Hereupon Our Men Presented Some Thing To The Emperour, By The Chiefe Secretary, Which At The Deliuery Of It, Put Of His Hat, Being Before All The Time Couered:

And so the Emperour hauing inuited them to dinner, dismissed them from his presence:

And going into the chamber of him that was Master of the Requests to the Emperour, and hauing stayed there the space of two howres, at the last, the Messenger commeth, and calleth them to dinner: they goe, and being conducted into the golden Court, (for so they call it, although not very faire) they finde the Emperour sitting vpon an high and stately seate, apparelled with a robe of siluer, and with another Diademe on his head: our men being placed ouer against him, sit downe: in the middes of the roome stoode a mightie Cupboord vpon a square foote, whereupon stoode also a round boord, in manner of a Diamond, broade beneath, and towardes the toppe narrowe, and euery steppe rose vp more narrowe then another. Vpon this Cupboorde was placed the Emperours plate, which was so much, that the very Cupboord it selfe was scant able to sustaine the waight of it: the better part of all the vessels, and goblets, was made of very fine gold: and amongst the rest, there were foure pots of very large bignesse, which did adorne the rest of the plate in great measure: for they were so high, that they thought them at the least fiue foote long. There were also vpon this Cupbord certaine siluer caskes, not much differing from the quantitie of our Fyrkins, wherein was reserued the Emperours drinke: on each side of the Hall stood foure Tables, each of them layde and couered with very cleane table clothes, whereunto the company ascended by three steps or degrees: all which were filled with the assemblie present: the ghests were all apparelled with linnen without, and with rich skinnes within, and so did notably set out this royall feast The Emperour, when hee takes any bread or knife in his hand, doth first of all crosse himselfe vpon his forehead: they that are in special fauour with the Emperour sit vpon the same bench with him, but somewhat farre from him: and before the comming in of the meate, the Emperour himselfe, according to an ancient custome of the kings of Moscouy, doth first bestow a piece of bread vpon euery one of his ghests, with a loud pronunciation of his title, and honour, in this manner: The great Duke of Moscouie, and chiefe Emperour of Russia, Iohn Basiliwich (and then the officer nameth the ghest) doth giue thee bread. Whereupon al the ghests rise vp, and by and by sit downe againe. This done, the Gentleman Vsher of the Hall comes in, with a notable company of seruants, carying the dishes, and hauing done his reuerence to the Emperour, puts a yong Swanne in a golden platter vpon the table, and immediately takes it thence againe, deliuering it to the Caruer, and seuen other of his fellowes, to be cut up:

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