WILLIAM DE RUBRUQUIS ad. 



1253- 

 of them, but onely that their lord & master Ban was 

 put to death upon the occasion following : This Ban was 

 not placed in good and fertile pastures. And upon a 

 certain day being drunken, he spake on this wise unto his 

 men. Am not I of the stocke and kinred of Chingis Can, 

 as well as Baatu ? (for in very deede he was brother or 

 nephew unto Baatu.) Why then doe I not passe and 

 repasse upon the banke of Etilia, to feed my cattel there, 

 as freely as Baatu himselfe doeth ? Which speeches of 

 his were reported unto Baatu. Whereupon Baatu wrote 

 unto his servants to bring their Lorde bound unto him. 

 And they did so. Then Baatu demanded of him whether 

 he had spoken any such words ? And hee confessed that 

 he had. Howbeit, (because it is the Tartars maner to 

 pardon drunken men) he excused himselfe that he was 

 drunken at the same time. Howe durst thou (quoth 

 Baatu) once name mee in thy drunkennesse ? And with 

 that hee caused his head to be chopt off. Concerning the 

 foresaid Dutchmen, I could not understand ought, till 1 

 was come unto the court of Mangu-Can. And there I 

 was informed that Mangu-Can had removed them out 

 of the jurisdiction of Baatu, for the space of a moneths 

 journey from Talas Eastward, unto a certaine village, 

 called Bolac : where they are set to dig gold, and to T^e village of 

 make armour. Whereupon I could neither goe nor come ^^-''^^• 

 by them. I passed very neere the saide citie in going 

 forth, as namely, within three dayes journey thereof: but 

 I was ignorant that I did so : neither could I have turned 

 out of my way, albeit I had knowen so much. From the 

 foresaide cottage we went directly Eastward, by the 

 mountaines aforesaid. And from that time we travailed ^^ entreth 

 among the people of Mangu-Can, who in all places sang 

 and daunced before our guide, because hee was the 

 messenger of Baatu. For this curtesie they doe affoord 

 eche to other : namely, the people of Mangu-Can re- 

 ceiving the messengers of Baatu in maner aforesaide : 

 and so likewise the people of Baatu intertaining the 

 messengers of Mangu-Can. Notwithstanding the people 



283 



hito the 

 territories of 

 Mangu-Can. 



