Page:Christianity in China, Tartary, and Thibet Volume I.djvu/370

358 358 CHRISTIANITY IN CHINA, ETC. the emperor to envoys from foreign princes, to orators, warriors, artists, archers, to the poor, and to persons of various conditions. It would take too long to describe to you the riches, magnificence, and glory of the great Khan ; the extent of his empire, the number of the towns, and their grandeur, the multitudes of people subject to him, or the administration of the empire, where no one dares to raise a sword against another. I pass over all these things in silence, because they would seem incredible ; I myself, who am here upon the spot, sometimes receive accounts that I can scarcely believe. " There is a large town on the sea-shore named Ka'i- Tong, where a magnificent church has been built by a rich Armenian lady. The Archbishop of Khanbalik created it a cathedral, and confided its government to Bishop Gerard, during his lifetime, together with its endowments. On the death of this bishop, who was buried in the church, the archbishop intended me to succeed him, and occupy the see ; but as I did not ac- cept the nomination, the Bishop Peregrin was sent there on the first opportunity. After having governed this church for some years, he expired in the year 1322, nine days after the festival of St. Peter and St. Paul. Before the decease of the Bishop Peregrin, I had been living in the environs of Khanbalik, for about four years, after which I obtained the transfer of my imperial pension to Ka'i-Tong, where I repaired with a brilliant escort of eight cavaliers appointed by the emperor. Bishop Pe- regrin was then still living, and I had a tolerably pretty church built, in a forest not far from the town, with ac- commodation for twenty-two monks, and four rooms for the prelates. The imperial subsidy was my only re-