MANNERS AND CUSTOMS. 



477 



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Teberde. The latter is of recent 

 date, having been founded by re- 

 fugees from Ckaratschi, who quit- 

 ted the principal village for fear of 

 the incursions of the Kabardians. 

 the road to them, which is ex- 

 tremely incommodious, and cannot 

 be travelled with carriages, runs 

 along the Ckuban and Bakssan. 



From the village of Ckaratschai, 

 at the conflux of the Chursuk and 

 the Ckuban, it is 17 wersts to the 

 stone bridge over the latter river, 

 which is called by the Tscherkes- 

 sians Miwwet'le-misch but by the 

 Tartars Taschkopur. The road 

 thither leads along the right bank 

 of the Ckuban, and is not passable 

 for carriages. To go from Cka- 

 ratschai to the Great Kabardah, 

 you first proceed up the brook 

 Chursuk to its source, and then 

 cross the range of the Tschalpak in 

 such a direction that you leave 

 Mount Kandshal on the right.- — 

 The distance is 60 or 70 wersts, 

 and the road very bad. To the foot 

 of the Mingitau or Elbrus it is 

 only 15 wersts, which distance may 

 be performed in half a day ; but 

 its summit is inaccessible. 



All the Ckaratschai were for- 

 merly heathen like the Balkar and 

 Tschegem ; but at present no 

 other religion prevails among them 

 than the Mohammedan, and they 

 now abhor swine's flesh, of which 

 they used to be very fond. About 

 thirty years since (1782) they were 

 converted to Ismaelism by the Ka- 

 bardian priest Isaak Efl'endi, who 

 was in the pay of the Porte. The 

 name of their present Efl'endi is 

 Issaak al-o, that of their Mulla is 

 Othman, and the person who sum- 

 IDQDS them to prayer from the 

 tower of the Messdshed Is called 

 Guotacbai, 



To Christianity they are utter 

 strangers, and keep no other fasts 

 than those prescribed in the Cku- 

 ran. Without the village of Cka- 

 ratschai, however, at a place which 

 is set apart for the interment 

 of strangers, and is called Get- 

 niischbach, there are many graves 

 and sepulchral stones, which they 

 attribute to Frengi or Catholics. 



The princes of the Ckaratschai 

 are styled By, and of these the 

 three chief families are the Ckrym- 

 Schochali, Ursubi, and Mudari. — 

 The people nevertheless pay no kind 

 oftributeeitherto them, the usdens, 

 or the gentry ; but the princes pos- 

 sess the right of taking for their 

 own use any man's horses, but re- 

 turn them in a short time to the 

 owner. To the Kabardian prin- 

 ces, on the other hand, whom they 

 term Bek, they are obliged to pay 

 certain imposts. All the Ckarats- 

 chi, whether princes, nobles, or 

 peasants, are under the authority 

 of the Beks, and consider them as 

 their only superiors. These com- 

 monly receive five sheep from each 

 house ; besides which the wealthy 

 give them a fine horse, an ox, felt- 

 mantles (Jamatscheh), furs, cop- 

 per kettles, and other articles. 



Though the Ckaratschai are not 

 bound to pay any particular ho- 

 nours to their native princes, yet 

 the usdens must attend the By in 

 his excursions on horseback. If 

 he makes a purchase, he commonly 

 gives away part of it in presents to 

 the persons of his retinue, who, in 

 return, entertain him every wher« 

 in the best manner, and supply 

 him with provisions suitable to his 

 rank. 



As the friendship of Kabardian 

 princes is estimated very highly by 

 them, each family strives to obtain 



