Nobody knew but ourselves what we were purfued for; but as it was ufual for the Mogul Tartars to go about in troops in that defart, fo the caravans always fortify themfelves every night against them, as against armies of robbers; and it was therefore no new thing to be purfued.

But we had this night, of all the nights of our travels, a most advantageous camp; for we lay between two woods, with a little rivulet running juft before our front; fo that we could not be furrounded or attacked but in our front or rear: we took any way, care alío to make our front as ftrong as we could, by placing our packs, with our camels and horfes, all in a line on the fide of the river, and we felled fome trees in our rear.

In this posture we encamped for the night; but the enemy was upon us before we had finifhed our fituation: they did not come on us like thieves, as we expected, but fent three meffengers to us, to demand the men to be delivered to them, that had abufed their priests, and burnt their god Cham-ChiThaungu, that they might burn them with fire; and, upon this, they faid, they would go away, and do us no farther harm, otherwife they would burn us all with fire. Our men looked very blank at this meffage, and began to ftare at one another, to fee who looked with moft guilt in their faces, but, nobody was the word, nobody did it. The leader of the caravan fent word, he was well affured it was not done by any of our camp; that we were peaceable merchants, travelling on our bufinefs; that we had done no harm to them, or to any one else; and therefore they must look farther for their enemies,

who

who had injured them, for we were not the people; fo defired them not to disturb us; for if they did, we fhould defend ourselves.

They were far from being satisfied with this for an answer, and a great crowd of them came down in the morning, by break of day, to our camp; but, feeing us in fuch an advantageous fituation, they durft come no farther than the brook in our front, where they stood, and fhewed us fuch a number, as, indeed, terrified us very much; for those that spoke leaft of them, fpoke of ten thoufand. Here they stood, and looked at us a while, and then setting up a great howl, they let fly a cloud of arrows among us; but we were well enough fortified for that, for we were sheltered under our baggage; and I do not remember that one man of us was hurt.

Some time after this, we saw them move a little to our right, and expected them on the rear, when a cunning fellow, a Coffack, as they call them, of Jarawena, in the pay of the Muscovites, calling to the leader of the caravan, faid to him, I will fend all these people away to Sibeilka: This was a city four or five days journey, at least to the fouth, and rather behind us. So he takes his bow and arrows, and, getting on horseback, he rides away from our rear directly, as it were, back to Nertzinskay; after this, he takes a great circuit about, and comes to the army of the Tartars, as if he had been fent express to tell them a long ftory, that the people who had burnt their Cham-Chi-Thaungu were gone to Sibeilka, with a caravan of mifcreants, as he called them; that is to fay, Chriftians; and that they were re

folved to burn the god Scal Ifarg, belonging to the Tongufes.

As this fellow was a mere Tartar, and perfectly spoke their language, he counterfeited fo well, that they all took it from him, and away they drove, in a moft violent hurry, to Sibeilka, which, it feems, was five days journey to the fouth; and in lefs than three hours they were entirely out of our fight, and we never heard any more of them, nor ever knew whether they went to that other place called Sibeilka, or no.

So we paffed fafely on to the city of Jarawena, where there was a garrifon of Muscovites; and there we refted five days, the caravan being exceedingly fatigued with the last day's march, and with want of reft in the night.

From this city we had a frightful defart, which held us three-and-twenty days march. We furnished ourselves with fome tents here, for the better accommodating ourselves in the night; and the leader of the caravan procured fixteen carriages, or waggons, of the country, for carrying our water and provifions; and thefe carriages were our defence every night round our little camp; fo that had the Tartars appeared, unless they had been very numerous indeed, they would not have been able to hurt

us.

We may well be fuppofed to want rest again after this long journey; for in this defart we faw neither house or tree, or scarce a bush; we faw, indeed, abundance of the fable-hunters, as they called them: These are all Tartars of the Mogul Tartary, of which this country is a part; and they frequently attack VOL. II.

Z

fmall

fmall caravans; but we faw no numbers of them together. I was curious to fee the fable-fkins they catched; but I could never speak with any of them; for they durft not come near us; neither durft we ftraggle from our company to go near them.

After we had paffed this defart, we came into a country pretty well inhabited; that is to fay, we found towns and caftles fettled by the czar of Mufcovy, with garrifons of ftationary foldiers to protect the caravans, and defend the country against the Tartars, who would otherwise make it very dangerous travelling; and his czarish majefty has given fuch ftrict orders for the well guarding the caravans and merchants, that if there are any Tartars heard of in the country, detachments of the garrison are always fent to fee travellers fafe from station to sta

tion.

And thus the governor of Adinfkoy, whom I had an opportunity to make a vifit to, by means of the Scots merchant, who was acquainted with him, offered us a guard of fifty men, if we thought there was any danger, to the next ftation.

I thought long before this, that as we came nearer to Europe, we should find the country better peopled, and the people more civilized; but I found myself mistaken in both, for we had yet the nation of the Tonguefes to pafs through; where we faw the fame tokens of paganifm and barbarity, or worfe, than before; only as they were conquered by the Mufcovites, and entirely reduced, they were not fo dangerous; but for the rudeness of manners, idolatry, and polytheifm, no people in the world ever went beyond them. They are clothed all in fkins of beafts,

beafts, and their houfes are built of the fame. You know not a man from a woman, neither by the ruggedness of their countenances, or their clothes; and in the winter, when the ground is covered with fnow, they live under ground, in houfes like vaults, which have cavities or caves going from one to another.

If the Tartars had their Cham-Chi-Thaungu for a whole village, or country, thefe had idols in every hut, and every cave; befides, they worship the ftars, the fun, the water, the snow; and, in a word, every thing that they do not understand, and they understand but very little; so that almost every element, every uncommon thing, fets them a facrificing.

But I am no more to defcribe people than countries, any farther than my own ftory comes to be concerned in them. I met with nothing peculiar to myself in all this country, which, I reckon was, from the defart which I fpoke of laft, at least four hundred miles, half of it being another defart, which took us up twelve days fevere travelling, without house, tree or bufh; but were obliged again. to carry our own provisions, as well water as bread. After we were out of this defart, and had travelled two days, we came to Janezay, a Mufcovite city or station, on the great river Janezay. This river, they told us, parted Europe from Afia, though our map-makers, as I am told, do not agree to it; however, it is certainly the eastern boundary of the antient Siberia, which now makes a province only of the vaft Muscovite empire, but is itself equal in bigness to the whole empire of Germany.