The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoveries of the English Nation — Volume 09: Asia, Part IIHakluyt, Richard
History
The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoveries of the English Nation — Volume 09: Asia, Part II
Hakluyt, Richard
Discoveries in geography -- English; Voyages and travels
And whan the emperour dyethe, men setten him in a chayere in myddes the
place of his tent: and men setten a table before him clene, covered with a
clothe, and there upon flesche and dyverse vyaundes, and a cuppe fulle of
mares mylk: And men putten a mare besyde him, with hire fole, and an hors
saddled and brydeled; and thei leyn upon the hors gold and silver gret
quantytee: and thei putten abouten him gret plentee of stree: and than men
maken a gret pytt and a large; and with the tent and alle theise other
thinges, then putten him in erthe. And thei seyn, that whan he schalle come
in to another world, he schalle not ben with outen an hows, ne with owten
hors, ne with outen gold and sylver: and the mare schalle zeven him mylk,
and bryngen him forthe mo hors, tille he be wel stored in the tother world.
For thei trowen, that aftre hire dethe, thei schulle be etynge and
drynkynge in that other world, and solacynge hem with hire wifes, as thei
diden here. And aftre tyme, that the emperour is thus entered, no man
schalle be so hardy to speke of him before his frendes, And zit natheles
somtyme fallethe of manye, that thei maken hem to ben entered prevylly be
nyghte, in wylde places, and putten azen the grasse over the pytt for to
growe: or elle men coveren the pytt with gravelle and sond, that no man
schalle perceyve where, ne knowe where the pytt is, to that entent, that
never aftre, non of his frendes schulle han mynde ne rememberance of him.
And thanne thei seyn, that he is ravissht in to another world where he is a
grettre lord, than he was here. And thanne aftre the dethe of the emperour,
the 7 lynages assemblen hem to gidere, and chesen his eldest sone, or the
nexte aftre him, of his blood: and thus thei seye to him; wee wolen and wee
preyen and ordeynen, that zee ben oure lord and oure emperour. And thanne
he answerethe, zif yee wile, that I regne over zou, as lord, do eyeryche of
zou, that I schalle commanden him, outher to abyde or to go; and whom
soever that I commaunde to ben slayn, that anon he be slayn. And thei
answeren alle with o voys, what so evere zee commanden, it schalle be don.
Thanne seythe the emperour, now undirstondethe wel, that my woord from hens
forthe, is scharp and bytynge as a swerd. After men setten him upon a blak
stede, and so men bryngen him to a cheyere fulle richely arrayed, and there
thei crownen hym. And thanne alle the cytees and gode townes senden hym
ryche presentes; so that at that iourneye, he schalle have more than 60
chariottes charged with gold and sylver, with outen jewelles of gold and
precyouse stones, that lordes zeven hym, that ben withouten estymacioun:
and with outen hors and clothes of gold and of Camakaas and Tartarynes,
that ben with outen nombre.
Of the Roialme of Thurse and the Londes and Kyngdomes towardes the
Septentrionale parties, in comynge down from the Lond of Cathay.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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