- E.
[4] Perhaps The Kingdom Or Province Of Cazan, Higher Up The Wolga.
- E.
[5] Contarini has forgot to give us any account in what manner he procured
leave to quit Astracan. Perhaps, by means of Marcus, he was permitted
to pass for one of his attendants. - E.
[6] It may be necessary to remark, that the tails of a peculiar species of
sheep, O. Platyurus, or the broad-tailed sheep, common among the
Tartars, and other parts of the world, are said sometimes to weigh
twenty-five pounds. - E.
[7] Probably an error for 2000. - E.
SECTION VIII.
_Contarini, after crossing European Sarmatia, arrives at Moscow, the
capital of White Russia, and is presented to the Grand Duke._
After recommending ourselves to the protection of God, we continued our
journey, through immense and terrible deserts, sometimes towards the
north, and sometimes westerly[1], always resting at noon, and taking up
our quarters for the night on the bare ground, without any protection
against the weather. To prevent us from being surprized in the night by
the wandering Tartars, outguards were placed every night in three
directions around our resting-place. During the greater part of this long
and dreary journey, we were very ill off for water both for ourselves and
our cattle, and we never saw any wild animals. One day we saw about forty
horses, which we were told had escaped from a caravan of merchants the
year before. We fell in one day with a small horde of Tartars, having
twenty waggons, but I was not able to learn where they were going. As our
provisions decreased rapidly, we were forced to use the remainder very
sparingly, and were consequently reduced to a very short allowance.
On the 22d of September 1475, we entered Russia, and discovered a few
huts in the middle of a wood. On the inhabitants learning that Marcus,
their countryman, was in our caravan, they came to see him that he might
protect them from the Tartars, and brought him a present of honey and wax,
a part of which he gave to us. This was a most providential supply, as we
were so much reduced by fatigue and spare diet, that we were hardly able
to sit on horseback. The first city we came to in this country was
_Rezan_[2], the prince of which place had married a sister of the Grand
Duke of Russia. The castle and all the houses of this city are built of
wood. We here procured bread and meat, and mead in abundance, to our
great comfort and satisfaction. The next city we came to was _Kolomna_,
passing a very large bridge over the _Monstrus_[3] which flows into the
Wolga. At this place, Marcus quitted the caravan, which travelled too
slowly in his opinion, and pushed on for Moscow, where we arrived on the
26th of September, after a journey of forty-seven days through the desert,
from the 10th of August, on which day we left Citracan. In a great part
of this journey we found no wood, and were forced to cook our victuals
with fires made of dried cow dung. We returned thanks to God on our
arrival, for our preservation through so many and great dangers. On our
arrival, Marcus procured a dwelling for us, consisting of a small stove-
room and some chambers, with stabling for our horses. Though small and
mean, I felt as if lodged in a palace, when I compared my present state
of tranquil security with the dangers and inconveniences I had been so
long subjected to.
Marcus made me a visit two days afterwards, and supplied me with some
necessaries, exhorting me, as on the part of his sovereign, to keep a
good heart. I returned his visit next day; and being very desirous to
return home to Venice, I requested him to introduce me to the grand duke,
which he promised to do as soon as possible, and I soon afterwards was
desired to go to court. Immediately on my getting there, I was conducted
to an audience; on which I made my obeisance in due form to the grand
duke, to whom I returned thanks for all the attentions I had received
from his ambassador, Marcus, in the course of my journey, by whose
assistance and advice I had escaped a thousand dangers; assuring his
highness that I attributed these marks of kindness as done to the
republic of Venice, whose ambassador I was, and that the republic would
unquestionably evince a due sense of the obligations, to which I owed my
life and safety. The grand duke interrupted my harangue, by complaining
with much emotion of the conduct of _John Baptista_ of Treviso, and said
a great deal on this subject, which is not proper for me to report. After
a conversation of some length, in which I spoke to his highness about my
departure, he closed my audience, postponing his answers to my requests
to a future opportunity. The grand duke was very shortly to quit Moscow,
on purpose to visit several parts of his dominions, and particularly the
Tartar frontier, where one of his officers was stationed, with the
command of 500 horse[4], to repress the incursions of robbers on that
side: I therefore endeavoured to procure an answer about my departure,
and solicited a second audience for that purpose. On this occasion I was
very politely received by the grand duke, accompanied by three of his
principal barons. At first they expatiated at some length on the subject
of John Baptista, formerly mentioned; but at length I received liberty to
remain or to depart as I thought proper. They dismissed me with this
vague answer, and the grand duke set out from Moscow soon afterwards. I
owed a great deal of money to Marcus, which he had expended for me and my
people, as he had defrayed the whole expences of our journey, and had
supplied me with many things of which I stood in need.
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