After the corpse has been laid out, the men of the village, having first removed their belts, approach it in a circle, and the women with jackets turned inside out keep up loud lamentations as they move around the body on their knees. A procession is then formed, the priest being in advance of the corpse which is laid within the hollowed trunk of a tree and covered with a cloth, and when the ground is reached the coffin is laid by the side of the grave, into which the nearest female relative immediately plunges and lies at full-length, declaring that she will never come out; this chief mourner, however, is draped away by her friends, the coffin is lowered into the grave, and food (no meat) and arak is spread about the ground. The females then kneel and weep, while the men, having formed a ring, repeat three motions in silence; at the first motion the hands are placed on the temples, at the second on the neck, and at the third on the thighs; the grave is then filled in, and feasting commences, to end in drunkenness and brawls. Af the obsequies of a relative of Prince Tenghyz, two of the deceased's horses weie led into the mortuary chamber, and candles were kept burning on their heads while the religious service lasted.
It is an indispensable rule that the members of one family
VOL. II. G
[fragment illegible in the scan of the first edition]
Sa THlE CRIMEA AND THANSCAUCASIA.
shall be interred in the same grave, which is never more than 6 feet in depth, and remains found at a burial are carefully taken up and placed in the new coffin. The Swanny bold in great dread the idea of being buried away from their home, a sentiment so prevalent, that a man's most implacable foe even will essay to thwart the law and authority, if the purpose be to carry off an offender beyond the frontier, for it is believed that the death of a Swanny and the disposal of his body out of his own country, will be followed by disasters and distress.'
An hour's ride from Mestye brought us to Nents'ghoul in the commune of Nenghery, where an old grievance awaited the decision of the Chief. In 1869, the father of three sons was murdered by three men who were brothers; they also wounded one of the sons and captured his rifle; the price of blood for the father's life had been paid, but the rifle was never restored, and the two families had in consequence continued in a state of hostility. As a preliminary to the investigation the brothers were sent for, but they refused to appear and retreated to their tower for better security. Four Cossacks and the interpreter, who were (fespatched with orders to bring them away, were warned by the brothers, that at the first show of violence they should empty their barrels at them. Tenghyz then undertook to point out to them their folly, when they replied that they would give themselves up on being promised that they should not be made prisoners, upon hearing which, the sons of the murdered man offered their services to the Chief, to unite with the Cossacks in effecting their capture; but scarcely were the words repeated to the Chief by the inter-
' In 1873, & malelBctor, a native of Independent Swannety, was dptaKd in Letchgoumm, and died on the road wh«n being conducted from Lyaylyash to Kaali'u- Hii friends ti»veUed to tlie place where he was buried, surreptitiously disinterm] ibe body, and conveyed it to thtir own village.
by Google preter, than the villagers remonstrated and unanimously declared that if the sons of the murdered man dared to assist the Cossacks in employing force, they should fall upon us and destroy us. The Chief, fully sensible of his weakness, decided upon deferring energetic measures.
Whilst the elections were being proceeded with, the men in the tower, evidently meaning to maintain themselves against attack, commenced to pull the roof to pieces and raise a breastwork with the timbers, which was completed by the time we had visited the little church and mounted our horses, and so great was their audacity, that they kept us covered with their rifles as we passed at the foot of the tower, and until we disappeared out of sight.
The best-looking women of Swannety are said to be in the commune of Nenghery, but I am not aware that any of our party were prepared to endorse such a statement