866 St'r John Ch 
for he has 400 VafTals under him, who furnifh his 
Houfe with all Things neceffary for human Life, and 
many Superfluities. He fells their Children to the ^urks \ 
and when he vifits the Diocefes under his Jurifdidtion, 
it is not to reform the Clergy, nor inftrud the People, 
but to Ipoil them of their Goods, and rake together 
great Sums, He will not confecrate a Bifhop for lefs 
than 600 Crowns, nor fay a Mafs for the Dead under 
800, nor any other Mafs under one hundred. 
The Sandlity of this Prelate confifts in a continual 
Abftinence from Flefli and Wine in Lent^ and in lorig 
Prayers Day and Night ; but he is fo ignorant, that he 
can hardly read his Breviary and Miflal. He has fix 
Bifhops under him, who take no Care of the Souls of 
their People, nor ever vifit their Churches and Diocefes. 
They fuffer the Priefts to live in all Manner of Errors, 
and the People to contaminate with themfelves the groflTefl; 
Vices ; they underhand not the Form of Baptihn, let 
Polygamy be pracftifed, and permit the Mothers to 
bury their new-born Children alive. All their Bufinefs 
is in Feafting and Banqueting, where they are drunk 
almoft every Day. They are rich, and go very fump- 
tuoufly apparePd, opprefling their Vaflals, and felling 
their Wives and Children to maintain their Luxury. 
They abftain from Flelh, as the Greek Bifhops do, and 
place the whole Chriftian Religion in the Practice of 
Faffing, and think not themfelves obliged to do any 
other Duty. Their Cathedral is pretty neatly kept, and 
well adorn’d with Images, which they deck with Gold 
and Jevv^els, believing, that in fo doing they fatisfy 
God’s Juffice, and attone for their Sins. They are 
cloathed in Scarlet and Velvet, as the Seculars are, and 
differ from them only in this, that they wear their 
Beards long, and their Bonnets black, round, and high. 
There are alfo in Mingrelia certain Monks, of the 
Order of St. Bajtl, who wear the fame Habit, and live 
after the Manner of the Greek Monks, wearing black 
Bonnets, eating no Flefli, and fuffering their Hair to 
grow ; but they mind nothing of Religion, but to 
obferve their Falls exaftly. They have alfo Nuns of 
the fame Order, who obferve their Faffing Days, and 
wear a black Veil, but they have no Nunneries, nor are 
under any Vows or Subordination, but quit their Habit 
and Temperance when they pleafe. 
The Prieffs of Mingrelia are very numerous, but a 
Sort of miferable Creatures. They till their own 
Ground, and the Lands of their Lords, being no lefs 
Slaves than the Seculars ; nor have they any Refpedl 
fhewn them, but when they blefs their Food at Meals, 
or fay Mafs. Their Parifh- Churches have no Bells, but 
they call the People together by knocking with a great 
Stick upon a Board, and they are kept as nafty as 
Stables, the Images being foul and broken, and cover’d 
with Duff. The Worfhip which they pay to their 
Images is idolatrous, for they adore them not with a 
relative Adoration, but pay their Devotion to the ma- 
terial Subffance. They worfhip fuch moil, as are finefl 
adorn’d, or fam’d for their Cruelty, and if they fwear 
by any of thefe, they will never break the Oath. St. 
Giobas is one of their moft formidable Images, and him 
they will not approach nearer than they can juff fee 
him, but pray to him, and leave their Prefent at that 
Diftance j for they report, that he kills all that ap- 
proach him very near. 
The Cliriflian Saints they have no Value for, unlefs it 
be St. George^ whom they account their chief Saint, 
as do alfo the Mufcovites., wd Greeks. Their 
Mafs is after the Greek Manner, and the Prieffs celebrate 
it without any other Sacerdotal Habit but their Surplices. 
Their Cup or Chalice is a Goblet of Wood, and the 
Cover is of the fame Matter 5 and their Patten is a 
Wooden Difli. In Lent they never fay Mafs, but on 
Saturdays and Sundays., for they hold, that the Commu- 
nion fpoils their Falling, They confecrate unleavened 
or leavened Bread, without any Difference, and never 
mix Water with Wine, unlefs it be very ftrong. 
They laugh at Tranfubftantiation, and fay. How can 
Chrifl get into a Loaf ? For what Reafon fliould he leave 
Heaven to come down to the Earth They anoint the 
Foreheads of their Children with the Oil called My~ 
A R D I n’j Travels Book III. 
rone, as foon as they are born ; but baptize them not 
till a long Time after, and then they wafli them ail 
over with Water : but none will baptife their Children 
till he is able to make a Feaft for the Priefl, God-fathers 
and Guefts, and that is the Reafon many of their Chil- 
dren die unbaptized. They do not believe that Ordi- 
nation imprints a Charadler not to be defaced, and there- 
fore they ordain a-new fuch Priefts as have been degra- 
ded. Their Marriages are a Contract by Way of Bar- 
gain and Sale, for the Parents of the Maid agree upon 
the Price with the Perfon that defires her •, the Price of 
a divorced Woman is the leaft, of a Widow fomethino- 
more, but of a Maid moft. When the Bargain is made^ 
the young Man may company with the Damfel till the 
Money is paid, and it is no Scandal if fine be with 
Child. If any one has married a barren Woman, or of an 
ill Difpofition, they hold it not only lawful, but requifite 
to divorce her, as a Match not made by God, who on- 
ly does good. There is none that underftands the Bi- 
ble, or reads it, but the Women will repeat fe- 
veral Stories of the Gofpel, which they have by 
Tradition. They obferve the fame Faffs almoft as 
the Greeks, for they keep the four great Lents, viz. the 
firft before Eajier, which is forty eight Days ; that be- 
fore Chriftmas, which is forty Days 5 St. Peterh Fall, 
which is near a Month j and the laft, which the Eaft- 
ern Chriftians obferve in Honour of the Virgin Mary, 
which continues fifteen Days. They make the Sign of 
the Crofs when they drink Wine and eat Pork, but 
not as any Mark of Chriftianity. Their Prayers are 
all addrefs’d to their Idols for their temporal Benefits, 
wz. their own Profperky, or Ruin of their Enemies. 
They offer Sacrifices like the Jews and Gentiles. They 
never make Holiday upon Sundays, or abftain from 
Works but at the Feftivals of Chriftmas and Eajier, 
which they celebrate only in Eating and Drinking to 
Excefs in their Houfes. Their greatell Feftivals are when 
an Idol is carried through their Country, when they put 
on their beft Cloaths, make a great Feaft, and get ready 
a Prefent for the Idol. Their Mourning for the Dead 
is altogether barbarous, and like that of People in De- 
fpair, the Women rend their Cloaths, tear their Hair 
and Flelh, beat their Breafts, cry, yell, and gnafh with 
their Teeth, like People mad or pofTefiTed ; the Men 
alfo tear their Cloaths, and thump their Breafts. 
8. Their Neighbour Nations live and afl after the 
fame Fafhion almoft in all Refpedls, only they that live 
near Perfia and Turkey are more civil in their Manners, 
and more honeft and juft in their Inclinations, whereas 
thofe that border upon the Tartars and Scythians are 
more barbarous, having no Idea, or outward Form of 
Religion, and obferving no Laws. 
On the Confines of Mingrelia lie the Principality of 
Guriel, and Kingdom of Imeretta. The Country of 
Guriel is very fmall, bordering upon Imeretta on the 
North, Mount Caucafus on the Faff, Mingrelia on the 
Weft, and the Black-Sea on the South. It lies ail along 
by the Sea-lhore from the River Phafis to the Caftie 
Gonie, which is held by the Turks. The Inhabitants are 
of' the fame Nature and Manners as the Mingrelians, 
and have the fame Inclinations to Lewdnefs, Robbery 
and Murther. 
The Kingdom of Imeretta is fomething bigger than 
the Country of Guriel, and is the Iberia of the Anci- 
ents. It is encompafled with Mount Caucafus, Colchis, 
the Black-Sea, the Principality of Guriel, and Part of 
Georgia. It is twenty fix Miles in Length, and fixty 
Miles broad. The Country is full of Woods and 
Mountains, like Mingrelia, but the Valleys are more 
pleafant, and Plains more delicious, producing Corn, 
Pulfe, Cattle, and Herbs of all Sorts. There are fome 
Iron Mines. They have alfo fome Money current 
among them, which is coined in their Kingdom, and 
feveral Tovms ; but their Manners and Cuftoms differ 
little from the Mingrelians. The King has three good 
Caftles, one called Scander, feated on the Side of a 
Valley, and two on Mount Caucafus, call’d Regia and 
Scorgia, being both almoft inaccelTible, as being built 
in Places that Nature itfelf has wonderfully fortified, 
the River Pbafis running between them. The Fortrefs 
