DON COSSACKS. 
371 
than any of the Russian Academicians,) are a mix- 
ture of various nations, principally of Circassians, ' — 
Malo-Russians, and Russians, but also of Tahtars , 
Poles, Greeks, Turks, Calmucks, and Armenians, 
In the town of Tcherkask alone, and in the same 
street, may be seen all tliese different people at 
the same time, each in the habit peculiar to his 
own nation. A considerable proportion of the 
inhabitants have ever been refugees from Turkey , 
Greece, or from other countries. Concerning the 
original establishment of Tcherlcaslc, they relate, 
that it was founded by refugees from Greece, 
to whom the people of Azof denied admission, 
and who, in consequence, proceeding farther up 
the river, came to this island, where they made 
a settlement ; giving to the place a name derived 
from the people upon whose frontier it was 
situate, and with whom they afterwards were 
intermingled. The name of the town, although 
pronounced Tcherkasicy, is written Tcher- 
kask, implying “ The small village of the 
Tcherkas," pronounced generally Tcherkess, or, 
as we write it, Circassians. Thus, from a small 
settlement of rovers, augmented principally by 
intercourse with the neighbouring Circassians, 
has since accumulated, like a vast avalanche, the 
immense horde of the Cossacks. Before the 
middle of the tenth century, they had already 
reached the frontier of Poland, and had com- 
b b 2 
