"Having heard that
your son was become a Christian, I came to him with letters from my master
the
King of the Francs, and your son sent me hither; for what reason it
behoves you to know." He then desired me to rise, and inquired the name of
your majesty, and my name, and the names of my companion and interpreter,
all of which he caused to be set down in writing. After which, he asked who
it was that your majesty made war against, as he had heard that you had
departed from your own country with an army. To which I answered, that you
warred against the Saracens, because they had violated the house of God at
Jerusalem. He then asked if your majesty had ever before sent ambassadors
to him. And I said never to him. He then desired us to be seated, and gave
us to drink; and it is accounted a great favour when any one is admitted to
drink cosmos in his house. While I sat looking down upon the ground, he
desired me to look up; either wishing to observe me more distinctly, or out
of some superstitious fancy: for these people look upon it as a sign of
ill-fortune, when any one sits in their presence holding down his head in a
melancholy posture, and more especially when he leans his cheek or chin
upon his hand.
We then departed from the tent of audience, and immediately afterwards our
guide came and told us, that, as our king had desired that we might remain
in this country, Baatu could not consent to this without the knowledge and
authority of Mangu-khan; and it was necessary, therefore, that I should go
with the interpreter to Mangu, while my companion and the clerk should
return to the court of Sartach, and remain there till my return. On this
the interpreter began to lament himself as a dead man; and my companion
declared, that rather as separate from me, he would allow them to take off
his head. I added, that I could not possibly go without my interpreter, and
that we should need two servants, that we might be sure of one in case of
the other being sick. Upon this the guide returned into the presence and
reported to Baatu what we had said, who now gave orders that the two
priests and the interpreter should go forwards to Mangu, but that the clerk
must immediately return to Sartach; and with this answer the guide came to
us. When I now endeavoured to plead for the company of our clerk, he
desired me to be silent; for as Baatu had already given the orders, they
must be obeyed, and he dared not go again into the court. Goset, our clerk,
still had twenty-six yperperas remaining of the alms we had formerly
received, ten of which he retained for himself and the servant, and gave us
the remaining sixteen.
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