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CAUCASUS

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Originally appearing in Volume V05, Page 555 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
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CAUCASUS , a See also:

mountain range of See also:Asia, wholly within the See also:Russian See also:empire, stretching See also:north-See also:west to See also:south-See also:east from the Strait of See also:Kerch (between the See also:Black See also:Sea and Sea of See also:Azov) to the See also:Caspian Sea, over a length of 900 m., with a breadth varying from 30 to 140 M. In its See also:general See also:character and conformation the Caucasus presents a closer See also:analogy with the See also:Pyrenees than with the See also:Alps. Its general uniformity of direction, its comparatively narrow width, and its well-defined limits towards both south and north are all features which it has in See also:common with the former. The range of the Caucasus, like that of the Pyrenees, maintains for considerable distances a high See also:average See also:elevation, and is not cleft by deep trenches, forming natural passes across the range, such as are common in the Alps. In both ranges, too, some of the highest summits stand on spurs of the See also:main range, not on the main range itself; as Mont Perdu and Maladetta See also:lie south of the main backbone of the Pyrenees, so See also:Mount Elbruz and See also:Kasbek, Dykh-tau, Koshtan-tau, Janga-tau and Shkara—all amongst the loftiest peaks of the Caucasus—stand on a subsidiary range north of the See also:principal range or on spurs connecting the two. On the other See also:hand, it is interesting to compare the arrangement of the drainage See also:waters of the Caucasus with those of the Alps. Inboth orographical systems the principal See also:rivers start nearly all together from a central See also:nucleus, and in both cases they radiate to opposite quarters of the See also:compass; but whereas in the Alps the See also:Rhone and the See also:Rhine, flowing south-west and north-east respectively, follow See also:longitudinal valleys, and the See also:Aar and the See also:Ticino, flowing north-west and south-east respectively, follow transverse valleys, in the Caucasus the streams which flow south-west and north-east, namely, the headwaters of the Rion and the See also:Terek, travel along transverse valleys, and those of the Kura and the See also:Kuban, flowing south-east and north-west respectively, See also:traverse longitudinal valleys. For purposes of description it is convenient to consider the range in four sections, a western, a See also:middle with two subsections, and an eastern. I. WESTERN CAUCASUS. This See also:section, extending from the Strait of Kerch to Mount Elbruz in 42° 40' E., is over 420 M. See also:long, and runs parallel to the north-east See also:coast of the Black Sea and at only a See also:short distance from it. Between the main range and the sea there intervene at least two parallel ranges separated by deep glens, and behind it a third subsidiary parallel range, likewise separated by a deep trough-like valley, and known as the Bokovoi Khrebet.

All these ranges are shorn through transversely by numerous glens and See also:

gorges, and, the rainfall being heavy and the exposure favourable, they are densely clothed with vegetation. Many of the spurs or broken segments of ranges thus formed abut steeply upon the Black Sea, so that this littoral region is on the whole very rugged and not readily accessible, especially as the general elevations are considerable. The seaward flanking ranges run up to 4000 ft. and more, and in many places shoot out cliffs which overhang the coast some 2000-3000 ft. sheer, while the main range gradually ascends to 10,000-12,000 ft. as it advances eastwards, the principal peaks being Fisht (8040 ft.), Oshten (9210 ft.), Shuguz (10,640 ft.), and Psysh (12,425 ft.). And whereas the main range is built up of hard eruptive or crystalline rocks, the subsidiary chains are composed of softer (Cretaceous and See also:Tertiary) laminated formations, which easily become disintegrated and dislocated. The See also:snow-See also:line runs here at about 9000 ft. on the loftiest summits, and east of Oshten the See also:crest of the main range is capped with perpetual snow and carries many See also:hanging glaciers, while larger glaciers creep down the principal valleys. The passes lie at relatively See also:great altitudes and are few in number, so that although the See also:northern versants of the various ranges all have a tolerably See also:gentle slope, communication between the Black Sea and the valley of the Kuban, and the See also:low See also:steppe See also:country beyond, is the See also:reverse of easy. The more important passes, proceeding from west to east, are Pshekh (5435 ft.) west of Oshten, and Shetlib (6o6o ft.) east of Oshten, Pseashka (688o ft.) east of Shuguz, Sanchar (7990 ft.) west of Psysh; and between the last-named mountain and Elbruz, facilitating communication between Sukhum-Kaleh (and the coast as far as See also:Poti) and the upper valley of the Kuban, are the passes of Marukh (11,500 ft.), Klukhor (9450 ft.) and Nakhar (9615 ft.). See also:Flora.—The See also:southern exposure of this littoral region, the shelter afforded against the See also:bitter winds of the north by the lofty Caucasus range, and the copious rainfall all combine to See also:foster a luxuriant and abundant vegetation. The most distinguishing feature of the flora of this region is the predominance of arborescent growths; forests See also:cover in fact 56% of the See also:area, and are not only dense but laced together with climbing and See also:twining See also:plants. The commonest See also:species of trees are such as grow in central See also:Europe, namely, ash, See also:fir, See also:pine, See also:beech, See also:acacia, See also:maple, See also:birch, See also:box, See also:chestnut, See also:laurel, holm-See also:oak, See also:poplar, See also:elm, See also:lime, See also:yew, See also:elder, See also:willow, oak. The common box is especially prevalent, but the preponderating species are Coniferae, including the Caucasian species Pinus halepensis and P. insignis. The commonest firs are Abies nordmannia and A. orientalis.

There are two native oaks, Quercus ponticus and Q. sessiliftora. A great variety of shrubs grow on these slopes of the western Caucasus, chiefly the following species, several of which are indigenous—Rhododendron ponticum, See also:

Azalea pantica, Aristotelia maqui, See also:Agave americana, Cephalaria tatarica, See also:Cotoneaster pyracantha, Citrus aurantium, Diospyros ebenum, Ficus carica, Illicium anisatum, Ligustrum caucasicum, Punica granatum, Philadel phus coronarius, Pyrus salicifolia, Rhus cotinus and six species of See also:Viburnum. Aquatic plants thrive excellently and occur in great variety. The following purely Caucasian species also grow on the coast-five species of spearwort, three of See also:saxifrage, See also:Aster caucasica, Dioscorea caucasica, Echinops raddeanus, Hedera colchica, Hellebores caucasica and Peucedanum caucasicum. Here too are found many of the more beautiful open-See also:air flowering plants of a shrubby character, e.g. See also:magnolia, azalea, See also:camellia, See also:begonia and paulownia. Among the cultivated trees and shrubs the most valuable economically are the See also:vine, See also:peach, See also:pomegranate, fig, See also:olive (up to 1500 ft. above sea-level), chestnut, See also:apricot, See also:apple, See also:pear, See also:plum, See also:cherry, See also:melon, See also:tea (on the coast between Sukhum-Kaleh and See also:Batum), See also:maize (yielding the See also:staple See also:food of the inhabitants), See also:wheat (up to 6000 ft.), potatoes, peas, currants, See also:cotton, See also:rice, colza and See also:tobacco. Before the Russian See also:conquest the native inhabitants of this region were Kabardians, Circassians (Adigheh) and Abkhasians also a Circassian See also:race But See also:half a million of these th the yoke of See also:Christian See also:Russia, emigrated into See also:Turkish territory See also:people being Mahommedans, and refusing to submit to Name of See also:Peak. See also:Altitude By whom ascended. Date. in Feet. Elbruz, E. peak . . 18,345 D.

W. Freshfield, A. W. See also:

Moore and C. See also:Tucker 1868 Elbruz, W. peak 18,465 F. C. See also:Grove, H. See also:Walker and F. See also:Gardiner 1874 ,, H. Woolley 1889 Donguz-orun . 14,600 G. Merzbacher and L.

Purtscheller 1890 See also:

Donkin and H. See also:Fox 1888 Helbling, Reichert and See also:Weber 1903 Shtavler 13,105 Ficker, W. R. Rickmers, Scheck and Wigner 1903 Ledosht-tau 12,58o Schuster and Wigner 1903 Hevai 13,055 Schuster and Wigner 1903 Lakra-tau 12,185 Rolleston and Longstaff 1903 Ushba, N.E. peak 15,400 Cockin 1888 Ushba, S.W. peak 15,410 Helbling, Schulze, Reichert, Schuster and 1903 Ushba, both peaks .. Weber 1903 Distel, Leuchs and Pfann Sultran-kol-bashi 12,495 Grove, Walker and Gardiner 1874 Bak 11,739 See also:Collier, Solly and See also:Newmarch 1894 Gulba 12,500 Freshfield 1887 Salynan-bashi 14,700 Cockin and H. W. Holder 1888 Shikildi-tau 14,170 Helbling, Reichert, Schulze and Weber 1903 Bshedukh 14,010 Distel, Leuchs and Pfann 1903 Ullu-tau-cha.na 13,800 Rolleston and Longstaff 1903 Adyr-su-bashi 14,335 Holder, Cockin and Woolley 1896 Sullu-kol-bashi 13,970 Merzbacher and Purtscheller 1890 Tikhtengen 15,135 Rolleston and Longstaff 1903 Gestola 15,940 C. T. Dent and Donkin 1886 Tetnuld 15,920 Freshfield 1887 Merzbacher and Purtscheller 1890 Adish or Katuyn-tau . 16,295 Holder and Woolley 1888 Janga-tau, E. peak 16,525 Cockin 1888 Merzbacher and Purtscheller 1890 Janga-tau, E. and W. W. peak, Helbling, Reichert, Schulze and Weber 1903 peaks i6,66o Shkara 17,040 Cockin 1888 Ailama 14,855 Woolley 1889 Ullu-auz 15,350 V. See also:Sella 1888 Dykh-taut 17,050 Cockin, Holder and Woolley 1888 Koshtan-taut .

16,875 1 Woolley 1888 Mishirghi-tau, E. peak 16,350 Woolley 1889 Laboda . . 14,170 Dent and Woolley 1895 Tsikhvarga, E. peak 13,575 V. Sella 1890 W. peak 13575 Holder and Cockin 1890 Karagom-khokh or 14,295 Holder and Cockin 1890 Burdshula Adai-khokh 15,275 Holder and Cockin 1890 Tepli 14,510 V. Sella 1896 Kasbek 16,545 Freshfield, Moore and Tucker 1868 ,, Woolley 1889 Merzbacher 1890 V. Sella 1S96 Gimarai-khokh 15,670 Merzbacher 1890 Laila, N. peak 13,045 Freshfield and See also:

Powell 1889 Laila, middle peak 13,155 V. Sella 1889 Laila, S. peak 13,105 Merzbacher and Purtscheller 1890 Khamkhakhi-khokh 14,o65 M. de Dechy 1884 1 Formerly the Koshtan-tau. 2 Formerly the Dykh-tau. between 1864 and 1878, and the country where they had lived remained for the most See also:part unoccupied until after the beginning of the 20th See also:century. Then, however, the Russian See also:government held out inducements to settlers, and these have been respondea to by Russians, Greeks, Armenians and Rumanians, but the See also:process of repeopling the long deserted territory is slow and difficult. The coast-line is remarkably See also:regular, there being no deep bays and few seaports. The best See also:accommodation that these latter afford consists of more or less open roadsteads, e.g. Novo-rossiysk, Gelenjik, See also:Anapa, Sukhum-Kaleh, Poti and Batum.

Along the coast a See also:

string of summer bathing resorts is springing up similar to those that dot the south-east coast of the See also:Crimea. The most promising of these little seaside places are Anapa, Gelenjik and Gagry. 2. MIDDLE CAUCASUS: (a) Western Half.--This sub-section, with a length of 200 m., reaches from Mount Elbruz to Kasbek and the Pass of See also:Darial. It contains the loftiest summits of the entire range, fully a dozen exceeding Mont See also:Blanc in altitude (see table below). In addition to the peaks enumerated in the table, the following also exist between Elbruz and Kasbek all exceeding 13,000 ft. in altitude: Dong-osenghi, 14,265 ft.; Kurmychi, 13,310 ft.; Ullu- % 14,070 ft.; Jailyk; 17,780 ft.; See also:List of Peaks in the west central Caucasus, with their altitudes, names and See also:dates of mountaineers Sarikol-bashi, 13,965 ft.; Dumala-tau, who have climbed them. 14,950 ft.; Sugan-tau, 14,730 ft.; Tiutiu-bashi, 14,500 ft.; Nuamkuam, 13,975 ft.; Zurungal, 13,915 ft.; See also:Mala-tau, 14,950 ft.; Tiutiun-tau, 15,115 ft.; Khrumkol-tau, 14,653 ft.; Bubis-khokh, 14,500 ft.; Giulchi, 14,68o ft.; Doppakh, 14,240 ft.; Nakhashbita-khokh, 14,405 ft.; Shankhokh, 14,335 ft.; Mishirghi-tau (W. peak), 16,410 ft.; Fytnargyn-tau, 13,790 ft.; Gezeh-tau, 14,140 ft.; and Kaltber, 14,460 ft. The crest of the main range runs continuously at an altitude exceeding lo,000 ft., but even it is surpassed in elevation by the secondary range to the north, the Bokovoi Khrebet. These two ranges are connected by more than half a dozen short trans-See also:verse spurs or necks, inclosing as many cirques or high cauldron glens. Besides the Bokovoi Khrebet several other short subsidiary ranges See also:branch off from the main range at acute angles, lifting up high montane glens between them; for instance, the two ranges in See also:Svanetia, which See also:divide, the one the See also:river (glen) Ingur from the river (glen) Tskhenis-Tskhali, and the other the river (glen) Tskhenis-Tskhali from the rivers (glens) Lechkhum and Racha.Down all these glens See also:glacier streams descend, until they find an opportunity to See also:pierce through the flanking ranges, which they do in deep and picturesque gorges, and then race down the northern slopes of the mountains to enter the Terek or the Kuban, or down the southern versant to join the Rion or the Kura. Amongst all these high glens there is a remark-able See also:absence of lakes and waterfalls; nor are there down in the See also:lower valleys at the See also:foot bf the mountains, as one would naturally expect in a region so extensively glaciated, any sheets of See also:water corresponding to the Swiss lakes. In this section of the Caucasus the loftiest peaks do not(' as a See also:rule rise on the main range, but in many cases on the short spurs that See also:link it with the Bokovoi Khrebet and other subsidiary ranges.

" The central See also:

chain of the Caucasus," writes Mr See also:Douglas W. Freshfield,' " consists of a number of short parallel or curved See also:horse-See also:shoe rides, crowned with rocky peaks and enclosing basins filled by the neves of great glaciers. . . On either See also:side of the main chain the same See also:succession is repeated, with one important difference. On the north the See also:schists come first, sometimes rising into peaks and ridges in a See also:state of ruin . . but more often worn to See also:rolling See also:downs; then the See also:limestone range—writing-See also:desk mountains that turn their steep fronts to the central snows; lastly low Cretaceous foothills, that sink softly into the steppe. But on the south side the crystal-line rocks are succeeded by a broad See also:belt of slates, as to the See also:age of which the See also:evidence is at See also:present conflicting and the See also:opinion of geologists divided. East of Adai-khokh, by what seems a See also:strange freak of nature, the granitic [main] range is See also:rent over and over again to its See also:base by gorges, the See also:watershed being transferred to the parallel chain of See also:clay slates . . . which has followed it from the Black Sea, attaining on its way the height of 13,400 ft. in the Laila, and limiting the great parallel basins of the Rion, Ingur and Skenis Shalt [ = Tskhenis-Tskhali] ..." " At the base of the central core of the chain spread (to the north) broad, smooth, grassy downs, the pastures of the Turk and the Ossete. Their ridges attain to 9000 to Io,000 ft. They are composed of friable crystalline schists. . Beyond these schists rises a broken See also:wall of limestone, cleft to the base by gorges, through which flow the mountain torrents, and capped by See also:pale precipitous battlements, which See also:face the central chain at a height of 11,000 to 12,000 ft.

Beyond, again, lies a broad furrow, or ' longitudinal See also:

fold,' as geologists See also:call it, parallel to the ridges, and then rises the last elevation, a belt of low calcareous hills, on which, here and there among the waves of beech See also:forest, See also:purple or See also:blue with distance, a See also:white cliff retains its See also:local See also:colour and shines like a patch of fresh snow. Beyond, once more beyond, spreads the Scythian steppe, not the dead level of See also:Lombardy, but an expanse of long low modulations, which would be reckoned hills in our See also:home counties, seamed by long shining See also:ribbons, which See also:mark the courses of the tributaries of the Terek. . Southwards too, immediately under the snows, we find ' crystalline sclusts,' smooth grassy heights, separated by shallow trenches, which See also:form the lesser undulations of the three basins, the drei Langenhochthaler Imeritiens of Dr Radde. These basins or' longitudinal folds' are enclosed on the south by the long high See also:ridge of dark slates, which extends parallel to the crystalline [main) chain from the neighbourhood of Sukhum-Kale to the Krestovaya Gora [pass of Darial.] Behind this See also:slate crest spreads a confused multitude of hills, See also:Jurassic and Cretaceous in their formation. . . . Their See also:outer edge, distant some 30 to 4om. from the snows, is marked by a limestone belt, lower and less continuous than that on the north, which frames the gorges of the Rion, and rises in the Kuamli (652 ft.) and Nakarala 4774 ft.) near See also:Kutais, its best known elevations."' It may be added that, south of the central watershed, the strata, both Mesozoic and Palaeozoic, are compressed, crumpled, faulted and frequently over-folded, with their apices pointing to the south. Glaciers.—As a rule the snow-line runs at 9500 to 10,000 ft. on the northern face and moo ft. higher on the southern face. It is estimated that there are in all over nine See also:hundred glaciers in this section of the range, and although they often See also:rival those of the Alps in See also:size, they do not descend generally to such low altitudes as the latter. The best known are the Bezingi or Ullu, between Dykh-tau and Janga-tau, See also:roe m. long, covering an area of 31 sq. m., and descending to 6535 ft. above sea-level; Leksyr, situated south of Adyr-su-bashi, 71 M. long, 19 sq. m. in area, and creeping down to as low as 5690 ft., this being the lowest point to which any glacier descends on the south side of the range; Tseya or Zea, descending 6 m. from the Adai-khokh to an altitude of 673o ft.; Karagom, from the same mountain, 9i m. long, 14 sq. m. in area and reaching down to 5790 ft., the lowest on the north side; Dyevdorak' or Devdorak, from Kasbek, 24 M. long, its lower end at 7530 ft.; Khaldeh or Geresho 41 M. long, from Shkara and Janga-tau; Tuyber from Tetnuld, 64 m. long, area 21 sq. m., and reaching down to 6565 ft.; Tsanner or Zanner, the same length and the same area, but stopping short 240 ft. higher, likewise given off by Tetnuld; while between that peak, Adish and Gestola originates the Adish or Lardkhat glacier, 5 M. long and terminating at 7450 ft. The See also:total area covered by glaciers in the central Caucasus is estimated at 625 to 65o sq. m., the longest being the Maliev on Kasbek, 36 m. long; but according to the investigations of M. Rossikov several 1 Exploration of the Caucasus (2nd ed., 1902), i. 30-31.

2 Op. cit. i. 35-36. of the. largest glaciers are shrinking or retreating, the Tseya at the See also:

rate of something like 40-45 ft. per annum. Passes.-It is in this section that the entire mountain See also:system is narrowest', and here it is that (apart from the " See also:gate " at See also:Derbent See also:close beside the Caspian) the principal means of communication exist' between north and south, between the See also:steppes of southern Russia and the See also:highlands of See also:Armenia and Asia See also:Minor. These means of communication are the passes of Darial and Mamison. Over the former, which lies immediately east of Kasbek, ' runs the Georgian military road (made 1811-1864) from See also:Vladikavkaz to See also:Tiflis, cutting through the mountains by a See also:gorge (8 m. long) of singular beauty, shut in by precipitous mountain walls nearly 6000 ft. high, and so narrow that there is only just See also:room for the See also:carriage-road and the See also:brawling river Terek side by side. The pass by which this road crosses the main range, farther south, is known as the Krestovaya Gora (Mountain of the See also:Cross) and lies 7805 ft. above sea-level. The Mamison Pass, over which runs the Ossetic military road (made passable for vehicles in 1889)froni the Terek(below Vladikavkaz) to Kutais in the valley of the Rion, skirting the eastern foot of the Adai-khokh, lies at an altitude of 927o ft. and is situated a little south of the main range. Scarce any of the remaining passes in this west-central region are better than mountain paths; horses can traverse the best of them only during a few See also:weeks in the height of summer. They mostly range at altitudes of 9000• 12,500 ft., and between the pass of Nakhar in the west and that of Mamison in the east there is not a single pass below Io,o00 ft. The best known in this section are the three Baksan passes of Chiper (ro,800 and 10,720 ft.), See also:Bassa (9950 ft.) and Donguz-orun (10,490 ft.), south of Elbruz; those of Becho (11,070 ft.), Akh-su (12,465 ft.), Bak (10,220 ft.), Adyr-su (12,305 ft.) and Bezingi (10,090 ft.), between Elbruz and Dykh-tau; and those of See also:Shari-vizk (11,560 ft.), Edena, Pasis-mta or Godivizk (11,270 ft.), Shtulu-vizk (io,86o ft.), Fytnargyn (1 r,130 ft.), between Dykh-tau and Adai-khokh; the Bakh-fandak (9570 ft.), between Adai-khohk and Kasbek; and the two Karaul passes (ir,68o and 11,270 ft.) and Gurdzi-vizk (10,970 ft.), connecting the valley of the Urukh with that of the Rion. The most frequented pass in Svanetia is that of Latpari (9260 ft.), situated in the first of the southern subsidiary ranges mentioned above, and thus connecting the valley of the Ingur with the valley oftheTskhenis-Tskhali.

Flora.—In this section of the range again the southern slopes are clothed with vegetation of remarkable luxuriance and richness, more especially in the region of Svanetia (42°-43°E.). Not only are the plants bigger than they grow in the Alps, but the blossoms are more abundant. Here again forests of Coniferae predominate, especially on the northern and eastern slopes; and the other distinguishing features of the flora are gigantic male ferns (Aspidium filix-mas), See also:

Paris incomplete (a member of the Trilliaceae), Usnea or See also:tree-See also:moss, box, See also:holly (Ilex agui See also:folium), Lilium monadelphum and many of the See also:familiar herbaceous plants which See also:flower in See also:English gardens, though here they grow to an altogether extraordinary size—" monkshoods, Cephalaria, Mlulgedia and groundsels, among which men on horseback might See also:play at hide and seek without stooping " (E. Levier). Other prominent species are See also:Campanula, See also:Pyrethrum, See also:aconite, Cephaglis, speedwell, Alchemilla sericea, See also:Centaurea macrocephala, Primula grandis and a species of See also:primrose. And the great height (13,000 ft.) at which the flowering plants blossom is not less remarkable than the great beauty and abundance of the See also:flowers. Species which grow on both the northern and the southern slopes ascend,20oo ft. higher on the latter than on the former. Walnuts grow up to an altitude of S400 ft., the vine and mulberry up to 3250 ft., the lime and ash to 4000 ft. The forests extend to the upper end of the limestone gorges. Above that the crystalline schists are See also:bare of tree vegetation. The upper limit of arborescent vegetation is considered to run at 7000-7500 ft., of shrubs such as rhododendrons at85oo ft., and of pasture-lands up to 'woo ft. The principal cultivated varieties of plants in this section are wheat, See also:rye, oats, See also:barley, beans, See also:millet and tobacco.

3. MIDDLE CAUCASUS: (b) Eastern Part.—In this sub-section, which stretches from Kasbek and the Darial gorge eastwards to the Baba-dagh in 48° 25' E., a distance of 330 M., the Caucasus attains its greatest breadth. For the whole of that distance the main range keeps at an average elevation of ro,000 ft., though the peaks in many instances See also:

tower up 2000 to nearly 5000 ft. higher, the altitudes increasing towards the east. As the main range approaches the Caspian its See also:granite core gradually disappears, giving See also:place to Palaeozoic schists, which spread down both the northern and the southern slopes. The glaciers too decrease in the same proportion both in magnitude and in extent. Here the principal peaks, again found for the most part on the spurs and subsidiary ranges, are the Tsmiakom-khokh (13,570 ft.), Shan-tau (14,530 ft.), Kidenais-magali (13,840 ft.), Zilga-khokh (12,645 ft.), Zikari (12,565 ft.), Choukhi (12,110 ft.), Julti-dagh (12,430 ft.), Alakhun-dagh (12,690 ft.) and Maghi-dagh (12,445 ft.). . On the main range itself stand Borbalo (10,175 ft.), Great Shavi-kildeh (12,325 ft.), Murov (11,xro ft.), Ansal (11,740 ft.), Ginor-roso (11,120 ft.), while farther east come Trfan-dagh (13,765 ft.) and Bazardyuz or Kichen (14,727 ft.). In the same direction, but again outside the main range, lie Shah-dagh (13,955 ft.), Shalbuz (13,675 ft.) and Malkamud (12,750 ft.). But the most noteworthy feature of this section is the broad highland region of See also:Daghestan, which flanks the main range on the north, and sinks down both eastwards to the Black Sea and northwards to the valley of the Terek. On the north-west this rugged highland region is well defined by the distinctive trans-verse ridge of Andi, which to the east of Kasbek strikes off from the Caucasus range almost at right angles. The See also:rest of the Daghestan region consists of a See also:series of roughly parallel folds, of Jurassic or Cretaceous age, ranging in altitudes from 7500 up to 12,500 ft., separated from one another by deep gorge-like river glens which cut it up into a number of arid, treeless plateaus which have something of the See also:appearance of See also:independent ranges, or rather elongated tablelands of a mountainous character. The most prominent of these tablelands is Bash-lam, which stretches east and west between the Chanti Argun and the Andian Koisu, both tributaries of the Terek.

Upon it rise the conspicuous peaks of Tebulos-mta (14,775 ft.), Tugo-See also:

rota (13,795 ft.), Komito-tavi or Kachu (14,010 ft.), Donos-mta (13,560 ft.), Diklos-mta (13,740 ft.), Kvavlos-mta or Kolos-mta (13,080 ft.), Motshekh-tsferi (13,140 ft.) and Galavanas-tsferi (13,26o ft.). Farther east come the See also:Bogos tableland, stretching from south-south-west to east-north-east between the Andian Koisu and the Avarian Koisu and rising to over 13,400 ft. in several peaks, e.g. Antshovala(13,440 ft.), Botshokh-See also:meer (13,515 ft.), Kosara-ku (13,420 ft.) and Addala-shuogchol-meer (13,580 ft.); and the Dyulty tableland, reaching 12,400 ft. between the Kara Koisu and the Kazikumukh Koisu. On some of these peaks again there is a considerable amount of glaciation, more particularly on the slopes of Diklos-mta, where the glaciers descend to 7700 ft. on the north side and to 8350 ft. on the south side. In this section of the Caucasus the passes run somewhat lower than those between Elbruz and Kasbek, though still at appreciable heights, fully equal to those that See also:lead up from the Black Sea to the valley of the Kuban in the western section of the range. The best known are the Krestovaya Gora (7805 ft.) on the Georgian military road, south of Darial; Kodor (9300 ft.) and Satskheni, leading up from See also:Telav in the upper valley of the Alazan; and Gudur (10,120 ft.) and Salavat (9280 ft.), carrying the Akhty military road from the valley of the Samur up past the Shah-dagh and the Bazar-dyusi to the valley of the Alazan. The flora of this section bears a general resemblance to that farther west. Ample details will be found in Dr G. Radde's (1831–19o3) monographs on Daghestan, quoted at the end of the present See also:article. 4. The EASTERN SECTION of the Caucasus gradually See also:dies away east of Baba-dagh (11,930 ft.) towards the Caspian, terminating finally in the See also:peninsula of Apsheron. It is, however, continued under the waters of the Caspian, as stated in the article on that sea, and reappears on its eastern side in the Kopet-dagh, which skirts the north-east frontier of See also:Persia.

In this section of the Caucasus no peak exceeds 9000 ft. in altitude and the crest of the main range retains no snow. The most frequented pass, that of Alty-agach, necessitates a climb of not more than 4355 ft. Slopes of Range.—Between the northern and the southern sides of the range there is quite as great a difference in See also:

climate, productions and scenery as there is between the Swiss and the See also:Italian sides of the Alps. In the south-western valleys and on the south-western slopes of the Caucasus, where a heavy rainfall is combined with a warm temperature, magnificent forests clothe the mountain-sides and See also:dip their skirts into the waters of the Black Sea. There not only the littoral from (say) Sukhum-Kaleh to Batum but the inland parts of the See also:basin of the Rion will See also:bear comparison with any of the provinces of See also:Italy in point of fertility, and in richness and variety of products. But farther inland, upon proceeding eastwards towards Tiflis, a great See also:change becomes noticeable on the other side of the transverse ridge of the Suram or Meskes mountains. Arid .upland plains and parched hillsides take the place of the See also:rich verdure and luxuriant arborescent growth of See also:Imeretia, Svanetia and See also:Mingrelia, the districts which occupy the valleys of the Ingur and Rion and the tributaries of the latter. A very similar change likewise becomes noticeable in the higher regions of the Caucasus Mountains upon proceeding north of the pass of Mamison, which separates the See also:head-waters of the Rion from those of the Ardon, an important tributary of the Terek. The valleys of the two streams last mentioned, and of others that flow in the same direction, are almost wholly destitute of trees, but where the bare See also:rock does not prevail, the mountain slopes are carpeted with grass. Fresh-See also:field's description of the valley of the Terek above Kasbek will apply See also:pretty generally to all the valleys that descend on that face of the range: " treeless valleys, bold rocks, slopes of forbidding steepness (even to eyes accustomed to those of the Alps), and stonebuilt villages, scarcely distinguishable from the neighbouring crags." But, austere and unattractive though these valleys are, the same epithets cannot be applied to the deep gorges by which in most cases the streams make their See also:escape through the northern subsidiary range. These defiles are declared to be See also:superior in grandeur to anything of the See also:kind in the Alps. That of Darial (the Terek) is fairly well known, but those of the Cherek and the Urukh, farther west, are stated to be still more magnificent.

And not only do the snow-clad ranges and the See also:

ice-panoplied peaks which tower up above them surpass the loftiest summits of the Alps in altitude; they also in many cases excel them in boldness and picturesqueness of outline, and equal the most difficult of them in steepness and relative inaccessibility. See also:Hydrography.—Nearly all the larger rivers of See also:Caucasia have their See also:sources in the central parts of the Caucasus range. The short, steep, torrential streams of Mdzimta, Pzou, Bzyb and Kodor drain the country west of Elbruz. The Ingur, Tskhenis-Tskhali, Rion and its tributaries (e.g.the Kvirila) are longer, but also in part torrential; they drain the great glacier region between Elbruz and Kasbek. The Rion is the Phasis of the ancients and flows through the classic See also:land of See also:Colchis, associated with the legends of See also:Medea and the See also:Argonauts. The Lyakhva and Aragva, tributaries of the Kura, carry off the waters of the main range south of Kasbek, and other tributaries, such as the Yora and the Alazan, collect the surplus drainage of the main Caucasus range farther east. The other large river of this, region, the See also:Aras, has its sources, not in the Caucasus range, but on the Armenian highlands a long way south-west of See also:Ararat. The rivers which go down from the central Caucasus northwards have considerably longer courses than those on the south side of the range, partly as a consequence of the gentler versant and partly also because of the great distances to which the steppes extend across which they make their way to the sea. The most important of these are the Kuban and the Terek; but it is the latter that picks up most of the streams which have their sources among the central glaciers, e.g. the Malka, Baksan, Chegem, Cherek, Urukh, Ardon, all confined to deep narrow glens until they quit the mountains. The Kuma, which alone pursues an independent course through the steppes, farther north than the Terek, has its sources, not in the main ranges of the Caucasus, but in an outlying See also:group of mountains near See also:Pyatigorsk, the highest See also:summit of which, Besh-tau, does not exceed 4600 ft. But its waters become absorbed in the sands of the See also:desert steppes before they reach the Caspian. Of the streams that carve into chequers the elevated See also:plateau or highland region of Daghestan four are known by the common name of. the Koisu, being distinguished inter se as the Andian Koisu, the Avarian Koisu, the Kara Koisu and the Kazikumukh Koisu, which all unite to form the Sulak.

The only other stream deserving of mention in this See also:

province is the Samur. Both rivers See also:discharge . their waters into the Caspian; as also does the Zumgail, a small stream which drains the eastern extremity of the Caucasus range in the government of See also:Baku. Volcanic Evidences.—Ancient, but now See also:extinct, volcanic upheavals are pretty common at the intersections of the main range with the transverse ranges; of these the most noteworthy are Elbruz and Kasbek. The See also:town of See also:Shemakha, near the eastern end of the system, was the See also:scene of volcanic outbreaks as See also:late as r859, 1872 and 1902; while in the adjacent peninsula of Apsheron mud volcanoes exist in large See also:numbers. All along the northern foot of the system hot See also:mineral springs gush out at various places, such as Pyatigorsk, See also:Zhelesnovodsk, See also:Essentuki and See also:Kislovodsk; and the series is continued along the north-eastern foot of the highlands of Daghestan, e.g. Isti-su, Eskiendery, Akhta: In this connexion it may also be mentioned that similar evidences of volcanic 'activity characterize the northern border of the Armenian highlands on the southern side of the Rion-Kura depression, in the mountains of Ararat, Alagoz, Akmangan, Samsar, Godoreby, Great and Little Abull, and in the mineral springs of See also:Borzhom, Abbas-tuman, Sleptzov, Mikhailovsk and Tiflis. (J. T. BE.; P. A. K.) See also:Geology.—The general structure of the Caucasus is comparatively See also:simple. The strata are folded so as to form a See also:fan.

In the centre of the fan. lies a See also:

band of crystalline rocks which disappears towards the east. Beneath it, on both sides, plunge the strongly folded Palaeozoic and Jurassic schists. On the northern flank the folded beds are followed by a See also:zone of Jurassic and Cretaceous beds which rapidly assume a gentle inclination towards the See also:plain. On the south the corresponding zone is affected by numerous secondary folds which involve the Sarmatian or Upper See also:Miocene deposits. In the eastern part of the chain the structure is somewhat modified. The crystalline band is lost. The northern Mesozoic zone is very much broader, and is thrown into simple folds like those of the See also:Jura. The southern Mesozoic zone is absent, and the Palaeozoic zone sinks abruptly in a series of faulted steps to the plain of the Kura, beneath which no doubt the continuation of the Mesozoic zone is concealed. The See also:geological sequence begins with the granite and schists of the central zone, which form a band extending from Fisht on the west to a point some distance beyond Kasbek on the east. Then follow the Palaeozoic schists and slates. Fossils are extremely rare in these beds; Buthotrephis has long been known, and doubtful traces of Calamites and ferns have been found, but it was not until 1897 that undoubted Palaeozoic fossils were obtained. They appear to indicate a Devonian age.

Upon the Palaeozoic beds rest a series of Mesozoic deposits, beginning with the See also:

Lias and ending with the Upper Cretaceous. Whether the series is continuous or not is a See also:matter of controversy. F. Loewinson-See also:Lessing states that there is a more or less marked discordance between the Lias and the Upper Jurassic and between the latter and the Cretaceous; E. Fourniernorth are nearly See also:horizontal but on the south are in part included in the folds—the See also:Eocene and Miocene being folded, while the later beds, though sometimes elevated, are not affected by the folding. The final folding of the chain undoubtedly occurred at the close of the Miocene See also:period. That there were earlier periods of folding is almost equally certain, but there is considerable difference of opinion as to their dates. The difference in character of the Jurassic beds on the two sides of the chain appears to indicate that a ridge existed See also:Quaternary Cretaceous Tertiary Jurassic in that period. The last phase in the See also:history of the Caucasus was marked by the growth of the great volcanoes of Elbruz and Kasbek, which stand upon the old rocks of the central zone, and by the outflow of sheets of See also:lava upon the sides of the chain. The cones themselves are composed largely of See also:acid andesites, but many of the lavas are See also:augite andesites and basalts. There seem to have been two periods of eruption, and as some of the lavas have flowed over Quaternary gravels, the latest outbursts must have been of very See also:recent date. Near the northern foot of the Caucasus, especially in the neighbourhood of the hot mineral springs of Pyatigorsk, a group of hills of igneous rocks rises above the plain.

They are laccolites of trachytic rock, and raised the Tertiary beds above them in the form of blisters. Subsequent denudation has removed the sedimentary covering and exposed the igneous core. (P. LA.) as.,w.altee Metamorphic Plutonic & Volcanic N. Kasbek S. ,gr ~~I '1Ptlll~ U, d Vladikaukaz Lars — m m - a=Plain of Vladikaukaz, b = Upper Jurassic; c =See also:

Moraine See also:terrace; d = Folded lias shales; e = Upper Jurassic; f= Paleozoic schists; g=Creenstone dykes; h. Granite; g'= See also:Gneiss; i=Andesites; k=Jurassic?;1=See also:Pliocene (Nagelfluh); m=Miocene; n=Oligocene; r = Nullipore limestone tft See also:conglomerate. P See also:Lee, inson-Lessing asserts that there exists a very strongly marked unconformity at the base of the Tithonian, and other writers have expressed other views. In general the Upper Jurassic beds are much more calcareous on the north flank of the chain than they are on the south. The Mesozoic beds are followed by the Tertiary deposits, which on the Math. et Phys., vii. 359-534); R. von Erckert, Der Kaukasus and See also:seine Volker (See also:Leipzig, 1887) ; E. Chantre, Recherches anthropologiques clans le Caucase (4 vols., See also:Lyons and Paris, 1885–1887) ; C. von See also:Hahn, Aus dem Kaukasus (Leipzig, 1892), Kaukasische Reisen and Studien (Leipzig, 1896), and Bilder aus dem Kaukasus (Leipzig 1900) ; V.

Sella and D. Vallino, Nel Caucaso Centrale (See also:

Turin, 189o) ; K. See also:Koch, Der Kaukasus (See also:Berlin, 1882) ; C. Phillipps Woolley, See also:Savage Svanetia (2 vols., See also:London, 1883) ; E. Levier, A travers le Caucase (Paris, ed. 1905), especially valuable for See also:botany; G. Merzbacher, Aus den Hochregionen See also:des Kaukasus (2 vols., Leipzig, 1901) ; A. See also:Fischer, Zwei Kaukasische Expeditionen (Berne, 1891) ; E. See also:Fournier, Description giologique du Caucase central (See also:Marseilles, 1896) ; G. Radde, Reisen an der persisch-russischen Grenze. Talysch and seine Bewohner (Leipzig, 1886), See also:Die See also:Fauna and Flora des siidwestlichen Kaspigebiets (Leipzig, 1886), Karabagh (See also:Gotha, 189o), and Aus den daghestanischen Hochalpen (Gotha, 1887); and See also:Count J. Zichy, Voyages au Caucase (2 vols., See also:Budapest, 1897).

F. Loewinson-Lessing has an See also:

account of the geology of the See also:district along the military road from Vladikavkaz to Tiflis in the See also:Guide des Excursions du VIII See also:Ganges geol. internat. (St See also:Petersburg, 1897). N. Y. Dinnik writes on the fauna in See also:Bull. See also:Soc. Imperiale des Naturalistes de Moscou (1901) ; J. Mourier on the folk-tales in Conies et legendes du Caucase (1888); and on See also:modern history G. See also:Baumgarten, Sechiig Jahre des kaukasischen Krieges (Leipzig, 1861). But a very great amount of most valuable See also:information about the Caucasus is preserved in articles in encyclopaedias and scientific See also:periodicals, especially the Izvestia and Zapiski of the Russian and Caucasian See also:geographical See also:societies, in P. P.

Semenov's Geographical See also:

Dictionary (in Russian, 5 vols., St Petersburg, 1863–1884), and in the Russkiy encyklopedicheskiy slovar (1894), and in the Kavkazskiy kalendar (annually at Tiflis): See also G. Radde and E. Koenig, " Der Nordfuss des Daghestan and das vorlagernde Tiefland bis zur Kuma " (Erganzungsheft No. 117 to Petermanns Mitteilungen), and " Das Ostufer des See also:Pontus and seine kulturelle Entwickelung See also:im Verlaufe der letzten 3o Jahre " (Erganzungsheft No. 112 of the same) ; by V. See also:Dingelstedt in See also:Scot. Geog. Ma g.—" See also:Geography of the Caucasus " (See also:July 1889) ;' The Caucasian Highlands " (See also:June 1895) ; " The Hydrography of the Caucasus " (June 1899) ; ' The See also:Riviera of Russia " (June 1904), The Small Trades of the Caucasus " (See also:March 1892) ; and " Caucasian Idioms " (June 1888). The best See also:map is that of the Russian General See also:Staff on the See also:scale of i : 210,000 (ed. 1895-1901). (J. T.

BE.; P. A. K.) CAUCHOIS-LEMAIRE, See also:

LOUIS See also:FRANCOIS AUGUSTE (1789-1861), See also:French journalist, was See also:born in Paris on the 28th of See also:August 1789. Towards the end of the First Empire he was proprietor of the See also:Journal de la litterature et des arts, which he transformed at the Restoration into a See also:political journal of Liberal tendencies, the Nain jaune, in which Louis XVIII. himself had little satirical articles secretly inserted. After the return from See also:Elba the Nain jaune became Bonapartist and See also:fell into discredit. It was sup-pressed at the second Restoration. Cauchois-Lemaire then threw himself impetuously into the Liberal agitation, and had to take See also:refuge in See also:Brussels in 1816, and in the following See also:year at the See also:Hague, whence he was expelled for See also:publishing an Appel d l'opinion publique et aux Etats Generaux en faveur des palriotes See also:francais. Returning to See also:France in 1819, he resumed the struggle against the ultra-royalist party with such temerity that he was condemned to one year's imprisonment in 1821 and fifteen months' imprisonment in 1827. After the revolution of July 1830 he refused a See also:pension of 6000 francs offered to him by See also:King Louis Philippe, on the ground that he wished to retain his See also:independence even in his relations with a government which he had helped to establish. He made a bitter attack upon the See also:Perier See also:ministry in his journal Bon See also:sens, and in 1836 was one of the founders of a new opposition journal, the Siecle. He soon, however, abandoned journalism for history and, having no private means, in 184o accepted the See also:post of head of a See also:department in the Royal Archives. Of a Histoire de la Revolution de Juillet, which he then undertook, he published only the first See also:volume (1842), which contains a See also:historical See also:summary of the Restoration and a preliminary See also:sketch of the democratic See also:movement.

He died in Paris on the 9th of August 1861.

End of Article: CAUCASUS

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