, 1888-07-26
. K1RGHIS ENCAMPMENT.
DESCRIPTION OF A TENT AND IT'S
SIMPLE FURNITURE.

Hospitality of a Khirgis Host-A Drink
of the National B~everage-An Artist
Who Didn't Like Koumiss-An Untounrd
Incident.
1t was evident from the commotion
caused by our approach that the encamp-
ment had not often been visited. The
swarthy, half naked children, who had
been playing out IN the grass, fled in
alright to the shelter of the tents as they
saw our tarantas coming toward them
across the steppe; women rushed out to
take a startled look at us and then disap-
peared; and even the men, who gathered
in a group to meet us, appeared to be sur
prised and n little alarmed by our visit.
A few words in Kirghis, however, from
our Cossack driver treasured them, and
upon the invitation of an old man in a
red and yellow skull cap, who seemed TO
be the patriarch of the band, we entered
one of the kibitllas. 1t was a circular
tent about fifteen feet in diameter and
eight feet high, made by covering n dome
shaped framework of smoke blackened
poles with large overlapping sheets of
heavy gray felt. The slightly curved
rafters which formed the roof radiated
like the spokes of a wheel from u large
NNhNARA AAAk III III ANAAtA VI az NtHANr
and were supported around the circnm-
ference of the tent by n skeleton wall of
wooden lattice work in which there was a
hinged door.
The ring in the center of the dome out
lined the aperture left for the escape Of
smoke and the admission of air, and di-
rectly under this aperture a fire was smol-
dering on the ground inside a circle of fiat
stones, upon which stood u few pots, ket.
f1.g anI ntha- InY,.a4fa Yt.nGf1g nhn
furniture of the tent was very scanty, and
consisted of n narrow, implanted bed
stead, opposite the door, two or three
chenp Russian trunks of wood painted
blue and decorated with strips of tin, and
IA table about four feet in diameter and
eight inches high, intended evidently to
be used by persons who habitually% squatted
on the ground. Upon the table were a
few dirty wooden bowls and spoons and
an antique metal pitcher, while here and
there, hanging against the lattice wall,
were buckets of birch bark, a harness or
two, n flint lock rifle. n red, white and
golden saddle of wood with silver inlaid
stirrups and n pair Of carpet saddle bags.
The first duty which hospitality requires
Of n Kirghis host is the presentation of
koumiss 10 his guests, and we had no
sooner taken seats on II sheet of gray felt
beside the fire than one of the women
NfAb W Ahb hpuAlAaa thlIil-h luIktt
black, greasy bag of horse hide hanging
against the lattice wnll-worlIed n wooden
r,:urn dasher up and down IN it vigorously
for a moment, and then poured out of it
into n greasy wooden BOWL fully "A quart
Of the great national Kirghis beverage
for me. 1t did not taste as much like
sour milk and soda water as ! expected
that it would. On the contrary, II had
rather a pleasant flavor; and If it had been
n 1ff1. aI.Fyr... n,I g..I., IA .,.,11 lou,
made an agreeable and refreshing drink.
| tried to please the old Rirghis patriarch
aud TO show my appreciation of Knights
hospitality by drinking the whole bow
ful; but ] underestimate the quantity Of
koumiss that 1t is necessary to imbibe
In order to show ones host that one
doesn't dislike it and that one is salts
fed with ones entertainment. | had
no sooner finished one quart bowlful
than the old patriarch brought me
another; and when ! told him that a single
quart was all that | permitted myself to
take at one time, and suggested that he
reserve the second bowlful for my com
rade, Mr., Frost, he looked so pained and
grieved that in order to restore his
serenity | had to 20 to the tarantus, get
my banjo and sing There Is n Tavern in
the Town Mr.. Frost, meanwhile, had
shirked his duty and his koumiss by pre-
ttlulAB luuI nc Coulu not uflllk anu draw
simultaneously, and that he wanted to
make a likeness of the patriarch's 6-yeaI-
old son. This seemed TO be n very adroit
scheme on Mr., Frost's part. but 1t did not
work as we'll as he had expected. No
sooner had he begun TO make the sketch
than the boys mother, taking alarm at
the peculiar, searching way-in which the
artist looked at his subject, and imagin-
ing perhaps that her offspring was being
mesmerized, paralyzed or b~ewitched,
swooped down upon the ragged little
urchin, and kissing him p~assionately, as
IL she had almost lost him forever, car
ried him AWAY and hid him. This unto
ward incident cast such a gloom over the
subsequent proceedings that after sing
ing four verses of Solomon Levi" In IA
vain attempt to restore public confidence
in Mr.. Frost, l put away my banjo and
we took our departure.-George KEENAN,
in The Century.