hemselves, of the Greek Church: but have their religion mingled with so
many relics of superstition, that it is scarce to be known in some places
from mere sorcery and witchcraft.

In passing this forest (after all our dangers were, to our imagination,
escaped), I thought, indeed, we must have been plundered and robbed, and
perhaps murdered, by a troop of thieves: of what country they were I am
yet at a loss to know; but they were all on horseback, carried bows and
arrows, and were at first about forty-five in number. They came so near
to us as to be within two musket-shot, and, asking no questions,
surrounded us with their horses, and looked very earnestly upon us twice;
at length, they placed themselves just in our way; upon which we drew up
in a little line, before our camels, being not above sixteen men in all.
Thus drawn up, we halted, and sent out the Siberian servant, who attended
his lord, to see who they were; his master was the more willing to let
him go, because he was not a little apprehensive that they were a
Siberian troop sent out after him. The man came up near them with a flag
of truce, and called to them; but though he spoke several of their
languages, or dialects of languages rather, he could not understand a
word they said; however, after some signs to him not to come near them at
his peril, the fellow came back no wiser than he went; only that by their
dress, he said, he believed them to be some Tartars of Kalmuck, or of the
Circassian hordes, and that there must be more of them upon the great
desert, though he never heard that any of them were seen so far north
before.

This was small comfort to us; however, we had no remedy: there was on our
left hand, at about a quarter of a mile distance, a little grove, and
very near the road. I immediately resolved we should advance to those
trees, and fortify ourselves as well as we could there; for, first, I
considered that the trees would in a great measure cover us from their
arrows; and, in the next place, they could not come to charge us in a
body: it was, indeed, my old Portuguese pilot who proposed it, and who
had this excellency attending him, that he was always readiest and most
apt to direct and encourage us in cases of the most danger. We advanced
immediately, with what speed we could, and gained that little wood; the
Tartars, or thieves, for we knew not what to call them, keeping their
stand, and not attempting to hinder us. When we came thit