“How much strength, endurance, strength and hopeless need is needed in order, despite all the difficulties, to drag beams for 50-60 years (and in our opinion, it’s not a good idea to drag them for 70-80 versts, because it’s closer to Kiyelovodek along this route) and sell them for nothing at the Kievodsk bazaar? Having taken two beams out of the gorge onto the cart, the Karachai unharnesses the bulls, removes the timber with incredible efforts and, dragging, vigorously driving the bulls, makes the rest of the way to the top of the mountain. Having thus pulled out one, he returns for another, a third, etc. until the end of the day, this unfortunate man. the worker pours the beams onto the carts again and moves on. Even from the outside, it’s hard and pathetic to look at this hellish work,” at production.
which sometimes has to take a day or two to drag the luggage forward at a distance of some 3-4 turns. Caught on one side by vegetal carts, which got stuck with the forest in the mud in the potholes, we and our carts had to stand for more than 4 hours until the path was cleared by general forces from the winds that cluttered it.
Just as we managed to descend to the foot of Bermamut, evening came, the rain and cold intensifying. Ahead, according to our Podvodchikov, there was a Kabardian guardhouse, but it was no closer than 7 verts away.
Now the path ran along the narrow ridge of the divide line between the upper reaches of the deep ravines of Eshkakon and Bechasyn Sirav, as well as Khassaut and other tributaries of the Malka on the left. At times the width of the crest of the divide did not exceed 3-4 fathoms, while the abysses to the right and left extended for entire miles. The wheels of our cart slid in the mud and slush, and as it blew, it tilted strongly from side to side, so that every minute we had to balance or instantly jump out of it onto a slope so as not to fall into the abyss. The thought that we would have to spend the second night under conditions that were perhaps worse than the first had long been unsettling to us, and then hunger, not only the cold, bothered us. The conversation and jokes among the travelers had long since ceased of their own accord. So I had to take a tea or two when it was already dark and neither the abysses nor the beams could be seen. Finally, only at ten o’clock we approached the life-saving guardhouse, which had the properties of a chicken hut, 8-10 square meters in size. fathoms. The dampness and the cold got to us so much in two days that we were glad to have some shelter and therefore patiently endured for more than three hours the strong smoke from cooking our shish kebab on a burning fire and the stuffiness from being present in an extremely small room of 12 people, just to dry off, warm up and sleep for at least a few hours.
The Kabardian gatehouse or gatehouse on Bechasyn, as the natives say, calling the whole neighborhood that way, is located at 8000 f. on the Kuban-Terek watershed, which serves as the border between two nationalities: the Kabardians inhabiting the Malka basin, which flows into the Terek, and the Karachais living in the Kuban. Built in the distance, 15-18 miles away from any habitation, it has the sole purpose of providing a permanent shelter for guards and a shelter for guards.
We protect the border guards from stealing cattle from each other with these gorps; Karachais are predominantly known for stealing. Although there are many similarities between these two peoples, as between all the mountain names of the Caucasus, in their way of life, morals and customs, there are also many differences. — The Kabardians, for example, undoubtedly have many advantages but their greater culture over the Karachais, which is explained quite naturally by the fact that the lands of the Kabardians, located along the rivers Malk, Bansanu, Urukha and each other, from the headwaters to the mouths of these rivers, have long been adjacent directly to the possessions of the Ruseks, while the Karachais have always lived in inaccessible gorges of the Kuban, among the harsh villages, 40-50 miles away from the Russian rulers! The Kabardians consider themselves nobles, and the Karachais who were once their slaves. One Kabardian, who was present during our trip, in the wind with a horseman, still very far away, when asked: who is Fdet, answered: “Karachai,” which was later confirmed.
“Why did you find out that it was a Karachay and not a Kabardian?” we asked.
“Ours watches how he sits on the saddle; Ours will always guess, he tried to explain with her acceptance.
Indeed, the Kabardians’ saddle position is always firm, exemplary, a “horseman’s” position, as they say here, as a nobleman should sit, while a Karachai sits “like a peasant” in the saddle, so to speak, twisted, hunched over, wobbling during the Fzda.