faMyjb!iiBama*M!!J!M)}ai>^ 



A Trip to the Caucasus 



Editor's Note 



H. S. Bacou ol' the R. S. Bacon Veneer Company. Cbleueo, 111., and John N. Pernod of tbe Pernod Walnut & Veneer 

 Company. Kansas City. Mo., returned about two weeks ago from a most Interesting visit to the bonie of the Circassian 

 walnut, the Caucasus mountains. In the province of Trans-Caucasia. Russia. 



Mr, Hacon and Mr. Pernod made the trip to consult with their foreign representative, Henry Hoffman of Batum. 

 Mr. rioffman does a largo business in nssemliling (Circassian walnut logs for distribution throughout tbe world. Mr. 

 Bacon has been kind enough to supply H.Miiiwinpo Hicidun with a slory of bis trip and a number of first-class photo- 

 graphs Illustrating tbe character ot the country and Its inhabitants. 



The land which produces the Circassian walnut tre 

 .•;illed the "Cradle of Civilization." 



Mt. Ararat, upon which Noah's ark rested, 

 is only a tew miles from Tiflis, now the capi- 

 tal of Russian Trans-Caucasia and formerly 

 the capital of the Georgian kingdom. It is 

 quite jTobalile that history has made a slight 

 mistake and that the famous dove brought 

 back a walnut leaf and not an olive leaf, as 

 the walnut grows on higher ground. 



The trip to the Caticasus begins when the 

 steamer leaves Constantinople for Batum, and 

 we were fortunate in catching the Austman 

 Lloyd steamer, "Stamboul, " a very comfort- 

 able ship. The view- of Constantinople from 

 tlie out-going ship is most picturesque. We 

 pass the old walls, the government buildings, 

 the palaces of the Sultan, and the forts that 

 command the Bosphorus. On both sides of 

 this narrow waterway rise beautiful hills, and, 

 wherever a house can hang on, is a Turkish 

 home. I don 't believe there is another ten 

 miles of more beautiful scenery in the world 

 than the Bosphorus. The first stop of any 

 importance is Samsoun, where the boat spends 

 the entire day discharging its cargo into small 



lia.s been aptly 



boats. The Turks do not believe in improvements and there are no 

 docks on the entire Turkish coast. We went ashore and after 

 wandering around most filthy streets we 

 finally saw the sign in English, "Expert 

 Leaf Tobacco," and here we found four 

 Americans who buy seven million dollars 

 worth each year of Turkish tobacco for 

 American cigarettes. We were received like 

 long-lost brothers and enjoyed a delightful 

 dinner at their comfortable home. If we 

 had not gone ashore, I would say that Sam- 

 soun was a most beautiful city, with its 

 white and pink houses against the soft green 

 of the mountains as a background. After 

 close contact with the dirt and stench of the 

 narrow streets one forgets its beauty and 

 remembers only its vileness. In the streets ^ 

 of Samsoun are many queer little wagons 

 with no seats. The Turks sit cross-legged 

 on the floor. It 's a common sight to see a 

 fat Turk, probably weighing two hundred 

 and fifty pounds, riding on a patient donkey 

 scarcely larger than a good sized dog. 



On a hill behind Samsoun one can plainly 



see the ruins of the ancient city of Amysos 



CHIC.\GO. mentioned in the Bible as the land of the 



KURDS ON STREETS OF TIFLIS— THE GYPSIES OF THE EAST. 



FROM LFFT TO KIiniT— Y.\HD FuIiKMAN Fill! III:M!V IIOFIMANN: 



CIRCASSIAN LOG PROCURER IN NATIVE COSTUME ; R. S. 



BACON; HENRY HOFFMANN; JOHN PENROD. 



