and the name still borne by a gate hard by, Porte des Lions, is supposed to be due to that circumstance. The Moeurs et Usages du Moyen Age (Lacroix), from which I take the last facts, gives copy of a print by John Stradanus representing a huntsman with the leopard on his horse's crupper, like Kublai's (supra, Book I. ch. lxi.); Frederic II. used to say of his Cheetas, "they knew how to ride." This way of taking the Cheeta to the field had been first employed by the Khalif Yazid, son of Moáwiyah. The Cheeta often appears in the pattern of silk damasks of the 13th and 14th centuries, both Asiatic and Italian. (Ayeen Akbery, I. 304, &c.; Boldensel, in Canisii Thesaurus, by Basnage, vol. IV. p. 339; Kington's Fred. II. I. 472, II. 156; Bochart, Hierozoica, 797; Rock's Catalogue passim.)

"El a encore aigles qe sunt afaités à prendre leus et voupes et dain et chavrion, et en prennent assez."

NOTE 2.-The word rendered Lynxes is Leu cervers (G. Text), Louz serviers of Pauthier's MS. C, though he has adopted from another Loups simply, which is certainly wrong. The Geog. Latin has "Linceos i.e. lupos cerverios." There is no doubt that the Loup-cervier is the Lynx. Thus Brunetto Latini, describing the Loup-cervier, speaks of its remarkable powers of vision, and refers to its agency in the production of the precious stone called Liguire (i.e. Ligurium, which the ancients fancied to come from Lync-urium; the tale is in Theophrastus). Yet the quaint Bestiary of Philip de Thaun, published by Mr. Wright, identifies it with the Greek Hyena :-

VOL. I.

"Hyena e Griu num, que nus beste apellum,
Ceo est Lucervere, oler fait et mult est fere."

2 C

Hunting Lynxes were used at the Court of Akbar. They are also mentioned by A. Hamilton as so used in Sind at the end of the 17th century. This author calls the animal a Shoe-goose! i.e. Siya-gosh (Blackear), the Persian name of the Lynx. It is still occasionally used in the chase by natives of rank in India. (Brunetto Lat. Tresor, p. 248; Popular Treatises on Science written during Mid. Ages, 94; Ayeen Akbery, u. s.; Hamilt. E. Indies, I. 125; Vigne, I. 42.)

NOTE 3. The conception of a Tiger seems almost to have dropped out of the European mind during the Middle Ages. Thus in a medieval Bestiary, a chapter on the Tiger begins: Une Beste est qui est apelée Tigre c'est une manière de Serpent." Hence Polo can only call the Tigers, whose portrait he draws here not incorrectly, Lions. So also nearly 200 years later Barbaro gives a like portrait, and calls the animal Leonza. Marsden supposes judiciously that the confusion may have been promoted by the ambiguity of the Persian Sher.

The Chinese pilgrim, Sung-Yun (A.D. 518), saw two young lions at the Court of Gandhára. He remarks that the pictures of these animals common in China, were not at all good likenesses. (Beal, p. 200.)

We do not hear in modern times of Tigers trained to the chase, but Chardin says of Persia: "In hunting the larger animals they make use of beasts of prey trained for the purpose, lions, leopards, tigers, panthers, ounces.”

NOTE 4. This is perfectly correct. In Eastern Turkestan, and among the Kirghiz to this day, eagles termed Barkút (now well known to be the Golden Eagle) are tamed and trained to fly at wolves, foxes, deer, wild goats, &c. A Kirghiz will give a good horse for an eagle in which he recognises capacity for training. Mr. Atkinson gives vivid descriptions and illustrations of this eagle (which he calls "Bear coote"), attacking both deer and wolves. He represents the bird as striking one claw into the neck, and the other into the back of its large prey, and then tearing out the liver with its beak. Shaw describes the rough treatment with which the Barkút is tamed. Baber when in the Bajaur Hills notices in his memoirs: "This day Barkút took a deer." (Timkowski, I. 414; Levchine, p. 77; Pallas, Voyages, I. 421; J. R. A. S. VII. 305; Atkinson's Siberia, 493; and Amoor, 146-7; Shaw, p. 157; Baber, p. 249.)

CHAPTER XIX.

CONCERNING THE TWO BROTHERS WHO HAVE CHARGE OF THE KAAN'S
HOUNDS.

THE Emperor hath two Barons who are own brothers, one
called Baian and the other Mingan; and these two are
styled Chinuchi (or Cunichi), which is as much as to say,

I

"The Keepers of the Mastiff Dogs." Each of these brothers hath 10,000 men under his orders; each body of 10,000 being dressed alike, the one in red and the other in blue, and whenever they accompany the Lord to the chase, they wear this livery, in order to be recognized. Out of each body of 10,000 there are 2000 men who are each in charge of one or more great mastiffs, so that the whole number of these is very large. And when the Prince goes a-hunting, one of those Barons, with his 10,000 men and something like 5000 dogs, goes towards the right, whilst the other goes towards the left with his party in like manner. They move along, all abreast of one another, so that the whole line extends over a full day's journey, and no animal can escape them. Truly it is a glorious sight to see the working of the dogs and the huntsmen. on such an occasion! And as the Lord rides a-fowling across the plains, you will see these big hounds coming tearing up, one pack after a bear, another pack after a stag, or some other beast, as it may hap, and running the game down now on this side and now on that, so that it is really a most delightful sport and spectacle.

[The Two Brothers I have mentioned are bound by the tenure of their office to supply the Kaan's Court from October to the end of March with 1000 head of game daily, whether of beasts or birds, and not counting quails; and also with fish to the best of their ability, allowing fish enough for three persons to reckon as equal to one head of game.]

Now I have told you of the Masters of the Hounds and all about them, and next will I tell you how the Lord goes off on an expedition for the space of three months.

NOTE 1.-Though this particular Bayan and Mingan are not likely to be mentioned in history, the names are both good Mongol names; Bayan that of a great soldier under Kublai, of whom we shall hear afterwards; and Mingan that of one of Chinghiz's generals.

The title of "Master of the Mastiffs" belonged to a high Court official at Constantinople in former days, Sámsúnji Báshi, and I have no doubt Marco has given the exact interpretation of the title of the

two Barons; though it is difficult to trace its elements. It is read variously Cunici (i.e. Kunichi) and Cinuci (i.e. Chinuchi). It is evidently a word of analogous structure to Kushchi, the Master of the Falcons; Parschi, the Master of the Leopards. Professor Schiefner thinks it is probably corrupted from Noghaichi, which appears in Kovalevski's Mongol Dict. as chasseur qui a soins des chiens courants." This word occurs, he points out, in Sanang Setzen, where Schmidt translates it Aufscher über Hunde. (See S. S. p. 39.)

66

The metathesis of Noghai-chi into Kuni-chi is the only drawback to this otherwise apt solution. We generally shall find Polo's Oriental words much more accurately expressed than this would imply-as in the next chapter. I have hazarded a suggestion of (Or. Turkish) Chong-It-chi, “Keeper of the Big Dogs," which Professor Vámbéry thinks possible; (see "chong, big, strong," in his Tschagataische Sprachstudien, p. 282, and note in Lord Strangford's Selected Writings, II. 169). In E. Turkestan they call the Chinese Chong Káfir, “The Big Heathen." This would exactly correspond to the rendering of Pipino's Latin translation, “hoc est canum magnorum Praefecti." Chinuchi again would be (in Mongol) "Wolf-keepers.' It is at least possible that the great dogs which Polo terms mastiffs may have been known by such a name. We apply the term Wolf-dog to several varieties, and in Macbeth's enumeration we have

"Hounds, and greyhounds, mongrels, spaniels, curs, Shoughs, water-rugs, and Demi-Wolves."

Lastly the root-word may be the Chinese Kiuen, "dog," as Pauthier says. The mastiffs were probably Tibetan, but may have come through China, and brought a name with them, like Boule-dogues in France.

CHAPTER XX.

HOW THE EMPEROR GOES ON A HUNTING EXPEDITION.

AFTER he has stopped at his capital city those three months that I mentioned, to wit, December, January, February, he starts off on the 1st day of March, and travels southward towards the Ocean Sea, a journey of two days.' He takes with him full 10,000 falconers, and some 500 gerfalcons besides peregrines, sakers, and other hawks in great numbers; and goshawks also to fly at the water-fowl. But do not suppose that he keeps all these together by him; they are distributed about, hither and thither, one hundred together, or two hundred at the

utmost, as he thinks proper. But they are always fowling as they advance, and the most part of the quarry taken is carried to the Emperor. And let me tell you when he goes thus a-fowling with his gerfalcons and other hawks, he is attended by full 10,000 men who are disposed in couples; and these are called Toscaol, which is as much as to say, "Watchers." And the name describes their business. They are posted from spot to spot, always in couples, and thus they cover a great deal of ground! Every man of them is provided with a whistle and hood, so as to be able to call in a hawk and hold it in hand. And when the Emperor makes a cast, there is no need that he follow it up, for those men I speak of keep so good a look out that they never lose sight of the birds, and if these have need of help they are ready to render it.

But if not, styled the

All the Emperor's hawks, and those of the Barons as well, have a little label attached to the leg to mark them, on which is written the names of the owner and the keeper of the bird. And in this way the hawk, when caught, is at once identified and handed over to its owner. the bird is carried to a certain Baron who is Bularguchi, which is as much as to say "The Keeper of Lost Property." And I tell you that whatever may be found without a known owner, whether it be a horse, or a sword, or a hawk, or what not, it is carried to that Baron straightway, and he takes charge of it. And if the finder neglects to carry his trover to the Baron, the latter punishes him. Likewise the loser of any article goes to the Baron, and if the thing be in his hands it is immediately given up to the owner. Moreover, the said Baron always pitches on the highest spot of the camp, with his banner displayed, in order that those who have lost or found anything may have no difficulty in finding their way to him. Thus nothing can be lost but it shall be incontinently found and restored.+

And so the Emperor follows this road that I have