y silence, and
endeavoured to teach me their language.

I honoured the monk Sergius as my bishop, because he could speak the
language, though he was totally uneducated; and I afterwards learnt, when I
came to his own country on my return, that he was no priest, but merely an
adventurous weaver. In many things he acted in a way that much displeased
me, for he caused to be made for himself a folding chair such as bishops
use, and gloves, and a cap of peacocks feathers, with a small gold cross;
but I was well pleased with the cross. He had scabbed feet, which he
endeavoured to palliate with ointments[3]; was very presumptuous in speech,
was present at many of the vain and idolatrous rites of the Nestorians, and
had many other vanities with which I was much displeased. Yet we joined his
society for die honour of the cross, as he got a banner full of crosses on
a cane as long as a lance, and we carried the cross aloft through among all
the tents of the Tartars, singing _Vexilla regis prodeant_, &c. to the
great regret of the Mahometans, who were envious of our favour.

I was informed of a certain Armenian who came, as he said, from Jerusalem
along with the monk Sergius, carrying a silver cross of about four marks
weight, adorned with precious stones, which he presented to Mangu-khan, who
asked what was his petition. He represented himself to be the son of an
Armenian priest, whose church had been destroyed by the Saracens, and
craved his help for rebuilding that church. Being asked how much that might
cost, he said two hundred jascots, or two thousand marks; and the khan
ordered letters to be given him, ordering those who received the tribute of
Persia and the Greater Armenia, to pay him that sum in silver[4]. The monk
continued to carry this cross about with him wherever he went, and the
Nestorian priests became envious of the profit which he derived from its
use.

[1] From the whole of this story, it would appear that the lady Cota was
hysterical from constipation; and that Sergius had the good fortune to
remove the cause by a few doses of rhubarb.--E.

[2] About L. 30, perhaps equal in efficacy to L. 300 of modern days; no bad
fee for administering a dose of rhubarb.--E.

[3] This surely was a sinless infirmity, and needed not to have been
recorded to his dishonour. He was probably afflicted with chilblains,
in consequence of the severity of the Tartarian climate.--E.

[4] L. 1500 in weight, equ