fixed in this respect. There can be nothing more vague and indefinite
than the relations between the Tartar sovereigns and the Grand-Khan or
Emperor of China, whose omnipotent will is above all laws and all
customs. In practice, the Emperor has the right to do whatever he
chooses to do, and the right is never disputed by any person. If
doubtful or disputed cases arise, they are decided by force.

In Tartary, all the families that are in any way related to the
sovereign, form a nobility, or a patrician cast, who are proprietors of
the whole soil. These nobles, called Taitsi, are distinguished by a blue
button surmounting the cap. It is from among them that the sovereigns of
the different states select their ministers, who are generally three in
number, and called Toutzelaktsi--that is to say, a man who assists or
lends his aid. This rank gives them the right of wearing the red button.
Below the Toutzelaktsi are the Touchimel, subaltern officers, who are
charged with the details of government. Lastly, a certain number of
secretaries or interpreters, who must be versed in the Mongol, Mantchou,
and Chinese languages, complete the hierarchy.

In the country of the Khalkhas, to the north of the desert of Gobi, there
is a district entirely occupied by Taitsi, who are supposed to be
descendants of the Mongol dynasty, that was founded by Tchinggiskhan, and
which occupied the imperial throne from 1260 to 1341. After the
revolution, which restored the national independence of the Chinese,
these people sought refuge among the Khalkhas, obtained, without
difficulty, a portion of their immense territory, and adopted the nomad
life, which their ancestors had led prior to the conquest of China.
These Taitsi live in the greatest independence, liable to no duty, paying
no tribute to any one, and recognising no sovereign. Their wealth
consists in tents and cattle. The country of the Taitsi is, of all the
Mongol regions, that wherein the patriarchal manners are found to be most
accurately preserved, such as the Bible describes them in the lives of
Abraham, Jacob, and the other pastors of Mesopotamia.

The Tartars who do not belong to the royal family, are all slaves, living
in absolute subjection to their masters. Besides the rents they pay,
they are bound to keep their master's flocks and herds, but they are not
forbidden to breed also cattle on their own account. It would be a
fallacy to imagine that slavery in Tartary is