These Aforesaid Tartars Stayd Our Carauan In The Name Of Their Prince, And Opened Our Wares, And Tooke Such Things

As they thought best for their saide prince without money, but for such things as they tooke from me, which

Was a ninth (after much dissension) I ridde vnto the same Prince, and presented my selfe before him, requesting his fauour, and pasport to trauaile through his countrey, and not to be robbed nor spoiled of his people: which request he graunted me, and intertained me very gently, commaunding me to be well feasted with flesh and mares milke: for bread they vse none, nor other drinke except water: but money he had none to giue mee for such thinges as he tooke of mee, which might be of value in Russe money, fifteene rubbles, but he gaue me his letter, and a horse woorth seuen rubbles. And so I departed from him being glad that I was gone: for he was reported to be a very tyrant, and if I had not gone vnto him, I vnderstoode his commaundement was that I should haue beene robbed and destroyed.

This Soltan liued in the fields without Castle or towne, and sate, at my being with him, in a little rounde house made of reedes couered without with felt, and within with Carpets. There was with him the great Metropolitan of that wilde Country, esteemed of the people, as the Bishop of Rome is in most parts of Europe, with diuers other of his chiefe men. The Soltan with this Metropolitan demanded of me many questions, as wel touching our kingdoms, lawes, and Religion, as also the cause of my coming into those parts, with my further pretence. To whom I answered concerning all things, as vnto me seemed best, which they tooke in good part. [Sidenote: 20 dayes trauaile in the wildernese, with scarcite of water.] So hauing leaue I departed and ouertooke our Carauan and proceeded on our iourney, and trauailed 20 dayes in the wildernes from the sea side without seeing towne or habitation, carying prouision of victuals with vs for the same time, and were driuen by necessity to eate one of my camels and a horse for our part, as other did the like: and during the said 20 daies we found no water, but such as we drew out of old deepe welles, being very brackish and salt, and yet sometimes passed two or three dayes without the same. [Sidenote: Another gulfe of the Caspian sea.] And the 5. day of October ensuing, we came gulfe of the Caspian sea againe, where we found the vnto a water very fresh and sweete: at this gulfe the customers of the king of Turkeman met vs, who tooke custome of euery 25. one, and 7. ninthes for the saide king and his brethren, which being receiued they departed, and we remained there a day after to refresh our selues.

[Sidenote: Will. de Rubricis describeth this riuer of Ardok, cap. 4.] Note that in times past there did fal into this gulf the great river Oxus, which hath his springs in the mountains of Paraponisus in India, and now commeth not so far, but falleth into another riuer called Ardock, which runneth toward the North, and consumeth himself in the ground passing vnder ground aboue 500. miles, and then issueth out againe and falleth into the lake of Kithay. [Footnote: Oxus, the Jihun of the Arab, the Amu-darya of the Persians, and the Vak-shu of the Hindus, is a river of Central Asia, in Turkestan, draining the Great Pamir through two head streams - the Panja or southern, rising in Lake Victoria, 13,900 feet above the sea-level, and the Ak-su or Murghah, or northern, said to flow from Lake Barkal Yasin, 13,000 feet above the sea-level, and receiving the outflow of Lake Kara-kul above the junction. The united stream flows westwards towards Balkh, before reaching which it gradually trends to the northwest until, after a course of about 1300 miles, it reaches the south coast of the Aral Sea. In parts the stream has a breadth of 800 yards, with a depth of 20 feet, and a very rapid current; but the vast quantity of sedimentary matter which it brings down to the month, forming shifting sands and banks, renders it difficult to navigate. A great portion of the volume of the stream is absorbed in the irrigation of the Khivan Oasis. The tendency of the Oxus, like that of the great Siberian rivers, is to press continually on its right or east bank, and twice within historic times it has oscillated between the Caspian and Aral Seas. In the fourteenth century it is supposed to have entered the Caspian by the Uzboi channel, near Mikhailovsk. It was proposed at one time to attempt to reopen this bed, but the scheme has been abandoned in favour of the steppe river, Chagan. Herodotus seems to refer to the Oxus under the name of Araxes, but his description is confused, and many of his commentators suppose that the Araxes of Herodotus is the river of the same name in Armenia; while others suppose that it is either the Volga or the Jaxartes. Strabo says that the Oxus rose in the Indian mountains and flowed into the Caspian, which is also the opinion of Mela and Ptolemy. Pliny makes it rise in a lake called Oxus, and the truth of his statement is now confirmed.]

[Sidenote: Sellizure, or Shayzure.] We hauing refreshed our selues at the foresaide gulfe, departed thence the 4. day of October, and the seuenth day arriued at a castle called Sellizure, where the king called Azim Can, remained with 3. other of his brethren, and the 9. day I was commaunded to come before his presence, to whom I deliuered the Emporors letters of Russia: and I also gaue him a present of a ninth, who entertained me very well, and caused me to eate in his presence as his brethren did, feasting me with flesh of a wilde horse, and mares milk without bread.

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