MSCHETI AGAIX. 443 



speaking woman who attends to the wants of passers-by, 

 entertained us with an account of some people who, since 

 our previous visit, had come from Tiflis to ascend the 

 mountain, but had been content with looking at it, and 

 passing on. At Kobi the postmaster was, as usual, tipsy. 

 Night drew on, and rain began to fall as we drove up the 

 pass, and, owing to the absence of moon, we were obliged 

 to sleep at the station near the summit, which is not so 

 well-fitted -up as most of those on this road. 



August 2Mh. — We started at 5 a.m., and after twelve 

 hours' rapid progress, without any delays from want of 

 horses, reached Mscheti, the station nearest Tiflis, where, 

 as my readers may recollect, the Dariel and Kutais roads 

 unite. Desj)ite the double drain inevitably thrown on the 

 resources of the establishment, the supply of horses is only 

 the same as at other stations on the road, and travellers 

 are constantly obliged to submit to the inconvenience 

 and annoyance of stopping at an early hour, when 

 only twelve miles distant from their destination. On the 

 present occasion, after failing in an endeavour to hire 

 peasants' horses, we were forced to make uj) our minds to 

 the impossibility of reaching Tiflis that evening, and to 

 take up our quarters on the floor of a prettily-decorated 

 room intended for the use of the Grand Duke, but in which 

 travellers willing to pay for the accommodation are allowed 

 to spend the night. 



Aitgust 26th. — At an early hour in the morning we drove 

 into Tiflis, and aroused the people of the ' Hotel d'Europe,' 

 who had almost given up expecting our return. Dm-ing 

 the three following days we were fully occupied, first in 

 settling our plans, and afterwards in making the arrange- 

 ments necessary to their execution. Our original scheme 

 had included a visit to Daghestan and the Casj)ian, but 

 the time taken by our explorations in the central chain 



