1905 two covers with enclosed letters sent by American bee expert Frank Benton from Tiflis (3.10.05 and 2.11.05) to his son in Washington DC, each with appropriate franking and arrival pmks (in 1890 Benton became the first apiculture specialist at the Department of Agriculture. During 1905 and 1906 Benton traveled through the Caucasus, Turkestan, Persia, and India. These two letters contain his eyewitness accounts of the revolutionary upheavals in the Caucasus, "Grave disorders occurred in Tiflis. A clash between citizens and soldiers resulted in many deaths, and martial law was declared. Bombs have been smuggled in or made here and thrown simultaneously in various parts of the city with much loss of life. One week ago, a German Lutheran pastor was killed. News has come of some trouble at Gagry. The director of a government meteorological station there was killed, and the manager of the government hotel was seriously wounded. Have seen many arrests of suspects and people found carrying revolvers without permits. Here in Tiflis carrying arms is now forbidden. Elsewhere every chap carries three or four weapons - rifles, knives, pistols. The great strike on the railways began just after I reached Erivan and obliged my remaining in that region two weeks instead of two or three days as I planned. While I was in the Mt. Ararat region, the last dreadful outbreak occurred in Tiflis, in the course of which many were killed (at least 42) and wounded (75 or more). Report has it that the killed were 140. The authorities seek to cover up the matter and suppress the actual figures") (Image)

Est.US$200