Urgent.'] In National Characters (Kuo Tzu), And That When There Was Important State Business The Emperor Personally Handed The Tablet To The Envoy, Which Entitled Him To Demand Horses At The Post Stations, And To Be Treated As If He Were The Emperor Himself Travelling.

When the tablet was marked 'Urgent,' he had the right to take private horses, and was required to ride, night and day, 700 li in twenty-four hours.

On his return he had to give back the tablet to the Emperor, who handed it to the prince who had the custody of the state tablets and seals." (Dr. S. W. Bushell, Actes XI. Cong. Int. Orient., Paris, p. 17.)

"The Kin, in the thirteenth century, used badges of office made of silver. They were rectangular, bore the imperial seal, and an inscription indicative of the duty of the bearer. (Chavannes, Voyageurs chez les Khitans, 102.) The Nue-chen at an earlier date used wooden pai-tzu tied to each horseman and horse, to distinguish them by. (Ma Tuan-lin, Bk. 327, 11.)" (Rockhill, Rubruck, p. 181, note.)

"Tiger's tablets - Sinice Hu fu, and p'ai tsze in the common language. The Mongols had them of several kinds, which differed by the metal, of which they were made, as well as by the number of pearls (one, two, or three in number), which were incrusted in the upper part of the tablet. Falcon's tablets with the figure of a falcon were round, and used to be given only to special couriers and envoys of the Khan.

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