View of the City and Harbor of Odessa
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Favored as Odessa is by its position on the sea, " it is surrounded on the land side," says Murray, "by a dreary steppe of so intractable a soil, that trees and shrubs, with the exception of the acacia, rarely attain any size, and in many places will not even live. The narrow strip along the seashore above mentioned is the only oasis of vegetation in the neighborhood of the city. Artesian borings have been made in the town to a depth of six hundred feet, for water, but hitherto without success. Fuel is likewise very dear."
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Sears, Robert. An Illustrated Description of the Russian Empire. New York: Robert Sears, 1855