Latest / The Travels of Marco Polo, Volume 1 / 038 - Book Second Part 1 Chapters 19 to 22 Concerning the two brothers who have charge of the Kaan's hound

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038 - Book Second Part 1 Chapters 19 to 22 Concerning the two brothers who have charge of the Kaan's hound · The Travels of Marco Polo, Volume 1

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  Speaker 1: Section thirty eight of the Book of Sir Marco Polo
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  Speaker 1: the Venetian concerning the Kingdoms and Marvels of the East,
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  Speaker 1: Volume one. This is a LibriVox recording. All Libervox recordings
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  Speaker 1: are in the public domain. For more information of the
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  Speaker 1: volunteer place us at LibriVox dot org. Recording by Annosimon
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  Speaker 1: The Book of Sir Marco Polo the Venetian concerning the
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  Speaker 1: Kingdoms and Marvels of the East, voiume one Parasitello da Pisa,
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  Speaker 1: translated by Henry Yule, Book second Part one, Chapters nineteen
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  Speaker 1: to twenty two. Chapter nineteen concerning the two brothers who
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  Speaker 1: have charge of the Khan's hounds. The Emperor hath two
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  Speaker 1: barons who are own brothers, one called Baian and the
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  Speaker 1: other Miingan, and these are styled Shinushi or Kunichi, which
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  Speaker 1: is as much as to say the keepers of the
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  Speaker 1: mastiff dogs. Each of these brothers had ten thousand men
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  Speaker 1: under his orders, each body of ten thousand being dressed alike,
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  Speaker 1: the one in red and the other in blue. And
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  Speaker 1: whenever they accompany the Lord to the chase, they wear
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  Speaker 1: this livery in order to be recognized. Out of each
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  Speaker 1: body of ten thousand, there are two thousand men who
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  Speaker 1: are each in charge of one or more great mastiffs,
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  Speaker 1: so that the whole number of these is very large.
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  Speaker 1: And when the Prince goes a hunting, one of those barons,
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  Speaker 1: with his ten thousand men and something like five thousand dogs,
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  Speaker 1: goes towards the right, while the other goes towards the left.
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  Speaker 1: With its party in light manner, they move along all
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  Speaker 1: abreast of one another, so that the whole line extends
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  Speaker 1: over a full day's journey, and no animal can escape them. Truly,
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  Speaker 1: it is a glorious sight to see the working of
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  Speaker 1: the dogs and the huntsmen on such an occasion. And
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  Speaker 1: as the Lord rides a fowling across the plains, you
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  Speaker 1: will see these big hounds come tearing up, one pack
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  Speaker 1: after a bear, another pack after a stag or some
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  Speaker 1: other beast, as it may have, and running the game down,
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  Speaker 1: now on this side and now on that, so that
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  Speaker 1: it is really a most delightful sport and spectacle. The
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  Speaker 1: two brothers I have mentioned are bound by the tenure
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  Speaker 1: of their office to supply the count's court from October
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  Speaker 1: to the end of March with one thousand head of
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  Speaker 1: game daily, whether of beasts or birds, and not counting quails,
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  Speaker 1: and also with fish to the best of their ability,
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  Speaker 1: allowing fish enough for three persons to reckon as equal
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  Speaker 1: to one head of game. Now I have told you
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  Speaker 1: of the masters of the hounds and all about them,
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  Speaker 1: And next will I tell you how the Lord goes
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  Speaker 1: off on an expedition for the space of three months.
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  Speaker 1: Chapter twenty. How the Emperor goes on a hunting expedition
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  Speaker 1: after he has stopped at his capital city those three
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  Speaker 1: months that I mentioned to wit December January February. He
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  Speaker 1: starts off on the first day of March and travels
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  Speaker 1: southward towards the ocean sea, a journey of two days.
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  Speaker 1: He takes with him full ten thousand falconers and some
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  Speaker 1: five hundred nred gear falcons, besides peregrains, sakers and other
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  Speaker 1: hawks in great numbers, and gos hawks also to fly
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  Speaker 1: at the water fowl. But do not suppose that he
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  Speaker 1: keeps all these together by him. They are distributed about
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  Speaker 1: hither and thither, one hundred together or two hundred utmost
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  Speaker 1: as he thinks proper. But they are always fowling as
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  Speaker 1: they advance, and the most part of the quarry taken
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  Speaker 1: is carried to the Emperor. And let me tell you,
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  Speaker 1: when he goes thus a fowling with his ga falcons
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  Speaker 1: and other hawks, he is attended by full ten thousand
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  Speaker 1: men who had is posed in couples. And these are
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  Speaker 1: called toscau, which is as much as to say watchers,
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  Speaker 1: and the name describes their business. They are posted from
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  Speaker 1: spot to spot, always in couples, and thus they cover
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  Speaker 1: a great deal of ground. Every man of them is
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  Speaker 1: provided with a whistle and hood, so as to be
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  Speaker 1: able to call in a hawk and hold it in hand.
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  Speaker 1: And when the Emperor makes a cast, there is no
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  Speaker 1: need that he follow it up, for those men I
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  Speaker 1: speak of keeps so good a look out that they
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  Speaker 1: never lose sight of the birds. And if these have
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  Speaker 1: need of help, they are ready to render it. All
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  Speaker 1: the Emperor's hawks, and those the barons as well, have
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  Speaker 1: a little label attached the leg to mark them, on
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  Speaker 1: which is written the names of the owner and the
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  Speaker 1: keeper of the bird. And in this way the hawk,
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  Speaker 1: when caught, is at once identified and handed over to
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  Speaker 1: its owner. But if not, the bird is carried to
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  Speaker 1: a certain baron, who is styled the bullard. Gucci, which
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  Speaker 1: is as much as to say, the keeper of lost property.
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  Speaker 1: And I tell you that whatever may be found without
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  Speaker 1: a known owner, whether it be a horse, or a sword,
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  Speaker 1: or a hawk, or what not, it is carried to
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  Speaker 1: that baron straightway, and he takes charge of it. And
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  Speaker 1: if the finer neglects to carry his troth to the baron,
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  Speaker 1: the letter punishes him. Likewise, the loser of any article
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  Speaker 1: goes to the baron, and if the thing be in
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  Speaker 1: his hands, it is immediately given up to the owner. Moreover,
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  Speaker 1: the said baron always pitches on the high keest spot
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  Speaker 1: of the camp, with his banner displayed, in order that
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  Speaker 1: those who have lost or found anything may have no
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  Speaker 1: difficulty in finding their way to him. Thus nothing can
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  Speaker 1: be lost, but it shall be incontinently found and restored.
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  Speaker 1: And so the emperor follows this road that I've mentioned,
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  Speaker 1: leading along in the vicinity of the ocean Sea, which
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  Speaker 1: is within two days journey of his capital city, cambaluc
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  Speaker 1: And as he goes there is many a fine sight
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  Speaker 1: to be seen, and plenty of the very best entertainment
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  Speaker 1: in hawking. In fact, there is no sport in the
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  Speaker 1: world to equal it. The Emperor himself is carried upon
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  Speaker 1: four elephants in a fine chamber made of timber, lined
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  Speaker 1: inside with plates of beaten gold, and outside with lion's skins,
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  Speaker 1: For he always travels in this way on his fowling expeditions,
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  Speaker 1: because he is troubled with gout. He always keeps beside
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  Speaker 1: him a dozen of his choicest gar falcons, and is
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  Speaker 1: attended by several of his barons, who ride on horseback alongside.
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  Speaker 1: And sometimes as they may be going going along, and
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  Speaker 1: the Emperor, from his chamber is holding discourse with the barons,
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  Speaker 1: one of the latter shall exclaim Sire, look out for cranes.
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  Speaker 1: Then the Emperor instantly has the top of his chamber
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  Speaker 1: thrown open, and having marked the cranes, he casts one
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  Speaker 1: of his ger falcons whichever he pleases, and often the
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  Speaker 1: cory is struck within his view, so that he has
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  Speaker 1: the most exquisite sport and diversion there as he sits
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  Speaker 1: in his chamber or lies on his bed, and all
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  Speaker 1: the barons with him get the enjoyment of it. Likewise,
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  Speaker 1: so it is not without reason I tell you that
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  Speaker 1: I do not believe there ever existed in the world,
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  Speaker 1: or ever will exist a man with such sport and
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  Speaker 1: enjoyment as he has, or with such rare opportunities, And
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  Speaker 1: when he has traveled till he reaches a place called
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  Speaker 1: Kasha Moudun. There he finds his tents pitched with the
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  Speaker 1: tents of his sons and his barons, and those of
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  Speaker 1: his ladies and theirs, so that there shall be full
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  Speaker 1: ten thousand tents in all and all fine and rich ones.
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  Speaker 1: Thou will tell you how his own quarters are disposed.
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  Speaker 1: The tent in which he holds his courts is large
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  Speaker 1: enough to give cover easily to a thousand souls. It
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  Speaker 1: is pitched with its door to the south, and the
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  Speaker 1: barons and knights remain in waiting in it, whilst the
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  Speaker 1: Lord abides in another close to it on the west side.
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  Speaker 1: When he wishes to speak with anyone, he causes the
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  Speaker 1: person to be summoned to that other tent. Immediately behind
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  Speaker 1: the great tent there is a fine, large chamber where
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  Speaker 1: the Lord sleeps, And there are also many other tents
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  Speaker 1: and chambers, but they are not in contact with the
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  Speaker 1: great tent. As these are. The two audience tents and
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  Speaker 1: the sleeping chamber are constructed in this way. Each of
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  Speaker 1: the audience tents has three poles, which are of spice wood,
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  Speaker 1: and are most artfully covered with lions skins striped with
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  Speaker 1: black and white and red, so that they do not
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  Speaker 1: suffer from any weather. All three apartments are also covered
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  Speaker 1: outside with some skins of striped lions, a substance that
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  Speaker 1: lasts forever, and inside they are all lined with ermine
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  Speaker 1: and sable, these two being the finest and most costly
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  Speaker 1: furs in existence. For a robe of sable large enough
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  Speaker 1: to line a mantle is worth two thousand bozants of gold,
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  Speaker 1: or one thousand at least, and this kind of skin
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  Speaker 1: is called by the Tartars the king of firs. The
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  Speaker 1: beast itself is about the size of a martin. These
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  Speaker 1: two furs of which I speak are applied and inlaid
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  Speaker 1: so exquisitely that it is really something worth seeing. All
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  Speaker 1: the tent ropes are of silk, and in short I
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  Speaker 1: may say that those tents to it, the two audience
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  Speaker 1: holes and the sleeping chamber, are so costly that it
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  Speaker 1: is not every king could pay for them. Round About
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  Speaker 1: these tents are others, also fine ones and beautifully pitched,
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  Speaker 1: in which are the emperor's ladies and the ladies of
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  Speaker 1: the other princes and officers. And then there are the
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  Speaker 1: tents for the hawks and their keepers, so that altogether
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  Speaker 1: the number of tents there on the plain is something
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  Speaker 1: wonderful to see. The many people that are thronging to
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  Speaker 1: and fro on every side, and every day there you
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  Speaker 1: would take the camp for a good big city, for
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  Speaker 1: you must reckon the leeches, and the astrologers, and the falconers,
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  Speaker 1: and all the other attendants on so great a company.
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  Speaker 1: And add that everybody there has his whole family with him,
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  Speaker 1: for such is their custom. The lord remains encamped there
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  Speaker 1: until the spring, and all that time he does nothing
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  Speaker 1: but go hawking round about among the canebrakes, along the
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  Speaker 1: lakes and rivers that abound in that region, and across
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  Speaker 1: fine plains, on which are plenty of cranes and swans
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  Speaker 1: and all sorts of other fowl. The other gentry of
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  Speaker 1: the camp also are never done with hunting and hawking,
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  Speaker 1: and every day they bring home great store of venison
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  Speaker 1: and feathered game of all sorts. Indeed, without having witnessed it,
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  Speaker 1: you would never believe what quantities of game are taken,
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  Speaker 1: and what marvelous sport and diversion they all have whilst
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  Speaker 1: they are encamped there. There is another thing I should
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  Speaker 1: mention to wit that for twenty days journey round the spot,
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  Speaker 1: nobody is allowed be he who he may to keep
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  Speaker 1: hawks or hounds, though anywhere else whose whoever list may
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  Speaker 1: keep them. And furthermore, throughout all the Emperor's territories, nobody,
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  Speaker 1: however audacious, dares to hunt any of these four animals
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  Speaker 1: to wit hare, stag, buck, and row from the month
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  Speaker 1: of March to the month of October. Anybody who should
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  Speaker 1: do so would ruin it busily. But those people are
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  Speaker 1: so obedient to their lord's command that even if a
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  Speaker 1: man were to find one of those animals asleep by
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  Speaker 1: the roadside, he would not touch it for the world.
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  Speaker 1: And thus the game multiplies at such a rate that
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  Speaker 1: the whole country swarms with it, and the Emperor gets
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  Speaker 1: as much as he should desire. Beyond the term I've mentioned, however,
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  Speaker 1: to wit that from March to October, everybody may take
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  Speaker 1: these animals as he lists. After the Emperor has tarried
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  Speaker 1: in that place, enjoying his sport. As I have related,
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  Speaker 1: from March to the middle of May, he moves with
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  Speaker 1: all his people and returns straight to his capital city
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  Speaker 1: of Kambaluk, which is also the capital of Cathai, as
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  Speaker 1: you have been told, but all the while continuing to
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  Speaker 1: take his diversion in hunting and hawking as he goes along.
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  Speaker 1: Chapter twenty one rehearsal of the way the year of
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  Speaker 1: the Great Khan is distributed. On arriving at his capital
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  Speaker 1: of Kambaluk, he stays in his palace there three days
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  Speaker 1: and no more, during which time he has great court
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  Speaker 1: entertainments and rejoicings, and makes merry with his wives. He
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  Speaker 1: then quits his palace at Kambaluk and proceeds to that
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  Speaker 1: city which he has built, as I told you before,
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  Speaker 1: and which is called Chandu, where he has at grand
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  Speaker 1: park and palace of kin, and where he keeps his
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  Speaker 1: girl falcons in mew. There he spends the summer to
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  Speaker 1: escape the heat, for the situation is very cool one.
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  Speaker 1: After stopping there from the beginning of May to the
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  Speaker 1: twenty eighth of August, he takes his departure that is
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  Speaker 1: the time when they sprinkle the white Mas's milk, as
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  Speaker 1: I told you, and returns to his capital Cambaluuke. There
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  Speaker 1: he stops, as I've told you, also the month of
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  Speaker 1: September to keep his birthday feast, and also throughout October, November, December,
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  Speaker 1: January and February, in which last month he keeps the
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  Speaker 1: grand Feast of the New Year, which they call the
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  Speaker 1: White Feast. As you have heard already, with all particulars.
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  Speaker 1: He then sets out on his march towards the ocean
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  Speaker 1: sea hunting and hawking, and continues out from the beginning
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  Speaker 1: of March to the middle of May, and then comes
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  Speaker 1: back for three days only to the capital, during which
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  Speaker 1: he makes merry with his wives and holds a great
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  Speaker 1: court and grand entertainments. In truth, there's something astonishing the
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  Speaker 1: magnificence displayed by the Emperor in those three days. And
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  Speaker 1: then he starts off again. As you know, Thus his
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  Speaker 1: whole year is distributed in the following manner. Six months
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  Speaker 1: at his chief palace in the Royal city of Cambuluk
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  Speaker 1: to it September, October, November, December, January, February, then on
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  Speaker 1: the great hunting expedition towards the sea March April May.
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  Speaker 1: Then back to his palace Cambuluk for three days, then
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  Speaker 1: off to the city of Chandu, which he has built,
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  Speaker 1: and where the Caine Palace is, where he stays June
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  Speaker 1: July August, then back again to his capital city of Cumbuluk.
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  Speaker 1: So thus the whole year is spent six months at
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  Speaker 1: the capital, three months in hunting, and three months at
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  Speaker 1: the Cane Palace to avoid the heat. And in this
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  Speaker 1: way he passes his time with the greatest enjoyment. Not
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  Speaker 1: to mention occasional journeys in this or that direction at
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  Speaker 1: his own pleasure. Chapter twenty two, concerning the city of
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  Speaker 1: Cumbuluk and its great traffic and population. You must know
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  Speaker 1: that the city of Cumberluke has such a multitude of
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  Speaker 1: houses and such a vast population inside the walls and outside,
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  Speaker 1: that it seems quite past all possibility. There is a
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  Speaker 1: suburb outside each of the gates, which are twelve in number.
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  Speaker 1: And these suburbs are so great that they contain more
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  Speaker 1: people than the city itself. For the suburb of one
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  Speaker 1: gate spreads in width till it meaths the suburb of
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  Speaker 1: the next, whilst they extend in length some three or
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  Speaker 1: four miles. In those suburbs lodge the foreign merchants and travelers,
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  Speaker 1: of whom there are always great numbers who have come
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  Speaker 1: to bring presents to the Emperor, or to sell articles
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  Speaker 1: at court, or because the city affords so good a
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  Speaker 1: market to attract traders. There are in each of the suburbs,
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  Speaker 1: to a distance of a mile from the city, numerous
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  Speaker 1: fine hostelries for the lodgment of merchants from different parts
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  Speaker 1: of the world, and a special hostelry is assigned to
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  Speaker 1: each description of people, as if we should say there
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  Speaker 1: is one for the Lombards, another for the Germans, and
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  Speaker 1: a third for the Frenchmen. And thus there are as
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  Speaker 1: many good houses outside of the city as inside, without
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  Speaker 1: counting those that belong to the great lords and barons,
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  Speaker 1: which are very numerous. You must know that it is
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  Speaker 1: forbidden to bury any dead body inside the city. If
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  Speaker 1: the body be that of an idolator, it is carried
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  Speaker 1: out beyond the city and suburbs to a remote place
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  Speaker 1: assigned to the purpose to be burnt. And if it
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  Speaker 1: be of one belonging to our religion, the custom of
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  Speaker 1: which is to bury, such as the Christian, the Saracen,
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  Speaker 1: or what not, it is also carried out beyond the
• 15:36
  Speaker 1: suburbs to a distant place assigned for the purpose, and
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  Speaker 1: thus the city is preserved in a better and more
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  Speaker 1: healthy state. Moreover, no public woman resides inside the city,
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  Speaker 1: but all such abide outside in the suburbs. And is
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  Speaker 1: wonderful what a vast number of these there are. For
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  Speaker 1: the foreigners, it is a certain fact that there are
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  Speaker 1: more than twenty thousand of them living by prostitution, and
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  Speaker 1: that so many can live in this way will show
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  Speaker 1: you how vast is the population. Guards patrol the city
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  Speaker 1: every night in parties of thirty or forty, looking out
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  Speaker 1: for any persons who may be abroad at unseasonable hours,
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  Speaker 1: that is, after the great bell hath stricken thrice. If
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  Speaker 1: they find any such person, he is immediately taken to
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  Speaker 1: prison and examined next morning by the proper officers. If
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  Speaker 1: these find him guilty of any misdemeanor, they order him
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  Speaker 1: a proportionate beating with the stick. Under this punishment people
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  Speaker 1: sometimes die, but they adopt it in order to askew
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  Speaker 1: bloodshed for their boxes say that it is an evil
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  Speaker 1: thing to shed man's blood. To this city also are
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  Speaker 1: broad articles of greater costs and rarity, and in greater
• 16:51
  Speaker 1: abundance of all kinds, than to any other city. In
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  Speaker 1: the world, for people of every description and from every region,
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  Speaker 1: bring things, including all the costly wears of India, as
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  Speaker 1: well as the fine and precious goods of Cathai itself
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  Speaker 1: with its provinces. Some for the sovereign, some for the court,
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  Speaker 1: some for the city, which is so great, some for
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  Speaker 1: the crowds of barrens and knights, some for the great
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  Speaker 1: hosts of the Emperor, which are quartered round about. And
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  Speaker 1: thus between court and city, the quantity brought in is endless.
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  Speaker 1: As a sample, I tell you no day in the
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  Speaker 1: year passes that there do not enter the city one
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  Speaker 1: thousand cart loads of silk alone, from which are made
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  Speaker 1: quantities of cloth, of silk, and gold, and of other goods.
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  Speaker 1: And this is not to be wondered at, for in
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  Speaker 1: all the countries round about there is no flex, so
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  Speaker 1: that everything has to be made of silk. It is true, indeed,
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  Speaker 1: that in some parts of the country there is cotton
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  Speaker 1: and hemp, but not sufficient for their wants. This, however,
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  Speaker 1: is not of much consequence, because silk is so abundant
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  Speaker 1: and cheap, and is a more valuable substance than either
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  Speaker 1: flex or cotton. Round about, this great city of Cumberluk.
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  Speaker 1: There are some two hundred other cities at various distances,
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  Speaker 1: from which traders come to sell their goods and buy
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  Speaker 1: others for their lords, And all find means to make
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  Speaker 1: their sales and purchases till the traffic of the city
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  Speaker 1: is passing great end of Section thirty eight