116 Chapter Three
Following ROPiT’s lead, the Volunteer Fleet in 1907 had introduced its own
direct service to Jeddah aboard Hejaz steamships that left mainly from Odessa.
The Volunteer Fleet had done this largely on the advice of Russia’s new Jeddah
consul, who noted that there was no direct service from Odessa, and correctly
predicted that the opening of the new Tashkent-Orenburg line would create a
surge of hajj traffic through the city. He also reported that the Volunteer Fleet
“had the best reputation among hajj pilgrims,” and that ROPiT continued to
provide awful service to pilgrims.^83 Among other things, he complained that
ROPiT ships were “rejecting weak and feeble pilgrims,” even if they didn’t look
sick. He described the experience in Jeddah as horrible for old and poor
pilgrims.^84
The Volunteer Fleet carefully planned its new hajj service with the help of lo-
cals involved in the small-scale hajj industry in Odessa, getting their advice and
relying on their expertise and connections. Two individuals were especially im-
portant. One was Safarov, who had been working for ROPiT on hajj transport
for several years. And the other was Petr Gurzhi, a local retired ship captain,
who had also been involved in the hajj industry for years, chartering foreign
steamships for pilgrims. The fleet invited both men to St. Petersburg to confer
with officials on the creation of new hajj service. During that visit, Gurzhi also
conferred with the Ministry of Trade about the organization of railroad service
for pilgrims. Among other things, Safarov suggested that the fleet advertise its
new service widely in Muslim newspapers across the empire. Safarov signed an
agreement with the Volunteer Fleet to “spread among pilgrims” information
about the services offered by the fleet for hajj pilgrims. In return, the fleet prom-
ised him a commission of ten percent of the cost of each ticket he sold.^85
In the fall of 1907, Gurzhi offered his services to the Volunteer Fleet with a
comprehensive plan for that year’s hajj season. His plan covered the sale of rail-
road and steamship tickets, lodging in Odessa, and efforts to get as many pil-
grims as possible onto the fleet’s ships. He hired Safarov to work with him, and,
with permission from Odessa’s city-governor, I. N. Tolmachev, created a com-
pany called the Central Odessa Office for Shipping Muslim Pilgrims to Jeddah
by Steamship.^86 The Volunteer Fleet accepted his proposal.
Working together with Safarov, Tolmachev, local hoteliers, city sanitary offi-
cials, and both the Volunteer Fleet and ROPiT, Gurzhi organized lodging and
transport for the more than 10,000 pilgrims who came through Odessa that
fall. His plan was modeled in part on the Ottoman example. He reserved a
certain number of free tickets for the poor, “just like the sultan does.”^87 He
arranged for hajj pilgrims to stay in a cluster of low-end hotels in the center