These People Haue Not The Vse Of Golde, Siluer, Or Any Other Coyne, But When They Lacke Apparell Or Other Necessaries, They Barter Their Cattell For The Same.

Bread they haue none, for they neither till nor sow:

They be great deuourers of flesh, which they cut in smal pieces, and eat it by handfuls most greedily, and especially the horseflesh. Their chiefest drink is mares milke sowred, as I haue said before of the Nagayans, and they wilbe drunk with the same. They haue no riuers nor places of water in this countrey, vntil you come to the foresaid gulf, distant from the place of our landing 20. dayes iourney, except it be in wels, the water whereof is saltish, and yet distant the one from the other two daies iourney and more. They eate their meate vpon the ground, sitting with their legs double vnder them, and so also when they pray. Art or science they haue none, but liue most idlely, sitting round in great companies in the fields, deuising, and talking most vainely.

[Sidenote: The riuer of Ardock falleth into the lake of Kitay.] The 26. day of Nouember, we departed from the towne of Vrgence, and hauing trauailed by the riuer Oxus, 100 miles, we passed ouer another great riuer called Ardock, where we paid a certaine pety custome. This riuer Ardock is great, and very swift, falling out of the foresaid Oxus and passing about 1000. mile to the Northward, it then consumeth it selfe in the ground, and passing vnder the same about 500. mile, issueth out againe, and falleth into the lake of Kitay, as I haue before declared.

[Sidenote: The castle of Kait.] The 7. of December following, we arriued at a Castle called Kait, subiect to a Soltan called Saramet Soltan, who meant to haue robbed all the Christians in the Carauan, had it not bene for feare of his brother the king of Vrgence, as we were informed by one of his chiefest counsellers, who willed vs to make him a present, which he tooke, and deliuered: besides, we paid at the said castle for custome, of euery camel one red hide of Russia, besides pety gifts to his officers.

Thus proceeding in our iourney, the tenth day at night being at rest, and our watch set, there came vnto vs foure horsemen, which wee tooke as spies, from whom wee tooke their weapons and bound them, and hauing well examined them, they confessed that they had seene the tract of many horsemen, and no footing of camels, and gaue vs to vnderstand, that there were rouers and theeues abroade: for there trauaile few people that are true and peaceable in that Countrey, but in companie of Carauan, where there be many camels: and horsefeeting new without camels were to be doubted. Whereupon we consulted and determined amongst our selues, and sent a poste to the said Soltan of Kayte, who immediatly came himselfe with 300. men, and mette these foure suspected men which we sent vnto him, and examined them so streightly, and threatned them in such sort, that they confessed, there was a banished Prince with 40.

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