OF THE LAW AND CUSTOMS OF THE TARTARS IN CATHAY; AND HOW MEN DO WHEN THE EMPEROR SHALL DIE, AND HOW HE SHALL BE CHOSEN.
The people of that country use all long clothes, without furs; and they are clothed with precious cloths of Tartary, and cloths of gold. And their clothes are slit at the side, and fastened with silk lace; and they clothe them also with pilches[399], the hide outside. And they use neither cap nor hood. And the women go in the same dress as the men; so that we can hardly distinguish the men from the women, except only that the women that are married bear upon their heads the token of a man's foot, in sign that they are under man's foot, and under the subjection of man. And their wives dwell not together, but each of them by herself; and the husband may lie with which of them he likes. Each has a separate house, both man and woman; and their houses are made round with staves, with a round window above, which gives them light, and also serves for the escape of smoke. And the roofing of their houses, and the walls, and the doors, are all of wood.
When they go to war, they take their houses with them upon chariots, as men do tents or pavilions. They make their fires in the middle of their houses. And they have a great multitude of all manner of beasts, except swine, which they do not breed. And they believe in one God, who made and formed all things; yet they have idols of gold and silver, and of wood, and of cloth, to which they offer always the first milk of their beasts, and also of their meats and drinks before they eat. And they frequently offer horses and beasts. They call the god of nature Yroga. Their emperor, whatever name he has, they add always to it chan; and, when I was there, their emperor's name was Thiaut, so that he was called Thiaut Chan; and his eldest son was called Tossue; and when he shall be emperor, he shall be called Tossue Chan. And at that time the emperor had twelve other sons, named Cuncy, Ordii, Chahaday, Buryn, Negu, Nocab, Cadu, Siban, Cuten, Balacy, Babylan, and Garegan. And of his three wives, the first and the principal, who was Prester John's daughter, was named Serioche Chan; and the other Borak Chan; and the other Karanke Chan.
The people of that country begin all undertakings in the new moon; and they worship much the moon and the sun, and often kneel towards them. All the people of the country ride commonly without spurs; but they carry always a little whip in their hands to urge their horses. And they hold it for a great sin to cast a knife in the fire, and to draw flesh out of a pot with a knife, and to smite a horse with the handle of a whip, or to smite a horse with a bridle, or to break one bone with another, or to cast milk or any liquor that men may drink upon the earth, or to take and slay little children; and the greatest sin that any man may do is to water in their houses that they dwell in. And whosoever does so, they slay him. And of every one of these sins they must be shriven by their priests, and pay a great sum of silver for their penance. The place they have thus defiled must be purified before any one dare to enter it. And when they have paid their penance, men make them pass through a fire, or through two, to cleanse them of their sins. And also when any messenger comes and brings letters, or any present, to the emperor, he must pass, with the thing that he brings, through two burning fires, to purge them, that he bring no poison nor venom, nor any wicked thing, that might be grievance to the lord. And also, if any man or woman be taken in adultery or fornication, anon they slay them. The people of that country are all good archers, and shoot right well, both men and women, as well on horseback, riding, as on foot, running. And the women do all things, and exercise all manner of trades and crafts, as of clothes, boots, and other things; and they drive carts, ploughs, wagons, and chariots; and make houses, and all manner of things, except bows and arrows, and armour, which are made by men. And all the women wear breeches, as well as men. All the people of that country are very obedient to their sovereign, and fight not nor chide with one another. And there are neither thieves nor robbers in that country, but every man respects the other; but no man there doth reverence to strangers, except they are great princes. And they eat dogs, lions, leopards, mares and foals, asses, rats, and mice; and all kinds of beasts, great and small, except only swine, and beasts that were forbidden by the old law. They eat but little bread, except in courts of great lords; and they have not, in many places, either peas or beans, nor any other pottage but the broth of the flesh; for they eat little else but flesh and the broth. And when they have eaten they wipe their hands upon their skirts; for they use no napkins nor towels, except before great lords. And when they have eaten, they put their dishes, unwashed, into the pot or cauldron, with the remnant of the flesh and broth, till they eat again. The rich men drink milk of mares, or camels, or of asses, or other beasts. And they are easily made drunk with milk, or with another drink made of honey and water sodden together; for in that country is neither wine nor ale. They live full wretchedly, and eat but once in the day, and that but little, either in courts or other places. Indeed one man alone, in our country, will eat more in a day than they will eat in three. And if any foreign messenger come there to a lord, men make him to eat but once a day, and that very little.
When they make war they proceed with great prudence, and always do their best to destroy their enemies. Every man there bears two or three bows, and great plenty of arrows, and a great axe; and the gentlemen have short and large spears, very sharp on the one side; and they have plates and helmets made of cuirbouilli[400]; and their horses' coverings are of the same. And whoever flies from battle, they slay him. And when they hold a siege about a castle or town, which is walled and defensible, they promise them that are within to do all the profit and good, that it is marvellous to hear; and they grant also to them that are within all that they will ask them; and after they have surrendered, they slay them all, and cut off their ears, and they pickle them in vinegar, and thereof make great service for lords. All their desire, and all their imagination, is to reduce all countries under their subjection; and they say that they know well, by their prophecies, that they shall be overcome by archers; but they know not of what nation, nor of what law, they shall be who shall overcome them.
When they will make their idols, or an image of any one of their friends, to have remembrance of him, they always make the image naked, without any kind of clothing; for they say that in good love there should be no covering, that man should not love for the fair clothing, nor for the rich array, but only for the body such as God hath made it.
And you shall understand that it is very perilous to pursue the Tartars when they fly in battle; for in flying they shoot behind them, and slay both men and horses. And when they fight, they close together in a body, so that, if there be twenty thousand men, you would not think there were ten thousand. They can conquer land of strangers, but they cannot keep it; for they like better to lie in tents without, than in castles or in towns. They despise all other people. Amongst them oil of olives is very dear; for they hold it for a very noble medicine. All the Tartars have small eyes and little beard, and a paucity of hair. They are false and traitorous, never keeping their promises. They are a very hardy people, and able to endure much labour, more than any other people; for they are accustomed thereto in their own country from youth.
And when any man shall die, they set a spear beside him; and when he draws towards death, every man flies out of the house till he is dead; and after that they bury him in the fields. And when the emperor dies, they place him in a chair in the centre of his tent, with a clean table before him, covered with a cloth, and thereon flesh and divers viands, and a cup full of mare's milk. And men put a mare beside him, with her foal, and a horse saddled and bridled; and they lay upon the horse great quantities of gold and silver, and they put about him great plenty of straw, and they make a great and large pit, and, with the tent and all these other things, they put him in the earth; and they say that when he shall come into another world, he shall not be without a house, nor without a horse, nor without gold and silver; and the mare shall give him milk, and bring him forth more horses, till he be well stored in the other world; for they believe that, after their death, they shall be eating and drinking in that other world, and solacing themselves with their wives, as they did here. And after the emperor is thus interred, no man shall be so hardy as to speak of him before his friends. Many cause themselves to be interred privately by night, in wild places, and the grass put again over the pit, to grow; or they cover the pit with gravel and sand, that no man shall perceive where the pit is, to the intent that never after may his friends have mind or remembrance of him. Then they say that he is ravished into another world, where he is a greater lord than he was here. And then, after the death of the emperor, the seven lineages assemble together and choose his eldest son, or the next after him of his blood; and thus they say to him:—"We will, and we pray and ordain, that you be our lord and our emperor." And then he answers, "If you will that I reign over you as lord, each of you do as I shall command him, either to abide or go; and whomsoever I command to be slain, that anon he be slain." And they answer all, with one voice, "Whatsoever you command, it shall be done." Then says the emperor, "Now understand well that my word from henceforth is sharp and biting as a sword." After, they set him upon a black steed, and so bring him to a chair full richly arrayed, and there they crown him. And then all the cities and good towns send him rich presents, so that at that day he shall have more than sixty chariots laden with gold and silver, besides jewels of gold and precious stones, that lords give him, that are beyond estimation; and also horses and cloths of gold, and camakas, and cloth of Tartary, that are innumerable.
Chapter XXIV.
OF THE REALM OF THARSE, AND THE LANDS AND KINGDOMS TOWARDS THE NORTH PARTS, IN COMING DOWN FROM THE LAND OF CATHAY.