In The Province Of Cathay, The People Make Excellent Drink Of Rice And Certain Spices, Which Even Excels Wine In Flavour; And Those Who Drink Too Much Of It Become Sooner Drunk Than With Wine[3].

Through this whole province, certain black stones are dug from the mountains, which burn like wood, and preserve fire a

Long time, and if kindled in the evening, will keep on fire all night[4]; and many people use these stones in preference to wood, because, though the country abounds in trees, there is a great demand for wood for other purposes.

The great khan is particularly attentive to the care of the poor in the city of Cambalu. When he hears of any honourable family that, has fallen to decay through misfortune, or of any who cannot work, and have no subsistence, he gives orders for issuing a whole years subsistence, together with garments, both for winter and summer, to the heads of those distressed families. There is an appropriate office or tribunal for this imperial bounty, to which those who have received the warrants or orders of the khan apply for relief. The khan receives the tenths of all wool, silk, and hemp, which he causes to be manufactured into stuffs of all kinds, in houses set apart for this purpose; and as all artificers of every description are bound to work for him one day in every week, he has immense quantities of every kind of useful commodity in his storehouses. By these means, likewise, there are similar imperial manufactures in every city of the empire, in which clothing is made from his tithe wool for his innumerable soldiers. According to their ancient customs, the Tartars gave no alms, and were in use to upbraid those who were in poverty, as hated of God. But the priests of the idolaters, especially those who have been formerly mentioned under the name of Bachsi, have convinced the khan that charity is a good work, and an acceptable service to God; so that in his court food and raiment are never denied to those who ask, and there is no day in which there is less than the value of 20,000 crowns distributed in acts of charily, particularly in rice, millet, and panik; by which extensive benevolence the khan is esteemed as a god among his subjects.

There are in Cambalu about five thousand astrologers and diviners, Christians, Mahometans, and Kathayans, all of whom are provided yearly by the khan in food and raiment. These have an Astrolabe, on which all the signs of the planets are marked, together with the hours, and most minute subdivisions of the whole year. By this instrument, these astrologers, each religion apart, observe the course of the year, according to every moon, noting the prognostications of the weather, yet always referring to God, to do as they predict or otherwise, according to his pleasure. They write down upon square tablets, called Tacuini, all those things which are to fall out during the year, which they sell to any who will purchase; and those who are most fortunate in their predictions are held in the highest honour. If any one intends to commence an important labour, or to undertake a distant journey, and is anxious to be certified of the event, he has recourse to the astrologers to read, as they pretend, his destiny in the heavens, for this purpose, being instructed in the precise date of birth of the person consulting them, they calculate the present aspect of the constellation which ruled at his birth, and foretel that good or evil will flow from his intentions.

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