S ENGLISH PROSE A CHARACTER OF IRISHMEN OLINUS saith that men of this land be strange of nation, houseless, and great fighters, and account right and wrong all for one, and be single of clothing, scarce of meat, cruel of heart, and angry of speech, and drink first blood of dead men that be slain, and then wash their face therewith; and hold them appeased with flesh and fruit instead of meat, and with milk instead of drink, and they use much plays and idleness and hunting, and travail full little. In their childhood they be hard nourished and hard fed, and they be unseemly of manners and of clothing, and have breeches and hosen all one of wool, and straight hoods that stretch a cubit over the shoulders behind, and black faldings instead of mantles and cloaks. Also saddles, boots, and spurs they use none when they ride; but they drive their horses with a chambered yard 1 in the over end, instead of barnacles and of britels of reest 2; and they use bridles that let not their horses of their meat. They fight unarmed, naked in body; nevertheless with two darts and spears and with broad sparths.3 They fight with one hand, and when other weapons fail, they have good pebble stones ready at hand. These men forsake tilling of land and keep pasture for beasts: they use long beards and long locks hanging down behind their nolls. They use no craft of flax and wool, of metal, neither of merchandise; but give them all to idleness and to sloth, and count rest for liking and freedom for riches. And though Scotland, the daughter of Ireland, use harp, timbre, and 1 Bent rod. VOL. I. 2 Bits of arrest. 3 Axes. A Trevisa 1387 Trevisa tabor (and Wales uses harp and pipe and tabor), neverthe1387 less Irishmen be cunning in two manner of instruments of music, in the harp and timbre that is armed with wire and with strings of brass. In the which instruments they play hastily and swiftly; they make well merry harmony and melody with well thick tunes, warbles, and notes; and they begin from B moll, and play privily under the deep sound of the great strings, and turn again into the same, so that the greatest part of the craft hide the craft; as it would seem as though the craft so hidden should be ashamed, an it were i-take. These men be of evil manners and of living; they pay no tithings, they wed lawfully no wives, they spare not their allies, but the brother weds his brother's wife. They be busy for to betray their neighbours and others. They bear sparths in their hands instead of staves, and fight therewith against them that trust to them best. The men be variable and unsteadfast, treacherous and guileful. Who that deals with them needs more to beware of guile than of craft, of peace than of burning brands, of honey than of gall, of malice than of knighthood. They have such manners that they be not strong in war and battle, neither true in peace. They become gossips to them that they would falsely betray in gosibrede 2 and holy kindred; each drinketh the other's blood when it is shed. They love somdel3 their nurses and their playing feres, which that suck the same milk that they suck while they be children. And they pursue their brethren, their cousins, and their other kin; and despise their kin, while they be alive, and wreak their death, an they be slain. Among them long usage and evil custom hath so long endured, that it hath made the mastery, and turneth among themselves treason into kynd so far forth, that as they be traitors by kynd, so aliens and men of strange lands that wone long among them draw after the manner of their company, and scape well 4 1 Relations. 2 Fellowship. 3 Sometimes. 5 Nature. 1387 unnethe,1 but they be besmutted with the shrewdness and Trevisa become traitors also. . . . There be many men in this land wonderful and evil shaped in limbs and in body. For in their limbs lacketh the benefice of kynd, so that nowhere be none better shaped, than they that be here well shaped, and nowhere none worse shaped, than they that be here evil shaped. And skilfully kynd, hurt and defouled by wickedness of living, bringeth forth such foul grooms and evil shaped of them that with unlawful wedding, with foul manners and evil living, so wickedly defoul kynd. In this land and in Wales, old wives and women were wont, and be yet (as me pleyneth) oft for to shape themselves in likeness to hares, for to milk their neighbour's kine, and so steal their milk, and oft greyhounds run after them and pursue them, and ween that they be hares. Also some by craft of necromancy make fat swine (that be red of colour) and none other, and sell them in cheping and in fairs; but anon as these swine pass any water they turn again into their own kynd, where it be straw, hay, grass, other turves. But these swine may not be kept by no manner of craft for to dure in likeness of swine over three days. Among these wonders and others take heed that in the uttermost ends of the world full oft new marvels and wonders, as though kynd played with larger leave privily and far in the ends than openly and nigh in the middle. Therefore in this island be many grisly marvels and wonders. John Trevisa. THE COURT OF THE GREAT CHAN Now OW shall I tell you the governance of the Court of the MaundeGreat Chan, when he maketh solemn feasts, which is principally four times in the year. The first feast is of his ville 1410 1 Hardly. Maunde- birth; the second is of his presentation in their temple, such ville as they clepe here Moseache, where they make a manner 1410 of circumcision; and the other two feasts are of his idols. The first feast of the idol is, when he is first put into their temple and throned. The other feast is, when the idol beginneth first to speak or work miracles. More there are not of solemn feasts, but if he marry any of his children. Now understand, that at each of these feasts, he hath great multitude of people, well ordained and well arrayed, by thousands by hundreds, and by tens. And every man knoweth well what service he shall do; and every man giveth so good heed and so good attendance to his service, that no man findeth any default. And there be first ordained four thousand Barons, mighty and rich, for to govern and make ordinance for the feast, and for to serve the Emperor. And these solemn feasts are made without, in halls and tents made of cloths of gold and of tartaries,1 full nobly. And all the Barons have crowns of gold upon their heads, full noble and rich, full of precious stones and great pearls orient. And they are all clothed in clothes of gold, or of tartaries, or of camokas,2 so richly and perfectly, that no man in the world can amend it, nor better devise it. And all these robes are orfrayed all about, and dubbed full of precious stones and of great orient pearls, full richly. And they may well do so, for cloths of gold and of silk are cheaper there by much than are cloths of wool. And these four thousand barons are divided in four companies and every thousand is clothed in cloths all of one colour, and so well arrayed and so richly, that it is marvel to behold. The first thousand, that is of Dukes, of Earls, of Marquises, and of Admirals, all clothed in cloths of gold, with tissues of green silk, and bordered with gold, full of precious stones, in manner as I have said before. The 1 Eastern fabrics. 3 Embroidered with gold. 2 A silk fabric. |