The main element of the horse harness is the harness for the horse. Knowing the features of the presented element, using high-quality material and fitting, experienced horse breeders greatly facilitate the maintenance of animals and their operation.
The horse breeder must be well versed in the quality and types of harness for horses.
What is horse harness made of?
A standard horse harness consists of the following parts:
- Collar. Its purpose is to transfer traction capabilities to a cart or sleigh. The element should be worn around the neck in such a way that it does not burden the movement and breathing of the horse. A yoke that is too long or too wide can damage the animal's body and reduce traction. For reliable fixation of the element, a strong leather helmet is used, which provides braking.
- Bridle. This part of the harness for the horse is the most difficult element of the harness. It consists of a bit, reins and a halter. The best option is to use a marching bridle, which makes it possible to carry the animal with parallel reins. The reins can be made of leather or durable textile material.
- Girth and saddle. The presented parts of the harness are designed to hold the entire set and transfer the traction effect to the horse's back.
- Harness. It fixes the position of the clamp when reining, slowing down or moving the horse on the rise. The element of the harness is adjusted tightly so that a palm passes between the seat and the headband buckles. The harness is made from several straps.
- The saddle carrier supports the weight of the arc, shafts and collar and transfers part of the thrust to the saddle.
- Underbelly. This element of the harness additionally fixes the position of the entire structure, passes under the girth and is fastened by the edges to the shafts.
The arc, by means of tugs, fixes the clamp with shafts and serves as a vibration damper during sharp shocks or jerks.
Horses in collars
Harness types
The harness should be made of quality materials and be adjusted to the individual structure of the horse. Harness types are divided into agricultural, traveling and transport options. They have varieties according to the number of horses used: single, double and multi-horse options:
- One-horse Russian or European harness. This design can be made both with arcs and without them. Arcless modification involves the transfer of the main gravity of the wagon through the harness. The variant with arcs is completed with a collar, a supon, a saddle, tugs, shafts and a bridle with a harness.
- Line-drawing sample. In such a team, you can use both a pair of horses and one individual. The efficiency of animals increases markedly if you put on them a saddle and a saddle.
- Post-line model. Pretty simple, but not very easy to use harness. Traction in this design is provided by lines and a collar. The option requires the equipment of the wagon with a brake system, in order to avoid injury to the horse.
- Cart variation. The types of this horse harness system have been known since the time when people began to massively use animals in various sectors of the economy. The device consists of a post-line part and a drawbar, but today it is practically not used.
- Combined harness. Classic European construction with lines and shafts. The types of presented harness allow harnessing from 6 to 8 horses at the same time. A decisive role for the correct operation of the part is played by the selection of animals by height and strength. At the forefront of the wagons, hardy individuals are placed, behind, they pick up harness horses that determine the turns of the cart, and tall strong horses responsible for braking close the harness.
Horse in a European harness
Historical facts
The first types of harness for horses have been known since ancient times (according to historical finds, parts of the harness found by archaeologists date back to two millennia BC). Horse breeders attached great importance not only to the practicality and quality of the harness, but also to its beautiful design. The richer and more important the owner of the animals was, the more beautiful and brighter the equipment looked.
What the harness consists of plays important role in the efficiency of use and the influence of harness elements on the condition of the horse. In the Middle Ages, equipping with precious stones and harness materials lost its relevance, since horses were used for the most part as cargo and working vehicles.
Starting from the middle of the 16th century, high-quality and beautiful harnesses came back into fashion. This was due to the appearance of carriages and horse-drawn carriages, which required appropriate clearance.
Although now horses have been replaced by mechanisms and vehicles in many areas, their use has not completely lost its relevance. Horses help people in the private sector, the entertainment sector. Animals are widely used in sports and various competitions. There are even competitions for the skillful handling of the harness. Properly put on harness allows not only to increase the coefficient useful action, but also to preserve the strength and health of our artiodactyl helpers.
Igor Nikolaev
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A good harness for a horse is no less important than the conditions of its maintenance and diet. It is high-quality harness elements that protect the animal from injury and reduce the load during work.
However, the harness is different, so the question often arises before novice horse breeders - which one to choose? We will consider the varieties and composition of horse harness in this article.
Harness - the main elements
The most common harness for a horse consists of a harness and collar. Each detail should fit the animal in terms of build and size, individual for each horse.
The importance of horse harness is emphasized by the fact that for a long time they did not spare money on it and took care of it like the apple of an eye. Most often it was made to order, carefully tailored to a specific animal. Currently, ready-made harness can be bought either on the market or in a specialized store.
Main constituent parts harnesses are: a collar, a bridle for a horse, an arc, an underbelly, reins and a harness, additional elements are added if necessary.
A ready-made harness is cheaper than a custom-made one, but no one can guarantee that all the elements of a purchased harness will fit the horse perfectly. In this regard, experienced horse breeders still recommend selecting each element separately, focusing on the parameters of a particular animal.
The collar is the most important and obligatory harness element. It is through it that the traction force is transferred to the wagon or sleigh. The collar must be placed on the horse's neck in such a way that it does not restrict freedom of movement and does not interfere with free breathing. It should neither be too long nor too wide. Otherwise, you can damage the horse's skin or cause other damage to it that reduces traction. To fix this element correctly and securely, the harness must be strong and strong.
The purpose of the harness is to hold the yoke in place, especially when the animal is going downhill or slowing down after being reined in. It is adjusted in such a way that a human palm can be squeezed between the buttocks of the animal and the headband.
The harness consists of several straps. The helmet is made of durable and high-quality leather, which gives it the necessary characteristics. The dimensions of this element must be determined accurately, based on the parameters of a particular animal. The wrong harness size can cause abrasions and other damage to the horse's skin.
Also, the reliability and service life of all harness elements is highly dependent on the quality of the girth. It is made exclusively from good leather, since this material does not irritate the animal and fits snugly to its body.
Experts consider the bridle to be the most difficult part of the horse harness.
It consists of: reins, a bit and a halter that wraps around the horse's head. The most practical is the so-called marching bridle, which makes it possible to lead the horse with the help of duplicate reins, and allows you to water it without unharnessing it.
Also necessarily in the composition of any harness there are reins, which are both leather and textile.
Such a part of the harness as a saddle is designed to secure and support the entire harness with the help of a saddle. The saddle is also involved in the transmission of traction and in its distribution along the back of the horse. Distinguish between recumbent and hunchbacked nurse. On the back, the saddle is held with a girth.
The saddle is passed through the saddle (hence the name), and then it is attached to the right and left shafts at the two ends. He is also responsible for supporting the weight of the arc, shaft and collar, and for transmitting traction to the saddle.
The underbelly, like the sidebar, is a leather belt. Both of these belts are interconnected by means of a ring and are attached to the shafts by means of loops. The underbelly also fixes the position of the harness on the animal. It is passed under the girth and fastened at both ends to both shafts. It is important to remember that the height of the shaft above the ground should be optimal - not too high, but not too low.
An important element of a horse harness is an arc. With its help, the clamp is attached to the shafts with the help of tugs. Also, the arc acts as a shock absorber in case of sharp jerks or strong shocks, so it must be not only strong, but also elastic.
Shafts should be equal in length.
They are usually made from durable wood.
It is important that the harness is High Quality and most suited the horse in its size. In addition, it should be light and easy to repair.
The harness is different. According to its purpose, it is divided into:
- agricultural;
- transport;
- exit.
Agricultural, in turn, is divided into one-horse and two-horse.
Transport is intended for transportation big weights, therefore, it usually involves harnessing several horses (two, four, six, and so on).
The traveling harness belongs to the front harness, so the number of animals in it may vary.
All types of harness are also divided into single-horse, double-horse and multi-horse.
For agricultural work, one-horse harness is most often used. When harnessed in pairs, horses can stand next to each other, or they can stand one behind the other. Let's consider these varieties in more detail.
The structure of the bridle for a horse
One-horse
A single-horse harness can be arc and arcless. As the name implies, with its help one draft horse is harnessed. The arc consists of: an arc, a collar, tugs, a suponi, a shaft, a nurse, a saddle, a harness, a bridle and reins.
When using the arcless version, the collar function is performed by the harness, taking on the main weight of the wagon. It also includes: belt gorts, shafts, bridle, reins and so on. Another name for such a harness is deafening-post-line. Often, in this embodiment, shorter shafts are used, which are attached not to a collar (which is not), but to a saddle lying on the back of the animal.
Line-drawing harness
This option is equally well suited for harnessing one or two horses. The main part of this option is a drawbar rigidly attached to the shafts.
However, especially if such a harness is used when pulling two-wheeled equipment, horses are often injured due to the fact that the drawbar presses too hard on the collar. To avoid this and improve the performance of the horse, experts advise putting on a saddle and tightening the traces with a saddle.
This type of harness is very simple, but extremely inconvenient. This is due to the fact that with forward movement it is difficult to keep the wagon. This type provides for the transfer of traction from the clamp directly through the traces, without the shaft.
Due to their absence, when braking, the wagon often runs over the horse, so it must have its own brake.
Cart type harness
Provides for harnessing four horses at once, standing nearby together. Currently rare, most often in staged shows. Such a harness belongs to the line-drawbar. With the help of the central drawbar, the central pair of animals is harnessed, and the lateral ones (right and left) are attached to the wagons.
Combined harness
This variety is typical for European countries, and immediately provides for a large number of horses (usually - from six to eight). The composition of such a team includes both a drawbar with traces and shafts.
When using this option, the selection of horses according to growth and strength indicators comes to the fore. So, the roots must be high and strong so that they have enough strength to hold the wagon.
Harness horses (in pairs or in threes with indigenous horses) are harnessed with the help of trails and are responsible for turning the entire crew. Horses are placed in front of the roots, called outriggers. They are also harnessed by means of strings. Their main task is to set the general direction.
HARNESS, a special device that serves to transfer power from a draft animal to a wagon or car; the harness should facilitate the correct movement of the wagon or car and be comfortable for the draft animal; the harness is made up of elastic parts (belts) and springy parts (curved shafts, arc, etc.). For the direct transmission of the power of the draft animal through the shoulder connection, a collar or harness is usually used; further, the force is transmitted through shafts or traces, rolls and drawbars.
Collars are usually made sliding, for the convenience of putting on a horse: they are put on over the head, less often on the side of the horse (Forbrich's system, Fig. 1). Both halves of the collar, the so-called pincers, are pulled together at the bottom with a rope or strap (supon). The clamp pliers are made of wood, lined with felt or wool and sheathed with soft leather; clamp weight for working horses - 6-9 kg.
Belt, rope or flail lines go from the collar to the rolls. Flails are considered the best; sagging and swaying during work, such traces play the role of springs. The length of the traces b. certain, since the depth of the tool stroke depends on it, which increases with long traces and decreases with short ones. The lines to the collar are attached 5-10 cm above the tugsgoing to the drawbar roll. To reduce pressure on the yoke, the lines are often pulled up with a rope or belt ( cross saddle), thrown over the horse's back and resting on the saddle.
Consists of a chest strap f (fig. 2), up to 14 cm wide, with a slightly wider felt lining; the belt f is supported in front by the neck belt a; in the harness of working horses from saddle c there is another belt b, supporting the harness; the third belt d, coming from the saddle, ends at the bottom with a girth e. When drawbar harness chains are often attached to the neck strap.
A bridle is used to attach the reins (Fig. 3), which in working horses consists of belts: occipital a, frontal b, subpharyngeal c, buccal d, nasal, or ratchet, e and mandibular f; they are attached to belts d and f with the help of bit rings; reins g are attached to the same rings. In halters, the mandibular strap is connected to the subpharyngeal strap using a special chin strap. 
Rolls and wags. A) With a single harness usually a simple wooden roll 0.7-0.9 m long is used. Notches are made at the ends of the roll (Fig. 4) for attaching traces. 
The middle part is usually shackled, and an eyelet is made in this shackle for threading a harness hook. The length of the swath does not affect the correct movement of plows and other implements and is selected depending on the width of the horse, so that the traces coming from the swath do not rub the sides of the horse. While among us iron rolls have not become widespread due to their great weight and high cost, in America they are very common. More advanced rolls are equipped with devices that keep the traces from jumping off and support the roll when the horse rides on weight (Dowden system), but due to complexity, we do not use them.
b) With a pair of harnesses rolls are attached to a common wag (Fig. 5). The length of the wagon does not play a role when harnessing agricultural machines, but it has a significant impact on the correct running of the furrow implements (for example, a plow, a subsoiler). When harnessing, usually little attention is paid to this, but the working length of the wag, i.e., the relative position of the rolls, should be. strictly coordinated with the width of the furrow; otherwise, if the wagon is longer than the specified size, then the horse walking along the furrow will push the wagon to the left, in the direction of the unplowed field, which will cause an increase in the width of the furrow and an incorrect plow stroke.
V) With a three-horse harness vaga d. b. even more massive than with a parokone; the location of the attachment point of the harness hook e. b. such that the distances from the ends of the vaga are related to each other as 1:2. The shorter end is joined by a double-horse wagon with two rollers (Fig. 6), and one roller is attached to the longer end.
In FIG. 7 shows a three-horse carriage of the Ransome system: a harness hook c moves along the comb of the carriage b depending on the traction force of the horses; the width of the double horse wag (in places marked with the letter a) can be changed depending on the width of the furrow.
Due to the inequality in the strength of the horses, especially with a multi-horse harness, it is difficult to establish the correct length of the rolls and wagons; in addition, horses do not work with the same tension; as a result, the wagon warps in operation, which causes the wrong course of the tool.
Therefore, there were designs of the so-called. leveling harnesses, in which in the case when one of the horses begins to pull weaker, it is pulled back by the forces of other horses, which causes it to strain again. Of the equalizing three-horse harnesses, the three-horse composite roll of the McGoy system has become widespread (Figs. 8a and 86). By separating this wagon, you can get a single-horse valek and a separate double-horn wag.
G) With a four-horse harness, depending on the type of agricultural machinery, horses are harnessed either in one row or in pairs in a train. The buckle of the first kind (Fig. 9) is used for heavy disc cultivators and for complex harvesters.
Two paired BB wags are attached to the main AA wag, and single-horse SS rolls are attached to the latter. A train harness is used when working with plows and reaping machines, since it is impossible to place horses in one row, according to working conditions. The most common harness, in which the front and rear pairs of horses are connected by a chain or rope to the regulator hook. The disadvantage of such a harness is that one pair of horses can work at the expense of another if they are not friendly enough in work. To avoid this, various systems of equalizing harnesses are recommended, one of which consists in attaching a block (Fig. 10).
Equalizing circuit AB covers block C with a diameter of 15 cm, attached to the regulator. With this method of harnessing, each pair is dependent on one another: if the front pair B slows down, then at the same time the chain A of the rear pair of horses moves forward, which causes the chain B to stretch, and the front pair must involuntarily pull; as a result, the force of two pairs of horses acts on a tool or machine in the same way.
e) With six- and eight-horse harness each horse loses 6% of its strength from each horse harnessed to it, and therefore these harnesses, in which the loss is 30-40%, are unprofitable and are used very rarely. In the case of a six-horse harness, it is possible to recommend the use of McGoy's stem, and the ratio of the lengths of the stem's arms should be. equal to 2:1; the front pair is attached to the long shoulder with the help of a chain, and two rear pairs of horses are attached to the back, using the equalizing block described above.
Moderators. Since draft animals, especially horses, work with separate impulses, and the resistance of the soil during plowing and plants during harvesting is not the same, the horses experience a number of shocks during work that reduce their efficiency. Therefore, it is common abroad to include special spring moderators in harnesses, which during the push take on acting force, which is given in the next moment, as a result of which the sharp shocks of the resistance forces are not completely transmitted to the draft animals. Buckles with the inclusion of springs in trails or in a roll are used in Sweden (Siden's system) and in the USA (Wilson's system). The Rudolf Sakka factory produces special fuses for heavy plows and seeders, equipped with a buffer spring for a force of 600 to 1200 kg (Fig. 11).
The shaft harness is extremely rarely used in agricultural machines, because it hampers the control of the machine and the implement and causes shocks that are unpleasant and harmful to the draft animals, due to the more rigid attachment of the machine to the animals. A direct harness is used only when working with a plow and roe deer; in other cases (horse rakes, seeders, mowers), a roller is also included in the harness, so that the power is transmitted to the machine directly through it, and the shafts serve only for turns (Fig. 12).
The drawbar is used when the machine is running in races and for transporting the machine in the field. Attached to the drawbar is a wag with rollers, which are usually located below, in order to relieve the pressure transmitted through the collars to the withers of the horses. In front of the end of the drawbar, a chest roll is attached to the clamps. In heavy machines and tools, it is necessary to use a two-wheeled limber or a single-wheeled drawbar (Fig. 13), which would perceive the shocks transmitted from them; the drawbar in this case consists of two parts: the rear, shorter, which is rigidly attached to the machine and the front, and the front, which is hinged in the vertical direction.
3buckle in horse drives. When working on horse drives, especially when connected to a threshing machine, constant shocks are obtained, causing the horses to move unevenly. Therefore, it is useful to attach various spring devices, for example, Hepfner systems (Fig. 14).
An oak or birch bar, 10 to 12 cm thick, is attached to the carrier using bb clamps. In the middle, this bar is separated from the carrier by an insert with; a hook d is pivotally attached to the end of the bar and passed through the carrier. During operation, the bar springs and the blows are softened, which acts favorably on draft animals and keeps the gear train from breaking. With multi-horse drives, an equalizing harness should be used. Squares are attached to the carriers, to one end of which the harness rolls are attached, and to the other - rods going to the hinged quadrangle located above the middle of the drive. If one of the horses pulls harder than the others, then the quadrilateral is extended into a rhombus (shown in dotted line in Fig. 15) towards the stronger pulling horse; then the lagging behind horses are pulled back and involuntarily begin to pull more amicably.
3 harness of oxen. The most common harness for oxen is the yoke harness, while the use of the yoke, common in America, is less common in Europe. As a result of harnessing oxen in pairs, the yoke is usually made in pairs, the so-called Hungarian yoke (Fig. 16).
The upper crossbar is made curved in the shape of the withers; the lower crossbar - the neck - should also be curved; arc-shaped racks are made with several holes for rearrangement in order to fit the yoke to the size of the animal; the drawbar is attached to the upper crossbar of the yoke by means of an iron rod. For a single harness of oxen, a forehead yoke is more often used (Fig. 17); pressing on the forehead, this yoke harms the animal and lowers its efficiency.
When harnessing several pairs of oxen, in order to evenly distribute the resistance of the machine, special harness systems are used. The simplest is the harness of the Grossul-Tolstoy system, consisting of several equalizing iron links (shtilvag) connected by chains. In FIG. 18 shows a four-pair harness, consisting of three shtilvags - a, b and c and four chains - d, e, o and p.
Often made into a yoke, which is a wooden transverse beam, naturally arcuately curved at both ends, with which it is placed on the front of the hump; a soft lining is placed at the end of the beam, the ends are covered with soft clamps; the tool drawbar is attached to the middle of the beam.
The harness of camels to the mower is shown in Fig. 19, from which it is clear that straps are put on the humps, and from them there are traces to the rolls.
Bullock carts and bicycles.
Yes, these are the most common modes of transport on the island. And if the first endemic is used only by tourists, then the second - democratic - is used by both tourists and local residents.
Bullock carts, a fairly common form of transport on the planet in the old days, have been preserved, as many say, only on La Digue. Not a single advertising booklet or guide to the island is complete without a picture with a picturesque good-natured ox harnessed to a simple covered wagon. Exotic. When I booked a tour to the Seychelles at a travel agency, I refused all transfers, but the transfer from the pier to the hotel on an ox cart was practically imposed on me, and I, driven more by curiosity than by a desire to ride a cow, agreed. waited dead hour to the pier this wagon, but instead of it an ordinary taxi arrived. In short, so I, unlike most vacationers on La Digue, personally did not ride this type of transport. But I often saw how these very carts, at the speed of a turtle, transported a dozen tourists flushed from the heat and pleasure. Cab drivers do not have regular routes, but you can always find them in the “parking lot” near the pier in La Passa and make a trip to any point on the island, as long as you have enough money and patience.
With bicycles, everything is simpler, especially if you know how to ride it tolerably. There are plenty of bike rental points on La Digue, both at hotels and private ones in every village. The cost is about 50 rupees per day. Most often offered Mountain bikes, since almost all roads on the island lead through rough terrain, and in some places these roads themselves very much resemble rugged terrain. However, despite this, as well as the heat, because of which it is very tedious to pedal, bicycles are very popular. Near each restaurant or shop there are special parking spaces for bicycles, and specially equipped ones.
But it remains a mystery to me why the La Digue people have not yet taken advantage of such fruits of civilization as a bicycle bell, a rear-view mirror, and, especially, a lantern. At night, it’s difficult to walk along the unlit roads of the island on foot, and even more so on a bicycle ... However, you need to sleep at night ... In short - I’m selling an idea - who wants to get rich - come to La Digue to do cycling ...
There are, of course, ordinary cars on the island. One police (but several police bicycles), one ambulance, several trucks, four or five taxis - one ordinary car, the rest are semi-truck jeeps, which have seats in the body along the sides. There are also "route taxis" - Chinese tiny Isuzu trucks, which also have seats in an open body along the side, usually packed full of local residents. But I didn’t figure out how to use these “minibuses”, because most often I used an even more popular island mode of transport than bicycles - with my own legs ...
In conclusion, I will talk about the road network of La Digue. The main road of the island runs along the west coast, it starts near the Source d'Argent Bay in the village of Union, then passes through the village of La Reunion (about a kilometer of the way), then leads to the village of La Passe with a pier (another kilometer), then it starts to wind towards the northernmost point of the island (and a little more than a kilometer), after which it turns sharply to the south and goes along the eastern, sparsely populated coast. In the end (after three kilometers), it ends in a dead end in Fourmy Bay.
Another "main" road leads through the center of the island to Grand Bay. It starts at the pier in La Passa, then goes around the foot of the Ni d'Aigle ridge in a semicircle, at the flycatcher reserve it is divided into two "sleeves", one of which leads directly to La Reunion (the length of the segment is 800 meters), and the other continues its movement to After a while, another road separates from the “main road”, this time to Union (the distance to it is one kilometer), and then the “main”, then going uphill, then falling down, after a kilometer and a half rests on the Gulf of Gran.
The last, most difficult road remains - to Belle Vue, on the Ni d "Aigle ridge. It starts not far from the flycatcher reserve (a branch from the island's "second main" road), you can cover a distance of about a kilometer in a straight line, but this is if you if you don't have wings, you'll wind around a steep serpentine for at least an hour...
In addition to the main roads I have listed on La Digue, there are several more paths that continue the directions of the main roads, for example, from Union into the depths of the Source d'Argent Bay, from the Grand Bay in both directions along the coast - to the Grand Anse Bays in the south and Coco Bay in the north , from Belle Vue to the Ny d'Aigle ridge, but the latter is completely for trained walkers, if not rock climbers ...
§ 56. Working cattle: team and horse harness. § 57. Yarmo. § 58. Drags, sledges, skis. § 59. Wheeled carts, plague. § 60. Lubrication of carts. § 61. Water transport. § 62. Barge haulers. § 63. Carrying goods. § 64. Literature.
§ 56. Horses have long been the working cattle of the Eastern Slavs. Vladimir Monomakh, at a congress of princes in 1103, paints the following picture of Russian agriculture of that time: in the spring, a peasant begins to plow on a horse, and a Polovtsy (Kumanin) wounds him with an arrow and steals his horse (The Tale of Bygone Years. 1103). The legend cited in the Primary Chronicle under 912 tells of the death of Prince Oleg because of his beloved horse, and the prince comes to the place of his death on horseback. By 964, there is a story about Prince Svyatoslav, who, during military campaigns, slept without a tent, putting a saddle under his head, and ate thinly sliced horse meat.
Later, in Ukraine and Belarus, working horses were replaced by oxen, although not everywhere, but mainly in the steppes. In the forests, along narrow forest paths, riding oxen is difficult. In recent decades, oxen in Ukraine and Belarus are again being replaced by horses, and for purely economic reasons: a bad horse is much cheaper than a pair of oxen. Sometimes cows are also used as working livestock.
As for the Russians, their working cattle have always been and still are horses.
Belarusians often use horse harness for harnessing oxen. Belarusians of Chernihiv province. in 1844 there was still no wooden yoke, they put a horse collar on the oxen, cutting off the collar, and used an arc (Esimontovsky). In 1895, the Belarusians of the Vitebsk province. the cowhide harness differed from the horse harness only in that the collar was longer, and the collar was divided in two at the bottom: the collar is not put on the oxen over the head, like on horses, but is put on the neck (Nikiforovsky). At the same time, Belarusians also know the yoke, and it is this that is the oldest of all types of harness known to the Eastern Slavs.
62. Belarusian yoke for a bull and a horse. Minsk province, Slutsk district
Usually, the Eastern Slavs, when harnessing oxen, use a drawbar with a yoke, and horses - two shafts (Ukrainian goloblya) with a collar and an arc. We have already talked about an exception to this rule for Belarusians, who prefer the collar. On the other hand, Belarusians also know examples when a yoke is put on a horse; this happens in those relatively rare cases when a horse and an ox are together in one working team. For this, there is a special yoke, shown in Fig. 62, the yoke is put on the horse over the collar.
The second, more consistent exception to this mentioned rule we find among the Ukrainians of the southwestern part of Ukraine. According to F. Volkov, the Dnieper is here an ethnographic border, to the west of which both oxen and horses are always harnessed with a drawbar, but without an arc and a collar. Shafts in Western Ukraine are found mainly in sledges drawn by one horse, and especially in plows, as well as in the so-called bovkun harness, i.e. when only one ox or one cow is harnessed. This statement by F. Volkov is clarified by the message that in the entire northern part of Volhynia, for example, in Kovel and even Rivne districts, a horse with a collar and an arc is always harnessed (OR RGO, 1, 309, 323, etc.).
The Russians do not know the drawbar team at all. If they need to harness two or three horses, they harness the stronger horse (root horse) to shafts with an arc, and harness the rest (harnesses) without an arc; rope or belt lines are tied to the tugs.
However, in winter, driving with such a team in deep snow on country roads is impossible, since these roads are very narrow and are intended for only one horse. In such cases, they usually ride in a goose team, in single file. This name indicates the resemblance to the flight of wild geese, always flying in a row, one after another. With this method, the root is harnessed, as always, to the shafts with an arc; in front of him, with the help of long rope lines tied to tugs, they harness the second horse, and in front of it - the third. Afraid to get bogged down in the snow, the first horse does not turn off the path, and the whole team runs together along the road. The coachman rules it with the help of long reins and an even longer whip. However, among the Russians, only very wealthy people ride two or three horses.
As for horse harnesses, only smart harnesses are made by special master saddlers. The peasants make their own work harness. The material for this is mainly hemp ropes and ropes made from linden bark and linden bast. The helmet and tugs are made from hemp or linden bast. Belarusians make them with the same tool (the so-called flyers), with which they weave belts for themselves. Belarusians of Chernihiv province. and among the Russian population of the regions bordering the Urals (Ufa province and adjacent regions), there is often no belt at all. Podkhomutnik (chomutina, kichka) is made of straw and canvas, less often covered with leather. Gouges are most often made from hemp rope, less often from rawhide belts. The saddle is made of felt, less often of straw, lined with canvas or leather, and sometimes it is woven from a hemp rope; frame (Russian filly, Ukrainian shoe) - wooden or iron, with a clasp. The bridle (collect, halter) and the occasion (Ukrainian lanyard), as well as the reins, the saddle and the supon, are also often made from hemp. Russians greatly appreciate a good harness and at the first opportunity they buy smart harness, decorated with tin plaques and bells. Most of all they flaunt an arc: they make it high, paint it and cover it with carvings. However, for everyday work they use a low, unadorned arc.
There is a widespread superstitious notion among Russians that if a horse unharnesses on the move, it means that marital fidelity has been violated.
On fig. 64 shows a device (bend, bgalo), with which the arcs are bent; they are made of silver willow and elm; on this see below, § 58.
§ 57. At present, the Eastern Slavs use an ox yoke of two types. One type exists among Belarusians (see Fig. 61 and 62). This yoke is the same as the Bulgarian and Serbian. It is characterized by the absence of a lower horizontal crossbar running under the ox's neck (Ukrainian pіdgіrlya, marked with the letter b in Fig. 63), and the presence of the so-called kulbaki - a thin vertical rod with a bent lower end that covers the bull's neck from one side and from below. On fig. 61 and 62 this kullback is marked with the letter d.
Another type is the Ukrainian yoke (Fig. 63), which is no different from the yoke common among many Turkic peoples, for example, among the Karachays of the North Caucasus. This type is characterized by the presence of a lower horizontal bar (b) and four vertical crutches (c, d) extending from the upper horizontal bar to the bottom. Of these four vertical crutches, both internal ones (d - Ukrainian snozi, snіzki, smik) are fixed motionless, and the outer ones (с - Ukrainian and Belarusian splinters, Ukrainian zanіzka) easily move upwards.
The Ukrainian type of yoke undoubtedly developed from an older one, which was never recorded among the Eastern Slavs, however, along with the described Ukrainian yoke, it is also found today among the Turkic peoples, especially among the Karachays. The Karachaev yoke is distinguished by the absence of a lower horizontal crossbar (in Fig. 636), despite the fact that it has all four vertical crutches. The missing lower crossbar (Ukrainian pidgіrlya) is replaced by a belt that wraps around the neck of an ox or donkey from below. The ends of this strap are tied to the middle and top of the outer upright crutches.
Rice. 63, depicting the Ukrainian yoke, taken from an article by F. Volkov, fig. 61 and 62 with the image of the Belarusian yoke - from the article by A. Serzhputovsky. The Belarusian yoke (Fig. 61) is used when harnessing only one ox or one cow between two shafts, and the Belarusian yoke of another type (Fig. 62) is used for the simultaneous drawbar harness of an ox (left) and a horse (right). Horses put on a wooden frame over the collar. The ring (e), which fastens the drawbar, is placed in these cases not in the middle of the yoke, but closer to the ox, because the ox is stronger than the horse.
Below we give the terminology of the parts of the yoke, keeping the same designations that are given in Fig. 61-63.
In some areas, not only the entire device is called a yoke, but also its upper part(and, among the Ukrainians of Galicia and Kyiv). More often, however, it is called a bowl, a bowl, a shoulder. The lower horizontal bar (b) is called pіdgіrlya, pіdgirlitsya, pіdshiyok. The names of crutches (c, d) we have already given. The ring (e, f), which serves to connect the yoke with the drawbar (Ukrainian vі’ya, viyce), Ukrainians call heel, kolachik, obluk, live bait, roskrut, Belarusians - kalach. This ring is tied to the yoke with a rope or belt, which is called pribіy (e), and attached to the drawbar with a stick (pritik, pritikach).
§ 58. The oldest of the carts currently existing among the Eastern Slavs, of course, should be considered a sleigh. In the swampy places of the North, until recently, they were used not only in winter, but also in summer. An ancient custom demanded that the deceased, even in summer, be taken to the cemetery on a sleigh; in some places this order has been preserved to this day.
The oldest type of sledge, the so-called drags, drags, drags, bow, has also been preserved. In Siberia, two thin birch trees are cut down to transport hay, a horse is harnessed into their trunks, like shafts, and hay is placed on the branches. This device is called a drag. Usually, however, drags, or drags, are two long poles with ends steeply bent upwards; these poles are connected in two places by crossbars. The straight ends of the poles serve as shafts, and the bent ends, facing upwards, drag along the ground. Sheaves, hay, sacks of grain, etc. are placed on such a drag, naturally, in small quantities, so that a weak horse has the strength to take them away. Sometimes a body woven from branches is attached to the middle of the poles.
The simplest type of sleigh proper is called the Great Russians firewood. They do not have a single metal part, not even a single nail (see Fig. 65). Firewood is placed on two skids 240 cm long, bent in front. They run parallel to each other at a distance of 55 cm. On each skid, 4-6 vertical racks are fixed (spears, singular kopyl, Ukrainian kopil), about 30 high see fig. 65 such spears 4 pairs. Spears are firmly connected in pairs with branches of elm, bird cherry, birch, hazel, etc. (the so-called elm). Straight tetrahedral bars (Russian naschep, overlap, Ukrainian frostbite) are planted on the upper ends of the spears. On fig. 65 shows one such beam. The upper ends of the curved runners (the so-called head) are also firmly connected by a wooden frame extending from the front pair of spears (Sevrus. chapovitsa, cold; Ukrainian banner).
Shafts are attached to the first or second pair of spears on both sides. They are fastened with a ring of hemp ropes (Russian wrap, Ukrainian wrap): it is folded in half, twisted several times in the middle and wrapped around the hoof; the loops at the ends are also folded together, and the ends of the shafts are passed through them, on which a special recess is made. Passing the shaft through the loop, it is held with the front end back, when the loop is in place, the front end of the shaft is lifted and thrown forward; while the ring is tightened around the hoof.
Sledges of this design serve mainly for the transport of goods. To ride on them put different kind body. The simplest type such a body is shown in Fig. 66. It is made of several bent wooden poles, forming a frame and covered with linden bark. A triangle made of tetrahedral bars (Sevrusian armchair, mallards, bends, bends; Ukrainian bilo, armchair) is strengthened under the body, the purpose of which is to prevent the sleigh from rolling over. Sledges equipped with such a device, in most cases, have a special name: sevrus. sledges, dissolutions, poshevni, and with an improved body - a kosheva, a whip, a couch, a semi-sledge, a wagon. On fig. 67 shows an old sledge from Glukhov, Chernihiv Province, which has a very complex body, similar to a carriage; they are reminiscent of the old Russian rattletrap, or captana, which also had doors, and often mica windows.
There is a device on which the runners for the sled are bent; this device is used by the northern Russians of the Yenisei province. It is called a balo (Ukr. bgalnya) and resembles a device on which arcs are bent (Fig. 64), but the balo also has a manual collar for twisting a rope tied to the free end of the runner. Before bending the runners, prepared oak, birch or other branches are steamed out either in special rooms, or in ovens, in baths, and sometimes put in fresh horse manure. In the latter case, the runners are laid in rows at a distance of 15 cm from each other. The first row is laid in length, the next one across it, etc., up to 10 rows of 25-30 runners each. Between each two rows, a layer of fresh horse manure about 20 cm thick is laid and watered with water (a bucket of water for each runner). Boards are laid on top, and on them is a layer of earth 10 cm thick. The runners lie there for about a month, after which they are still hot bent.
The bent runners are dried. In order for them not to unbend, the ends are tied with a rope, connected with a board nailed to them (Ukrainian narvina), etc. In some places there are still runners from uprooted trees, that is, bent by nature (diggers, diggers). Such runners are stronger and heavier than bent ones. However, trees of this form are more effectively used in the construction of punts - they connect the bottom of the boat with the sides.
As for skis, they are used only by hunters - in the North and especially in Siberia. Skis are usually made from pine wood. In the middle part of the skis, straps (yuks) are attached, into which the leg is inserted. The length of the skis is usually 140-165 cm, the width is 20 cm. The front and sometimes their rear ends are bent up. The bottom is usually lined with skin from deer or horse legs (camas, headliners, linings) or birch bark, so that the skis do not slip to the sides, do not creak, do not freeze to the snow and do not stick to it. At the rear end of the ski, the skin is placed with a pile in the opposite direction to slow down on steep slopes. Skis without camas are called kalgi. A skier's stick, equipped with a hook that removes snow from skis, is called a bed, a cook.
§ 59. In 1869, the ethnographer K. Shabunin wrote that in the Pinezhsky district of the Arkhangelsk province. there are no wheeled carts: in the summer they carried firewood, hay, grain, etc. on sledges (OR RGO, I, 11). In the coastal regions of the Vyatka province. wheels were put into use by the zemstvo administration only after 1869 (Kuroptev, Sloboda district, pp. 158 and 161). Many such reports about the Russian North can be cited. It is quite obvious that wheeled transport came into use recently, in any case, much later than the sleigh.
There are still many places in Siberia to this day where the North Russians use wheels, not bent from a single piece of wood, but made up of four jambs (roots), that is, from curved pieces of birch. Such wheels are much stronger than bent ones, but they are much more difficult to manufacture. Now the wheels, the actual rims (Ukrainian όbіd), are usually bent using a special device, which differs from the device on which arcs and runners are bent, only in that it has a balo (South Russian circle, frets; Ukrainian woman, stump) full circle shape.
Rolls, i.e., those logs that were placed under heavy objects during their transportation, can be considered the prototype of wheeled carts. The Northern Russians have a special device (the so-called rollers) for transporting logs: two small wheels without spokes, mounted on a thick axle, to the ends of which shafts are attached. This device is often replaced by the two front wheels of a conventional cart. In some places, the Russians call the whole cart skating rinks, while the Belarusians call it only the wheels.
Only the main parts of the wagon are called the same by all Eastern Slavs. These are common names - colo, wheel, axis, Ukrainian. all; rim, Ukrainian insult. Smaller details of the wagon among individual East Slavic peoples are called differently; the origin of a large part of these names is quite clear. Of the parts of the wheel, one should name the hub (Russian hub, mortar; Ukrainian deck, well), spokes (Russian finger, spoke; Ukrainian spoke), tires (a name recently borrowed from German language), sleeve (Russian sleeve, sleeves; Ukrainian matochina, middle).
The parts of the wagon camp are as follows: a droga - a beam connecting the front and rear axles of the wagon (Russian droga, droshina, dissolution, bed; middle beam - fox, podlisok, podlizok; Ukrainian pidtoka; at the strikers - a gap; in the middle of the wagon - pidgerst, pidgeister, belarusian trainee).
On the axis - a pillow (Ukrainian nasad, Belarusian uzgalaven); check (ukr. zagvіzdok).
A wooden or iron vertical rod passing through the front axle and through a pillow mounted on it - a kingpin (Russian kingpin, kingpin, core, trigger, rod or pin - the last from the German Steuer; Ukrainian shvorin, shviren).
There are different types of wheeled carts. They differ from each other mainly in the structure of the body and their purpose. oldest type- two-wheeled cart; until now, it is known to all Russians under the name oder, odrets (odr cart, ondrets), and near the southern Russian Tula province. is called a vorodun. Sometimes two shafts of such a wagon form one whole with the bars on which the body is mounted. Bida (Ukrainian) also has two wheels, but this is clearly the result of cultural influences.
Ukrainians distinguish between carts in which oxen are harnessed (oxen vіz, among Chumaks - mazha), and those in which horses are harnessed (horse vіz). The latter are lighter, and instead of an ox's drawbar they often have two shafts. New borrowings from the West have spread widely among Ukrainians: German wagons, known in Novorossiya as milkmen (from the Molochnaya River in Berdyansk district, where they are made by German colonists - Mennonites); wagons (ukr. khur) and the so-called furmanki (ukr. fіrmanka). The so-called bendyugs are common among both Ukrainians and Belarusians. The Ukrainian letter or letter v_z is designed specifically for transporting sheaves, just like the Great Russian sheaf cart or grain cart. Among the Russian population of the eastern regions, a wagon with a wicker body, designed for driving, is very common. It is called tarantas, carandas; thanks to its long flexible drogues that replace the springs, it is also known as a dolgushka, dolgoshka.
As for the body, its oldest type can be seen in fig. 68, which depicts a wagon from the Slutsk district of the Minsk province, known as narad (the name is associated with the German Rad - “wheel”). At the four corners of this wagon, four vertical pegs (Belarusian handle, Ukrainian ruchitsya) hammered into axle cushions are fixed. Above these pegs are thrown arches of branches, the ends of which are attached to the side bars of the wagon. This is the basis of the body. Boards of the appropriate length are passed through the arches on the sides of the wagon, and the bottom is covered with linden bark or also with boards - and the body is ready. When manure is being hauled, they usually simply take out the side boards on the field and dump the manure on the side, sometimes they turn the cart over on its side.
It happens that the same four columns at the four corners of the wagon serve as the basis for a body arranged differently. The walls of this body are very similar to a ladder, so Ukrainians and Belarusians call it a drabin, a drab, a half-drag. On fig. 69 - photograph of a Belarusian drabin from the Slutsk district of the Minsk province. In this photo, among other things, a lushnya (lushnya, lushnya) is clearly visible - an arched support, the lower end of which is attached to the end of the rear axle, and the front end to the upper beam of the body. It secures both the wheel and the body at the same time.
In Russians, the same body is often made of wooden arches, the tops of which are fixed on the road. Two poles (overlap) are placed at the ends of these arcs, and the arcs themselves are covered with thin boards or linden bark, and sometimes they are braided with branches. Carts with such bodies are known among Russians under the name of dissolution, erandak, whip. Sometimes a round or oblong body woven from branches (Russian box, boxes) is placed directly on the drog. Belarusians make it quadrangular and from linden bast (Belarusian kosh, half-kashka).
The idea of a peculiar Ukrainian trade of chumaks (salt carriers), which has now disappeared, is connected with a heavy cart, into which oxen are harnessed (the so-called mazha). Chumaks - carters who traveled to the Sea of Azov for salt and to the Don for fish; at the same time they traded in fish and salt. Often, the chumak owned a dozen or more very strong wagons, which were harnessed by a pair of strong gray oxen. Chumaks never traveled alone, but gathered as a whole group (valka) and chose the leader (otaman) from their midst. They grazed the oxen along the way and cooked their own lunches and dinners from food taken with them from home. An otaman was always carried on a cart as a living clock, a rooster, in Ukraine there were entire villages in which only Chumaks lived. In 1892 with the construction railway This trade was sharply reduced and soon completely disappeared.
§ 60. Some peoples neighboring the Russians use oil to lubricate the axles. The Chuvash, before setting off on a journey, takes oil into his mouth, chews it, puts it on his palm and greases the axles with it. The Eastern Slavs, however, use only tar when lubricating axles, which is also used in tanning leather (§84).
The best, the so-called commercial tar, is burned from birch bark. Such tar is not used as a lubricant, but only to soften the skin. In the same way, tar from pine, and especially from pine roots, is now used to lubricate the axles. Wheel tar is burned from a mixture of both types of wood.
An improved method of tar smoking, namely in iron boilers, was introduced in Russia only from 1730. Before that, the so-called burning in pits was widespread - a method that is still found today. Ukrainians call tar maidan - a word borrowed from the Turkish language. In some dry place, they dig a conical hole in the ground, with the base of the cone up. The walls of the pit are compacted, and a large vessel made of iron or clay is placed on the bottom and covered with an iron grate or something similar. Often, instead of a vessel, a lift is made, i.e. a small hole lined with clay or brick, into which tar should drain. From this lower (second) pit or from a vessel at the bottom of the pit, a pipe for draining tar is removed.
The large upper pit is filled with birch bark and resinous wood, especially pine roots (so-called resin). Moss is placed on top, and earth and grass are placed on it. The fuel laid in the pit is ignited through the holes left on the side of the pit or on top. When the fuel ignites, they are covered with earth. Tar flows into the lower hole. Later, hot stones are thrown into the pit to remove moisture.
Even more common is the smoking of tar in large clay vessels, the so-called korchags. At the bottom of an oblong pit, several such huge pots are placed. They are closed with special lids, also made of clay, with funnel-shaped holes in the center. On the lid is placed upside down exactly the same large pot, stuffed with birch bark and pine firewood. All this is covered with earth, so that only 0.6 of the upper pot is visible. Firewood is burning above it. In the red-hot troughs, birch bark and pine smolder and release resin that flows into the lower troughs.
§ 61. The most ancient means of transportation on water, preserved by the Eastern Slavs to this day, should be considered a raft, a ferry and the so-called komyagu. What they have in common is that they are all combinations of two or more floating objects.
Now rafts serve only for rafting timber, but before they were undoubtedly also a means of transportation on water. Rafts are made as follows: after lowering the logs into the water, they are connected to each other with branches, mainly birch. A ring (clamp) is made of branches of such a size that it freely covers two adjacent logs: it is put on the ends of these logs (see Fig. 70). Then a long birch or pine pole (Belarusian zherest, Sevrus romshina) is placed across these logs; the clamp is bent over this pole. A wedge is driven under the pole into the collar loop formed at the same time (see Fig. 70, on the right), thus tightly tying a pair of logs. The next pair of logs is tied to the same pole in the same way. Another such pole is superimposed on the opposite ends of the logs, and they are tied in the same way. 25-50 logs connected with each other form a link (the so-called chelon) of a single-row raft (Belarusian tarok) and from such links then make up large rafts (Sevrusian porom, Belarusian grabenka).
At the ends of a large raft there are oars (strokes) that act as a rudder. They are shown in fig. 71. To make such a rule, two long logs are placed across the raft and tied with branches. A crossbar (dog) is tied to the ends of these logs and oars are inserted into the recesses made on it. A hut for raftsmen is also installed on the raft. Near the hut, earth is poured, on which a fire is made for cooking.
To moor the raft, they use a special stake (funny, Fig. 72). It is stuck into the shore, but often the raft takes with it both the joke and the worker who was operating it. At the same time, the joke plows the ground like a plow.
Rafts for the delivery of firewood are called oplonik, stub, and those made up of several links are called felt mats. Such rafts are fenced on all sides with a kind of cage of long poles. The place where the rafts are connected is called a plotter by Russians, and a room by Belarusians.
Komyaga (Fig. 73) is a small raft of two hollowed tree trunks. Each of these trunks is a roughly worked trough, the kind from which cattle are fed. Among Belarusians, such a trough is also called a kamyaga. Obviously, this meaning of the word is primordial (EVV, I, 553). Among the Russians, the komyaga is known under various other names: decks, i.e., in fact, a roughly processed trough for feeding livestock (this name is known for the exhibit from Yaroslavl depicted in Fig. 73, which
is in the Russian Museum in Leningrad), troughs, bats, beads (cf. Old Norse Bussa). The Belarusian komyaga, the North Russian Olonets rugachs and the Vologda chupas are made differently: a log is nailed to the trough from an aspen log on each side.
A rower in a komyag stands with one foot in one trough, and with the other in the second and moves forward, starting from the bottom, that is, resting his pole against the bottom of a lake or pond. In a komyage, consisting of one trough, they kneel. The same structure, consisting of two large boats with a canopy, is now known by the old name pore. It is intended mainly for the crossing of wagons through big rivers where there are no bridges.
Boats are very diverse, but from the name their types are even more diverse. Most often there are boats made from a single trunk, mainly from aspen (see Fig. 74, which shows a Belarusian daublyonka boat from the Igumen district of Minsk province.). Ukrainians and northern Russians steam boats from aspen over a fire: at the same time, they set the boat on poles at a height of one meter, light a fire under it and continuously pour water on it. Curved struts are inserted into the trough steamed in this way (Sevrus elastics, Ukrainian zurki), the length of which is gradually increased. Boards (heels, stripes) are stuffed along the sides, increasing the depth of the boat. Such a boat is called an oak (an old Ukrainian seagull, a sevrus. a fender, and shavings without side boards). The same boats, but simply dugout, which do not steam and do not expand over the fire, have other names (Sevrus. Bat, Belorussian, daўblenka, Ukrainian gas chamber). Boats made from a single trunk and having a keel are called a kayuk. The general name for small vessels is cheln (Ukr. choven), a boat.
Larger ships most often bear names borrowed from foreign languages (Ukrainian Galyara; Belarusian Gilyara, Berlin, Laiba; Russian Karbaz, boat, barka, longboat, etc.). It is a common custom to name ships by the rivers on which they sail or on which they were built. Such are goslings, belozerki, unzhenki, mokshans, kolomenki, suriaks, tikhvinki and many others.
§ 62. Before the appearance of steamboats on the Volga and on many other rivers, ships going against the current set people in motion; this was what the thugs were doing. A short thick rope (chipmunk) was tied to the mast of the vessel, at the free end of which there was a block. A string was passed through the block - a long rope, for which barge haulers walking along the coast dragged the ship upstream. At the end of the string at a distance of 6 m from each other there are loops (eye). A strong rope (thinka, tail) is threaded through the eye, from 2 to 4 m long. A wooden ball (cheburakh, chuburok, chapurok) tied to the end of the rope holds each rope in a loop, and an iron ring is attached to the other end of the tail. A wide belt strap is attached to this ring, thrown over the shoulder of the barge hauler. The strongest and most experienced barge hauler (bump) is ahead, the rest are behind him, and the last is again an experienced barge hauler, the so-called fuss, which, by the way, is obliged to remove (scrape) the towline from the stones and bushes for which it clings. The shore along which barge haulers go is usually called tow, towpath, and also sakma. Sometimes the ship is pulled by two ropes (two lines) or an auxiliary line (suspension) is tied to the main line.
The described method, in which the ship was pulled by people, was later replaced by horse traction, while the workers ruled the horses pulling the towline along the shore, or twisted the gate to pull the rope with the anchor out of the water, with which the ship was going (horse-driven ships that replaced the capstans, later displaced by steamboats). With the advent of steamboats, barge haulers turned into sailors, who to this day partially preserve the old traditions of the Volga barge haulers. Rafters, who are sometimes called barge haulers to this day, have nothing to do with steamboats.
Bargaining is a craft that was mainly carried out by Russians. It was much less common among Belarusians. Back in 1905, I. Abramov observed Belarusians who were dragging barges loaded with stone up the Dnieper to the city of Smolensk. Burlatsky artels united people from the northern and southern Russian provinces, and such direct contacts contributed to the cultural rapprochement of these two groups of Eastern Slavs (§ 2).
In the old days, the people considered barge haulers to be free, unconnected people, "free Cossacks", experienced people, familiar with the life of foreign lands and with urban culture. This idea, however, has long since changed: the word "burlak" now means a rude, uncouth person or a homeless vagrant, and the villagers began to look down on these people.
§ 63. It remains to tell about the carrying of goods. Most often, the load is carried on the shoulders. At the same time, a yoke (Ukrainian yoke) is used, which has a mostly curved, arched shape. However, Belarusians also have a straight yoke (Fig. 75). Russian women carry wet linen on yokes to the river, and they do not hang it in baskets on the ends of the yoke, but put it equally on both ends. It is considered especially dexterous to carry a yoke with a load on one shoulder.
For carrying cargo along the way, the North Russians have many devices on straps, like a knapsack; these are crumbs, a body (Sevrus., Fig. 59), a scrip, a motley. The same straps are sometimes attached directly to various vessels made of birch and linden bark in Northern Russian; this is called turning the vessel around, making a turnaround on it. Least of all carry baskets with small children behind them. South Russian and other Eastern Slavs usually wear bags not on their backs,
and over the shoulder.
On navigable rivers, especially on the Volga, in Nizhny Novgorod and Rybinsk, there is a special craft, the so-called hookers, i.e. workers who drag sacks of grain and other goods. They have a hook attached to a short rope, with which they hold a sack of grain on top of their shoulders. On the back they sometimes have a special pillow that reduces the pressure of the burden. A strong loader (humpback) carries a bag weighing 150 kg on his back.
Of the rarer methods, we should mention the carrying of heavy things on the head. This method is adopted by Russian merchants, who often first put a soft round lining (made of leather, etc.) on their heads, and then they put a basket or a vessel with various goods, most often with products, on it. Northern Russians sometimes wear behind purses, on purses children older than a year old, that is, those who can already hold their hands on the neck of the one who carries them. The child covers the neck with his hands, and with his legs the waist of the bearer, who supports the child's legs with his hands.
§ 64. Literature. The harness and harness are mentioned in the following works: Esimontovsky G. Agriculture in the Surazh district of the Chernihiv province. Part I. St. Petersburg, 1846, p. 51-53; ZHMGI. SPb., 1844, part XI, p. 250; ibid., part XII, p. 3-5; ibid., 1845, part XV, p. 8, 17, 104; further, this is mentioned in the works of Nikiforovsky, Romanov and Serzhputovsky, given in § 22. Fig. 61 and 62 are taken from the article by A. Serzhputovsky, and fig. 63 - from the article by F. Volkov, named in § 6.
Sledges and wheeled carts are discussed in the works: Efimenko P. Handicraft, latrines and some rural crafts in the Sumy district. Kharkov, 1882 (Proceedings of the commission for the study of handicrafts in the Kharkov province, issue I, pp. 18 - 34);
Filippov N.A. Handicraft industry in Russia. Wood processing industries. SPb., 1913, p. 257-296; Rudchenko I. Ya. Chumatsky folk songs. Kyiv, 1874, XIII+257 p. Rice. 65 and 66 are taken from the article by N. A. Ivanitsky mentioned in § 22, but improved here by us; rice. 67 was taken from a photograph of the Kharkov Museum of Sloboda Ukraine; rice. 68 - from the work of A. K. Serzhputovsky named in § 22; rice. 69 was taken from a photograph owned by the Russian Museum in Leningrad.
Tar is discussed in the book “Materials on the description of the crafts of the Vyatka province” (issue III, Vyatka, 1891, pp. 1 - 216) and in the article by G. Esimontovsky already mentioned above.
About the ships: Kornilov I.P. About the timber industry along the Unzha River and about the structure near the mountains. Kologriva goslings. - Ethnographic Collection of the Russian Geographical Society, no. VI, St. Petersburg, 1864, p. 1-34. Rice. 70-72 are taken from the article by N. Ivanitsky named in § 22; rice. 74 reproduces a photograph belonging to the Russian Museum. For Old Slavic vehicles and wagons, see Niederle L. Život stzrych slovanů. Dilu. III, swazek 2. Praha, 1925, p. 437-462.
On barge haulers, see: Vernadsky Iv. Burlak research. - ZhMVD. Ch. XXIII. SPb., 1857, April, p. 71-118 and part XXIV. SPb., 1857, May, p. 1-42; Abramov I. Burlaki on the Dnieper. - ZhS. XV, 1906, no. 2, mixture, p. 35-36. On the attitude of the people towards barge haulers and their influence on folklore, see: Zelenin D.K. Great Russian fairy tales of the Vyatka province, Pg., 1915 (Notes of the Russian Geographical Society on the Department of Ethnography, vol. XLII), introductory article, p. XXVIII-XXXVI.
