THE GEORGIAN PLAINS. 



95 



road from Borjom and Aclialtzich, which, in company 

 with the Kur, here emerges from the southern hills 

 throngh a narrow glen. The aspect of the country had 

 now entire!}' changed for the worse. Instead of the varied 

 landsca]3e and rich vegetation of Mingrelia, we had before 

 us a rolling plain bounded by distant ranges, so brown 

 and bare as almost to make us fancy ourselves back in 

 Syria again. The ' chaussee,' as the Russians invariably 



A Georgian Cliurch 



call a regularly-made road, had come to an end, and we 

 Avandered over the fields at our driver's will, selecting the 

 least rough and muddy line of country there might be 

 within a quarter of a mile of the telegraph-posts, which 

 marked our general direction. The novel sight of village 

 churches Avas, however, a source of interest. In Turkey 

 they are of course unknown, and, except at Kutais, we 

 had liitherto seen little external evidence of Cliristian 



