of such fruits as the countrye did afford; there is small store of bread in the contrey, but they live commonly on milke, mellons, radishes, and rice; their apparele very slender, for they wear commonly one robe, made like a surplice, with greate sleeves, of a kinde of blewe cloth, made of bumbaso; their sleeves they tie on their backe, by one corner of the sleeve, and all their armes naked; about their middle they weare a girdle, made of a horse-hide, some five fingers broode, and a dagger sticking under their girdles, with a wooden haft; they weare over their heads a cappe of felte, made like unto a murrian or head peece, tied under their chin with a blacke kinde of stuffe like a sipres. The Kinge himselfe was in this sortte attired, save only he had a satten cote without sleeves; he was a man of a goodly personage, exceedinge blacke and very grimme of visage; his Queene was a blackamoor: his companie that followed him was to the number of twenty thousand men; he had about ten thousand camels to attend him; in the summer time he did abide allwayes by the river Euphrates, and in the winter up in the desart. When Sir Anthony sawe the manner of his apparell, he sent for a peece of cloth of gould, which he had in the bote, and did present it unto the Kinge, which the Kinge esteemed highly of, to make himself an upper cote, and gave him great thankes for it; givinge him a passport under his own hand, to pass quietly through his dominions without anie further lett, which passport did us great good in our passage; but the Turkes he made pay soundly for the death of his servant; soe after one day and a night we departed, and came, in five days after, to a place worth the noting, which did burne with brimstone and pitch, making such a smoke that it did darken the place extremely, the pitch risinge up in great flackes as big as a house, making a terrible noyse, and that place the Jewes did tell us was Sodom and Gomora, but called by the Turkes Hell's mouth. From thence we passed a fairre town, called Racka, a verye ancient place, inhabited by Turkes and Arabianes. The river Euphratus doth rune thro' it; they have nether brig nor boate to passe from the one towne to the other, but the skins of goats, blowne like a bladder, and soe they cast themselves upon them, and swim over; you shall see them passe to and fro, as thicke as botes upon the Thames; from thence we passed to Phalouge, which place is in the suburbes of ould Babilone, and there we left our botes, and hired cameles and asses to carrie us to the cittie of Babilone that now is, which was a day and a night's journey from that place: but before we came to Babilone, the cadie that went of the embassage from the Turke to the Viceroy of Babilone, tould Sir Anthony, that his goods would be searched, and, as he did feare, would be taken from him; and did counsell him this, to deliver some of his goods to him, and he would safely keepe them for him, and deliver them to him at his departure from Babilone, which he did very honestly performe. Sir Anthony did accordinge to his advice, givinge him some of his jewels and other commodities, but his cups of emmeralds he reserved for the Viceroy of Babilone; but before we came into the cittie we were searched, and all our goods taken from us, to the worth of six thousand crownes, and never sawe it againe; had not we delivered that commoditie to

the embasador, we had been left naked to the world. As soone as they were seized upon, they were brought to the Bashawe, who liked so well of the emmerald cups, that he kept them for his owne use, not givinge Sir Anthony one penie for them; but sent for him, which, when Sir Anthony came before him, the Bashawe did looke for great reverence to be doone him; but Sir Anthony caryinge a gallant mind, as he ever did, would not doe any obedience untoe him; for, at the entrance into his presence, beinge bravely attended uppone with noblemen, Sir Anthony came bouldly in, and did not soe much as once bowe himselfe; but did sit down by him without anie entreating, where upon the Viceroy, lookinge verie grimme uppone him, tould him he should be sent in chaines to Constantinople, to the Greate Turke; and all his companie should have their heads cut off, and sett uppone the gates of Babilone. Then replyed Sir Anthony, that, as for his owne life, he did not respecte it, but for his followers; and he desired to endure anie torments himselfe, soe that his companie might passe quietly without hurt; soe that, for that time, he lett him depart for his lodginge. There was an Armenian, a Christian born, who did attend on the Bashawe, whom he loved dearly; his name was Margevelo; this Christian did laboure verie much in Sir Anthony's behalfe; which, in the end, he obtained, and gott him his libertie to depart quietlie, but could not gett him his goods againe, but made meanes to help Sir Anthony to eight hundred crownes, of some Venetian marchants which were there; soe, after we had staide there a monthe,

Sherley's own account of this occurrence, which is invested with the same strange and romantic interest as the rest of his adventures, is very different from that of Manwaring, who, it appears, was ignorant of the real circumstances attending it. Sherley, in order to avoid suspicion, had represented himself to be a merchant, who expected goods by the next caravan; but the number of his followers made a contrary impression, and he was closely watched. A Florentine merchant, of the name of Victorio Spiciera, who had travelled with Sherley from Aleppo, struck with his demeanor, took several opportunities to represent his danger to him Sherley conceiving him to be a spy, who wished to penetrate into the motives and object of his journey, for some time disregarded his suggestions, but was at length convinced of his kind intentions; Spiciera appointed a meeting with him about the time a caravan was to depart for Persia-and, proceeds Sir Anthony,

"When I came there, he brought me to a Vittorin, of whom he had allready hired horses, camels, and moiles, for me; and I found a tent pitched by his servants: and then opening his gowne, hee delivered me a bag of chakins, with these very words: The God of heaven blesse you, and your whole company, and your enterprise, which I will no further desire to know, than in my hope, which perswadeth mee that it is good; myselfe am going to China, whence if I returne, I shall little need the repayment of this courtesy, which I have done you with a most free heart; if I die by the way, I shall lesse neede it: but if it please God so to direct both our safeties with good

there was a caravanne of Persian marchants takinge their journeye towards Persia, who were verie glad of our companie; for you must understande, that the marchants travele, in those parts, exceedinge stronge, to the number of two thousand; some times more; because there are manie theeves, who lie in the way verie stronge, and the companie of marchants is called by the name of a caravanne. But concerninge our usage in Babilone amonge the cittizens, it was far better than in other places; for there we did passe verie quietlie up and downe without anie disturbance, but were verie kindlie used of all men; the Viceroy excepted; soe, in the end, we did take our leave of Babilone; and, beinge departed not above five or six miles, this Armenian, that shewed Sir Anthony such kindnes, sent him a verie gallant Arabiane horse, with a velvett saddle. I cannot expresse that greate love which he showed unto us; but marke the event, for when we had travelled some dayes' journey or more from Babilone, there came a post from the Greate Turke to the Bashawe, which was, that he should send us with all speede to Constantinope: when he had this

providence, that we may meete againe, I assure myselfe, that you will remember mee to bee your friend; which is enough, for all that I can say to a man of your sort. And almost, without giving me leasure to yeeld him condigne thankes (if any thankes could be condigne) for so great and so noble a benefite, he departed from me: and as I heard afterwards from him by letters from Ormus, hee received much trouble after my departure, through his honourable desire to perfect the kindnesse which he had begone. For imagining, that by the continual spies, which clave to my house, that my flight could not be secret, he had no sooner left mee in the caravan, but that hee changed his lodging to mine, saying that I had done the like to his; and went to the Cady, telling him that I was sicke, desiring his physition to visite mee, knowing well enough that the Cady had none, but onely to give colour to my not appearing in the towne: the Cady answered, he was sorry for my sickenesse, and would send to the Bassa for his physition, which Signior Victorio Spiciera (for so this honourable Florentine was called) would by no meanes; hoping, as he said, that my sickenesse would not bee so great, as would require the trouble of his highnesse." By this meanes five daies passed before Sir Anthony was missed; the Janisaries, who were sent after him, thinking that the caravan had passed, returned and the noble minded Florentine was forced to pay five hundred crownes, to make his peace with the Bassa.

"The precise summe," says Sherley, "which I received of the Florentine I set not downe, to prevent the scandales of divers, who, measuring every man's mind by the straightnesse of theirs, will believe no act which doth not symbolize with themselves; but, so much it was, that being thirty days upon the way to the confines, then fifteen from the confines to Casbine, where we attended one month the king's arrival, it was not only sufficient to give us abundant meanes for that time, but to clothe us all in rich apparel, fit to present ourselves before the presence of any prince, and to spend extraordinarily in gifts."

intelligence, he commanded presantly two hundred horse to be sent after us; this Armenian, hearinge of it, came to the captaine that had the commanding of these horse, and gave him a hundred ducates to lead his troope of horse another way, and soe to misse us, which he did yet one night, as we had intelligence, he quartered within lesse than three miles of us, but the next morninge he returned, and for his welcome to Babilone, lost his head; but the Armenian did escape that danger, and lives still in the Bashawe's favor, and was highly commended of him that he did stand soe firmely to them of his owne fayth. Soe wee held on our journey, and came in a fewe days to a place called by the Turkes Samara; but as we were tould by the Jewes that still accompanied us, it was Samaria; it is an anciente place, but much ruinated; the walls stand firme to this houre, and in the middle of the ould cittie, the Turkes and Arabianes have builte a little towne, walled aboute with a mud wall, of an infinite height, that a man cannot see soe much as a steeple in the towne. There standeth, alsoe, by the ould cittie a tower, aboute the height of Paule's steeple, made in the forme of the towre of Babilone; the goinge up is soe broade as three carts may easily goe one by another.-Mr. Robert Sherley and myselfe did goe to the tope of it; but before we could gett thither, with the extreame heate of the sunne, wee were almost spente; but when we were at the tope, it was far coulder than it was belowe; there are, alsoe, about the cittie gates, stags as bige as oxen. There lieth buried one of their saints, to which they goe on pilgrimage every yeare, both Persianes and Turkes. From thence we passed alonge the desart, some five or six dayes, until we came to a wildernes, so called, which was verie thicke of wood; it had a small river runninge through it; there we pitched our tents, in regard of the water, for we had not any water to drinke two dayes before; and about two miles from us was quartered some ten thousande Turkes, which were marchinge the countrey from those quarters to Hungary, as we were toulde; their generale hearinge of our beinge there came to us; then were we greatly in doubt of our lives; but he, bearinge the minde of a souldiere, let us passe quietlie without anie hurte. From thence, after we had rested ourselves one day and a night, wee helde on our journey, and came by a castle of the Turkes, called Tartange, there being allwaies in that castle two hundred souldiers, verie well fortefide with ordnance; we had no determinatione to staye there; but when they sawe us passe by, they commanded us with two peeces of ordnance: soe, to avoyde other danger, we staide, and pitched our tents under the castle. The governor was verie inquisitive what we were, commandinge us to deliver unto him our peeces, with our shot and powder; but we tould him we were marchants, travelinge to Ormus; but he would hardly beleeye us, but commanded his souldiers to seize upon us; but they were not verie forward, seeinge us to stande upon our guard, with our peeces charged, more willinge to die than to yeeld ourselves subject to such uncivile pagans; soe, after some words parly, they were contented to take a small bribe of us, givinge us leave to stay there all night, lettinge us have such commodities as they had for our money; the next morninge verie early

wee departed, and in fewe days after we came to Curdia, a verie theevish and brutish countrey. They have noe houses, but live in tents and caves; they till their corne twice a year, and remove from place to place with their tents; they ride commonly upon cowes and bulls, and keepe their abidinge for the most part by a little river, called Hadno; their aparell is verie coarse, for they weare only a shirt, and over that a rough felt coate, and on their heades a clout tied. They would come into our companie sometimes forty, sometimes more or lesse, and unlesse we did looke well unto them, they would filch and steale anie thing they could lay their hands upon. In the night time we were compeled to keepe good watch; for the eveninges being somewhat darke, these people would come creepinge on their bellies amongst the Persianes that were in our companie, and steale their turbanes from off their heads, and sometimes they would make such an alarum, as if twenty armies of men had beene together; but one night amonge the reste, we travelinge somewhat late, they fetched off three of the cheefest marchants, beinge straglinge behinde the companie; but they made such a crye, that Sir Anthony caused us to make a retreat suddenly, and soe we did rescue them, to the loss of most of their lives which did seize upon them, though they were verie well horsed; those were the first horsmen we sawe in the countrye; that night wee quartered not far from a towne, but did not know soe much untille the next morninge, as they came downe to us in multitudes, which made us betake ourselves to our armes; but, in the end, we did perceive they came without weapons, bringinge bread, rice, goates-cheese, and other commodities, for which we offered them both silver and gold; but they refused it, for they had not the use of either of them, neyther did theye knowe it; but they would take ould shoes, copper ringes, and littill lookinge glasses, which we bought for the purpose, beinge so advised by Angelo, our guide; there we did lye two dayes to reste ourselves, in regard the place was so pleasant, and the people shewing themselves soe kind unto us; but the name of the place I have forgotten, because it was a place of no antiquitie. From thence we passed alonge thro' the countreye, findinge it more easier and pleasant for our travell then we did before, and the people more discreete and kind, which did somewhat rejoyce us to see such an alteratione, after so greate dangers we had passed before. As we passed through this countrey, we saw manie ruinated places, which Tamberlane had conquered, as we were tould, both by the Jewes and the Turkes, for his name is had in memorye of them to this daye; soe we passed alonge some four or five dayes, untill we came to a place worth the notinge, called Hitherbagg, where there did inhabitt a Kinge, caled by the name of the Kinge of Hitherbagg; there is but one towne, and it is walled round, verie strongly, with a rocke of stone, so that it is invincible; there this Kinge doth live verie gallantly, beinge a man of soe goodly personage as we sawe in all our travailes; he holdeth alwayse a league with the Kinge of Persia, and setteth the greate Turke at defiance, for the Turkes would faine conquer that place, but cannot. There we pitched our tents two dayes, in a pleasant valley under the towne, accompanied with the Kinge and his followers,