Porler^i Travels in Georgia, Persia, (^c 



639 



\n prepare his meals, and vvhrn niglil 

 romPs on, lo share his bed. The re- 

 Jiisal of the latter part of the entertain- 

 ment, would be considered as a great 

 affront to the young lady and her father. 

 'J'he natives of a part of Lapland, not 

 vei*y far from Torneo, have a similar 

 custom; but then it is the wife of the 

 host, whom he delivers info the bosom 

 «)f his guest ; and she remains with the 

 stranger as his exclusive property, dur- 

 ing tlie whole of his sojourn under 

 her husband's roof. This fact I learnt 

 while I was in tliat part of the world, 

 during the montlis of December and 

 January, in tlie severe winter of 

 1^12-13. 



AVALANCHE IN CAUCASUS. 



The pale summit of tlic mountain 

 Kasibeck, on tlie side which shelves 

 <lown into the dark valley between 

 Derial and the village which bears the 

 mountain's name, had been seen 

 abruptly to move. In an instant it was 

 launclicd forward ; and nothing was 

 now beheld for the shaken snow and 

 dreadful overshadowing of (be falling 

 destruction. The noise that accompa- 

 nied it wastiie most stunning, bursting, 

 and rolling onward, of all that must 

 make death certain. As the avalanche 

 rushed, huge masses of rock, rifted 

 fnvm the mountain's side, were driven 

 ?)efore it : and (iie snows and ice of cen- 

 turies, ponring down in immense shat- 

 tered forms and rending heaps, fell 

 like the fall of an earthquake; covering 

 from human eyes, villages, vallej^s, and 

 people ! What an awful moment, when 

 ailwasslill! wluMi the dreadfisl cries 

 of man and beast were licr.rd no more; 

 and the tremendous avalanche lay a 

 vast, motionless, wliite shroud on all 

 around. 



HOUSE IN CAUCASUS. 



Within is a room which fills (he 

 whole compass of tin; house, lieiug 

 from sixteen to eighteen feet wide, and 

 often of still greater length ; a size we 

 might dcni iil-proporti<med to tlie out- 

 ward lowness of (lie dwelling; but it 

 is dug three or four feet below the sur- 

 face of (he earth, which gives a heiglit 

 to the apartment, not to be anticipated 

 from without. At one end, commonly 

 near (he door, a space is always left un- 

 touched by (lie spad(;, sufficient (o form 

 SI sort of distinct chamber ; but not 

 otherwise flividcd from (he stnikcn 

 part, than by the more elevaf.^d door. 

 At one side of this superior quarter, 

 we find (he heardi wilh its chimney ; 

 and oj)posilc (o them, a small hole in 



(he roof, (o admit light. The floor is 

 the bare earth, beaten very hard ; but 

 coarse carpets are spread along the sides 

 for the people to sit and sleep on. No 

 table or stools are visible. The walls 

 are merely dried mud, Mith something 

 like cupboards left in them, (ohold (he 

 litde property of the family. Directly 

 over the fire-place, we find a small 

 hollow of (he same kind, for the recep- 

 tion of a hand-lamp, and this they 

 never failed lighting up, whenever 1 

 happened to be their guest, though 1 

 always on such occasions burnt my 

 own candles. So much for the human- 

 habitable part of this sepulchral-like 

 abode ; the rest of it, (hat is, the pit, 

 was assigned to the pigs, sheep, horses, 

 6ic. of (he family. 



MONASTERY OF EITCH-MAI-ADZEN. 



A fragment of the ark, which had 

 havened in the mountain, under whose 

 shadow this venerable monastery has 

 condnued for so many centuries in per- 

 fect safety. The circumstances which 

 brought the relic iu(o the possesfiion of 

 the fathers, is thus related :^ — ^Many 

 hundred years ago, a certain pioits 

 monk of the order, undertook the hi- 

 (herlo unattcmpted [Qu? unaccom- 

 plished] task of ascending to the top 

 of the mountain, to find (he remains 

 of the sacred vessel, and to bring away 

 some part of it, to receive a due shrine 

 in the church at the foot of Ararat. 

 But ere he had gone far ovGr the snows 

 of the last terrible regions of ice and 

 cold, he fell asleep, and an angel ap- 

 pearing to him, in a vision, told him, 

 that beyond sucli a point no mortal 

 since the descent of Noali Avas per- 

 mitted (o pass; but that, in reward <o 

 the singular piety of the convent, a 

 heavenly messenger had been com- 

 manded to bring to this, its devout 

 brother, a plank of the holy ship; 

 which, at his awaking, he would find 

 at his side. When tlie monk arose, lie 

 found it was as (he angel had said, and 

 (he remainder of (he long story may 

 easily be guessed at. 



MOSQUES, 



Of the two hundred and fifty mosquf-.s 

 mentioned by Chan) in, the ruins of 

 only three an; visible. The most 

 considerable is (ha( of Ali Shah, erected 

 nearly six hnndi-ed years ago, by Ali 

 Koja; and \vhich still presents lofty 

 arches, and the mouldering vaulted 

 work of splendid domes. The whole 

 of (he building, within and without, 

 has been i;ased with lackered tiles of 

 porcelain, adjusted into iutricatei, and 

 elaborate 



