The dukes assembled in the great tent, and consulted together, as we thought, about the election of the emperor.  The rest of the people were collected all round the wooden walls, and at a considerable distance; and in this manner they continued till almost noon.  Then they began to drink mares milk, or cosmos, and continued to drink amazing quantities till evening.  We were invited among them, and they treated us with ale, as we did not drink cosmos.  They intended this as a great honour, but they made us drink so much, in comparison with our ordinary diet, as we were not able to endure; but on making them understand that it was hurtful to us, they desisted from insisting on our compliance.  On the outside of the door stood Jeroslaus, duke of Susdal in Russia, a great many dukes of the Kithayans and Solangi, the two sons of the king of Georgia, the envoy of the caliph of Bagdat, himself a sultan, and more than ten other Saracen sultans.  We were informed by the agents, that there were above four thousand messengers present, partly from those who paid tribute or sent presents, and from other sultans and dukes who came to make their submission, or who had been sent for, and from the various governors of countries and places under their authority.  All these were placed on the outside of the wooden wall of the great tent, and were supplied with drink; and they almost all gave to us and the duke Jeroslaus the place of honour, when in their company.

[1] This term probably signifies the manufacture of Baldach or Bagdat, and
    may refer to silken stuffs damasced, or woven with gold flowers.—­E.

[2] Taking the mark of gold at 84 oz. and valuing the ounce at 4L 17s, 6d,
    the sum of 20 marks amounts to L. 780 Sterling.—­E.

SECTION XXVII.

Of the Exaltation of Cuyne as Emperor.

We remained in this place, called Syra Orda, about four weeks.  In our opinion the election was made here, though it was not published, because always when Cuyne came out of the tent he was greeted with a noise of music, and was saluted with beautiful rods tipt with scarlet wool, which was not done to any of the other dukes.  Leaving this place, we all rode three or four miles to a fine plain, near a river among the mountains, where we found another tent erected, called the Golden Orda, in which Cuyne was to have been installed in the imperial seat on the festival of the Assumption, 15th August; but on account of a vast fall of hail, formerly mentioned, the ceremony was deferred.  This tent was erected upon pillars, covered over with plates of gold, and other beams were fixed to the pillars by gold nails.  The whole was superbly covered over with Baldakin, having other cloth on the outside.  We remained here till the feast of St Bartholomew, 24th August; on which day an immense multitude convened, standing with their faces to the south.  Certain persons, at about