The Press.
London, England, 1855-03-24 00:00:00

Yittraturt.

The Crimea and Odessa. Journal of a Tour ;

with an Account of the Climate and Vege-

tation. By Dr. Charles Koch.
Murray.
ALTHOUGH this tour was accomplished some
ten years ago, and since that time, especially
within the last year, we have had several
etcellent descriptive works on the same
subject, yet Dr. Koch's volume is worthy
some attention for two reasons. He is a
scientific man, and has already published
three valuable works upon the Caucasus and
the East (" Reise (lurch Russian(' nach dem
Kaukasichen Isthmus," " Wanderungen im
Oriente," and " Beitriige zur Flora des
Orientes "), and upon the occasion of this tour
he was completing for the Prussian Govern-
ment a scientific exploration of Southern
Russia, under the special protection of the
Imperial autocrat. Consequently he enjoyed
much greater facilities than previous or sub-
sequent travellers who were merely making a
tour of pleasure.
In his preface Dr. Koch complains that even
to this day very erroneous opinions are held
by most people concerning the climate and
capabilities of the Crimea; and, added to
this, the maps that are constantly appear
ing both here and in Paris insert numerous
Tartar towns and villages which have no ex-
istence whatever, besides giving exaggerated
populations to those which do exist, and thus
helping to strengthen a very false impression of
the fertility, population, and general re-
sources of the country. Few regions of
the same limited extent present a greater
variety of feature than the Crimea arid
steppes ; undulating hills or immense moun-
tain ranges ; deep ravines and hollowed-out
valleys, some densely wcoded, some without a
tree ; a putrid sea upon the eastern side,
abounding with salt, washing low, sandy
shores, with the vast, shallow Sea of Azof
beyond ; while on the west the deep, dark
Euxine—the sea of storm and hurricane—
dashes its restless billows against an iron-
bound coast of gigantic rocks. Uncultivated
throughout its great extent, partly from the
poverty of the soil and partly from want of
water, it offers but few temptations for
settlement and agriculture ; and the Tartar
inhabitants, except in the neighbourhood of
the towns, wander with their flocks over the
steppes or upon the yailas (the tablelands of
the mountain ranges) for the greater part of
the year, changing their residence at short in-
tervals of time, according as fresh pasture-
ground is required for their herds. With
great extremes of heat and cold in its climate,
almost insupportable in either summer or
winter, it is, at the same time, subject to
the most bitter cold north-easterly winds from
the Siberian mountains, or the most parching
east-south-easterly winds from across the Sea
of Azof. The fall of rain, too, is as varied as
any other feature of the country, sometimes
pouring down in torrents for days, and flooding
the country ; at others the most distressing
droughts will occur, the very rivers drying in
their courses, and not a drop of rain will fall
upon the land for months to come, while tor-
rents will descend within a few miles of the
coast, upon the broad surface of the Black
Sea. Such is the Crimea according to Dr.
Kqeh.
Having entered the peninsula at Xertch,
Dr. Koch passed through Kaffa and Kara-su-
Basar (a Tartar town), en route to Simferopol
and Sebastopol ; from thence round the south-
eastern coast to Aloushta, and from that town,
partially retracing his steps, he returned
through Simferopol across the southern
steppes to Perekop and Odessa, and from
thence to the frontier.
Simferopol—about which we have heard so
much as the head-quarters of the Russian
army, and the coveted spot of plenty for the
allies—is the market town of the Crimea.
The Tartars sell here their cattle, the Ger-
mans their vegetables, the Russians their corn
and bread, while the Jews, having an eye to
business, keep the brandy-shops as the best
and most profitable speculation. There are a
great number of Germans in Simferopol, and

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