Chapter V: Appendix (3)

[Footnote 9: Seboym.]

CAP. XXXI.

_Of Abraham and his generation._

AND ye shall understande that Lothe was Arons sone, Abraham's brother, and Sara Abraham's wyfe was Loths syster, and Sara was xc yere olde when she gate Ysaac and Abraham had another son named Ismael that he had gotten on his mayden Ager. And when Ysaac was viii days olde he was circumcised and his other son Ismaell was cyrcumcised the same day and was xiiii yeare of age, therefore the Jewes that be of the generation of Isaac do circumcyse them at the viii day of theyr age and the Sarasyns that be of Ismaels kinde doe cyrcumsise them at theyr xiii yeare of age. And into that dead sea aforesayde runneth flome Jordan and maketh there an ende and this is within a myle of saint Jhons church & a lyttle beneth that same church Westward, were the Christen men are wont to bath them & a myle thence is the river Loth, through which Jacob went when he came from Mesopotamye.

CAP. XXXII.

_Of the river Jordan._

THIS flom Jordan is no great ryver nor depe, but there is much good fishe therein, and it commeth from mount Lybany from two welles, that men call Jor and Dane and of them it taketh the name. And upon the one syde of that river is mount Gelboe,[1] and there is a fayre playne. And on that other syde men goe by mount Lybany, to the desert of Pharon.[2] These hylles departe the kingdome of Surry and the countreys of Phenys.[3] On that hyll grow Cedres that beare longe apples which are as muche as a mannes heade. Thys flom Jordan departeth Galily and the lande of Idumea and the lande of Botron[4] & it runneth into a playne that men call Meldam[5] in Sarasyns language, and in Englyshe, fayre, because ofte tymes bee there kepte great fayres, and in the playne is the tombe of Job. In this flom Jordane our Lord was baptised, and there was the voice of the Father hearde saying, _Hic est filius meus dilectus, in quo mihi bene complacui, ipsum audite_. That is to saye in English, Here is my sonne that I love, in whome I am well pleased, heare him. And the holy ghost descended on him in lykenesse of a doue & so was there in thys baptysing all the Trinitie. And through the flome Jordan passed the children of Israell all dry, and they sette stones in the myddest of the water, in token of great myracle. And also in that flome Naaman of Surry bathed him, that was mesel, and he was made hole, and a lyttle from thence is the citie of Hay, the which Josue assayled and toke. And about flom Jordan are many churches where Christen men dwel, also by flom Jordan, is the vale of Mambre that is a fayre vale & a plenteous.

[Footnote 1: Gilboa.]

[Footnote 2: Pharan.]

[Footnote 3: Ph[oe]nicia.]

[Footnote 4: Betron.]

[Footnote 5: In all probability the same as the Arabic word
_Multamin_, which means a congregation of visitors.]

CAP. XXXIII.

_Of many other mervailes._

AND ye shall understande, that for to go from the dead sea afterward out of the marche of the land of promissions, is a stronge Castell that men call Carran[1] in Sermoys, that is to saye, the kinges hyll in English. This castell did a King of Fraunce make, that men call Baudewin, that had conquered all that lande, and put it into Christen mens handes to kepe, and under that castell is a fayre towne that men call Sabaoth, and there about dwell many Christen men under tribute. And then go men to Nazareth, of the which our Lord had his name. And from Nazareth unto Hierusalem is three dayes journey. Also men go through the province of Galyle, through Romacha,[2] through Sophyn,[3] and through the hygh hill of Effrayne,[4] where Anna that was Samuells mother the prophet dwelled, & there was the prophete borne and after his deathe was buried at mount Joye as I have sayde. And after come men to Sybula,[5] where the Arke of God was kepte under Helye[6] the Prophete. And there made the people of Israell[7] theyr sacrafyce unto our Lorde. Also there spake our Lorde fyrst unto Samuell and there mynistered God the sacrament. Also nere there at the lefte side is Gabaon[8] and Rama[9] & Benjamin of the which holy writ speaketh. After that come men to Sychem, that some men call Sycar and this is in the province of Samaritanes, and sometime there was a Church, but it is all wasted, and it a faire vale and plenteous, and there is a good citie that men call Neople,[10] and from thence it is a dayes journey unto Hierusalem. And there is the well where oure Lorde spake to the woman of Samaritane, and Sechen is ten myle from Hierusalem and it is called Neople, that is to saye, the new towne. And there is the Temple of Joseph, Jacobs sonne, that governed Egipte, and from thence were his bones brought and layde in the temple, and thyther came Jewes often in pilgrimage with great devotion, and in that citie was Jacob's daughter Diana ravished, for whom hir brethren slewe many men, and thereby is the citie of Garysim[11] where the Samaritanes make their sacrifyce.

On this hill wold Abraham haue sacryfised his sonne Isaac and there nere is the vale Dotaym,[12] and there is the cesterne that Josephe was cast in of his bretherne before that they solde him, and it is two myle to Sichar, and fro thence men come to Samary,[13] that men call Sabaste, and that is the chiefe citie of that countrey, and in that citie was the seat of the twelve Kynges of Israell, but it is not so great as it was. And there was saint John Baptist buried betwene two prophetes Helyas[14] and Abdon,[15] but he was beheaded in the castell of Makaryn besyde the dead sea and he was translated[16] of his disciples and buried at Samary, but there dyd Julius apostata take hys bones and brente[17] them, for he was that tyme Emperour, but that finger with whiche hee shewed our Lord saying, _Ecce Agnus dei_, That is to say, Beholde the lamb of God, and that finger might not bee brent, and sainct Tecla[18] the Virgin did bring this finger under the Alphen,[19] that be mountaynes, where they do it great worshippe. And there was sainct Jhon Baptist head closed in a wall, but the Emperour Theodosius did take it out, and found it lapped in a clothe all bloudie, and bare it to Constantinople, and there is yet the one halfe of the head, and the other is at Rome in Saint Sylvesters church, & the vessell wherein his head was layde when it was smitten of is at Geene,[20] and they do it great worship. Some saye that Sainct Jhons hedde is at Amiens in Pycardy, and some say it is saincte Johns head the byshop. I wot not but to God it is knowne.

[Footnote 1: In some other editions called Carak.]

[Footnote 2: Ramoth.]

[Footnote 3: Sodom.]

[Footnote 4: Ephraim.]

[Footnote 5: Shiloh.]

[Footnote 6: Eli.]

[Footnote 7: Hebron.]

[Footnote 8: Gibeon.]

[Footnote 9: Ramah.]

[Footnote 10: Neapolis.]

[Footnote 11: Gerizim.]

[Footnote 12: Dothan.]

[Footnote 13: Samaria.]

[Footnote 14: Elisha.]

[Footnote 15: Abdias.]

[Footnote 16: Carried away.]

[Footnote 17: Burnt.]

[Footnote 18: Was an English woman, and was invited by St.
Boniface into Germany, where she was made Abbess of Kissengen,
near Wurtzburg in Bavaria.]

[Footnote 19: Alps.]

[Footnote 20: Genoa.]

CAP. XXXIIII.

_Of the Samaritanes._

FROM Sebasten to Hierusalem is xii myle and betwene the hylles of this countrey is a well, that men call _fons Jacob_, That is to say Jacobs well, that chaungeth foure times in the yeare his coloure, for sometyme it is redde, sometymes cleare, sometime grene and sometyme thycke, and men that dwell there are called Samarytanes, & they were converted through the Apostles and theyr law varieth from Christen law and Sarasins lawe and also from Jewes & Paynims. They beleve well in one God that all shall deme,[1] and beleve the Byble after the lettre, and they lappe theyr heads in redde linnen cloth, for difference of other, for Sarasins wrap theyr heads in white cloth & christen men that dwell there in blew cloth, and Jewes in yelow, and in this country dwell many Jewes paying tribute as Christen men doth.

[Footnote 1: Regard, consider, or suppose.]

CAP. XXXV.

_Of Galyle._

FROM this countrey that I have spoken of, men go to the playne of Galyle and leave the hyll on the one side and Galyle is of the province of the lande of promyssion and in that province is the lande of Naym and Capharnaym and Corasaym and at Bethsayda was Saint Peter & Saint Andrew borne. At Carasaym shall Antechrist be borne, and as some men say he shall be borne in Babilon therefore sayd the Prophet, _De babilonia Coluber exiet, qui totum mundum devorabit_, That is to say, Of Babilon shall come a serpent that shall devoure all the worlde. And this Antechrist shall be nourished in Bethsayde and shall raign in Corasaym, therefore sayth holy writ, _Ve tibi Corasaim Ve tibi Bethsayda_, that is to say, Wo be to the Corasaim, Wo be to the Bethsayda. And the cave of Galyle is foure myle from Nazareth. Of that citie was the woman of Cananee, of whome the Gospell speaketh, and there our Lorde did the fyrst myracle at the wedding at the Archedeclyne[1] when he turned water into wine. And from thence men go unto Nazareth that was sometime a great Citie, but now there is but a lyttle towne and it is not walled, and there was our Lady borne, the name toke our Lorde of this Citie, but our Ladie was gotten at Hierusalem. At Nazareth Joseph toke our lady to wyfe whan she was fourtene yeare of age, and there the aungell saluted hir sayinge, _Ave gratia plena Dominus tecum_, That is to saye, Hayll full of grace the Lord be with thee. And there was sometime a great Church, and now is there but a lyttle closet to receive the offryngs of the Pylgrymes, and there is the well of Gabryell where our Lorde was wont to bathe him in wan he was lyttle. At Nazareth was our Lord nouryshed, and Nazareth is to say floure of gardeyn & it may be well called so, for there was nourished the floure of lyfe, that was our lorde Jesu Christ. At halfe a myle from Nazareth is the bloude[2] of our Lorde, for the Jewes ledde him upon an hyghe roche to cast him downe & slea him, but Jesu Christ passed them and lepte on a roche where his steps be yet sene, & therefore some when they dreade them of theves or else of enemies, say thus, _Jesus autem transiens per medium illorum ibat_. And they say also these verses of the Psalter three tymes, _Irruat super eos formido & pavor in magnitudine brachii tui Domine Fiant immobiles quasi lapis, donec per transeat populus tuus domine, & populus iste quem redemisti_. And so when all this is sayd, a man may go without any lettyng.[3] Also ye shall understande and know that our blessed Lady bare hir chylde whan she was xv yeare of age, and she lived with hym xxxii[4] yeare and three monethes, and after his passion she lived xxii[4] yeare.

[Footnote 1: _Pynson_ says Archetryclyne, [Greek:
Architriklinos], the president of a banquet.]

[Footnote 2: Should be _leap_.]

[Footnote 3: Hindrance.]

[Footnote 4: Other editions say 33 and 24, which would make
the Virgin's age 72 when she died (see _ante_, p. 70).]

CAP. XXXVI.

_The way of Nazareth to the mount or hyll of Tabor._

AND from Nazareth to the mounte Tabor is thre[1] myle, and there our Lord transfygured hym before sainct Peter, sainct Jhon & sainct James. And there they saw ghostly[2] our Lorde and Moyses and Helye the prophetes. And therefore Sainct Peter sayde, _Bonum est nos hic esse, faciamus tria tabernacula_, That is to say, It is good to us to be here, make we three tabernacles. And our lord Jesu Chryste bad them that they should say it to no man, unto the time that he was rysen from death to lyfe. And uppon the same hyll shall foure aungels sowne[3] theyr trompets, and rayse all men that are dead to lyfe, and then shall they come in bodie and Soule to the Judgement, but the Judgement shall be in the Vale of Josaphat on Easterday, at the same tyme as our Lorde rose from death to lyfe. And also a myle from mounte Tabor is mount Hermon, and ther was the citie of Namy,[4] before the gates of the Citie our Lord raysed the wydowes sone, that had no more Chyldren.

[Footnote 1: Others say 4.]

[Footnote 2: In a spiritual shape.]

[Footnote 3: Sound.]

[Footnote 4: Nain.]

CAP. XXXVII.

_Of the sea of Galyle._

AND from thence men go to a citie that men call Tyberyen,[1] that sitteth[2] on the sea of Galyle, it is no sea ne arme of the sea, for it is but a staumble[3] of fresh water, and it is no more than an hundred furlongs long and XL brode, and therein is many good fyshes. And by that same sea, standeth many good cities, and therefore thys sea chaungeth often his name after the cities that stande thereupon, but it is all one water or sea and upon this sea, our Lorde went dry fote and there sayde he to Peter when he came on the water, & was nere drowned, _Modice fidei quare dubitasti?_ That is to saye, Thou of lyttle fayth, why hadst thou doubte.

[Footnote 1: Tiberias.]

[Footnote 2: On the borders of.]

[Footnote 3: A pool or lake.]

CAP. XXXVIII.

_Of the table whereon Christ eat after his resurrection._

IN this citie of Tiberyen is the table that Christ eat on with his disciples after his resurrection & they knew him in breaking of bread (as holy writ saith) _Et cognoverunt eum in fractione Panis_. That is to say, they knew him in breaking of bread. And aboute the hyll of Tiberien is the citie where our Lord fed v thousand people with five Barly loves and two fishes, and in that same citie did men cast in anger a fierbrand or burning stick after our Lord, but the same burning sticke did fall on the earth, and incontinent grew out of the same sticke a tree, and is waxen a bigge tree, and groweth yet, and the scales of the tree be all blacke. And ye shall understand that flom Jordan beginneth under the hill of Libany, & there beginneth the lande of promission, and it lasteth under Barsabe[1] of length, & from the North part to the South, it holdeth ix score myle and of breadth from Jerico to Jaffe it is XL mile, and ye shall understande that the lande of promission beginneth at the Kingdome of Surry and lasteth unto the wildernesse of Araby.

[Footnote 1: Beersheba.]

CAP. XXXIX.

_Of straunge maners and divers._

AND in this countrey & in many other landes over the sea, it is a maner when they have warre and cities or castels beseged so strongly that they may send no messages to any lordes for socour then they write their letters & binde them about the neckes of doves and let them flie their wayes, bicause the dove is of that nature that he will returne againe to the place where he is brought up, and thus they do commonly in that countrey. And ye shal wete that among the Sarasins in many places dwel christen men under tribute and they are of divers maners, and divers maners of monkes, and they are all christened and have divers lawes, but they all beleve well in our Lord God, the father, the sonne, & in the Holy ghost, but yet they fayle in the articles of our faith, and they are called Jacobyns. For sainct James converted theym to the fayth, and sainct John baptised them, and they say that men shall onely shryve[1] them unto God, & not unto man for they saye that God bad not man shryve him unto another man. And therefore saith David in the Psalter in this maner of wise, _Confitebor tibi, domine in toto Corde meo, &c._ That is to saye, Lord I shall shrive me unto thee in all my hart. And in another place he saith thus, _Delictum meum tibi cognitum feci_. That is to saye, My trespasse I have made knowne unto thee. And in another place, _Deus meus es tu & confitebor tibi_. That is to saye, Thou art my god and I shall be shriven to thee. And in another place _Quoniam cogitatio hominis confitebitur tibi_, &c. That is to say, The thought of man shal be shriven to thee, and they knowe well the Bible and Psalter but they say it not in latin, but in their owne language, and they saye that David and other prophetes have sayde it. But Sainct Austyn and Saynct Gregory say, _Qui scelera sua cogitat, & conversus fecerit, veniam sibi credat_, That is to say, Who so knowith his syn and turneth, he may beleve to have forgivenesse. And Sainct Gregory sayth thus, _Dominus potius mentem, quam verbum considerat_, That is to saye, Our Lord taketh more kepe[2] to thought, than to worde, and Sainct Hilarius sayth, _Longorum temporum crimina, ictu oculi pereunt, si cordis nata fuerit compunctio_, That is to say, Synnes that are done of olde tyme perysh in twinkling of an eye, if despising of them be born in a mans heart. And therefore say they, men shal shrive them onely to God, by these authorities, & this (_it_) was the Apostles, & popes that came sithen haue ordeyned, that men shall shrive them to priestes & men as they are, & the cause is this, for they saye that a man that hath a sicknesse, men may giue him no good medecines but they know y^t kinde of the sicknesse, also they say a man may give no covenable[3] penaunce but if he know y^e sin. For there is a maner of synne that is grevouser to one man than it is to another, and therefore it is nedefull that a man should know and understande the kinde of sinne. And there be also other men that men call Surryens and they hold halfe our faith, and halfe the faith of the Grekes and they have longe berdes as the Grekes have.

And there ben[4] other that men call Georgiens, whome sainct George converted, and they doe more worship to halowes[5] of heaven than other doe, and they haue their crownes shaven, the clerkes haue rounde crowns, and the lewde[6] have crownes square, & they holde the Grekes lawe. And there be other that men call christen men of gyrding,[7] for as much as they were gyrdels underneth, some other men call Nestoryens, some Aryens, some Nubyens, some Gregours, and some Indiens that are of Prester Johns lande, and euery one of those haue some artycles of our belefe. But eche of them varye from other, and of their varyaunce it were to muche to declare.[8]

[Footnote 1: Confess.]

[Footnote 2: Heed.]

[Footnote 3: Convenient.]

[Footnote 4: Be.]

[Footnote 5: Saints.]

[Footnote 6: Common people.]

[Footnote 7: This arose from a curious ordinance in A.D. 856
of the Khalif Motawakkel, who ordered both Jews & Christians
to wear leather girdles; hence those Christians who lived in
Syria were called "Christians of the girdle."]

[Footnote 8: Tell.]

CAP. XL.

_For to turne on this syde of Galyle._

NOW sythen I haue tolde you of many maners of men, that dwell in the countreys before said, now will I tourne againe to my waye for to tourne uppon this side. Now he that will tourne from the lande of Galyle, that I spake of, to come on this syde, he shall go through Damas that is a fayre citie & full of good marchaundises, and it is three Journeys from the sea and five journeis from Hierusalem, but they cary marchaundises upon camels, mules, horses and dromedaries and other maner of beastes. This citie of Damas founded Helyzeus, that was Abrahams servaunte before Ysaac was borne, and he thought to haue bene Abrahams heyre and therefore he named that citie Damas. And in that place slew Cayne his brother Abel, and besyde Damas is y^e mount of Syry, and in y^t Citie is many a Phisicion & y^t holy man. S. Paule was a phisicion to saue mens bodys before y^t he was Converted, and after, he was a phisicyon of soules. And from Damas men come by a place called our Lady of Sardmarch,[1] that is fiue myle from Damas & it is on a roch & there is a fayre churche and there dwell Monkes & Nunnes, crysten, in the church, behynde the high auter is a table of tree,[2] on the whiche table the ymage of our lady was depainted that many tymes was turned into fleshe, but the ymage is now sene but a lyttle, but evermore through grace of God, the table droppeth oyle, as it were an Olyfe, & there is a vessell of marble under the table to receive the oyle, thereof they giue to Pylgrimes, for it maketh whole many sicknesses, and he that kepeth it clenely a year, after a yeare, it turneth to fleshe and bloud. Betwene the citie of Darke and the citie of Raphane is a ryver that men call Sabatory, for on the Saterday it runneth fast, and all the weeke else it standeth styll and runneth not or little. And there is another ryver that in the night freseth fast and upon the day no frost is seene. And so men go by a citie that men call Berugh,[3] and there men go into the sea that will go into Cipres and they aryve at a porte of Sur or of Thyrry[4] & then men go to Cipres, or else men go or may goe from the porte of Thyry ryght, and come not to Cypres and arryve at some haven of Grece & there come men into those countreys by ways that I haue spoken of before.

[Footnote 1: Others say Sardenak.]

[Footnote 2: On wood panel.]

[Footnote 3: Others say Beruthe.]

[Footnote 4: Tyre.]

CAP. XLI.

_How a man may go furdest and longest in those countreys as
heare are rehersed._

NOWE have I tolde you of wayes by the whiche men goe furthest and longeste, as by Babylon and mount Synay, and other places many, through the which landes men turne againe to the lande of promission. Now will I tell you the way of Hierusalem, for some men will not passe it, some for they have no company[1] and many other causes resonable and therefore I shall tell you shortely how a man may go with lyttle coste and short tyme.

A man that commeth from the lande of the Weast, he goeth through Fraunce, Burgoyn,[2] Lumberdy & to Venys or to Geen[3] or some other haven of those marches, and take there a ship and go to the yle Gryffe,[4] and so arryveth he in Grece, or else at port Myrock,[5] or Valon or Duras or some other haven of those marches, and to go lande for to reste hym, and goeth againe to the sea and arryveth at Cypres and commeth not in the yle of Rodes and arriveth at Famagost that is the Chiefe haven of Cypres or else at Lamaton, And then enter shyppe againe, and passe besyde the haven of Tyre and come not to lande, and so passeth by all the havens of the coste, untill he come to Jaffe, that is the next hauen to Hierusalem, for it is xxviii[6] myle betwene. And from Jaffe men go to the Citie of Ramos[7] & that is but little thence, & it is a fayre citie & beside Ramos is a fayre churche of our lady, where our lord shewed hym unto hir in three shadowes, that betokeneth the trinitie, and there nere is a church of Sainct George where his head was smitten of, and then to the Castell of Emaux, and then to the mount Joye & from thence pilgrimes see Hierusalem, and then to mount Modyn & then go to Hierusalem. At mount Modyn lyeth the prophet Machabe,[8] and over Ramatha[9] is the towne of Donke, whereof Amos the prophet was.

[Footnote 1: _i.e._, it was unsafe to go alone.]

[Footnote 2: Burgundy.]

[Footnote 3: Genoa.]

[Footnote 4: In some editions Gryffh, Grif, or Gresse,
probably Crete.]

[Footnote 5: In other editions Moroche or Myroche.]

[Footnote 6: Others say 27.]

[Footnote 7: Rames, Ramla.]

[Footnote 8: Maccabeus.]

[Footnote 9: Ramah Gibeon.]

CAP. XLII.

_Of othar wayes for to go by lande unto Hierusalem._

FOR as muche, as many men may not suffer the savour of the sea, & better it is to go by lande even if it be more payne, and a man shall go to one of the havens of Lumberdy as Venys or another, and he shall passe into Grece to port Myroche, or another and shall goe to Constantinople, and shall passe the water that is called the brache of Saynt George that is an arme of the sea. And from thence ye shall come to Pulveral, and then to the castel of Synople. And from thence shall ye go unto Capadoce, that is a great countrey, wherein is many great hylles and he shall go thorow Turky, and to the citie of Nike, the which they wan from the Emperour of Constantinople, and it is a faire citie and well walled, and there is a river that men call the Lay, and there go men by the Alpes of Mormaunt, & through the vales of Malebrynes and the vale of Ernax, and so to Antioche lesser, that sitteth on the river richly, and there is about many good hills & fayre and many fayre woddes and wild beastes. And he that will go another way, he goeth by ye plaine of the Romain[1] Coste and the Romaine sea. On that coste is a fayre castell that men call Florage, and when a man is oute of the hilles, he passeth through the citie of Moryach and Artose, where there is a great bridge upon the river of Ferne, that men call Fassor,[2] & it is a great river bering ships, and beside the citie of Damas, is the river that cometh from the mount of Libany, and that men call Alban,[3] at the passing of this river Sainct Eustache lost his two sonnes when he had lost his wife. And it goeth through the playne of Archades, & to the red sea, and then men go to the citie of Fermyne, and so to the citie of Ferne, and then to Antioche & that is a fayre citie and well walled, for it is two myle long, and there is a bridge over the river, that hath at eche pillar, a good tower, and is the best citie of the Kingdome of Surrey. From Antioche, men go to the citie of Locuth[4] and so to Geble[5] and to Tortouse,[6] & thereby is the lande of Lambre & a strong castell, that men call Mambeke. And from Tortouse, men go to Trypelle[7] on the sea, and upon the sea men go to Dacres,[8] and there is two wayes to Hierusalem, on the lefte way men go first unto Damas by flom Jordan, and on the right syde men go throughe the lande Flagme and so to the citie of Cayphas,[9] in which citie Cayphas was lorde, & some call it the castell Pelleryus and from thence it is foure dayes journey to Hierusalem & they go throughe Cesarye Phylyp,[10] and Jaffe, and Ramas, Eumaux, & so forth to Hierusalem.

[Footnote 1: Roumanian.]

[Footnote 2: ? Pharphar of the Scriptures.]

[Footnote 3: ? Abana.]

[Footnote 4: Latakijah.]

[Footnote 5: Jebili.]

[Footnote 6: Tortosa.]

[Footnote 7: Tripoli.]

[Footnote 8: Acre.]

[Footnote 9: Caiffa.]

[Footnote 10: Philippi.]

CAP. XLIII.

_Yet another way by lande toward the lande of promission._

NOW haue I tolde you some wayes by land and by water how men may go to Hierusalem. And if it be so that there be many other wayes that men go by, after the countreys that they come from, neverthelesse they tourne all to one ende, yet is there a way all by land to Hierusalem, & passe no sea from Fraunce or Flaunders, but that way is full longe and perylous & of great travaile, & therefore few go that way, he that goeth that way, he goeth through Almayn & Pruse and so to Tartary, this Tartary is holden of the great Cane,[1] of whome I shall speake afterwarde, for thether lasteth[2] his lordeshippe, and all the lords of Tartary yelde to him tribute. Tartary is a full evill land, sandy and a lytle fruite bearing, for there groweth but little corne or fruyte, but bestes are there great plentie, and therefore eate they but fleshe without breade, and they sup the broth, and they drynke mylke of all maner of bestes, they eat Cattes, and all maner of wyld bestes, rattes & myce, and they haue but lyttle wodde,[3] and therefore they dyght[4] theyr meate with horse dounge & other bestes doung, when it is dry. Princes and other lordes eate but ones in the day, and ryght lyttle, and they be ryght foule folke, and of evyll lyking, and in somer there is many tempests and thonders, that sleaeth many men & bestes (_sodainly it is_) right colde, and sodainly it is right hot. The Prince that governeth that land they call him Roco and he dwelleth at a Citie that men call Orda, and forsoth there is no man that will dwell in that lande, for it is good to sow in thornes & wedes, other good is there none, as I herd say, for I was not that way, but I have bene in other lordes landes marching thereon, and the land of Rossye and Nyflonde & the Kingedome of Grecon[5] and Lectowe, and the kingdome of Grasten[6] & in many other places, but I went neuer that way to Hierusalem & therefore I may not tell it, for I haue understande, that men may not well go that way but in winter, when the waters and marys[7] that be in that lande be frosen and covered with snow, so that men may passe thereon, for were not the snow, there might no man go in that lande but he wer lost. And ye shall understande that a man shall go three days journey from Pruse to passe this waye, tyll he come to the lande of Sarasyns, that men dwell in. And if by fortune any christen men passe that way, as once a yeare they doe, they cary theyr vitale with them, for they shoulde finde nothing there but a maner of things that they call Syleys, and they cary theyr vytales upon the yce on sleddes[8] and charyottes without wheles, and as long as theyr vitayles laste, they may dwell there, but no longer. And when spyes of the countrey see christen men come, they runne to the towns and castels and cry right loude, Kera, Kera, Kera, and as sone as they haue cryed, then dothe the people arme them. And ye shall understande that the yse there is harder than it is here, and 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 Maria_, That is to say, Be not afraide Mary. And in many other places, sayth theyr booke Alkaron, that Jesu Christ spake as sone as he was borne, & the booke sayth that Jesu Christ was sent of Almighty God to be ensample to all men, and that God shall deme[8] all men, the good to heaven and the wicked to hell & that Jesu Christ is the best prophete of all other and nexte to God and that he was a holy prophet, for he gave to the blynde theyr sight, and heled Mesels[9] & raysed men and went all quick[10] to heaven. And if they may finde a boke with gospels, namely, _Missus est Angelus_, they doe it great worship, they fast a moneth in the yere & they eate but in the night, and they kepe them from theyr wyves, but they that are syke are not Constrayned to that. And that booke Alkaron speaketh of Jewes and sayth, they are wicked people for they will not beleve that Jesu Christ is of God. And they say, y^t the Jewes lye on our Lady and hir sonne Jesu Christ, saying that they did him not on the crosse, for Sarasyns beleve so nere our fayth, that they are lightly converted when men preche the lawe of Jesu Christ, and they saye that they wote well by theyr prophicies, that theyr lawe of Machomet shall fayll as doth the law of Jews and that Christen mens laws shall last unto the worlds ende. And if a man aske them wherein they beleve they say that they beleve in god almightie, that is the maker of heaven and earth and all other things and without him is nothing done and at the day of Judgement when euery man shall be rewarded after his deserving, & that all things is soth[11] that Christ said through the mouthes of his prophetes.

[Footnote 1: The Koran.]

[Footnote 2: Some say Meshaf. Mishaf means written sheets of
paper.]

[Footnote 3: Harme is "Haram," _sacred_.]

[Footnote 4: Some say 80.]

[Footnote 5: Taught by.]

[Footnote 6: Other editions have Taknia.]

[Footnote 7: Afraid.]

[Footnote 8: Judge.]

[Footnote 9: Lepers.]

[Footnote 10: Alive.]

[Footnote 11: True.]

CAP. XLV.

_Yet it treateth more of Machomet._

ALSO Machomet badde in his boke Alkaron, that euery man shoulde haue two wives or three or foure, but now they take nine and as many lemmans as them liketh, & if any of their wives doe amisse against their husbandes, he may driue hir out of his house, and take another, but he must giue to hir part of his goodes. Also when men speake of the Father, and the Sonne, and holy Ghost, they saye they are three persons, but not one God, for their boke Alkoran speaketh not thereof, nor of the trinitie, but they say that God spake or else he was dumb, and that God hath a ghost,[1] or else he were not alive, & they say Gods word hath great strength, and so saith theyr Alkaron & they say that Abraham and Moyses were greatly in favor with God, for they spake with him, & Machomet was right messenger of God. And they haue many good articles of our faith and some understand the scriptures, profites, gospels, and the Bible, for they haue them written in theyr language, in this maner they knowe holy writ, but they understande it not, but after the letter and so do the Jewes, for they understande it not, but after their letter ghostly, and therefore saith Sainct Paule, _Litera occidit: Spiritus vivificat_--that is to say, Letter dieth, and ghost maketh quicke. And the Sarasins say y^t Jewes are wicked, for they kepe not y^e lawe of Moyses the which he toke to them, & also chrysten men are yll, for they kepe not the commaundments of the gospels that Jesu Christ sent unto them & therefore I shall tell you what the Soudan tolde me upon a daye in his chamber, voiding[2] out all other men, as Lordes, Knightes & other, for he woulde speke with me in counsel, and then asked he me how christen men governed them in our countrey and I aunswered him & sayd, right well thankes be to God; & he sayd, secretly nay, for he sayd that our priestes made no force of gods service, for they shoulde giue good example to men, to doe well, and they giue ill example, and therefore when the people should go on the holy daies to church to serve God they go to the taverne to sin in glotony both day and nighte, and eate and drink as bestes, that wot not when they haue had ynough, and also Christen men he sayde, inforced them to fight together & eche to begile other and they are so proude, that they wot not how they may cloth them, now short, now long, now straite now wyde, of all manner of fassions. They shoulde be simple, meke and softe, and doe theyr almes as Jesu Christe dyd, in whome they beleve, and he sayde they are so covetouse, that for a lyttle money they sell theyr children, theyr systers, and theyr wyves, and one taketh another mans wife, and none holdeth his fayth to other, therefore sayde he, for theyr sinnes hath God given these landes to our handes, and not through our strength, but all for your synnes. For we wot well, that when that ye serve well your god, that he wyll helpe you, so that no man shall winne of you, if that ye serve your god as ye oughte to doe, but while they lyve so sinfully as they doe, we have no dread[3] on them, for theyr God shall not helpe them. And then I asked him how that he knew the state of Chrysten men in that maner, & he sayde that he knewe well both of lordes and of commons, by his messengers which he sent through all the countreys as it were merchants with precious stones & other marchandise to know the manner of euery countrey. And then he did call againe all the lordes into his chamber to us & then shewed he unto me iiii persons that were great lordes of that countrey, that shewed me the maner of my countrey, and of all Christendome, as though they had bene men borne in the same partes, and they speak french right well and the Soudain also, and then I had greate marvaile of this slaunder of our faith and so they that should bee turned by our good examples to the fayth of Jesu Christe, they are drawen away through our evyl living, and therefore it is no wonder if that they call us evyll, for they saye soth, but the Sarasins are true for they kepe truly the commaundements of their Alkaron that God sent them by his messenger Machomet, to whome they say, Gabryell the Aungell spake often, and tolde to him the will of God.

[Footnote 1: Spirit.]

[Footnote 2: Turning.]

[Footnote 3: Fear of.]

CAP. XLVI.

_Of the byrth of Machomet._

AND ye shall understande y^t Machomet was borne in Araby, and that he was first a pore drudge & kept horse & went after marchaundise. And so he came once into Egipt with marchaundise & Egipt was the same time Christen, & there was a chappell besyde Araby, & there was an hermite & when he came to the chappell y^t was but a lyttle house and a lowe, as sone as he entered, it began to be as great as it were of a palas gate and that was the first miracle that the Sarasyns saye that he did in his youth. After began Machomet to be wise and rich and became a great Astronomer, and sithen was he keper of the lande of the prince Corodan and governed it full well, in such maner that when the prince was dead he maryed the lady y^t men call Quadryge.[1] And Mahomet fell often in the falling evill,[2] wherefore the lady was wroth that she had taken him unto hir husband, & he made hir to understande that every tyme that he fell so, he said that Gabriel the aungell spake to him, and for the great brightnesse of the aungell he fell downe. This Machomet raigned in Araby the yeare of our Lord, vi hundred and xx[3] and he was of the kinde of Ismael that was Abrahams son that he begat of Agar, and other are called Sarasins of Sara, but some are called Moabites and some Amenites after the two sons of Loth. And also Machomet loved well a good man an hermite that dwelled in the wildernesse a myle from Mounte Sinay in the way as men go from Araby to Caldee, and a dayes journey fro the sea where marchaunts of Venice come, and Machomet went so often to this hermyte that all his men were wroth, for he harde[4] gladly the hermit preach, and his men did walke all the night & thought they would this hermyte were dead. So it befell on a night that Machomet was full dronken of good wine, and he fell in a slepe, and his men toke Machomets sworde out of his sheath whyles he lay and slept, and therewith they slew the Hermit, and afterwarde they put up the sword againe all bloudy, and upon the morow when that he founde the Hermite thus dead, he was in his mynde verye angry, and right wroth, and woulde haue done his men unto the death, but they all with one accorde, and with one will sayde that he himselfe hadde slaine hym when he was dronken, and they shewed his own swerd all bluddy & then he beleved that they sayde soth, & then cursed the wine & all those that drank it. And therefore Sarasins that are devout drinke no wine openly, else they should be reprouved but they drynke good beverage & sweete & nourishing that is made of Calamelles, and thereof is suger made.

And it befel[5] sometime, y^t christen men became Sarasins, either through povertie, simplenesse, or wickednesse & therefore theyr Archbishop when he received them, sayd thus,[6] _Laeles ella Machomet roses ella_. That is to say, there is no God but one, and Machomet is his messengere. And sithern[7] I have told you a part of theyr law, and of theyr customes, now I shall tell you of theyr letters that they haue with theyr names. First they have for A- almoy, B- bethath, c- cathi, d- delphoy, e- ephoti, f- forthy, g- garophin, h- hechum, i- iocchi, k- kattu, l- lothum, m- malach, n- nahalgt, o- orthy, p- choziri, q- zothii, r- rucholat, s- routhi, t- solathy, v- chorimus, x- yrithom, y- mazot, z- alepin & ioheten- com--these are the names. These foure letters have they yet more for diversitie of their language, for as much as they speake so in their throtes, as we have in our language and speake in England. Two letters may they then have in theyr A. B. C that is to say, y &, the which are called thorne- and zowx.

[Footnote 1: Kadijah.]

[Footnote 2: Had epileptic fits.]

[Footnote 3: Other editions have it 610, but it was A.D. 611
when Mahomet professed to have received his call.]

[Footnote 4: Heard.]

[Footnote 5: _Pynson_ says "befalleth."]

[Footnote 6: The Mahometan Confession of Faith is Lá iláha
illá 'lláh Muhammadun rasúlu 'lláh.]

[Footnote 7: Since.]

CAP. XLVII.

_Of the yles and divers maner of people and of marvaylous beastes._

AND sithen I have devised before of the holy land and countreys there about, and many wayes thether, and to mount Synay, and to Babilon, and other divers places which I have spoken of, now will I tell & speake of iles and of divers bestes, and divers folke and countreys that be departed[1] by the flouds that came out of Paradise terrestre. For Mesopotame and the kingdome of Calde and Araby are between two floddes, Tigre and Eufrace, and the kingedome of Media and Perce are betwene two flouds Tigre and Nyle, & the kingdome of Surrey, Palestine and Femines[2] are betweene Eufrace and the sea Mediterranean, it is of length from Marroch on the sea of Spaine, unto the great sea, and so lasteth it beyonde Constantinople three M and xx[3] myle of Lombardy and to the Occean sea. In Inde is the kingdome of Sichem,[4] that is all closed among hils, and beside Sichem is the lande of Amazony, wherein dwell none but women.

And thereby is the kingdome of Albany, which is a great lande and it is called so bicause that men are more whiter there than in other places, & in this countrey are great houndes and stronge, so that they overcome Lions and slay them. And ye shall understande that to those countreys are many iles and landes, of the which were too long to tell, but of some I will speake more plainly afterwarde.

[Footnote 1: Parted.]

[Footnote 2: Ph[oe]nicia.]

[Footnote 3: Others say 3,040.]

[Footnote 4: Scythia.]

[Decoration]

CAP. XLVIII.

_Of the haven Gene, for to go by the sea into divers countreys._

FOR he that wyll goe to Tartary, Percy, Caldee or Inde, he entreth the sea at Gene or at Venyce, or at any other haven, and so passeth by the sea, and arriveth at Topasonde,[1] that is a good citie, that sometime men call the haven of bridge, and there is the haven of Perce, of Medes, and of other marches.[2] In this citie lieth saint Athanasius, that was bishop of Alexandry, that made the Psalme, _Quicunque vult salvus esse_. This man was a great doctour of divinitie, and of the godheade, he was accused unto the Pope of Rome that he was an heritike, and the pope sent for hym and put him in prison, and while he was in that prison he made this Psalme and sent it unto the Pope & sayde if that he were an heretyke, then that was heresie, for y^t was his faith and his belefe: and when the Pope saw that he had sayde therein was all our faith, then anon he did deliver him out of prison, and he commaunded that Psalme to be sayd every day at prime, & so he held Athanasius for a good christen man, but he never would after goe to his bishoprych for they accused him of heresie.

Topasond was some tyme holden of the Emperour of Constantinople, but a great man that he sent to help that countrey against the Turkes, did holde it to himselfe, & called himself Emperour of Topasonde.