Part II. Trayels into the Levant* 
themfclves, and in all things elfe are very ignorant. When any of their Scd dies, 
they kt him upright in a place walled in purpoleiy for that; and leafi he ftiould 
fall, they put a forked inUrumcnc under his Chin to hold him up: they leave him 
in this pofture until the Crows have picked out his Eye?, and if they have begun 
by the Right Eye, they think he is happy, and put him upright in a place walled A faife Prog- 
in, which they call the White Pit ; it they have begun by the Leff, (hey think he ^^^^^^ °^ ^'^^ 
is miferable, and put him into the Black Pit : thefe Pits are Wel!s raifed fome Fa- 
thcmshigh of Earth, where they put the bodies ftark naked, covering only the 
Privities with a Rag, and each of thefe two Pits is above half full of Bones, and 
the Alhes of dead Bodies, that have been put therein. The greatcft kindnefs that 
the Giiebres think they can doe to a dead man, is to kill for his fake a great many 
Frogs, Serpents, and other Infers ; after all, thefe people are extremely hated of 
all men, afwel C/otJ^w^J" as Mahometans-, and being lirong of body, moft part of 
them are Mafons. 
There are befides above fifteen thoufand Banians in Jfpahan ; they follow no Art The Banîm 
nor Trade, and all their bufinefs is to let out mony to Ufury, which the ^ewx do °^ Ifpuhm 
in îwrji^Vî and in all places elfe, where they are fuifered, Ufurers. 
Let us now fay fomewhatof the Armenians^ who are not the moft inconfiderabîe Amenians at 
part of the people that inhabit the City Ifpahjn : their quarter in that Town is at ^î'^^'^»- . 
Giolfafix the places about it i they yearly pay the King 500 Inmans., and have an Ar- Lv^^he ^^fng 
menian to Govern them, vthom they call Kelonter.,Û\zi is to fay the greateft, and he is o( perfia. five 
put in and turned out by the King when he pleafc?. They addrefs themfelves to this hundred To- 
Kelonter in all their Affjirs,and Controverfies, and it is he that Taxes them for raifing 
the five hundred tomans, which they yearly pay the King. But btfides the Kelonter Jf'^^th? 
they have another Royal Officer, who is a Dmg^i, for Judging in Criminal Affairs. 
I am apt to believe that fume of thefe Armenians are good people, but a great many 
of them, (take from them the name of Chriftians,) are every whit as bad as Infidels i 
and in general there is but little confidence to be put in them. As for their Religi- 
on, it may be faid that Faftings are the chief part of what they profefs at prefent, / 
or at left they make that the moft confiderable and vifible point of their Religion, 
"When an Armenian C mfeflcfh that he hath Robbed, committed Murder, or fuch 
like crimes, theConfeffour tells him that God is merciful h bnt if he accufe him- 
felf of having Eaten Butter on a Friday, or a day of Abftinence. Oh ! that is an 
execrable Crime, and the Confeffjur will enjoyn fevere Penances for that fin, as 
to Fait fcveral months, to refrain fix months from his "Wife, or other Aufterifies» 
They Eat noFlefh, Eggs norFilh, nor yet JVlilk, Oyl, nor Butter, oti f^ednefdays 
and Fridays, but they Eat Flefh on Saturdays, as all the other Oriental Chriftians 
doe. They have the Baptifm of the Ciofs, in commemoration of the Baptifm of The Eaptift» 
our Lordi andthcy Celebrate it the day of the Epiphany, ( according to the Old oftî^eCrofs. 
Calendar which they follow J) plunging, (after feveral Prayers,) a Crofs into water, 
whereof all ftrive to take their (hares in Pots. The Amenlani 
They Communicate all Children in both kinds, even thofs that are bu4 a year or Communicate 
two Old. They Marry them very Young -, fometimes the Parents promife theiTî as J^.^^"^ 
foon as they are born, and often Marry them at the Age of Seven ot Eight Yeir? ; -j-^ey Marry 
but though the Pricft perform the Ceremonies at that time, yet they defer the Con- their Children 
fumraation of the Marriage till the ufual time. They fay that Extreme Undion is very Young, 
rot to be Adminiftred till after death, though fome amongft them have denied me ^fog^^jtj^^jjç 
that Article, but commonly they give it only to Priclb. They have no commarid jif^i„i/i„s. 
obliging them to hear Mafs on Sundays and Holy-days. They have many of the Command for 
Mahnmetan Superfliiions i and am,ongft others, fome of ihem hold Dogs to be Mafs. 
Unclean as well as they, and will not willingly touch them. Superftitioaof 
On Holy Saturday they end their Lent, by Eating at night Butter, Checfe, Eggs, j^^"^^^^^^^"/' 
and ether things which are prohibited during the Lent : but they Eat no Flelh till Lent with the 
Eû^er-day, and it muft be killed too the fame day -, for they fay that il is not lawful Armenians, 
for them to Eat cf that which was killed in time of Lent. , 
They admit of no Purgatory, and yet Pray for the Dead, faying that thefe who Purgatory 
ate Damned goe ftreight to Hell, but that the others goe not into Paradife, where ^"'l ^^^^ 
no body dial! be received before the hft Judgment^ but that they are in a place, 
where they fuffer a little, and that the Prayers that are made for them, comfort them ; 
whence it feems that they only contend about the r.ame, and that it is only to dif- 
ference themfelves from P-oman Cathelich, that they fcty they admit not of Purga- 
tory. They 
