euery man hath a stew[9] in his house, and therein they eat and do all things that them nedeth. And that is at the North part of the world, where it is commonly colde, for the Sonne cometh ne shineth but a little in that countrey, and that lande is in some places so colde, that there may no man dwel therein, and on the South side of the world it is in some places so hote, that there can no man dwel, the son giveth so great heate in those countreys. [Footnote 1: Khan.] [Footnote 2: For his dominions extend as far.] [Footnote 3: Wood.] [Footnote 4: Cook.] [Footnote 5: Cracow.] [Footnote 6: Darestan, or Silistria.] [Footnote 7: Marais or marshes, meres.] [Footnote 8: Sledges.] [Footnote 9: Stove.] CAP. XLIIII. INASMUCH as I haue told you of the Sarasins and of other landes, if ye will I shall tell you a parte of theyr law, and of theyr beleve, after as theyr boke sayeth, that they call Alkaron,[1] and some call that boke Mysap,[2] some call it Harme[3] in diverse language of countreys, which booke Machomet gave them, in y^e which boke he wrote among other things as I have often red and sene, that they that are good shall goe to Paradise, and the evill folkes to hell, and that beleeve all the Sarasyns. And if a man aske of what Paradise they meane, they say it is a place of delytes, where a man shall finde all maner of fruites at all times, and waters, and rivers running with milke & hony, wine and fresh water, and they shall have faire houses & good as they have deserved, and those houses are made of precious stones, gold & sylver & every man shall haue ten[4] wives and all maydens. Also they speake often & beleve of the Virgin Mary and tell of the Incarnation, that Mary was learned[5] of Aungels and that Gabriel sayd to hir that she was chosen before all other from the beginning of the world, and that wytnesseth well theyr booke, & Gabriel tolde hir of the incarnation of Jesu Christ, and that she shoulde conceive and beare a childe and they saye that Christ was a holy prophet in word & dede, and also meke & rightwise to all men, and without any blame worthy. And they saye that when the Aungell tolde hir of the incarnation, she hadde great dread, for she was righte younge, and there was one in the countrey that medled with sorcery, that men called Takina,[6] that with enchauntements could make him lyke an Aungell and he went often and lay with maidens, and therefore was Mary the more aferde[7] of the Aungell, and thought in hir mynde that it had bene Takina that went to maydens, and she conjured him that he should tell hir if he were the same Takina, and the Aungell bad hir have no dreade for he was for certayne a true messenger of Jesu Christ. Also theyr booke of Alkaron saith, that she had a child under a palme tree, then was she greatly ashamed and sayde that she woulde she had bene dead. As sone as hir childe was borne, he spake and comforted hir and sayd, _Ne timeas