Their Villages Are Chiefly Situated On Declivities, And Hills, In Which They Dig Holes Of The Size Of Spacious Rooms.

The light falls only through the entrance, or outlet.

This is broader than it is high, and is protected by a long and broad portico of planks, resting either upon beams or the stems of trees. Nothing is more comical than to see such a village, consisting of nothing but these porticoes, and neither windows, doors, nor walls.

Those who dwell in the plains make artificial mounds of earth, and build their huts of stone or wood. They then throw earth over them, which they stamp down tightly, so that the huts themselves cannot be seen at all. Until within the last sixty years, it is said that many such dwellings were to be seen in the town of Tiflis.

29th August. This morning I had still one stage of twenty-four wersti ere I reached Tiflis. The road was, as everywhere else, full of holes, ruts and stones. I was obliged always to tie a handkerchief tightly round my head, to ease the jolting; and still, I was every day attacked with headache. Today, however, I learnt the full nuisance of these carriages. It had rained, not only during the whole night, but still continued so. The wheels threw up such masses of mud, that I soon sat in a thick puddle, I was covered even over the head, and my face did not escape. Small boards hanging over the wheels would have easily remedied this inconvenience; but none trouble themselves in this country about the comfort of travellers.

Tiflis comes in sight during the latter half of the stage. The prospect of the town charmed me much; as, with the exception of a few church towers, it was built in the European style; and, since Valparaiso, I had not seen any town resembling the European. Tiflis contains 50,000 inhabitants, it is the capital of Georgia, {309} and is situated tolerably near the mountains. Many of the houses are built on hills, on high steep rocks. From some of the hills there is a beautiful view of the town and valley. The latter, at the time of my visit, was not very attractive, as the harvest had deprived it of all the charms of colour; there were also but few gardens, etc. On the other hand, the river Kurry (generally called Cyrus) winds in graceful curves through the town and valley, and in the far distance sparkle the snow-crowned summits of the Caucasus. A strong citadel, Naraklea, is situated upon steep rocks, immediately before the town.

The houses are large, and tastefully ornamented with facades and columns, and covered with sheet iron or bricks. The Erivanski Place is very handsome. Among the buildings the Palace of the governor, the Greek and Armenian seminaries, and several barracks are conspicuous. The large theatre, in the centre of the Erivanski Place, was not then finished. It is evident that the old town must give place to the new one.

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