
village,  to  mount  us  and  our  men.     For  two  weary  hours, 
unable  to  leave  our  baggage,  we  sat  fretting  and  fuming 
by  the  waters  of  Baksan,  until  Paul  at  last  appeared  with 
a  bullock-cart  for  the  traps,  and  saddle-horses  for  us. 

A  fresh  delay  now  arose.  The  man  of  whom  we  hired  the 
horses  had  prepared  a  meal  for  us,  and  we  found  it  would 
be  a  gross  breach  of  good  manners  to  refuse  to  partake 
of  it.     We  therefore  entered  his  cottage,  and,  sitting  down 


3S6  THE  TCHEREK  VALLEY. 

on  a  bench,  were  served  with  a  dish  of  spelt-bread  and 
toasted  cheese,  which  was  not  unpalatable  to  hungry  men. 
Tboutjh  the  Tcherkesses  are  Mahommedans,  the  women 
of  the  village  took  small  pains  to  cover  their  faces,  or 
avoid  the  eyes  of  strangers  and  infidels.  They  are  a  well- 
grown  race,  but  there  was  nothing  in  any  of  their  faces, 
except  those  of  the  very  young  girls,  to  attract  a  second 
look,  and  our  host's  wife,  who  attended  on  us,  was  a 
marvel  of  ugline&s. 

Having  disposed  of  the  food  as  quickly  as  propriety 
would  permit,  we  jumped  into  the  saddle,  and  set  off 
at  a  canter  across  the  grassy  steppe,  leaving  the  bullock- 
cart  to  follow  more  leisurely,  under  the  charge  of  Fran9oifl. 
Once  on  the  road,  we  lost  no  time,  as  our  horseman 
was  anxious  to  return  the  same  night  to  his  home,  and 
urged  us  to  push  on.  To  gallop  on  a  Tcherkess  saddle 
is  not  a  very  easy  or  agreeable  feat,  but  we  were  all 
tolerably  successful,  though  I  suffered  shipwreck  on  one 
occasion,  from  rashly  opening  a  map— a  proceeding  my 
horse  resented  vrith  such  an  unexpected  flourish  of  his 
heels,  as  to  land  me  safely  on  the  grass  over  his  head, 
there  to  continue  my  researches  at  leisure.  There  was 
still  another  large  river,  flowing  from  the  glaciers  of  the 
central  chain,  between  us  and  ISTaltschik.  This  was  the 
Tchegem,  the  upper  valley  of  which  is  inhabited  by  a 
branch  of  the  same  Tartar  race  as  is  found  at  Uruspieh 
and  Balkar.  The  stream  was  coming  down  with  ^eat 
violence,  but  the  frail-looking  bridge  had,  fortunately,  not 
as  yet  been  carried  away,  although  the  catastrophe  seemed 
imminent,  and  the  structure  was  watched  by  a  guard,, 
who  would  only  allow  us  to  pass  one  by  one,  and  at  a  foot- 
pace. 

A  low  range  of  wooded  hills  now  bounded  the  steppe 
we  had  been  traversing  all  day,  and  we  could  see,  at 


NALTSCHIK,  397 

tlieir  feet,  the  buildings  of  Naltschik.  As  we  drew  nearer 
our  goal,  the  hitherto  barren  soil  was  covered  with 
scrub,  and  thickets  of  large  dog-roses.  The  entrance  to 
the  town  was  a  record  of  the  old  days,  when  it  was 
exposed  to  the  constant  danger  of  attack  from  the  moun- 
taineers. The  buildings  had  once  been  surrounded  by  a 
stockade,  and  the  gateway  at  the  entrance  to  the  main 
street  was  guarded  by  a  sentry.  He  enquired  at  once  if 
we  were  the  English  who  were  expected,  and  despatched 
one  of  his  comrades  to  guide  us  to  the  quarters  prepared 
for  us.  We  were  taken  to  a  well-built  one-storied  house, 
standing  on  one  side  of  the  open  space,  in  the  centre  of 
the  town;  our  hostess  proved  to  be  the  widow  of  a 
Bussian  officer,  who  was  glad  to  let  us  her  front-parlour 
during  our  stay.  It  was  a  clean  and  cheerful  room,  with 
fairy-roses  in  the  windows,  and  pictures  on  the  walls ;  but 
there  was  the  common  Bussian  want  of  creature-comforts, 
and  we  could  obtain  nothing  but  our  own  mattrass  to 
lie  upon. 

August  Wth. — We  went  ofiF  after  breakfast  to  call  on 
the  Commiandant,  who  had  heard  &om  General  Loris- 
Melikov  of  our  intended  visit,  and  had  detained  some 
natives  of  the  Upper  Tcherek,  with  their  horses,  to  accom- 
pany us  on  our  excursion  into  the  mountains.  Our  ex- 
pressions of  pleasure  and  thanks  were  suddenly  cut  short 
by  the  announcement  of  the  price,  five  roubles  a  day 
(nearly  fifteen  shillings),  we  were  expected  to  pay  for  each 
horse.  As  we  were  to  take  eight,  it  was  of  course  out  of 
the  question  that  we  should  ratify  any  such  arrangement ; 
but  at  the  moment  we  were  too  completely  taken  by  surprise 
to  say  much ;  and  the  Commandant  turned  the  subject,  by 
proposing  a  walk  in  his  garden,  and  showing  us  a  seat, 
constructed  to  command  a  view  of  the  distant  mountains, 
the  snowy  summits  of  which  are  in  clear  weather  visible 


398  THE  TCHEREK   VALLEY. 

over  the  lower  wooded  hills.  He  related  to  us  a  legend, 
current  among  the  Tcherkesses,  of  an  extraordinary 
treasure  secreted  on  the  top  of  one  of  these  peaks,  but 
it  did  not  seem  different  from  the  tales  of  the  same 
description  common  to  most  mountain  countries. 

It  was  evident  that  we  should  not  be  able  to  make  a  start 
early  the  next  day,  and  we  were  forced  to  acquiesce  in  the 
suggestion,  that  an  officer  should  call  on  us  in  the  morning 
with  the  horsemen,  and  that  the  conclusion  of  any  definite 
arrangement  should  be  postponed  for  the  present.  Nalt- 
schik  in  itself  is  a  neat  little  place,  showing  marks  of  its 
origin  as  a  military  cantonment,  and  gradually  sinking, 
under  the  influence  of  more  peaceful  times,  into  a  quiet 
country  town,  with  broad  streets  shaded  by  trees,  bordered 
by  cozy-looking,  green-roofed,  one-storied  cottages,  each 
surrounded  by  its  patch  of  garden-ground.  There  are 
several  fairly-supplied  shops,  and  in  one  Paul  secured  a 
ham,  an  article  we  had  looked  for  in  vain  at  Patigorsk ; 
while  at  another,  we  found,  to  our  surprise,  a  bottle  of  very 
fair  eau-de-cologne — a  great  boon  to  Moore  and  myself, 
who  were  out  of  sorts,  and  with  neuralgic  tendencies. 

Aibgust  12th. — ^In  the  morning  an  officer  called,  accom- 
panied by  the  two  natives  who,  it  was  proposed,  should 
provide  us  with  horses.  They  were  bluff  hearty-looking 
fellows,  one  of  whom  emitted,  from  time  to  time,  a  most 
ferocious  grunt,  which  prepossessed  us,  perhaps  somewhat 
unfairly,  against  him.  The  debate  was  opened  by  an 
explicit  refusal,  on  our  part,  to  have  anything  to  do  with 
any  previous  understanding.  The  horsemen  stuck  to  the 
terms  originally  suggested,  and  thus  things  seemed  to 
have  come  to  a  deadlock.  An  adjournment  was  shortly 
agreed  upon,  and  my  friends  accompanied  the  officer  to 
the  Commandant's  house,  where  they  spent  two  hours  in 
protracted  negotiations.     It  is  very  doubtful  whether  their 


BYEWAYS.  399 

labours  would  have  had  any  result,  without  the  assistance 
of  a  lady,  the  wife  of  one  of  the  officers,  and  apparently 
the  only  person  in  Naltschik  who  spoke  any  European 
language  but  Russian.  By  her  suggestion,  a  round  sum 
was  offered  the  men  for  the  whole  journey,  and  at  last 
they  agreed  to  take  us  through  the  mountains  to  Ardonsk, 
with  liberty  to  be  ten  days  on  the  road,  for  180  roubles. 
At  the  rate  originally  suggested,  we  should  have  paid  400 
roubles  for  exactly  the  same  advantages.  The  mention  of 
these  figures  will  suffice  to  warn  future  travellers,  that  in 
availing  themselves  of  assistance  from  Russian  officials, 
they  must  not  leave  any  money  arrangements  in  their 
hands,  unless  they  are  willing  to  risk  paying  three  times 
the  fSair  value  for  the  services  rendered.  It  was  past 
midday  ere  we  shook  hand^  over  the  bargain,  and  con- 
sequently our  start  was  deferred  until  the  next  morning, 
when  our  new  attendants  promised  to  have  the  horses 
ready. 

August  ISth. — ^Wo  set  out  for  our  ride  at  6.80,  after  the 
usual  difficulty  in  collecting  together  all  the  animals,  and 
we  finally  left  with  one  short  of  the  promised  number, 
which  the  men  undertook  to  make  up  on  our  arrival  at 
Balkar,  the  collective  name  of  the  highest  group  of 
villages  in  the  eastern  branch  of  the  Tcherek  valley.  We 
were  told  it  would  take  two  days  to  reach  Balkar,  and 
that,  owing  to  the  absence  of  shelter  on  the  road,  the  first 
night  must  be  spent  in  the  forest.  The  weather  looked 
unpromising ;  a  duU  grey  pall  clung  to  the  hillsides,  and 
blotted  out  half  the  beauties  of  the  landscape.  Naltschik 
is  situated  on  a  small  stream  issuing  from  the  neighbouring 
hills  some  miles  west  of  the  Tcherek,  to  reach  the  banks 
of  which  the  road  crosses  the  shoulder  of  a  low  chain. 
The  ground  was  covered  with  tail  coarse  herbage  and 
thickets  of  small  timber,  mingled  with  wild  fixiit- trees, 


400  THE   TCHEEEK   VALLEY. 

among  which  we  noticed  the  pear,  the  apple,  the  plum,  and 
the  medlar,  their  gnarled  boughs  hung  with  long  creepers. 

We  came  in  sight  of  the  Tcherek,  where,  issuing  from 
the  hills  a  broad  rapid  river,  it  strikes  out  into  the  steppe, 
and  runs  through  marshy  ground,  fairly  timbered  in 
comparison  to  the  barren  tracts  beyond.  It  was  a  deso- 
late view,  the  surrounding  country  being  absolutely  in 
a  state  of  nature,  and  showing  no  traces  of  the  neigh- 
bourhood or  care  of  man.  Once  fairly  free  from  the 
hills,  the  river  divides  into  a  dozen  branches,  and,  until  it 
joins  the  Terek,  flows  through  a  dreary  swamp,  unin- 
habited except  by  wild  boars.  From  the  brow  of  a  steep 
though  short  descent,  we  looked  down  on  the  hamlet  of 
Dogiijokova,  which,  like  most  of  the  Tcherkess  villages  of 
the  plain,  consists  of  a  long  double  row  of  one-storied 
cottages,  surrounded  by  sheds  and  fenced-in  gardens, 
calling  to  mind  pictures  of  a  South- African  kraal. 

We  halted  for  lunch  on  the  bank  of  a  stream  flowing  out 
of  the  range  that  overlooks  Naltschik.  The  direction  of  our 
course  had  now  changed,  and  we  were  riding  south-west 
in  place  of  south-e^t.  A  few  hundred  yards  of  level  land 
generally  stretched  between  the  Tcherek  and  the  base  of 
the  hills,  but  once  or  twice  the  path  was  forced  to  climb  a 
bold  bluflF,  breaking  down  abruptly  in  chalk  cUifs  to  the 
river.  The  meadows  were  clothed  in  luxuriant  herbage, 
which,  novr  uncut  and  ungrazed,  was  rapidly  running  to 
seed ;  the  *  glossy  purples '  of  the  gigantic  thistleheads 
specially  attracted  our  admiration,  and  quite  justified  the 
Laureate  in  declaring  that  they  can  at  times  *  outredden 
all  voluptuous  garden-roses.*  Occasionally  a  group  of  tall 
tombstones,  each  seven  or  eight  feet  high,  capped  by  a 
carved  turban,  and  chiseled  with  a  long  inscription  in  the 
language  of  the  country,  stood  out  above  the  long  grass.  We 
tried  hard  through  Paul  to  get  at  their  history,  but  could 


WOODLAND   SCENERY.  401 

learn  little  definite,  except  that  they  were  of  considerable 
antiquity.  A  roadside  tomb,  recording  the  name  and 
familj^  of  the  departed,  must  have  been  an  object  of 
ambition  with  the  former  inhabitants  of  the  country.  The 
lower  portion  of  the  northern  valleys  of  the  Caucasus  lying 
beyond  the  mountain  gorges,  easily  accessible  from  the 
plain,  and  subject  to  sudden  raids  from  the  mountaineers, 
seems,  despite  its  pastoral  riches,  to  have  been  left  as  a 
debateable  ground  alike  by  Bussian  and  Tartar.  Beyond 
the  hamlet  I  have  mentioned,  there  is  no  dwelling-place 
on  the  Tcherek  for  a  full  day's  journey,  until  the  lowest 
village  of  Balkar  is  reached. 

The  hills  on  both  sides  of  the  river  are  rounded  and 
monotonous,  and  the  persistent  fog  robbed  us  of  any  glimpse 
there  may  be,  under  more  favourable  circumstances,  of  the 
snov^y  chain ;  so  we  had  to  be  content  with  admiring  the 
fine  beechwoods  on  the  opposite  bank,  trusting  that,  as  we 
penetrated  deeper  into  the  mountaias,  the  landscapes 
would  become  more  striking.  The  scenery  assumes  a 
different  character  at  the  point  where  the  western  Tcherek, 
flovring  out  from  amongst  loftier  hills,  brings  the  tribute 
of  the  glaciers  on  the  western  flanks  of  Dychtau  and  Kosch- 
tantau  to  swell  the  main  stream.  The  hillsides  grow  steeper 
and  higher,  and  the  range  separating  the  Balkar  and 
Bezeenghe  valleys  breaks  down  in  a  succession  of  most 
picturesquely-shaped  and  thickly-wooded  bluffs.  The 
western  Tcherek,  a  strong  body  of  glacier-water  flovdng 
in  a  narrow  but  deep  channel,  is  spanned  by  a  good 
bridge,  beyond  which  the  road,  after  traversing  marshy 
meadows,  is  forced  to  climb  over  a  projecting  spur.  The 
forest  now  began  to  change  character,  and  there  was 
greater  variety  among  the  trees ;  the  sombre  foliage  of 
pines  varied  the  lighter  shades  of  green,  and  tall  alders 
shot  up  amongst  the  beeches. 

D   D 


402  THE   TCHEREK   VALLEY. 

After  crossing  for  the  first  time  the  eastern  Tcherek,  at  a 
most  striking  point,  where  it  flows  in  a  cleft  so  narrow  that 
a  man  might  almost  have  leapt  across,  we  rode  for  half-an- 
hour  through  a  wood,  beautiful  enough  to  demand  a  special 
word  of  admiration,  even  in  this  country  of  woodland 
scenery.  The  tall  trunks  between  which  the  path  wound 
were  festooned  with  long  streamers  of  creeping  plants, 
and  the  lofty  boughs  that  overarched  our  heads  sheltered 
beneath  them  shrubs  of  rhododendron  and  azalea,  growing 
to  greater  size  than  any  we  had  yet  seen.  Crags  jutted 
out  from  the  green  banks,  affording  a  home  for  delicate 
ferns,  and  moss-cradled  springs  trickled  down  shady  hollows. 
In  an  opening  of  the  wood,  we  came  suddenly  on  a  round 
tarn  fringed  with  grass,  reflecting  on  its  surface  the  sur- 
rounding cliffs  and  overhanging  branches.  The  spot  was 
so  charming  that  we  wanted  to  camp  there,  but  our  horse- 
men were  obstinate,  and  the  leader,  with  very  decisive 
grunts,  which  there  was  no  gainsaying,  told  us  that  we 
should  find  a  much  better  place  further  on.  About  half- 
an-hour  later  we  halted,  after  a  ten  hours'  ride,  under 
shelter  of  an  overhanging  rock,  the  black  streaks  on  which 
showed  that  our  camping-ground  was  not  now  used  as  such 
for  the  first  time.  Our  tent  was  quickly  pitched,  and 
Paul  set  about  his  cookery ;  the  horsemen  unluckily  dis- 
covered he  was  broiling  some  ham,  and  not  only  shunned 
him  for  the  rest  of  the  evening,  but  warned  him  not  to 
pollute  any  of  their  saddles,  bridles,  or  other  equipments 
with  his  touch. 

August  \Uh. — ^The  same  dull  pall  of  cloud  veiled  the 
sky,  although  it  hung  higher  on  the  mountain-sides  than 
on  the  day  before.  The  valley  above  our  camping- ground 
was  completely  closed  by  precipitous  cliffs,  which  seemed 
to  form  a  barrier  against  all  further  progress.  The  path — 
already   at  some  height  above  the  Tcherek,  glimpses  of 


A   TREJfENDOUS   GORGE.  403 

which  could  only  be  seen  from  time  to  time  at  the  bottom 
of  a  deep  ravine — turned  abruptly  upwards,  and  climbed 
rapidly  through  the  forest.     Having  reached  a  height  of 
at  least  1,500  feet  above  the  bed  of  the  river,  it  struck 
boldly-  into  the  heart  of  the  gorge,  circling  round  ravines, 
and  winding  over  the  top  of  the  perpendicular  cliflFs,  where  a 
fall  from  one's  horse  on  the  ofiF-side  would  have  led  to  a 
short  roll,  followed   by  a    sensational  header  of  many 
hundred  feet.     The  vegetation,   wherever  it  could  find 
room  to  ding  on  the  shelves  and  crannies  between  the 
precipices,  was  magnificent ;  pine  and  beech  still  predomi- 
nated,  though  there  was  a  sprinkling  of  other  foliage. 
The  way  in  which  a  single  tree  often  crowned  some  pro- 
jecting crag,  where,  destitute  of  any  apparent  source  of 
sustenance,  it  yet  contrived  to  maintain  a  vigorous  exis- 
tence, added  much  to  the  beauty  of  the  defile.    Alpine 
flowers  now  for  the  first  time  showed  themselves  in  com- 
pany with  the  most  delicate  ferns,  and  even  the  grandeur 
of  the  surrounding  scenery  could  not  altogether  blind  us 
to  the  presence  of  such  old  friends. 

We  could  only  appreciate  the  magpiitude  of  the  precipices 
immediately  below  us,  when  a  bend  in  the  hillside  enabled 
us  to  look  back  on  some  portion  of  the  road  already 
traversed;  those  on  the  opposite  side  were  even  more 
tremendous.  Halft^ay  through  the  defile,  its  course  is 
bent  by  a  spur  on  the  eastern  side  of  the  river,  which 
juts  out  straight  across  the  gap,  and  in  fact  does  at  one 
spot  actually  touch  the  opposite  cliffs,  leaving  the  water 
to  burrow  underground  a«  best  it  may.  The  path  descends 
on  to  the  saddle  connecting  the  rocky  crown  of  this  spur 
with  the  hillside  from  which  it  springs.  This  point,  from 
its  position,  commands  a  view  both  up  and  down  the 
defile,  to  which  there  is  nothing  similar,  or  in  the  least 
comparable,  in  the  Alps.     The  gorge  of  the  Tcherek  is  no 

D  D  2 


404  THE  TCHEREK   VALLEY. 

mere  crack  in  the  lower  gloj^es  of  the  mountains,  like 
thoiie  of  Pfeffers  and  the  Via  ^lala ;  it  is  rather  a  huge 
trench,  dug  down  from  th«nr  very  summits  to  a  depth  of 
5,000  feet  or  more.  Behind  us  forest  trees  clung  to  every 
available  inch  of  ground ;  looking  upwards,  the  character 
of  the  defile  was  more  savage.  The  foaming  waters  of 
the  Tcherek,  crossed  three  times  by  bridges,  filled  the 
bottom  of  the  trench,  the  sides  of  which  were  perpendicu- 
lar walls,  succeeded  by  shelves,  capped  in  their  turn  by  a 
loftier  tier  of  precipices.  The  path,  a  mere  ladder  of  broken 
stones,  brought  ns,  by  a  rapid  series  of  zigzags,  to  a  most 
estraordinary  spot,  where  the  overhanging  cliffs  meet,  and 
form  a  natural  bridge  over  the  river,  which  can  barely 
be  seen  at  the  bottom  of  its  deep  bed.  As  we  looked  fix)m 
this  spot,  the  torrent  to  all  appearance  plunged  directly 
into  the  bowels  of  the  mountains,  and  it  was  impossible 
to  discover  how  it  found  a  way  out  of  them.  The  savage 
grandeur  of  the  scenery  here  attains  its  height,  and  no 
words  will  convey  to  others  the  impression  it  made  on  us. 
Henceforth  the  cleverly-contrived  rock-staircase  which 
connects  Balkar  with  the  outside  world  finds  room — 
now  on  one  side,  now  on  the  other — to  creep  along 
the  base  of  the  cliffs  at  the  river's  edge ;  at  last,  when 
the  careless  observer  would  think  it  was  hopelessly  de- 
feated, it  crawls  along  the  face  of  an  overhanging  bluff, 
by  a  gallery,  partly  cut  into  the  rock,  partly  built  out  from 
it.  This  difficult  passage  surmounted,  it  leads  an  easier 
life ;  the  mountains  draw  back  from  the  river  in  two  g^nd 
curtains  of  precipice,  and  the  basin  in  which  the  hamlets 
of  Balkar  are  situate  gradually  opens  to  the  view.  We 
now  wound  over  barren  and  disintegrated  slopes,  broken 
occasionally  by  stone-capped  earth-pillars,  similar  to  those 
we  had  seen  before  in  the  Caucasus,  on  the  Ardon,  and  to 
the  well-known  examples  in  the  Val  d'Herens  in  Switzer- 
land. 


BALKAR.  4G5 

Before  reaching  the  first  village,  which  is  on  the  left 
side  of  the  valley,  we  descended  to  and  crossed  the  river. 
On  an  isolated  crag  above  the  houses — here,  as  at  UruE- 
pieh,  flat-roofed  stone  cabins  built  against  the  hillside — 
stands  a  fortress,  or  place  of  refuge,  which,  properly 
defended,  must  have  been  impregnable,  except  to  cannon 
or  famine.  The  wide  upland  basin,  now  fairly  entered  on, 
is  by  nature  bare  and  savage  in  its  character,  but  has 
been  rendered  less  so  by  the  careful  system  of  cultivation, 
which  has  converted  every  available  patch  of  ground,  not 
only  in  the  valley  but  to  a  great  height  on  the  mountain- 
sides, into  a  fruitful  cornfield.  After  the  neglect  of 
natural  bounties  shown  among  the  lazy  tribes  on  the  south 
of  the  chain,  and  also  in  the  lower  portions  of  the  very 
valley  we  were  now  following  up,  it  was  strange  to  see 
how  the  industrious  and  well-to-do  Moslems  who  dwell 
in  these  mountain  fastnesses  contrive  to  make  the  waste 
and  desolate  places  '  laugh  with  com,'  thus  putting  to 
shame  the  slothfulnees  and  consequent  poverty  of  their 
Christian  neighbours.  We  passed  several  hamlets  on 
our  left,  and  met  numerous  parties  of  men  at  work  in  the 
fields,  before  we  recrossed  the  stream,  and,  mounting  a 
gentle  cultivated  slope,  entered  Muchol,  the  village  at 
which  our  horsemen  wished  us  to  stop. 

We  were,  I  believe,  the  first  Western  Europeans  who 
had  been  seen  in  Balkar,  and  our  sudden  appearance  gave 
rise  to  no  small  excitement.  The  male  population  sur- 
rounded us  in  the  street ;  the  womankind,  being  the  pro- 
perty of  Moslem  lords,  were  obliged  to  content  themselves 
with  what  they  could  see  from  the  house-roofe.  Their 
dress  consists  of  a  loose  crimson  robe,  with  a  cap,  from 
which  a  row  of  coins  hangs  down  over  the  forehead. 
There  was  certainly  one  pretty  face  amongst  them,  and 
there  may  have  been  more,  but  no  second  opportunity  of 
seeing  any  of  the  beauties  occurred  during  our  stay. 


406  THE  TCHEREK   VALLEY. 

The  Sheikh  *  himself^  a  tall  venerable-looking  old  man, 
came  forward  to  invite  us  to  his  house,  which,  like  all  the 
rest,  was  a  low  one-storied  building,  with  a  portico,  sup- 
ported on  massive  trunks,  running  along  the  whole  of  the 
front.  At  one  end  was  a  small  room  reserved  for  the  recep- 
tion of  strangers,  which  we  were  invited  to  enter.    It  was, 
at  first  sight,  a  dark  and  comfortless-looking  hole,  but  the 
lighting  of  a  fire  and  the  appearance  of  some  bright- 
coloured  mattiasses,  which  were  brought  for  our  use  from 
the  Sheikh's  apartments,  made  us  very  contented — espe- 
ciall J  as  our  men  were  to  be  quartered  in  a  separate  house, 
where   Paul  would  have  abundant  facilities  for  cooking. 
The  '  samovar '  soon  appeared,  accompanied  bj  a  dish  of 
cakes,  made,  as  the  Sheikh  took  care  to  inforjn  us,  by  the 
hands  of  his  wives.     The  weather  still  looked  so  unsettled 
that  we  did  not  endeavour  to  hurry  our  arrangements,  and 
were  quite  content  with  the  prospect  of  spending  a  day  in 
a  place  where  we  had  met  with  so  hospitable  a  reception. 
Shortly  after  our  arrival,  aMollah  came  in  to  call  on  us. 
He  had  given  up  the  tunic  and  sheepskin  of  the  Caucasus, 
and  wore  the  turban  and  loose  robe  of  an  ordinary  Turk. 
This  was  explained  when  we  learnt  that  he  had  made  the 
Mecca  pilgrimage,  and  of  course  had  acquired  foreign  man- 
ners  on  the  journey.    He  seemed  an  intelligent  man,  had 
gleaned  some  confused  knowledge  of  European  politics,  and 
knew  at  anyrate  the  fact  that  England  vTas  reputeda  staunch 
friend  of  Turkey,  which  made  him  very  civil  towards  us. 
We  were  surprised  to  leam  that  the  natives  have  so  strong 
a  dread  of  being  made  the  subjects  of  religious  proselytism, 
and  being  compelled  to  worship  the  relics  and  pictures 

*  At  Uruspieh  I  have  spoken  of  Prince — here  of  Sheikh— maintaining  a 
distinction  which,  though  more  nominal  than  real,  was  observed  by  all  the 
people  of  the  country,  and  even  by  Russians,  with  whom  we  talked  on  the 
subject. 


THE   SHEIKH   OP  MUCHOL.  407 

of  the  thousand-and-one  saints  of  the  Russian  Calendar, 
instead  of  the  ^  One  God  and  Mohammed  his  Prophet,'  that 
they  would  willingly,  if  they  saw  an  opportunity,  emigrate 
to  some  district  still  under  the  control  of  the  Commander 
of  the  Faithful.  Meantime  they  cling  tenaciously  to  their 
old  faithy  carry  its  precepts  into  daily  life,  and  observe  its 
ceremonies.  Muchol  was  the  only  place  in  the  Caucasus 
where  we  heard  the  call  to  prayer  resound  night  and 
morning  through  the  village. 

August  Ihth. — ^The  weather  was  again  gloomy,  and  the 
sun  never  appeared  all  day.  The  mountain-tops  being 
hidden,  it  was  useless  to  undertake  any  long  expedition, 
and  we  contented  ourselves  with  a  short  stroll  up  ijie 
hillside.  Muchol,  seen  from  above,  has  a  most  curious 
appearance  ;  the  flat  grass-grown  roofs  of  the  houses,  and 
the  rough  stone  walls,  give  them  more  the  look  of  a 
collection  of  burrows  than  of  the  comfortable  homes  of  an 
industrious  population.  If  the  house  in  which  our  men 
were  lodged  was  a  fair  specimen,  the  interiors  are  tolerably 
snug.  Passing  through  a  courtyard,  we  entered  a  large 
room,  the  walls  of  which  were  fitted  with  shelves,  on 
which  were  ranged  the  brightly-painted  trays  in  which 
Easterns  delight,  and  pegs,  on  which  hung  sheepskins, 
swords  and  guns,  with  the  other  necessary  equipments 
of  a  Caucasian  when  away  from  home. 

All  day  long  the  Sheikh  loaded  us  with  a  succession  of 
civilities,  in  the  very  tangible  form  of  relays  of  tea- 
cakes,  and  a  kind  of  beer,  peculiar  apparently  to  these 
Mussulman  valleys.  Having  finished  our  preparations  for 
a  sojourn  of  some  days  in  the  mountains,  we  determined, 
if  the  weather  promised  well,  to  start  early  next  morning. 

August  IQth. — The  clouds  were  more  broken,  and, 
for  the  first  time  for  many  days,  patches  of  blue  sky 
shone  through  them.     With  daybreak  came  the  Sheikh, 


403  THE   TCHEREK   VALLEY. 

bringing  in  his  wake  a  large  supply  of  meat  *  rissoles  * 
smeared  with  honey,  a  finishing  touch  we  could  willingly 
have  dispensed  with.  Not  only  were  we  well-feasted 
at  the  time,  but,  by  the  Sheikh's  order,  a  nimiber  of 
these  dainties  were  put  into  our  provision-bag.  On 
starting,  when  we  had  all  mounted,  a  beer-jug  was  brought 
out,  and  astimip-cup  presented  to  each  of  us,  after  which  the 
Sheikh  solemnly  invoked  ^  Allah  ! '  to  prosper  our  journey. 
Having  made  what  requital  we  could  for  the  hospitality 
which  had  been  shown  us,  we  left  Muchol,  carrying  away 
with  us  pleasanter  recollections  of  its  inhabitants  than  of 
those  of  any  other  village  we  had  halted  at.  At  Uruspieh  we 
had,  it  is  true,  received  almost  equal  kindness  ;  but  there 
the  princes  were  imbued  with  a  tinge  of  Russian  manners, 
in  contrast  to  which  the  patriarchal  simplicity  of  Balkar 
was  the  more  striking. 

We  left  the  village  by  the  same  road  we  had  entered  it, 
and  recrossed  the  river  to  its  right  bank.  We  were  some 
hundred  yards  beyond  the  bridge,  when  we  saw  a  horse- 
man, conspicuous  by  a  green  turban  and  streaming  purple 
robe,  riding  after  us.  It  was  the  MoUah,  who,  unpre- 
pared for  our  early  start,  had  not  been  present  to  wish  us 
*  Gk)odbye,'  and  now,  arrayed  in  his  best,  came  to  repair  the 
omission.  After  an  exchange  of  Oriental  salutations 
and  farewells,  including  the  hearty  hand-shakings  which 
are  common  alike  to  Tartars  and  Englishmen,  oiu-  reverend 
friend  wheeled  round  his  steed,  and  followed  by  his  servant, 
whom  we  made  happy  by  a  small  present,  returned  home, 
while  we  pursued  our  journey.  The  path  led  us  through  a 
succession  of  cornfields,  and  passed  two  considerable  villages 
beyond  which  a  slight  westerly  bend  in  the  direction  of  the 
valley  hid  what  lay  before  us.  When  we  had  turned  the 
comer,  the  character  of  the  scenery  underwent  a  rapid 
change;  the  cornfields  and  villages  of  the  Balkar  basin 


KARAOUL.  409 

were  left  behind,  and  we  followed  the  Tcherek  for  many 
miles,  through  a  deep  and  trough-shaped  valley,  which 
almost  deserved  the  name  of  a  gorge.  Tall  granitic  cliffs 
rose  on  either  side  of  us  too  steeply  to  admit  of  any 
glimpse  being  caught  of  the  gigantic  peaks  to  which  we 
knew  them  to  serve  only  as  foundations.  The  shelves  and 
slopes  were  covered  with  dwarf  firs,  but  the  general 
aspect  of  the  scenery  was  stem  and  savage.  Barriers, 
formed  of  debris  brought  down  by  torrents  pouring  out  of 
lateral  ravines,  stretched  across  from  side  to  side,  and 
made  as  it  were  steps  in  the  valley,  the  level  of  which 
rises  very  rapidly,  as  it  penetrates  deeper  into  the  moun- 
tains. The  landscape  was  more  Swiss  in  its  character 
than  anything  we  had  lately  seen,  but,  owing  to  the  absence 
of  villages  or  chdlets,  it  was  more  savage  than  the 
generality  of  similar  Alpine  scenes.  A  slight  turn  in  the 
course  of  the  valley  brought  into  view  a  graceful  snow- 
peak,  rising  above  the  fork  of  the  two  glens  which  contain 
the  sources  of  the  Tcherek.  We  crossed  a  strong  tribu- 
tary flowing  out  of  a  cleft  in  the  western  hillside,  which 
has  its  birth  in  a  glacier  (invisible  from  below),  clinging 
to  the  cliffs  of  Dychtau. 

Skirting  the  steep  shelving  bank  of  the  river,  we 
drew  near  the  meeting  of  the  two  torrents,  immediately 
under  the  spur  projecting  between  the  glens ;  on  the  right 
bank  of  the  united  streams,  the  mountains  leave  space  for 
a  broad  and  flat  meadow,  where  herds  of  horses  and  oxen 
were  grazing.  The  word  *  Karaoul,*  meaning  (Paul  said) 
*  guards'  printed  at  this  spot  on  the  Five  Verst  Map, 
had  hitherto  puzzled  us,  but  we  now  learnt  its  purport. 
The  pasturages  at  the  head  of  the  valley  feed,  in  summer, 
numerous  flocks,  and  it  is  worth  the  while  of  the  com- 
munity of  Balkar  to  maintain  a  guard  at  this  point,  to 
prevent  any  predatory  expeditions,  on  the  part  of  their 


410  THE   TCHEREK   VALLEY. 

southern  neiglibours,  such  as  we  had  witnessed  in  crossing 
the  Nakra  Pass.  How  the  Mingrelians  manage  to  find  a 
way  practicable  for  cattle  across  the  chain  it  is  difficult  to 
imagine,  as  the  easiest  pass  must  lead  over  fields  of  snow 
and  ice,  far  larger  than  those  traversed  in  crossing  the  St. 
Theodule.  We  convinced  ourselves  that  the  ridge  between 
this  branch  of  the  Tcherek  and  Suanetia  is  practically 
impassable ;  the  robbers  therefore  must  come  either  from 
the  Bion  or  Zenes-Squali,  which  both  rise  on  the  southern 
side  of  this  portion  of  the  chain.     We   did   not   cross 

• 

over  to  the  meadow,  but,  after  a  seven  hours'  ride, 
halted  under  an  oyerhanging  clifiF  just  below  the  junction 
of  the  streams — a  spot  evidently  frequented  by  the 
shepherds,  as  low  walls  had  been  built  against  the  rock 
to  make  the  shelter  more  complete.  Here  we  employed 
ourselves  in  pitching  our  tent,  while  one  of  the  horsemen 
rode  off  to  find  the  herdsmen,  and  obtain  firewood  and 
milk.  The  weather  again  looked  unpromising,  and  we 
began  to  fear  we  had  penetrated  into  the  heart  of  the 
mountains  to  no  purpose. 

August  17th* — We  had  given  orders  that  we  should  be 
called  early,  and  the  first  sound  that  greeted  our  ears  was 
that  well-known  and  disheartening  phrase  of  Swiss  guides, 
'  Mais  il  y  a  du  brouillard.'  The  curtain  of  mist,  that 
hung  only  a  few  hundred  feet  over  our  heads,  did  not 
appear  dense,  so  we  determined  to  go  up  the  nearest  hill, 
and  trust  to  Providence  to  show  us  something  when  we 
got  to  the  top.  The  pass  to  the  Uruch,  which  we  followed 
the  next  day,  crosses  the  two  streams  above  their  junction, 
and  it  is  at  the  bridge  over  the  first  that  the  guardians  of 
the  flocks  reside  during  the  summer  months,  in  a  tiny 
stone  hut.  Our  first  Lotention  was  to  ascend  the  gorge  of 
the  Dychsu,  as  the  western  branch  is  called  on  the 
map ;  but  we  were  overcome  by  the  pantomimic  demonstra- 


A  GKEAT  GLACIER.  411 

tions  made  by  the  guardians,  to  show  the  impossibility  of 
this  course,  and  were  induced  to  climb  the  great  hiUside 
which  rose  steeply  on  our  right.  We  soon  reached  the 
level  of  the  miste,  and  in  half-an-hour  had  left  them  far 
below  US,  and  were  enjoying  unclouded  sunshine. 


PHk  Id  the  Tcbcnk  Tallcj. 


After  a  long  and  severe  climb  of  3,000  feet,  up  grassy 
slopes  broken  by  crags  and  ravines,  and  covered  in  places 
with  Caucasian  rhododendrons,  we  gained  the  brow  of  a 
spur,  whence  we  had  a  panorama  of  the  ranges  surroimding 


412  THE   TCHEREK   VALLEY. 

US  wortliy  to  be  compared  with  the  views  from  such  Alpine 
summits  as  the  Gomergrat  or  -Jjggischhom.  Immediately 
at  our  feet,  looking  south,  lay  an  immense  glacier,  the 
source  of  the  Dychsu,  fed  by  an  accumulation  of  neve, 
filling  two  great  basins,  separated  by  a  rocky  ridge  which 
projected  from  a  noble  ice-crowned  mountain  opposite. 
Far  away  to  the  right,  above  the  western  bay  of  the 
glacier,  rose  a  tall  peak  culminating  in  a  slender  point  of 
snow,  which,  though  not  corresponding  exactly  in  posi- 
tion with  the  Koschtantau  of  the  map,  we  assumed  must 
be  that  great  mountain,  17,095  feet  in  height.  Looking 
eastwards,  the  snout  of  a  glacier  pushed  round  the  comer 
of  a  cliff  that  concealed  the  whole  of  its  body,  and  formed 
part  of  a  great  snowy  buttress  of  the  main  chain,  dividing 
the  two  heads  of  the  Tcherek  valley.  The  ridge  over 
which  our  pass  to  the  TTruch  was  to  lead  us  closed  the 
eastern  glen,  above  which  a  noble  rock-peak  shot  boldly 
into  the  air,  sending  down  from  its  flanks  a  small  highly- 
crevassed  glacier. 

The  extraordinary  feature  of  the  view  was  the  steepness 
of  the  chain;  the  peaks  and  the  gaps  between  them 
seemed  equally  difficult  of  access,  and  cut  off  from  the 
lower  snowfields  by  long  slopes  of  glistening  ice  and 
unscaleable  walls  of  crag.  The  only  object  we  had  expected 
to  see,  and  could  not  discover,  was  Dychtau,  the  com- 
panion of  Koschtantau  in  all  distant  views.  After  a  dis- 
cussion whether  it  would  be  better  to  descend  on  to  the 
glacier,  or  to  climb  higher,  it  was  determined  that  I  should 
remain  and  endeavour  to  make  some  outlines  of  the 
surrounding  peaks,  while  Fran9ois  and  my  two  companions 
went  off  to  try  and  get  a  view  of  Dychtau.  They  so  far 
succeeded  as  to  catch  a  glimpse  of  his  peak,  the  rest  of  the 
fountain  being  cut  off  by  lower  ridges.  We  loitered 
away  some  hours  on  the  flowery  pasturage,  supplied  with 


DYCHTAU   AND   KOSCHTANTAIT.  413 

water  by  the  meltings  of  the  beds  of  snow  which  still  lay- 
in  the  hollows.  Part  of  our  time  was  occupied  by  a  grand 
council  on  our  future  plans,  and  especially  on  the  expediency 
of  attempting  the  ascent  of  either  of  the  great  peaks. 
Dychtau  looked  on  this  side  absolutely  inaccessible,  and  the 
chances  of  success  in  any  attack  on  the  still  loftier  Koschtan- 
tau  appeared  so  slight  that  we  determined  to  leave  him 
aJone  also.  The  base  of  the  mountain  was  a  day's  march 
distant  over  the  glacier,  and  the  difficulties  offered  by  the 
final  peak  were  such  as  would  require  a  strong  party  of  step- 
cutters  to  overcome,  if  they  were  not  altogether  insuper- 
able. No  help  could  be  expected  from  any  of  our  native 
companions,  and  we  .did  not  vdsh  to  mar  the  success  of  our 
journey  by  undertaking  an  expedition  leading  to  almost 
certain  failure.  The  second  and  third  summits  in  the 
Caucasus  and  Europe  are,  therefore,  still  not  only  unsealed 
but  unattempted  peaks.  We  strongly  advise  any  moun- 
taineer who  may  think  of  assaulting  them,  to  go  first  to 
the  Bezeenghe  valley  and  inspect  their  western  flanks, 
which  may  possibly  prove  less  formidable  than  the  defences 
on  this  side.  Having  decided  that  our  best  plan  was  to 
cross  the  Stuleveesk  Pass  while  the  fine  weather  lasted, 
we  returned  rapidly  to  our  camp,  where  we  found  Paul 
and  the  horsemen  getting  on  very  well  together.  During 
our  absence  a  hunter  had  brought  a  bouquetin,  of  which 
Paul  had  bought  a  portion,  which  he  was  busily  preparing 
for  our  dinner.  His  companions  had  got  a  lamb  from  the 
shepherds,  and  were  also  making  ready  a  feast  after  their 
ovm  fashion.  Paul's  exertions  produced  a  capital  meal, 
and,  cheered  by  the  fineness  of  the  evening,  we  looked 
forward  with  pleasure  to  the  pass  to  be  accomplished  next 
day. 

August  18^A. — ^When  the  time  came  for  arranging  the 
baggage  for  a  start,  a  very  unexpected  difficulty  arose  with 


414  THE  TCHEBEK  VALLEY. 

our  men,  who  declared  that  the  horses  were  overloaded,  and 
<v>iild  not  p^issibly  carry  the  baggage  over  the  monntain 
unless  their  masters  received  higher  pa  v.  While  declining 
to  accede  to  their  demand,  we  pointed  out  that  we  should 
all  walk  the  greater  part  of  the  way,  and  that  the  baggage 
might  be  subdivided,  as  our  two  men  would  be  perfectly 
content  to  have  one  horse  between  them*  By  this  means, 
after  a  vexations  amount  of  palaver  and  delay,  the  question 
was  settled,  and  we  set  out  up  the  eastern  branch  of  the 
Tcherek.  AJter  passing  over  the  level  meadows,  and  the 
Btony  bed  of  a  stream  flowing  fix,m  the  glaxjier  of  an  un- 
pronounceable  peak  which  rises  g^randly  on  the  left,  the 
path  climbs  a  gentle  ascent,  whence  the  tops  of  both  Dych- 
tau  and  Eoschtantan  are  for  a  moment  visible  together, 
and  then  finds  itself  in  another  plain,  apparently  an  old 
lake-bed.  A  strong  iron-spring  bursts  out  under  the  hill- 
side, and  colours  half  the  plain  with  a  bright-red  deposit. 

On  the  opposite  side  of  the  lightly-wooded  glen,  a  large 
glacier  ponrs  over  the  cliffs,  descending  from  the  same 
snowfields  which  feed  the  infant  Bion  on  the  southern 
side.  The  termination  of  the  glacier  is  most  peculiar  and 
picturesque.  The  frozen  flood  descends  in  one  great 
sheet,  until  it  reaches  the  edge  of  the  line  of  cliffs  im- 
mediately over  the  valley,  and  then  separates  into  two  por- 
tions ;  the  larger  pours  down  in  an  icefall,  broken  into 
the  usual  minarets  and  towers ;  the  other  keeps  a  course 
parallel  to  the  river,  along  the  top  of  the  cliffs,  until  it 
finds  a  curious  cleft,  into  which  it  plunges,  and  shoots 
forth  a  long  tongue  of  ice.  Mineral  waters,  fine  air,  and 
mountain  excursions  are  aU  ready  prepared,  and  some  day 
perhaps  a  comfortable  bathing  establishment  may  make  this 
spot  a  centre  for  mountain  explorers. 

The  main  stream  finds  its  way,  both  in  and  out  of  this 
basin,  through  deep  clefts,  and  the  path  makes  a  rough 


THE   GUARDIANS   OP  THE   FLOCKS.  415 

climb  along  the  hillside.  Tucker's  horse  here  stumbled  over 
some  rocks,  and,  but  for  the  rider's  quickness  in  getting 
clear  of  the  animal,  he  might  have  had  his  leg  crushed  and 
been  seriously  hurt.  Happily,  he  escaped  with  a  cut  knee 
and  a  severe  shaking.  The  course  of  the  upper  glen  was 
now  nearly  due  east  and  west;  the  birch-wood  gradually 
ceased  altogether,  and  the  ridge  of  the  Stuleveesk  Pass 
closed  the  view  in  the  distance.  On  the  hillside  numerous 
flocks  and  herds  were  feeding,  and  we  passed  the  quarters  of 
the  shepherds,  who,  as  usual  in  this  country,  content'them- 
selves  with  a  temporary  shelter  built  up  of  a  few  branches 
covered  with  sheepskins.  On  our  right  a  steep  broken 
slope  supported  the  glaciers  of  the  main  chain,  far  less 
precipitous  in  this  portion  than  further  west  or  east;  it  is 
here  that  the  known  pass  to  the  Bion  valley  crosses  the 
mountains.  We  met  two  of  the  guardians  of  the  district : 
one,  an  old  gentleman,  who  looked  as  if  he  ought  to  have 
retired  from  active  service,  irritated  us  by  descanting  to 
our  horsemen  on  the  difficulties  before  them,  and  the  im- 
possibility of  getting  horses  over  the  snow,  except  in  the 
early  morning  while  the  surface  was  still  frozen. 

In  the  teeth  of  such  remonstrances,  we  had  some  diffi- 
culty in  persuading  our  men,  always  on  the  look-out  for  an 
excuse  for  halting,  to  go  on,  and  when  we  finally  suc- 
ceeded, the  old  guardian  and  his  companion  came  with  us, 
to  give  their  aid  in  the  perils  they  declared  we  must 
inevitably  enconnter.  The  head  of  the  eastern  Tcherek 
is  a  wide  pasturage,  into  which  pour  streams  both 
from  the  central  chain  and  from  the  recesses  of  the 
northern  range,  the  summits  of  which  are  exceedingly 
bold  rock-peaks,  lofty  enough  to  support  a  considerable 
amount  of  snow  and  ice.  The  highest  source  issues 
from  a  mass  of  old  avalanche  debris,  covering  the  end 
of  a   small  glacier  fSalling  from  the   upper  snowfields. 


416  THE  TCHEBEK   VALLET. 

The  final  climb  to  the  pass  is  very  steep  for  horses  ;  it  ha« 
been  rendered  easier  in  places  by  the  construction  of  a 
zigzag  pathy  but  near  ttie  top  the  snow  entirely  covers  the 
surface.  It  was  satisfactory  to  find  that  the  old  native's 
alarm  was  unfounded,  and  that,  as  we  expected,  the  snow 
had  only  melted  sufficiently  to  give  the  horses  firm 
foothold. 

We  had  hurried  on,  to  secure  a  clear  view  from  the 
pass  before  midday  clouds  blew  up  and  obscured  any  of 
the  summits.  The  actual  ridge  is  a  thin  and  steep  comb 
of  rock,  probably  about  10,000  feet  in  height.  The  views 
firom  it  are  superb,  and  we  were  exceptionally  fortunate  in 
seeing  them  almost  unclouded.  Looking  back  from  our  pre- 
sent position,  we  commanded  the  whole  eastern  face  of  the 
group  of  the  Central  Caucasus,  as  I  have  before  designated 
the  great  cluster  of  granite  peaks,  of  which  Eoschtantau 
appears  to  be  the  highest.  On  the  left,  the  steep  peak  we 
had  previously  identified  as  the  Nuamquam,  which  looks 
down  on  Jibiani  on  the  southern  side  of  the  chain,  was  seen 
above  the  snowy  head  of  another  eminence,  rising  out  of 
the  snowfields  of  the  ^eat  glacier  we  had  noticed  in  the 
morning.  Connected  with  the  Nuamquam  by  a  long  snowy 
curtain  was  the  massive,  but  yet  graceful,  pile  of  crag  and 
ice  constituting  Koschtantau.  The  day  before  we  had  only 
seen  one  end  of  the  magnificent  mass ;  the  fuller  view  we 
now  obtained  of  its  rocky  buttresses,  fretted  icefalls,  and 
high-pitched  slopes,  fully  confirmed  us  in  the  wisdom  of 
our  decision,  to  leave  this  triumph  of  mountain  architecture 
alone  in  its  glory. 

At  the  northern  foot  of  the  mountain,  at  the  head 
of  the  Dychsu  glacier,  a  comparatively  low  gap  leads 
somewhere — ^it  would  be  most  interesting  to  discover 
whither.  An  explorer  would  probably  be  able  to  de- 
scend from  it  into  the  Bezeenghe  valley.     On  the  right 


r^^BB^^^^"5- 


THE  STULEVEESK  PASS.  417 

of  this  break  in  the  chain  stand  two  rocky  giants,  the 
northern  unquestionably  the  Dychtau  of  the  map,  a 
terrifically  steep-sided  peak,  with  a  glacier  flowing  in  a  deep 
trench  at  its  foot ;  the  other  a  nameless  summit,  certainly 
exceeding  16,000  feet  in  height,  and  too  precipitous  to 
bear  much  snow  or  ice.  While  admiring,  and  endeavour- 
ing to  carry  away  a  recollection  of,  the  noble  outline  of 
the  group  I  have  attempted  to  describe,  we  could  not  help 
regretting  that  sach  grand  mountains  •  should  have  been 
deprived  of  their  legitimate  honours  by  a  mere  volcanic 
accident  like  Elbruz.  In  Eoschtantau  and  Dychtau  the 
Caucasus  would  have  had  a  worthy  king  and  queen. 
Elbruz  is  at  best  a  bloated  monarch,  and  has  little  beyond 
size  to  recommend  him. 

Immediately  to  the  north  wa«  the  serrated  chain  which 
separates  the  upper  valleys  of  the  Tcherek  and  Uruch 
from  the  minor  glens,  the  streams  of  which  flow  inde- 
pendently to  the  plain,  between  the  two  rivers.  Looking 
east,  the  conspicuous  feature  of  the  near  view  was  a  pro- 
jecting summit  of  the  main  chain,  which  reached  a  greater 
vertical  elevation  in  less  lateral  space  than  most  mountains. 
It  rose  immediately  out  of  the  valley  in  a  series  of  precipices, 
separated  by  most  disproportionately  small  ledges,  and  I 
believe,  if  the  icy  cap  of  the  mountain  had  toppled  over, 
there  would  have  been  nothing  to  stop  its  fragments  until 
they  reached  the  bed  of  the  Uruch.  The  greater  portion 
of  the  Adai  Khokh  group  was  hidden  by  the  nearer  ranges ; 
beyond  some  of  its  northern  spurs,  two  or  three  distant 
snow-peaks  were  visible,  in  one  of  which  we  easily  recog- 
nised Kazbek. 

The  train  of  horses  followed  us  quickly  up  the  pass,  and 
when  they  rejoined  us  on  the  summit,  we  found  the  men 
in  high  good-humour  at  the  unexpected  easiness  of  their 
day's  work.     The  first  descent  on  the  eastern  side  was 

E  £ 


418  THE  TCIIEBEK  VALLET. 

down  steep  frozen  banks,  where  the  horses,  owing  to  the 
perfect  condition  of  the  snow,  and  their  own  experience  in 
snch  work,  found  no  difficulty,  and  the  assistance  of  the 
timorous  old  gentleman  was  scarcely  needed.  On  reaching 
the  first  grass,  we  satisfied  his  claims,  and  bade  him  and 
his  companion  farewell.  There  was  very  little  track  to 
guide  us  on  this  side  of  the  mountain,  and  the  horsemen  did 
not  seem  well  acquainted  with  the  way;  so  that  when, 
after  following  a  little  stream  amongst  rich  pasturages,  we 
emerged  from  its  glen,  on  the  verge  of  a  steep  descent  leadr 
ing  into  the  trough  of  the  Uruch,  we  found  ourselves  too 
much  to  the  left,  and  the  horses  had  to  make  a  slight  cir- 
cuit to  reach  the  valley.  The  source  of  the  Uruch  is  in  a 
moderate-sized  glacier,  chiefly  noteworthy  for  the  streak? 
of  red  'snow  that  lay  on  its  central  portion ;  a  pass  may 
probably  be  found  over  it  to  the  Rion  valley. 

We  now  ran  down  a  rocky  slope,  with  the  precipitous 
peak  we  had  seen  from  the  pa«i  immediately  opposite.  In 
this  case  nearer  approach  did  not  diminish  the  grand 
effect  of  its  cliffs,  and  we  agreed  that  it  deserved  to  rank 
among  the  sensational  features  of  the  Caucasus.  With  such 
an  object  in  view,  the  scenery  could  not  be  dull,  but,  putting 
aside  the  surrounding  mountains,  there  was  little  to  attract 
notice  in  the  long  flat  glen  through  which  the  Uruch  runs 
quietly  for  a  while  before  it  plunges  downward  through  the 
ravines  we  were  to  traverse  on  the  morrow.  The  torrent 
had  made  the  level  ground  a  museum  for  specimens  of  the 
rocks  of  the  main  chain,  brought  dowii  by  its  parent  glacier. 
Further  on  we  came  to  a  stretch  of  herbage,  where  numer* 
ous  springs  burst  out  of  the  ground  at  every  step,  frequently 
converting  the  path  into  a  watercourse.  At  a  point  marked 
'  Kut '  in  the  map,  a  stream  from  the  northern  range,  the 
peaks  of  which  are  almost  dolomitic  in  the  fantastic  bold- 
ness of  their  forms,  makes  a  graceful  leap  over  a  wall  of 


Ksmft 


A   QUEER   HOST.  410 

crag  before  joining  the  Uruch.  Here  we  saw  traces  of 
human  habitations,  and  a  group  of  peasants,  in  quaint-; 
shaped  wideawakes,  employed  in  haymaking. 

Having  been  on  the  road  for  ten  hours,  we  thought  it  was 
time  to  stop,  and  instructed  Paul  to  make  enquiries  of  the 
natives,  and  find  out  if  they  were  disposed  to  allow  us  to 
take  up  quarters  for  the  night  in  the  half-underground  hut 
we  noticed  close  by.  The  chief  man  among  the  peasants, 
who  talked  a  dialect  Paul  had  the  greatest  difficulty  in 
comprehending,  did  not  at  first  sight  impress  us  favourably. 
His  expression  of  countenance  strongly  resembled  the 
masks  worn  by  country  bumpkins  in  a  burlesque,  and  his 
comical,  not  to  say  idiotic,  appearance  was  heightened  by 
a  quaint  bell-shaped  wideawake  considerably  the  worse 
for  wear.  At  first  there  seemed  some  question  whether  a 
welcome  would  be  oflFered  us,  but  any  difficulty  was  soon 
removed,  and  we  proceeded  together  through  the  hayfield, 
by  the  wall  of  which  the  parley  had  been  held,  to  the  door 
of  the  hut.  Being  built  against  a  steep  slope,  part  of  it 
was  underground,  while  the  front  projected  from  the  hill- 
side. The  back  was  occupied  by  an  extensive  but  gloomy 
stable,  which  was  entered  through  a  perfectly  clean  cham- 
ber, where  our  men  passed  the  night ;  as  the  weather  was 
fine,  we  preferred  to  pitch  our  tent  outside.  The  pig-faced 
peasant,  against  whom  we  had  at  first  sight  conceived  such 
an  unjust  prejudice,  turned  out  a  capital  fellow.  He  brought 
us  not  only  firesh  milk,  but  a  peculiar  species  of  liquor, 
something  between  publichouse  beer  and  sour  cider,  for 
which  we  expressed  the  greatest  admiration,  taking  care 
at  the  same  time  privately  to  empty  out  the  vessel  con- 
taining it,  on  the  first  opportunity. 

This  was  the  fifteenth  and  last  occasion  that  we  slept 
under  canvas  in  the  Caucasus,  and  as  Eastern  travellers 
commonly  base  their  ideas  of  tents  on  the  spacious  pavi- 

S  K  2 


450  THE   TCHEREK   VALLEY. 

lions  i*aised  for  their  accommodation  by  Syrian  dragomen, 
I  may  take  this  opportunity  of  describing  the  little  struc- 
ture for  which,  owing  to  the  satisfactory  manner  in  which  it 
had  protected  us  from  cold,  wind,  and  rain,  we  had  by  this 
time  acquired  quite  an  affection.  The  framework  consisted 
of  two  pairs  of  poles,  jointed  for  convenience  like  a  fishing- 
rod,  and  stoutly  shod  with  iron  spikes.  A  single  rope,  form- 
ing the  ridge  of  the  tent,  was  passed  over  the  fork  of  either 
pair,  and  attached  at  both  ends  as  tightly  as  possible  to  the 
ground,  by  pegs  or  boulders.  By  this  means,  and  by 
forcing  apart  the  spikes  of  the  poles,  the  canvas  which  was 
attached  to  them  was  stretched  taut  in  every  direction. 
I  may  add  that  the  flap  serving  as  a  door  could  be  securely 
tied  across  the  entrance,  and  that  the  floor  formed  one 
piece  with  the  sides,  so  that  the  weight  of  our  bodies 
served  as  an  additional  safeguard  against  the  risk  of  being 
blown  over  during  the  night.  The  internal  arrangements 
were  of  a  simple  character.  Having  first  fastened  in  a 
second  waterproof  floor,  we  spread  out  our  light  mattrass, 
bought  at  Erivan,  laying  it  across  the  tent.  The  founda- 
tion of  our  pillows  consisted  of  our  thick  boots ;  upon  these 
we  laid  our  revolvers  and  cartridge-pouch,  crowning  the 
edifice  with  a  coat  or  mackintosh.  All  being  then  ready, 
we  took  up  our  respective  positions  ;  the  dimensions  of  our 
snuggery  were  six  feet  square,  so  that  no  one  could  be 
restless  at  night  without  rousing  his  neighbours,  but  we 
found  practically  that  each  had  sufficient  room  to  sleep 
comfortably. 

When  the  hour  of  our  evening  meal  arrived,  we  ate  our 
food  seated  tailor-fashion  in  a  row  on  the  mattrass,  Paul 
pushing  in  to  us,  from  the  entrance  at  the  other  end,  the 
various  viands,  tempting  or  the  reverse,  which  he  had  pre- 
pared. The  cooking  was  accomplished  by  means  of  a 
portable  apparatus  brought  from  England,  combining,  in  a 


.    OUE   DAILY   LIFE.  4'>1 

comparatively  small  compass,  two  saucepans,  a  fryingpan,  a 
tripod,  a  Russian  furnace,  and  a  drinking-cup.  Our  standing 
dish  as  far  as  Uruspieh,  at  which  point  our  store  became 
exhausted,  was  soup  made  from  the  essence  of  beef- tea 
procurable  in  London,  and  Liebig's  ^  Extractum  Camis,' 
which,  combined  in  nearly  equal  proportions,  and  with  the 
addition  of  a  tablet  of  Chollet's  *  Compressed  Vegetables,' 
produce  a  very  palatable  and  supporting  beverage.  Dinner 
finished,  we  pushed  out  the  plates  and  cups  that  had  served 
our  turn,  cleared,  our  pockets  of  heavy  articles,  such  as 
aneroid  barometers,  compasses,  and  pocket-knives,  that 
might  otherwise  have  disturbed  our  rest,  and,  wrapped  in 
our  respective  rugs,  resigned  ourselves  to  such  slumber 
as  the  state  of  our  consciences^  or  of  our  digestions,  would 
allow. 


422  THE   URUCH   VALLEY. 


CHAPTER  Xm. 

THE   UBUCH   VALLET  AND   BETUBK  TO   TIFLI8. 

'  Wooded  Defiled— Styr  Digor— A  Halt— We  Meet  a  Cossack-— A  Rain- 
storm— Zadelesk — The  Gate  of  the  Moiutains — Across  the  Hills  and 
Through  the  .  Forest — I'ugano^a — lloTO-Christianskj — A  Christian 
Welcome — A  Wet  Ride — ArdoDsk— A  Breakdown  on  the  Steppe — Vladi- 

-  kafkaz — A  Diligence  DriTe— The  Dariel  Gorge- Return  to  Tiflis — 
Reflections  on  the  Caucasian  Chain — Its  Scenery  and  Lihabitants — 
Comparison  with-the  Alps — Hints  for  Travellers. 

August  19th. — The  morning  was  cloudless^  and  we  were 
fully  prepared  to  enjoy  our  day's  journey  down  the  valley 
of  the  TJruch,  the  scenery  of  which,  running  parallel,  as  it 
does,  to  the  central  chain  for  many  miles,  must,  we  believed, 
prove  in  the  highest  degree  interesting.  We  had  to  ex- 
perience a  fresh  illustration  of  the  perversity  of  the  Cau- 
casian nature  before  starting,  and  the  result  of  the  trifling 
concession  we  had  made  on  the  previous  day  showed  the 
inexpedience  of  yielding  any  point  in  dispute  with  these 
unmanageable  mountaineers*  Paul  and  Fran9ois  having 
walked  by  turns  over  the  pass,  the  horsemen  now  required 
that  they  should  be  content  with  one  horse  between  them, 
while  the  men  themselves  rode.  Wishing  to  push  on  as 
far  as  possible  during  the  day,  and  knowing  well  that  the 
fi.Tn'Tnfi.lH  were  not  overladen,  we  refused  to  start  until  the 
ridiculous  proposal  was  withdrawn.  The  promise  of  our 
entertainer  that,  in  case  of  need,  he  would  find  horses, 
enabled  us  to  take  rather  a  high  line.  After  a  warm 
debate — in  which  the  feelings  of  one  of  our  horsemen 


WOODED   DEFILES.  423 

became  bo  intense  that,  unable  to  express  them  by  words, 
or  even  by  the  remarkable  grunt  in  the  emission  of  which 
he  was  so  proficient,  he  gave  point  to  his  remarks  by 
demonstrations  with  his  dagger — they  wisely  succumbed, 
and  we  became  as  good  friends  as  ever. 

On  parting,  the  chief  of  the  hay-cutters  requested  us  to 
take  the  side  of  his  village  in  a  disputed  claim  as  to 
pasturages,  which  the  local  chiefs  had  been  xmable  to 
settle,  and  was  likely  to  come  under  Bussian  arbitration. 
Following  the  custom  of  the  country,  we  promised  to  do 
anything  in  our  power,  and,  after  an  affectionate  hand^ 
shaking,  set  off  for  our  day's  ride  with  our  no  longer 
refractory  though  somewhat  sulky  attendants.  For  some 
distance  below  the  hut^  the  Uruch  continues  to  flow 
through  level  and  marshy  meadows.  The  frequent  water- 
channels  were  serious  impediments  to  our  progress,  as  the 
mud  in  them  was  often  deep,  and  leaping  is  not  a  part  of 
the  education  of  a  Caucasian  horse.  Our  baggage-mule, 
a  plucky  little  animal,  whose  performance  on  the  pass  had 
Won  our  admiration,  now  stuck  hopelessly  in  the  mud,  and 
had  to  be  unloaded,  an  incident  which  recalled,  to  Tucker 
and  myself,  some  of  our  Syrian  misadventures.  When 
the  river  does  begin  to  descend,  it  does  so  with  a  will^  and 
the  path  is  obliged  to  have  recourse  to  very  steep  zigzags, 
in  order  to  keep  pace  with  it. 

A  description  in  detail  of  the  constantly-shifbing  fea- 
tures of  the  landscape  for  the  next  few  miles  would  be 
wearisome,  and  give  little  idea  of  the  beauty  of  the 
scenery.  The  path,  always  at  a  considerable  height,  on 
the  left  side  of  the  valley,  carried  us  by  an  alternation  of 
terraces  and  rapid  descents  through  a  succession  of  defiles, 
adorned  by  fine  fir-forests,  enlivened  by  pretiy  water&Jls, 
and  overhung  on  the  right  by  noble  snowy  ranges.  On 
two  grassy  knoUs,  high  on  either  side  of  the  stream^ 


424  THE   URUCH   VALLEY. 

were  groups  of  the  lialf-Tindergroiind  huts,  that  here  fill 
tlie  place  of  ch&lets,  and  numbers  of  their  occupants  were 
haymaking  in  the  adjoining  meadows. 

The  dwellers  on  the  Upper  XJruch,  known  to  the  old 
writers  on  the  country  as  *  Digors,'  are,  as  far  as  we  saw, 
the  best  specimens  of  Eastern  Christianity  in  the  country. 
We  understood,  at  the  time,  that  they  were  a  branch  of  the 
Ossete  tribe,  whose  territory  they  border  on  the  east,  but 
the  latest  authors  seem  to  class  them,  with  the  people  of 
Balkar  and  Uruspieh,  as  a  Tartar  race. .  A  conical-shaped 
wooded  eminence  closed  the  view  of  one  of  the  bends  in 
the  defile,  and  formed  an  admirable  foreground  to. the 
peaks  of  the  main  chain.     On  reaching  its  foot,  where  the 
path  abandoned  the  hUlsides,  and  returned  to  the  bank  of 
the  torrent,  we  found  ourselves  in  a  region  of  richer  and 
more  varied  foliage,  and  constantly  admired  the  contrast 
between  the  bright  green  of  the  lower  slopes  and  the  white 
shimmer  of  the  peaks  that  overlooked  them. 

Leaving  behind  us  the  conical  hill,  we  emerged  into  an. 
open  valley,  and  a  basin  surrounded  by  a  semicircular 
range  of  precipices  opened  on  the  right.  Several  glaciers 
spread  their  icy  skirts  to  the  edge  of  the  cliffs,. over  which 
streams  tumbled  in  picturesque  cascades ;  ^hile,  crowning 
all,  snow-peaks,  of  the  inaccessible  order  of  mountain 
architecture  which  might  fairly  be  called  Caucasian,  lifted 
their  bold  heads  against  the  sky.  It  was  a  scene  similar 
to  the  cirque  of  the  Diablerets,  but  on  a  far  grander  scale. 
We  rode  across  the  rich  and  well-watered  meadows  on 
the  left  bank  of  the  TTruch,  until,  under  the  shade  of  a 
picturesque  group  of  chesnut  and  lime-trees,  we  halted, 
to  wait  for  our  horsemen.  When  they  rejoined  us,  we 
continued  our  journey,  and,  leaving  the  first  hamlet  of 
the  valley  on  our  left,  passed  through  cornfields,  almost 
rjpe  for   the  sickle^  either  carefully  fenced  in,  or  only 


A   POOR   HAMLET.  425 

guarded  by  a  few  stakes,  according  to  the  character  of  the 
owner. 

Styr  Digor,  where  we  intended  to  make  our  midday 
halt,  is  the  principal  place  in  the  valley ;  but  our  horsemen, 
for  some  reason  we  were  unable  to  comprehend,  had  made 
up  their  minds  to  go  on  to  a  comparatively  small  hamlet, 
an  hour's  ride  further  down.  The  backward  view  of  the 
semicircle  of  ice-clad  peaks  and  the  rich  pastoral  fore^ 
ground  was  very  fine.  At  the  hamlet  of  Moska,  we  found 
only  an  old  woman,  who  had  nothing  to  offer  us  but  eggs, 
and  even  these  she  had  some  difficulty  in  collecting,  as  her 
hens  had  apparently  mislaid  them.  After  a  shorter  halt 
than  usual,  and  having  exchanged  salutations  with  a  priest 
in  the  orthodox  clerical  attire  of  a  long  sack-shaped  coat 
and  soft  felt  wideawake,  we  rode  down  the  valley,  anxious 
to  get  as  far  as  possible  on  the  road  before  nightfalL 
During  our  halt  the  beauty  of  the  day  had  departed,  and 
the  clouds  had  rapidly  swept  up  over  the  range,  threaten^ 
ing  rain,  which  began  to  faU  slowly  later  in  the  afternoon. 
The  path  again  descended  to  the  banks  of  the  IJruch,  and 
the  glen  of  its  first  considerable  tributary,  the  Karagam, 
opened  on  the  right.  We  looked  out  eagerly  towards  its 
head  for  the  great  glacier  by  the  side  of  which  we  had 
bivouacked  a  month  ago,  when  we  had  crossed  the  main 
chain  from  the  valley  of  the  Eion.  The  glen  was  longer 
than  we  anticipated,  and  nothing  could  be  seen  except  the 
snout  of  the  ice-stream  on  the  upper  portion  of  which  we 
had  spent  so  many  hours. 

The  valley  of  the  IJruch,  having  run  thus  far  east  and 
west,  or  nearly  parallel  to  the  chain,  turns  sharply  to  the 
north,  and  the  scenery  becomes  less  interesting,  though  the 
rich  woods  and  broken  crags  of  the  continuous  defile 
through  which  the  river  flows  would  attract  the  admira- 
tion of  travellers  in  any  region  less  richly  gifted  with 


426  THE   URUCII   VALLEY. 

mountain  beauties  than  that  we  were  now  traversing. 
The  road,  still  keeping  the  same  course  on  the  left  bank, 
and  now  wide  enough  for  the  passage  of  carts,  is  shaded  by 
dense  thickets  of  hazels. 

We  were  jogging  along  quietly,  when  we  encountered  a 
man  in  the  ordinary  Caucasian  costume,  but  with  a  mili- 
tary air,  which  distinguished  him  from  the  common  native. 
He  stopped  to  speak  to  us,  and,  Paul  being  summoned  to 
our  aid,  we  learned  that  he  was  a  Cossack  in  the  Russian 
service,  sent  by  the  Commandant  of  Ardonsk,  who  had 
received  his  instructions  from  General  Loris-Melikov  to 
aid  us  in  our  journey.  He  was  now  on  his  second  trip  to 
Digor ;  having  been  previously  unsuccessful  in  finding  us, 
he  had  returned  to  headquarters  only  to  be  sent  back 
again,  with  instructions  to  wait  till  our  arrival — a  piece  of 
unlooked-for  attention  on  the  part  of  the  Russian  authori- 
ties, for  which  we  felt  the  more  grateful,  as  our  horsemen 
had  lately  shown  signs  of  renewed  insubordination.  The 
readiness  to  assist  us,  and  appreciation  of  the  real  object 
of  our  journey,  shown  by  the  officials  on  the  northern 
side  of  the  Caucasus^  was  very  gratifying,  and  our  best 
thanks  are  due  to  General  Loris-Melikov  and  his  subordi- 
nates for  the  aid  they  so  kindly  gave  us. 

We  soon  passed  a  considerable  village,  and  following  for 
many  miles  a  terrace-path,  along  steep  hillsides,  always 
green  and  picturesquely  broken,  approached  the  point 
where  the  Uruch  turns  due  north,  to  fight  its  way  through 
the  limestone  range  which  fianks  the  central  chain. 
Having  first  passed  the  main  stream  by  a  lofty  bridge,  we 
crossed  an  extremely  narrow  cleft,  from  which  a  large 
eastern  affluent  issues.  The  heavy  clouds  and  drizzling 
rain,  combined  with  the  bare  character  of  the  scenery,  the 
frequent  apparitions  of  tall  tombstones  by  the  wayside, 
and  the  tumbledown,  and  in  many  cases  ruinous,  state  of 


ZADELESK.  427 

the  towers  and  groups  of  farmhouses  which  dotted  the 
slopes,  were  in  dismal  contrast  to  the  visions  of  beauty 
and  unclouded  sky  which  had  made  the  earlier  hours  of 
the  day  so  enjoyable.  The  path  first  mounted  steeply,  and 
then  wound  at  a  level  round  the  ravines  and  promontories 
into  which  the  hillside  was  worn  by  the  action  of  time 
and  weather.  Occasionally,  we  passed  a  patch  of  corn- 
land,  but  the  ground  was  generally  stony  and  unculti- 
vated, and  there  was  no  shelter  of  any  kind  from  the  fury 
of  a  tremendous  storm  of  wind  and  rain  which  attacked 
us  at  this  moment. 

For  the  last  hour  of  our  journey  we  were  exposed  to  a 
perfect  waterspout;  the  growing  darkness  added  to  the 
difficulty  of  guiding  our  horses  against  the  storm,  and  we 
were  glad  when  the  stone-houses  of  Zadelesk,  which  the 
Ck)ssack  had  pointed  out  to  us,  some  time  before,  as  the 
best  halting-place  for  the  night,  were  safely  reached. 
The  Cossack  was  now  of  the  greatest  use ;  he  took  the 
arrangement  of  our  sleeping-quaxters  into  his  own  hands, 
and  we  were  soon  invited  to  remove  from  the  comfortless 
hovel,  in  which  we  had  taken  refuge,  to  a  snug  little 
room,  where  mattrasses  were  found  for  us,  and  we  passed 
a  very  comfortable  night.  The  day's  ride  had  been  long ; 
with  only  short  halts,  we  had  been  on  the  road  for  fully 
eleven  hours. 

August  20th. — ^To  our  surprise,  after  the  storm  of  the 
previous  night,  the  morning  was  calm  and  clear.  The 
position  of  Zadelesk  is  very  curious ;  perched  on  a  high 
brow  at  least  1,000  feet  above  the  Uruch,  it  is  separated 
from  the  villages  on  the  opposite  side,  which  are  compa- 
ratively close  as  the  crow  fiies,  by  a  tedious  climb  of 
several  hours.  The  trough  through  which  the  river  flows 
is  too  narrow  to  be  inhabited^  and  the  hamlets  are  perched, 
like  swallows'  nests,  halfway  up  the  steep  mountain-walls. 


428  THE  UKUCH   VALLKY. 

Having  paid  for  our  accommodation,  we  started  for  the 
last  day's  journey  over  the  Caucasian  by-roads.  The 
whole  valley  of  the  TJruch,  from  Moska  downwards,  is  so 
narrow  as  to  merit  the  title  of  a  gorge  ;  but  the  principal 
defile,  where  the  river  and  the  mountains  meet  for  a  final 
struggle,  commences  a  little  more  than  a  mile  below 
Zadelesk.  A  meadow  shaded  by  some  fine  walnut-trees, 
and  enlivened,  when  we  passed,  by  a  large  herd  of  cattle, 
iiffords  a  pleasant  resting-place  for  those  who  have  won  a 
way  from  the  plains  through  the  long  gorge,  and  thence 
a  glimpse  may  be  caught  of  the  shining  tablelands  and 
snowy  summits  at  the  head  of  the  Karagam  glacier. 
Immediately  behind  the  meadow  towered  a  splintered 
comb  of  rock,  with  a  deep  fissure  cut  down  into  it,  the 
subject  of  a  legend,  in  which  the  Devil,  as  usual,  plays  the 
chief  part.  The  path  winds  round  the  side  of  this  spur, 
and  though  kept  in  careful  repair,  and  nowhere  difficult  for 
horses,  the  precipices  below  us,  on  our  left,  were  so  startling 
that  we  preferred  walking,  to  running  any  risk  from  a 
chance  slip  of  one  of  the  animals. 

Fairly  within  the  jaws  of  the  mountain,  we  sometimes 
had  to  descend  into  a  lateral  cleft,  at  others  to  climb  over 
rocky  teeth,  until  we  came  to  a  spot  where,  the  roadmakers 
having  apparently  given  up  as  hopeless  the  task  of  pene- 
trating deeper  into  the  gorge,  the  path  began  to  zigzag 
steadily  upwards.  The  Uruch  could  be  seen  only  from 
time  to  time,  fretting  and  foaming  between  the  narrow 
walls  of  its  prison.  On  its  opposite  side  the  range  rose  in 
stupendous  limestone  cliflFs  fringed  with  firs,  mingled  with 
a  variety  of  deciduous  trees.  As  we  mounted  higher,  more 
summits  of  the  snowy  chain  behind  us  came  into  sight, 
but  the  converging  clififs  of  the  defile  still  cut  oflF  all  view 
towards  the  north.     A  long  and  hot  ascent  brought  us  to 


THE   GATE   OF  THE  MOUNTAINS.  429 

a  brow  crowned  by  one  of  the  usual  tall  Mahommedan 
tombstones,  capped  by  a  stone-wrought  turban. 

Although  expecting  to  see  from  this  point  something 
of  our  onward  com^se,  we  were  quite  unprepared  for  the 
unique  beauty  of  the  landscape  which  was  suddenly  spread 
before  our  eyes.  Standing,  as  it  were,  in  the  gate  of  the 
mountains,  at  a  height  of  probably  not  less  than  3,000 
feet  above  the  level  of  the  Uruch,  we  looked  out  over  the 
low  country  which  lies  to  the  north.  A  broad  hilly  district, 
clothed  in  the  densest  primeval  forest,  here  separates  the 
mountains  and  the  steppe.  In  the  clearings,  few  and  far 
between,  a  thin  wreath  of  smoke  revealed  the  existence  of 
human  dwellings ;  but  the  country  seemed  very  little  re- 
moved from  a  state  of  nature,  to  the  continuation  of  which 
the  insecuriiy  and  lawlessness,  consequent  on  its  position 
as  a  border-ground  between  the  Bussian  postfi  on  the 
steppe  and  the  inhabitants  of  the  mountain  recesses 
has  chiefly  contributed.  The  immense  extent  of  undulating 
woodland  stretching  to  the  horizon,  and  the  rivers — which, 
unbridged  and  unconfined,  converting  their  immediate 
banks  into  swampy  jungles,  wander  like  bright  flashes  of 
light  across  the  green  landscape — convey  to  the  traveUer's 
mind  the  impression  of  a  rich  virgin  country,  such  as 
he  would  rather  expect  to  meet  with  in  the  New  World 
than  in  the  Caucasus,  the  supposed  cradle  of  his  race. 
We  remained  for  some  minutes  riveted  in  admiration  of 
the  scene,  and  unable  to  think  of  anything  within  our 
experience  of  more  civilised  countries  with  which  to  com- 
pare its  rich  yet  melancholy  effect.  In  this  extraordinary 
spot  we  bade  farewell  to  the  mountain  fastnesses  of  the 
Central  Caucasus,  and  it  would  have  been  di£5cult  to  quit 
that  no  longer  mysterious  region  by  an  exit  more  calculated 
to  leave  on  our  minds  imperishable  recollections  of  its 
sublimity. 


430  RETURN  TO  TIFLIS. 

Our  C!os8ack  told  us  that  in  the  old  days  a  native  ^ard 
was  stationed  on  the  knoll  where  we  were  seated,  to  protect 
passers-by  from  the  assaults  of  robbers,  who  were  wont  at 
times  to  leap  out  from  behind  the  rocks  on  their  victims, 
and  hurl  them  over  the  adjoining  precipices.  The  frequent 
tombstones  we  had  passed  are,  in  many  instances,  monu- 
ments to  these  unlucky  wayfarers.  The  path  now  turned 
sharply  to  the  east,  and  crossed  a  brow  where  the  limestone 
rock  cropped  out  on  the  surface,  and  was  strangely  split 
into  clefts  and  crannies,  which  caused  some  embarrass- 
ment to  the  horses.  Having  now  fairly  emerged  from  the 
gorgCj  we  for  a  time  turned  our  backs  on  the  TJrach,  and 
rode  across  a  steep  hillside,  until  we  reached  the  top  of  the 
low  ridge  forming  the  watershed  between  that  river  and  a 
number  of  streams  which  flow  down  through  densely- 
wooded  glens  to  join  the  Terek  further  east.  The  track 
somewhat  suddenly  entered  a  thick  forest  of  entirely  sub- 
alpine  character;  the  beech  was  the  principal  tree,  but 
there  was  a  great  variety  of  foliage,  and  the  usual  dense 
underwood  of  rhododendron  and  azalea,  some  of  the 
plants  of  the  latter  being  on  a  level  with  our  heads  as 
we  rode  between  thom. 

We  could  not,  however,  give  our  undivided  attention  to 
the  sylvan  attractions  of  the  scenery,  as  our  progress  was 
rendered  more  or  less  difficult  by  the  swampy  nature  of 
the  ground,  aggravated  by  the  late  rains,  and  by  the  low 
branches  which,  had  we  not  been  ruthlessly  cropped  by  a 
Patigorsk  barber,  would  have  threatened  us  with  the  &te 
of  Absalom.  The  weather  most  unluckily  again  turned 
bad;  rain  threatened,  but  held  off  till  afber  luncheon, 
which  we  enjoyed  on  a  freshly-mown  meadow.  The  path 
continued  to  follow  the  watershed,  and,  afber  riding  along 
the  bare  crest,  we  turned  sharply  down  a  spur  separating 
two  deep  but  narrow  glens,  and  again  entered  the  forest. 


NOVO-CHRISTIANSKY.  431 

At  the  same  time  the  rain  began  to  fall  in  torrents.  How 
we  all  safely  accomplished  the  next  two  lionrs'  ride  is  still 
a  mystery  to  me.  The  rain  was  blinding,  the  track  was  so 
deep  in  mire  as  to  be  in  places  almost  impassable,  the 
trunks  and  branches  put  us  in  constant  fear  of  concussion 
of  the  brain ;  yet,  holding  our  horses  in  hand  as  best  we 
could,  we  pushed  on  at  a  brisk  pace  headed  by  the  Cos- 
sack, who  occasionally  looked  round  with  an  air  of  surprise 
at  seeing  his  convoy  still  keeping  up.  At  last  we  emerged 
above  the  village  of  Tuganova,  built  at  the  foot  of  the 
hills  on  the  lefb  bank  of  a  stream  which,  issuing  from  a 
wooded  valley,  here  finds  its  way  to  the  plain. 

A  well-built  whitewashed  house,  with  verandahs,  was 
conspicuous  at  the  entrance  of  the  village ;  it  is  the 
residence  of  a  native  chief,  who  has  been  gratified  with  a 
military  rank  by  the  Bussians,  and  is  now  known  by  the 
imposing  title  of  General  Taganova.  He  is  a  Mahom- 
medan,  and  therefore  the  owner  of  several  wives,  some  of 
whom  we  admired  in  passing.  It  was  suggested  by  the 
Cossack  that  we  might  claim  the  General's  hospitality,  but 
as  he  also  warned  us  that,  should  the  rain  continue,  the 
stream  would  probably  be  impassable  next  morning,  we 
determined  to  prolong  our  day's  journey  to  Novo-Christi- 
ansky,  said  to  be  ten  miles  distant.  The  questionable 
stream,  a  very  rapid  one,  was  barely  fordable  now  ;  but  we 
managed  to  get  through  it  safely,  though  the  Cossack's 
horse  went  into  a  hole,  and  wetted  him  up  to  the  middle. 
The  wood  gradually  thinned,  until  it  ceased  altogether, 
and  we  found  ourselves  on  a  dismal  steppe,  only  relieved 
by  occasional  mounds  resembling  artificial  tumuli.  The 
ride,  on  a  pouring  afternoon,  was  gloomy  enough,  and 
twilight  was  deepening  apace,  when  we  caught  sight  of 
the  distant  church  of  Novo-Christiansky,  a  name  derived 
from  the  late  simultaneous  conversion  of  the  whole  village 


432  BETURN   TO   TIPLIS. 

to  the  Christian  creed — a,  change,  I  believe,  not  nncon- 
nected  with  a  remission  of  taxes.  The  low  houses  did  not 
couie  in  sight  for  some  time,  and  it  was  quite  dark  when 
we  rode  in  through  the  lanes  of  mud  which  serve  as 
streets. 

Our  Cossack  was  himself  a  native  of  this  village,  and 
directed  us  to  a  detached  building,  where  we  sat  in  an 
open  verandah,  in  damp  and  dismal  suspense,  while  he 
searched  for  the  key.  When  this  was  found  we  gained 
admission  to  a  village-shop,  behind  which  were  two  rooms 
barely,  though  for  the  country  pretentiously,  furnished. 
Having  been  on  the  road  all  day,  we  were  now  wet,  tired, 
and  hungry,  and  tried  to  get  a  fire,  a  mattrass  of  some 
sort  to  lie  on,  and  something  to  eat.  The  two  first  were 
not  forthcoming  at  all,  and  the  last  did  not  appear  for 
nearly  three  hours,  so  that  I  had  gone  fast  asleep  on  the 
boards  long  before  food  arrived,  and  did  not  care  to  rouse 
myself  to  partake  of  it.  The  wetness  of  the  night  was 
some  excuse  for  the  delay  in  supplying  our  wants,  and  the 
absence  of  anything  to  lie  on  was  probably  explained  by 
the  change  in  the  faith  of  the  villagers;  carpets  and 
cushions  being  apparently  creature-comforts  so  associated 
with  Mussulman  faifch  and  rule,  and  opposed  to  all  Russian 
ideas,  that  the  first  act  of  a  civilised  and  converted  popula- 
tion is  to  get  rid  of  all  such  property,  or,  at  any  rate,  to 
abstain  from  producing  it  for  the  benefit  of  strangers. 

August  21«i. — In  the  morning,  the  rain  was  still  falling 
as  heavily  as  ever,  and  our  horsemen  showed  a  strong  dis- 
inclination to  face  the  weather,  and  the  perils  by  water, 
which  they  believed  must  be  encountered  before  reaching 
Ardonsk.  We,  knowing  that  Vladikafkaz  was  distant 
only  a  short  day's  journey,  were  anxious  to  gain  it,  and 
felt  no  inducement  to  loiter  any  longer  than  was  necessary 
amongst  our  sluggish  entertainers  the  *  New  Christians.' 


ARDONSK.  433 

Little  can  be  written  about  the  miserable  fifteen  miles' 
ride  we  had  now  to  get  over.  The  rain  fell  in  torrents 
the  whole  time ;  we  had  to  ford  one  broad  and  swollen,  but 
fortunately  shallow,  stream,  and  to  wade  through  the 
heavy  mire  of  the  everywhere  flat  and  treeless  steppe.  At 
last  the  grove  which  shades  Ardonsk  appeared  in  the  dis- 
tance, and,  crossing  a  second  stream  by  a  bridge,  we 
entered  the  place,  which  consists  of  a  straggling  village  of 
farmhouses  and  cottages,  adjoining  a  military  station  laid 
out  by  mathematical  rules,  and  still  surrounded  by  the 
moat  and  ditch  which  were  once  requisite  for  its  protec- 
tion. The  impetuous  Paul,  rashly  emulating  the  feat  of 
Kemus,  attempted  to  force  his  horse  over  the  ruined  ram- 
part ;  but  the  animal  falling  backwards  on  the  slippery 

slope,  he  narrowly  escaped  an  awkward  tumble  as  a  pun- 
ishment for  his  temerity. 

Here  we  rejoined  the  highroad  once  more,  and  soon  dis- 
covered a  cottage  with  the  double-headed  eagle  over  the 
door,  pointing  it  out  as  the  post-station.  Being  wet 
through  and  plastered  with  mud,  we  made  our  condition 
an  excuse  for  remaining  at  the  station,  while  we  despatched 
the  Cossack  to  report  our  arrival,  and  ask  the  commandant 
if  any  carriage  with  a  hood  or  spring  was  to  be  obtained 
in  the  place.  The  answer  was,  that  no  such  luxury  was 
obtainable  at  any  price,  so  we  reconciled  ourselves  to  the 
thought  of  driving  the  twenty-five  miles  that  still  separated 
us  from  Yladikafkaz  in  the  common  open  carts.  We 
found  good  food  and  wine  at  the  posthouse,  the  master 
of  which  was  a  civil  Russian.  The  prospect  of  a  long 
drive  in  the  rain  made  us  look  with  envy  on  the  great 
sheepskin  ^  bourcas  *  worn  by  the  people  of  the  country, 
and  we  finally  concluded  a  bargain  for  two.  A  second 
diversion  was  afforded  by  the  passage  of  a  regiment  of 
Cossacks,  on  the  way  to  join  those  we  had  seen  guarding 

p  p 


/ 


434  RETURN   TO   TIFLIS. 

the  Persian  frontier  on  the  Araxes ;  both  the  men  and 
their  wiry  little  horses  looked  admirably  adapted  for  such 
duty,  but  ill-armed,  and  too  little  drilled  to  be  able  to 
maintain  an  equal  contest  with  European  cavalry. 

Before  starting  for  our  drive,  we  had  to  settle  matters 
with  onr  horsemen  and  the  Cossack ;  the  former  were  put 
in  high  good-humour  by  the  addition  of  a  small  gratuity 
to  the  sum  they  had  bargained  for,  and  became  enthu- 
siastic in  their  gratitude  when  we  granted  their  request  for 
one  of  our  photographs,  which  they  had  seen  at  Muchol. 
Despite  the  friendliness  of  our  parting,  we  could  not 
altogether  forget,  though  we  might  forgive,  their  be- 
haviour on  the  road  before  the  Cossack  joined  us,  and  we 
were  not  disposed  to  underrate  his  services  in  removing 
difficulties,  and  aiding  ns  in  pushing  on,  through  the 
weather  and  mud  of  the  last  two  days.  He,  too,  returned 
to  his  home  well  contented. 

The  chapter  of  accidents,  which  awaited  us  before 
reaching  our  destination,  began  with  our  very  start ;  the 
plank-bridge,  by  which  the  road — the  highway  of  com- 
munication bet  «7een  Russia  and  Trans-Caucasia — crosses 
a  ditch  in  the  street,  had  been  allowed  to  fall  to  decay, 
and  become  impassable  for  wheeled  vehicles.  Driving 
consequently  through  the  water,  our  wheels  stuck  in  the 
mud,  our  shaft-horse  refused  to  draw,  and,  despite  the 
blows  and  oaths  of  the  driver,  who,  up  to  his  waist  in 
water,  harangued  the  refractory  animals  by  turns,  we 
seemed  likely  to  remain  a  fixture.  By  the  aid  of  some 
bystanders,  who  vigorously  thrashed  the  shaft-horse,  the 
principal  offender,  over  the  head,  we  were  at  last  released, 
and  then,  despite  the  heaviness  of  the  track  across  the 
steppe,  which  is  nowhere  metalled,  made  a  good  pace  to 
Archonsk,  the  next  station,  crossing  on  the  way  several 
large  streams,  by  means  of  long  wooden  bridges.     In  fine 


A   BREAKDOWN   ON   THE   STEPPE.  435 

weather  the  views  of  the  snowy  chain  and  Kazbek  may 
make  this  drive  interesting,  but  when  these  are  hid, 
nothing  can  be  duller,  or  more  monotonous.  Archonsk  is 
a  decayed  military  post,  now  inhabited  chiefly  by  a  tribe 
of  lean  and  hungry  pigs. 

We  had  travelled  nearly  five  miles  beyond  it,  when  the 
wheel  of  one  of  our  *  telegas '  flew  off,  and  shivered  into 
atoms ;  the  *  rules  of  the  post '  prevented  our  extricating 
ourselves  from  the  dilemma,  by  jumping  into  a  return- 
cart,  which  actually  passed  us,  on  its  way  to  Vladikafkaz ; 
and  we  were  compelled,  after  sending  the  driver  of  the 
broken  vehicle  back  on  one  of  his  horses  to  fetch  another, 
to  take  Paul  into  our  cart,  and  leave  Pran9ois  in  the 
middle  of  the  steppe,  with  a  revolver  and  the  luggage,  to 
await  the  arrival  of  a  fresh  *  telega.'    The  rain  had  now 
ceased,  and  pursuing  a  gentle  but  steady  ascent,  at  a 
slow  pace,  we  gradually  left  the  verst-posts,  and  a  num- 
ber of  exceedingly  tipsy  Russian  soldiers,  behind,  and  at 
nightfall  entered  Vladikafkaz.      Long    rows    of  white- 
washed buildings,  used  apparently  as  barracks  and  go- 
vernment stores,   lined  either  side  of   the  road.      We 
thought  the  town  would  never  come  to  an  end,  when 
suddenly  our  horses'  hoofs  rang  on  macadam,  and  in 
another  minute,  we  were  crossing  our  old  friend,  the 
Terek,  by  a  handsome  stone-bridge,  built  by  an  English 
engineer. 

At  a  distance  of  a  few  himdred  yards,  on  the  opposite 
bank  of  the  river,  stands  the  posthouse,  a  large  and 
imposing  building,  which  serves  both  as  an  hotel,  and  as 
a  club  for  the  numerous  officers  stationed  at  Vladikafkaz, 
who,  at  the  moment  of  our  arrival,  were  giving  a  ball  to 
the  ladies  of  the  place.  Having  secured  good  rooms,  the 
best  dinner  they  could  give  us,  and  a  bottle  of  champagne, 
to  celebrate  the  conclusion   of  our  rambles   in  the  un- 

P  P  2 


4*10  KETUBX   TO   TIPLIS. 

frfjquented  byways  of  the  Caucasus,  we  waited,  with  a 
faith  not  dr*«tined  to  disapi>ointmeiit,  the  arrival  of  Fran- 
<;oiH  and  the  higgage. 

Av/fusi  22nd  to  24ih. — Vladikafkaz,  which  means,  in 
KuHsian,  the  Key  of  the  Caucasus — or  Terek  £[ala,  the 
Castle  on  the  Terek,  as  the  Ossetes  prefer  to  call  it — is  the 
c^intre  of  the  military  position  which  Russia  has  occupied, 
for  many  years,  at  the  northern  foot  of  the  Caucasian 
chain.  Equidistant  between  the  Black  and  Caspian 
Beas,  its  fortress  served  as  a  check  on  any  junction  and 
combined  action  between  the  tribes  of  the  Kabarda  and  the 
still  more  formidable  mountaineers  of  Daghestan,  When 
it  is  remembered  that  Vladikafkaz  is  also  the  key  of  the 
Dariel  Pass — ^the  great  road  across  the  chain,  known  from 
Itoman  times,  which,  rather  to  the  discredit  of  modem 
enterprise,  still  remains  the  only  one  between  Anapa  and 
Derbend  practicable  for  wheeled  carriages — ^its  strategic 
importance  is  at  once  explained,  and  the  visitor  is  at  no  loss 
to  understand  the  reason  of  the  great  piles  of  barracks 
which  form  the  principal  feature  of  the  place. 

The  town  is  prettily  situated,  on  level  ground,  on  both 
banks  of  the  Terek — open  on  the  north,  but  sheltered  on 
the  south  by  wooded  hills,  behind  which  rise  the  steeper 
slopes  and  higher  summits  of  the  Caucasian  chain.  The 
I)lace  has  a  thoroughly  Russian  air.  Our  hotel  stood  in  an 
open  square :  on  one  side  was  the  bazaar,  a  row  of  covered 
arcades  filled  with  stores,  in  which  Ossete  fur-caps  were 
the  most  tempting  wares ;  on  the  other  stretched  a  long 
boulevard,  with  a  shady  and  graveled  walk  down  the 
middle.  The  houses  along  this  are  neat  buildings  ;  the 
rest  of  the  town  consists  of  large  government  stores,  oflSces, 
and  barracks,  dropped  here  and  there  in  the  mud,  amongst 
whitewashed  cottages,  which  stand  back  modestly  from 
the  road,  as  if  they  felt  out  of  place  in  such  company. 


A   MOTLEY   CROWD.  437 

There  is,  as  usual  in  Russian  towns,  a  shady  but  untidily- 
kept  public  garden  on  the  bank  of  the  Terek,  the  waters 
of  which  only  cover  a  small  portion  of  its  wide  stony 
channel.  On  the  slopes  of  the  nearer  hills  are  some 
viUas,  in  the  semi-English  style  much  aflFected  in  Russia, 
and  a  fortress,  important  until  the  last  few  years  as  a 
defence  to  the  town  against  any  sudden  inroad  of  the 
mountaineers,  terror  of  whom  kept  the  place  in  an  almost 
perpetual  state  of  siege. 

The  crowd  collected  by  the  performance  of  a  rope-dancer 
at  one  end  of  the  boulevard  gave  us  a  good  opportunity  of 
observing  the  characteristic  costumes  of  the  country. 
Russian  ladies  in  Parisian  toilettes,  smoking  cigarettes, 
were  mingled  with  tall  regular-featured  Ossetes,  and 
comparatively  puny  and  sallow-faced  officers,  wearing  the 
unbecoming  baker's  cap  so  common  in  Russia.  On  the 
outskirts  of  the  crowd  hung  Persian  labourers,  in  close- 
fitting  skullcaps  and  ragged  dress,  come  thus  far  north 
in  search  of  a  livelihood  by  working  on  the  roads. 
Sentinels,  standing  at  odd  comers,  guarded  nothing  with 
a  careless  air,  and  a  military  band,  lent  life  to  the 
performance,  which  was  not  in  itself  of  a  very  exciting 
character. 

Our  first  visit  was  to  the  post-office,  to  obtain  our  letters. 
The  pleasure  of  being  informed,  by  the  head  official,  that 
three  letters  for  me  had  been  received,  was  soon  damped 
by  the  discovery  that  an  over-zealous  clerk,  having  seen 
our  names  in  the  Patigorsk  Visitors'  List,  had  sent  them 
on  there.  Of  course  we  telegraphed  to  Patigorsk,  but 
nothing  more  was  ever  heard  or  seen  of  the  mis-sent 
letters.  To  our  dismay,  the  first  news  that  met  us,  when 
we  enquired  about  a  carriage  for  Tifiis,  was  that  the 
Dariel  road  was  broken,  and  that  all  communication  had 
been  interrupted  for  several  days.     We  began  to  think  we 


438  RETURN   TO   TIPLIS. 

should  never  escape  from  floods.  The  damage  had  been 
done  in  the  second  stage  out  of  Vladikafkaz,  and  as  a 
company  of  soldiers  were  said  to  be  at  work  in  making  the 
ro«ad  passable  for  carriages,  we  had  nothing  to  do  but 
wait  till  news  came  of  the  completion  of  their  task, 
before  which  time  the  postmaster  refused  to  send  out  any 
vehicle. 

At  first  it  seemed  as  if  we  should  be  obliged  to  renew 
our  acquaintance  with  *  telegas/  but  our  perseverance  was 
rewarded  by  the  completion  of  an  arrangement  for  the 
hire  of  one  of  the  small  *  diligences,'  which  are  a  peculiarity 
of  the  Russian  postal  system.  These  solidly-built  and 
heavy  conveyances,  which  require  four  or  six  horses  to  draw 
them,  according  to  the  nature  of  the  road,  contain,  notwith- 
standing their  size,  only  five  passengers,  besides  the  driver 
and  the  conductor  who  are  attached  to  each.  The  inside 
holds  two,  or  three  on  a  pinch,  and  there  are  seats  for 
three  more,  on  what,  though  slightly  different,  may  be 
called  the  banquette.  They  are  fitted  up  for  long  journeys, 
and  it  is  possible  to  sleep  very  comfortably  inside,  as  a 
board  lets  down  from  the  front,  and  enables  the  traveller 
to  lie  at  length  during  the  night.  The  presence  of  the 
conductor — who,  armed  with  a  horn,  blows  warnings  to  all 
lesser  traps  to  get  out  of  the  way,  wakes  up  sleepy  post- 
masters, and  takes  on  himself  all  responsibility  in  pro- 
curing horses — is  also  a  great  convenience,  especially  to  the 
foreigner  not  speaking  ^Russian.  On  Sunday  evening  we 
saw,  to  our  delight,  a  carriage  drive  in  from  Tiflis,  and 
the  roa-d  being  thus  conclusively  proved  to  be  open,  the 
postmaster  promised  us  horses  at  an  early  hour  on  the 
following  morning. 

August  24^A. — The  weather,  which  had  been  cloudy 
during  the  two  days  of  our  stay  at  Vladikafkaz,  cleared 
during  the  night,  and  on  looking  out  of  window,  at  sun- 


RUSSIAN    ROADMAKING.  439 

rise,  we  were  greeted  by  the  double  peak  of  Kazbek,  rising 
high  above  the  ridges  on  the  right  of  the  gap  of  the  Dariel 
Pass.  The  view  of  the  snowy  chain  was  far  finer  than  we 
were  prepared  for.  The  mountains  west  of  Kazbek,  and 
the  ofl&hoots  of  the  Adai-Khokh  group,  were  well  seen,  and 
far  away  on  the  horizon,  Dychtau  once  more  showed  his 
snowy  head.  The  precipices  on  the  eastern  face  of  this 
tremendous  peak,  even  from  this  distance,  excited  mingled 
feelings  of  admiration  and  respect.  Our  conductor  amused 
us  by  piling  the  roof  of  the  *  diligence*  with  water-melons,  a 
common  article  of  food  in  Cis-Caucasia,  which  he  meant 
to  dispose  of  at  a  profit  to  the  masters  of  the  stations 
high  in  the  mountains,  where  the  fruit  was  not  so  easily 
obtainable. 

There  are  three  stages  between  Yladikafkaz  and  Kazbek, 
and  the  distance  is  about  twenty-eight  miles.     During  the 
first  stage  the  road  was  well-made,  and  almost  level ;  after 
crossing  a  flat  meadow,  where  we  passed  a  portion  of  the 
garrison  engaged  in  drill  and  rifle-practice,  it  runs  between 
low  hills  along  the  banks  of  the  Terek.     The  vapours, 
which  almost  daily  cover  the  northern  plains,  had  already 
risen,  and  it  was  curious  to  see  them  breaking  like  waves 
against  the  steeper  slopes  before  us,  while  a  glimpse  up 
the  gap  of  the  Dariel  showed  that  further  in  the  mountains 
the  sky  was  of  an  unclouded  blue.    Shortly  before  reaching 
Balta,  we  passed  two  carriages,  filled  by  the  family  of  a 
Bussian  gentleman,  travelling  with  so  numerous  a  party 
that  they  required  twelve  horses  to  draw  them.     The  spot 
where  the  Terek  had  swept  away  the  road  was  a  mile  or 
two  beyond  the  station.     The  accident  had  arisen  from 
the  half-hearted  and  timid  way  in  which  the  work  had 
been  originally  carried  out.     On  the  flat,  or  where  the 
soil  is  friable,   no  finer   highway  could  be  desired;  but 
directly  a  hard  mass  of  rock  which  requires  blasting  is 


440  RETUBX   TO   TIFLIS. 

encountered,  the  engineers  shrink  from  the  bold  course  that 
would  be  taken  by  the  peasants  of  anj  Swiss  commune, 
and  either  climb  over  the  top,  or  creep  round  the  foot  of 
the  obstacle.  The  latter  course  had  in  the  present  instance 
been  adopted,  and  it  was  but  the  natural  result  that  the 
Terek,  swollen  by  heavy  rains,  undermined  and  swept 
away  the  ill-constructed  embankment  on  which  the  road 
was  carried.  The  soldiers  had  done  their  best,  under  the 
circumstances,  by  throwing  down  stones  and  piles  of  fagots ; 
but  the  place  was  only  just  passable,  and  our  horses  had 
to  be  taken  out,  and  the  heavy  carriage  dragged  across  by 
the  men,  who  left  their  work  for  the  moment  to  aid  us. 

At  Lars — the  second  station — the  scenery,  hitherto 
rather  tame,  suddenly  assumes  a  sterner  aspect,  and  the 
neat  whitewashed  buildings  of  the  posthouse  look  out  of 
keeping  vrith  the  grim  crags  that  tower  above  them. 
There  is  an  ascent  of  nearly  3,000  feet  from  this  place 
to  Kazbek.  We  required  six  horses,  the  Russian  family 
twelve  ;  but  as  we  had  arrived  a  few  minutes  first,  and  the 
stables  did  not  contain  the  number  of  animals  required  for 
both  parties,  our  fellow-travellers  were  compelled  to  wait. 
The  old  gentleman  was  naturally  angry,  and  produced  a 

*  crown-podorojno  * ;  but,  finding  that  our  conductor — by 
whose  readiness  we  had  got  the  start  of  him — was  possessed 
of  a  similar  document,  he  submitted,  with  much  gain- 
saying, to  fate  and  the  law  of  the  post,  that  when  the 

*  podorojnos '  are  of  a  similar  class,  first  come  shall  be  first 
served.  His  family,  more  philosophically  disposed,  seemed 
to  care  little  for  the  delay,  the  governess  and  her  charges 
setting  out  on  an  expedition  up  the  nearest  hillside,  with 
a  spirit  which  excited  our  hearty  admiration. 

The  famous  Dariel  gorge  differs  from  most  of  those 
traversed  by  Alpine  carriage-roads  in  one  essential  feature. 
It  is  not  80  narrow  but  that  the  road  finds  place  alongside 


THE    DARIEL   GORGE.  441 

the  river,  without  making  any  considerable  ascent  above 
it.  The  traveller  is,  therefore,  exempt  from  the  terrors  of 
profound  abysses  and  yawning  depths,  which  suggest 
themselves  so  often  to  the  French  tourist  in  the  Alps. 
That  curiously-constituted  individual  will,  however,  when 
he  comes  to  describe  this  defile,  probably  apply  to  it  his 
favourite  epithet  of  *  horribly  beautiful,'  and,  if  a  classical 
scholar,  will  proceed  to  quote  Tirgil's  *  Ssevis  cautibus 
horrens  Caucasus,*  a  passage  the  Eoman  poet  may  well 
have  founded  on  the  report  of  some  friend  who  had 
wandered  as  far  as  the  even  then  famous  *  Portse  Caucasiae.' 

The  unimpressionable  Anglo-Saxon,  now  that  the  once 
real  danger  of  being  picked  ojff  by  a  mountaineer  in 
ambush  behind  some  neighbouring  crag  no  longer  exists, 
will  feel  no  other  emotion,  than  one  of  vague  delight  in 
gazing  up  to  the  gigantic  cliffs  amongst  which  he  finds 
himself.  Their  bold  and  broken  forms  must  arrest  the 
attention  of  even  the  most  indifferent  observer  of  nature. 
The  mere  fact  of  the  existence  of  a  carriage-road  is  some 
detraction  from  the  impressiveness  of  a  mountain-gorge, 
and,  partly  perhaps  for  this  reason,  we  felt  indisposed  to 
rank  the  Dariel  beside  the  ravines  of  the  Tcherek  and  the 
Uruch  we  had  lately  traversed,  yet  we  agreed  unanimously 
that  it  had  nothing  to  fear  from  a  comparison  with  the  finest 
defiles  of  the  Alps.  The  road  deserts  the  line  of  the  old 
horse-track — a  mere  shelf  cut  in  the  rock  on  the  left  bank 
of  the  river — and,  crossing  to  the  opposite  side,  winds 
round  the  huge  bastions  of  basalt-crag,  which  rise  tier 
upon  tier  to  a  height  of  at  least  6,000  feet  above  the  level 
of  the  Terek. 

After  passing  the  narrowest  part  of  the  ravine,  the  for- 
tress of  Dariel  comes  into  view — a  low  brick  building  loop- 
holed  for  musketry,  and  commanding,  by  means  of  two 
projecting  towers,  the  narrow  pass.     A  flat-topped  table- 


442  KETURN  TO  TIFLIS. 

shaped  mass  of  rock  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  valley  was, 
wc  were  told,  formerly  occupied  by  a  more  ancient  fortifi- 
ciition,  now  entii-ely  destroyed.  The  ascent  here  becomes 
very  rapid,  and  the  Terek  falls  in  a  aucceasion  of  cascades. 
Beyond  Lara,  the  mountain-walls  on  either  hand  are  un- 
broken by  any  deep  cleft,  until,  through  a  sudden  opening 
on  the  right,  the  upper  portion  of  the  glacier  of  Devdorak 


and  the  summit  of  Xazbek  come  into  view,  and,  to  an  eye 
unaccustomed  to  scenery  on  such  a  scale,  seem  close  at 
hand.  The  tower  of  rock  on  the  ridge  between  the  two 
glaciers  is  easily  recognisable.  Close  to  the  spot  at  which, 
two  months  before,  we  had  crossed  the  Terek  on  to  the 
highroad,  we  met  one  of  our  old  porters,  who  bailed  us 
with  enthusiasm.     At   Kaabek   posthouae  the  German- 


MSCIIETI   AGAIN.  443 

speaking  woman  who  attends  to  the  wants  of  passers-by, 
entertained  us  with  an  account  of  some  people  who,  since 
our  previous  visit,  had  come  from  Tiflis  to  ascend  the 
mountain,  but  had  been  content  with  looking  at  it,  and 
passing  on*  At  Kobi  the  postmaster  was,  as  usual,  tipsy. 
Night  drew  on,  and  rain  began  to  fall  as  we  drove  up  the 
pass,  and,  owing  to  the  absence  of  moon,  we  were  obliged 
to  sleep  at  the  station  near  the  summit,  which  is  not  so 
well-fitted -up  as  most  of  those  on  this  road. 

August  25th. — ^We  started  at  5  a.m.,  and  after  twelve 
hours*  rapid  progress,  without  any  delays  from  want  of 
horses,  reached  Mscheti,  the  station  nearest  Tiflis,  where, 
as  my  readers  may  recollect,  the  Dariel  and  Xutais  roads 
unite.  Despite  the  double  drain  inevitably  thrown  on  the 
resources  of  the  establishment,  the  supply  of  horses  is  only 
the  same  as  at  other  stations  on  the  road,  and  travellers 
are  constantly  obliged  to  submit  to  the  inconvenience 
and  annoyance  of  stopping  at  an  early  hour,  when 
only  twelve  miles  distant  from  their  destination.  On  the 
present  occasion,  after  failing  in  an  endeavour  to  hire 
peasants'  horses,  we  were  forced  to  make  up  our  minds  to 
the  impossibility  of  reaching  Tiflis  that  evening,  and  to 
take  up  our  quarters  on  the  floor  of  a  prettily-decorated 
room  intended  for  the  use  of  the  Grand  Duke,  but  in  which 
travellers  willing  to  pay  for  the  accommodation  are  allowed 
to  spend  the  night. 

Av^ust  2Qth, — At  an  early  hour  in  the  morning  we  drove 
into  Tiflis,  and  aroused  the  people  of  the  *  Hotel  d'Europe,* 
who  had  almost  given  up  expecting  our  return.  Dm^ing 
the  three  following  days  we  were  fully  occupied,  first  in 
settling  our  plans,  and  afterwards  in  making  the  arrange- 
ments necessary  to  their  execution.  Our  original  scheme 
had  included  a  visit  to  Daghestan  and  the  Caspian,  but 
the  time  taken  by  our  explorations  in  the  central  chain 


444  RETURN   TO    TIFLIS. 

prevented  us  from  fully  carrj'iiig  it  out.  We  can  there- 
fore say  nothing  of  Kakhetia,  a  broad  yalley  teeming  with 
corn  and  wine,  and  overlooked  by  the  snowy  mountain-wall 
of  the  Eastern  Caucasus,  which  was  described  to  us  by  some 
of  the  residents  at  Tiflis,  in  the  most  glowing  terms,  as 
little  short  of  an  earthly  paradise.  We  had  also  to  give 
up  all  thoughts  of  attacking  Basardjusi  (a  peak  of  14,700 
feet,  surrounded  by  others  exceeding  13,000  feet,  all  of 
which  are  still  unclimbed),  and  of  exploring  the  district  of 
-which  it  is  the  centre,  which  we  had  been  assured  by  Herr 
Abich  we  should  find  well  worthy  of  a  visit. 

The  question  now  before  us  was  by  what  route  we  should 
return  to  the  coast  of  the  Black  Sea,  and  our  enquiries 
resulted  in  the  determination  to  send  some  of  our  luggage 
with  rran9ois  direct  to  Kutais,  while  we,  leaving  the 
highroad  at  Suram,  followed  the  valley  of  the  Kur  to 
Borjom  and  Achaltzich,  and  thence  rode  across  the  hills 
to  Kutais.  To  effect  the  arrangements  necessary  for  the 
execution  of  this  plan  we  had  to  pay  many  visits  to  the 
various  official  bureaux,  where  the  employes  seemed  to 
have  acquired  a  skill  in  the  art  of  *  how  not  to  do  it,'  which 
could  scarcely  be  surpassed  even  at  home.  At  last  the 
various  '  podorojnos,'  police  orders,  and  passports  were  all 
procured,  and  we  had  only  to  consign  our  heavy  portman- 
teaux, and  a  box  of  purchases,  to  the  care  of  the  agent  of 
the  Black  Sea  Steam  Navigation  Company,  through  whom 
we  subsequently  received  them  in  England. 

In  the  intervals  when  we  were  not  engaged  in  the 
preparations  for  our  homeward  journey,  we  found  time  to 
call  on  Herr  Radde,  one  of  the  few  residents  who  happened 
to  be  in  Tiflis  at  this  time  of  year.  We  also  visited  the 
studio  of  a  Russian  painter,  who  has  boldly  taken  for  his 
subjects  the  scenery  of  the  Dariel  and  the  highest  moun- 
tains of  the  Caucasus,  and  were  glad  to  carry  away  with  us 


UNBELIEVERS.  445 

some  of  his  pictures,  as  reminiscences  of  a  country  with 
which  European  artists  are  as  yet  unacquainted.     In  the 
evenings  we  went  to  the  gardens  in  the  German  quarter, 
known  respectively  as  *  Mon  Plaisir '  and  ^  Sans  Souci,' 
where  a  crowd  of  townsfolk,  sitting  under  cover,  sip  their 
tea,  and  listen  to  the  strains  of  a  good  band ;  or,  if  so 
disposed,  wander  in  couples  down  long  alleys  arched  over 
with  trellised  vines,  firom  which  the  grapes  hanging  in  ripe 
clusters  seemed,  at  the  present  season,  almost  ready  to 
drop  into  one's  mouth.     Some  of  the  accounts  we  heard  of 
the  effect  produced  by  the  news  of  our  ascent  of  Kazbek 
were  rather  amusing.     It  had  apparently  caused  much  dis- 
cussion at  Tiflis  among  the  citizens,  who  had  all  their 
lives  asserted  the  impossibility  of  reaching  the  summit. 
We  were  told  that,  on  the  first  intelligence  being  received, 
a  person  high  in  authority  had  remarked,  that  it  was 
strange  that  a  mountain  which  had  been  declared  for  sixty 
years  inaccessible  by  Russian  officers,  should  be  ascended 
by  Englishmen  in  a  few  days.     The  answer  of  the  insulted 
officers  was  prompt  and  ingenious :  ^  We  could  have  said 
we  had  been  to  the  top  as  easily  as  the  Englishmen ! '    I 
do  not  think  there  was  a  single  Russian  in  Tiflis,  imcon- 
nectea  with  the  Government,  who  believed  in  the  truth  of 
our  story. 

We  amused  ourselves,  during  our  stay  at  Tiflis,  by  con- 
trasting our  present  ideas  of  the  Central  Caucasus  with 
those  with  which  we  had  left  the  same  place  two  months 
previously,  and  in  endeavouring  to  ascertain  in  what  par- 
ticulars the  impressions  acquired  by  reading  or  hearsay 
had  been  reversed  or  modified  by  actual  experience.  We 
found  the  process  a  profitable  one,  and  I  think  a  summary 
of  the  results  obtained  will  not  be  vTithout  interest  to  the 
general  reader. 

The  published  accounts  of  the  Caucasus,  that  we  had  met 


446  RETURN   TO   TIFLIS. 

with  before  leaving  England,  had  been  more  or  less  vague 
and  unsatisfactory.  Their  authors  had,  as  a  rule,  kept  at 
a  respectful  distance  from  the  giants  of  the  chain,  and, 
indulging  chiefly  in  ethnological  researches,  confined 
themselves,  when  they  approached  mountain  scenery, 
to  generalities,  useless  to  the  mountaineer,  anxious  to  form 
some  idea  of  the  character  of  the  range,  the  height  of  its 
peaks,  and  the  relations  of  its  groups.  Those  who  did 
give  information  on  the  subject  contradicted  one  another 
in  the  most  emphatic  manner,  and  only  increased  the 
perplexiiy  of  the  reader.  We  learnt  from  one  writer : 
'  The  mountains  of  the  Caucasus  are  not  peaked,  as  in  the 
Alps,  but  are  either  flat  or  cup-shaped ;  the  existence  of 
glaciers  is  uncertain.^  We  read  in  another :  *  Neither 
the  Swiss  Alps,  the  Taurus,  Atlas,  Balkan,  Apennine,  or 
any  of  the  well-known  mountains  of  Europe,  have  such 
ftirrowed  and  broken,  rocky  and  snowy  precipices,  or 
such  bold  peaks,  as  the  giants  of  the  main  chain  of  the 
Caucasus.  The  Orientals  have  rightly  named  these  moun- 
tains the  "thousand-pointed."  't 

The  first-quoted  opinion  seemed  the  most  popular,  and 
many  of  our  friends  in  England  smiled  at  our  idea  of  set- 
ting out  to  climb  in  a  region  where,  as  they  believed,  there 
were  no  valleys  or  steep-sided  summits,  and  where  nothing 
was  to  be  seen  except  two  large  volcanoes,  rising  from  a 
lofty  plateau,  and  cuhninating  in  snowslopes,  the  ascent  of 
which  would  be  equally  laborious  and  uninteresting. 

These  accounts  so  far  imposed  upon  us  that,  when  we 
reached  Constantinople,  the  chief  impression  in  our  mitids 
was,  that  the  Central  Caucasus  consisted  of  a  long  water- 
shed, devoid  of  prominent  peaks,  and  dominated  at  either 
end  by  a  huge  dome — ^tho  eastern  known  as  Kazbek,  the 

*  Keith  Johnston's  *  Dictionary  of  Geography.' 

t  Travels  in  Georgia,  Persia,  and  Kurdistan  (Wagner,  1856). 


DELUSIONS    DISPELLED.  447 

western  as  Elbruz.  In  fact,  we  were  led  to  believe  that 
the  architecture  of  the  mountain  region  bore  some  resem- 
blance to  that  of  the  Exhibition  Building  of  18G2,  and 
that  for  beauty  of  outline  it  could  no  more  be  compared  to 
the  Alps  than  could  the  Brompton  shed  to  a  Gothic 
cathedral. 

The  first  ray  of  light  that  dawned  upon  our  minds  was 
the  information  we  gained  from  Mr.  Gifford  Palgrave, 
who  had  been  twice  to  the  base  of  Elbruz,  and  discoursed 
with  enthusiasm  of  the  granite  peaks  and  foaming  torrents 
he  had  seen  on  the  way.  When  we  reached  Batoum,  and 
for  the  first  time  saw  the  mountains  with  our  own  eyes, 
our  rising  hopes  were  converted  into  certainty.  The 
serrated  array  of  rocky  teeth  and  icy  cones  which  stretched 
along  the  northern  horizon,  convinced  us,  at  once,  that 
climbing  sufficient  to  satisfy  the  gi*eediest  mountaineering 
appetite  would  be  found  there,  and  the  way  in  which  ridge 
behind  ridge  rose  up  to  the  snowy  chain  disposed  for 
ever  of  the  plateau  theory,  and  satisfied  us  that  many 
landscapes  of  exquisite  beauty  must  be  hid  within  the 
folds  of  the  mountains. 

Our  journey  from  Kutais  to  Tiflis  did  not  add  much  to 
this  knowledge,  nor  did  we  gain  any  practical  information 
£rom  our  intercourse  with  Kussian  officials,  whom  we 
found,  with  the  exception  of  General  Chodzko  and  a 
few  others,  entirely  unacquainted  with  the  nature  of 
the  mountain  districts  west  of  Kazbek.  The  German 
savants  resident  at  Tiflis,  and  in  the  employ  of  the 
Government,  were  far  better  informed.  Herr  Badde  had 
visited  the  upper  valleys  of  Mingrelia,  and  had  him- 
self attempted  to  ascend  Elbruz.  Herr  Abich  had  exa- 
mined both  summits  with  the  accurate  eye  of  a  man  of 
science,  and  gave  us  hints  which  we  afterwards  turned  to 
good  account.      The  purchase  of  the   Five  Verst  Map 


448  RETURN   TO   TIPLIS. 

enlightened  us  on  some  matters  of  detail,  indicating  the 
existence  of  large  icefields,  and  confirming  our  belief  in 
the  practicability  of  our  proposed  route,  by  marking 
numerous  passes  across  the  chain,  and  showing  groups  of 
villages  near  the  heads  of  most  of  the  valleys.  The  map 
also  first  revealed  to  us  two  mountains,  Koschtantan  and 
Dychtau,  respectively  17,000  and  16,900  feet  in  height, 
yet  hitherto  unknown  to  English  geographers. 

The  real  character  of  the  tribes,  and  the  extent  to  which 
Bussian  rule  was  a  reality  in  the  more  remote  districts^ 
was  another  topic  which  interested  us  nearly  as   much 
as  the  nature  of  the  country.     On  this  subject  we  had 
read  contradictory  reports.   The  majority  of  travellers  des- 
cribed -the'  natives  of  the  mountains  as  robbers,  in  whose 
word  no  trust  could  be  placed — barbarians  by  nature,  and 
incapable  of  civilisation.     On  the  other  hand,  they  were 
painted,  by  a  few  enthusiasts,  as  noble  patriots,  whose 
only  crime  was  to  have  been  defeated  in  an  unequal  struggle 
against  an  invading  despotism.     We  were  unanimously 
assured  at  Kutais  and  Tiflis  that  the  subjugation  of  the 
inhabitants  was  complete,  and  that  there  was  no  longer 
any  risk  to  life  or  property  in  travelling  amongst  them. 
Each  informant  had  his  own  view  as  to  their  character, 
but,  satisfied  with  the  fact  that  our  journey  would  not  be 
rendered  impracticable,  we  were  content  to  wait  and  judge 
for  ourselves. 

Such  was  our  knowledge  of  the  Caucasus  and  its  inhabi- 
tants on  leaving  Tiflis  for  Kazbek  posthouse.  I  shall 
now  proceed  to  the  results  of  our  day-by-day  experiences 
during  the  two  months  we  spent  in  the  mountains.  A 
definite  idea  of  the  scenery  of  the  Caucasian  chain  will 
best  be  formed  by  comparing  and  contrasting  it  to  that  of 
the  Alps. 

The  first  feature  that  strikes  the  traveller  is  the  single- 


COMPARISON   WITH  THE  ALPS.  449 

ness  of  the  Caucasian  compared  to  the  Alpine  chain.  I 
do- not  mean  that  it  is  one  long  snowy  w^U,  and  nothing 
more.  It  is  single  contrasted  with  the  Alps,  in  the  same 
way  that  the  Penuines  are  a  single  chain,  although  they 
possess  spurs  like  the  Weisshorn,  and  minor  ranges  like 
those  that  form  the  southern  boundary  of  the  Val  Pelline. 
This  characteristic  is  proved  from  the  fact  that,  from 
elevated  points  north  or  south  of  it,  the  same  summits  are 
generally  visible,  whereas,  as  is  well  known,  the  observer 
at  Mila.n  or  Lucerne,  Salzburg  or  Venice,  sees  from  each 
an  entirely  different  range  of  snowy  summits.  Prom  this 
cause  the  panoramas  seen  on  the  highest  peaks  of  the 
Caucasus  differ  from  those  of  the  Alps,  in  the  fact  that 
the  portion  of  the  horizon  occupied  by  mountains  is  far 
less  in  the  former  than  in  the  latter.  Whether  this  is  to 
be  considered  a  recommendation,  or  a  fault,  must  depend 
on  individual  taste ;  but  no  one  can  deny  that  if  it  had 
been  desired  to  enhance  by  contrast  the  stem  beauty  and 
bold  outlines  of  the  central  chain  of  the  Caucasus,  no 
better  means  of  doing  so  could  have  been  found  than  by 
putting  beside  them  the  boundless  plains  of  the  steppe, 
or  the  wavelike  ridges  of  the  Mingrelian  hills. 

Let  us  now  descend  from  the  mountain-tops,  whence  we 
have  naturally  begun  our  survey,  and  take  a  closer  view  of 
the  individual  features  of  the  country.  As  a  whole,  Cau- 
casian must,  I  think,  rank  above  Alpine  scenery.  There  is 
nothing  in  Switzerland  or  Tyrol  that  can  compare  with 
the  magnificent  grouping  of  the  Suanetian  ranges,  or  with 
the  gorges  cut  by  the  northern  rivers  through  the  lime- 
stone ridge  which  bars  their  way  down  to  the  steppe.  In 
the  Caucasus  the  slopes  are  steeper,  and  the  usual  charac- 
ter of  the  peaks  is  that  they  shoot  up  from  the  valleys  at 
their  base,  in  unbroken  walls  of  rock  and  ice,  to  which  the 
<*lifffl    of  the    Wetterhom    afford   the   nearest   parallel. 

•G  Q  \ 


450  RETURN  TO   TIPLIS. 

BnormoTis  cornices  of  ice  are  frequent,  and  sometimes 
crown  the  highest  peaks,  presenting  an  insuperable 
.obstacle  to  the  climber.  The  mountain-sides,  owing  to 
their  precipitous  character,  afford  precarious  resting-places 
to  the  winter-snow,  and  avalanches,  which  choke  the  upper 
glens  to  an  extent  rarely  seen  in  Switzerland,  are  conse- 
quently of  frequent  occurrence. 

Another  peculiarity  of  the  Caucasus  is  the  constant 
appearance  of  red  snow,  which  in  the  Alps  is  often  heard 
of,  but  seldom  seen.  Here  it  is  met  with  every  day,  and, 
the  effect  produced  is  as  if  the  whole  surface  of  the  slope 
had  been  sprinkled  with  brickdust.  We  did  not  suffi- 
ciently explore  the  glaciers  to  be  able  to  form  a  conclu- 
sive judgment  as  to  their  extent ;  but  there  can  be  little 
or  no  doubt  that  the  number  of  square  miles  covered 
by  snow  and  ice  is  less  than  in  the  Alps,  though  there  are 
many  glaciers  worthy  of  comparison  with  any  Swiss  rivals. 
Owing  to  the  steepness  of  the  chain,  the  icefaJls  are  loftier, 
and  in  every  respect  finer,  than  those  of  the  Alps,  and 
they  are  rendered  more  attractive  to  the  eye  by  the  general 
purity  of  their  surface. 

So  little  having  been  known  up  to  the  last  few  years  of 
the  existing  glaciers  of  the  Caucasus,  it  is  not  surprising 
that  we  have  as  yet  scanty  information  as  to  the  traces  of 
the  glacial  epoch  in  this  region.  So  recently  as  1858, 
Herr  Abich  declared  that  the  Caucasian  chain  showed  no 
marks  of  its  influence;  since  that  date,  however,  the 
learned  traveller  has  seen  reason  to  change  his  opinion, 
and  has  himself  borne  witness  to  the  existence  of  traces  of 
vast  glaciers  in  the  upper  valleys  of  the  Ardon  and  the 
Ingur.  Mons.  E.  Favre  of  Geneva,  who  was  in  the  country 
at  the  same  time  as  ourselves,  and  to  whose  kindness  I 
am  indebted  for  the  following  details,  recognised  marks  of 
glacial  action  on  an  extended  scale  on  the  Krestowaja 
Gora  and  in  the  Dariel  gorge.     In  the  neighbourhood  of 


CAUCASIAN  POEESTS  AND   FLORA.  451 

Vladitafkaz,  and  on  the  steppe  to  the  north  of  it,  he  found 
nnmerous  erratic  blocks,  generaUy  of  granite,  and  from 
fourteen  to  sixteen  feet  in  thickness ;  and  in  the  valley 
of  the  Baksan,  fifteen  miles  from  the  present  glacier, 
and  two  miles  above  the  viUage  of  Uruspieh,  there  is  a 
moraine,  200  feet  in  height,  principally  composed  of  granite 
blocks.  Sufficient  data  have  abeady  been  collected  to 
justify  the  assertion  that  the  present  glaciers  of  the  Cau- 
casus, like  those  of  the  Alps,  are  only  the  shadows  of  their 
former  selves. 

Fine  as  Alpine  forests  often  are,  they  can  bear  no  com- 
parison with  those  of  the  Caucasus.  Lest  it  should  be 
thought  I  have  overstated  the  effect  likely  to  be  produced 
by  the  woodland  scenery  of  MingreKa  on  an  European 
mind,  I  shall  take  the  Kberty  of  quoting  the  words  in  which 
Herr  Wagner  sums  up  his  eloquent  description  of  a  ride 
near  Kutais  :  '  Every  spot  that  is  not  occupied  by  perennial 
plants  presents  one  tangled  growth  of  grasses,  flowers, 
annuals,  and  every  variety  of  creeper.  Higher  up,  among 
the  trees,  the  eye  is  soothed  by  the  numerous  shades  of 
green,  from  the  sombre  verdure  of  the  fir,  tamarisk^  and 
cypress,  to  the  lustrous  foliage  of  the  laurel,  and  to  the 
silver-green  of  the  Colchian  poplar,  whilst  the  purple 
clusters  of  the  grapes  peep  out  beneath  every  brancL 
"Why,  this  is  like  Paradise,"  exclaimed  my  companions, 
in  one  breath,  at  the  sight  of  such  glorious  profusion.' 
In  richness  of  flora  the  Alps  must  also  yield  to  their 
rivals!  the  azalea  and  rhododendron  make  the  *alpen- 
rosen  *  seem  humble,  and  even  the  gentian  looks  bluer  when ' 
brought  into  immediate  contrast  with  beds  of  snowdrops, 
while  there  is  nothing  nearer  home  to  compare  with  the 
gorgeous  magnificence  of  the  Caucasian  tiger-lilies  and 
hollyhocks. 

Hitherto  the  comparison  has  been  in  favour  of  the 

oa2 


452  '  BETURN  TO  TIFLIS. 

*•  new  love/  which,  without  wishing  to  persuade  them  to  be 
*  off  with  the  old/  we  desire  to  introduce  to  the  notice  of 
lovers  of  Alpine  nature.  I  must  now  call  attention  to  the 
deficiencies  of  the  Caucasus,  and  the  points  in  which  it  is 
manifestly  inferior  to  its  better-known  rivaL  A  total 
absence  of  lakes,  on  both  sides  of  the  chain,  is  the  most 
marked  failing.  Not  only  are  there  no  great  subalpine 
sheets  of  water,  like  Gomo  or  Geneva,  but  mountain-tarns 
— such  as  the  Dauben  See  on  the  Gemmi,  or  the  Elonthal 
See  near  Glarus — are  equally  wanting.  There  is  no  first- 
class  waterfall  in  any  of  the  valleys  we  visited,  nor  did  we 
hear  of  any  elsewhere.  Certain  districts,  notably  the  head- 
waters of  the  Terek,  are  duller  than  anything  in  Switzer- 
land, and  their  treeless  monotonous  glens  are  defaced, 
rather  than  enlivened,  by  the  dingy  and  ruinous  character 
of  the  native  dwellings.  Add  to  this  list  of  defects  that, 
on  the  north  side,  the  mountains  sink  abruptly  into  a  bare 
and  featureless  steppe,  and  that  the  only  halting-places 
within  reach — Fatigorsk  and  Elislovodsk — cannot  vie  in 
attractions  with  the  numerous  tourist-haunts  on  the  north 
side  of  the  Alps,  and  we  shall,  I  think,  have  fairly  gone 
through  the  principal  charges  to  which  Caucasian  scenery 
is  liable. 

Readers  seeking  geological  information  in  old  scientific 
works  on  the  Caucasus  must  beware  of  the  hasty  genera- 
lisations in  which  they  indulge,  on  the  strength  of  an 
acquaintance  with  perhaps  only  one  valley  of  the  chain. 
It  is  unfortunate  that  no  member  of  our  party  was  skiUed 
enough  to  make  his  observations  of  value ;  but  we  have  the 
authority  of  Herr  Badde,  as  well  as  the  evidence  of  our 
own  eyes,  for  stating  that  the  central  chain  is  chiefly  com- 
posed of  granite,  and  that  the  rocks  of  both  Kazbek  and 
Elbruz  are  igneous.  I  do  not  think  that  anyone  who 
has  made  close  acquaintance  ynUi  Elbruz  will  doubt  its 


THE   MOaNTATN  TRIBES.  453 

haviug  once  been  an  active  volcano.  The  limestone  ridge 
on  the  north  of  the  watershed  is  more  abrupt,  and  the 
gorges  cut  through  it  have  bolder  features  than  those  of 
the  secondary  ridges  of  Mingrelia,  where  the  rock  is  more 
friable,  and  steep  slopes  take  the  place  of  cliflfs.* 

I  have  hitherto  spoken  only  of  that  portion  of  the  country 
with  which  we  became  personally  familiar,  the  120  miles 
between  Kazbek  and  Elbruz,  and  it  must  therefore  be  borne 
in  mind  that  scant  justice  has  been  done  to  a  chain  the 
entire  length  of  which,  from  Anapa  to  Baku,  is  700  miles. 
Those  who  may  be  disposed  to  carry  on  the  work  of  ex- 
ploration have,  consequently,  a  large  field  open  to  them. 
West  of  Elbruz  there  is  said  to  be  much  noble  scenery ;  the 
glaciers  are  few  and  small,  but  the  chain  bristles  with 
sharp  peaks,  between  10,000  and  12,000  feet  in  height.  The 
depopulation  of  this  district  after  the  late  Abkhasian  revolt 
will  prove  a  serious  difficulty,  to  be  taken  into  account  by 
future  travellers.  Eastwards,  between  the  Dariel  Pass 
and  the  Caspian,  stretch  the  highlands  of  Daghestan,  a 
region  of  flat  pasturages,  cut  off  from  one  another  by 
profound  gorges,  and  dominated  by  at  least  three  snowy 
groups,  rising  to  a  height  of  over  13,000  feet. 

Having  said  thus  much  of  the  natural  features  of  the 
Caucasus,  we  may  now  review  its  inhabitants.  The 
diverse  character  of  the  mountain-tribes  renders  any 
general  description  of  them  a  work  of  extreme  difficulty .f 
Even  in  the  small  portion  of  the  chain  we  visited,  leaving 

*  According  to  Herr  Abich,  the  snow-limit  in  Suanetia  is  9,500  feet.  The 
same  author  fixes  the  limit  of  the  forests  at  7(300  feet  Herr  lUdde,  after 
numerous  observations,  estimates  it  at  7,600  feet.  The  average  height  of  the 
base  of  the  great  glaciers  as  yet  measured  is  7,200  feet. 

t  Readers  who  desire  further  details  as  to  the  tribes  of  the  Caucasus,  will 
find  them  in  Wagner's  '  Travels  in  Persia,  Georgia,  and  Kurdistan/  and  Haxt- 
hausen's  'Transcaucasia,'  works  translated  from  the  German;  or  (in  French)  in 
Dubois  de  Montpereux'  '  Voyage  autour  du  Caucase/  and  a  more  recent  work, 
'  Lettres  sur  le  Caucase.* 


4^  RETUE5  TO  TIFLIS. 

ont  AbkbaAia,  all  but  a  comer  of  the  Tcherkess  oonniry 
(the  true  Circassia),  and  Daghestan,  the  scene  of  Schamyl's 
fjual  resistance  and  capture,  we  encountered  three  entirely 
distinct  races,  speaking  widely  different  languages.  These 
were  the  Georgian  tribes  of  the  southern  yalleySy  the 
Tartars  of  the  north,  and  the  mysterious  Ossetes,  who 
have  long  been  a  puzzle  to  ethnologists.  The  language  of 
the  latter,  according  to  Sir  Henry  Bawlinson,  is  the  most 
nearly  allied  to  Sanscrit  spoken  west  of  the  Indus.  The 
other  mountaineers  use  dialects  of  Tartar  and  Georgian  so 
diverse  that  the  people  of  one  yalley  often  have  difficulty 
in  tmderstanding  those  of  the  next,  although  nominally 
speaking  the  same  language.^ 

The  religions  of  the  Caucasus  are  as  yarious  as  its 
languages.  As  a  rule,  whatever  religion  exists  on  the  south 
side  of  the  chain  is  called  Christian,  and  on  the  north 
Mahommedan.  The  Ossetes,  as  usual,  must  be  excepted ; 
they  were  converted  to  Christianity  in  the  days  of  Queen 
Thamara,  but  afterwards  relapsed  into  their  former  pagan- 
ism, which  is  at  the  present  day  again  overlaid  by  a  slight 
varnish  of  nominal  Christianity.  This  re-conversion,  if  it 
deserves  the  name,  took  place  about  the  time  of  Herr 
Wagner's  visit  to  the  country  (1843-4),  and  he  gives  an 
amusing  account  of  the  means  employed  by  the  Russian 
missionaries  to  effect  their  end.  ^  The  Russians '  (says  this 
writer)  *  have  made  many  efforts  to  win  back  the  Ossetes 

*  The  CaucAeus  ha«  in  all  ages  been  famed  for  iXa  varietj  of  langnages.  Pliny 
tells  us  that  in  Colchis  there  wpre  more  than  three  hundred  tribes  speaking 
dilTorent  dialects,  and  that  the  Horoans,  in  order  to  carry  on  any  intercourse 
with  the  natives,  had  to  employ  a  hundred  and  thirty  interpreters.  This  is 
probably  an  exaggeration,  but  there  seems  no  reason  to  doubt  Strabo,  who 
informs  us  that  in  his  day  no  less  than  seventy  dialects  were  spoken  in  the 
country,  which  even  now  is  tailed  'the  Mountain  of  Languages/  We  find 
archaic  forms  of  various  Georgian,  Mongolian,  Persian,  Semitic,  and  Tatarian 
l&nguugos,  as  well  as  anomalous  forms  of  speech,  which  bear  no  a£Snity  to  any 
known  tongue  of  Europe  or  Asia. — See  Max  Miiller's  'Lectures  on  Language* 
and  Rev.  J.  Taylor's  '  Words  and  Places.* 


OSSETE   CHRISTIANITY.  455 

to  Cliristianity.  This  was  easily  accomplished  with  a 
people  indiflFerent  about  religious  matters,  especially  as  a 
linen  shirt  and  a  silver  cross  were  given  to  every  Ossete 
who  underwent  baptism.  The  pious  zeal  of  the  new  con- 
verts was  greatly  excited  by  these  means,  and  there  was  no 
end  to  the  number  of  neophytes  who  aspired  to  the  rite  of 
baptism,  till  at  length  it  came  to  pass  that  one  immersion 
was  not  reckoned  sufficient,  and  that  many  Ossetes,  in  order 
to  become  genuine  Christians,  and  at  the  same  time  the 
owners  of  a  respectctble  amount  of  linen,  received  the  sacra- 
ment five  or  six  times  following/  He  adds :  *  If  the 
Bussian  Government  had  permitted  other  Christian  con- 
fessions to  hold  intercourse  with  the  mountaineers  of  the 
Caucasus,  their  Christianity  might  possibly  have  been 
something  better  than  ^^  sounding  brass  and  a  tinkling 
cymbal/*  * 

One  of  the  peculiarities  of  the  country  is  that  the 
superiority  of  the  Christian  over  the  Mahommedan  popu- 
lation, commonly  seen  in  Syria,  is  entirely  reversed.  In 
the  Caucasus  the  traveller  will  be  compelled  to  contrast 
the  truthfulness,  industry,  and  courteous  hospitality  of  the 
Mahommedans  north  of  the  chain  with  the  lying,  indolence, 
and  churlishness  of  the  Christians  on  the  south.  The 
Georgian  races  who  inhabit  the  upper  valleys  of  Mingrelia 
are,  as  a  rule,  too  lazy  to  take  advantage  of  the  rich  natural 
gifts  of  the  country  they  inhabit;  they  are  greedy  of  ill- 
gotten  gain,  and  careless  of  life  in  its  pursuit.  This  con- 
clusion as  to  their  character  is  the  result  of  our  own 
experience,  but  it  is  confirmed  by  that  of  other  travellers, 
even  from  remote  times.  Thus  Chardin,  writing  nearly 
200  years  ago,  says:  *The  women  of  Mingrelia  are 
extremely  civil,  but  otherwise  the  wickedest  in  the  world, — 
haughty,  furious,  perfidious,  deceitful,  cruel,  and  impudent 
— so  that  there  is  no  sort  of  wickedness  they  will  not  put  in 
execution.     The  men  are  endowed  with  all  these  mischie- 


456  RETURN   TO   TIFLIS. 

vous  qualities,  with  some  addition.  There  is  no  wickedness 
to  which  their  inclinations  will  not  naturally  carry  them, 
— ^but  all  are  addicted  to  tliievin<^.  That  they  make  their 
study — ^that  they  make  their  whole  employment,  their 
pastime,  and  their  glory.  Assassination,  murder,  and  lying 
are  among  them  esteemed  to  be  noble  and  brave  actions, 
and  for  all  other  vices,  they  are  virtues  in  Mingrelia/  * 

Haxthausen,  whose  work  was  published  in  1854,  writes  : 
'  The  Russian  ofiBcers,  civil  and  military,  all  agreed  in  des- 
cribing the  people  of  this  country,  especially  the  Imeritians, 
as  thoroughly  depraved,  immoral,  thievish,  mendacious,  and 
quarrelsome.' 

Malte-Brun,  in  his  *  Geographical  Encyclopsedia,'  which 
contains  much  correct  information  on  the  Caucasus,  thus 
describes  the  Imeritians :  ^  The  indolence  of  the  inhabitants 
allows  the  rich  gifte  of  nature  and  the  climate  to  perish  in 
a  most  useless  manner.'  He  says  of  the  Mingrelians: 
*  They  live  surrounded  by  women,  who  lead  a  life  of 
debauchery,  often  eat  with  their  fingers,  and  bring  up  their 
children  to  lying,  pillage,  and  marauding.' 

The  Tartars  of  the  Kabarda  are  in  most  qualities  the  re- 
verse of  their  southern  neighbours.  Rich  in  flocks  and 
herds,  and  cultivating  comland  sufiBcient  to  supply  them 
with  daily  bread,  they  pass  a  peaceable  and  patriarchal 
existence,  and  are  ever  ready  to  extend  towards  travellers 
that  hospitahty  which  they  regard  in  the  light  of  a  reli- 
gious duty.  One  unamiable  trait  they  share  with  all  the 
Caucasian  races  we  came  in  contact  with — a  desire  to  drive 
a  hard  bargain  in  matters  of  business. 

The  distinction  here  drawn  between  the  character  of  the 
so-called  Christian  and  the  Mahommedan  tribes  is  so 
marked,  that  no  honest  traveller  can  pass  it  over  in  silence. 
The  explanation  of  the  fact  must  be  sought  in  the  degraded 

*  I  am  indebted  for  this  quotation  to  Mr.  Usher^s  '  London  to  Fersepolis/ 


THE   RUSSIAN   GOVERNMENT.  457 

character  of  the  native  Georgian  and  Armenian  Churches, 
and  in  the  evil  wrought  by  Russian  proseljtism,  which  en- 
deavours to  eflfect  wholesale  conversions  by  holding  out 
baits  of  worldly  advantage.  Converts  thus  made  abandon 
their  old  religion  without  gaining  anything  in  its  place. 
For  the  present,  the  heads  of  the  Greek  Church  may  more 
profitably  employ  its  energies  in  sending  missionaries  to 
lead  their  ruffianly  co-religionists  in  the  southern  valleys  to 
a  better  mode  of  life.  When  Mahommedans  have  no  longer 
to  maintain  a  guard,  to  protect  their  flocks  from  Christian 
thieves,  there  will  be  more  hope  of  their  adopting  the  re- 
ligion recommended  to  their  notice. 

I  now  turn  to  the  relations  existing  between  the  Eussian 
Government  and  the  mountain-tribes.  Our  observations 
fully  confirmed  all  we  had  been  previously  told  respecting 
them.  Since  the  conclusion  of  the  Crimean  War,  the  whole 
country  has  been  fairly  conquered,  and  the  inhabitants  have 
leamt  from  experience  that  any  rising  wiU  be  promptly  put 
down  and  summarily  revenged.  The  European  traveller 
need  no  longer  fear  open  robbery,  except  in  Suanetia, 
and  in  this  district  it  is  owing  rather  to  want  of  wiU 
than  of  power  that  the  Russians  leave  the  village  commu- 
nities to  their  native  misrule.  Selfishly  speaking,  the 
policy  of  the  Government  in  abstaining  from  garrisoning 
the  upper  valleys  is  prudent ;  it  would  gain  nothing,  and 
spend  much,  by  acting  otherwise.  It  matters  little  to 
Kutais  if  the  inhabitants  of  two  Suanetian  villages  like  to 
cut  one  another's  throats,  and  the  maintenance  of  an  armed 
force  in  the  district  would,  except  from  a  philanthropic  point 
of  view,  be  unprofitable.  That  such  conduct,  however, 
shows  a  neglect  of  the  first  duty  of  a  Government,  even 
Russians  must  admit,  if  they  believe,  with  us,  that  the 
extension  of  any  organised  system  of  justice,  however  im- 
perfect, is  a  blessing  to  regions  formerly  a  prey  to  the  mis- 


458  EETURN   TO   TIFLK. 

rule  and  exactions  of  petty  princes,  and  still  the  scene  of 
constantly-recurring  robberies  and  murders.  The  evidence 
of  our  Mingrelian  servant,  whose  prejudices  were  certainly 
not  Russian,  was  conclusive  on  this  point.  The  picture 
he  drew  of  his  native  district,  Sugdidi,  on  the  Lower  Ingur, 
during  the  Crimean  War,  when  Russian  rule  was  relaxed, 
was  indeed  deplorable.  Robberies,  as  ofben  as  not 
accompanied  by  murder,  were  of  daily  occurrence;  the 
culprit  in  most  cases  escaped,  shielded  by  the  influence 
of  the  petty  chieftain  whose  vassal  or  serf  he  was. 
A  man  with  a  reputation  as  a  successful  murderer  was 
too  useful  ever  to  feel  the  lack  of  princely  favour.  The 
peasant-farmer,  vrith  the  knowledge  that  another  woxdd 
reap  the  fruits  of  his  toil,  and  that  a  large  portion  of 
his  crops  would  go  to  swell  the  contents  of  the  nearest 
chieftain's  barn,  had  no  inducement  to  agricultural 
improvement. 

This  state  of  things  is  now  at  an  end.  OfiEences  against 
life  and  property  are  promptly  punished,  and  though 
small  disputes  still  come  before  the  native  princes,  an 
appeal  is  possible  to  Russian  officials.  The  ukase  for 
the  emancipation  of  the  serfs,-  the  operation  of  which  was 
specially  delayed  in  Mingrelia,  is  just  taking  effect.  In 
return  for  these  advantages,  the  inhabitants  pay  a  house- 
tax  varying,  in  the  mountain  districts,  from  five  to  ten 
roubles  (fifteen  to  thirty  shillings)  per  annum.  This  does 
not  seem  regarded  as  a  grievance,  but  we  heard  con^plaints 
of  the  increased  price  of  imported  goods,  owing  to  the  high 
tariff  maintained  by  the  protective  policy  of  the  Moscow 
merchants.  Georgia  enjoys  a  special  immunity  from  the 
conscription,  founded  on  the  terms  on  which  it  was  handed 
over  to  the  Czar  by  the  last  of  its  native  princes,  and  the 
Caucasians  are,  as  a  rule,  exempted  from  compulsory 
service. 


STATE   OP   THE   COUNTEY.  459 

The  dark  picture  given  above  of  the  past  condition  of 
the  country  is,  of  course,  far  from  being  universally  appli- 
cable. It  is  drawn  from  one  district,  towards  the  Black  Sea 
coast;  but  the  whole  mountain  region  has  always  been  more 
or  less  given  over  to  lawlessness,  and  the  dwellers  in  the  plain 
had  probably  good  ground  for  attributing  to  their  neigh- 
bours of  the  mountains  a  belief  in  the  following  legend : 
*  This  wild  race  pretend,  that  after  God  created  the  world, 
an  edict  was  published,  by  which  all  people  were  sum- 
moned to  take  possession  of  their  several  portions.  All 
mankind  had  an  appointed  share,  except  the  inhabitants 
of  the  Caucasus,  who  had  been  forgotten.  Upon  putting 
in  their  claim,  which  the  Deity  acknowledged  to  be  just, 
they  received  permission  to  live  at  the  expense  of  their 
neighbours,  and  assuredly  they  reap  ample  profits  from 
the  presumption  of  such  license.'  Like  our  own  High- 
landers of  former  days,  the  mountaineers  of  the  Caucasus 
look  on  the  wealth  of  the  lowland  population  as  their 
lawful  perquisite,  and  their  final  subjugation  will  be  a 
necessary  consequence  of  the  progress  of  civilisation. 

Though  the  politician  may,  with  reason,  regret  that  the 
Russian  armies,  no  longer  conscious  of  formidable  foes  in 
their  rear,  can  now,  from  the  highlands  of  Armenia,  look 
down  over  the  Valley  of  the  Euphrates,  the  traveller  in  the 
Caucasus,  out  of  temper,  as  he  will  often  be,  with  the  cor- 
ruption and  stupidity  of  all  but  the  highest  class  of  offi- 
cials, roust  not  forget  that,  but  for  their  presence,  he  would 
be  unable  to  penetrate  at  all  into  the  interior  of  the 
country. 

Little  or  nothing  has  been  said  in  the  course  of  this 
narrative  about  the  wild  animals  to  be  found  in  the 
Caucasus.  We  met  vnth  chamois  occasionally,  but  never 
in  any  great  number ;  we  twice  saw  dead  bouquetin,  and 
we  noticed  the  track  of  bears  in  the  forest ;  we  also  found 


4eo  RETURN  TO    TIFLIS. 

some  cubs  in  captivity  in  Suanetian  villages,  but  tbis  was 
the  sum  of  the  quadrupedal  life  which  came  under  our 
eyes.  A  few  eagles  and  a  great  number  of  cuckoos,  vocal 
despite  the  lateness  of  the  season,  were  the  most  remark- 
able members  of  the  feathered  tribe  whicb  attracted  our 
observation.  Nevertheless,  those  who  may  visit  the  Cau- 
casus for  the  sake  of  sport  will  probably  find  it.  A 
sportsman,  ambitious  of  a  bullfight,  will  meet  with  a 
worthy  foe  in  the  gigantic  '  auruch,'  which  still  haunts 
the  valleys  west  of  Elbruz,  and  of  which  a  stuffed  specimen 
may  be  seen  in  the  museum  at  Tiflis. 

That  bears  abound  is  proved  by  the  complaints  we  heard 
of  their  ravages,  and  by  the  frequency  of  their  tracks; 
chamois  and  bouquetin  must  be  su£Sciently  numerous,  if 
the  account  given  to  Herr  Badde,  by  the  natives  of  the 
upper  Zenes-Squali,  of  a  winter-drive  on  snowshoes,  when 
thirty-three  were  slain,  may  be  believed.  In  the  swamps 
bordering  the  rivers  that  join  the  Terek,  as  weU  as  in  the 
jungle  of  the  Eur,  wild  boars  make  their  lairs,  and  the 
traveller  obliged  to  spend  the  night  at  Mscheti  is  fre- 
quently disturbed  by  the  cries  of  wolves  and.  jackals. 
Pheasants  still  exist  on  the  banks  of  their  native  river, 
the  Fhasis,  and  are  said  to  be  so  plentiful  on  the  north  of 
the  chain,  as  to  be  sold  by  the  Russian  soldiers  to  their 
officers  for  fourteen  copecks  (or  about  fivepence)  a  brace. 
Badde  gives  an  account  of  the  snaring  of  ptarmigan  in 
Suanetia,  where  they  are  found  upon  the  mountain-slopes 
even  in  winter.  In  summer  they  raise  their  broods 
within  the  forest  boundary. 

Much  as  we  vnsh  to  persuade  travellers,  and  more 
especially  mountaineers,  to  abandon  for  a  season  their  old 
Swiss  loves,  and  to  start  in  quest  of  the  fresher  charms  of 
the  hitherto-neglected  maiden  peaks  of  the  Caucasus,  we 
must,  in  fairness,  point  out  the  principal  difficulties  that 


HINTS   FOR  TRAVELLERS.  461 

will  be  met  with  in  such  an  enterprise,  and  how  best  they 
may  be  encountered.  For  some  years  to  come  travellers 
in  the  Caucasus  will  find  letters  of  introduction  to  the 
government  oflScials  a  useful,  if  not  essential,  pai-t  of 
their  outfit.  Without  them  they  may  be  objects  of  sus- 
picion, and  their  purpose  in  desiring  to  penetrate  the 
fastnesses  of  the  mountain-tribes  may  be  misunderstood. 
Some  people  say  that  a  uniform  is  absolutely  necessary  in 
Russia;  though  this  is  not  the  case,  those  who  hold 
any  position  entitling  them  to  wear  an  official  dress  will 
do  well  to  take  it.  In  the  East  even  more  than  in  the 
West,  and  above  all  among Bussian  officials,  ^  fine  feathers' 
are  considered  to  make  ^fine  birds,'  and  even  an  old 
Volunteer  tunic  would  protect  its  wearer  from  much  rude- 
ness from  postmasters  and  sub-officials. 

The  selection  of  a  starting-point  v^ill  depend  upon  the 
toor  proposed  by  the  traveller.  Tiflis  is  far  from  the 
mountain-chain,  but  the  fact  that  there  only  can  the 
necessary  maps  be  bought,  will  induce  even  those  to  whom 
a  city  combining,  in  such  a  striking  manner,  the  discor- 
dant elements  of  European  and  Asiatic  life  is  not  a 
sufficient  attraction,  to  visit  the  Trans-Caucasian  capital. 
Yladikafkaz  is  the  best  base  for  the  exploration  of  the 
northern  valleys.  It  is  the  residence  of  the  commandant  of 
the  district,  and  the  Cis-Caucasian  officials  appreciate  better 
the  aims  of  an  explorer,  and  are  more  practical  in  the  aid 
they  afford  him,  than  those  at  Tiflis.  Kutais  is  admirably 
situated  as  a  starting-point  for  the  Mingrelian  valleys, 
and  next  year  will  probably  be  brought  nearer  to  the 
Black  Sea  coast,  by  the  partial  opening  of  the  Poti-Tifiis 
Railroad ;  while  Patigorsk  is  a  convenient  Capua,  within 
j  two  days'  ride  of  the  base  of  Elbruz. 

.  The  first  necessity  for  a  journey  in  the  mountains  is  a 
servant  ready  to  rough  it,  and  sufficiently  conversant  with 


^62  RETURN  TO   TIFLIS. 

the  native  dialects  to  act  as  interpreter.  A  knowledge  of 
cooking,  sucli  as  our  man  possessed,  is  a  great  additional 
recommendation.  A  light  tent  and  a  cooking  apparatus 
are  essentials,  as  well  as  the  usual  requisites  for  travel  in 
uncivilised  countries,  which  I  need  not  catalogue  here. 
The  diflBculties  of  mountaineering  inherent  to  such  a 
country  as  the  Caucasus  are  obvious.  The  peaks  are,  gene- 
rally speaking,  extremely  formidable;  the  natives,  except 
at  Uruspieh,  are  useless  above  the  snow-level,  and  it  is 
often  impossible  to  leave  luggage  at  the  mercy  of  villagers 
while  making  an  ascent.  The  climate  is  changeable,  and 
the  rainfall,  owing  to  the  position  of  the  chain  between  two 
seas,  is  frequently  excessive.  Thus  the  impediments  to  a 
mountain  tour  are  very  serious,  though  not,  in  my  opinion, 
sufficient  to  counterbalance  the  advantage  and  pleasure 
to  be  derived  from  a  journey  in  a  country  sui-passing,  both 
in  freshness,  grandeur  of  natural  scenery,  and  ethnological 
interest,  any  other  so  accessible  to  English  travellers. 

The  expedition  will,  of  course,  diflFer  much  from 
a  run  to  the  Oberland  or  Zermatt,  and  it  should  be 
imdertaken  only  by  men  prepared  to  face  daily-recurring 
difficulties  with  good  temper  and  perseverance.  A  party 
of  five  or  six,  accompanied  by  not  less  than  two 
firstrate  guides,  of  which  two  of  the  members  have 
botanical  or  artistic  tastes,  and  would  be  content  to 
remain  below,  or  to  cross  a  lower  ridge  with  the  luggage, 
while  their  friends  attacked  *  peaks,  passes,  and  glaciers,* 
would  have  the  best  chance  of  success ;  if  favoured  with 
fine  weather,  and  with  the  help  of  a  Cossack  in  all 
dealings  with  the  villagers,  they  might  effect  a  great  deal. 

Before  bidding  farewell  to  the  Caucasus,  I  must  remove 
any  impression  the  previous  pages  may  have  given  that 
either  Eazbek  or  Elbruz  are  in  themselves  difficult  moun- 
taius.    First  ascents  are  proverbially  the  hardest.     On 


KAZBEK  TO   ELBRUZ.  463 

Kazbek  we  had  to  contend  against  severe  wind  and  cold, 
and  total  ignorance  of  the  mountain,  which  made  ns  go 
up  the  wrong  way.  On  Elbruz  we  encountered  a  tempest, 
which,  but  for  the  entire  absence  of  other  difficulties, 
would  have  rendered  the  ascent  impossible.  On  both 
occasions  we  might  have  imagined  that  we  were  wrestling 
against  *  principalities  and  powers.'  The  icy  wastes  of  the 
Caucasus  have  been  peopled  throughout  all  ages  with 
invisible  occupants.  In  this  region  dwelt  Gog  and 
Magog ;  here  Oriental  fancy  has  placed  the  abode  of  the 
Deevs,  a  race  of  pre- Adamite  monarchs,  and  the  retreat  of 
the  Peri  and  the  Grenii.  It  was  to  this  snowy  prison  that 
Solomon  consigned  the  rebel  Afrites,  and  it  would  have 
been  strange  indeed  had  not  the  Djin-Padishah,  or  Ruler  of 
the  Spirits,  who  dwells  on  Elbruz,  summoned  *  the  Prince 
of  the  Power  of  the  Air  '  to  his  aid,  to  resist  the  strange 
company  who,  armed  with  rope  and  ice-axe,  ventured  to 
intrude  on  his  dominions. 

According  to  their  best  biographers,  giants  and  gnomes 
seldom  fight  a  second  time.  After  their  power  has  been 
once  successfally  defied,  they  either  tamely  expire,  or 
retreat  to  some  more  remote  fortress.  The  Djin-Padishah 
has,  for  the  present,  probably  taken  up  his  abode  on  Mount 
Everest,  whence,  let  us  hope,  he  may  soon  be  dislodged, 
and  dismissed  to  the  North  Pole,  or  some  equally  remote 
and  apparently  unattainable  spot.  But,  abandoning  alle- 
gory, I  think  we  may  fairly  assume  that,  short  of  actual 
wet  weather,  in  which  no  one  would  attempt  a  first-class 
peak,  we  encountered,  in  our  own  attacks  on  both  Elbruz 
and  Eazbek,  every  obstacle  that  either  mountain  possesses 
or  can  summon  to  its  aid.  Any  mountaineers  whom 
this  account  of  our  journey  may  set  Hhinking  on  the 
frosty  Caucasus,'  may  rest  assured  that  in  fine  weather 
they  cannot  fail  to  reach  the  summits  of  both.    Few  of 


464  RETURN  TO   TIFLIS. 

our  followers  are  likely  to  rest  content  with  this  measure 
of  success,  but,  however  formidable  may  be  the  difficulties 
to  be  overcome  in  climbing  the  other  great  Caucasian 
peaks,  it  is  something  to  know  that  the  two  most  famous 
mountains  of  the  chain  are  within  the  reach  of  all  those 
who  possess  the  physical  endurance  necessary  for  an 
ascent  of  Mont  Blanc. 


J 


■  !■  ■.■-■I  I        .■!     . m-m  -  WiMa*  €-W.    •■  -h 


DEPARTURE   FROM   TIFLIS.  405 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

TRANSCAUCASIA  AND  THE  CRIMEA  :  HOME  THROUGH 

RUSSIA. 

Borjom — Bad  Road — ^Beautiful  Scenery — Achaltzich — Across  the  Hills — 
Abastuman — A  Narrow  Valley — The  Burnt  Forest — ^Panorama  of  the 
Cauciisns — Last  Appearance  of  Kazbek  and  Elbruz— A  Forest  Ride— 
Bagdad — Mingrelian  Hospitality — A  French  Baron's  Farm — The  Rion 
Biisin — Kutais — The  Postmaster — Poti — A  Dismal  Swamp — Soukhoum- 
KaU — Sevastopol — ^The  Battlefields — The  Crimean  Cornicbe — Bakhchi- 
Sarai — Odessa — A  Run  Across  Russia — A  Jew's  Cart — The  Dnieper  Steam- 
boat— ^Kieff — Picturesque  Pilgrims — The  Lavra— Sainted  Mummies — A 
Long  Drive — Vitebsk — St.  Petersburg — Conclusion. 

August  29 — SOth, — ^We  were  able  to  retain  the  same  'dili- 
gence' and  conductor  we  had  brought  from  Vladikafkaz 
for  our  drive  to  Achaltzich.  Having  already  traversed  the 
road  between  Tiflis  and  Suram,  we  determined  to  start  in 
the  afternoon  of  Saturday,  and  travel  through  the  night, 
by  which  means  we  hoped  to  arrive  at  Borjom  at  midday 
on  Sunday.  At  Mscheti  we  thought  ourselves  lucky  to 
escape  with  only  a  couple  of  hours'  detention ;  after  this 
all  went  well,  and  we  arrived  at  Sui-am  in  time  for  break- 
fast. Here  we  parted  from  Fran9ois,  who  was  despatched, 
with  some  of  the  luggage,  to  make  his  way  in  *  telegas  '  to 
Kutais,  by  the  aid  of  a  *  podorojno/  and  the  knowledge  of 
about  a  dozen  words  of  Russian. 

From  Suram  to  Borjom  is  a  distance  of  eighteen  miles, 
divided  into  two  stages.  Most  of  the  valleys,  by  which  the 
streams  rising  in  the  tablelands  of  Armenia  force  their  way 
northwards,  are  deep,  narrow,  tortuous,  and  well-wooded, 

H  H 


468  TRANSCADCAStA. 

and  that  of  the  Tfur  forms  no  exception  to  the  general  rule. 
The  road,  or  rather  track  (for  made  road  there  is  none), 
is  wonderfully  bad,  when  one  remenibei-s  that  it  is  the  only 
communication  between  the  capital  and  summer  residence 
of  the  Governor  of  the  Caucasus.  It  climbs  up  and  down 
steep  bills  in  the  most  reckless  manner,  and  if  there  is  one 
thing  more  than  another  its  constructors  appear  to  have 
aimed  at,  it  is  the  production  of  steep  pitches  witb  sharp 


comers  at  their  feet.  After  waiting  two  hours  for  horses 
at  the  roadside  shed  which  serves  as  the  halfway  station, 
we  were  given  over  to  the  mercies  of  a  bumpkin,  who 
had  apparently  never  driven  anything  but  a  cart,  and  who 
waa  with  the  greatest  difficulty  persuaded  to  put  on  the 
drag  in  going  downhill,  even  after  one  of  his  horses  had 


BORJOM.  467 

The  scenery  is  exceedingly  pretty ;  the  Kur  flows  in  a 
clear  rapid  stream  along  the  bottom  of  the  glen,  the  sides 
of  which,  broken  here  and  there  by  masses  of  crag,  are 
clothed  in  thick  pinewoods.  Beside  the  road  grow  copses 
of  the  wild  rose,  which  is  indigenous  to  this  country. 
Borjom  is  situated  at  the  point  where  the  Kur  receives  a 
small  tributary  flowing  from  the  eastern  hills.  The  grand- 
ducal  villa,  a  modem  construction  in  the  chalet  style,  is 
on  the  left  bank  of  the  river ;  the  hills  rise  immediately 
behind  it,  in  steep  slopes.  Boijom  itself  is  on  the  further 
side  of  the  Kur,  which  is  here  crossed  by  a  substantial 
bridge.  The  village  is  of  quite  modern  date,  and  consists 
of  a  few  shops  and  a  number  of  low  cottage  residences 
with  large  verandahs,  in  which  their  occupants  seem  to 
pass  the  greater  poi'tion  of  their  existence.  The  mineral 
spring,  the  waters  of  which  are  of  a  ferruginous  character, 
bursts  out  of  the  ground  in  a  lateral  glen  watered  by  a 
small  stream,  and  overhung  by  lofty  clifiFs.  A  bath-house 
has  been  built,  and  the  grounds  in  the  neighbourhood  laid 
out  in  lawns  and  garden- walks. 

Borjom,  owing  to  its  being  the  chosen  retreat  of  the 
Grand  Duke,  has  become  the  most  aristocratic  of  the 
Caucasian  bathing-places,  and  a  recent  Russian  writer 
goes  so  far  as  to  call  it  the  Baden-Baden  of  the  East,  and 
to  reproach  it  with  excessive  luxury  and  extravagance,  a 
charge  which  cei-tainly  did  not  suggest  itself  to  our  minds. 
We  were  driven  to  the  front-door  of  a  large  building  at 
the  mouth  of  the  ravine  in  which  the  source  is  situated, 
and  had  already  alighted,  when  a  domestic  stepped  forward 
and  informed  us  that  that  part  of  the  building  was  reserved 
for  *  les  hauts  employ&,'  information  which  did  not  im- 
press us  with  so  deep  a  sense  as  he  seemed  to  expect  of 
the  impropriety  of  which  we  had  been  guilty.  Having 
been  driven  round  to  a  side-door,  we  were  allowed  to  enter* 

H  H  2 


w^_*- 


468  TRANSCAUCASIA. 

and  shown  a  large  room,  ill-provided,  as  Russian  rooms 
generally  are,  with  sleeping  accommodation,  but  otherwise 
comfortable.  We  spent  the  evening  in  sauntering  about 
the  place,  which  is  so  overshadowed  by  trees  and  rocks 
that  scarcely  any  sunshine  can  reach  it — a  circumstance 
which,  in  the  hot  climate  of  Georgia,  has  contributed 
greatly  to  its  reputation  as  a  pleasant  summer  retreat  for 
those  who  do  not  require  any  very  violent  course  of 
mineral  waters. 

At  Patigorsk  at  least  two-thirds  of  the  society  are  real 
invalids ;  here  we  saw  scarcely  any,  and  the  Russian  young 
ladies  who  raced  about  the  gardens,  and  chatted  together 
in  excellent  English,  afforded  a  more  pleasing  spectacle 
than  the  sickly  officers  and  decrepit  old  men  of  the  Cis- 
Caucasian  Spa.  An  excellent  military  band,  by  far  the 
best  we  heard  in  the  Caucasus,  played  in  the  gardens 
about  sunset,  and  we  had  the  satisfaction  of  hearing  the 
*  Mabel  Waltzes*  (the  popularity  of  which  seems  unbounded 
in  Russia)  and  the  overture  to  *  The  Huguenots'  performed 
in  a  masterly  style.  A  question  seemed  likely  to  arise  as  to 
the  possibility  of  procuring  horses  in  the  morning  to  go 
on  to  Achaltzich,  but,  owing  to  an  officer  for  whom  some 
were  ordered  being  unable  to  start,  we  succeeded  in  getting 
the.  requisite  number. 

August  31s^. — The  first  stage  is  a  long  one  of  twenty-six 
versts  (seventeen  miles)  and  the  road  is  extraordinarily  hilly. 
The  morning  was  lovely,  and  we  fully  enjoyed  the  pretty 
scenery  of  the  winding  valley,  where  the  Kur  flowed  be- 
tween hillsides  clothed  with  thick  oak  and  fir-forests,  from 
amongst  which  rise  the  ruins  of  old  castles,  commanding 
in  former  days  this  entrance  to  Georgia.  We  were  re- 
minded at  every  turn  of  the  Jura,  to  which,  in  its  relation 
to  the  higher  neighbouring  chain,  tlie  Georgian  bill-country 
may,  mutatis  mutandis^  be   very  fairly   compared.      The 


ACHALTZICII.  469 

situation  of  Atskur,  the  halfway  station  between  Borjom 
and  Achaltzich,  is  extremely  picturesque.  The  hotises  are 
grouped  at  the  base  of  an  abrupt  crag,  crowned  by  the 
extensive  remains  of  an  old  Georgian  fortress,  which  com- 
manded alike  the  entrance  to  the  defile  and  the  bridge 
over  the  Kur.  The  type  of  the  buildings,  and  of  the  men 
we  met  on  the  road,  had  already  changed ;  the  *  baschlik ' 
and  cartridge-breasted  coat  had  disappeared,  and  we  saw 
in  their  place  the  turbans  and  dress  of  a  Turkish  race, 

Atskur  marks  the  limit  between  the  wooded  and  bare 
country ;  beyond  it  the  landscape  became  more  open,  and  we 
found  ourselves  again  in  the  region  of  rolling  hills  which  ex- 
tends as  far  as  Erivan  and  Erzeroum.  The  road  was  heavy, 
and  our  cattle  were  weak  poor-spirited  brutes,  though  far 
superior  to  the  driver,  who  was  the  most  incompetent  man 
for  his  post  we  had  yet  come  across.  We  had  constantly 
to  get  out  and  walk,  and  even  thus  the  heavy  carriage  had 
several  narrow  escapes  of  rolling  back  again,  horses  and  all, 
when  halfway  up  one  of  the  steep  hills  which  occurred 
every  quarter  of  a  mile.  The  Kur  forces  its  way  through 
a  narrow  cleft  in  a  low  range,  and  the  road  is  carried  over 
the  brow.  Above  this  the  valley  opens  out  into  a  broad 
cultivated  basin,  and  there  is  nothing  to  attract  attention 
until  the  green  roofs  and  white  walls  of  the  Kussian 
quarter  of  Achaltzich  come  into  view.  Our  carriage  might 
never  have  reached  it,  had  not  the  conductor  forced  the 
miserable  postilion  to  dismount,  and  himself  urged  on 
the  horses. 

Achaltzich,  though  not  an  imposing,  is  an  interesting 
place ;  it  is  situated  on  the  banks  of  a  tributary  of  the  Kur, 
which  divides  it  into  two  quarters,  the  Turkish  and  Russian 
— the  former  exactly  similar  to  every  other  military  colony 
in  the  Cnucasus;  the  latter  a  mass  of  grey  flat-roofed 
houses,  rising  tier  above  tier  against  a  steep  hillside,  the 


470  TRANSCAUCASU. 

top  of  which,  a  bold  bluff  commanding  the  valley,  is 
crewned  by  a  fortress.  It  was  to  gain  possession  of  this 
position  that  the  Turks,  under  the  leadership  of  a  Pasha 
more  brave  than  prudent,  gave  battle  to  the  Russians  in 
the  winter  of  1853,  and  suffered  a  signal  defeat,  only  pre- 
vented from  becoming  a  disastrous  rout  by  the  bravery 
and  promptness  of  some  English  officers  with  the  Turkish 
army,  who,  by  a  judicious  use  of  two  field-guns,  put  a  stop 
to  the  Russian  pursuit. 

Immediately  south  of  the  town  (3,376  feet  above  the 
sea),  the  bare  slopes  rise  to  a  rounded  summit,  8,4502  feet 
in  height.  We  found  sleeping-quarters  in  a  restaurant, 
chiefly  frequented  by  Russian  officers.  Being  a  saint's 
day,  the  bazaar  was  shut  up,  and,  cut  off  from"  this 
source  of  amusement,  we  took  refuge  in  the  never-failing 
public  garden  and  band.  Although  one  of  the  tracks 
leading  to  Abastuman,  a  bathing-place  in  the  mountains 
which  divide  this  district  fix3m  the  basin  of  the  Rion,  is 
called  a  post-road,  we  heard  such  bad  accounts  of  its 
condition  that  we  preferred  to  dismiss  our  *  diligence  '.and 
procure  horses  to  take  us  all  the  way  to  Kutais— an  addi- 
tional inducement  to  this  course  being  that  we  were  more 
sure  of  obtaining  the  requisite  number  of  animals  here 
than  at  Abastuman. 

Septembenr  IsU — It  is  at  Achaltzich  that  the  greater  part 
of  the  silver  filigree-ware  sold  in  the  shops  of  Tiflis  is 
fabricated,  and  one  of  the  workmen  brought  some  of  his 
goods  to  show  us  in  the  morning.  They  were  exceedingly 
pretty,  and  nearly  a  third  less  in  price  than  at  Tiflis, 
but  there  was  not  so  large  a  supply  to  select  from. 
The  man  with  whom  we  had,  without  any  difficulty,  made 
a  bargain  for  horses,  appeared  in  due  time,  and  we  set  out, 
on  some  ungainly  but  enduring  animals,  for  our  ride 
•across  the  hills  to  Kutais.     The  first  day's  joiu'ney  was  to 


I        *— !■ '^PW^  IWPl^^B^iP  1       ■'  '       !■    II 


ABASTUMAN.  471 

be  a  very  short  one.  The  direct  horse-road  to  Abastuman 
crosses  the  spur  on  wliich  the  fortress  is  built,  turns  up 
into  the  hills,  and  after  a  long  ascent — which  in  parts  re- 
minded us  of  Syria,  except  that  the  features  of  the  surround- 
ing landscape  were  on  a  larger  scale — reaches  the  top  of  a 
wide  down,  covered  with  cornfields  and  dotted  with  vil- 
lages, the  inhabitants  of  which,  picturesque  Turks  dressed 
in  the  brightest  colours,  were  enjoying  a  midday  rest  from 
field  labour,  clustered  in  groups,  any  one  of  which  would 
have  made  the  fortune  of  the  artist  who  faithfully  repro- 
duced it. 

From  the  heights  we  had  gained,  we  looked  down  on  a 
wide  basLu  of  cornland,  with  numerous  villages,  which,  by 
a  judicious  arrangement  of  the  frontier-line,  have  been  just 
included  within  the  Bxissian  Empire.  The  roimded  hills 
rising  beyond  it  are  in  Turkish  territory,  and  a  long  day's 
ride  over  them  would  bring  the  traveller  to  the  gate  of 
Kars.  The  view  at  the  present  season  was  very  striking ; 
the  valleys  and  cultivated  slopes  stood  thick  with  corn, 
and  shone  golden  in  the  cloudless  sunshine,  and  the  far- 
spreading  downs  above  them  seemed  to  bask  in  the  uni- 
versal blaze  of  light  and  heat.  We  crossed  several  deep 
hollows,  and  passed  a  large  village  surrounded  by  fruit- 
trees,  before  descending  finally  to  the  banks  of  a  little 
stream,  just  where  it  issued  from  the  wooded  limestone 
chain.  The  road  henceforth  follows  the  water  through  a 
narrow  winding  glen,  clothed  in  firs,  where  an  old  castle, 
perched  like  an  eagle  on  a  lofty  crag,  looks  down  on  the 
passers-by.  The  scenery  is  no  more  than  pretty,  and  its 
features  seemed  puny  and  tame  compared  to  the  wide 
landscape  we  had  just  left. 

The  bathing  village  of  Abastuman  is  entered  almost  be- 
fore it  is  seen ;  it  consists  of  a  row  of  houses  along  the 
roadside,  one  of  which — ^very  unlike  moat  Eussian  build- 


47-2  TRANSCAUCASIA. 

iiigs,  and  reminding  us  of  a  small  Swiss  inn — serves  as  an 
hotel.  We  had  plenty  of  time  during  the  afternoon  to 
stroll  about  the  neighbourhood,  and  contrast  the  attrac- 
tions of  Abastuman  with  those  of  the  other  Caucasian 
watering-places.  Situated  in  a  basin  surrounded  on  all 
sides  by  wooded  hills,  the  place  is  necessarily  without  any 
distant  view^  and  depends  on  its  home-scenery.  The 
stream  is  crossed  by  rustic  bridges,  and  the  small  arbours, 
which  crown  the  rocky  points  projecting  everywhere  from 
the  hillsides,  give  a  cockney  air  to  the  place  which  is  the 
last  thing  one  would  expect  in  so  retired  a  comer  of  Asia. 
Owing  to  its  elevation  (4,178  feet  above  the  sea),  Abastuman 
enjoys  a  comparatively  cool  climate  during  the  summer 
months,  when  it  is  much  frequented  by  the  Russian  resi- 
dents both  of  Kutais  and  Achaltzich,  the  latter  town 
being  fearfully  hot.  It  cannot,  however,  claim  to  rival 
Borjom  in  the  rank  and  fashion  of  its  visitors,  and  in  one 
essential  attraction  it  is  far  inferior.  The  band  was  small 
and  indifferent,  but  the  audience  seemed  little  critical, 
and  crushed  any  sense  of  its  deficiencies  by  dancing  vigo- 
rously to  a  sorry  performance  of  the  '  Guards'  Waltz.' 

September  3rd. — The  morning  was  again  lovely,  a  matter 
of  some  importance,  as  we  were  about  to  cross  the  moun- 
tain ridge  dividing  us  from  Mingrelia.  We  set  out  at 
5  A.M.,  and  rode  for  several  miles  through  a  narrow  valley, 
where  the  road  constantly  crosses  and  recrosses  the  stream. 
There  is  plenty  of  wood,  but  nothing  of  a  peculiarly  large 
or  striking  character.  Where  the  two  rivulets  forming 
the  sources  of  the  Abastumanska  unite  theii*  waters,  our 
way  struck  up  the  hillside,  and  we  gained  a  considerable 
height,  by  a  long  series  of  zigzags.  A  carriage-road  over 
this  pass  has  been  traced,  and  partially  cut,  from  Achalt- 
zich to  the  summit,  and  a  little  way  down  the  other 
side.     A  few  bridges  have  also  been  built,  but  some  of 


THE   SIKAR   PASS.  473 

them  have  already  been  carried  away  by  the  floods.  The 
track,  left  half  finished  like  most  Russian  engineering 
works,  is  already  falling  into  disrepair.  At  its  present  rate 
of  progress,  years  must  pass  before  the  arduous  work  in  the 
long  Mingrelian  valley  of  the  Ghani-Squali  is  brought  to 
a  termination.  Having  reached  the  top  of  the  spur,  the 
road  kept  along  a  tolerably  broad  ridge  between  the  two 
glens,  affording  views,  now  over  one,  now  over  the  other. 
The  eastern  basin  was  the  most  extensive,  and  we  con- 
tinuaJly  remarked  the  admirable  grouping,  and  forms  of 
the  ridges  that  surrounded  it.  The  road  passes  through 
an  extensive  tract  of  forest  desolated  by  fire ;  there  are 
few  gloomier  sights  than  a  burnt  forest,  and  beyond  the 
crop  of  weeds  which  covered  the  ground,  nature  had  done 
nothing  to  repair  the  desolation.  The  tall  charred  trunks 
stood  up,  brown  and  leafless,  and  no  younger  trees  had  as 
yet  sprung  up  amongst  them. 

We  were  glad  to  reach  the  point  where  the  ridge 
merges  in  the  watershed  of  the  mountains,  a  few  hundred 
feet  below  the  broad  gap  which  forms  the  pass.  The 
forest  ceases  at  about  the  same  level,  and  the  final  ascent 
is  by  long  zigzags  over  a  grassy  slope  covered  with  rank 
herbage.  Passing  a  solitary  house  occupied  by  several 
Cossacks,  and  the  ruins  of  a  large  encampment  used  by 
the  detachment  formerly  engaged  in  cutting  the  road,  we 
pushed  eagerly  up  the  crest,  anxious  to  resolve  the 
question  which,  since  leaving  Tiflis,  had  been  a  source  of 
alternate  hope  and  fear — ^whether  we  should  gain  fi-om  this 
point  a  clear  view  of  the  Caucasian  chain.  The  sky  over- 
head was  of  unclouded  blue,  but,  knowing  how  soon  the 
vapours  drawn  up  by  the  morning  sun  from  the  Mingre- 
lian marshes  condense  into  clouds,  we  feared  that  the 
mountains  might  already  be  partially  obscured.  Our 
delight  therefore  was  unbounded  when,  as  we  crested  the 


474  TRANSCAUCASIA. 

ridge,  not  only  the  vast  basin  of  the  Pliasis  lay  spread 
beneath,  but  beyond,  and  standing  out  sharp  and  clear 
against  the  northern  horizon,  the  icy  wall  of  the  Central 
Caucasus  met  our  eyes,  distant  at  its  nearest  point  eight}-^- 
five  miles.  By  following  the  ridge  a  few  hundred  yards 
to  the  west,  we  gained  a  brow,  whence  Kazbek,  previously 
hidden  by  a  neighbouring  eminence,  was  added  to  the  view, 
and  then  sat  down  to  examine  more  fully  the  details  of 
the  vast  panorama. 

The  foreground  was  of  exquisite  beauty ;  forested  ranges 
fell  gradually  from  our  feet  to  the  Mingrelian  plain,  which 
was  flooded  by  a  transparent  purple  haze.  On  the  further 
side  an  army  of  green  hills  clustered  round  the  knees  of 
the  snowy  giants  of  the  central  chain,  which  were  ranged 
in  line  along  the  horizon.  Directly  opposite  our  view- 
point was  the  great  wall  of  rock  and  ice  which  towers 
over  the  sources  of  the  Ingur,  terminated  on  the  west  by 
the  graceful  snow-cone  of  Tau  Totonal.  Equidistant  from 
this  mass  rose,  on  either  hand,  the  clustered  peaks  above 
Gurschavi,  and  the  solitary  Uschba.  The  latter  mountain 
looked  taller  and  more  terrible  than  it  does  even  when 
seen  close  at  hand,  where  its  gigantic  proportions,  and 
the  comparative  insignificance  of  its  neighbours,  are  not 
so  folly  revealed.  Elbruz,  huge  and  rounded,  asserted  as 
usual  its  supremacy,  at  least  in  height,  over  all  the  other 
summits.  Further  west  there  was  only  one  peak,  a 
remarkable  obelisk  of  rock,  which  attracted  our  attention. 
In  the  far  east,  the  snowy  sides  of  Kazbek,  bathed  in  a 
flood  of  morning  sunshine,  gleamed  on  us  for  the  last 
time. 

We  had  before  us  apanora^ma,  extending  over  150  miles, 
of  the  Central  Caucasus,  Kazbek  and  Elbruz  being  each 
105  miles  distant  in  a  direct  line.  These  figures  give  but 
a  weak  idea  of  the  extent,  and  tell  nothing  of  the  splen- 


t^m 


PANORAMA   OP  THE   CAUCASUS.  476 

dour,  of  the  glorious  vision.  To  describe  it  in  all  its  beauty 
would  be  impossible,  and,  even  were  it  otherwise,  fear  of 
disappointing  the  next  traveller,  who,  having  read  these 
pages,  may  follow  the  same  path,  would  make  me  hesitate 
in  the  attempt.  In  the  first  place,  few  can  hope  to  be 
favoured  with  such  a  day ;  in  the  second,  the  scene  will 
not  produce  in  every  traveller  the  same  feelings  that  it 
did  in  us,  to  whom  every  summit  and  glacier  in  the  long 
snowy  ridge  were  full  of  memories.  The  ordinary  observer, 
unused  to  the  scale  of  great  mountain  scenery,  will  see 
nothing  but  curious  crags  in  the  huge  cliffs  of  Uschba, 
and  will  pass  over  without  a  second  glance  the  strips  of 
glistening  silver  which  seam  the  mountain- wall :  we, 
who  recognised  in  one  of  them  the  frozen  cascade  above 
Adisch,  in  another  the  glacier  above  Glola,  from  the  ice- 
fall  of  which  we  had  retreated  in  despair,  lingered  to  take 
a  long  and  affectionate  farewell  of  old  friends  seen  beyond 
hope  once  more.  Among  the  numerous  Russian  officers 
who  had  passed  this  way  with  whom  we  conversed,  we 
did  not  find  one  who  seemed  aware  that  the  great  moun- 
tains were  visible  from  the  pass,  and  travellers  like 
them,  incapable  of  interpreting  rightly  the  images  pre- 
sented to  their  eyes,  will  perhaps  accuse  us  of  making  an 
absurd  fuss  over  a  distant  horizon  of  snow  and  a  few  jagged 
rocks,  which  seem  to  them  rather  to  spoil  the  sweep  of 
the  skyline. 

We  paid  comparatively  little  attention,  at  the  time,  to 
the  view  looking  back  into  the  Turkish  territory,  but  it  must 
not  be  left  wholly  unnoticed.  There,  beyond  the  wooded  and 
broken  spurs  of  the  chain  on  which  we  stood,  the  highlands 
of  the  province  of  Kars,  a  succession  of  rounded  hills,  with 
a  few  patches  of  snow  still  lingering  on  their  summits, 
stretched  away  to  the  horizon. 

A  long  ride  still  lay  before  us — our  horsemen  urged  us 


,« 


476  TRANSCAUCASIA. 

onwards,  and  we  were  forced  reluctantly  to  turn  away  and 
commence  the  descent.  For  some  distance  the  new  road 
is  cut  in  steep  and  long  zigzags ;  it  plunges  almost  imme- 
diately into  a  grove  of  noble  pines  and  firs,  with  long 
mossy  streamers  hanging  from  their  branches.  The  track, 
reduced  to  a  rough  bridle-path,  crosses  a  rivulet,  and  makes 
a  second  and  deeper  plunge  to  the  bed  of  the  Chani-Squali, 
the  course  of  which  it  follows  henceforth  to  the  Mingrelian 
lowlands.  We  imagined  that  we  had  already  exhausted 
the  charms  of  sylvan  scenery,  but  the  forest  in  which  we 
now  found  ourselves  surpassed  in  the  richness  and 
variety  of  its  foliage  any  we  had  yet  seen.  To  enumerate 
the  trees  would  be  not  only  to  exhaust,  but  to  make  several 
additions  to,  the  list  of  those  found  in  Central  Europe; 
the  beech,  the  elm,  and  the  alder,  which  here  grows  to 
an  enormous  size,  were  the  most  conspicuous.  Long 
wreaths  of  ivy  hung  from  their  branches,  and  twisted 
round  their  stems,  and  the  ground  was  covered  with  a 
dense  undergrowth  of  box,  holly,  laurel,  azalea,  and 
rhododendron  bushes.  Long  grasses  and  ferns,  some 
rising  to  the  height  of  a  man,  filled  the  glades ;  others, 
small  and  delicate,  grew  in  the  crannies  of  the  mossy 
cliflfs.  The  stream  foamed  at  the  bottom  of  the  deep  glen 
in  a  succession  of  falls  and  rapids ;  the  path,  following 
and  frequently  crossing  it,  grew  worse  and  worse,  and 
our  horses  found  difficulty  in  picking  their  way  along  it. 
A  causeway  of  logs  had  in  many  places  been  laid  upon 
the  swampy  ground,  and  the  track,  poached  into  holes 
between  the  timbers  by  the  feet  of  passing  animals,  was 
converted  into  a  succession  of  ridges  and  furrows  similar 
to  an  American  ^  corderoy.' 

We  wandered  on  for  some  hours  through  the  glades 
and  thickets,  halting  at  times  to  admire  some  exquisite 
vista,  in  which  the  snowy  peak  of  Tau  Totonal,  framed 


A   FOREST   RIDE.  477 

between  the  green  hillsides,  seemed  to  float  in  blue  haze 
rather  tha.n  to  beloner  to  earth.  The  narrow  trench 
gradually  expanded,  leaving  space  for  occasional  patches 
of  cultivated  ground.  Cornfields  were  in  time  succeeded 
by  plantations  of  the  tobacco-plant,  the  bright-green 
leaves  of  which  are  in  their  natural  state  always  a  pleasing 
sight.  At  the  comers  of  many  of  the  enclosures,  which 
are  generally  surrounded  by  rough  fences,  we  noticed 
raised  wooden  platforms ;  these  are  said  to  be  look-out 
posts,  where  a  watchman  keeps  guard  against  the  depre- 
dations of  the  bears  which  abound  in  the  forest.  Below 
the  junction  of  the  two  glens  the  valley  widens,  and  is 
dotted  with  numerous  clusters  of  cottages.  Fruit-trees 
now  become  plentiful ;  the  plum,  the  pear,  and  the  medlar 
grow  wild,  and  the  vine  trails  its  long  branches  over  the 
forest  trees. 

The  new  road  was  in  course  of  construction,  and  we 
found  parts  in  a  sufficiently  forward  state  to  enable  us  to 
ride  along  it.  The  valley,  having  trended  north-west  for 
some  distance,  turned  due  north,  and  a  village  stood  on  the 
opposite  bank  of  the  stream.  From  this  point,  the  hills 
sank  rapidly,  and  our  horsemen  pointed  out  the  position 
of  Bagdad  in  the  distance.  It  was  dark,  and  the  wood- 
cutters' fires  blazed  out  cheerily,  high  upon  the  hillsides, 
before  we  reached  our  resting-place.  Bagdad  is  situated 
close  to  the  point  at  which  several  valleys  open  on  to  the 
plain.  The  village  consists  of  one  street,  with  houses  on 
either  side;  there  were  plenty  of  people  about,  but  they 
one  and  all  refused  us  shelter  for  the  night ;  we  were 
getting  angry  and  perplexed  at  this  final  specimen  of 
Mingrelian  manners  and  hospitality,  when  one  of  the 
peasants  suggested  that  a  French  baron  lived  half  a  mile 
off,  and  that  we  might  find  lodgings  with  him.  We 
guessed  rightly  that  there  could  not  be  two  Fi-ench  barons 


478  TRANSCAUCASIA. 

near  Kutais,  and  that  this  one  must  be  the  Baron  de 
Longueil,  whom  we  had  met  six  months  before  on  board 
the  Bion  steamer.  Under  tlie  circumstances,  the  best 
course  was  evidently  to  accex:>t  the  proposal,  and  claim  the 
hospitality  of  the  only  civilised  being  within  reach. 

Though  the  Baron  was  away  from  home,  '  Madame '  re- 
ceived us  with  the  greatest  kindness,  and  gave  us  both 
food  and  beds,  lururies  which,  ten  minutes  before,  we  had 
seemed  little  likely  to  obtain  on  this  side  of  Kutais.  From 
the  account  we  heard  of  it,  &rming  in  Mingrelia  does  not 
seem  to  be  so  wholly  delightful  an  occupation  as  the 
natural  fertility  of  the  soil  might  lead  one  to  suppose. 
*  Madame '  complained  bitterly  of  the  laziness  and  dis- 
honesty of  the  native  servants,  and  of  the  excessive  diffi- 
culty of  transport,  Kutais,  though  only  about  thirty  miles 
distant,  being  often  rendered  inaccessible  for  weeks  in  win- 
ter by  swollen  streams  and  the  horrible  state  of  the  roads. 

September  4th. — ^When  daylight  came,  we  saw  that  the 
Baron  had  bmlt  himself  a  pretty  little  villa,  ornamented 
with  a  verandah  overgrown  with  creepers,  and  some 
attempt  at  a  garden.  .  Bidding  a  grateful  adieu  to  our 
kind  hostess,  we  remounted  our  horses,  and  started  to  ride 
across  the  flat  country  that  separated  us  from  Kutais.  The 
sky  was  overclouded,  and  we  could  not  but  congratulate 
ourselves  on  our  good-luck  in  having  had  so  perfect  a  view 
the  previous  morning.  The  road  leads  at  first  across  glades 
of  turf,  and  between  copses  of  fruit-trees  overhung  and 
knitted  together  by  wild  vines,  and  passes  through  several 
villages.  Mingrelian  hamlets  are  all  exactly  alike,  and 
it  would  be  impossible  to  improve  on  Mr.  Palgrave's  des- 
cription of  one :  *  The  houses  ai-e  neither  ranged  in 
streets,  nor  grouped  in  blocks,  but  scattered  as  at  random, 
each  in  a  separate  enclosure.  The  houses  themselves  are 
one-storied,  and  of  wood,  sometimes  mere  huts  of  wattle 


MINGRELIAN  VILLAGES.  4T9 

and  of  clay ;  the  Gnclosures  are  of  cut  stakes,  planted  and 
interwoTen  lattice-wise.  Old  forest  trees,  fresh  underwood, 
bramble,  and  grass  grow  everywhere,  regardless  of  the 
houses,  which  are  in  a  manner  lost  among  them  ;  one  is  at 
times  right  in  the  middle  of  a  village  before  one  has  even 
an  idea  of  having  approached  it.'  On  the  country  roads 
in  the  neighbourhood  of  Katais,  rude  vehicles,  half-slodge, 
half-cart,  may   frequently  be  met,  drawn   by  two  oxen. 


Uingidlu  Wise  Ju. 

and  la4en  with  one  of  the  hiige  earthenware  jars  used  for 
storing  wine,  which  will  scarcely  fail  to  recall  to  the 
traveller's  mind  the  story  of  the  Forty  Thieves  in  the 
'  Arabian  Nights.' 

For  nearly  an  hour  we  traversed  a  thick  beechwood, 
and  emerged  from  it  at  the  point  where  it  is  necessary  to 
ford  not  ouly  the  stream  of  the  Chani-SguaJi,  but  the  larger 
and  far  more  formidable  Quirila.  Three  months  earlier 
we  should  have  found  a  new  bridge  just  completed,  but 


480  TRANSCAUCASIA. 

after  a  career  of  usefulness,  short  even  for  this  country, 
the  unhappy  structure  had  been  left  standing  high-and- 
dry,  while  the  river  flowed  in  a  new  channel  fifty  3'ards 
further  south.  To  judge  them  by  their  works,  Russian 
engineers  seem  incapable  of  anything  thorough,  and  the 
amount  of  money  wasted  during  the  last  few  years  in  the 
Caucasus  would  be  difficult  to  calculate.  Even  the  late 
Czar  Nicholas  is  said  to  have  sighed  over  the  constant  call 
for  fresh  grants  for  the  construction  of  the  Dariel  road, 
which  is  not  finished  yet.  With  more  skill  and  less  jobbery 
a  Swiss  canton  would  have  made  it  in  a  quarter  of  the 
time,  and  at  half  the  expense  it  has  cost  the  Imperial 
Government, 

The  Quirila  was  fortunately  not  in  flood,  and  we  waded 
without  difficulty  through  its  broad  clear-flowing  current. 
The  hard  road  into  Kutais  is  half  completed,  and  follows 
the  left  bank  of  the  Rion  at  no  great  distance  from  the 
river.  The  journey  divides  itself  naturally  into  two  stages ; 
the  first  across  the  marshy  lowlands,  from  which  a  steep 
bank  leads  to  an  upper  level  covered  with  dense  oak  copses, 
through  which  the  track  runs  straight  as  an  arrow  for 
several  miles,  until,  bending  to  the  left,  it  descends  into 
Kutais.  The  first  view  of  the  town  from  this  side,  with  its 
large  white-walled  green-roofed  buildings  and  domed 
churches,  set  in  a  framework  of  hills,  and  watered  by  the 
rapid  stream  of  the  Rion,  is  exceedingly -pretty.  We  trotted 
through  the  streets,  and  dismounted  at  the  door  of  the 
*H6tel  de  France,'  where  we  found  Fran9ois,  who  had 
arrived  safely  with  the  luggage  two  days  previously. 

There  was  some  difficulty  in  finding  rooms,  for  the  hotel 
was  crowded ;  the  Grand  Duke  Michael,  after  escorting  the 
Grand  Duchess  to  the  seaside,  had  returned  to  Kutais,  and 
set  out  from  thence  early  on  the  previous  day  to  ride 
through  the  Radscha   and  over  the  Mamisson   Pass   to 


KUTAIS.  48 1 

Yladikafkaz.  Many  of  the  officers,  who  had  come  from 
country  posts  to  meet  him,  were  still  in  the  place,  and  there 
were,  besides,  an  unusual  number  of  travellers  awaiting  the 
departure  of  the  next  steamer  from  Poti,  Amongst  them 
were  two  gentlemen,  who  had,  like  ourselves,  been  engaged 
in  exploring  the  Caucasus — Mons.  Pavre,  the  son  of  the 
well-known  Genevese  geologist,  and  Mons.  DesroUes,  an 
entomologist,  whom  the  natives  had  facetiously  nicknamed 
the  'Father  of  Flies.*  The  extent  of  their  excursions  in  the 
mountains  had  been  to  cross  the  Mamisson  Pass  and  ride 
up  to  ITruspieh.  We  also  met  an  English  gentleman  and 
his  vrife,  who  had  made  their  way  across  the  Caucasian 
isthmus  from  Petrovsk,  on  the  Caspian.  The  journey  from 
that  place  to  Yladikafkaz,  occupying  three  days,  had  to  be 
performed  in  '  telegas,'  and  is  one  which  few  ladies  would 
care  to  undertake. 

September  5th. — ^We  discovered  during  the  day  two  new 
attractions  in  Kutais — :its  photograph  shop,  and  its  jet. 
We  purchased  a  considerable  number  of  *  cartes-de-visite  * 
of  the  peasantry  of  the  surrounding  districts,  executed  with 
an  eye  to  the  picturesque  in  the  grouping  and  accessories, 
which  did  great  credit  to  the  enterprising  artist.  The  jet, 
which  is  somewhat  softer  in  substance  and  more  brittle, 
but  otherwise  similar  to  that  sold  in  England,  is  hawked 
about  the  streets  in  long  chaplets,  and  may  be  bought  for 
very  low  prices  ;  we  were  assured  that  aU  the  beads  are 
hand-cut.  Its  native  name  is  '  gicher,'  which,  in  Armenian 
phrase,  also  means  '  night.' 

Before  leaving  Kutais,  we  had  the  pleasure  of  making  the 
acquaintance  of  Mons.  Elhatissian,  an  Armenian  gentle- 
man who  has  spent  much  time  in  exploring  the  neighbour- 
hood of  Kazbek,  and  lived  for  some  weeks  encamped  at  the 
foot  of  the  Devdorak  glacier,  engaged  in  scientific  re- 
searches, of  which  he  means  to  publish  the  results,  accom- 

1 1 


4h2  TRANSCAUCASIA. 

panied  by  a  map  of  the  glaciers  on  the  eastern  flank  of  the 
mountain.  Much  of  the  information  we  derived  from  him 
has  been  embodied  in  previous  pages. 

We  had  intended  to  remain  two  days,  and  spend  the 
second  in  an  excursion  to  the  celebrated  monastery  of 
Ghelathi,  founded  at  the  end  of  the  eleventh  century  by 
a  Mingrelian  sovereign,  which  is  celebrated  alike  for  the 
interest  of  its  architecture,  and  the  venerable  images  and 
ecclesiastical  wealth  it  contains.  We  heard,  however,  such 
disquietingreports  of  the  irregularity  of  the  Sunday  steamer 
on  the  Hion,  that  it  seemed  more  prudent  to  follow  the 
example  of  most  of  our  fellow-travellers,  and  start  twenty- 
four  hours  sooner  than  we  had  proposed.  To  this  end  an 
arrangement  was  concluded  with  the  postmaster,  the 
same  man  who  had  given  us  trouble  on  our  former  visit, 
by  which  he  undertook  to  provide  a  ^  tarantasse '  and  horses 
at  midnight  on  Friday— the  usual  time  for  starting,  as  the 
accommodation  at  Orpiri  is  bad,  and  the  Bion  steamer 
leaves  early  in  the  morning.  The  money  for  the  horses 
was  paid,  and  we  believed  the  afiPair  settled;  but  at  the 
japi)ointed  hour  no  horses  came,  and  on  sending  to  the 
post,  we  were  told  that  the  official  had  gone  off  to  Orpiri, 
leaving  no  instructions,  and  that  if  we  wanted  horses  we 
must  pay  overlain,  and  make  a  present  besides  for  the 
favour  of  having  thenu  The  postmaster  who  had  thus 
sought  to  cheat  us  was  described  by  a  gentleman  of 
Kutais  as  a  ^  brigand  du  premier  ordre,'  and,  unwilling  to 
become  his  victims,  we  visited  two  higher  officials,  from 
one  of  whom  we  received  an  order  that  horses  should  be 
given  us  directly,  and  no  further  payment  asked.  Let  all 
travellers  beware  of  that  pair  of  harpies,  the  mistress  of 
the  ^  H6tel  de  France,'  and  her  friend  the  postmaster  at 
Kutais! 

We  drove  to  Orpiri  in  pouring  rain.     During  our  voyage 
down  the  river,  the  weather,  though  cloudy,  was  fine — a 


POTI.  483 

fortunate  circumstance,  aa,  owing  to  the  shallowness  of  the 
water  at  this  season,  the  ordinary  boats  cannot  get  up  to 
Orpiri,  and  the  passengers  and  cargo  are  transferred  half- 
way from  one  boat  to  another.  At  Poti  we  went  to  the 
*  Hdtel  Jacquot,'  which  is  clean  and  comfortable.  No  reader 
of  *  Martin  Chuzzlewit  *  could  fail  to  be  struck  with  the 
resemblance  to  Eden  of  this  miserable  spot.  Its  situation, 
in  a  swamp  rather  below  the  waters  of  the  Bion,  which 
are  only  prevented  by  embankments  from  sweeping  away 
the  place,  combines  almost  every  disqualification  for  a 
commercial  town.  The  hotels  (there  are  three),  the  office 
of  the  steamboat  company,  and  a  few  houses  of  the  better 
sort,  are  planted  at  irregular  intervals  near  the  quay. 
Behind  them  is  the  main  and  only  street,  which  consists 
of  a  causeway  running  between  two  rows  of  log-shanties, 
raised  on  piles  above  pools  of  fetid  water,  and  ending 
abruptly  in  a  dismal  swamp.  'Every  road  has  two  large 
ditches,  brimming  with  stagnant  slime  on  either  side, 
crossed  by  little  bridges,  which,  as  one  of  our  party  found 
by  unpleasant  experience,  are  easily  missed  in  the  dark. 
What  wonder  that  fever  and  ague  are  written  in  the  faces 
of  the  dismal  gathering  of  officers  and  employ^,  to  whom, 
in  what  the  residents  are  pleased  to  call  a  public  garden,  a 
melancholy  band  nightly  discourses  doleful  tunes  !  All  the 
real  merriment  and  music  of  Poti  is  confined  to  the  fix>gs, 
and  they,  to  judge  by  the  noise  they  make,  lead  a  merry 
life  of  it.  All  night  long  their  ceaseless  chorus  resounds 
through  the  place,  and  it  is  asserted  by  the  inhabitants — 
though  I  cannot  wholly  credit  the  story — ^that  the  sound, 
when  the  wind  blows  that  way,  is  audible  even  at  Constan- 
tinople. 

So  long  as  Turkey  keeps  Batoum,  Russia  is  reduced  to 
make  the  best  of  Poti,  as  the  port  of  the  Caucasus.  Souk- 
houm-Kal6,  which  seems  at  first  sight  preferable,  is  little  less 

II  2 


484  TRANSCAUCASIA. 

unhealthy,  and  is  besides  rendered  difficult  of  access  from 
the  interior  by  the  numerous  streams  (of  which  the  Ingur  is 
the  largest)  flowing  out  of  the  mountains,  none  of  which 
the  Russians  have  as  yet  succeeded  in  bridging.  The  future 
Transcaucasian  Railway  is  to  begin  at  Poti,  and  endeavours 
are  being  made  to  deepen  the  bar  of  the  Rion,  and  convert 
its  second  mouth  into  a  harbour.  Colonel  Schauroff,  the 
officer  in  charge  of  the  works,  is  firmly  persuaded  of  the 
eventual  success  of  the  scheme  which  he  has  himself  origi- 
nated, and  is  endeavouring  to  execute  ;  but,  as  is  ofben  the 
case,  his  superiors  do  not  share  his  convictions,  and  their 
half-hearted  support  and  iscanty  doles  are  likely  to  delay 
indefinitely  the  completion  of  the  proposed  works. 

On  the  mioming  of  the  6th  we  made  the  first  break  in 
our  party.  Fran9ois  left  us  on  board  the  Batoum  steamer 
to  find  his  way  home  to  Chamonix  by  Constantinople  and 
Marseilles.  Later  in  the  day  we  embarked  with  Paul  on 
board  the  small  but  prettily-fitted  boat  which  was  to  convey 
us  to  Soukhoum-E[al6.  The  sunset  was  fine,  but  clouds  hung 
over  the  Caucasian  chain^  and  deprived  us  of  bur  last 
chance  of  seeing  Elbruz,  which  in  clear  weather  is  plainly 
distinguishable  &om  shipboard.  At  daybreak  on  the  7th 
we  were  at  anchor  in  the  bay  of  Soukhoum-Kal6,  alongside 
the  larger  steamer  to  which  we  were  to  be  transferred  for 
the  farther  voyage.  The  town,  a  small  seaport,  is  situated 
at  the  head  of  a  southward-facing  bay ;  a  short  distance 
inland  the  country  rises  in  graceful  wooded  hills,  but 
Soukhoum-Kal6  stands  on  the  level  marshy  shore,  and  is 
very  unhealthy.  Its  only  sights  are  some  wonderful 
weeping-willows  in  the  main  street,  dignified  as  a  boule- 
vard, and  a  botanical  garden,  or  rather  plantation  of  exotic 
trees.  There  was  much  ripe  fruit  there — grapes,  pears, 
and  plums — well  guarded  by  a  sturdy  youth,  who  assured 
us  they  were  aU  reserved  for  the  consumption  of  a  Greneral, 


THE   COAST   OF  THE   CAUCASUS.  48.3 

and  whom  our  felonions  attacks  on  his  treasures  excited 
to  desperation.  This  spot  witnessed  some  hard  fighting 
in  1864,  when  the  Abkhasians  broke  out  into  open  revolt, 
overpowered  and  murdered  every  man  at  some  of  the 
Bussian  outposts,  and  attacked  Soukhoum  in  force. 

Our  steamboat,  the  *  General  Kotzebue,'  one  of  the 
finest  in  the  Black  Sea  Company's  fieet,  lefb  on  the  evening 
of  the  7th.  All  night  and  the  next  day  we  were  running 
along  the  Caucasian  coast.  The  shore  is  lined  with  grey 
or  white  cliffs,  behind  which  the  mountains  rise  in  long 
wooded  ridges  broken  by  valleys,  through  which  numerous 
streams  find  a  way  down  to  the  sea.  Though  on  the 
whole  fine,  the  character  of  the  scenery  was  not  so  grand 
as  we  had  been  led  to  expect.  After  a  short  stay  at 
Novorosiski,  an  unattractive4ooking  Russian  colony  in  a 
deep  bay,  we  continued  our  voyage,  the  coast  of  the 
Caucasus  gradually  fading  in  the  darkness.  During  the 
night  we  arrived  off  Kertch,  where  the  boat  remained  till 
midday,  allowing  time  to  visit  the  town,  rebuilt  since  the 
war ;  the  museum,  the  chief  treasures  of  which  have  been 
removed  to  St.. Petersburg,  and  one  of  the  tumuli  in  the 
neighbourhood,  containing  a  curious  stone  chamber. 

The  run  from  Kertch  to  Sevastopol  ocxjupied  twenty- 
six  hours,  including  stoppages  at  Theodosia  and  Yalta. 
Beyond  the  latter  place  the  coast-scenery  is  superb,  and 
the  magnificence  of  the  weather  enabled  us  fully  to  enjoy 
it.  We  had  pleasant  and  amusing  society  on  board. 
Besides  the  travellers  whom  we  met  at  Kutais,  there  were 
two  Russian  Generals,  types  respectively  of  the  two 
extremes  met  with  in  the  Imperial  Service;  a  Georgian 
youth,  splendidly  dressed  in  his  full  national  costume,  and 
a  less  showy  boy  (a  son  of  the  Suanetian  prince  who  mur- 
dered the  Governor  of  Mingrelia),  both  of  whom  were  going 
to  complete  their  education  at  the  University  of  Odessa. 


486  THE   CRIMEA. 

On  the  afternoon  of  September  10th,  after  running 
across  Balaclava  Bay,  and  rounding  Cape  St.  George,  we 
entered  the  harbour  of  Sevastopol,  at  the  mouth  of  which 
stands  Fort  Constantine,  looking  as  strong  as  ever,  though 
its  southern  brother  is  utterly  destroyed.  The  interior  of 
the  town  presents  a  scene  of  destruction  for  which  we 
were  quite  unprepared.  Not  only  are  the  dockyards  and 
government  buildings  blown  to  pieces,  but  the  main  street 
is  deserted  and  grass-grown,  and  the  houses  that  line  it, 
built  of  white  stone,  stand  roofless  and  shattered  wrecks. 
Nowhere  but  at  Pompeii  have  I  seen  such  desolation.  The 
population  has  fallen  from  80,000,  before  the  war,  to  8,000 ; 
it  is  now  rising  again,  owing  to  the  recent  establishment 
of  the  shipbuilding  yards  of  the  *  Black  Sea  Steam  Navi- 
gation Company'  in  the  Admiralty  Creek.  Their  new 
machinery-sheds,  and  the  adjacent  barracks,  are  the  only 
signs  of  life  about  the  place. 

We  were  surprised  to  find  the  lines  of  the  Russian 
defences  so  perfect ;  the  lower  story  of  the  Malakhoff  tower 
still  stands,  surrounded  by  the  big  ditch  and  high  mound ; 
the  salient  angle  of  the  Sedan  looks  fresh  and  sharp,  and 
a  dismounted  cannon  lies  in  one  of  the  embrasures.  On 
the  heights  outside  the  town,  the  trenches  are  easily  trace- 
able, and  at  a  greater  distance,  where  the  huts  stood,  the 
ground  is  strewn  with  fragments  of  broken  bottles  and  old 
shoe-leathers.  The  French  dead  have  been,  as  far  as  possi- 
ble, collected  into  one  cemetery,  which  is  planted  with 
trees,  and  placed  under  the  charge  of  a  resident  guardian ; 
but  the  bodies  of  our  countrymen  lie  scattered  over  the 
downs,  in  more  than  fifty  small  enclosures,  each  surrounded 
by  a  low  wall.  At  the  time  of  our  visit,  these  graveyards 
were  covered  with  a  dense  growth  of  weeds,  many  of  the 
tombstones  were  broken  and  the  inscriptions  erased,  and 


THE   BATTLEFIELDS.  487 

we  saw  everywhere  proofs  of  a  carelessness  and  neglect 
which  are  discreditable  to  the  English  nation. 

The  battlefields  of  Balaclava  and  Inkerman  are  marked 
by  simple  stone  obelisks.  It  is  difficult  to  recognise  the 
*  Valley  of  Death '  in  a  slight  depression  between  two  grassy 
knolls ;  the  heights  of  Inkerman  are  more  like  what  fancy 
pictures  them,  and  the  ravine  up  which  the  Kussians  came 
to  the  assault  is  striking,  apart  from  its  associations.  On 
a  sloping  hill,  above  the  forts  on  the  northern  side  of  the 
harbour,  is  the  g^eat  Russian  cemetery.  The  simple  fact, 
that  from  250  to  300  dead  lie  under  each  of  the  large 
nameless  tombstones  that  line  the  central  avenue,  gives 
some  idea  of  the  numbers  buried  there.  Prince  Gortscha- 
koflfs  monument  stands  at  the  top  of  the  enclosure; 
though  he  survived  the  siege  for  several  years,  the  inscrip- 
tion states  that  he  wished  to  ^  lie  with  those  brave  com- 
panions in  arms,  by  whose  valour  the  enemy  was  prevented 
from  penetrating  further  into  fatherland.'  On  the  brow 
above  the  cemetery,  a  handsome  memorial  chapel  has  been 
erected.  The  building  is  an  attempt,  not  wholly  success- 
ful, to  unite  a  monument  and  a  chapel;  externally  it 
has  the  form  of  an  irregular  pyramid  surmounted  by  a 
large  cross.  The  interior,  a  Greek  church  of  the  usual  form, 
is  in  course  of  decoration  with  a  series  of  frescoes  by  native 
and  Italian  artists,  which  seemed  to  us  of  considerable 
merit. 

English  travellers  are  strangely  indifferent  to  the  at- 
tractions of  the  Crimea.  Setting  aside  for  the  moment 
natural  beauties,  its  historical  interest  well  repays  the 
trouble  of  a  visit.  Whatever  monuments  may  be  raised 
elsewhere,  Sevastopol  itself  will  for  many  years  to  come 
remain  the  greatest  memorial  of  the  struggle  which 
centred  round  it.     Great  battles  are  fought,  and  little 


488  THE    CRIMEA. 

trace  remains ;  it  is  in  the  ruin  caused  by  sieges  that  war 
stamps  its  most  lasting  mark.  In  the  bullet-riddled  walls 
of  the  once  handsome  buildings,  in  the  laboriously- wrought 
labyrinths  of  lines  and  counterlines  that  encompass  them, 
in  the  shattered  forts  and  demolished  dockyards  on  the 
water's  edge,  and,  more  than  all,  in  the  crowded  burial- 
grounds  on  the  heights,  it  is  easy  to  read  the  story  of  the 
siege ;  and,  in  gazing  on  them,  one  is  led  to  appreciate 
both  the  importance  of  the  result,  and  the  cost  at  which 
it  was  obtained. 

Travelling  in  the  Crimea  is  rendered  more  agreeable 
than  in  most  parts  of  Russia  by  the  excellence  of  the 
roads,  combined  with  the  -civility  and  promptness  met 
with  at  the  post-stations.  These  unusual  phenomena 
are  in  a  great  measure  due  to  the  fact,  that  this  is  the  only 
district  of  Russia  where  pleasure-travellers  are  understood, 
and  somewhat  also  to  the  pervading  influence  of  the 
Woronzofif  family,  at  whose  expense  the  greater  part  of 
the  coast-road  was  constructed.  It  is  a  very  pleasant  drive 
from  Sevastopol  to  Yalta,  Simferopol,  Bakhchisarai,  and 
back.  The  entire  distance  can  be  got  over  in  three  days, 
but  five  are  the  least  that  should  be  allowed,  as  it  is 
desirable  to  leave  time  for  a  visit  to  the  villas  on  the  coast, 
and  Bakhchisarai  and  its  neighbourhood  a£Ebrd  employ- 
ment for  a  long  afternoon. 

Balaclava  is  the  first  post-station.  While  changing 
horses  we  had  time  to  climb  to  the  old  Genoese  tower, 
and  look  down,  on  one  side  on  the  landlocked  creek,  on 
the  other  on  the  iron-bound  coast  on  which  the  ill-fated 
*  Prince '  struck  and  went  to  pieces.  It  is  after  a  long 
inland  climb  that  the  road,  in  a  gap  between  two  wooded 
hills,  reaches  the  Gate  of  Baidar,  a  classical  archway 
built  to  mark  the  spot  whence  the  traveller  gains  his  first, 
or  last,   view  of  the  Grarden  of  the  Crimea.     From  the 


THE   CRIMEAN   CORNICIIE.  489 

water's  edge,  1,500  feet  below,  a  long  slope  of  garden,  wood, 
and  vineyard,  dotted  with  villas,  runs  up  to  the  foot  of  a 
tall  range  of  grey  limestone  cliffs.  The  Russian  Comiche, 
as  the  post-road  from  this  point  to  Alushta  (a  distance 
of  sixty  miles)  has  been  aptly  called,  need  not  shrink  from 
comparison  with  its  more  famous  rival.  Few  will  be 
found  to  depreciate  the  beauty  of  a  series  of  landscapes 
which  unite,  in  constantly-shifting  proportions,  the  charms 
of  bold  rock-scenery  and  rich  vegetation,  enhanced,  as  &r 
as  such  scenery  can  be,  by  human  aid,  and  set  in  a  frame  of 
blue  sky  and  still  bluer  sea.  No  one  who  is  fortunate 
enough  to  travel  here  in  the  vintage-season  vrill  despise 
the  merits  of  the  grapes,  which  are  sold  at  a  few  copecks 
the  poxmd. 

Yalta  is  the  Mentone  of  the  co4st.  Here  however,  as 
is  generally  the  case  in  Russia,  the  English  rather  than 
the  Italian  style  has  been  adopted,  and  the  little  town, 
seen  from  the  sea,  with  its  prim  houses  and  square- 
towered  church,  reminded  us  more  of  the  Isle  of  Wight 
than  of  anything  on  Mediterranean  shores.  The  three 
principal  estates  are  all  near  Yalta.  At  Alupka,  Prince 
WoronzofiT's  seat,  the  house  is  an  odd  mixture  of  the  feudal 
and  Saracenic  styles,  while  the  grounds  are  laid  out  entirely 
in  the  English  manner.  Orianda,  the  property  of  the 
Grand  Duke  Constantine,  occupies  the  finest  position,  but 
is  the  least  interesting;  Livadia,  the  Emperor's  villa,  is 
more  in  the  ch&let  style,  and  has  attached  to  it  a  chapel, 
small,  but  exquisitely  decorated.  We  remarked  that  the 
Czar  has  some  fine  watercolour  drawings  of  the  Caucasus 
in  his  study,  the  general  fittings  of  which,  as  of  the  rest 
of  the  house,  are  very  plain,  and,  with  the  photographs  of 
the  Imperial  Family  hanging  on  the  walls,  give  an  un- 
expected but  pleasant  impression  of  homeliness,  and 
absence  of  court  restraint. 


490  THE  CRIMEA^ 

The  road  to  Simferopol  continues  along  the  coast  as  far 
as  Alushta — ^then  turns  inland,  and  crosses  a  well-wooded 
ridge  of  3,000  feet,  a  spur  of  Tchatyr-Dagh  (5,125  feet), 
the  respectable  monarch  of  Crimean  heights.  Sleeping  at 
Simferopol,  an  uninteresting  town,  we  drove  on  next  day 
to  Bakhchisarai,  crossing  halfway  the  brook  Alma,  con- 
siderably above  the  battlefield.  The  town,  picturesquely 
situated  in  a  narrow  glen,  in  the  centre  of  a  wide  desolate 
steppe,  is  entirely  Turkish  in  character,  and  forms  a 
striking  contrast  to  the  Russian  style  of  the  rest  of  the 
Crimea.  The  principal  attraction  to  visitors  is,  however, 
the  residence  of  the  Tartar  Khans,  used  as  a  hospital 
during  the  war,  but  which  has  since  been  tastefully 
restored,  at  the  expense  of  the  Government.  It  is  a  very 
perfect  specimen  of  an  Oriental  palace,  and  the  gaily- 
decorated  ceilings  and  brilliant  stained-glass  make  the 
deserted  rooms  look  bright  and  cheerfdl.  A  soldier  acts 
as  cicerone,  but  he  was  so  gloriously  intoxicated  at  the 
time  of  our  visit,  that  little  information  could  be  got  from 
him.  In  the  neighbourhood  is  a  curious  monastery, 
hollowed  out  of  the  rock,  and  a  village  of  Karaite  Jews,  a 
sect  the  origin  of  which  seems  doubtful,  if  not  unknown, 
and  who  are  accordingly  supposed  to  be  a  remnant  of  the 
lost  Ten  Tribes. 

We  returned  to  Sevastopol  on  the  16th,  and  on  the 
afternoon  of  the  1 7th  embarked  for  Odessa.  The  steamer, 
calling  at  Eupatoria  on  the  way,  makes  the  passage  in 
twenty  hours.  At  Odessa  the  Eastern  element  is  altogether 
wanting,  and  even  the  Russian  is  unobtrusive ;  it  is,  in  fact, 
a  Western  city.  Its  character  is  no  doubt  due  to  its 
having  grown  up  under  the  patronage  of  a  French  exile, 
the  Due  de  Richelieu,  and  a  Russian  Anglo-maniac,  Prince 
Woronzofif.  It  is  at  present  the  best-paved  and  best-lighted 
town  in  Russia,  and  boasts  a  handsome  boulevard  and  an 


ODESSA.  491 

opera.  Its  commeFcial  prosperity  will  no  doubt  be  largely 
increased  by  the  opening  of  railway  communication  with 
Moscow. 

Situated  on  the  brow  of  a  cliff,  and  at  the  edge  of  a 
sandy  plain,  Odessa  has  few  attractions  for  the  passing 
traveller,  who,  as  soon  as  he  has  sauntered  through  the 
streets,  visited  one  or  two  chm*ches,  the  Jewish  synagogues, 
and  the  boulevard,  will  be  glad  to  continue  his  journey. 
This,  now  that  the  railroads  are  finished,  will  be  found  no 
difficult  matter,  but  for  us  it  was  different.  The  line  to 
Kieff  was  as  yet  unopened,  and  at  one  time  the  difficulties 
of  making  our  way  across  Kussia  to  St.  Petersburg  seemed 
so  great  that  we  had  almost  decided  to  fly  to  Istamboul  and 
return  home  by  Athens,  when  a  piece  of  intelligence,  which 
afterwards  proved  untrustworthy,  made  Tucker  and  myself 
revert  to  our  original  plan.  Moore,  however,  could  not 
spare  longer  time,  and  left  us  to  cross  Europe  by  a  more 
direct  route,  by  way  of  Lemberg,  Czemowitz,  and  Cracow, 
by  which  he  succeeded  in  reaching  Paris  in  6^  days'  hard 
travelling,  including  a  detention  of  twenty-four  hours  at 
Czemowitz.  Paul  also,  who  had  served  us  well  and  faith- 
fully during  our  Caucasian  wanderings,  was  now  dismissed, 
to  return  to  his  Mingrelian  home ;  thus  Tucker  and  I  were 
left  to  end  our  journey,  as  we  had  begun  it,  by  ourselves. 

On  the  evening  of  the  21st  September,  we  went  by  rail 
to  Birzoula,  where  the  new  'KieS  Line  branches  off  from 
that  to  Elizavetgrad ;  it  had  been  partially  opened,  and  we 
had  hopes  of  being  forwarded  along  it,  which  however 
proved  illusory.  After  a  vexatious  delay  of  twenty-four 
hours,  we  went  on  again  by  the  Odessa  train,  and  reached 
Elizavetgrad  on  the  morning  of  the  23rd.  This  part  of 
Russia  consists  of  nothing  but  bare  rolling  downs,  on  which 
much  of  the  com  shipped  annually  from  Odessa  is  grown; 
the  scenery  is  consequently  very  uninteresting  and  mono- 


4D2  HOME  THROUGH  EUSSIA. 

tonoufl*  The  towns  and  villages  are  situated  in  depressions, 
watered  by  small  streams.  Elizavetgrad,  planted  in  one 
of  these  wrinkles  of  the  steppe,  is  a  large  but  unremarkable 
place,  the  headquarters  of  the  cavalry  in  Southern  Russia. 
We  found  a  man  at  the  railway-station  who  talked  German, 
and  who  undertook  to  procure  a  carriage  to  take  us  to 
Krementchuk,  eighty  miles  distant,  where  we  hoped  to 
catch  the  Dnieper  steamboat  on  the  following  morning. 
A  springless  waggon,  covered  with  a  tilt,  and  drawn  by 
four  horses,  was  made  ready,  and  after  a  tedious  drive  of 
twenty  hours,  we  reached  Krementchuk  at  8  a.x.  on  the 
28rd,  an  hour  after  the  time  fixed  for  the  steamboat's 
departure.  Fortune,  however,  befriended  us  for  once,  and 
as  we  drove  over  the  long  bridge  of  boats,  we  saw  the 
little  steamer  still  lying  beside  the  wharf,  and,  urging  our 
driver  to  quicken  his  pa^,  we  made  our  way  through  the 
loose  soft  sand  which  covers  the  banks,  and  got  on  board 
ten  minutes  before  she  started.  The  steward  and  waiter 
spoke  German ;  the  cabin,  though  very  small^  was  clean, 
and  the  fare  good. 

The  voyage  up  the  Dnieper  from  Krementchuk  to  Kieff 
occupied  two  days,  for  we  lay-to  at  night,  owing  to  the  ab- 
sence of  moon,  and  the  difficulty  of  the  navigation.  There 
is  little  or  no  scenery  on  the  river,  which  for  many  miles 
runs  through  a  level  country  between  low  sandy  shores ; 
nearer  Eieff,  the  right  bank  rises  into  bold  bluJSs,  crowned 
here  and  there  by  the  pagoda-like  churches  of  Russian 
villages.  The  river-boats  are  very  picturesque  objects, 
with  a  tall  tapering  mast  bearing  a  huge  sail,  and  a  long 
pennant  (generally  crimson)  flying  from  the  top.  Although 
on  the  evening  of  the  second  day  we  caught  sight  of  the 
burnished  cupola  of  the  Lavra,  reflecting  the  last  rays  of 
the  setting  sun,  it  was  long  after  dark  before  we  passed 
under  the  central  span  of  the  great  suspension-bridge,  and 


A  saint's  DAT  AT  KIEFF.  493 

anchored  alongside  the  busy  quay  of  the  Podole,  or  lower 
town  of  Kieflf.  A  *  droschky '  soon  carried  us  up  the  steep 
hill  to  the  upper  town,  and  after  some  difficulty  in  making 
ourselves  understood,  we  procured  rooms  in  the  *  H6tel 
d'Europe.* 

We  spent  two  days  in  Kieff,  which  is  the  most  pictur- 
esque and  one  of  the  most  interesting  of  the  great  cities  of 
Bussia.  The  town,  built  on  the  top  of  two  lofty  blufiPs, 
commands  a  wide  view  of  the  plains  stretching  far  away 
eastwards  in  the  direction  of  Koursk;  as  a  matter  of 
course  the  public  buildings  are  large,  the  streets  wide, 
and  the  open  spaces  numerous.  The  peculiar  character  of 
the  town  is  due  to  the  multitude  of  churches  with  green, 
gilt,  or  silvered  cupolas,  and  the  number  of  trees  inter- 
spersed amongst  the  houses.  The  public  gardens  are,  for 
Russia,  exceptionally  pretty  and  well-kept ;  in  a  dell  in 
their  centre,  sheltered  by  wooded  banks,  is  a  large  ca£$  and 
pleasure-ground,  where  two  excellent  bands  performed  in  the 
evening.  The  cathedral  is  very  old  and  curious,  contain- 
ing some  fine '  eleventh -century  mosaics  and  the  tomb  of 
Yaroslaf ;  but  the  great  attraction  to  visitors  is  the  famous 
fortress-convent,  or  Lavra,  considered  the  holiest  in  Bossia, 
to  which  crowds  of  pilgrims  draw  together  from  the  far- 
thest parts  of  the  Empire.  We  were  lucky  in  visiting  it 
on  a  saint's  day,  when  every  corner  was  crowded  with 
peasants  in  the  most  picturesque  costumes — ^men  in  heavy 
jackboots,  bright-coloured  shirts  fastened  in  by  a  belt  at 
the  waist,  and  low-crowned  hats — and  girls  vfith  gaudy 
necklaces  and  wreaths  of  paper-flowers  round  their  heads, 
some  of  them  fresh  and  pretty-looking,  though  all  more  or 
less  of  the  flat-faced  Russian  type. 

The  churches  are  gorgeous  with  silver-plated  pictures 
of  saints  and  jewelled  relics.  At  the  time  of  bur  visit  a 
large  and  excited  crowd  were  pushing  and  jostling  in  the 


494  HOME  THROUGH   RUSSIA. 

eager  stmggle  to  approach  and  kiss  these  holj  treasures. 
In  the  catacombs,  a  long  series  of  cellar-like  vaults  hewn 
in  the  rock,  a  multitude  of  saints  and  pious  virgins,  each 
in  a  separate  niche,  lie  in  open  coffins  robed  in  gorgeous 
silks,  the  faces  veiled,  but  a  shrivelled  finger  protruding 
to  receive  the  kiss  of  the  orthodox.  The  pilgrims,  who 
accompanied  us  through  the  vaults,  laid  small  offerings  on 
the  bodies  of  their  favourite  saints,  which  were  collected  by 
the  square-capped  monk  who  brought  up  the  rear  of  the 
party.  English  visitors  are  few  and  far  between  at  the 
Lavra,  and  we  excited  a  good  deal  of  curiosity,  though  we 
met  with  nothing  but  civility. 

Our  first  enquiries  as  to  the  best  mode  of  continuing  our 
journey  were  met  by  the  unpleasant  news  that,  only  ten 
days  before,  the  regular  ^  diligence '  service  on  all  the  lines 
had  been  suspended,  and  the  post  ordered  for  the  future  to 
travel  in  '  telegas.'  Further  researches  resulted  in  the  dis- 
covery,  that  St.  Petersburg  by  way  of  Vitebsk  was  more 
accessible  than  Moscow  by  way  of  Koursk,  the  advantage  in 
distance  (sixty  miles)  of  the  latter  being  more  than  counter- 
balanced by  the  better  road  to  Vitebsk.  On  calling  at  the 
carriage  bureau,  at  the  post,  we  were  lucky  enough  to  see  a 
high  official,  who  spoke  excellent  Trench,  and  was  very  civil 
and  glad  to  see  us,  for  he  had  a  lady  in  charge  desirous  of 
making  the  same  journey.  We  quickly  agreed  to  take  a 
'diligence '  between  us,  and  start  on  the  morning  of  Monday 
the  28th ;  before  the  time  came  two  other  people  were  found 
to  occupy  the  vacant  places.  Tucker  and  I  took  the 
'  banquette,'  and  with  pleasant  weather  and  no  dust,  the 
long  drive  was  by  no  means  disagreeable. 

The  road  was  broad  and  metalled,  and  the  stations, 
mostly  tenanted  by  Jews,  well-fitted-up,  at  least  compared 
to  those  in  the  Caucasus.  Our  drivers  were  a  constant 
source  of  amusement.     Sometimes  a  postilion  rode  one  of 


ABRIVAL  AT  ST.    PETERSBURG.  495 

the  leaders,  sometimes  two  peasants  sat  side  by  side  on 
the  box — one  driving  the  leaders,  the  other  the  four 
wheelers,  harnessed  abreast  after  the  usual  Russian 
fashion;  for  two  stages  only,  a  man  bolder  than  usual 
gathered  up  the  mass  of  reins,  and  drove  the  whole  team 
single-handed.  This  part  of  the  interior  of  Russia  is 
not  so  ugly  as  that  country  is  popularly  supposed  to  be ; 
where  flat,  it  is  generally  weU-wooded  with  pine  and 
birch,  and  between  Mohilef  and  Vitebsk,  where  the  water- 
shed between  the  Dnieper  and  Dwina  is  crossed,  the 
country  becomes  reaUy  hilly.  The  autumn  tints  on  the 
foliage  were  glorious.  We  accomplished  the  360  miles  in 
seventy  hours,  and  reached  Vitebsk  early  on  Thursday 
morning.  There  we  came  upon  one  of  the  yet-unfinished 
threads  of  the  web  of  European  railways  which  will  soon 
spread  itself  over  the  whole  of  Russia.  The  train  carried 
us  in  twenty-four  hours  to  St.  Petersburg,  where  we  arrived 
ten  days  after  leaving  Odessa,  having,  with  the  exception 
of  our  halts  of  one  day  at  Birzoula,  and  two  at  Kieff, 
travelled  day  and  night. 

Anything  connected  with  the  Caucasus,  a  country 
associated  in  the  national  mind  with  a  long  and  victorious 
struggle,  is  sure  to  attract  atticntion  at  St.  Petersburg. 
The  notices  of  our  ascents  of  Kazbek  and  Elbruz,  which 
had  appeared  during  the  summer  in  the  newspapers,  had 
created  considerable  interest,  and  we  received,  on  our 
arrival  in  the  capital,  many  kind  invitations,  most  of  which, 
owing  to  the  shortness  of  our  stay,  we  were  compelled, 
much  against  our  wish,  to  decline.  A  matter  of  more  serious 
regret  to  us  was  the  miscarriage  of  an  invitation  to  be 
present  at  areviewof  the  Czarewitch's  regiment  of  Cossacks, 
held  in  the  Great  Riding  School.  We  did  not  receive  the 
Imperial  commands  until  it  was  too  late  to  obey  them, 
and  were  thus  deprived  of  an  opportunity  of  presenting 


496  HOME  THROUGH   RUSSIA. 

the   Czar    with   a  portion  of  the   highest   rock  in   his 
European  dominions. 

It  is  now  time  to  cut  a  long  story  short.  Amongst 
the  sights  of  Moscow  and  St.  Petersburg,  and  on  th,e 
homeward  journey,  I  need  not  detain  my  readers,  to 
whom  I  here  bid  a  hearty  farewell,  trusting  that  I  may 
persuade  some  of  them  to  follow  in  our  footsteps,  and  to 
learn  for  themselves,  on  the  slopes  of  Elbruz  and  at  Russian 
post-stations,  the  force  of  Shakspeare's  questions : — 

Oh,  who  can  hold  a  fire  in  his  hand 
By  thinking  on  the  frosty  Caucasus  ? 
Or  cloy  the  hungry  edge  of  appetite 
By  bare  imagination  of  a  feast  ? 


/ 


APPENDIX  I. 


THE   ELBRUZ   EXPEDITION  OF    1829. 

The  Expedition  of  1829,  led  by  General  Emmanuel,  was  a  sort  of 
politico -geographical  progress  through  some  of  the  northern  val- 
leys of  the  Caucasus,  with  the  ultimate  object  of  ascending  Elbruz. 
It  was  accompanied  by  several  German  savants,  one  of  whom,  Herr 
Kuppfer,  has  given  an  account  of  it  in  his  *  Voyage  dans  les  En- 
virons du  Mont  Elbrouz  dans  le  Caucase,'  published  at  St.  Peters- 
burg, 1830. 

After  experiencing  many  difficulties  on  the  road,  the  ezpedi- 
tion,  escorted  by  Cossacks  and  several  cannon,  reached  in  safety 
the  headwaters  of  the  Malka,  8,000  French  feec  above  the  sea. 
On  the  morning  of  the  21st  July  a  portion  of  the  party  set  out 
at  10  A.M.,  and  at  4  p.m.  attained  the  edge  of  the  snow,  at  a  height 
which  they  assumed  to  be  not  &r  from  11,000  ft.  Here  they  en- 
camped for  the  night,  and  at  3  the  next  morning  started  with  some 
native  (Circassian)  mountaineers  and  a  few  Cossacks.  At  first 
all  went  smoothly,  but  as  the  steepness  of  the  slopes  and  the  heat 
of  the  sun  increased,  their  progress  became  more  laborious,  until 
— at  a  point  which  was  determined  to  be  14,000  French  (14,921 
English)  feet  above  the  sea,  and  therefore  really  3,600  English 
feet,  though  estimated  by  them  to  be  1,492  English  feet  below  the 
summit — ^M.  Kuppfer  and  three  of  his  companions  £aSrlj  knocked 
up.  In  spite  of  this,  with  strange  looseness  of  expression,  he 
proceeds  to  add:  'However,  this  first  attempt  had  succeeded 
beyond  our  hopes.  On  entering  the  Caucasus  we  had  believed 
Elbruz  inaccessible,  and  in  a  fortnight  we  were  on  its  summiU.* 
Meanwhile  M.  Lenz,  who,  accompanied  by  two  Circassians  and  a 

K  K 


49»  THE   ELBRUZ  EXPEDITION  OP   1829. 

Cossack,  bad  preceded  Lis  friends,  got  as  &r  as  the  top  of  a  ridge 
of  rocks  in  the  direction  of  the  summit  by  1  p.m.,  and  then  turned 
lack,  as  time  ran  short  and  the  snow  "was  soft. 

While  his  companions  were  engaged  in  assaulting  the  moun- 
tain, General  Emmanuel,  seated  before  his  tent  in  the  valley, 
watched  their  progress  through  a  telescope.  He  suddenly  ob- 
served a  single  man  fer  in  advance  of  the  rest.  We  are  rather 
superfluously  informed  that  the  features  of  the  solitary  climber 
were  indistinguishable,  but  the  General  could  tell  from  his  dress 
that  he  was  a  Tcherkess.  The  figure  advanced  steadily  towards 
a  scarped  crag,  which  appeared  from  the  camp  to  be  the  summit, 
walked  round  its  base,  and  then  vanished  behind  the  mists  which 
cut  off  all  farther  view  of  the  mountain. 

What  he  had  thus  seen  satisfied  the  Greneral  that  the  object  of 
his  expedition  was  folfilled,  and  that  the  highest  smninit  of  Elbruz 
had  been  trodden  by  human  feet.  He  ordered  the  news  to  be 
proclaimed  in  camp,  and  gave  notice  that  the  successfnl  climber 
should  receive  the  promised  reward  of  400  roubles  as  soon  as  he 
appeared  to  claim  it.  Few  of  my  readers  will  be  surprised  to 
hear  that  in  the  course  of  the  evening  a  Tcherkess  named  Killar 
presented  himself  and  received  the  money. 

If,  as  the  loosely-worded  narrative  seems  to  show,  neither 
Mens.  Lenz  nor  any  of  the  German  savants  saw  or  beard  anything 
of  their  more  fortunate  rival  until  they  returned  to  the  camp, 
Killar's  claim  to  the  honour  of  the  first  ascent  rests  entirely  on 
General  EmmanueVs  account  of  what  he  saw  through  his  tele- 
scope, under  circumstances  which  render  his  testimony,  to  say  the 
least,  very  questionable.  It  is  difficult  even  for  practised  eyes 
to  distinguish  a  solitary  man  on  a  snowslope  broken  by  crags 
10,000  feet  in  vertical  height  above  the  observer,  and  in  such  cases 
men  often  see  what  they  both  wish  and  look  for.  Moreover,  in 
the  present  instance.  General  Emmanuel's  credit  was  involved  in 
the  success  of  an  expedition  which  had  been  organised  with  much 
care  and  expense,  and  he  had  every  motive  to  make  a  discovery 
which  would  justify  him  in  asserting  officially  that  the  top  of 
Elbruz  had  been  gained  by  one  of  the  men  under  his  command. 
Even  Russians  treat  the  official  statements  of  their  countrymen 


THE   ELBBUZ   EXPEDITION  OF   1829.  499 

with  a  certain  amount  of  reserve,  and  require  external  confirma- 
tion before  believing  them.  If^  however,  both  the  Cleneral's  good 
faith  and  his  telescope  are  thought  above  suspicion,  the  only 
fact  proved  is  that  a  Tchcrkess  reached  the  foot  of  rocks,  which 
looked  from  below  like  the  top,  and  was  then  lost  in  clouds. 

In  default  of  better  evidence  we  can  scarcely  be  expected  to 
regard  Elillar  as  the  Jacques  Balmat  of  Elbruz. 


K  R  2 


APPENDIX  II, 


■  Ot 


HEIGHTS  OF  PEAKS,  PASSES,  TOWNS,  AND  VILLAGES 
IN  THE  CAUCASIAN  PROVINCES. 


[N3, — The  barometrical  heights  are  untrnstworthy,  and  can  only  be  considered 

as  roughly  approximatiye.] 


PEAKS. 

Ararat       .        .  ^ 
Little  Ararat     .  1 

PcBitioa 

Rtnsiflii 
Surroy 

Barometer 

Brtimate 

S.  of  Erivan 

16,916 
12,840 

Alagoz 

NW.  ofEtchmiadzin 

13,436 

Kazbek     . 

W.  of  Kazbek  viUage  on 
Dariel  road 

16,546 

16,675 

Gumaran  Khokh  ^ 
Tau  Teply         .  i 

In  the  Kazbek  group,  lying 

15.672 

off  the  watershed 

14,510 

Zilga  Khokh     . 

Abore  the   source  of  the 
Terek 

12,645 

Adai  Khokh      . 

NW.  of  Mamisson  Pass 

15,244 

Tau  Eurdisida  . 

Between  Gurdzieveesk  and 
Karagam  Passes 

14,000 

Tan  Schoda 

S.  of  Gebi 

11,128 

Dychtau    .        . » 
Koschtantau      .  f 

Between  the  two  branches 

16,925 

of  the  Tcberek 

17,096 

Tau  Totonal      .  i 
Uschba      .        .  i 

N.  of  Suanetia 

15,500 
16,500 

Tungzorun 

S.  of  the  Baksan  sources 

•15,000 

Elbruz 

Between  the  sources  of  the 
Kubati,  Malka,  and  Bak- 

CO  n 

18,526 

Beschtau  . 

N.  of  Patigorsk 

4,594 

HEIGHTS   OP   PEAKS,   PASSES,   ETC. 


501 


PASSES. 


Suram  Pass 
Krestowaja  Gora 
Pass  to  Zacca    . 
Mamisson  Pass . 
Gurdzieveesk 

Pass 
Karagam  Pass 
GK>ribolo  Pass    . 

Noschka  Pass    . 

Naksagar  Pass  . 

Dschkjiimer  Pass 

NakTa  Pass 
Stuleveesk  Pilss 

Sikar  Pass 


Position 


On  Tiflis-Kuiais  road 
OnTiflis-Vladikaf  kaz  road 
Between  Torek  and  Ardon 
Between  Ardon  and  Kion 

Between  Rion  and  Unich 

Between  Eion  and  Zenes- 

Squali 
Between  E.  and  W.  Zenes- 

Squsli 
Between  W«  Zenes-Squali 

and  Ingur 
Between  Kalde  and  Adisch 

glens 
Between  Ingur  and  Baksan 
Between      Tcherek      and 

Uruch 
Between    Abastoman  and 

Kutais 


Rn«tian 
Survoy 


3,027 
7,977 

9,390 


7,104 


Iladde 


Barometer 


9,421 

9.598 
8.460 
8.831 


7,770 
10,690 

9,650 
11,250 

12,250 
9,700 

8,400 

8,780 

9,075 

10,850 
10,500 


■ 

TOWNS  AND  VILLAGES. 

Kntais 

Position 

BoBsian 
Survey 

Badde 

Barometer 

Capital  of  Mingrelia 

670 

Tiais 

Capital  of  Georgia 

1,350 

Buschet    . 

2,918 

Kobi 

>  On  Dariel  road 

6,500 

6,400 

Kazbek     • 

5,740 

^ 

5,720 

Abano 

Upper  Terek  Valley 

7,600 

7,400 

KesatKan        .i 
Teeb 

►   Ardon  Valley 

• 

7.190 
6.460 

Garschayi.        .% 

6,600 

Glola 

4,844 

4,644 

4,250 

Chiora 

h  Kion  Valley 

4.390 

Gebi. 

4,539 

4,397 

4,550 

Sia,Bsagoneili       .  J 

6,150 

Jibiani      «        .^ 

7,064 

7,130 

Adisch 

7,000 

Suni . 

h  Soanetia 

6,350 

Latal 

4.265 

Pari.        . 

4,635 

4,480 

Unispieh  .         .i 
Atashkutan 

\   Baksan  Valley 

5,136 

6,240 
2,100 

Fatigorsk  .        .  i 
Kislovodsk 

On  the  Podkumok 

1,800 
2,700 

Vladikafkaz      . 

On  the  Terek 

2,368 

Borjom 
Adultzich 

^   On  the  Kur 

?,636 
3,376 

Abastnman 

NW.  of  AchalUich 

4,178 

APPENDIX  III 


-•«»■ 


CATALOGUE    OP    PLANTS 

Collected  in  the  summen  of  1864-65  hy  Herr  Badde,  and  arranged  by 

Herr  V .  Trautvetter 


BoTJonif  Jime^  1865 

Scropbularia  lucida  L, 
Scrophnlazia  variegata  3f«  B* 
Ziziphora  clinopodioideB  Lavi,^ 

Yart«  canescens  Led* 
Melica  ciliata  L* 
Dactjlis  glomerata  L* 
Centanrea  lenoolepis  Dec*  (Le* 

del,) 
Carduus  hamtllostis  Hhrh* 
Adonis  aestivalis  L. 
Onobiycbis  sativa  Lam* 
Pyrus  salicifolia  L» 
Gentaurea  bella  Trautv, 
Medicago  falcata  L* 
Rhus  Cotinns  L. 
Leontodon  biscntellsBfolins  Bee. 
Onobrychis  petrsea  Dec. 
Medicago  minima  Zom. 
Crat83giis    melanocarpa  3f.  B. 

vart.  glabrata  Trautv, 
Cerastinm  grandiflorum    W,  et 

Kit  vart.  glabra  Koch* 
Arabis  hirsuta  Scop, 
Convolvnlus  b'neatus  L. 
Bibes  Grosstdaria  L. 
Alsine  setacea  M,  et  Koch* 
Scrophnlaria  rupestris  3f.  B. 


2,600— 3,400  ft. 

Salvia  sylvestris  L. 
Mulgedimn  albannm  Bee* 
Helianthemttm  cBlandicnm  Wah- 

lent*  vart.  hirta  Ledeh* 
Thalictnmi  minus  L*  vart.  sti- 

pellata. 
Campannla  Kaddeana  Trautv. 
Cmpina  vulgaris  Cass* 
Valerianella  Morisonii  Bee.  vart. 

dasycarpa  Trautv, 
Saponaria  atocioides  Boiss* 
Briza  media  L. 
Anacamptis  pyramid  alia  Rich. 
Verbascum,  sp. 
Ervum  Ervilia  L* 
Centranthus  longiflora  Stev* 
Poljgonatum  latifolium  Desf, 
Lathyrus  rotundifolius  W* 
Hablitzia  tamnoides  M.  B, 
Onosma  microcarpum  Stev. 
Asperula  azurea  Jauh  et  Spach* 
Vincetoxicum  medium  Decaimi., 

vart.  latifolia  Trautv, 
OnobrychiB  Michauxii  Dec,  vart. 

glabra  Begel, 
Rhamnus  grandifolia  F,  et  M, 

vart.  umbellis  sessilibus. 


CATALOGUE   OP  PLANTS. 


503 


YaJerianella  carinata  Lois, 
Lysimachia  punctata  L, 
Odontarrhena  argentea  Ledb. 
Stachys  pubescens  Ten. 
Silene  sazatilis  Sims, 
Rbamniis  Pallasii  F.  et  M, 
Scabiosa  Golumbaria  L,  vart. 
Pyrothnim  parthenifolium  JD. 
Galiam  Aparine  L, 
Geranium  robertianrun  JD. 
YincetoxictLm  nigram  Monch. 
Lampsana  intermedia  Af.  B, 
Philadelplins  coronarins  L, 
YaJeiiana  officinalis  L. 
Epilobitun  montaniim  L. 
Astragalus  galegnfonnis  L, 
Lactuca  muralis  Dec, 
Papaver  caucasicum  M.  B, 
Geranium  lucidmn  L, 
Tamus  conununis  L. 
Orobus  roseus  Ledeb, 
Clinopodimn,  Tulgare  L. 
Spiraea  AmncuB  L, 
Geranium  sanguineum  L. 
Ecbenais  carlinoides  Gass, 
Orobus  aurantiacus  8tev. 
Solanum  Dulcamara  L.,   vart. 

persica  (Solan,  persicum  W.). 
Moehringia  trinervia  Glairv, 
Carex  remota  L, 
Festuca  Drymeja  Mert,  et  Koch, 
Euphorbia  glareosa  M,  B, 
Cuscuta  cupulata  Engelm, 
Veronica  orbicularis  Fisch, 
Rosa    canina,    L,   var.    collina 

Koch,  forma  1,  sempervirens 

Bau  (^Ledb.), 
Juniperus  communis  L, 
Knautia  «nontana  Dec. 
Scutellaria  altissima  L. 
Qymnadenia  conopsea  B,  Br, 
Alnus  glutinosa  W,  tjpica. 


Veronica  Anagallis  L,  typica, 
Pimpinella  rotundifolia  M.  B, 
Saxifraga  cartilaginea  W. 
Leontodon  bastilis  L.,  vart.  gla> 

brata  Koch. 
Cephalanthera  rubra  Rich. 
Epipactis    Helleborine    Crantz. 

vart. 
Rhaponticum  pulcbrum  F.  et  M, 
Padonia  oorallina  Betz. 
Euphorbia  aspera  M.  B, 
Silene  nemoralis  W.  et  Kit, 
Veronica  officinalis  L. 
Reseda  lutea  L. 
Gardamine  impatiens  L. 
Genista  tinctoria  L, 
Lathyrus  pratensis  L. 
Saxifraga  rotundifolia  L, 
Fragaria  vesca  L, 
Orobus  hirsutus  L, 
Farsetia  clypeata  R,  Br, 
Dianthus  Carthusianorum  L, 
Silene  chlorsdfolia  Sm. 
Tragopogon  pusillus  M.  B. 
Acantholimon    Kotschyi  Boiss, 

vart.  pontica  Trautv. 

Onosma  sericeum  W. 

Achillea    pubescens    L,    (Acli. 
micrantha  M.  B.). 

Astragalus  denudatus  Stev, 

Oxytropis  pilosa  Dec. 

Lathyrus  Nissolia  L. 

Thesium  ramosum  Hayne. 

Grucianella  glomerata  M,  B. 

Alopecuri  sp.? 

Anthyllis  Vulneraria  L, 

Blitum  virgatum  L, 

Phleum  alpinum  L. 

Evonymus  latifohus  Scop. 

Rubus  csesius  L. 

Ostrya  carpinifolia  Scop. 

Thlaspi  macrophyllum  Hoffm. 


504 


CATALOGUE   OP   PLAXTS- 


Doronicum  cancasicnm  M.  B. 
Paris  incompleta  M.  B, 
Luzula  pilosa  W. 
Oxalis  Acetosella  L, 
Anemone  ranonculoides  L. 
Symphytum  tauricum  W, 
Viola  canina  L.,  vart.  sylvestris 

Koch. 
Quercus  Bobnr  2/.,  iberica  Stev, 
Acer  campestre  L. . 
Orobns  hirsutos  L. 
Pterotheca  bifida  F.  et  M. 
Sideritis  montana  L, 
Pastinaca  intermedia  F.  et  M. 
Centanrea  dealbata  W. 
Cerastinin  grandiflornm  W.  et 

Kit.  vart.  glabra  Koch. 
Gotoneaster  Nununularia  F.  et 

Mey. 
Alyssnm    campestre    L,,  vart. 
hirsuta  7}rauiv. 

Coronilla  iberica  Stev. 

Pedicnlaris  comosa  L. 

Thlaspi  orbicnlatnm  8t-ev. 

Fnmaria  parviflora  Lam. 

Garpinus  duinensis  Scop. 

Potentilla  recta  L. 

Stellaria  holostea  L. 

Medicago  falcata  L. 

Convolvnlns  Gantabrica  L. 

Anthriscns  trichosperma  Schult. 

Scleranthns  annnns  L. 

Hieracinm  prsealtnm  Koch. 

Vicia  tennifolia  Both. 

Lathyms  rotundifolius  W. 

Polygala  major  Jacq. 

Veronica    austriaca    L.,    vart, 
pinnatifida  Koch. 

Comas  mascnla  L. 

Melica  ciliata  L. 

Ziziphora  capitata  L. 

Campanula  sibirica  L» 


Dactylus  glomerata  L. 

Poa  tri\4alis  L. 

Asti-agalus  Raddeanus  Ti.o<i'^l. 

Cytisus  rat  isbonensis  Schn'jj. 

Cerinthe  niiuor  L.,  vart.  niucu- 

lata  G.  A.  Meyer. 
Picridium    dichotomum.    F.    et 

Mey. 
Aethionema  Buxbaumii  Dec. 
Melilotus  arvensis  Wallr. 
Onosma  rupestre  M.  B. 
Marrubium  catarisefolium  Desc. 
Daucus  pulcherrimus  Koch. 
Salvia  grandiflone  Ettl.  affinis. 
Goronilla  varia  L. 
Leonurus  Gardiaca  L. 
Campanula  ranunculoides  L. 
Lathyrus  pratensis  L. 
Coronilla  coronata  L. 
Teucrium  orientale  L. 
Sophora  alopecuroides  L. 
Pterotheca  bifida  F.  et  M.  vart. 
Linaria  armeniaca  Chav. 
Cleome  virgata  Stev.,  vart.  ma- 

cropoda  Trautv. 

Schambohell,  6,000  ft. 
Lomatocarum  alpinum  F.  et  M. 

Kutais,  July.     600  ft. 
Zelkowa  crenata  Spach. 

Schamhohell,  4-5,000  ft. 

Trifolium  alpestre  L. 
Echium  rubrum  Jdcq. 

Ahastumun,  July.     4,500  ft. 

Hypopitysmultiflora  Scop.y  vart. 

hirsuta  Koch. 
Dianthus  recticaulis  Ledeh. 
Bubus  fruticosus  L, 


CATALOGUE   OF   PLANTS. 


sas 


Schamhoholl,  south  of  Achaltzich, 
July.     5-7,000  ft. 

Juncus  alpigenuR  C.  Koch, 
Scirpus  sylvaticus  L. 
Campanula    collina    M.   M,    efc 

Ledeb, 
Campanula  Rapunculus  L. 
Aquilegia  Wittmanniana  Stev, 
Campanula  Saxifraga  M.  B. 
Scabiosa  caucasica  M.  B.,  vart. 

heterophylla  Ledb, 
Silene  sazatilis  Sims. 
Cerastinm  purpurascens  Adam. 
Hypericum  hyssopifob'um  TFi'ZZ, 

vart.  abbreviata  Ledb. 
Lotus     comiculatus    L.,    vart. 

birsutissima  Ledb. 
Trifolium  ochroleucum  L. 
CbamaBsciadium    flavescens    G. 

A.  Meyer. 

Sikar  Pass,  north  of  Abas^ 
tuman,  July.     6—7,000  ft. 

Pimpinella    magna    I/.,     vart. 

rosea  St&v. 
Epilobium   trigonum    Schrank. 

Ledb. 

Scropbularia  macrobotrys  Ledb. 

Ranunculus  caucasicus  M.  B. 

Viburnum  Lantana  L. 

Geranium  psilostemon  Ledb. 

Rosa  canina  L.,  vart.   dumeto- 
rum  Koch. 

Cardamine  impatiens  L. 

Arnebia  echioides  Dec. 

Rumex  scutatus  L.  /3  hastifolius 

G.  A.  Meyer. 

Schambobell,  July.    5-7,000  ft. 

Ranunculus  Villarsii  Dec. 
Papaver  monathum  Trautv 
Pimpinella  Saxifraga  L. 


Bctonica  grandiflora  Steph. 

Pedicularis  condensata  M.  B., 
vart.  minor  Trautv. 

Spiraja  Filipendula  L. 

Orchis  maculata  L. 

Gymnadenia  conopsea,  B.  Br. 

Centaurea    montana    L.    vart., 

purpurascens  Dec.  et  vart.  al- 

bida  Dec. 
Alsine  hirsuta  Fenzl. 
Linum  hirsutum  L. 
Crucianella  aspera  M.  B. 
Diantbus  Seguierii  Vill.  vart.  ? 

SHcar  Pass.     6,000  ft. 
Lonicera  caucasica  Pall. 

Scltamhobell.     4-5,000  ft. 
Tragopogon  pusillus  M.  B. 

Sikar  Pass.     6-7,000  ft. 

Scropbularia  congesta  Stev. 
Konnea  intermedia  Ledb. 

Foot  of  Elbruz,  August  9. 
5,000  ft. 

Nepeta  cyanea  Stev. 

Nachar  Pass,  south  side,  August. 
6-7,000  ft. 

Saxifraga  exarata  Vill. 
Vicia  variegata  W. 
Hedysamm  caucasicum  M.  B. 

Foot  of  Elbruz,  August  9. 
5-6,000  ft. 

Salvia  canescens  G.  A.  Meyer, 

Nacliar  Pass,  south  side,  Av^gvst. 
5-7,000  ft. 

Myosotis  sylvatica  Hoffm. 
Veronica  monticola  Trautv, 


606 


CATALOGUE   OP  PLANTS. 


Campanula  Saxifraga  M.  B, 
Gentiana  auriculata  Pall. 
Ilanunculus  subtilis  Trauiv, 

Chursuk  Valley^   west  foot  of 
Elbruz,  August  9.     4,000  ft. 

Oypsophila  elegans  M.  B. 

NacJiar  Pass,  saidh  side,  Anfang, 
August. 

Trifolium   polyphyllum    (7.    A, 
Meyer. 

West  side  of  Elbruz.      8,000  ft. 

Sedum  tenellmn  M.  B. 
Senecio  pyroglossns  Kar  et  Kir. 

Nachar  Pass,  August  6.  6,500  ft. 
Scophularia  Scopolii  Hoppe 

West  of  Ellyruz,  August  10. 
10,000  ft. 

Eritrichiam  nanum  Schrad. 
Draba  scabra  0.  A.  Mey. 

East  of  Elbruz,  August  10. 
9,000  ft. 

Delphinimn  caucasicnm  (7.  A. 

Meyer. 

West  side  of  Elbruz,  August  10. 
8-10,000  ft. 

Saxifraga  flagellaris  W. 
Anthemis     Marschalliana     W., 

vart.     Rudolphiana     G.     A. 

Meyer. 

Nachar  Pa^s,  south  side,  Aug.  6. 
5-7,000  ft. 

Arenaria  rotundifolia  M.  B. 
Epilobixim  origanifolium  Lam. 


Saxifraga  sibirica  L. 

Scrophularia  pyrrholopha  Boiss. 
et  Kotschy,  vart.  pinnatifida 
Trautv. 

West  of  Elbruz,  August  10. 
8-9,000  ft. 

Ranancnlos  arachnoidens  G.  A. 
Meyer. 

North  side  of  Elbruz,  Av>gust  10. 
10-12,000  ft. 

Lamium  tomentosam  W. 
Hypericum       nnnimukrioides 
Trautv. 

West  and  East  sides  of  Elbruz, 

Aug7ist  10.     6-8,000  ft. 
Pedicularis  crassirostris  Bunge 
Pedicularis  Nordmaimiana 

Bunge. 

MinUausu  VaUey,  August  10. 
6,000  ft. 

Acomtum  Anthora  L. 

Elbruz,  Aug.  10.    7-9,000  ft. 

Lozula  spicata  Dec. 
Cerastium  latifolium  L.  (G.  A, 
Meyer.) 

Elbruz,  Aug.  10.    8-10,000  ft. 
Arenaria  lychnidea  M.  B. 

Nachajr  Pass,  Av^gust  6. 
8-9,000  ft. 

Myosotifl  sjlyatica  Hoffm. 

West  and  North  sides  of  Elbruz. 
9-12,000  ft. 

Cerastiiim  parpurascens  Adam. 

South  side  of  Nachar  Pass, 
August  6.     6,000  ft. 

Gnaphalinm  eylvaticiim  L. 


CATALOGUE   OP   PLANTS. 


507 


South  side   of  Nachar  PasSf 
Augv^t  6.     9,500  ft. 

Saxifraga  exarata  Vill. 

North  afid  West  sides  of  Elbruz, 
August  10,    10-12,000  ft. 

Veronica  repens  Clar. 

Veronica  minuta  G,  A.  Meyer. 

Eunonia  rotnndifolia  0,  A, 
Meyer, 

Alsine  imbricata  0.  A.  Meyer. 

West  side  of  Elbruz,  August  10. 
9-10,000  ft. 

Saxifraga  sibirica  L, 
Taraxacum  Stevenii  Dec, 
Potentilla  gelida  0,  A,  Meyer, 

North  side  of  Nachar  Pass, 
August  6.     9,500  ft. 

Veronica  gentianoides  Vahl» 
Campannlae  sp. 
Saxi&aga  muscoides  Wulf, 

From  Muri  to  Lentechi,  June 
16-19.    1,600-2,600  ft. 

Staphylea  colcbica  8tev. 
Myosotis  sparsiilora  M^ca/n. 
Valeriana  saxicola  G.  A,  Meyer,, 

vart.  lyrata  Trautv. 
Cystopteris  fragilis  Bemh, 
AsplenianL  septentrionale  8to. 
Scropbularia  lateriflora  Trautv, 
Pyrethrum  macropbyllum  W, 
Galium  valantioides  M.  B. 
Aspidium  aculeatum  8w. 
Saxi&aga  orientalis  Jacq. 
Androsaemum  officinale  All, 
Orobancbe  alba  Stev. 
Hypericum  montanum  L. 
Poa  nemoralis  L. 


Dadiasch,  June  23.     7-9,000  ft. 
Gentiana  vema  L,,  vart.  alata 

Griseb. 
Draba  tridentata  Dec. 
EIsBocbans  palustris  R.  Br. 
Bbodondendron        caucasicum 

PaU. 
Daphne  glomerata  Lam. 
Veronica  Chamaedrys  L.,  vart. 

peduncularis  Led. 
Sibbaldia  procumbens  L. 
Primula  amcena  M,  B. 
Potentilla  Nordmanniana  Led^,? 
Garex  leporina  L. 
Primula  fikrinosa  L.,  vart.  xan- 

tbophylla  Trautv,  et  Meyer  =^ 

Pr.   aJgida  Ad,,  vart.  luteo- 

&rinosa  Bupr. 

Dadiasch,  Jwne  23.    6,000  ft. 
Acer  byrcanum  F,  et  Meyer, 

Laschketi,  June  20.     3-4,000  ft. 
Rhyncbocoris  Elepbas  Grisb. 
Coronilla  iberica  Stev. 

Dadiasch,  June  23.    5-6,000  ft. 

Androsace  aJbana  Stefo, 
Pedicularis  comosa  L. 
Astrantia  belleborifolia  Salisb, 

Dadiasch,  June  23.    7-9,000  ft. 

Alcbemilla  sericea  W. 
Campanula  Biebersteiniana  B, 
et  Sch. 

Laschkeii,  June  20.    4,000  ft. 
Psoralea  acaulis  Stev. 

Dadiasch,  June  23.     7-8,000  ft. 

Alsine  hirsuta  Fenzl. 

Jurinea  subacaulis  F,  et  Meyer. 


508 


CATALOGUE   OP   PLANTS. 


Anemone  alpina  L,  /3.  sulphurea 
Ledb. 

Primula  grandis  Trautv. 

Pari,  July  11.     7-8,000  ft. 
Cnidium  meifolium  M.  B. 

Pari,  July  11.     4-5,000  ft. 
Bupleurum   falcatum  L.^   vart. 

oblongifolia  Trautv, 
Hypericum  Richeri  Vill, 

Fart,  July  11.     7-8,000  ft. 

Ranunculus  montanus  W,^  vart. 
glabrata  Trautv. 

Kalde^tshalai,  July  6.    6,000  ft. 

Saxifraga  Kolenatiana  Regel  n. 
sp. 

Karet  Pass,  July  5.    9,000  ft. 
Orobanche  sp.  n. 

Naksagar  Pass,  June  29. 7,000  ft. 
Salix  apus  Trautv,  n.  sp. 

Pari,  July  11.  6-8,000  ft. 

Salidago  Virgaurea  L, 
Corydalis  spc. 

Pari,  July  11.     5,500  ft. 
Scrophularia  divaricata  Ledb. 

Karet  Pass,  July  5.    9,000  ft. 

Primula    Meyeri    Bupr,,    vart. 
hypoleuca  Trautv, 

Pari,  July  11.     7,000  ft. 
Valeriana  dubisB  Bunge  affinis. 

Pari.,  July  11.     4,600  ft. 
Stachys  persica  8,  0,  Chnel. 


Pari,  July  11.     7,000  ft. 

Ranunculus  Villarsii  Dec. 
Ditjitalis  ciliata  Trautv. 

Jibiani,  July  4:.     7,500  ft. 

Scutellaria  orientalis  L.,  vart. 
chamaedryfolia  Beichb. 

Pari,  July  11.     8,500  ft. 

Gagea  Liottardi  Schult.  Ledb, 

Phleum  alpinum  L. 

Nonnea  ?  (intermedia  Ledeb.) 

Laschheti,  June  23.    4,000  ft. 
Hypericum  ramosissimum  Ledb, 

Kutais,  May,    700  ft. 

Euphorbia  Lathyris  L. 
Dorycnium  latifolium  W, 
Fragaria  indica  Andr, 

North  side  of  Nakerala,  3,500  ft. 
Azalea  pontica  L.  , 

Nakerala,  south  side,  June, 
3-4,000  ft. 

Vaccinium  Arctostaphylos  L, 
Scolopendrium  officinarum  Sw, 
Veronica  cbamasdrys  L.,  vart. 

peduncularis  Led, 
Gentiana  asclepiadea  L. 
Mulgedium  petiolatum  Koch, 
Cirsium  fimbriatum  Dec, 
Orobus  roseus  Ledeb. 

Tschitcharo,    June,    Alpine   Re- 
gion,   6-8,000  ft. 

Saxifraga  IsBvis  M.  B. 
Podospermum  Meyeri  G.  Koch. 
Campanula  Biebersteiniana  B. 
et  Sch. 


CATALOGUE   OF   PLANTS. 


509 


Pedicularis  crassiroatris  Bv/nge, 
Salix  arbuscula  L. 
Saxifraga  exarata  Vill. 
Saxifraga  rotundifolia  L. 
Corydalis  angustifolia  Dec, 
Cnidium  carvifolium  M.  B. 
Primula  pycnorhiza  Ledb, 
Oxytropis  caucasica  BegeL 
Piristylus  viridis  Lindl. 
Viola  grandiflora  L,  (V.  oreades 

M.B,) 
(Jalantlma  plicsatus  M.  B. 
Arenaria  lychnidea  M,  B. 

Noschka  Pass,  June.    6-7,000  ft. 

Salix  apiis  Trautv, 

Androsace  villosa  L,  /3.  latifolia 

Ledh. 
Amebia  ecbioides  Dec. 
Trichasma  cylycinum  Walters. 
Silene  lacera  Sims, 

ZeneS'Squali  sources.     4,500  ft. 

Ribes    Biebersteinii  Berl,    (R. 
petrseum  Fl,  ross.). 

Laschketi,  Juiie.  4,500— 
5,000  ft. 

Ranuncnlus  arvensis  L,  /3.  tu- 

berculatus  Ledh, 
Hypericnm  hirsutum  L, 
Hypericum  orientale  L, 
CircsBa  alpina  L. 
Trifolium  elegans  Fl.  germ. 
Tamus  communis  L. 
Scrophularia  Scopolii  Hoppe, 
Euphorbia  micrantha  Staph. 
Mulgedinm  albanum  Dec. 
Datisca  cannabina  L. 


.    Laschketij  June.      4,000  ft. 

Lampsana  grandiflora  M.  B. 
Nonnea  versicolor  Sir  act. 
Scroplmlaria  lucida  L. 
Sanicula  europaea  L. 
Qenista  tinctoria  L. 
Agrostis  vulgaris  With. 

Scandix  Pecten  L.,  vart.  trachy- 
carpa  Trautv. 

Gypsophila  elegans  M.  B. 

Valerianella     Morisonii     Dec., 

vart.  leiocarpa  Trautv, 

Bion  sources,  Mamisson  Pa^s, 
Ooriholo,  Aug,  and  Sept. 
6-7,000  ft. 

Phleum  alpinum  L. 

Agrostis  calamagrostoides  R^gel. 

n.  8p. 
Senecio  longiradiatus  Trautv. 
Delphinium   speciosum  M.  B., 

var.  dasycarpa  Trautv. 
Crocus  Suworovianus  C.  Koch. 
Potentilla  elatior  Schlechtend. 
Aconitum  variegatum  L. 
Draba  tridentata  Dec. 
Gentiana  septemfida  Pall. 
Girsium  munitum  M.  B. 
Poa  alpina  h. 

Ranunculus  caucasicus  M.  B, 
Briza  media  L. 
Colchicum  speciosum  Stev. 
Senecio  nemorensis  L. 
Phyteuma  canipanuloiilos  M.  B. 

Campanula  collina  J/.  B.  sub- 

uniflora  Ledh. 
Knautia  montana  Dec.  vaH. 
Cirsium  simplex  G.  A.  Moijer. 
Swertia  iberica. 


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traTeller  hits  access We  have 

examined  the  Guide  very  carefully — in- 
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high  Alps  better  known  to  us  than  they 
would  have  been  for  perhaps  a  century 
to  come  but  for  their  numerous  and 
arduous  ascents  and  explorations.* 

ATHBlfJEUlL 


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