CHARACTERISTICS OF THE CALMUCKS. 



421 



family. Upon the spot in which this great baran is to be raised, they 

 first spread the coverings and caparisons of the horse-equipage and 

 saddles ; upon these are placed coffers with clothes : these being 

 covered over with a drapery, they deposit last of all the trunks in 

 which are kept the Calmuck's idols. These being withdrawn from the 

 trunks and placed upon the draperies, a sort of altar is raised. It is a 

 little wooden table, upon which they arrange many little dishes of sil- 

 ver and copper, intended to receive offerings, cheese, gruel, and different 

 kinds of incense. Lastly, before this little table they plant in the soil 

 a piece of wood surmounted with a small silver cup. It is in this that 

 the head of the family deposits the first morsel of every dish that is 

 eaten during the common repast. 



Fig. 1. 





Feodor Ivanovitsch, a Calmuck Painter of some Celebrity at Eome. 



The entire arrangement of the tent, both outside and inside, is the 

 affair of the woman. The husband only charges himself with the con- 

 struction of the framework, and with some definite corrections which 

 may be necessary. He passes his time in the chase, in pasturing his 

 flocks, or simply doing nothing. All the charge and cares of the house- 

 hold belong to the woman. 



In the family life of the Calmucks, the marriage of a son or daughter 

 is a principal occasion of rejoicing and of feasts. The choice among 

 the Calmucks belongs entirely to the parents. Still, there is no con- 



