Book I, 
578 The FO TAGES fand TRJFE L S 
for Su Is Water, Thefe People live upon Fifh and Hunt* 
ing, having neither Flocks nor Herds. Towards the North 
likewife there is no City, but a poor People feeding Cattle, 
who are called Kerkis j the Orangin ' are alfo there, who 
bind fmootli filed Bones under their Feet, and thruft them- 
felves forward upon the conjealed Snow and Ice with fuch 
Swiftnefs, that they take Birds and Beafb *, and many other 
poor People there are on the North-fide, fo far as they may 
fpread themfelves for the Cold ; and they join on the 
Weft with the Country of Pafcaiir , which is Hungary the 
Greater , whereof I have fpoken before. The Bound or 
Summit of the North Corner is not known, for the Extre- 
mity of the Cold i for in that Place there are continual 
Mountains of Snow. 
I was inquifitive of the Monfters, or monftrous Men, 
whereof Ifodorus and Solinus make report *, they told me 
they never faw any fuch, and I therefore doubt whether it 
be true or no. All thefe Nations are poor, yet they muft 
ferve in feme Trade, for it was the Commandment of 
Zingis , that none fhould be free from Service, till he were 
fo old, that he could labour no longer by any means. Once 
I remember a certain Prieft of Cathay a fat with me cloathed 
in a red coloured Cloth, and I demanded of him whence 
he had fuch a Colour, and he told me, that in the Eaft 
Parts of Cathaya there were high craggy Rocks, wherein 
certain Creatures dwell, having in ail Parts the Shape of 
Men ; but that they bow not the Knees, but leap inftead 
of walking, which are not above one Cubit long, and their 
whole Body is covered with Hair, who have their Abode 
in Caves, which no Man can come unto, and they who hunt 
them, go to them, and carry ftrong Drink with them, and 
make Pits in the Rocks like Wells, which they fill with that 
ftrong Drink •, for Cathaya hitherto has had no Wine, tho’ 
now they begin to plant Vineyards •, but the ftrong Liquor 
beforementioned is made of Rice. The Hunters hide them- 
felves, and then thefe Creatures come out of their Ploles 
and tafte the Drink, and cry, Chin-Chin ; on this they 
come together in great Multitudes, and drink till they are 
made drunk, fo that they fleep there. Then the Hunters 
come and bind them Hand and Feet, while they are fleep- 
ing, and afterwards open the Veins in their Neck, and draw 
forth three or four Drops of Blood from every one, and let 
them go free, and that Blood, as he told me, is the moft 
precious Purple. 
Fie told us alfo as a Truth, (which, hbwever, I do not 
believe) that there is a Province beyond Cathaya, into which, 
at whatever Age a Man enters, he continueth in the fame 
Age wherein he entered. Cathaya is on the Ocean, and the 
Goldfmith fo often mentioned, told me, that there arrived 
MeiTengers from a certain People which are called Tante 
and Manfe , who inhabit Elands, the Sea of which is frozen 
in the Winter, fo that the Tartars may invade them, who 
offered two thoufand Tuemen or Jafcots yearly, fo they 
would let them live in Peace. Tuemen is a Piece of Mo- 
ney containing ten Marks. The common Money of Cat ay a 
is Paper made like' Pafteboard, the Breadth and Length of 
an Hand, upon which they imprint Lines like the Seal of 
Jjjkangu they write with a Pencil, like that with which 
Painters paint, and in one Figure they make many Letters 
comprehending one Word. The People of Thibet write 
as we do, and they have Characters very like ours. They 
of Tangut write from the right Hand to the left, as the 
Arabians do, and multiply the Lines afeending upwards ; 
the Jugures , as I faid before, from above to the Bottom of 
the Line. The common Money of the Rutenians are little 
j potted and grilled Skins. When we came with the Monk, 
he charitably admonifhed us to abftain from Flefh, and that 
our Servants fhould eat Flefh with his Servants but he 
would promife us Meal, and Oil, or Butter, which we did, 
though it much grieved my Companion by reafon of his 
Weaknefs -j wherefore our Food was Millet and Butter, or 
Pafte boiled in Water, with Butter, or four Milk, and 
unleavened Bread baked on Ox-dung, or Horfe-dung. 
45. When our Quinquagefima came, which is the Lent 
Time of all the People of the Eaft, the great Lady Cota, 
with all her Company, failed that Week, who came every 
Day to our Oratory, and gave Meat to the Priefts, and 
other Chriftians, of whom a great Multitude flocked thither 
the firft Week to hear their Duty, and fhe gave me and 
my Companion each a Coat and Breeches of grey Samito,, 
furred with coarfe Hair, becaufe my Companion complain- 
ed much of the Weight of his Skins, which I received foi 
his fake, excufing myfelf neverthelefs, that I would not 
wear fuch CJpaths •, I gave to my Interpreter what belonged 
to me. Then the Porters of the Court feeing that fuch a 
Multitude came daily to the . Church, which was within 
the Bounds of the Keepers of the Court y they fent one of 
their Attendants to the Monk, to let him know, that they 
would not have fuch a Multitude come within the Precindb 
of the Court ; to this the Monk roughly anfwered, that he 
would know whether they commanded this from Mangu - 
Khan , and he added certain Speeches, as if he would ac= 
cufe them to Mangu-Khan y but they preventing him, ac- 
cufed him before Mangu , that he was too full of Words, 
and that he gathered together too great a Multitude to hear 
him fpeak. 
Afterwards being called to the Court, we came in before 
the Khan himfelf, who having the burnt Shoulder-blade of 
a Ram in his Hand, looked upon it, as it were, reading it, 
began to reprove the Monk feverely, telling him, that feeing 
he was a holy Man, he fhould pray unto God, and afked why 
he fpoke fo much with Men ? but I flood behind with my 
Head bare. Then the Khan faid to him, Why doft thou not put 
off thy Cap when thou comeft beforeme, as that Frank doth ? 
and commanded me to be called nearer : Then the Monk be- 
much abafed, put off his Cap contrary to the Cuftom of the 
Greeks and Armenians , and when Khan himfelf had fpoken 
fharply to him, we went out ; the Monk then delivered me 
the Crofs to bear to the Oratory, becaufe he could not carry 
it for Shame. After a few Days he was reconciled to him, 
promifing that he would go to the Pope, and that he would 
bring all the Nations of the Weft to his Obedience. 
Whereupon he returhing to the Oratory, after that Con- 
ference had with the Khan , began to enquire of me touch- 
ing the Pope, if I believed he would fee him, if he came 
unto him in the Behalf of Mangu , and if he would furnifh. 
him with Horfes unto Saint ‘James in Galicia. He de- 
manded alfo of your Majefty, if I thought you would fend 
your Son unto Mangu ? Then I counfelled him, that he 
fhould take heed that he did not promife Falfhoods to 
Mangu , becaufe the laft Error would be worfe than the 
firft, and that God needeth not our Lies, or that we Ihould 
fpeak deceitfully for him. 
At that time there arofe a certain Queftion between th® 
Monk and a Prieft, a learned Man, whofe Father was ar* 
Archdeacon, and the other Priefts accounted him an Arch- 
deacon. For the Monk faid, that Man was created before 
Paradife, and that the Scripture faid fo ; then was I called' 
to be an Arbitrator of the Queftion, but I being ignorant 
that they contended about this, anfwered, that Paradife 
was made upon Tuefday , when the other I rees were made,, 
and that Man was made the fixth Day. Then the Monk 
began to fay, did not the Devil bring Earth the firft Day 
from the four Parts of the World, and making Clay, made 
the Body of Man therewith, and God infpirecl his Soul ? 
Then hearing this Herefy of the Monk, and that he fo; 
publickly and fhamefully recited it, I reproved him fharply, 
faying, he fhould put his Finger upon his Mouth, becaufe ! 
he knew not the Scriptures, and that he fhould take heed . 
what he faid *, and he began to fcorn me, becaufe I was , 
ignorant of the Language. ^ 
I departed therefore from him, going to our Houle , it 
fell out afterwards, that lie and the Priefts went in Procef- 
fion to the Court without calling me, becaufe the Monk ; 
would no longer fpeak to me as he was wont y when there- 
fore they came before Mangu , he earneftly demanded 5 
where I was, and why I catne not with, tnem ? The , 
Priefts being afraid, qxcuied oenneives, but, returning, . 
they told me the Words of Mangu, and murmured, at the t 
Monk. After this, the Monk was reconciled to me, and . 
I to him, intreating him, that he would help me with his 
Language, and I would help him in the Holy scripture . 
For a, Brother that is holpen of a Brother , is as a ftrong \ 
City. After the firft Week of Rafting, the Lady ceaiedi 
to come unto the Oratory, and to give Meat and Drink,, 
which we were wont to have y for the Monk inhered it not. 
to be brought, faying, that Mutton-fa t, or Suet, was put 
in the Sauce 5 and fhe gave no Oil, but very fddom sHaH 
