A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels — Volume 01: Arranged in Systematic Order: Forming a Complete History of the Origin and Progress of Navigation, Discovery, and Commerce, by Sea and Land, from the Earliest Ages to the Present TimeKerr, Robert
History
A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels — Volume 01: Arranged in Systematic Order: Forming a Complete History of the Origin and Progress of Navigation, Discovery, and Commerce, by Sea and Land, from the Earliest Ages to the Present Time
Kerr, Robert
Voyages and travels
They appointed one to take care of us, and we went to the monk; and when we
were about to return to; our lodging, the interpreter came to us, saying,
that Mangu-khan gave us two months to stay, till the extreme cold were
past; and we might either go ten day's journey from thence to the city of
Caracarum, or might remain with the court. Then I answered, "God preserve
Mangu-khan, and grant him a long and happy life: We have found this monk,
whom we think a holy man, and we would willingly remain, and pray along
with him for the prosperity of the khan." We then went to our dwelling,
which we found very cold, as we had no fuel, and we were yet fasting,
though it was then night; but he who had the care of us provided us some
fuel and a little food; and our guide, who was now to return to Baatu,
begged a carpet from us which we had left in that court, which we gave him,
and he departed in peace.
SECTION XXXIII.
_Of a Woman of Lorain, and a Goldsmith of Paris, and several other
Christians, whom they found at the Court of Mangu-kkan_.
We had the good fortune to meet with a woman, named Pascha, from Metz in
Lorain, who belonged to the court of Cerina, who told us of the strange
poverty she had endured before she came to this court, but who now lived
well, as she had a young Russian husband, who was a skilful builder, and
much esteemed among them, by whom she had three fine children, and this
woman contributed all in her power to our comfort. She told us, that there
was a goldsmith at Caracarura, one William Bouchier from Paris, the son of
Lawrence Bouchier, and who had a brother, Roger Bouchier, yet living upon
the Great Bridge. She told me likewise, that he had a son who was an
excellent interpreter; but that Manga-khan had delivered to the goldsmith
300 jascots of silver, equal to 3000 marks, and fifty workmen, to make a
certain piece of work, so that she feared he would not then be able to
spare his son to interpret for us. I wrote to this goldsmith, requesting
him to send his son to me; he said in answer, that he could not at the
time, but would send him next moon, when his work would be finished. At the
court of Baatu no intercourse could be had with other ambassadors, as each
was under the charge of a particular _Jani_; but in that of Mangu, all were
under one Jani, and might see and converse with each other. We found here a
certain Christian from Damascus, who said that he came from the sultan of
Mons Regalis and Crax, who desired to become the ally and tributary of the
great khan.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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