WILLIAM DE RUBRUQUIS ad. 



1253. 



of Caucasus, served to restraine those barbarous and blood- 

 thirstie people from invading the regions of the South) 

 insomuch that they had tribute paied unto them, as farre 

 as ^gypt. Likewise they wasted all countreis even unto 

 France. Whereupon they were more mightie then the 

 Tartars as yet are. And unto them the Blacians, the Valachlans. 

 Bulgarians, and the Vandals joyned themselves. For out 

 of Bulgaria the greater, came those Bulgarians. More- 

 over, they which inhabit beyond Danubius, neere unto 

 Constantinople, and not farre from Pascatir, are called Ilac, 

 which (saving the pronunciation) is al one with Blac, (for 

 the Tartars cannot pronounce the letter B) from whom 

 also descended the people which inhabit the land of 

 Assani. For they are both of them called Ilac (both 

 these, & the other) in ye languages of the Russians, ye 

 Polonians, & the Bohemians. The Sclavonians speake all [I. 112.] 

 one language with the Vandals, all which banded them- 

 selves with the Hunnes : and now for the most part, they 

 unite themselves unto the Tartars : whom God hath 

 raised up from the utmost partes of the earth, according 

 to that which the Lord saith : I will provoke them to ^^«^- 32 

 envy (namely such as keepe not his Law) by a people, 

 which is no people, and by a foolish nation will I anger 

 them. This prophecie is fulfilled, according to the literal 

 sense thereof, upon all nations which observe not the Law 

 of God. Al this which I have written concerning the 

 land of Pascatir, was told me by certaine Friers praedicants, 

 which travailed thither before ever the Tartars came 

 abroad. And from that time they were subdued unto 

 their neighbors the Bulgarians being Saracens, whereupon 

 many of them proved Saracens also. Other matters con- 

 cerning this people, may be known out of Chronicles. 

 For it is manifest, that those provinces beyond Con- 

 stantinople, which are now called Bulgaria, Valachia, & 

 Sclavonia, were of old time provinces belonging to the 

 Greekes. Also Hungaria was heretofore called Pannonia. 

 And wee were riding over the land of Cangle, from the ^^^f/j^-^^ 

 feast of Holy roode, untill the feast of All Saints : traveil- duntrey^^ 



279 



21, 



Rom. 10. V. 

 19- 



