terpreter, he found him in a state of intoxication, and in no
condition to be of service; then he directed his gaze upon the Khan
himself, and found him intoxicated also.

I have made much mention of the wealth of the Tartars, from Attila to
Timour; their foreign conquests would yield to them of course whatever
of costly material their pride might require; but their native territory
itself was rich in minerals. Altai in the north yielded the precious
metals; the range of mountains which branches westward from the Himalaya
on the south yielded them rubies and lapis lazuli. We are informed by
the travellers whom I have been citing that they dressed in winter in
costly furs; in summer in silk, and even in cloth of gold.[13] One of
the Franciscans speaks of the gifts received by the Khan from foreign
powers. They were more than could be numbered;--satin cloths, robes of
purple, silk girdles wrought with gold, costly skins. We are told of an
umbrella enriched with precious stones; of a train of camels covered
with cloth of Bagdad; of a tent of glowing purple; of five hundred
waggons full of silver, gold, and silk stuffs.

8.

It is remarkable that the three great conquerors, who have been our
subject, all died in the fulness of glory. From the beginning of history
to our own times, the insecurity of great prosperity has been the theme
of poets and philosophers. Scripture points out to our warning in
opposite ways the fortunes of Sennacherib, Nabuchodonosor, and
Antiochus. Profane history tells us of Solon, the Athenian sage, coming
to the court of Croesus, the prosperous King of Lydia, whom in his
fallen state I have already had occasion to mention; and, when he had
seen his treasures and was asked by the exulting monarch who was the
happiest of men, making answer that no one could be called happy before
his death. And we may call to mind in confirmation the history of
Cyrus, of Hannibal, of Mithridates, of Belisarius, of Bajazet, of
Napoleon. But these Tartars finished a prosperous course without
reverse; they died indeed and went to judgment, but, as far as the
visible scene of their glory is concerned, they underwent no change.
Attila was summoned suddenly, but the summons found him a triumphant
king; and the case is the same with Zingis and Timour. These latter
conquerors had glories besides of a different kind which increased the
lustre of their rule. They were both lawgivers; it is the boast of
Zingis that he laid