a*-- 
The VOYAGES and TRAVELS 
Book L 
Matter, Tent Letters therefore unto the Heads of the Cap- 
tivity, and to the Heads of all the Affemblies in Bagdat to 
this Purpofe : Why jhould we die before your Eyes , as well 
we as all the Univerfities fubjedl unto this Kingdom ! Refrain 
this Man , we befeech you , lefi innocent Blood be Jhed. 
Therefore the Head of the Captivity, and the chief Rulers 
of the Affemblies, wrote Letters unto David El Roi to the 
following Effedt : W ? give you hereby to underfand , that the 
Time of our Delivery is not yet come , and that our Signs , 
which ought to precede that Deliverance , are not yet feen , 
and a Man is not made flrong through Bride ; wherefore we 
enjoin you to abfiain wholly from fuch Enterprises and At- 
tempts, otherwife ye Jhall be excommunicated , and cut off from 
all Ifrael. 
They alfo by Meffengers advertized Zachai Hanaffi , 
who was in the Country of Affur , and Jofeph , furnamed the 
Seer , Burhan Alpelech living there, that David Elroi 
might be retrained by Letters written from them, which 
was diligently purfued by them, but all in vain ; for he 
would not forfake that wicked way, but perfifted till a cer- 
tain King of the Togarmim called Zinaldin, fubject to the 
King of Perfia , Tent ten thoufand Pieces of Gold unto the 
Father-in-Law of David Elroi , and perfuaded him to end 
thefe Troubles, by privately killing his Son-in- Law, which, 
when he had undertaken to perform, he thruft David 
through with a Sword in his Bed as he llept and this was 
the End of all his Subtilty and Delufions r . But even when 
he was dead, the Anger of the King of Perfia was not ap- 
peafed towards thofe People of the Mountains, and other 
Jews fubjedl to him, and fettled in his Dominion ; and 
therefore they defired once more Help from the Head of 
the Captivity, who going to the King himfelf, appeafed 
him by mild and wife Speeches and having prefented him 
with one hundred Talents of Gold, he fo mollified him, that 
there was ever afterwards great Quietnefs through the 
whole Country. 
8 . From thefe Mountains before defcribed, you travel 
ten Days Journey to Hamadan , the principal City of the 
Country of Media, in which City there are about fifty thou- 
fand Jews j and in that City over-againft one of the Syna- 
gogues are the Sepulchres of Mordecai and Efiher. Da- 
breftan is four Days Journey diftant from hence, where 
four thoufand Jews dwell, nigh unto the River Gozan-, 
but from thence you travel feven Days Journey to Ifpahan , 
a very great City, the Capital of this Country, and twelve 
Miles in Compafs, wherein there are about twelve thou- 
fand Ifraelites, over whom Shallum is apppinted by the 
Head of the Captivity, as alfo over all the reft of the Ifra- 
elites who dwell in the Cities of Berfia. After four Days 
Journey you come to Siaphaz ’, the moft ancient in this 
Country, called Berfidis of old, from whence the Name 
was given to the whole Province, in which there are al- 
moft ten thoufand Jews. 
From Siaphaz , in feven Days Journey you come to the 
City Ginah , feated nigh the River Gozan , to which there 
refort Merchants of all Nations and Languages, and where 
are about eight thoufand Jews. The fartheft City of this 
Kingdom is the famous Samarcand ; and five Days Jour- 
ney from Ginah, where are fifty thoufand Ifraelites, over 
whom Obdias ruleth •, and among them are many wife and 
rich Men. In four Days Journey from hence you come to 
Thibet , a capital City of the Province of the fame Name, 
in the Forefts of which are the Animals found that produce 
Mulk. 
9 . About twenty-eight Days Journey from thence lie 
the Mountains of Nijbon , which are fituated near the River 
Gozan', and Tome of the Jews that inhabit Perfia affirm, 
that in the Cities of JSHfbor dwell the four Tribes of Ifrael, 
carried away in the firft Captivity by Salmanafar the King 
of the Jjfyrians, viz. Dan , Zebulon, Affer, and Nepthalil as 
it is written. And he carried them away intoLechalach and Ha- 
bor, the Mountains of Gozan, and the Mountains of Media . 
Their Country is extended twenty Days Journey in Length, 
with many Cities and Caftles inhabited, all mountainous, 
the River Gozan running on the one Side ; but the Inha- 
bitants are abfolutely free, and are ruled by a certain Go- 
vernor, whofe Name was at this Time Jofeph Amraela, a 
Levite, and among them are the Difciples of Wife Men : 
They fow and reap, and are at War with the Children of 
Chus, who dwell in the Defarts. They are in League 
with the Copherall Turks , Worfhippers of the Winds, a 
People who lead their Lives in the Defarts, neither eat 
Bread nor drink Wine, but feed on the raw Flefti of 
Beafts, as well clean as unclean and thefe either new 
killed, and yet trembling with Life-Blood, or dried in the 
Air, but unboiled. They devour alfo the Limbs torn from 
Beafts yet alive. They feem to want Nofes ; but inftead 
thereof, they have two Holes in their Faces, through which 
they breathe. They are Friends to the Ifraelites \ 
It happened about fifteen Years fince, that invading the 
Country of Berfia with a great Army, they vanquished the 
metropolitan City Rei ; and having made a mighty Slaugh- 
ter afterwards, utterly wafted it, and Spoiled the Houfes 
and Fields, and carried away a prodigious Plunder, re- 
turning through the Defarts, a Calamity which for many 
Ages was never felt in Perfia. The King of Berfia , ve- 
hemently enraged, faid, In the Days of my Anceftors, no 
Army never'came out of this Defart, therefore will 1 go in 
Purfuit of them and deftroy them from the Earth. He 
affembled accordingly an Army for War, and feeking fome 
Guide to whom the Places of that Nation were known, a 
certain Man offered himfelf, who affirmed, that he was 
of that Nation, and knew their Dwellings-, but being 
alked what Provifion was neceffary for the Army, he an- 
fwered Bread and Water for fifteen Days, which you muft 
fpend in paffing through the Defarts. When they had 
marched thefe fifteen Days, the Army found themfelves 
deftitute of Subfiftance for Men or Beafts, without feeing 
any thing of the Place whither they intended: to go, or the 
leaft Signs of an inhabited Country. The Guide was 
afked for by the King, who faid to him, you fee how well 
you have kept your Word, tell us where are our Enemies 
that you affured us you could difcover ? The Guide faid 
by way of Excufe, I have loft my Way ; and the King 
thereupon lofing all Patience, ordered him to be put to 
Death, commanding at the fame time by Proclamation, 
that whoever had any Provifions in his Army, fhould 
bring them forth, and divide them with his Com- 
panions". 
They then eat up all that they had, even to the Beafts 
that carried their Baggage ; and in this diftreffed Condi- 
tion they profecuted their March for thirteen Days more, 
till at laft they arrived at the Mountains of Nijbor, inha- 
bited by the Jews. The Berfians encamped themfelves i 
among the Gardens and Orchards by the Side of Canals. T 
drawn from the River Gozan. As it was then the Seafon u 
of ripe Fruits, they eat what they thought fit, and made J 
free with all they found, no body coming out to oppofe m 
them : But at a Diftance they difcovered among the Mou.n- u 
tains feveral Hamlets, and fome Forts, that looked like | 
Places of Strength. The King of Berfia being in-ii 
formed of all this, Tent two of his Servants to difcover: ; 
r The Authors we have before cited, tell us the fame Story as to the Death of this Impoftor, but with a Circumftance that Benjamin has omitted,^ 
which is, that the Jefis themfelves were obliged to raife the Ten thoufand Pieces of Gold that were given as a Bribe to the Father-in-Law of David* 
AU the Tranflators and Commentators on our Author, have been at a Lofs to conceive what Place ^ he could mean^by this ; and yet I think the jr 
Difficulty is not quite fo great as they reprefent it ; for to me it appears very plain, that this City was Schizaz, .which amwers exaftiy his Defcrip on.g 
As for Confufion in Names, I have already affigned the Caufe of it, which was his expreffing, in Hebrew Characters, W ords that thefe Characters,, , 
could not exprefs, and in expreffing which Words he was entirely governed by their Sound. , . j -y it. „/r. re us , . 
t Th - vvithout doubt is a very odd Defcription of thefe People j and yet it is not very far wide of tne Trutn, for modern Travellers allure us j 
that the ’ Kalmuc Tartars have Nofes fo flat that they are fcarce to be diftinguiffied but by the nfing of the Noftrils; and as to their Manners, our u-y 
thor is not much out of ffie Way. The City he fpeaks of as ruined by the People, was the great City oi Rey which makes fuch a Figure m all the 
Eaflern Hiiiorians • the fame that in the Book of Tobit is called Rhages, and of which we fhall give an ample Account m the next Volume. 
Singularities which render thefe Travels valuable , for I do not know that there is 
elfewhere ; and our Author tells us very honeftly how he came by it ; neither do I think that the Dexterity with whicffi his ^ 
made their Court to both Parties, is a Circumftance that in the Opinion of fuch as are acquainted with that Nation, will render it at all impro 
4 
whai 1 
