Chapter CXXXIX: Section XXII

_Conclusion of the Travels, and Account of the Death of Friar Oderic_.

All the above were put down in writing by friar William de Solanga, as dictated to him by friar Oderic, in the year of our Lord 1330, in the month of May, and in the place of St Anthony at Padua. He hath not attempted to render these relations into fine Latin, or in an eloquent style, but hath written them even as rehearsed by Oderic himself.

I, friar Oderic of Portenau, in the Friuli, of the order of minorites, do hereby testify, and bear witness to the reverend father Guidotus, minister of the province of St Anthony, in the marquisate of Trevigi, by whom I was commanded so to do, that all which is here written, was either seen by myself or reported to me by credible and worthy persons; and the common report of the countries through which I travelled, testifies all those things which I have seen and related to be true. Many other wonderful things I have omitted, because they were not seen by myself. It is farther mine intention, soon again to travel into foreign and far distant lands, in which I may live or die, as it may please the Almighty Disposer of events.

In the year of our Lord 1331, friar Oderic, resolving to enter upon his intended journey, determined to present himself before Pope John XXII[1] on purpose to receive his benediction, that his labour might be the more prosperous; as he intended to travel into the countries of the infidels, with certain friars who had agreed to accompany him. While journeying to the residence of the pope, and not far distant from the city of Pisa, he was encountered by an old man in the garb of a pilgrim, who saluted him by name, saying, "Hail to you, friar Oderic." And when Oderic inquired how he should know him, the old man answered, "While you were in India, I well knew both you and your holy purpose; but now be warned from me, and return to the convent whence you came, for in ten days you shall depart out of this world." Upon this the old man immediately vanished, from his sight; and Oderic, amazed at his words, determined to return to his convent, which he did in perfect health, feeling no illness, or decay of his body or faculties. And ten days afterwards, being then in his convent at Udina, in the province of Padua, and having received the holy communion, as preparing himself unto God, yea, being strong and sound of body, he happily rested in the Lord, according as it had been revealed. Which holy death was signified unto the foresaid supreme pontiff, under the hand of a public notary, in the following words:

"On the 14th of January, in the year of our Lord 1331, the blessed Oderic, a friar of the minorite order, deceased in Christ; at whose prayers God shewed many and sundry miracles, which I, Guetelus, public notary of Udina, son of Dora. Damiano de Portu Gruario, at the command and direction of the noble lord Conradus, of the borough of Gastaldion, one of the council of Udina, have written down with good faith to the best of my abilities; and I have delivered a copy of the same to the friars minors: Yet not of the whole, because they are innumerable, and too difficult for, me to write."

[1] This pope reigned from about 1317 to 1334, so that the original editor,
or fabricator of these travels, has so for been fortunate in his
chronology.--E.

CHAP. XIII.

_Travels of Sir John Mandeville into the East, in_ 1322[1].

The travels of Sir John Mandevil, or Mandeville, are to be found in Latin in Haklyuts collection. An edition of this strange performance was published in 8vo. at London in 1727, by Mr Le Neve, from a MS. in the Cotton Library. This old English version is said to have been made by the author from his own original composition in Latin. It is a singular mixture of real or fictitious travels, and compilation from the works of others without acknowledgement, containing many things copied from the travels of Oderic, and much of it is culled, in a similar manner, from the writings of the ancients. Though, from these circumstances, it is a work of no authenticity and unworthy of credit, it has been judged indispensable to give some account of its nature and contents.

Mandeville affirms that he was descended of an ancient and noble family, and was born at St Albans. After receiving the rudiments of a liberal education, he says that he studied mathematics, physic, and divinity, and wrote books on all these sciences; and became expert in all the exercises then befitting a gentleman. Having a desire to travel, he crossed the sea in 1322, or 1332, for different manuscripts give both dates, and set out on a journey through France towards the Holy Land, a description of which country, replete with monkish tales, and filled with the most absurd holy fables, occupies half of his ridiculous book. In the very outset he pretends to have visited India, and the Indian islands, and other countries; all of which appears to be fabulous, or interpolation. Before proceeding to the Holy Land, perhaps the sole country which he really visited, he gives various routes or itineraries to and from Constantinople, containing no personal adventures, or any other circumstances that give the stamp of veracity; but abundance of nonsensical fables about the cross and crown of our Saviour, at the imperial city.

He pretends to have served in the army of the sultan of Egypt, whom he calls Mandybron, who must have been Malek el Naser Mohammed, who reigned from 1310 to 1341, and states a war against the Bedouins, or Arabs of the desert, as the scene of his own exploits. Yet he seems to have been entirely unacquainted with Egypt, and gives only a slight mention of Cairo. He represents the sultan as residing in Bablyon, and blunders into pedantic confusion between Babylon in Egypt, and Babylon in Chaldea, all of which is probably an injudicious complement from books common at the time.

About the middle of the book he gives some account of the ideas of the Saracens concerning Christ; and then falls into a roaming description of various countries, obviously compiled without consideration of time or changes of people and names; deriving most of his materials from ancient authors, particularly from Pliny, and describing Mesopotamia, Chaldea, Albania, Hircania, Bactria, Iberia, and others, as if such had actually existed in the geography of the fourteenth century. Where any thing like modern appears, it is some childish fable, as that the ark of Noah was still visible on mount Ararat. He even gives the ancient fable of the Amazons, whom he represents as an existing female nation.

He next makes a transition to India, without any notice of his journey thither; arid gravely asserts that he has often experienced, that if diamonds be wetted with May-dew, they will grow to a great size in a course of years. This probably is an improvement upon the Arabian philosophy or the production of pearls by the oysters catching that superlative seminal influence. The following singular article of intelligence respecting India, may be copied as a specimen of the work: "In that countree growen many strong vynes: and the women drynken wyn, and men not: and the women shaven hire berdes, and the men not." From India he proceeds to the island of Lamary, the Lambri of Marco Polo; and by using the Italian term "the star transmontane," at once betrays the source of his plagiarism. His descriptions seem disguised extracts from Polo, with ridiculous exaggerations and additions; as of snail shells so large as to hold many persons. His account of the pretended varieties of the human race, as of nations of Hermaphrodites, and others equally ridiculous, which he places in separate islands of the Indian ocean, are mere transcripts from Pliny.

His accounts of Mangi and Kathay, or southern and northern China, are most inaccurately stolen from Marco Polo, and disguised or rather disfigured to conceal the theft. "The city with twelve thousand bridges, has twelve principal gates, and in advance from each of these a detached town, or great city, extends for three or four miles." Though he pretends to have resided three years in Cambalu, he does not seem to have known the name of the khan, whom he served for fifteen months against the king of Mangi. Leaving Cathay he goes into Tharsis, Turquescen, Corasine, and Kommania, in which he seems to have transcribed from Oderic; and makes Prester John emperor of India, a country divided into many islands by the great torrents which descend from Paradise! He gives also an account of a sea of sand and gravel, entirely destitute of water, the Mare arenosum of Oderic; to which he adds that it moves in waves like the ocean. Though he makes Prester John sovereign of India, he assigns Susa in Persia for his residence; constructs the gates of his palace of sardonyx, its bars of ivory, its windows of rock crystal, and its tables of emeralds; while numerous carbuncles, each one foot in length, served infinitely better than lamps to illuminate the palace by night. To many absurdities, apparitions, and miracles, copied and disguised from Oderic, he adds two islands in the middle of the continent, one inhabited by giants thirty feet high, while their elder brethren in the other are from forty-five to fifty feet.

He borrows many fabulous stories from Pliny, and from the romances of the middle, ages, yet so ignorantly as to reverse the very circumstances of his authors. Andromeda is not the lady who was rescued by Perseus, but the monster by which she was to have been devoured. Two _islands_ in India, one called Brahmin, and the other Gymnosophist. And a thousand other fictions and absurdities, too ridiculous even for the credulity of children. Of this worse than useless performance, the foregoing analysis is perhaps more than sufficient for the present work.--E.

[1] Forst. Voy. and Disc. in the Nerth, p. 148. Pinkert. Mod. Geogr. II.
xxxvi. Hakluyt, II. 76.

CHAP. XIV.

_Itinerary of Pegoletti, between Asof and China, in_ 1355[1].

In the year 1355, Francisco Balducci Pegoletti, an Italian, wrote a system of commercial geography, of great importance, considering the period in which it was written. Its title translated into English, is, "Of the Divisions of Countries, and of their Measures, Merchandize, and other things useful to be known by the Merchants of various parts of the World." All of this curious work which has any reference to our present undertaking, is the chapter which is entitled, "Guide or the Route from Tana to Kathay, with Merchandize, and back again." This is published entire by J. R. Forster, with several learned notes and illustrations, and is here reprinted.

* * * * *

From _Tana_ or Asof to _Gintarchan_ or Astracan[2], is twenty-five days journey with waggons drawn by oxen; but may be accomplished in ten or twelve days, if the waggons are drawn by horses. On the road one meets with a great number of armed _Moccols_, Moguls or Mongals. From Gintarchan to _Sara_[3] by the river, it is only one days sail; but from Sara to _Saracanco_[4], it takes eight days by water; one may, however, travel either by land or water, whichever is most agreeable; but it costs much less expence to go with merchandize by water. From Saracanco to Organci[5] is a journey of twenty days with loaded camels; and whoever travels with merchandize, will do well to go to Organci, as it is a very convenient place for the expeditious sale of goods. From Organci to Oltrarra[6], it is thirty-five or forty days journey, with camels: But in going direct from Saracanco to Oltrarra, it takes fifty days journey; and if one has no merchandize, it is a better way than to go by Organci. From Oltrarra to Armalecco[7], it is forty-five days journey with loaded asses, and in this road, one meets every day with Moguls. From Armalecco to Camexu[8], it is seventy days journey on asses; and from Camexu to a river called the _Kara Morin_[9], it is fifty days journey on horses. From this river, the traveller may go to Cassai[10] to dispose of his silver there, as it is an excellent station for the expeditious sale of merchandize; and from Cassai, he may go through the whole land of Gattay or Kathay, with the money he has received at Cassai for his silver[11]. This money is of paper, and called balischi, four of which balischies are equal to one silver _somno_[12]. From Cassai to _Galmalecco_[l3], which is the capital of the empire of Kathay, it is thirty days journey.

* * * * *

If the reader has any idea of the difficulty attendant on making out so many places, disguised by a vicious orthography, a difficulty, which is still more increased by the necessity there is for determining, with accuracy, the situation of these places, and their probable distances from each other, he will be ready to allow that the task is certainly not very trifling, nor to be accomplished without much labour. In the foregoing itinerary, Pegoletti certifies the existence of the paper money which had been previously mentioned by Rubraquis, Haitho, Marco Polo, and Oderic: Some of these authors describe it as having been fabricated of cotton paper; while others remark very justly, that it was made of the bark of the paper mulberry tree. Oderic calls it Balis, Pegoletti gives it the name of Balis-chi. A Jesuit named Gabriel de Magaillans, pretends that Marco Polo was mistaken in regard to this paper money; but the concurrent testimony of five other credible witnesses of the fact, is perfectly conclusive that this paper money did actually exist during the first Mogul dynasty, the descendants of Zinghis, called the legal tribe of _Yu_ by the Chinese. On the downfall of that race it was abolished.

Supposing the station on the Kara-morin and Cassai to be the same, which is highly probable, the whole journey in this itinerary, from Asof to Pekin, extends to 276 days, besides nine days more by water, or 285 in all; so that allowing for delays, rests, accidents, and occasional trafficking, a whole year may fairly be allowed, and as much for the return.

[1] Forster, Voy. and Disc, in the North, p. 150.

[2] Gintarchan, or Zintarchan, is, by Josaphat Barbaro, called also
Gitarchau; and Witsan, in his account of Northern and Eastern Tartary,
says Astracan was called of old _Citracan_. By the Calmuks, it is
called Hadschi-Aidar-Khan-Balgassun, or the city of Hadschi Aidar
Khan, whence all these names are derived by an obvious corruption,
like [Greek: Eis tnae polis], or the city, by way of eminence, by
which the Greeks distinguished Constantinople, and which the Turks
have corrupted into Estambol, and Stambol.--Forst.

[3] Sara is undoubtedly the town of Saray, situated on the eastern arm of
the Wolga, or Achtuba. The Astracan mentioned in the text by
Pegoletti, was not on the spot where that city now stands; both that
ancient Astracan and Saray having been destroyed by Timur Khan, or
Tamerlane, as he is usually called, in the winter 1395. The old town
of Saray was at no great distance from ancient Astracan.--Forst.

[4] Saracanco is probably the town which formerly existed on the river Jaik
or Ural, the remains of which are now known by the name of
Saratschik.--Forst.

[5] The name of Organci is easily recognized In the town of Urgenz in
Kheucaresm; which is named Dschordschanio by Abulfeda, and Korkang by
the Persians. But there were two towns of this name, the greater and
the lesser Urgenz, or Old and New Urgenz. The Old or Greater Urgenz
was situated near to where the Gihon discharges its waters into lake
Aral; the New or Ixsser Urgenz is to be found near Chiwa, or Chiva, on
the Gihon--Forst.

[6] Oltrarra is properly called Otrar, and also Farab, which latter name is
to be found in Abulfeda. It is situate on the river Sihon or Sire. The
Chinese, who cannot pronounce the letter _r_, call it Uotala.--Forst.

[7] Armalecco is the name of a small town called Almalig, which, according
to Nassir Ettusi and Ulug-beg, is in Turkestan. From the life of
Timur Khan, by Shersfeddin Ali, it appears that Almalig is situate
between the town of Taschkent and the river Irtiah, in the country of
the Gete, and on the banks of the river Ab-eile, which discharges
itself into the Sihon, or Sirr-Daria.--Forst.

[8] Came-xu is in all probability the name of Khame or Khami with the
addition of xu, instead of Tcheou or Tsheu, which, in the Chinese
language, signifies a town of the second rank.--Forst.

[9] Obviously the Kara-Moran, called Hoang-ho by the Chinese, or the Yellow
River.--Forst.

[10] Cassai, or Kaway, seems to be the place called Kissen, on a lake of
that name, near the northernmost winding branch of the Kara-moran, in
Lat. 41º.50'. N. long. 107°. 40'. E.--Forst.

[11] It is curious to notice, in the writings, of this intelligent
commercial geographer, and in the travels of Marco Polo, the peculiar
advantages in commerce enjoyed by the Chinese at so early a period, of
being paid in sliver for their commodities and manufactures. This
practice, which prevailed so early as 1260, the era of the elder
Polos, and even, in 851, when the Mahometan travellers visited
Southern China, still continues in 1810.--E.

[12] The value of the silver _somno_ is nowhere mentioned; but it is of no
importance, as it would not enable us to institute any comparison of
values whatsoever.--E.

[13] Gamalecco is undoubtedly Cambalu, Cambalig, or Khan-balig, otherwise
Pekin; exactly as Gattay is substituted for Katay Kathay, or Cathay.
--Forst.

CHAP. XV.

_Voyages of Nicolo and Antonio Zeno in 1380_.[1]