And From The Time Wherein Wee Departed Out Of The Foresaid Prouince Of Gasaria, We Trauailed Directly Eastward, Hauing A

Sea on the South side of vs, and a waste desert on the North, which desert, in some places, reacheth

Twenty dayes iourney in breadth, and there is neither tree, mountaine, nor stone therein. And it is most excellent pasture. Here the Comanians, which were called Capthac, were wont to feede their cattell. Howbeit by the Dutch men they are called Valani, and the prouince it selfe Valania. [Sidenote: The length of Comania.] But Isidore calleth all that tract of land stretching from the riuer of Tanais to the lake of Maotis, and so along as farre as Danubius, the countrey of Alania. And the same land contunueth in length from Danubius vnto Tanais (which diuideth Asia from Europe) for the space of two moneths iourney, albeit a man should ride poste as fast as the Tartars vse to ride: and it was all ouer inhabited by the Comanians, called Capthac: yea and beyond Tanais, as farre as the riuer Edil or Volga: the space betweene the two which riuers is a great and long iourney to bee trauailed in ten dayes. [Sidenote: Russia.] To the North of the same prouince lieth Russia, which is full of wood in all places, and stretcheth from Polonia and Hungaria, euen to the riuer of Tanais: and it hath bene wasted all ouer by the Tartars, and as yet is daily wasted by them. They preferre the Saracens before the Russians, because they are Christians, and when they are able to giue them no more golde or siluer, they driue them and their children like flockes of sheepe into the wildernes, constraining them to keepe their cattell there. [Sidenote: Prussia.] Beyond Russia lieth the countrey of Prussia, which the Dutch knights of the order of Saint Maries hospitall of Ierusalem haue of late wholly conquered and subdued. And in very deede they might easily winne Russia, if they would put to their helping hand. For if the Tartars should but once know, that the great Priest, that is to say, the Pope did cause the ensigne of the crosse to bee displaied against them, they would flee all into their desert and solitarie places. [Footnote: There is some confusion in original edition, which I have here corrected.]

De tedijs qua patiebantur, et de sepultura Comanorum. Cap. 15.

Ibamus ergo versus orientem, nihil videntes nisi coelum et terram, et aliquando mare ad dextram, quod dicitur Mare Tanais, et etiam sepulturas Comanorum, qua apparebant nobis a duabus leucis secundum quod solebant parentela eorum sepeliri simul. Quam diu eramus in solitudine bene erat nobis: quod tadium quod patiebar quum veniebamus ad mansiones eorum non possem exprimere verbis. Volebat enim dux noster, quod ad quoslibet capitaneos ingrederer cum xenio: et ad hoc non sufficiebant expensa. Quotidie enim eramus octo persona comedentes viaticum nostrum exceptis seruientibus, qui omnes volebant comedere nobiscum. Nos enim eramus quinqui, et ipsi tres qui ducebant nos:

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