Mediaeval Tales Part 30

I being once laid in my bed, and I could not sleep for thinking on my calendar and practice, I marvelled with myself how it were possible that the firmament should be known, and so largely written of by men, or whether they write true or false, by their own opinions and suppositions, or by due observation and true course of the heavens; behold, I thought my house would have been blown down, so that all my doors and chests flew open, whereat I was not a little astonished, for withal I heard a groaning voice, which said, 'Get up; the desire of thy heart, mind, and thought thou shalt see.' At the which I answered, 'What my heart desireth that would I fain see; and to make proof if I shall see, I will away with thee.' 'Why, then,' quoth he, 'look out the window, there cometh a messenger for thee.' That did I; and behold, there stood a waggon with two dragons before it to draw the same, and all the waggon was of a light burning fire, and for that the moon shone I was the willinger at that time to depart. But the voice spoke again: 'Sit up, and let us away.' 'I will,' said I, 'go with thee, but upon condition that I may ask after all things that I see, hear, or think on.' The voice answered: 'I am content for this time.' Hereupon I got me into the waggon, so that the dragons carried me up right into the air.

"The waggon had four wheels, the which rattled so, and made such a noise, as if it had been all this while running on the stones, and round about us flew flames of fire; and the higher that I came, the more the earth seemed to be darkened, so that methought I came out of a dungeon; and looking down from heaven, behold Mephistophiles my spirit and servant was behind me; and when he perceived that I saw him, he came and sate by me; to whom I said, 'I pray thee, Mephistophiles, whither shall I go now?' 'Let not that trouble thy mind,' said he; and yet they carried us higher up. And now I will tell thee, good friend and schoolfellow, what things I have seen and proved; for on the Tuesday I went out, and on Tuesday seven nights following I came home again, that's eight days, in which time I slept not, no not one wink came within my eyes; and we went invisible of any man; and as the day began to appear, after the first night's journey, I said to my spirit Mephistophiles, 'I pray thee how far have we now ridden? I am sure thou knowest, for methinks we have ridden exceeding far, the world seemeth so little.' Mephistophiles answered me, 'My Faustus, believe me, that from the place from whence thou camest unto this place where we now are is already forty-seven leagues right in height.' And as the day increased, I looked down into the world. Asia, Europe, and Africa, I had a sight of; and being so high, quoth I to my spirit, 'Tell me how these kingdoms lie, and what they are called?' The which he denied not, saying, 'See this on our left hand is Hungaria, this is also Prussia on our left hand, and Poland, Muscovia, Tartary, Silesia, Bohemia, Saxony; and here on our right hand, Spain, Portugal, France, England, and Scotland; then right on before us lie the kingdoms of Persia, India, Arabia, the king of Althar, and the great Cham. Now we are come to Wittenburg, and are right over the town of Weim, in Austria, and ere long we will be at Constantinople, Tripoli, and Jerusalem, and after will we pierce the frozen zone, and shortly touch the horizon and the zenith of Wittenburg.' There looked I on the ocean sea, and beheld a great many s.h.i.+ps and galleys ready to battle one against another; and thus I spent my journey, and I cast my eyes here, now there, towards south, north, east, and west. I have been in one place where it rained and hailed, and in another where the sun shone excellent fair; and so I think that I saw most things in and about the world, with great admiration; that in one place it rained, and in another hail and snow; on this side the sun shone bright, some hills covered with snow never consuming, others were so hot that gra.s.s and trees were burned and consumed therewith. Then looked I up to the heavens, and behold they went so swift, that I thought they would have sprung into thousands; likewise it was so clear and so hot, that I could not gaze upon it, it so dimmed my sight; and had not my spirit Mephistophiles covered me, as it were with a shadowing cloud, I had been burnt with the extreme heat thereof; for the sky which we behold here, when we look up from the earth, is so fast and thick as a wall, clear and s.h.i.+ning bright as crystal, in which is placed the sun, which casteth forth his rays and beams over the whole world, to the uttermost confines of the earth. But we think that the sun is very little; no, it is altogether as big as the world; indeed the body substantial is but little in compa.s.s, but the rays or streams that it casteth forth by reason of the thing wherein it is placed, maketh him to extend and show himself all over the whole world; and we think that the sun runneth his course, and that the heavens stand still; no, it is the heavens that moves his course, and the sun abideth perpetually in his place, he is permanent and fixed in his place; and although we see him beginning to ascend in the orient or east, at the highest in the meridian or south, setting in occident or west, yet is he in the lowest in septentrio or north, and yet he moveth not, it is the axle of the heavens that moveth, the whole firmament being a chaos or confused thing, and for that proof I will show this example: like as thou seest a bubble made of water and soap blown out of a quill, it is in form of a confused ma.s.s or chaos, and being in this form is moved at pleasure of the wind, which runneth round about that chaos, and moveth him also round; even so the whole firmament or chaos, wherein are placed the sun and the rest of the planets, is turned and carried at the pleasure of the spirit of G.o.d, which is wind. Yea, Christian reader, to the glory of G.o.d, and to the profit of my soul, I will open unto thee a divine opinion touching the rule of this confounded chaos, far more than my rude German author, being possessed with the devil, was able to utter, and prove some of my sentences before to be true; look into Genesis, into the works of G.o.d, at the creation of the world, there shalt thou find that the spirit of G.o.d moved upon the water, before heaven and earth were made. Mark how he made it, and how by his word every element took his place; these were not his works, but his words, for all the words he used before, concluded afterwards in one work, which was in making man. Mark, reader, with patience, for thy soul's health, see into all that was done by the word and work of G.o.d. Light and darkness was, the firmament stood, and the great and little light in it; the moist waters were in one place, the earth was dry, and every element brought forth according to the word of G.o.d. Now follow his works: he made man after his own image. How? Out of the earth. The earth will shape no image without water; there was one of the elements; but all this while there was wind. All elements were at the word of G.o.d. Man was made, and in a form by the work of G.o.d, yet moved not that work before G.o.d had breathed the spirit of life into his nostrils, and made him a living soul. Here was the first wind and spirit of G.o.d, out of his own mouth; which we have likewise from the same seed which was only planted by G.o.d in Adam; which wind, breath, or spirit, when he had received, he was living and moved on earth; for it was ordained of G.o.d for his habitation, but the heavens are the habitation of the Lord. And like as I showed before of the bubble or confused chaos made of water and soap, through the wind and breath of man is turned round and carried with the wind, even so the firmaments wherein the sun and the rest of the planets are fixed, be moved, turned, and carried with the wind, breath, and spirit of G.o.d; for the heavens and firmaments are moveable as the chaos, but the sun is fixed in the firmament. And farther, my good schoolfellow, I was thus nigh the heavens, where methought every planet was but as half the earth, and under the firmament ruled the spirits in the air. As I came down, I looked upon the world and heavens, and methought that the earth was inclosed (in comparison) within the firmament as the yolk of an egg within the white; methought that the whole length of the earth was not a span long, and the water was as it had been twice as broad and as long as the earth. Even thus, at eight days' end, I came home again, and fell asleep, and so I continued sleeping three days and three nights together, and the first hour I waked, fell fresh again to my calendars, and have made them in right ample manner as you know. And to satisfy your request for that you write unto me, I have (in consideration of our old friends.h.i.+p had at the university of Wittenburg) declared unto you my heavenly voyage, wis.h.i.+ng no worse unto you than unto myself, that is, that your mind were as mine in all respects. Dixi, Dr. Faustus the astrologian."

CHAPTER XXII.

_How Dr. Faustus made his Journey through the princ.i.p.al and most famous Lands in the World._

Dr. Faustus having overrun fifteen years of his appointed time, he took upon him a journey, with full intent to see the whole world, and calling his spirit Mephistophiles unto him, he said, "Thou knowest that thou art bound unto me upon conditions, to form and fulfil my desire in all things, wherefore my intent is to visit the whole face of the earth, visible and invisible, when it pleaseth me; therefore I command and enjoin thee to the same." Whereupon Mephistophiles answered, "I am ready, my lord, at thy command;" and forthwith the spirit changed himself into the likeness of a flying horse, saying, "Faustus, sit up, I am ready."

Dr. Faustus softly sate upon him, and forwards they went. Faustus came through many a land and province, as Pannonia, Austria, Germany, Bohemia, Silesia, Saxony, Messene, During, Frankland, Swaalband, Byerland, Sayrir, Corinthia, Poland, Litaw, Lesland, Prussia, Denmark, Muscovia, Tartaria, Turkey, Persia, Cathai, Alexandria, Barbaria, Ginny, Porut, the Straights Magh.e.l.lane, India, all about the frozen zone, and Terra-incognita, Nova Hispaniola, the Isles of Tereza, Madera, St.

Michaels, the Canaries, and the Trenorirolcio into Spain, and Mainland, Portugal, Italy, Campania, the Kingdom of Naples, the Isles of Sicilia, Malta, Majorca, Minorca, to the Knights of the Rhodes, Candy or Crete, Cypress, Corinth, Switzerland, France, Freezeland, Westphalia, Zealand, Holland, Brabant, and all the seventeen provinces in Netherland, England, Scotland, Ireland, and America, and Island, the Gut-Isles of Scotland, the Orcades, Norway, the Bishopric of Bream; and so home again.

All these kingdoms, and provinces, and countries he pa.s.sed in twenty-five days, in which time he saw nothing that delighted his mind; wherefore he took little rest at home, and burning in desire to see more at large, and to behold the secrets of each kingdom, he set forward again on his journey on his swift horse Mephistophiles, and came to Trent, for that he chiefly desired to see this town, and the monuments thereof, but there he saw not any wonders, except two fair palaces that belonged unto the bishop, and also a mighty large castle that was built with brick, with three walls, and three great trenches, so strong that it was impossible for any prince's power to win it; then he saw a church wherein was buried Simon and the bishop of Popo. Their tombs are of most sumptuous stone-marble, closed and joined together with great bars of iron. From thence he departed to Paris, where he liked well the academy; and what place or kingdom soever fell in his mind, the same he visited.

He came from Paris to Mentz, where the river of Maine falls into the Rhine, notwithstanding he tarried not long there, but went into Campania, in the kingdom of Neapoly, in which he saw an innumerable sort of cloisters, nunneries, and churches, and great houses of stone, the streets fair and large, and straight forth from one end of the town to the other all alike, and all the pavement of the city was of brick, and the more it rained in the town the fairer the streets were. There saw he the tomb of Virgil, and the highway that he cut through the mighty hill of stone in one night, the whole length of an English mile, where he saw the number of galleys and argosies that lay there at the city head, the windmill that stood in the water, the castle in the water, and the houses above the water, where many galleys might ride most safely from rain or wind; then he saw the castle on the hill over the town, and many monuments therein, also the hill called Vesuvius, whereon groweth all the Greekish wine and most pleasant sweet olives.

From thence he came to Venice, whereat he wondered not a little to see a city so famously built standing in the sea, where through every street the water came in such largeness that great s.h.i.+ps and barques might pa.s.s from one street to another, having yet a way on both sides the water whereon men and horses might pa.s.s. He marvelled also how it was possible so much victuals to be found in the town, and so good and cheap, considering that for a whole league nothing grew near the same. He wondered not a little at the fairness of St. Mark's Place, and the sumptuous church standing thereon, called St. Mark; how all the pavement was set with coloured stones, and all the rood or loft of the church double gilded over.

Leaving this, he came to Padua, beholding the manner of their academy, which is called the mother or nurse of Christendom; there heard he the doctors, and saw most of the monuments of the town, entered his name in the university of the German nation, and wrote himself Dr. Faustus, the insatiable speculator. Then saw he the worthiest monument in the world for a church, named St. Anthony's Cloister, which for the pinnacles thereof and the contrivement of the church, hath not the like in Christendom. The town is fenced about with three mighty walls of stone and earth, betwixt the which runneth goodly ditches of water. Betwixt every four-and-twenty hours pa.s.seth boats betwixt Padua and Venice with pa.s.sengers, as they do here betwixt London and Gravesend, and even so far they differ in distance. Faustus beheld likewise the council-house and castle, with no small wonder.

Well, forward he went to Rome, which lay, and doth yet lie, on the river Tibris, the which divideth the city into two parts. Over the river are four great stone bridges, and upon the one bridge, called Ponte St.

Angelo, is the Castle of St. Angelo, wherein are so many great cast pieces as there are days in the year, and such pieces as will shoot seven bullets off with one fire. To this castle cometh a privy vault from the church and the palace of St. Peter, through the which the pope (if any danger be) pa.s.seth from his palace to the castle for safeguard.

The city hath eleven gates, and a hill called Vaticinium, whereupon St.

Peter's church is built. In that church the holy fathers will hear no confessions without the penitent bring money in his hand. Adjoining to the church is the Campo Santo, the which Carolus Magnus built, where every day thirteen pilgrims have their dinners served of the best; that is to say, Christ and his twelve apostles. Hard by this he visited the churchyard of St. Peter, where he saw that pyramid that Julius Caesar brought forth of Africa; it stood in Faustus's time leaning against the church-wall of St. Peter's; but Pope Sixtus hath erected it in the middle of St. Peter's churchyard. It is fourteen fathom long, and at the lower end five fathom four square, and so forth smaller upwards. On the top is a crucifix of beaten gold, the stone standing on four lions of bra.s.s. Then he visited the seven churches of Rome, that were St. Peter, St. Paul, St. Sebastian, St. John Lateran, St. Laurence, St. Mary Magdalen, and St. Mary Majora. Then went he without the town, where he saw the conduits of water that run level through hill and dale, bringing water into the town fifteen Italian miles off. Other mountains he saw, too many to recite.

But amongst the rest he was desirous to see the pope's court, and his manner of service at his table, wherefore he and his spirit made themselves invisible, and came to the pope's court and privy-chamber, where he was; there saw he many servants attending on his holiness, with many a flattering sycophant carrying his meat; and there he marked the pope, and the manner of his service, which he seeing to be so unmeasurable and sumptuous: "Fie," quoth Faustus, "why had not the devil made a pope of me?" Faustus saw there notwithstanding such as were like to himself, proud, stout, wilful gluttons, drunkards, wh.o.r.emongers, breakers of wedlock, and followers of all manner of unG.o.dly excess; wherefore he said to his spirit, "I thought that I had been alone a hog or pork of the devil's, but he must bear with me a little longer; for these hogs of Rome are ready fatted, and fitted to make him roast meat; the devil might do well to spit them all, and have them to the fire, and let him summon the nuns to turn the spits; for as none must confess the nun but the friar, so none should turn the roasting friar but the nun."

Thus continued Faustus three days in the pope's palace, and yet had no l.u.s.t to his meat, but stood still in the pope's chamber, and saw everything whatsoever it was.

On a time the pope would have a feast prepared for the Cardinal of Pavia, and for his first welcome the cardinal was bidden to dinner, and as he sate at meat the pope would ever be blessing and crossing over his mouth. Faustus would suffer it no longer, but up with his fist and smote the pope on his face, and withal he laughed that the whole house might hear him, yet none of them saw him, or knew where he was. The pope persuaded his company that it was a d.a.m.ned soul, commanding ma.s.s presently to be said for his delivery out of purgatory, which was done; the pope sat still at meat, but when the latter mess came to the pope's board, Dr. Faustus laid hands thereon, saying, "This is mine," and so he took both dish and meat, and flew into the Capitol or Campadolia, calling his spirit unto him, and said, "Come, let us be merry, for thou must fetch me some wine, and the cup that the pope drinks out of; and hereupon morte caval, we will make good cheer in spite of the pope and all his fat abbey lubbers."

His spirit hearing this, departed towards the pope's chamber, where he found them yet sitting, quaking; wherefore he took from before the pope the fairest piece of plate, or drinking goblet, and a flagon of wine, and brought it to Faustus.

But when the pope and the rest of his crew perceived they were robbed, and knew not after what sort, they persuaded themselves that it was a d.a.m.ned soul that before had vexed the pope so, and that smote him on the face; wherefore he sent commandment through the whole city of Rome, that they should say a ma.s.s in every church, and ring all the bells, for to lay the walking spirit, and to curse him with bell, book, and candle, that so invisibly had misused the pope's holiness, with the Cardinal of Pavia, and the rest of their company.

But Faustus notwithstanding made good cheer with that which he had beguiled the pope of, and in the midst of the order of St. Bernard's, bare-footed friars, as they were going on procession through the market-place, called Campo de Fiore, he let fall his plate, dish, and cup, and withal for a farewell he made such a thunder-clap and storm of rain, as though heaven and earth would have met together, and left Rome, and came to Millain in Italy, near the Alps or borders of Switzerland, where he praised much to his spirit the pleasures of the place, the city being founded in so brave a plain, by the which ran most pleasant rivers on every side of the same, having besides within the compa.s.s of a circuit of seven miles, seven small seas: he saw also therein many fair places, and goodly buildings, the duke's palace, and the mighty strong castle, which is in a manner half the bigness of the town. Moreover, it liked him well to see the hospital of St. Mary, with divers other things: he did there nothing worthy of memory, but he departed back again towards Bologna, and from thence to Florence, where he was well pleased to see the pleasant walk of merchants, the goodly vaults of the city, for that almost the whole city is vaulted, and the houses themselves are built outwardly in such sort, that the people go under them as under a vault: then he perused the sumptuous church in the duke's castle, called Nostra Dama, our Lady's church, in which he saw many monuments, as a marble door most huge to look upon; the gates of the castle are bell-metal, wherein are graven the holy patriarchs, with Christ and his twelve apostles, and divers other histories out of the Old and New Testament.

Then went he to Siena, where he highly praised the church and hospital of Sancta Maria Formosa, with the goodly buildings, and especially the fairness and greatness of the city, and beautiful women: then came he to Lyons in France, where he marked the situation of the city, which lay between two hills, environed with two waters; one worthy monument pleased him well, that was the great church, with the image therein; he commended the city highly for the great resort that it had unto it of strangers.

From thence he went to Cullen, which lieth upon the river of Rhine, wherein he saw one of the ancientest monuments in the world, the which was the tomb of the three kings that came by the angel of G.o.d, and their knowledge they had in the stars, to wors.h.i.+p Christ, which when Faustus saw, he spake in this manner: "Ah! alas, good men! How have you erred, and lost your way! You should have gone to Palestina, and Bethlehem in Judea; how came you hither? Or belike after your death you were thrown into Mare Mediterraneum, about Tripolis in Syria, and so you steered out of the Straights of Gibralterra, in the ocean seas, and so into the Bay of Portugal. And not finding any rest, you are driven along the coast of Gallicia, Biscay and France, and into the narrow seas: then from thence into Mare Germanic.u.m, and taken up I think about the town of Dort in Holland: you were brought to Cullen to be buried, or else (I think) you came most easily with a whirlwind over the Alps, and being thrown into the river of Rhine, it conveyed you to this place where you are kept a monument." Then saw he the church of St. Ursula, where remains a monument of the thousand virgins; it pleased him also to see the beauty of the women.

Not far from Cullen lieth the town of Ach, where he saw the gorgeous temple that the Emperor Carolus Quartus built of marble-stone for a remembrance of him, to the end that all his successors should there be crowned.

From Cullen and Ach he went to Geneva, a city in Savoy, lying near Switzerland; it is a town of great traffic, the lord thereof is a bishop, whose wine-cellar Faustus and his spirit visited for the love of his good wine.

From thence he went to Strasburg, where he beheld the fairest temple that ever he had seen in his life before, for on every side thereof he might see through, even from the covering of the minster to the top of the pinnacle, and it is named one of the wonders of the world; wherefore, he demanded why it is called Strasburg? His spirit answered, "Because it hath so many highways common to it on every side, for Stros in Dutch is a Highway, and hereof came the name: yea," said Mephistophiles, "the church that thou so wonderest at, hath more revenues belonging to it than the twelve dukes of Silesia are worth, for there pertain unto this church fifty-five towns, and four hundred and sixty-three villages, besides many houses in the town."

From thence went Faustus to Basil, in Switzerland, where the river of Rhine runneth through the town, parting the same as the river of Thames doth London: in the town of Basil he saw many rich monuments, the town walled with brick round about, without it goeth a great trench: no church pleased him but the Jesuits' church, which was sumptuously builded, and set full of alabaster pillars, where the spirit told Faustus that before the city was founded, there used a Basiliscus, a kind of serpent: this serpent killed as many men, women and children as he took a sight of, but there was a knight that made himself a cover of crystal, to come over his head and down to the ground, and being first covered with a black cloth, over that he put the crystal, and so boldly went to see the Basiliscus, and finding the place where she haunted, he expected her coming even before the mouth of the cave, where standing a while, the Basiliscus came forth, where when she saw her own venomous shadow in the crystal, she split in a thousand pieces, wherefore the knight was richly rewarded of the emperor, after the which the knight founded this town upon the place where he had slain the serpent, and gave it the name Basil, in remembrance of his deed.

From Basil, Faustus went to Costnitz in Sweitz, at the head of the Rhine, where is a most sumptuous bridge that goeth over the Rhine, even from the gates of the town to the other side of the stream; at the head of the river of Rhine, is a small sea, called of the Switzers the Black Sea, twenty thousand paces long, and fifty hundred paces broad. The town Costnitz took the name of this; the emperor gave it a clown for expounding of his riddle: wherefore the clown named the town Costnitz, that is in English, "Cost me nothing."

From Costnitz he came to Ulm, where he saw the sumptuous town house built by two-and-fifty of the ancient senators of the city; it took the name Ulm, because the whole land thereabouts is full of Elms: but Faustus minding to depart from thence, his spirit said unto him, "Faustus, think of the town as you will; it hath three dukedoms belonging to it, the which they have bought with ready money."

From Ulm he came unto Watzberg, the chiefest town in Frankland, wherein the bishop altogether keepeth his court, through the which town pa.s.seth the river Mayne, that runs into the Rhine; thereabouts groweth strong and pleasant wine, the which Faustus well proved: the castle standeth on a hill on the north side of the town, at the foot thereof runneth the river. This town is full of beggarly friars, nuns, priests, and Jesuits; for there are five sorts of begging friars, besides three cloisters of nuns; at the foot of the castle stands a church, in the which there is an altar, where are engraven all the four elements, and all the orders and degrees in heaven, that any man of understanding whosoever, that hath a light thereof, may say that it is the artificialist thing that ever he beheld.

From thence he went to Norenberg, whither as he went by the way his spirit informed him that the town was named of Claudius Tiberius, the son of Nero the Tyrant. In the town are two famous cathedral churches, one called St. Sabelt, the other St. Laurence; in which church stands all the relics of Carolus Magnus, that is to say, his cloak, his hose, his doublet, his sword and crown, the sceptre and apple. It hath a very glorious gilded conduit in the market-place of St. Laurence; in which conduit is the spear that thrust our Saviour into the side, and a piece of the holy cross; the wall is called the fair wall of Norenberg, and five hundred and twenty-eight streets, a hundred and sixty wells, four great and two small clocks, six great gates, two small doors, eight stone bridges, twelve small hills, ten fair market-places, thirteen common hot-houses, ten churches; within the town are twenty wheels of water-mills, it hath a hundred and thirty-eight tall s.h.i.+ps, two mighty town walls of hewed stone and earth, with very deep trenches: the walls have a hundred and eighty towers about them, and four fair platforms, ten apothecaries, ten doctors of the common law, fourteen doctors of physic.

From Norenberg he went to Auspurg, where at the break of the day he demanded of his spirit whereupon the town took his name. "This town,"

quoth he, "hath had many names; when it was first built, it was called Vindelica; secondly, it was called Zizaria, the iron-bridge; lastly, by the Emperor Octavus Augustus, it was called Augusta, and by the corruption of language, the Germans had named it Auspurg."

Now, for because that Faustus had been there before, he departed (without seeing their monuments) to Ravensberg, where his spirit certified him that the city had seven names: the first Diperia, the second Quadratis, the third Heaspolis, the fourth Reginipolis, the fifth Imbripolis, the sixth Ratisbona, the last is Ravensberg. The situation of this city pleased Faustus well, also the strong and sumptuous building; by the walls thereof runneth the river Danubius, in Dutch called Danow, into which not far from the compa.s.s of the city falleth near hand threescore other small rivers and fresh waters. Faustus also liked the sumptuous stone bridge over the same water, with the church standing thereon, the which was founded Anno 1115, the name whereof is called St. Remedian; in the town Faustus went into the cellar of an inn-holder, and let out all the beer and wine that was in the cellar.

After which feat, he returned into Mentz in Bavaria, a right princely town: the town appeared as if it were new, with great streets therein, both of breadth and length from Mentz to Salisburg, where the bishop is always resident: here saw he all the commodities that were possible to be seen, for at the hill he saw the form of a bell made in crystal, a huge thing to look upon, that every year groweth bigger and bigger, by reason of the freezing cold.

From thence he went to Vienna in Austria; the town is of great antiquity, that it is not possible to find the like. "In this town,"

said the spirit, "is more wine than water, for all under the town are wells, which are filled every year with wine, and all the water that they have runneth by this town; this is the river Danubius."

From thence he went into Prage, the chief city of Bohemia; this is divided into three parts, that is old Prage, little Prage, and new Prage. Little Prage is the place where the emperor's court is placed; upon an exceeding high mountain there is a castle, where are two fair churches; in the one he found a monument which might well have been a mirror for himself, and that was the sepulchre of a notable conjurer, which by his magic had so enchanted his sepulchre that whosoever set foot thereon, should be sure never to die in their beds. From this castle he came and went down over the bridge; this bridge has twenty-four arches, and in the middle of the bridge stands a very fair monument, being a cross builded of stone, and most artificially carved. From thence he went into the old Prage, the which is separated from the new Prage, with an exceeding deep ditch, and round about enclosed with a wall of brick; unto this is adjoining the Jews' town, wherein are thirteen thousand men, women, and children, all Jews; there he viewed the college and the gardens, where all manner of savage beasts are kept; and from thence he fetched a compa.s.s round about the three towns, whereat he wondered greatly to see so mighty a city stand all within the walls.

From Prage he flew into the air, and bethought himself what he might do, or which way to take; so looked round about, and behold he espied a pa.s.sing fair city, which lay not far from Prage, about some four-and-twenty miles, and that was Bressaw in Silesia, in which when he was entered, it seemed to him that he had been in Paradise, so neat and clean were the streets, and so sumptuous were their buildings. In the city he saw not many wonders, except the brazen Virgin that standeth on a bridge over the water, and under which standeth a mill like a paper-mill, which Virgin is made to do execution upon those disobedient town-born children that be so wild that their parents cannot bridle them; which, when any such are found with some heinous offence, turning to the shame of their parents and kindred, they are brought to kiss the Virgin, which openeth her arms. The person then to be executed kisseth her, then doth she close her arms together with such violence, that she crusheth out the breath of the party, breaketh his bulk, and so he dieth; but being dead she openeth her arms again, and letteth the party fall into the mill, where he is stamped into small morsels, which the water carrieth away, so that no part is found again.

From Bressaw he went toward Cracovia, in the kingdom of Polionia, where he beheld the academy, the which pleased him wonderful well. In the city the king most commonly holdeth his court at a castle, in which castle are many famous monuments; there is a most sumptuous church in the same, in which standeth a silver altar gilded and set with rich stones, and over it is a covenance full of all manner of silver ornaments belonging to ma.s.s. In the church hangeth the jaw-bones of a huge dragon, that kept the rock before the castle was edified thereon: it is full of all manner of munition, and hath always victuals for three years to serve three thousand men; through the town runneth a river, called the Vessnal or Wessel, where over is a fair wooden bridge; this water divideth the town and Gasmere; in this Gasmere dwell the Jews, being a small walled town by themselves, to the number of twenty-five thousand men, women and children; within one mile of the town there is a salt mine, where they found stones of pure salt, one thousand pound, two thousand pound, or more in weight, and that in great quant.i.ty: this salt is as black as the Newcastle coal when it comes out of the mines, but being beaten to powder, it is as white as snow. The like they have four miles from thence at a town called Buckma.

From thence Faustus went to Sandentz, the Captain thereof was called Don Spicket Jordan. In this town are many monuments, as the tomb and sepulchre of Christ, in as ample a manner as that is at Jerusalem, at the proper costs of a gentleman that went thrice a year to Jerusalem from that place and returned again. Not far from that town is a new town wherein is a nunnery of the order of St. Dioclesian, into which order may none come except they be gentlewomen, and well formed, and fair to look upon, which pleased Faustus well; but having a will to travel further, and to see more wonders, mounting up towards the east, over many lands and provinces, as in Hungaria, Transilvania, Shede, Ingatz, Sardinia, and so into Constantinople, where the Turkish emperor kept his court.

This city was surnamed by Constantine, the founder thereof, being builded of very fair stone. In the same the Great Turk hath three fair palaces: the walls are strong, the pinnacles are very huge, and the streets very large. But this liked not Faustus that one man should have as many wives as he would. The sea runneth hard by the city; the wall hath eleven gates. Faustus abode there a certain time to see the manner of the Turkish emperor's service at his table, where he saw his royal service to be such that he thought if all the Christian princes should banquet together, and every one adorn the feast to the utmost, that they were not able to compare with the Turk and his table, and the rest of his country service. Wherefore it so affrighted Faustus that he vowed to be revenged on him, for his pomp, he thought, was more fit for himself; wherefore as the Turk sate at meat Faustus showed them a little apish play, for round about the privy-chamber he sent forth flas.h.i.+ng flames of fire, insomuch that the whole company forsook their meat and fled, except only the Great Turk himself; him Faustus charmed in such sort that he could neither rise nor fall, neither could any man pull him up. With this was the hall so light as if the sun had s.h.i.+ned in the house. Then came Faustus in form of a pope to the Great Turk, saying, "All hail, emperor, now art thou honoured, that I so worthily appear unto thee as thy Mahomet was wont to do." Hereupon he vanished, and forthwith it thundered that the whole palace shook. The Turk greatly marvelled what this should be that so vexed him, and was persuaded by the chiefest counsellors that it was Mahomet, his prophet, which had so appeared unto them; whereupon the Turk commanded them to fall down on their knees and to give him thanks for doing them so great honour as to show himself unto them. But the next day Faustus went into the castle where he kept his wives and concubines, in which castle might no man, upon the pain of death, come, except those that were appointed by the Great Turk to do him service, and they were all eunuchs, which when Faustus perceived, he said to his spirit Mephistophiles, "How likest thou this sport? Are not these fair ladies greatly to be pitied that thus consume their youth at the pleasure of one only man?"

"Why," quoth the spirit, "mayst not thou instead of the emperor embrace these fair ladies? Do what thy heart desireth herein, and I will aid thee, and what thou wishest thou shalt have it performed."

Wherefore Faustus (being before this counsel apt enough to put such matters in practice) caused a great fog to be round about the castle, both within and without, and he himself appeared amongst the ladies in all points as they used to paint Mahomet; at which sight the ladies fell on their knees and wors.h.i.+pped him. Then Faustus took the fairest by the hand, and when he had delighted himself sufficiently with her, he put her away, and made his spirit bring him another; and so he pa.s.sed away six days, all which time the fog was so thick and so stinking that they within the house thought that they had been in h.e.l.l for the time, and they without wondered thereat, in such sort that they went to their prayers, calling on their G.o.d Mahomet, and wors.h.i.+pping of the image; where the sixth day Faustus exalted himself into the air like a pope, in the sight of the Great Turk and all his people, and he had no sooner departed the castle but the fog vanished away. Whence presently the Turk went to his wives and concubines, demanding of them if they knew the cause why the castle was beset with a mist so long. They said it was the G.o.d Mahomet himself that had caused it, and how he was in the castle personally six days. The Turk, hearing this, fell down upon his knees and gave Mahomet thanks, desiring him to forgive him for being offended with his visiting his castle and wives these six days.

From thence Faustus went to Alker, the which before times was called Chairam, or Memphis. In this city the Egyptian Soldan holdeth his court; from thence the river Nilus hath his head and spring. It is the greatest fresh water river that is in the whole world, and always when the sun is in Cancer it overfloweth the whole land of Egypt.

Then he returned again towards the north-east, and to the town of Osen and Sebasa in Hungaria. This Osen is the closest city in Hungaria, and standing in a fertile soil, wherein groweth most excellent wine; and not far from the tower there is a well called Zipzan, the water whereof changeth iron into copper. There are mines of gold and silver and all manner of metal. We Germans call this town Osen, but in the Hungarian speech it is Start. In the town standeth a very fair castle, and very well fortified.

From thence he went to Austria, and so through Silesia into Saxony, unto the towns of Magdeburg, and Lipzig, and Lubeck. Magdeburg is a bishopric. In this city is one of the pitchers wherein Christ changed the water into wine in Cana in Galilee. At Lipzig nothing pleased Faustus so well as the great vessel in the castle made of wood, the which is bound about with twenty-four iron hoops, and every hoop weighed two hundred pound weight. You must go upon a ladder thirty steps high before you can look into it. He saw also the new churchyard where it was walled, and standeth upon a fair plain. The yard is two hundred paces long, and round about the side of the wall are good places, separated one from each other to see sepulchres in, which in the middle of the yard standeth very sumptuous; therein standeth a pulpit of white work and gold.

From thence he went to Lubeck and Jamberg, where he made no abode, but away again to Erford in Duriten, where he visited the Frescold; and from Erford he went home to Wittenburg, when he had seen and visited many a strange place, being from home one year and a half, in which time he wrought more wonders than are here declared.

CHAPTER XXIII.

_How Dr. Faustus had sight of Paradise._