Part 10

[Footnote 5: Images.]

[Footnote 6: Other editions have "a gret difference," which the context shows should be the right reading.]

[Footnote 7: Similar to Him that made, &c.]

[Footnote 8: They were helped by God in the marvels, &c.]

[Footnote 9: Nourish.]

[Footnote 10: Speed, _i.e._ have good luck.]

[Footnote 11: Other editions say 18.]

[Footnote 12: Quilon, on the Malabar Coast.]

[Footnote 13: Archi proto papaton.]

[Footnote 14: Remnant.]

[Footnote 15: Wicked spirit.]

[Footnote 16: An, if.]

CAP. LIIII.

_Of the Kingedome of Mabaron._

FROM this lande men go many journeys to a countrey that men call Mabaron,[1] and this is a greate Kingdome, therein is many fayre cities & townes. In this lande lyeth Sainct Thomas in a fayre tombe, in fleshe and bones, in the Citie of Calamy, and the arme and hande that hee put in our Lordes syde after his resurrection, when Christ sayde unto hym, _Noli esse incredulus sed fidelis:_, that is to saye, Be not of vaine hope but beleve; that same hande lyeth yet without the tombe bare, and with this hande they giue theyr domes[2] in that countrey, to mete[3] who saith righte, and who doeth not, for, if any stryfe be betwene two parties, they write their names, & put them into the hand, & then incontinently the hande casteth away the byll[4] of him that hath wronge and holdeth the other still that hathe righte, and therefore they come from farre countreys to have Judgementes of causes that are in doubte. In this church of Saint Thomas is a great image, y^t is a simulacre, & it is richly beset with precious stons & perles, to that image men come in pilgrimage from farre countreys, with great devocion, as Christen men go to Saint James, & there come some pilgrims y^t beare sharp knives in theyr handes, & as they go by the waye they shere[5] theyr shankes & thyghes, that the bloude may come out for the love of that ydoll and they saye that he is holy that will dye for that ydols sake. And there is some that for the time that they go out of their houses at eche third pace they knele till that they come to this idole. And when they come there they have ensence[6] or such other thing for to ensence the ydole, as we would do to Gods body. And there before that mynster or church of this ydol, is a river full of water, & in that river pilgrims cast gold, silver, perles & other precious stones without number, in stede of offerings, and therefore, when y^e maister of the minster hath any neede of helping, as sone they go the river & take thereout as much as they haue neede to helping of y^e minster. And ye shall understande when that any greate festes come of y^e Idol, as the dedication day of the church, or of the throning of the Idol, all the countrey there about assemble them there togither and then men set this Idoll with great reverence & worship in a chaire well dressed with cloth of gold, and other tapistry, & so they carry him with great reverence & worship, rounde about the citie, and before the chaire goeth firste in procession all the maidens of the countrey two & two togither, & so after them go the pilgrimes that are come fro far countreys, of the which pilgrims some fall downe before the chaire, & letteth all go over them and so are they slaine, and some haue theyr armes broken & leggs,[7] and this they doe for love of the Idol, and they beleve the more paine that they suffer here for their Idol the more joy shall they haue in y^e other world, & a man shall finde few Christen men will suffer so much penaunce for our Lordes sake as they do for the ydoll. And nighe before the chaire go all the mynstrels of the countrey, as it were without nomber with many divers melodyes. And when they are come againe to the Church they sette up the ydol againe in his throne, and for worship of the ydoll two or three[8] are slaine with sharpe knives with their good will. And also a man thinketh in our countrey that he hath a great worshippe to haue an holy man in his kyn, lykewise they saye that those that are there slayne are holye men and sayntes & they are wrytten in their letany, and when they are thus dead theyr frendes brene theyr bodies & they take the ashes, and those are kepte as relykes, and they say it is an holy thing, & that they doubte of no perill when they haue of those ashes.

[Footnote 1: Identical with the Maabav of Marco Polo, book 3, cap. xvi., where he gives a very interesting account of the place. It was what we call the Coromandel Coast.]

[Footnote 2: Judgments.]

[Footnote 3: Find out.]

[Footnote 4: Paper.]

[Footnote 5: Cut their legs.]

[Footnote 6: Incense.]

[Footnote 7: Mandeville probably describes the Car of Juggernaut.]

[Footnote 8: Other editions have it "two or three hundred."]

CAP. LV.

_Of a great countrey called Lamory, where the people go all naked & other things._

FROM this countrey LII journeys is a countrey that men call Lamory,[1] and in that lande is greate heate, and it is the custome there, that men and women go al naked and they scorne all them that are clade, for they say that God made Adam & Eve all naked, and that men shoulde haue no shame of that God made, & they beleve in the same God that made Adam & Eve and all the world, and there is no woman wedded, but women are all common there, and they forsake no man. And they say that God commaunded to Adam & Eve and all that come of them saying, _Crescite & multiplicamini, & replete Terram_. That is to say in English, Encrease & multiply and fyll the earth, and no man may say there, This is my wife, & no woman may say, this is my husbande. And when they haue any children they give them to whom they will of men that haue medled with them. Also the lande is all common, for every man taketh what he will, for that one man hath in one yere now, an other man hath another yeare. Also all the goods, as corne, beastes and all maner thing of that countrey are all in common. For there is nothing under locke, and as riche is one man as an other, but they haue an evill custome in eating of fleshe, for they eate gladlier mans fleshe than other. Neverthelesse in that lande is abundaunce of corne, of fleshe, of fishe, of golde of silver and all maner of goods. And thether doeth the marchauntes bring their children for to sell, and those that are fatte they eate them, & those that be lean, they kepe them tyll they befatte, & then are they eaten. And besyde this yle of Lamory, is another yle that men call Somober,[2] and is a good yle, men of that yle do marke them in the visage with an hot yron, bothe men & women for great nobility & to be knowen from other, for they hold themselfe the worthiest of y^e world and they haue warre evermore with those men that are naked that I spake of before. Also there are many other yles and diverse maner of men, of the which it were overmuch for to speake of all.

[Footnote 1: Sumatra.]

[Footnote 2: ? Sumatra. One or other, Lamory or Somober, is evidently this island.]

CAP. LVI.

_Of the countrey and yle named Java, which is a mighty lande._

AND there is also a great yle that men call Java & the kinge of that countrey hath under hym seven kinges, for he is a full mightie prince. In this yle groweth all maner of spyces more plenteously than in any other place, as ginger, clowes, canell[1] nutmyge[2] and other, and ye shall understande that the nutmyge beareth the maces, & of all thing therein is plenty savinge wine. The King of this lande hath a riche palace and the best that is in the worlde, for all the greces of his hall and chambres are all made one of gold & another of silver, & all the walls are plated with fine gold and silver, & on those plates are written stories of knightes, and batayles, and the pavimente of the hall and chambres is of golde and silver, and there is no man that woulde beleve this riches that is there except hee had sene it, and the Kynge of this yle is so mightie, that he hath many times overcom the great Caane of Cathay which is the myghtiest Emperour that is in all the worlde, for there is often warre amonge them, for the great Caane would make hym hold his land of him.

[Footnote 1: Cinnamon.]

[Footnote 2: Nutmeg.]

CAP. LVII.

_Of the Kingdome of Pathen or Salmasse, which is a goodly lande._

AND for to go forth by the sea, there is an yle that is called Pater, and some call it Salmasse, for it is a great kingedome with many faire cities. In this lande groweth trees that beare meale, of which men make faire bread & white & of good savour, and it seemeth lyke as it were of wheate. And there be other trees that beare venym,[1] againe the which is no medicine but one, that is to take of the leaves of the same tree and stampe them, and tempre them with water and drinke it, or else he shall dye sodainly, for Treacle may not helpe. And if you will know how this tree beare meale, I shall tell you, men hew with a hatchet aboute the rote of the tree by the earth, and they perce him in many sundry places, and then cometh out a lycoure the which they take in a vessell, and sette in the sonne and dry it, and when it is dry, they cary it unto the mille to grynde, and so it is faire meale and white. Also hony wyne, and venym are drawen out of other trees in the same maner, and they put it in vessels to keepe. In that yle is a dead sea, which is a water that hath no grounde and if anythinge fall therein it shall never be founde, besyde that sea groweth great canes and under theyr rootes men finde precious stones of great vertue, for he that beareth one of those stones uppon him, there may no yron greve[2] him nor drawe blood on hym, and therefore they y^t have those stones fyght full hardely, for there may no quarell[3] nor such thing greve them, therefore they that knowe the maner make their quarell without yron & so they sleay them.

[Footnote 1: Poison, _i.e._, are poisonous.]

[Footnote 2: Wound or hurt.]

[Footnote 3: Arrow.]

CAP. LVIII.

_Of the Kingdome of Talonach, the king thereof hath many wyves._

THEN is there another yle that men call Talonach, that is a greate lande, and plenteous of goods & fyshes, as you shall hereafter heare. And the King of the lande hath as many wives as he will, a thousande & mo, and lyeth never by one of them but once, and that lande hath a marvayle that is in no other land, for all maner of fyshes of the sea cometh there once a yeare, one after another, and lyeth him nere the lande, sometime on the lande, and so lye three dayes, and men of that lande come thither and take of them what he will, and then go those fyshes awaye and another sorte commeth, and lyeth also three dayes and men take of them, and doe thus all maner of fyshes tyll all haue bene there, and menne have taken what they wyll. And menne wot[1] not the cause why it is so. But they of that countrey saye, that those fyshes come so thyther to do worship to theyr king, for they say he is the most worthiest king of the worlde for he hath so many wives and geateth so many children of them. And that same kinge that XIIII M Olyfauntes or mo which be all tame, and they be all fedde of the men his countrey, for his pleasure bicause that he may haue them redy to his hande when he hath any warre against any kyng or prince, and then he doth put uppon theyr backs castels & men of warre as the use is of the lande, and lykewyse do other kyngs and princes thereabout.

[Footnote 1: Know.]

[Decoration]

CAP. LIX.

_Of the ylande called Raso[1] where men be hanged as sone as they are sicke._

AND from this yle menne go unto another yle that men call Raso, and menne of this yle when that theyr friendes are sicke & that they beleve surely that they shal dye, they take them & hange them al quick on a tree, and say that it is better that byrdes, that are aungels of God, eate them, than wormes of the earthe. Fro thence men go to an yle where the men are of ill kinde, for they nourishe houndes for to strangle men. And when theyr friendes are sicke that they hope they shal dye, then do those houndes strangle them, for they wyll not that they dye a kyndely death, for then shoulde they suffre to great paine as they say, & when they are thus dead they eate theyre flesh for venison.

[Footnote 1: _Pynson_ and others say Gaffolo or Caffolos.]

CAP. LX.

_Of the ylande of Melke wherein dwelleth evill people._

FROM thence menne go through many yles by sea unto an yle that men call Melke, and there be full yll people, for they haue none other delyte but to fyght and slee men, for they drinke gladly mans blood, which blood they call good, and they that maye most sleay is of moste name amonge them. And if two men there be at stryfe and after bee made at one, it behoveth them to drink eyther others blood, or else the accorde is nought. From this yle men go to an yle that is called Tracota where all men are as beastes & not reasonable, they dwell in caves, for they haue not wyt to make them houses, they eate adders[1] and they speake not, but they make such a noyse as adders doe one to another, and they make no force of ryches but of a stone that hath forty colours, and it is called Traconyt after that yle, they know not the vertue thereof but they covete it for the great fayreness.

[Footnote 1: Pliny speaks (Book 7, cap. 2) of adder-eating people in India and elsewhere, but he says they live to the age of four hundred years, which is supposed to be owing to the flesh of vipers, which they use as food, in consequence of which they are free from all noxious animals, both in their hair and their garments. In book 29, c. 38, he also gives directions for the preparation of viper's flesh for food.]

CAP. LXI.

_Of an yland named Macumeran, whereas the people haue heads lyke houndes._[1]

FROM that yle menne go to an yle that is called Macumeran, whiche is a greate yle and a fayre and the men and women of the countrey haue heads like houndes, they are reasonable & worship an oxe for their god, they go all naked but a little clothe before them, they are good men to fighte, & they beare a great target with which they couer all the body and a speare in theyr hande, and if they take any man in batayle they sende him to theyr King which is a great lorde & devoute in his faith, for he hath about his necke on a cord thre hondred pearles great & orient,[2] in maner of Pater noster, and as we saye Pater noster, and Ave maria. Right so ye King saith euery day three hundred prayers to his god before he eate, & he beareth also about hys necke a ruby, oryent, fine & good, that is neer a foote & five fingers long. For when they chuse theyr Kyng they giue to him that Ruby to beare in his hande, and then they lead him riding about the citie, and then euer after are they subjecte to him, and therefore he beareth that Ruby alway about his necke, for if he beareth not the Ruby, they woulde no longer holde hym for kynge. The greate Caane of Cathay hath much coveted this Ruby: but he might never haue it, neither for war nor for other catell,[3] and this Kinge is a full true & a righteous man, for men may go safely & surely through his lande & beare y^t he will, for there is no man so hardy to let[4] them. And from thence men go to an ile that is called Silo, this ile is more than a hundred[5] myle about and therein be many serpents which are great with yelow stripes & they haue foure feete, with short leggs & great claws, some be five fadome[6] of length & some of viii & some of x & some more and some lesse & be called Cocodrylles & there are also many wylde beasts & Olyfants.[7] Also in this yle & in many yles thereabout are many wyld geese with two heads, and there be also in y^t countrey white lyons and many other dyverse mervaylous beastes, & if I should tell it all it should be to long.

[Footnote 1: Again in Book 7, cap. 2, Pliny speaks of _Cynocephali_, or dog-headed people, for he says that on many of the mountains there is a tribe of men, who have the heads of dogs, and clothe themselves with the skins of wild beasts. Instead of speaking, they bark; and, furnished with claws, they live by hunting and catching birds.]

[Footnote 2: Oriental,--coming from the East.]

[Footnote 3: Nor in exchange.]

[Footnote 4: Hinder.]

[Footnote 5: Others say 800.]

[Footnote 6: A fathom is 6 feet.]

[Footnote 7: Elephants.]

CAP. LXII.

_Of a great yland called Dodyn, where are many diverse men of evill conditions._

THEN there is another yle that men call Dodyn, & it is a great yle. In this yle are maner diverse maner of men y^t haue evyll maners, for the father eateth the son & the son the father the husband his wyfe and the wyfe hir husbande. And if it so be that the father be sicke, or the mother, or any frend, the sonne goeth soone to the priest of the law & prayeth him that he will aske of the ydoll if his father shall dye of that sicknesse or not. And then the priest and the son kneele downe before the ydole devoutly & asketh him, and he aunswereth to them, and if he say that he shall lyve, then they kepe him wel, and if he say that he shall dye, then commeth the priest with the son or with the wyfe or what frende that it be unto him y^t is sicke, and they lay their hands over his mouth to stop his breath, and so they sley him & then they smite all the body into peces & praieth all his frendes for to come and eate of him that is dead, and they make a great feste thereof and haue many minstrels there, and eate him with great melody. And so when they haue eaten al y^e flesh, then they take the bones and bury them all singing with great worship, and all those that are of his friendes that were not there at the eating of him haue great shame and vylany, so that they shall never more be taken as frends. And the King of this yle is a great lord and mightie, & he hath under him LIIII grete Yles and eche of them hath a King, and in one of these yles are men that haue but one eye, & that is in the middest of theyr front and they eate not flesh & fishe all rawe. And in another yle dwell men that haue no heads & theyr eyen are in theyr shoulders & theyr mouth is on theyr breste.[1] In another yle are men that haue no head ne eyen and theyr mouth is in theyr shoulders. And in another yle are men that haue flatte faces without nose and without eyen, but they haue two small round holes in stede of eyen, and they haue a flatte mouth without lippes. And in that yle are men also that haue their faces all flat without eyen, without mouth & without nose, but they haue their eyen and their mouth behinde on their shoulders. And in an other yle are foule men that haue the lippes aboute the mouth so greate that when they sleepe in the sonne, they cover all theyr face with the lippe. And in another yle are lyttle men as dwarfes, and haue no mouth but a lyttle rounde hole & through that hole they eate their meat with a pipe, & they haue no tongue & they speake not but they blow & whistle and so make signes one to another. And in another yle are men with hanging eares unto their shoulders.[2] And in another yle are wild men with hanging eares & haue feete lyke an hors & they run faste & they take wild beastes and eate them. And in another yle are men that go on theyr handes & feete lyke beasts & are all rough and will leape upon a tree like cattes or apes. And in an other yle are men that go euer uppon theyr knees mervaylosly, and haue on euery foote viii Toes.[3] Many other maner of folke bee in the sea in yles thereabout, of whome it were to longe to tell all.

[Footnote 1: Here again Pliny says in his 7th book, cap. 2:--"These people dwell not very far from the Troglodytæ (_dwellers in caves_) to the west, of whom again there is a tribe who are without necks, and _have eyes in their shoulders_."]

[Footnote 2: See Appendix.]

[Footnote 3: Here a paragraph is omitted, not being suitable for general readers.]

CAP. LXIII.

_Of the Kingedome named Mancy which is the best kingedome of the worlde._

TO go from this yle toward the east many journies a man shall finde a kingdome that is called Mancy[1] & this is in Inde the more, & it is y^e most delectable and plenty of goods of all the worlde. In this lande dwell christen men and Sarasins, for it is a great lande, and therein are II M great cities & many other townes. In this lande no man goeth a begging, for there is no pore man, and there men haue beardes of heare[2] as it were cattes. In this lande are faire women, and therefore some men call that lande Albany, for the white folke, and there is a citie that men call Latorim and is more[3] than Paris, and in that land are birdes twise greater than they be here and there is all maner of vytayles good cheape.[4] In this countrey are whyte hennes, and they beare no feathers but woll[5] as shepe doe in our lande; and women of that countrey that are wedded beare crownes uppon theyr heads that they may be knowne by. In this countrey they take a beast that is called Loyres, and they keepe it to goe in to waters or ryvers, and straighte waye hee bringeth out of the water great fishes, and thus they take fishe as longe as they will, and as them nedeth. Fro this citie men go by many journeys to an other citie that is called Cassay,[6] that is the fayrest citie of the worlde, and that citie is fifty myle about and there is in that citie mo than xii[7] principall gates without. From thence within three myle is an other great citie, and within this citie are more than xii thousand bridges and upon eche bridge is a stronge toure where the kepers dwell to kepe it against the great Caane, for it marcheth[8] on his land. And on one side of the citie runneth a great river, and there dwell christen men & other for it is a good countrey and plentious, & there groweth right good wine. In this noble citie the King of Mancy was wont to dwell and there dwell religious men, as fryers. And men go vpon the river till they come to an Abbey of Monkes a lyttle from the citie & in y^t Abbey is a great gardeine, and therein is many maner of trees of divers fruites, in that gardein are divers kindes of beastes, as Baboyns,[9] Apes, Marmosets and other, & when the covent[10] haue eaten, a monke taketh the reliefe[11] & beareth it into the gardein, & smiteth once with a bell of silver which he holdeth in his hand, anone come out these beastes that I speake of and many nere II or III thousand,[12] and he giveth them to eate of[13] faire vessels of silver, & when they haue eaten he smyteth the bell againe and they go away, and the monke sayth that those beasts are soules of men that are dead, and those beastes that are fayre are soules of Lordes and other rich men, & those that are foule beastes are soules of other commons, and I asked them if it had not been better to give that relife to pore men, & they sayde there is no pore men in y^e countrey and if there were yet were it more almes to give it to those soules y^t suffer there their penaunce & may go no farther to get their meat, than to men that haue wit & may travail for theyr meat. Then come men to a citie y^t is called Chibens & there was the first sege[14] of the King of Mancy. In this citie are LX brydges of stone as fayre as they may be.

[Footnote 1: Or Manzi, that part of China south of the river Hoang-ho.]

[Footnote 2: _Pynson_ has "berdes _thynne_ of here, as it were cattes."]

[Footnote 3: Larger.]