Of the haven Gene, for to go by the sea into divers countreys.

FOR he that wyll goe to Tartary, Percy, Caldee or Inde, he entreth the sea at Gene or at Venyce, or at any other haven, and so passeth by the sea, and arriveth at Topasonde,¹ that is a good citie, that sometime men call the haven of bridge, and there is the haven of Perce, of Medes, and of other marches.² In this citie lieth saint Athanasius, that was bishop of Alexandry, that made the Psalme, Quicunque vult salvus esse. This man was a great doctour of divinitie, and of the godheade, he was accused unto the Pope of Rome that he was an heritike, and the pope sent for hym and put him in prison, and while he was in that prison he made this Psalme and sent it unto the Pope & sayde if that he were an heretyke, then that was heresie, for y^t was his faith and his belefe: and when the Pope saw that he had sayde therein was all our faith, then anon he did deliver him out of prison, and he commaunded that Psalme to be sayd every day at prime, & so he held Athanasius for a good christen man, but he never would after goe to his bishoprych for they accused him of heresie.

Topasond was some tyme holden of the Emperour of Constantinople, but a great man that he sent to help that countrey against the Turkes, did holde it to himselfe, & called himself Emperour of Topasonde.

And from thence men go through lyttle Armony,³ & in that countrey is an olde castell that is on a rock, y^t men call the castell of Spirys, & there men finde an hawke sitting upon a perch right well made & a faire lady of Fayry that keepeth it, & he that will wake⁴ this same hawke seven days and seven nightes, and some say that it is not but three days and three nightes, alone without any company and without slepe, this faire ladie shall come unto him at the vii dayes or iii dayes ende & shall graunte unto him the first thing that he will aske of worldly things, and that hath often ben proved. And so uppon a time it befell that a man which that tyme was Kinge of Armonye that was a righte doughty⁵ man waked uppon a tyme, and at the seven dayes ende the lady came to him and bade him aske what he would for he had wel done his devoure,⁶ and the king aunswered and sayde that he was a great lorde and in good peace, and he was riche, so that he would aske nothing but all onely the body of the fayre lady, or to haue his will of hir. Then this fayre lady aunswered and sayde unto him, that he was a foole, for he wist not what he asked, for he might not have hir, for he shoulde not haue asked hir but worldly thinges & she was not worldly. And the king sayde he woulde nought else, and she said sith he would aske nought else, she should graunt him three thinges and all that came after hym, and sayde unto him, Sir kinge you shall haue warre without peace unto the ix degree, and you shall be in subjection of your enemies, and you shall have greate nede of good and cattell, and sithen that tyme all the Kynges of Armonye have been in warre and nedefull⁷ and under trybute of the Sarasyns. Also a poore mannes sonne as he waked on a tyme, and asked the lady that he might be rych and happy in marchaundise and the ladye graunted him, but she sayde to him that he hadde asked his undoynge for great pryde that he shoulde haue thereof. And this became so greate a marchaunte bothe by sea and lande, that he was so ryche that he knew not the thousande parte of hys goods. Also a Knight of the Templers waked likewise and when he had done, he desired to haue a purse full of golde and what soever he tooke thereof it shoulde ever be full againe and the ladye graunted it hym, but she tolde him that hee had desyred his destruction for great mistrowing that hee shoulde have of the same purse, and so it befell. But he that shal wake hath great nede for to kepe him from slepe, for if he sleepe he is lost that he shall neuer bee sene, but that is not the righte way, but for the mervaile. And from Topasonde men go to greate Armony to a citie that men call Artyron⁸ that was wont to be a great Citie, but Turkes have destroyed it, for there neyther groweth no wyne nor fruyt. From this Artyron men go to an hyll that is called Sabissacol & there nere is another hil that men call Arath,⁹ but the Jewes call it Thano where Archa Noe¹⁰ rested after the diluvie¹¹ & yet it is on that hyll, a man may se it from ferre in cleare wether, & the hilles be xii¹² myle of height & some saye they haue bene there & put theyr fingers in the holes where the fende¹³ went out when Noe sayde in this maner of wyse Benedicite. But they note well, for none may go on that hyll for snowe, that is alwaye uppon that hyll bothe wynter and somer, that no man may go by and never yode¹⁴ syth Noe was, but a monke, through the grace of God, broughte a planke that yet is at the Abbey, at the hyll foote, and he had great desyre to go uppon that hyll, and aforced him thereto, and when he was at the thyrde part upwarde he was so wery that he might goe no further, and he rested him & slept and when he was awake he was downe at the hyll foote, and then prayed he to God devoutly that he would suffer him to go upon the hill, and the Aungell sayd that he should go upon the hil, and so he dyd, and since that tyme no man came there. And therefore men shoulde not beleve such wordes.

And from thence men go to a citie that men call Tanziro¹⁵ and that is a fayre citie & good. Besyde that citie is an hyll of salte, and thereof every man taketh what he wyll and there dwelled many Christen men under tribute to the Sarasyns. From thence men go through many cities, townes, and castels towarde Inde, and then come to a citie that men call Cassaye that is a fayre citie, and in that citie is aboundance of corne wynes, and all maner of goods, and there met the three kynges togither that wente to make theyr offeryng to our Lord in Bethlehem. From that citie men go to a citie that men call Cardabago, and paynims say y^t Christen men may not dwell there, by¹⁶ they dye sone and they know not the cause. And from thence men go through many countreys, cities & townes, that it were to long to tell, & to the citie of Carnaa, that was wont to be so great, that the wall about was of xxv myle, the wall sheweth yet, but it is not inhabited now with men, and there endeth the land of the Emperour of Perce.

1: Trebizond.

2: Neighbouring countries.

3: Armenia.

4: Watch.

5: Brave.

In the old Romance of Melusina, which was written by Jean d'Arras, Secretary to the Duc de Berri, brother to Charles V. of France—in 1387 (at the command of his master) is the legend of the Lady of the Sparrow Hawk, which shows how current it was at the time. According to his version, a fairy, named Presine, married King Helmas, and made him vow that he would never go near her at the time of childbirth. She bore him three daughters—Melusina, Melior, and Palestine—and at the birth of the latter the king broke his vow. When his children grew up they learnt this fact, and were very indignant at their father's conduct, to punish which (being gifted with supernatural power) they enclosed him in an enchanted mountain until he died. Presine was powerless to undo this deed, but she visited their unnatural conduct severely upon her daughters. Melusina was to become half serpent, half woman, every Saturday; Palestine was ever to watch their father's treasure on the top of a mountain in Arragon; while Melior's fate is thus told by the chronicler:—

"And thou Melyor to the I gyve a Castel in the grette Armenye, whyche is fayre and riche, wher thou shalt kepe a Sperschak unto the tyme that the grett maister shall hold his Jugement. And al noble and worthy knyghts, descended and come of noble lynee, that wil you watche there the day byfore the even, and th' even also of Saint Johan Baptiste, whiche is on the xx day of Juny, without any slep, shal have a geft of the of suche thinges, without to demande thy body, ne thy love, by maryage, nor other wise. And al thos that shal demande the without cesse, and that wol not forbere, and absteyn them not, shal be infortunat unto the IX lynee, and shal be put from theire prosperytees."

6: Devoir, duty.

7: Poor, needy.

8: Erzeroum.

9: Ararat.

10: Noah's Ark.

11: Flood.

12: Others say seven.

13: Fiend.

14: Never went there.

15: Tabreez or Tabriz.

16: For.