[3] The Kerkis must fee the Kirguses, a tribe of whom once dwelt to the
    south-west of lake Baikal.  The Orangin or Orangey, inhabited on the
    east side of that lake.  Pascatir is the country of the Bashkirs,
    Baschkirians, or Pascatirians in Great Bulgaria, called Great Hungary
    in the text, between the Volga and the Ural.—­E.

[4] Rubruquis properly rejects the stories of monstrous men, related by the
    ancients, yet seems to swallow the absurd story of the purple dye,
    engrafted by the Kathayan priest on a very natural invention for
    catching apes.  He disbelieves the last information of the priest,
    which must have been an enigmatical representation of the province of
    death, or of the tombs.—­E.

[5] It is difficult to guess as to these people and their islands; which
    may possibly refer to Japan, or even Corea, which is no island.  Such
    tribute could not have been offered by the rude inhabitants of
    Saghalien or Yesso.—­E.

[6] This evidently but obscurely describes the Chinese characters; the most
    ingenious device ever contrived for the monopoly of knowledge and
    office to the learned class, and for arresting the progress of
    knowledge and science at a fixed boundary.—­E.

[7] From this circumstance, it would appear that Rubruquis had found the
    court of the khan in the country of the Eluts, to the south of the
    Changai mountains, perhaps about latitude 44 deg.  N. and longitude 103 deg. 
    E, the meridian of the supposed site of Karakum on the Orchon.  And it
    may be presumed, that the imperial suite was now crossing the Changai
    chain towards the north.—­E.

[8] Haitho, of whom some account will be found in the succeeding chapter of
    this work.—­E.

SECTION XXXVII.

Of certain disputes between Rubruquis and the Saracens and Idolaters, at the Court of Mangu-khan, respecting Religion.

Next day I was brought to the court, and some of the chief secretaries of the khan came to me, one of whom was a Moal, who is cup-bearer to the khan, and the rest were Saracens.  These men demanded on the part of the khan, wherefore I had come there?  To this I answered, as I had done before, that I came to Sartach, who sent me to Baatu, and he had ordered me to the khan, to whom I had nothing to say on the part of any man, unless I should speak the words of God if he would hear them, for the khan should know best what Baatu had written.  Then they demanded what words of God I would speak to the khan, thinking I meant to prophecy prosperous things as others had done.  To this I answered, “If ye would that I speak the words of God unto the khan, get me an interpreter.”  They said they had sent for him, but urged me to speak by the present one, as they would understand me perfectly.  I therefore