CHAPTER XII

THE CIRCASSIANS AND THE COSSACKS

It is seventy-two hours by the fastest train from Vladikavkas to Odessa, which is a practical realization of the size of the Russian Empire, but the fastest trains are very slow when measured by the American standard. The government, which owns and operates all the railways in Russia, charges for extra speed on express trains, and then runs them at twenty miles an hour, with long waits at every station. It seemed unnecessary and unreasonable to delay a train for ten or fifteen minutes every time it stopped, but I thought there must be some reason for it, and I tried to gratify my curiosity by an investigation. Inquiry disclosed the caution of the railway managers. When a train arrives at a station the conductor notifies the man in charge of the station ahead, and also the chief despatcher wherever he may be. He then waits for orders. The telegraph operator at the next station reports to the train despatcher that the track is clear, and the latter then, and not until then, gives orders for the waiting train to move. They take no chances. On a single track road one train only is given the right of way, regardless of side tracks, and everything else is held up until it is reported at the next station.

The track traverses the great granary of Russia, which corresponds to Minnesota and the Dakotas in the United States. The land is held in large estates, partly cultivated by tenant farmers, and also by a well organized system under the direction of administrators or stewards, as they call them. Absentee landlordism is the curse of this country, as it was in Ireland, and the profits of the crops are wasted in St. Petersburg and Paris, in gambling and high living, and in all possible forms of extravagance. Very little of the money is left in the country; very little is used to improve the property or the conditions of the tenants, although there are commendable exceptions. Every village is an index to the character of the man who owns it. The peasant farmers and the employés of an estate dwell and govern themselves in communes or mirs, as they are called, and each has a little tract of land for his own use, which he can cultivate at odd times when his services are not needed on the farm. The landlord is supposed to keep the houses of his tenants and employés in order, and is expected to contribute to the support of the poor and afflicted, to build a church and keep it in order, and to exercise a patriarchal protection over everybody who lives on his estates, but this is only theoretical in too many cases. The practice of a majority of the landlords is to squeeze every cent they can get out of their tenants and squander it in pleasure and dissipation.

The Russians are inveterate and reckless gamblers, and in the play of a single night often lose enough money to make their tenants comfortable for a generation. We were told of a Russian landlord of Daghestan who lost $400,000 in a game at the Jockey Club in Vienna in one night.

These big estates, however, are being broken up, under a law passed since Russia has a constitution, and are being divided into small farms among the families who actually till them.

Large towns are few and far between, but the villages are numerous. There are three or four cities of 25,000 or 30,000 inhabitants, markets for the grain and other produce of the country, in a thousand miles, but people there are accustomed to long distances. Rostov is the scene of the commercial transactions of the population for 300 miles or more on both sides of it.

One of the most prosperous towns is called Ekaterinodar, which means “Catherine’s Gift,” and there is a story connected with it. The site was presented to a colony of Cossacks by Catherine the Great as a reward for their loyalty in 1792, and, with the reckless generosity that characterized all the acts of that extraordinary woman, she built their houses and shops and churches for them. It is now a thriving city of 60,000 inhabitants, with a large trade in horses, cattle, sheep, and grain.

At Piatigorski one can get the best view of Elburz, the highest mountain in Europe, which lifts its proud head 18,526 feet above the sea and looks even loftier than it actually is because it rises almost directly from the plains. It is buttressed with other peaks 10,000 feet or more in height, but rises above the rest of the range fully 7,000 feet like a block of Parian marble, pure and spotless and without a flaw, one of the noblest pieces of sculpture ever carved by the Creator’s hands. The native poets have called it the “Snow King’s Citadel,” and it is the abode of Osching Padishah, “Emperor of the Air.” His diadem of snow is eternal. Dikhtau, 16,924 feet in height, Ikhara, 17,278 feet, Koshantan, 17,196 feet, and Kasbek, 16,546, make the finest and grandest group of mountains this side of the Himalayas.

On a tablet imbedded in the walls of the public library at Piatigorski is inscribed a record of the various attempts to ascend Elburz, and a Circassian named Killar is credited as being the first to reach the summit. Killar’s achievement is disputed, however, and the first authentic ascent was made by two Englishmen, D. W. Freshfield of Birmingham and a companion, with Swiss alpine guides, in 1868. These gentlemen climbed Kasbek the same summer, and were probably the first to do so.

The Circassians are a superstitious and a poetic people, and like the North American Indians, have a legend attached to every freak of nature and a story to explain every mystery. Their imaginations are as fertile and as full of poetic conceits as the “Children of the Mist” on the coast of Ireland. It is unfortunate that somebody has not taken the trouble to translate their traditions and folk-lore into English. The Circassians really have no literature, although their poets have written many charming lines and there are two or three local histories of merit.

They call Kasbek by many names, the “Ice Mountain,” the “Mountain of Christ,” and the “Mountain of Bethlehem,” and among the ignorant Ossets--one of the largest of the Circassian tribes--the belief exists that the tent of Abraham and the manger in which Jesus was born are preserved in a cavern under the eternal snow.

About one hundred years ago an aged priest organized an expedition to ascend the mountain for the recovery of the sacred relics, but the old man died from fatigue and the rest of the party were driven back by storms. Several were so badly frozen that they were crippled for life. Their sufferings and their failure were accepted as a decree of fate and the sacred relics still lie in the cavern concealed by the snow.

All the territory west of Vladikavkas to the end of the mountain range is known as Circassia. The inhabitants are divided into several tribes of the same race but of distinct organization. They are descended from the ancient Iranians and have occupied their country for about 2,600 years, so far as known. The Circassians are the most reckless, irresponsible, and superstitious of all the people in that part of the world. They are proverbially handsome, of perfect physical proportions, active, brave, and temperate in their habits, but heartless, cruel, relentless, and always unreliable. Few of them are industrious or thrifty, or saving, they have no morals and for centuries have sold their daughters to replenish the harems of wealthy Turks.

It is said that the name Caucasian was adopted for one of the main ethnological divisions of the human race because Professor Blumenbach found the most perfect types of skulls in Circassia.

The physical perfection of the women, and their vivacity, their cheerfulness, their affectionate dispositions, and their adaptability to any conditions in which they may be placed, made “Circassian Beauties” the most desirable recruits for the harems, and the low esteem in which the feminine sex is held by the Circassians made it easy for them to sell their daughters into slavery. In ancient times no Turk of any prominence or pride was without at least one Circassian houri in his harem. The mother of Abdul Hamid, the late sultan of Turkey, was a Circassian. But the sale and export of this class of produce has been stopped by the Russian authorities, and the changing conditions in Turkey have diminished the demand for Circassian beauties.

You have doubtless seen them in the side shows of circuses, and in the dime museums throughout the world are hundreds of Circassian girls leased by their parents for exhibition purposes. While they are among the proudest of human beings, and, as I have already said, are celebrated for their affectionate and generous disposition, the Circassians are the only people in modern times who have ever sold their daughters into slavery.

Among other national characteristics, which, however, is confined to the Lhesian tribe, is bushy hair, similar to that worn by Paderewski, the pianist. It is not universal. It is a tribal fad, and is cultivated for the same reason that the German emperor has spent so much time in the training of his moustache. Long hair is usually associated with cranks, artists, and musicians, but in Circassia business men and even farmers train their kinky locks to stand out from their skulls until they have heads as big as a bushel basket. We see them on the street, at the railway stations, and other public places.

The Circassians are almost always in rebellion against the Russian government. They are not susceptible to discipline; they will not obey the laws and they dislike to pay taxes. Although they profess the most intense love of country, in 1858 nearly one half the population of Circassia emigrated to Asia Minor, Bulgaria, and other provinces of Turkey, carrying with them their insubordinate dispositions and reckless habits rather than submit to a code of regulations introduced by the Russian authorities.

One of the tribes, known as the Swannys, still practise the Mosaic doctrine of atonement. When an injury is suffered or an offence is committed they do not appeal to the courts, but impose the penalty in person upon the cattle or the horses, or the crops or other property, or upon the person of the offender. It is called “the Code of Blood,” and the present code was prepared by Prince Royal Vakhtang in 1703. In this code the life of a noble, an archbishop or a general is estimated at 15,000 rubles ($7,500), and each social grade has its value, down to the peasant, whose life is estimated at 6,000 rubles. If the offender has no cash there is a clause authorizing that “cattle may be given in lieu of coin.” A horse is estimated at sixty rubles and a bullock at twenty in such settlements. If the offender refuses to settle for money the price is paid in blood.

Only a few years ago a Circassian of wealth and influence, of education and refinement, told a friend of mine in Odessa that he intended to kill one of his neighbours at the first opportunity because the man was odious to him and was making love to his daughter. He was afraid the girl would yield to his blandishments and therefore thought it judicious to kill him. He had come to Odessa in advance of committing the crime for the purpose of borrowing funds to pay the blood money.

Rostov-on-the-Don, the capital of the Cossacks, is a live city, with an enterprising and prosperous population of 160,000 or more; wide streets, fine business blocks, handsome homes, attractive parks, splendid churches, and all the modern improvements. It is one of the greatest grain shipping ports in the world, being favourably situated at the mouth of the river Don, and at the head of the Sea of Azov, but that body of water is so shallow that most of the grain barges that come down the river are towed on to Taganrog, the next port, about thirty miles below, where there is enough water to accommodate a 2,500-ton steamer. The channel at Rostov is only twelve feet. The Sea of Azov is very shallow over its entire area, and has flat, sandy shores, which slope so gently that a bather can wade two or three miles into the water without wetting his ears. The Russian government has promised to dredge a deeper channel and probably will do so one of these days.

The valley of the Don is a famous wheat field, stretching back for a hundred miles or more on both sides of its banks, and producing large crops. The land is mostly owned by the Cossacks. They are very progressive and seek the most efficient means of multiplying their labour. Hence Rostov has an enormous trade in agricultural machinery and implements. Several American companies have agencies there. The Cossacks buy a great deal of machinery and implements, mostly Russian ploughs, American harvesters, hay rakes, spreaders, etc., and English threshing machines.

The valley of the Don is owned by the Cossacks. The entire province belongs to the tribe collectively and is allotted in parcels of various sizes to the different families, who occupy and cultivate it generation after generation, although the title remains in the tribe. The fisheries in the river and the Sea of Azov, the timber on the slopes of the mountains, and everything else in the way of real property belongs to the tribe in common. Some of the Cossacks have individual wealth, none are poor. Those who save money and let it accumulate by fortunate investments, however, are comparatively few. The majority are spendthrifts. They know they will be taken care of by their tribe, and that takes away the incentive to economy. The individual wealth consists of horses, cattle, securities, household furniture, ornaments, and investments of various sorts. Every Cossack, therefore, when he is born is immediately a land owner.

The name Cossack was originally spelled “Kasak,” and is a Tartar word meaning vagabond. This indicates the origin of this famous clan. The original Cossacks were adventurers and outlaws from Circassia, Daghestan, Georgia, and other parts of the Caucasus, whose restless disposition drove them away from the homes of their fathers. They joined the Russians living along the banks of the river and made up that portion of the czar’s subjects known as the “Cossacks of the Don.”

Although they consider themselves the most essential part of the Russian Empire, the Cossacks have always insisted upon maintaining their independence and are actually a state within a state. They were always wild and irresponsible and made guerrilla raids upon the adjoining provinces. In 1770 they supported a pretender to the Russian throne, who gave himself the title of Peter III. His followers ravaged the valley of the Volga and threatened Moscow, but in 1775 were beaten in battle with terrible loss. Pugatcheff, the pretender, was captured and executed. After a time the Cossacks were granted amnesty and made a treaty with the government of Catherine II, under which they were given a vast tract of land on both sides of the river Don, and were made practically independent. In return for these privileges they agreed to furnish the czar a certain number of soldiers for his army, without pay. That is the reason the Cossacks, the most important corps in the Russian service, receive no compensation or rations or other supplies. They provide their own horses and uniforms, their own guns and ammunition, their own camp equipage, and receive no money whatever from the public treasury.

Every Cossack is a soldier for life, subject to instant orders, and always keeps a horse saddled and a rifle loaded ready for service. A certain number are always in the army. Every Cossack is expected to serve fifteen years consecutively and be ready to answer every call that is made. The only exemption is made in favour of the sons of dependent mothers, bread winners of families dependent upon them, fathers who already have three sons in the service, priests and teachers, and one out of four brothers. A rich Cossack can hire a substitute if he pleases, and many of them do so.

Although the Cossacks are Tartars and come from Mohammedan stock, most of them belong to what is known as the “Old Believers,” a sect of the Russian Greek Church which condemns the splendour and extravagance displayed in the houses of worship, the ritual, and in the ceremonies of the Church, and advocates a return to the simple forms of worship practised by the Saviour and His disciples. A small number of the Cossacks still remain Mohammedans.

The beautiful black horses which the Cossacks ride and which are admired by every one who visits Russia come chiefly from the province of Tamboff, southeast of Moscow, northeast of Odessa, northwest of Rostov and adjoining the Cossack province. This stock was introduced from Arabia by Prince Orloff, the famous favourite of the Empress Catherine II, and were scattered by him among the stock growers in different parts of European Russia. Tamboff became the centre of the breeding business because conditions are most favourable there. It may be called the Kentucky of Russia. Nearly all the farmers have breeding studs. There are several estates with thousands of mares that drop a colt each annually. They are all dead black, without a blemish, with long tails, beautiful thick manes, gentle dispositions, great speed and endurance. The breeder never sells a mare; you never see a mare working in harness--always a stallion, and they cost on the farm from two hundred and fifty dollars up.

The farmers of southern Russia are quite contented with present conditions. They have always been loyal to the czar, but they applauded the constitution and unanimously approve of the legislative government. They are also very generally in favour of the platform of the constitutional democrats, which advocates making the ministry responsible to the duma, instead of the czar, and thus having a parliamentary party like that of Great Britain.

The government has established a string of land banks in order to loan money to the farmers to buy land and to improve their holdings. When a large estate is offered for sale the land is divided into small farms by government appraisers, who fix the value and make out the deeds to the purchasers. The land bank advances the money and takes a mortgage on the property for thirty-five years at 3¼ per cent., 2½ per cent. being considered as interest and ¼ per cent. being placed in a sinking fund to redeem the bonds that are issued to raise the purchase money.

The farmer pays his annual interest into the bank in four quarterly instalments. I was told that the sale of the lands belonging to the crown and to the church is practically a humbug. A large area belonging to both has been sold, but it was of comparatively little value. The best quality and the largest proportion of both church and crown lands have been reserved and will not be sold until some future revolution compels the government to dispose of them.

The revolution of 1906 is practically forgotten. As soon as the farmers of southern Russia got a law passed allowing them to buy farms of their own they accepted the situation in good faith and have relied upon the government to carry out its part of the agreement honestly. As soon as they have land that they can call their own they are perfectly contented.

Most of these peasant farmers are descended from serfs, who were emancipated by Alexander II and they continue to live upon the soil which their fathers worked as slaves, and they recognize the sons of the men who owned their ancestors as their “patrons.”

The average Russian peasant is honest and industrious; he pays his taxes and gives one fifth of all his income to the church, but he has a terrible appetite for strong drink, and vodka, the Russian brandy, made of potatoes, is his curse. The government, however, has done a great deal to promote temperance. It has a monopoly of the liquor business, both in manufacture and sale, and its policy to prohibit the sale of liquor in agricultural villages has been strictly applied to a considerable section in southern Russia, where no strong drink of any kind can be obtained. Some of the country districts, generally speaking, are strictly prohibition, but the sale of liquor as a beverage is still permitted in the cities and the larger towns, and at first-class restaurants, hotels, and eating houses.

A benevolent society, of which the duke of Orenburg, a brother-in-law of the czar, is president, is doing a great deal of good in supplying substitutes for saloons--temperance resorts and loafing places, where the peasants can spend the long winter evenings amusing themselves, without getting drunk. Non-alcoholic drinks are sold at these places, with a sufficient profit to maintain them, and they are now found in almost every village.

The greatest drawback among the peasant class in southern Russia is the lack of schools. If the church would spend less money for gilded domes and resplendent decorations in its houses of worship, and more for school-houses, it would be a great benefit to the people. But whenever you criticise the absence of school-houses, the loyal Russian always attributes it to the lack of teachers. If you discuss the subject with school boards and other educational authorities, they will tell you that it is impossible to obtain competent teachers. The chief reason is the low wages offered by the government. The peasants have been making money for several years. They are saving it, and many of them are using every means within their reach, except education, to improve their condition. They have better homes and furniture than they ever had before; they are breeding up their horses, sheep and cattle; they are buying labour-saving machinery and the best seed in the market, and still have money in the bank.