every part of the road to tell all travellers and caravans to halt till
they had a guard sent for them; for that an unusual body of Tartars,
making ten thousand in all, had appeared in the way, about thirty miles
beyond the city.

This was very bad news to travellers: however, it was carefully done of
the governor, and we were very glad to hear we should have a guard.
Accordingly, two days after, we had two hundred soldiers sent us from a
garrison of the Chinese on our left, and three hundred more from the city
of Naum, and with these we advanced boldly. The three hundred soldiers
from Naum marched in our front, the two hundred in our rear, and our men
on each side of our camels, with our baggage and the whole caravan in the
centre; in this order, and well prepared for battle, we thought ourselves
a match for the whole ten thousand Mogul Tartars, if they had appeared;
but the next day, when they did appear, it was quite another thing.

CHAPTER XV--DESCRIPTION OF AN IDOL, WHICH THEY DESTROY

Early in the morning, when marching from a little town called Changu, we
had a river to pass, which we were obliged to ferry; and, had the Tartars
had any intelligence, then had been the time to have attacked us, when
the caravan being over, the rear-guard was behind; but they did not
appear there. About three hours after, when we were entered upon a
desert of about fifteen or sixteen miles over, we knew by a cloud of dust
they raised, that the enemy was at hand, and presently they came on upon
the spur.

Our Chinese guards in the front, who had talked so big the day before,
began to stagger; and the soldiers frequently looked behind them, a
certain sign in a soldier that he is just ready to run away. My old
pilot was of my mind; and being near me, called out, "Seignior Inglese,
these fellows must be encouraged, or they will ruin us all; for if the
Tartars come on they will never stand it."--"If am of your mind," said I;
"but what must be done?"--"Done?" says he, "let fifty of our men advance,
and flank them on each wing, and encourage them. They will fight like
brave fellows in brave company; but without this they will every man turn
his back." Immediately I rode up to our leader and told him, who was
exactly of our mind; accordingly, fifty of us marched to the right wing,
and fifty to the left, and the rest made a line of rescue; and so we
marched, leaving the last two hundred men to make a body of themselves,
and