How to make armour and instruments of warre, and howe to firme a squadron.
These bookes, and many others that the fryers brought, out of the which (as afore saide) haue been taken all such thinges as haue beene and shall be declared in this historie, interpreted by persons naturally borne in China, and brought vp in Philippinas with the Spaniards that dwell there, who affirme that they haue seene great libraries in cities where they abode, but especially in Ancheo and Chincheo.
CHAP. XVIII.
The order that these Chinos obserue in making bankets, and in celebrating their festiuall daies.
For that in some parts of this historie wee haue touched the bankets that the Chinos do make, it shall not bee amisse to declare here the order they vse therein, for that they are curious, and differ verie much from our order and vse in their banquetting, the which we haue perceiued as well by their feeding as by many other thinges.
Amongest these Chinos, more than amongest any other people of the world, are vsed bankets and feastes, for they are rich and without care, and also without the light of heauen, albeit they do confesse and beleeue the immortalitie of the soule, and the rewarde or punishment in an other worlde, according vnto their workes in this life (as we haue saide). All that euer they can, they doo giue themselues vnto the contentment of the flesh, and vnto all maner pastimes, wherein they liue most delicately, and in verie good order. Their custome is, although they haue a hundred guestes, yet euerie one must sit and eate at a table by himselfe. Their tables be verie fine, gilt and painted full of birdes and beastes, and other varieties verie pleasant vnto the eye. They do not vse to put table clothes on them, but onely a forefront of damaske, or some other silke, on euerie one of them, which hangeth downe to the ground; and on the foure corners they doo sette manie little baskettes curiously wrought with golde and siluer wyre, full of flowers and knackes of sugar, made with great curiositie, as elefantes, grayhoundes, hares, and all other kinde of beastes and foules, gylt and painted: in the middest of the table they doo sette the victualles in maruelous good order, as flesh of diuerse sortes, fowle, and fishes: of the which they make diuers manners of brothes passing well dressed, and are serued in fine earthen dishes of great curiositie, and of siluer (although these they vse verie seeldome, except for the viceroyes): they haue no neede of table clothes nor napkins, for they eate so delicately, that they doo not touch the meate with their handes, but with little forkes of golde or siluer, with the which they eate so cleanly, that although it be verie small that they eate, yet will they let nothing fall: they drinke often, but a little at a time, and therefore they vse verie little cuppes.
At these bankettes and feastes, there are present alwayes women gesters, who doo play and sing, vsing manie prettie gesters to cause delight, and make mirth to the gestes: besides these they haue diuerse sortes of men with other instruments, as tomblers and players, who doo represent their comedies verie perfectly and naturally: in these bankets they spende the greatest part of the day, by reason of so manie diuersities of meates that they serue in. They passe manie times a hundreth sundrie dishes, when that the estate of the person that is inuited, or of him that maketh the banket, dooth require. As may shew the report of the Augustine fryers, in the beginning of the second part of this historie: where one doth tell of bankets that were made him by the Insuanto, a gouernor of the prouince of Chincheo, and the uiceroy of Ancheo, and of the gallant deuices they had to driue away the time so long as the banket lasted. Unto euerie one of their guestes they doo set a table, euerie table standing one along by an other, making a difference of the number of them, according vnto the qualitie of the persons: vpon the first table (where sitteth he that is inuited) they set the victualles readie dressed, sweete meates, or march-panes,[129] which is the last seruice: and on the rest, although they be twentie, they set great store of diuerse kindes of meates, all rawe, as capons, ducks, teales, hennes, peeces of salt and martlemas biefe, gammons of bacon, and many other thinges. All these doo remaine vppon the tables till the banket be ended, and the guestes departed: then doo the seruantes of him that made the banket take all these rawe meates, and carrie them before their guestes till they come vnto their houses or lodges, where they doo leaue it with great ceremonies. When they doo make any banket to a viceroy or to any embassadour, it is with so great cost and sumptuousness, that they spend a great substance therein. These bankets do commonly indure twentie daies together, continuing vntill the last day as royally and as plentifully as the first day.
They do celebrate all their festiuall dayes in the night, which is ordinarily their newe moones; and they doo solemnize them with much musicke and newe inuentions. But more particularly they doo celebrate the first day of the yeare, which is, after their account, the first day of the moneth of March: on this day they apparell themselues verie costlye and sumptuouslie, both men and women, and doo adorne themselues with all their iewelles and newe toyes, and doo hang their houses and doores with carpettes and clothes of silke and cloth of golde, and dresse them vppe trimme with roses and other flowers, for at that time there is great store in that country: likewise they doo sette at all their doores great trees, on the which they doo hang manye lightes, and all the triumphall arches that bee in the streetes (which bee verye manie, as wee haue sayde) are decked with bowes this day: wherein they put manie lightes, and set full of canapies of cloth of gold, damaske, and manie other sundrie sorts of silkes.
Their priestes doo assist them in these feastes very richly apparelled, and doo offer sacrifice vpon their altars vnto the heauen, and vnto their idolles, and they sing many songes.