Each catch generously rewarded the fisherman’s labors, and therefore it is understandable why Cossacks came here from distant Cherkassy and Kanev to fish.
The Nizovites had plenty of everything here:
“They had plenty of dense forests, and running beasts,
And flying birds
And swimming fish,
They also have plenty of ant-grass for good horses to eat!”
The use of these natural gifts of nature was the main means of life for the Cossacks.
Hunting and fishing provided them with almost everything; if something was missing, then “in search,” that’s what they called their pubs in the Crimea and Turkish rule, they got the rest: clothes, weapons, etc.
By the way, from Turshi through Ochakov (to the mouth of the Dnipro) there is a trade caravan route to Moscow; The Cossacks often attacked caravans and plundered them. Subsequently, having become acquainted with the mouth of the Dnipro, with its numerous arms, islands and reeds, the Cossacks began to go to sea, where they captured Turkish merchant ships.
Carrying out their sometimes daring attacks, the Cossacks were not afraid of the revenge of the Turks: they were saved from this by the same Dnir. According to Boplan, there were ten thousand islands in the deep Dnifiir, and they were covered with such thick grass, such impenetrable reeds and tall trees that inexperienced sailors from afar mistook the huge trees for the masts of ships sailing
I.
RV at along the Dnieper waters, and the entire mass of islands is one huge island.
“Once,” says Boplan, “pursuing the Cossacks on their way back from the Black Sea, the Turkish ships penetrated to the very place where the Cossacks settled, but here among the islands and branches the rivers got confused and could not find a way out; the Cossacks fired at them with guns from canoes covered with reeds, sank many ships and frightened the Turks so much that they never From then on, they did not dare to enter the Dnieper further than four or five versts from the mouth.”
Zaporozhye was just as reliably covered from the north by the rapids of the Dnipro.
Whoever has not seen these rapids, who has not tried to pass through them, can never imagine all the menacingness, all the horror and grandeur with which the Dnfir amazes every traveler.
The blood runs like ice in the veins, the lips close, the heart stops beating; Already from a distance you can recognize the approach of the rapids by that strange noise, the deafening roar of water, which, pouring into the spaces between the rapids, foams strongly, rises high and then falls down at once, instantly carrying everything with it.
All rapids are counted as nine; “Insatiable” or “Dad” is especially wonderful; its roar can be heard already 2 miles away; Having descended from it safely, the ships must still cope with the rapid current so as not to fly into the Monastyrsky Cape: many ships have crashed here and people have died.
Besides the rapids, navigating along the DnFir was also made more difficult by “fences” and “strips”.
The fence is the same threshold, but it does not extend across the entire width of the river, but only up to half, leaving free passage for ships near one bank.
Stripe—storm, storm; at the most favorable time for
BZBLIOTE A Gevudar, Historian of the Museum and Ra
\ — 18 while sailing a day, a stripe comes over and, if it catches the ship at the entrance to the threshold, then it is no longer possible to turn or drop anchor; death is almost inevitable.
The stripes appear at all times of the day and quite suddenly; The Dneir is calm and quiet, in its waters, as in a pure crystal mirror, a clear, cloudless sky is reflected, but this calmness is deceptive: suddenly the Dneir turns dark, and a terrible storm breaks out over it: the wind howls wildly, and in an instant the entire surface of the water turns into whole mountains in all directions of splashing foam. s
There were no roads to Zaporozhye except the Dnieper; but among endless girts, deep estuaries, writhings, rapids and fences, only an experienced swimmer could swim without risking his life; Among the endless islands, swampy swamps, among the impenetrable reeds, only those who had studied Dnieir and its floodplains perfectly and in all respects and in detail could not get lost. In the opposite case, one slight mistake, one careless step led to certain destruction and inevitable death.
The larger islands, rising high above the water with their deep granite sides, densely covered with trees and grass, were the favorite and most reliable place of settlement for all immigrants from Ukraine. |
Here they felt like free people, knowing that the lords would not try to penetrate here.
This is Niz, who was an object of deep reverence in the eyes of every Cossack.