And From Thence To Jerusalem Are Three Day
Journey, In The Which Men Shall Go Through Caesarea Philippi, And
So To Jaffa And Rames And The Castle Of Emmaus, And So To
Jerusalem.
Now have I told you some ways by land and by water that men may go
by to the Holy Land after the countries that they come from.
Nevertheless they come all to one end.
Yet is there another way to
Jerusalem all by land, and pass not the sea, from France or
Flanders; but that way is full long and perilous and of great
travel, and therefore few go that way. He that shall go that way,
he shall go through Almayne and Prussia and so to Tartary. This
Tartary is holden of the great Caan of Cathay, of whom I think to
speak afterward. This is a full ill land and sandy and little
fruit bearing. For there grows no corn, ne wine, ne beans, ne
peas, ne none other fruit convenable to man for to live with. But
there are beasts in great plenty: and therefore they eat but flesh
without bread and sup the broth and they drink milk of all manner
of beasts. They eat hounds, cats, ratons, and all other wild
beasts. And they have no wood, or else little; and therefore they
warm and seethe their meat with horse-dung and cow-dung and of
other beasts, dried against the sun. And princes and other eat not
but once in the day, and that but little. And they be right foul
folk and of evil kind. And in summer, by all the countries, fall
many tempests and many hideous thunders and leits and slay much
people and beasts also full often-time. And suddenly is there
passing heat, and suddenly also passing cold; and it is the foulest
country and the most cursed and the poorest that men know. And
their prince, that governeth that country, that they clepe Batho,
dwelleth at the city of Orda. And truly no good man should not
dwell in that country, for the land and the country is not worthy
hounds to dwell in. It were a good country to sow in thistle and
briars and broom and thorns and briars; and for no other thing is
it not good. Natheles, there is good land in some place, but it is
pure little, as men say.
I have not been in that country, nor by those ways. But I have
been at other lands that march to those countries, as in the land
of Russia, as in the land of Nyflan, and in the realm of Cracow and
of Letto, and in the realm of Daristan, and in many other places
that march to the coasts. But I went never by that way to
Jerusalem, wherefore I may not well tell you the manner.
But, if this matter please to any worthy man that hath gone by that
way, he may tell it if him like, to that intent, that those, that
will go by that way and make their voyage by those coasts, may know
what way is there.
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