Obtained the
victory, the confederates being mostly slain, and those who escaped were
reduced to subjection. Zingis established his son Occoday, Ug dai, or
Octai-Khan, in the land of the Kara-Kitayans, where he built a town called
Omyl or Chamyl[1]; near which, and to the south, there is a vast desert, in
which there are said to be certain wild men, who do not speak, and have no
joints in their legs, yet have sufficient art to make felt of camels wool
for garments, to protect them from the weather.
[1] Called Chamil or Hami in the maps, in lat. 43 deg. N. and long.
92 deg. E It stands in a province of the same name, on the north side of
the great desert of Cobi, and to the N.E. of the land of the Kalmuks,
or little Bucharia. - E.
SECTION IX.
Of the Mutual Victories of the Mongals and Cathayans.
After their return from conquering the Naymani and Cara-Cathayans, the
Mongals prepared to go to war with the Kythaos, or Cathayans[1]; but the
Mongals were defeated in a great battle, and all their nobles were slain
except seven. Zingis and the rest who had escaped from this defeat, soon
afterwards attacked and conquered the people called Huyri[2], who were
Nestorian Christians, from whom they learned the art of writing. After this
they conquered the land of Sarugur, and the country of the Karanites, and
the land of Hudirat, and returning into their own country, took a short
respite from war. Again assembling a great army, they invaded Cathay, and
after a long struggle, they conquered the greater part of that country, and
besieged the emperor in his greatest city. The siege lasted so long, that
the army of the Mongals came to be in want of provisions, and Zingis is
said to have commanded that every tenth man of his own army should be slain
as food for the rest. At length, by great exertions, the Mongals dug a mine
underneath the walls of the city, through which a party entered and opened
the gates for the rest of the army, so that the city was carried, and the
emperor and many of the citizens put to the sword. Having appointed
deputies to rule over his conquests, Zingis returned into Mongalia with
immense quantities of gold and silver and other precious spoil. But the
southern parts of this empire, as it lies within the sea, has not been
conquered by the Mongals to this day[3].
The people of Cathay are Pagans, having a peculiar kind of writing of their
own, in which they are reported to possess the scriptures of the Old and
New Testament. They have also lives of the fathers, and houses in which
they pray at stated times, built like churches; they are even said to have
saints, to worship one God, to venerate the Lord Jesus Christ, and to
believe eternal life; but they are not baptised[4]. They have no beards,
and they partly resemble the Mongals in their features. Their country is
exceeding fruitful in corn, and abounds in gold and silver, wine and silk,
and all manner of rich commodities, and the whole world has not more expert
artificers in all kinds of works and manufactures.
[1] The inhabitants of Northern China, then a separate kingdom from Mangi,
or Southern China. - E.
[2] The Huirs or Uigurs. - E.
[3] This probably alludes to the difficulty experienced by the Mongals in
forcing a passage across the great rivers Hoang-ho and Kian-ku - E.
[4] These absurd notions must have been picked up by the credulous papal
messengers, from ignorant or designing Nestorians in Mongolia. - E.
SECTION X.
Of the Wars of the Mongals against the Greater and Lesser India.
When Zingis and his people had rested some time after their conquest of
Cathay, he divided his army, and sent one of his sons, named Thosut-
khan[1], against the Comaniam, whom he vanquished in many battles, and then
returned into his own country. Another of his sons was sent with an army
against the Indians, who subdued the lesser India. These Indians are the
Black Saracens, who are also named Ethiopians. From thence the Mongal army
marched to fight against the Christians dwelling in the greater India, and
the king of that country, known by the name of Prester John, came forth
with his army against them. This prince caused a number of hollow copper
figures to be made, resembling men, which were stuffed with combustibles,
and set upon horses, each having a man behind on the horse, with a pair of
bellows to stir up the fire. When approaching to give battle, these mounted
images were first sent forwards against the enemy, and the men who rode
behind set fire by some means to the combustibles, and blew strongly with
their bellows; and the Mongal men and horses were burnt with wildfire, and
the air was darkened with smoke. Then the Indians charged the Mongals, many
of whom were wounded and slain, and they were expelled from the country in
great confusion, and we have not heard that they ever ventured to
return[2].
[1] Probably Tuschi-Khan. - E.
[2] It is needless to remark upon the confused and ignorant geography, and
the idle tale of a Christian empire in India in this section. The
strangely ill-told story of the copper images, by which the Mongals
were scorched with wild-fire, may refer to the actual employment
either of cannon or rockets against the Mongals in this invasion. - E.
SECTION XI.
Of Monstrous Men like Dogs, and of the Conquest of Burithabeth.
In returning through the desert, we were told by some Russian priests at
the emperor's court, that the Mongals found certain women, who, being asked
where their men were, said that all the women of that country had human
shapes, but that the males had the shape of great dogs.
