The six voyages of John Baptista Tavernier, Baron of Aubonne through Turky, into Persia and the East-Indies, for the space of forty years : giving an account of the present state of those countries, viz. of the religion, government, customs, and commerce of every country, and the figures, weight, and value of the money currant all over Asia : to which is added A new description of the Seraglio / made English by J.P. ; added likewise, A voyage into the Indies, &c. by an English traveller, never before printed ; publish'd by Dr. Daniel Cox

CHAP. XII. Of the Ceremonies and Customs of the People of Comania and Circassia.

THe Principal of all the Feasts which the Comouchs and Sherkes or Cirkassi∣ans make, is that which they make at the end of Autumn, after this manner. Three of the ancientest of the Village are appointed to ma∣nage it, and to discharge themselves of a Duty impos'd upon them in the company of all the people. These three old men take a Sheep or a Goat, and having mutter'd certain Prayers over the Beast, they cut the throat of it: after they have drest it very clean, they boil it whole, all but the Gathers, and them they roast. The Sheep being boil'd, they set it upon a Table, and carry it into a large Barn, where the People are appointed to meet: There the three old men stand upright before a Table, and all the People, Men, Women and Children behind them. When the Table upon which the Meat stands, is brought in, two of the three old men cut off the Legs and the roasted Gathers, and hold them up above their heads, and the third holds up a great Cup of Bosa in the same manner, to the end the people behind may see them. When the people see the Meat and Bosa so lifted up, they prostrate themselves upon the ground, and so continue till all the rest of the Meat be set up∣on the lesser Table, and that the old men have said some few word. Then the two old men that held up the Meat, cut off two little pieces, and give each of them a piece to him that holds the Cup, which being done, they take each of them a piece for themselves. When they have all three eaten of the meat, the old man that holds the Cup, drinks first, then gives the two old men to drink, first to him upon the right hand, next to him upon the left, never letting go the Cup all the while. This first Ceremony being thus accomplish'd, the two old men turn toward the Assembly, and go and present both of the Meat and the Drink, first to their Chief or Lord, then to all the people, who equally eat their share, both men and women. That which remains of the four feet, is carry'd back to the Table, and the three old men eat it. This done, they go and place themselves at the Table, where the Mutton is set, where the oldest of the three taking the Head, eats a little Morsel; after him, the second, and next to him, the third does the same. Then the first old man commands the rest to be carry'd to the Lord, who receives it with a great deal of respect, and after he has giv'n it to his next a-kin, or the Friend whom he loves best, the Head is giv'n from one to another, till it be eat'n up. This being done, the three old men begin to eat of the Mutton a bit or two, and the Lord of the Village is call'd, who comes with his Bonnet in his hand, in a trembling posture; to whom, one of the old men presenting a Knife, he cuts off a piece of Mutton, and eats; and having drank a Cup of Bosa, he returns to his Seat. After him, all the people, according to their turns in quality, do as much; and then, for the Bones the Children go to∣gether by the ears among themselves.

They have another Feast before they begin to Mow their Meadows; at which time all the people of the Village, that have wherewithal, take every one a Goat, (for in their Ceremonies they esteem Goats better than Sheep) and for the poor, they join eight or ten together for a Goat. Let them be Goats, Sheep or Lambs, when they are all brought together, they cut their Throats, and then flea off the skin, leaving the four feet and the Head in it. Then they stretch the Skin with sticks that cross from one foot to the other, aud set it up on a Pole fix'd in the Earth, the top whereof enters into the head of the Beast, as is to be seen in the Figure of the Village; and as many Beasts as there are kill'd, so many Poles are planted in the midst of the Vil∣lage, with every one a particular Skin upon it; to which, every one that passes by, maks a profound obeysance.

Ev'ry one having boil'd his Goat, brings it into the void place in the middle of the Village, and sets it upon a great Table with the rest. There is the Lord of the Village with his Servants, and sometimes the Lord of some other Village is invited. Now all this Victuals being upon the Table, three of the oldest men of the Village

sit down and eat a Bit or two: Then they call the Lord of the Town, and if there be any other Lord, they come both together, with some other of the Seniors of the Parish; who being set down, eat up one of the Beasts, which the old men had set apart for them; the rest is divided among the people, sitting upon the ground.

There are some Villages where you shall have fifty Goats and Sheep, or Lambs and Kids, kill'd together at one time. As for their Bosa, there are some that bring above 200 Pints; others more or less, according to their quality. All the day long they eat and drink, and sing and dance to their Flutes a dozen together, which are in some measure harmonious, as consisting of several parts, and decreasing propor∣tionably from the Treble to the Base. When the old men have solac'd themselves with eating and drinking, they go home, and leave the young people, Men and Wo∣men, Boys and Girls to be merry by themselves: They stay as long as there is any Drink; and the next day they go early to Mowing.

They have other Ceremonies particular only to their Families. Once a year in every House they make a Cross after the Form of a Mallet, about five Foot high, the two Sticks that compose the Cross, being as big as a man's Arm. This the Master of the House sets in the Evening near the Door in his Chamber, and calling all his Family together, gives them every one a lighted Wax-Candle. Then first he fixes his own to the Cross, next his Wife sticks hers, and so all the Children and Servants: If the Children be so young, that they cannot do it themselves, the Father and Mo∣ther do it for them. If one of the Candles burn out before it be put out, 'tisa Pro∣gnostick that he or she that fix'd it there, shall not live out their year. If the Can∣dle falls, then he whose Candle it was, shall be robb'd, or be forc't to fly for his Life.

If it thunders, all the people run out of the Village, and the young people of both Sexes set themselves to singing and dancing in the presence of their Elders: And if any one be Thunder-struck, they bury that person honourably, believing him to be a Saint. Besides that, they send over all the Countrey for a white Goat, which they breed up and keep in the Village where it happen'd to thunder, having it in great veneration, till thundring in another place, the people send for it thither also. If the Thunder fall upon any of their Houses, though it kill neither Man, Woman, Child, nor Beast, all that Family shall be kept upon the publick stock all that year, without being ty'd to any Labour but of Singing and Dancing. These people, during that time, go from Village to Village Dancing and Singing at peoples Doors, but never going into their Houses; for which the Inhabitants are bound to bring them out something to eat.

There is a day in the Spring, when all that have been struck'n with Thunder, meet together in the Village where the white Goat is kept; who has always a Cheese hang∣ing about his Neck as big as a Parma-Cheese. This Goat they take and carry to the Village of the chief Lord of the Countrey. They never go in, but the Lord with all the rest of the Village coming out, they all together prostrate themselves before the Goat. Having said some Prayers, they take away his Cheese, and immediately put another in its place. The Cheese which was taken away, is at the same time cut into little pieces, and distributed among the people. After that, they give the Strangers to eat, and bestow their Alms upon them; so that by this wandring from Village to Village, they get good store of Money.

They have among them but only one Book; and it is as big as one of our largest Folio's, and it lies in the hands of an old man, who has only the priviledge to touch it. When that old man is dead, they choose another old man to keep the Book; whose Duty it is to go from Village to Village, where he hears of any sick people. He carries the Book with him, and after he has lighted up a Wax-Candle, and put the people out of the Room, he lays the Book upon the Stomach of the sick person, opens it, and reads in it, then blows over it sev'ral times, so that the Breath passes toward the mouth of the Party: Then he causes the party diseas'd to kiss the Book several times, and as often lays it upon his head, which is a Ceremony of half an hour. When the old man goes away, one gives him a Beef or a Heifer; another gives him a Goat; every one according to their Quality and Estate.

They have also Old Women that take upon them to cure the Sick. These Women feel the body of the sick party, all over, but more particularly they handle and grope that part where the distemper lies: during which time they let go several belches out

of their mouthes, and the more sick the party is, the louder and thicker, they fetch their belches. The standers by hearing them belch in that manner and fetch such vilanous sighs from their stomacks, believe their friend to be dangerously ill, and that the louder the Women belch, the more ease and comfort they receive; but whether they do or no, the women are well payd for their pains. When any one feels a pain in the Head, they send for the Barber, who gives two cutts upon the Head across with the rasor, and then poures Oyl into the wound. For they believe the Head-ache proceeds only from a wind beeween the flesh and the bone, for which the Incision opens a paslage to let it out.

At their Funerals they that are the near Relations or Friends of the dead, some cut their faces, and other parts of their Bodies with sharp flints, others prostrate themselves upon the ground, and tear their hair; so that when they return from the Burial, they are all of a gore blood: However, notwithstanding all this affliction, they never pray for the Dead.

As to their Marriages: When a young man has seen a Virgin which he has a liking to, he sends one of his friends to agree with her Parents or her Tutor, what he will give for her. Commonly the guist consists in Horses, Cows or some other sort of Cat∣tel. When the agreement is made, the Parents and Kindred of the party thereby con∣tracted, together with the Lord of the place, go to the House where the Virgin lives and bring her to the Bridegrooms House, where there is a Feast ready prepar'd; and after they have made merry, and sung, and danc'd for a while, the Bride∣groom and Bride go and lye together, without any other Ceremony. If the Man and Maid are of two Parishes, the Lord of the Village where the Man lives, accompany him and his Kindred to the next Village altogether, to fetch the Bride from thence.

If a Man and the Wife have no Children, he is permitted to take several Wives one after another till he have Issue. If a marri'd Woman have a Gallant, and that the Husband should come and find his Wise a bed with him, he goes away again without saying a word, and never takes any further notice of it. The Woman also in the same case, does the like by the man. Nay, the more Gallants a Woman has, the more she is respected: And it is a common custom when they fall out, to taunt one another, that if they were not ugly, or ill natur'd, or diseas'd, they would have more Admirers than they have. The People are of an excellent Complexion, especially the Women, who are extreamly fair, and finely shap'd, and keep their beauty till five and forty or fifty years. They are very laborious, and work themselves in the Iron Mines, which they melt afterwards and forge into several Tooles and Implements. They make abun∣dance of Embroidery of Gold and Silver for their Saddles, their Quivers, and their Pumps, as also upon the Calicut of which they make their Handkerchiefs.

If the man and the woman happen to quarrel often together, so that they cannot be reconcil'd: the Husband complaining first to the Lord of the Place, He sends for the Woman, and having giv'n order to sell her, gives the Man another. But if the Woman complain first, the Man is serv'd the same sawce. If a Man or Woman be a disturber of their Neighbours, if the Neighbours complain to the Lord, he presently causes the party to be apprehended and sold to the Merchants that buy Slaves, for they are resolv'd they will live in quiet.

They that take upon them the quality of Gentlemen, sit still, do nothing, and speak very little. In an evening they ride out, and meet some twenty or thirty together to go a stealing. Nor do they rob only their Enemies, but their Neighbours, from whom the chief prey which they take are Cattle and Slaves. All the Country-people are Slaves to the Lord of the Village where they live, whom he imploys to till his Land, and cut Wood for him upon occasion, of which they spend vast quantities. For not be∣ing very warm clad, they keep fire all night in the places where they sleep.