AD. THE ENGLISH VOYAGES 



1253. 



second of the Kalends of August, we arrived at the 

 habitation of Duke Sartach himselfe. 



T 



Of the dominion of Sartach, and of his Subjects. 



Chap. 16. 



He region lying beyond Tanais, is a very goodly 



countrey, having store of rivers and woods toward 



the North part thereof. There be mighty huge woods 



The people of which two sorts of people do inhabite. One of them 



pTans^^^ is called Moxel, being meere Pagans, and without law. 



They have neither townes nor cities, but only cottages 



in ye woods. Their lord & a great part of themselves 



were put to the sword in high Germanie. Whereupon 



they highly commend the brave courage of the 



Almans, hoping as yet to be delivered out of the 



bondage of the Tartars, by their meanes. If any 



merchant come unto them, he must provide things 



necessary for him, with whom he is first of all enter- 



teined, all the time of his abode among them. If any 



lieth with another mans wife, her husband, unles he be an 



eiewitnes therof, regardeth it not : for they are not 



jelous over their wives. They have abundance of hogs, 



and great store of hony & waxe, and divers sorts of 



The people rich & costly skins, and plentie of falcons. Next unto 



behtfaZ^-''' ^^^^ ^^^ °^^^^ people called Merclas, which the Latines 



cgjii. cal Merdui, and they are Saracens. Beyond them is the 



river of Etilia or Volga, which is ye mightiest river 



that ever I saw. And it issueth from the North part of 



Bulgaria the greater, & so trending along Southward, 



disimboqueth into a certain lake containing in circuit 



the space of 4. moneths travel, whereof I will speak 



The circuite hereafter. The two foresaid rivers, namely Tanais & 



of the Caspian ^^^y^^^ otherwise called Volga, towards the Northren 



regions through the which we traveiled, are not distant 



[I. 105.] asunder above x. daies journey, but Southward they 



are divided a great space one from another. For 



Tanais descendeth into the sea of Pontus : Etilia 



maketh the foresaid sea or lake, with the help of many 



260 



