The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoveries of the English People, vol 2 | Page 2

and rauenous vultures disdeined to praye
vpon any of the reliques, which remained. Olde, and deformed women
they gaue, as it were for dayly sustenance, vnto their Canibals; the
beautifull deuoured they not, but smothered them lamenting and
scritching, with forced and vnnaturall rauishments. Like barbarous
miscreants, they quelled virgins vnto death, and cutting off their tender
paps to present for deinties vnto their magistrates, they engorged
themselues with their bodies.
Howbeit, their spials in the meane time discrying from the top of an
highe mountaine the Duke of Austria, the king of Bohemia, the
Patriarch of Aquileia, the Duke of Carinthia, and (as some report) the
Earle of Baden, with a mightie power, and in battell aray, approching
towards them, that accursed crew immediately vanished, and all those
Tartarian vagabonds retired themselues into the distressed and
vanquished land of Hungarie who as they came suddenly, so they
departed also on the sudden which their celeritie caused all men to
stand in horrour and astonishment of them. But of the sayd fugitiues the
prince of Dalmatia tooke eight, one of which number the Duke of
Austria knew to be an English man, who was perpetually banished out
of the Realme of England, in regard of certaine notorious crimes by
him committed. This fellow, on the behalfe of the most tyrannicall king
of the Tartars, had bene twise, as a messenger and interpreter, with the
king of Hungarie, menacing and plainely foretelling those mischiefes
which afterward happened, vnlesse he would submit himselfe and his

kingdome vnto the Tartars yoke. Well, being allured by our Princes to
confesse the trueth, he made such oathes and protestations, as (I thinke)
the deuill himselfe would haue beene trusted for. First therefore he
reported of himselfe, that presently after the time of his banishment,
namely about the 30. yere of his age, hauing lost all that he had in the
citie of Acon at Dice, euen in the midst of Winter, being compelled by
ignominious hunger, wearing nothing about him but a shirt of sacke, a
paire of shooes, and a haire cappe onely, being shauen like a foole, and
vttering an vncoth noise as if he had bene dumbe, he tooke his iourney,
and and so traueiling many countreyes, and finding in diuers places
friendly entertainment, he prolonged his life in this maner for a season,
albeit euery day by rashnesse of speech, and inconstancie of heart, he
endangered himselfe to the deuill. At length, by reason of extreame
trauaile, and continuall change of aire and of meats in Caldea, he fell
into a greuious sicknesse, insomuch that he was wearie of his life. Not
being able therefore to go forward or backeward, and staying there a
while to refreshe himselfe, he began (being somewhat learned) to
commend to writing those wordes which hee heard spoken, and within
a short space, so aptly to pronounce, and to vtter them himselfe, that he
was reputed for a natiue member of that countrey: and by the same
dexteritie he attained to manie languages. This man the Tartars hauing
intelligence of by their spies, drew him perforce into their societie and
being admonished by an oracle or vision, to challenge dominion ouer
the whole earth, they allured him by many rewards to their faithfull
seruice, by reason that they wanted interpreters. But concerning their
maners and superstitions, of the disposition and stature of their bodies,
of their countrey and maner of fighting &c, he protested the particulars
following to be true: namely, that they were aboue all men, couetous,
hasty, deceitfull, and mercilesse: notwithstanding, by reason of the
rigour and extremitie of punishments to be inflicted vpon them by their
superiours, they are restreined from brawlings, and from mutuall strife
and contention. The ancient founders and fathers of their tribes, they
call by the name of gods, and at certaine set times they doe celebrate
solemne feasts vnto them, many of them being particular, & but foure
onely generall. They thinke that all things are created for themselues
alone. They esteeme it none offence to exercise cruelty against rebels.
They be hardie and strong in the breast, leane and pale-faced, rough

and huf-shouldered, hauing flatte and short noses, long and sharpe
chinnes, their vpper iawes are low and declining, their teeth long and
thinne, their eyebrowes extending from their fore-heads downe to their
noses, their eies inconstant and blacke, their countenances writhen and
terrible, their extreame ioynts strong with bones and sinewes, hauing
thicke and great thighes, and short legs, and yet being equall vnto vs in
stature: for that length which is wanting in their legs is supplied in the
vpper parts of their bodies. Their countrey in olde time was a land
vtterly desert and waste, situated far beyond Chaldea, from whence
they haue expelled Lions, Beares,