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Published On: Thu, Dec 20th, 2018
THE HAGUE - The plenary handling of the law proposal to establish the Dispute Regulation for the Kingdom is set to take place in June 2019 when representatives of the four parliaments gather in The Hague for the Inter-Parliamentary Consultation of the Kingdom IPKO.
This became clear during a procedural meeting of the Permanent Committee for Kingdom Relations of the Second Chamber of the Dutch Parliament on Wednesday. The Kingdom Law proposal to establish a Dispute Regulation (“Geschillenregling”) was submitted recently to the Parliaments of the Netherlands, Aruba, Curaçao and St. Maarten.
The Dispute Regulation will be established by Kingdom Law which means that the three Dutch Caribbean countries can take part in the plenary handling of the law proposal in the Second Chamber. The delegates of the Parliaments of Aruba, Curaçao and St. Maarten can speak on the floor of the Second Chamber and can submit motions and amendments, but they cannot vote on the law proposal itself.
However, before the law proposal is handled, the advice of the Council of State of the Kingdom will be sought on the law proposal that Undersecretary of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations Raymond Knops sent to the parliaments. This law proposal contains some cardinal changes to the previous version of former Minister of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations Ronald Plasterk.
The Kingdom Relations Committee on Wednesday agreed with a proposal of Member of Parliament (MP) Joba van den Berg of the Christian Democratic Party CDA to ask the Kingdom Council of State to give advice on the new law proposal. Van den Berg deemed it necessary to have the Kingdom Council of State take another look at the proposed Dispute Regulation because of the changes to the new draft law.
MP André Bosman of the liberal democratic VVD party said he did not mind having the Kingdom Council of State render advice. However, he added, this added step to the law trajectory should not result in a delay and prevent the law proposal from being ready for plenary handling in June when the IPKO convenes in The Hague.
However, it was ascertained that the law trajectory would not be hampered by seeking advice from the Kingdom Council of State. The Second Chamber will now move to formulate questions that it will ask the Kingdom Council of State to address. The advice is expected to be ready in April 2019.
MP Nevin Özütok of the green left party GroenLinks launched the idea to have a roundtable meeting with experts to hear their opinion about the latest law proposal for the Dispute Regulation. “This is an important matter and it concerns all countries,” she said. MP Antje Diertens of the Democratic Party D66 supported Özütok’s proposal. Özütok said she would work on her suggestion further and come with a formal proposal.
MP Ronald van Raak of the Socialist Party (SP) agreed with Özütok that the Dispute Regulation matter was highly important and that it had been pending for much too long. He agreed to have a meeting with experts, but only after the advice of the Kingdom Council of State had been received.
Van Raak suggested broadening the request for advice of the Kingdom Council of State. “I am curious to know the opinion of the Council of State on the relationship between the Dispute Regulation and the Charter, and the role that the Charter plays in the disputes,” said Van Raak.
MP Bosman pointed out that next year would be the 65th anniversary of the Kingdom Charter. In his opinion, it is high time for a general review of the Charter and to look at its tenability. “The Charter was never meant to be an everlasting structure.”
Members of the Permanent Committee for Kingdom Relations received a technical briefing from the Ministry of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations BZK about the Dispute Regulation law proposal on Wednesday morning. The meeting was held behind closed doors. A proposal of MP Özütok to allow the Ministers Plenipotentiary of Aruba, Curaçao and St. Maarten to attend was rejected.
Dispute RegulationDutch KingdomInterparliamentary Consultations
Dutch First Chamber wants the Netherlands to aid with the reception of Venezuelans
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Galaxy S21 Plus Skins & Wraps
BlackWhiteViolet Device Color
Kind Of Purple
Off Pink
Pastel Black
As society speeds into 2021, leaving 2020 in the rearview mirror, Samsung rings in the new year with the Galaxy S21 Plus. Spoiler alert: it's just as fingerprint-prone as last year's model. You aren't worried - after all, you already know that dbrand's got you covered with Galaxy S21 Plus skins. It's not every day that you shell out a used car's worth of money for a new phone, so buying some scratch protection in the form of Galaxy S21 Plus wraps is a no-brainer. After all, the premium 3M vinyl that we use to produce all of our Galaxy S21+ skins is the same material you'd use to wrap a car. Sure, the used 2010 Hyundai you could have bought for the price of your phone probably isn't getting wrapped in vinyl any time soon, but that's exactly our point - this is the sort of high-grade material that normally graces Lamborghinis. Now, you can get it for your phone. All you need to do is buy a Galaxy S21 Plus skin from dbrand. What are you waiting for?
The Galaxy S21 Plus is the clearest sign yet that camera bumps are getting too large. No boundary is sacred, not even the phone's metal frame. What does this mean for the fit of your Galaxy S21 Plus skin? Well, aside from the fact that we get to sell you less vinyl for the same price, not much. Our relentless pursuit of the most precisely-fitting Galaxy S21 Plus skins on the planet means that we're perfectly well equipped to handle any oddball industrial design decisions Samsung throws our way. Since we opened up shop in 2011, we've understood that a perfectly-fitting Galaxy S21 Plus skin is the deciding factor between a truly factory-customized look and a shoddy sticker you slap on the back of your phone. Nearly ten years later, we're the leading manufacturer of Galaxy S21 Plus skins in the known universe. Coincidence? Of course not.
Scroll back up until you reach the top of this page. What do you see? Our state-of-the-art Galaxy S21 Plus skin customizer, that's what. Not only can you select from our huge array of different Galaxy S21 Plus skins, you can also see a real-time preview of how great your phone's going to look once you've decked it out with dbrand. Now, they say a picture is worth a thousand words. That true-to-life preview of our Galaxy S21+ skins that you just saw? It's already written this paragraph for us, and then some. Whether you're going for a stealth look with Matte Black or an even stealthier look with Black Camo, all you need to do is pick your favorite and add it to your cart. We'll see you at checkout.
This final paragraph is titled "Our Mission," but that's a bit misleading. We actually have two missions. The first one is obvious: sell enough Galaxy S21 Plus skins to buy a small island. What are we going to use the island for? Trust us: you don't want to know. The second mission will take a bit of explaining. It begins with our array of shipping options, ranging from "fast" to "faster." Want free shipping? Easy: just buy more than $25 worth of Galaxy S21 Plus skins and it's yours. You have questions? Our industry-leading support team is at the ready. Installation is a breeze thanks to our Oscar-worthy tutorial video. When all's said and done, your Galaxy S21+ skin application goes off without a hitch. The entire experience leaves you hungry for more dbrand. You buy skins for everything you own. We make enough money to buy another small island... and there's that second mission. dbrand: It's not a product. It's a culture.™
Already bought some Galaxy S21 Plus Skins?
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20/05/20 : Malta joins an international alliance led by Interpol to enhance Cyber Security during COVID-19
In response to the rapid changes brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, Cyber Security Malta and The Malta Police Force are joining a global alliance led by the International Criminal Police (Interpol) to create awareness about cyber safety with a campaign called #WashYourCyberHands.
The alliance is formed by global law enforcement and cyber security communities to protect the public.
Harnessing the expertise of this alliance, the awareness campaign will help communities to keep safe from cyber criminals who are exploiting COVID-19 to steal data, commit online fraud or simply disrupt the virtual world.
The campaign will be highlighting the top threats based on the data collected from various countries, private industry partners, national cyber security agencies and online information-sharing groups. Analysis of this data has confirmed that cyber criminals are capitalizing on the anxiety caused by COVID-19 through various cyber attacks such as data-harvesting, malware, ransomware, online scams and phishing. This data will be adapted for the local scenario and made relevant for Malta and Gozo.
Basic cyber hygiene advice – how to ‘wash your cyber hands’ – will be provided on a daily basis campaign to ensure that individuals and businesses are equipped with the knowledge of how to protect their systems and data.
Craig Jones, INTERPOL’s Director of Cybercrime, said police and the cyber security industry have seen a considerable increase in the number of targeted cyber attacks by criminals since the virus outbreak began. These range from malicious web domains using the word ‘covid’ to phishing emails promising the sale of key supplies as well as ransomware attacks against critical infrastructure and hospitals.
Clayton Bartolo, Parliamentary Secretary for Financial Services and Digital Economy, said that we are spending much of our personal and professional lives online. The Government is investing a lot to keep everyone safe, not only from a health perspective, but also for a digital point of view.
Tony Sultana, MITA Executive Chairman, said that during these challenging times Malta is joining the rest of the world to create awareness and fight cyber crime. We are taking a pro-active approach on different levels. For example, we are addressing cyber security issues for people working from home, along with prevention tips for companies.
Efrem Borg, Head of Information Security at MITA, highlighted the work that MITA has been doing to safeguard the Government IT infrastructure so that the public is given the best service possible, including health care.
Timothy Zammit, Inspector within The Malta Police Cyber Crime Unit, said that the aim behind these campaigns goes beyond disseminating information to prevent crimes in the short term. As society adapts itself to new realities, we want to see users become more aware of the risks involved so that they can interact safely online with more confidence. This new reality is here to stay!
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LIES, LIES, & MORE LIES! Four Pinocchios From WashPo On Hillary’s Fox News Sunday Interview
08.01.2016 | News | Daily Surge |
https://youtu.be/rLvgO1V0k7k
Hillary continued doing what she does best in a recent Fox interview…she repeatedly LIED!
Lying is apparently one of her greatest skills
From Independent Journal:
Hillary Clinton didn’t tell the truth about her emails, and she’s still not telling the truth about her emails.
That is a fact made clear on national television earlier this month by FBI Director James Comey. As he put it during a press conference to announce they wouldn’t be recommending charges for the former Secretary of State, Clinton lied about:
Whether she used “one device”
Whether emails were “marked classified” when sent or received
The possibility of security breaches to her email
Whether she communicated with officials on their .gov emails
Whether State Department was careful with classified emails
Now Hillary is getting called out for another dishonest statement.
In an interview Sunday on Fox News, Clinton said:
“Director Comey said my answers were truthful, and what I’ve said is consistent with what I have told the American people, that there were decisions discussed and made to classify retroactively certain of the emails.”
Glenn Kessler of The Washington Post breaks it down:
Clinton is cherry-picking statements by Comey to preserve her narrative about the unusual setup of a private email server. This allows her to skate past the more disturbing findings of the FBI investigation
For instance, when Clinton asserts “my answers were truthful,” a campaign aide said she is referring to this statement by Comey to Congress: “We have no basis to conclude she lied to the FBI.”
But that’s not the whole story. When House Oversight Chairman Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) asked whether Clinton had lied to the American public, Comey dodged: “That’s a question I’m not qualified to answer. I can speak about what she said to the FBI.”
At another point, Comey told Congress: “I really don’t want to get in the business of trying to parse and judge her public statements. And so I think I’ve tried to avoid doing that sitting here. … What matters to me is what did she say to the FBI. That’s obviously first and foremost for us.”
Comey was also asked whether Clinton broke the law: “In connection with her use of the email server? My judgment is that she did not,” Comey said.
As for retroactive classification of emails, Comey did say many emails were retroactively classified. But he also said that some emails were classified at the time — and Clinton and her aides should have been aware of that.
Here’s how Comey put it in his lengthy statement when he announced the completion of the investigation: “Although we did not find clear evidence that Secretary Clinton or her colleagues intended to violate laws governing the handling of classified information, there is evidence that they were extremely careless in their handling of very sensitive, highly classified information.”
Comey said “seven e-mail chains concern matters that were classified at the Top Secret/Special Access Program level when they were sent and received. These chains involved Secretary Clinton both sending e-mails about those matters and receiving e-mails from others about the same matters.”
He added: “There is evidence to support a conclusion that any reasonable person in Secretary Clinton’s position, or in the position of those government employees with whom she was corresponding about these matters, should have known that an unclassified system was no place for that conversation.” He noted that “even if information is not marked ‘classified’ in an e-mail, participants who know or should know that the subject matter is classified are still obligated to protect it.”
In her response to Wallace, Clinton at one point appeared to deflect responsibility to her aides: “I relied on and had every reason to rely on the judgments of the professionals with whom I worked. And so, in retrospect, maybe some people are saying, well, among those 300 people, they made the wrong call.”
Testifying before Congress, Comey said it was possible Clinton was not “technically sophisticated” enough to understand what the classified markings meant. But he said a government official should be attentive to such a marking.
The Washington Post went on to issue Hillary their strongest fail…FOUR PINOCCHIOS!
Four Pinocchios
Whoppers.
As we have seen repeatedly in Clinton’s explanations of the email controversy, she relies on excessively technical and legalistic answers to explain her actions. While Comey did say there was no evidence she lied to the FBI, that is not the same as saying she told the truth to the American public — which was the point of Wallace’s question. Comey has repeatedly not taken a stand on her public statements.
And although Comey did say many emails were retroactively classified, he also said that there were some emails that were already classified that should not have been sent on an unclassified, private server. That’s the uncomfortable truth that Clinton has trouble admitting.
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Marijuana Industry Raises Money For Hickenlooper Campaign
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Stokes’ absence leaves England with Pakistan problem
England players during a practice session on Wednesday.
SOUTHAMPTON: England may have won the series opener against Pakistan but the absence of Ben Stokes leaves them with arguably the bigger selection headache going into Thursday’s second Test at Southampton. Pakistan were much the better side for much of last week’s first Test at Old Trafford and, despite a second-innings collapse, were still favourites to win when they reduced England to 117-5 in pursuit of a target of 277. But a sixth-wicket partnership of 139 between Chris Woakes (84 not out) and Jos Buttler (75) turned the tide as England went 1-0 up in the three-match series on Saturday. Since England won with more than a day to spare in Manchester, it has been announced that star all-rounder Stokes will miss the rest of the series as a result of travelling to New Zealand to be with his ill father.
A quad injury meant that the end of England’s 2-1 series win over the West Indies last month — a campaign that marked international cricket’s return from the coronavirus lockdown — and the first Test against Pakistan saw vice-captain Stokes effectively deployed as a specialist batsman by skipper Joe Root. Stokes, however, still took two important wickets on the third evening against Pakistan.
‘Confidence’: The obvious move for England would be to recall batsman Zak Crawley, who has missed out on the last two matches while an extra bowler has been deployed because of Stokes’ injury problems. Buttler underlined his skill in a run-chase last week but the wicketkeeper, by his own admission, had a poor match with the gloves. England do have the option to recall Ben Foakes, widely regarded as a better keeper, and play Buttler as a specialist batsman. But Root appeared wary of that suggestion when he praised fellow World Cup winner Buttler’s innings by saying: “I think it will provide him with a huge amount of confidence in all aspects of his game and he should take that forward for the rest of the series.” Root himself could do with a big score having managed just one Test hundred in 18 months. England are in the middle of a sequence of six Tests in seven weeks, a gruelling schedule that has seen them adopt a policy of rotating their quicks.
James Anderson, England’s all-time leading Test wicket-taker bristled at talk he was considering retirement after a meagre match haul of 1-97 at his Lancashire home ground last week meant the 38-year-old has taken just six wickets at an expensive average of 41 in three Tests this season. He could now make way for left-armer Sam Curran, who has won all his eight home Tests, or fast bowler Mark Wood.
‘Deal with pressure better’: Pakistan coach Misbahul Haq insisted his side could recover from an agonising loss as they try to avoid a defeat that will condemn them to a first series defeat by England in a decade. “We need to improve 10 to 15 per cent and deal with pressure situations a little better but we shouldn’t be mentally down,” he said, with Pakistan denied the usual vocal support they enjoy in England after Covid-19 turned this campaign into a behind-closed-doors series. Pakistan captain Azhar Ali, criticised for his tactics during Buttler and Woakes’ decisive stand, has made just one fifty in 10 innings since becoming skipper in November. But he denied captaincy was affecting his batting. “When I bat, I’m not thinking about the captaincy, whether or not I’m out of form. “And when I’m captain, I don’t think about my batting at all.” Should Pakistan have concerns about the fitness of their pace trio of Mohammad Abbas, Shaheen Afridi and Naseem Shah, they could bring in another quick such as Sohail Khan. Pakistan played two leg-spinners at Old Trafford, with Shadab Khan backing up Yasir Shah, but they could now deploy a fourth seamer if they feel the Ageas Bowl pitch won’t take as much turn.
England (possible): 1 Rory Burns, 2 Dom Sibley, 3 Zak Crawley, 4 Joe Root (capt), 5 Ollie Pope, 6 Jos Butler (wk), 7 Chris Woakes, 8 Dom Bess, 9 Jofra Archer/Mark Wood, 10 Stuart Broad, 11 James Anderson
Pakistan (possible): 1 Shan Masood, 2 Abid Ali, 3 Azhar Ali (captain), 4 Babar Azam, 5 Asad Shafiq, 6 Mohammad Rizwan (wk), 7 Shadab Khan/Fawad Alam, 8 Yasir Shah, 9 Shaheen Shah Afridi, 10 Mohammad Abbas, 11 Naseem Shah.
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Well pathway
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When someone is diagnosed with dementia, they should be supported to remain as independent as possible, and to continue to enjoy their usual activities and occupations.
It is important to support the person with dementia to make arrangements for the future including future care options. They may wish to prepare for a time when another person may need to help with their affairs.
Dementia wellbeing in the COVID-19 pandemicThis resource is primarily for clinicians working with people with dementia, but can also be used by carers and people with dementia. This document takes the Dementia Well Pathway and sets out the adjustments and amendments needed to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. It highlights key priorities and actions for each step in the pathway.
A Whole Systems Approach to understanding psychological symptoms in delirium and dementiaThis Yorkshire and the Humber Dementia and Older Peooples Mental Health Clinkcal Network event chaired by Dr Rod Kersh provided attendees with an opportunity to hear from local and national innovators and carers to better understand psychological symptoms in delirium and dementia.
Driving with dementia or mild cognitive impairment: Consensus guidelines for cliniciansThese Guidelines are the result of a collaboration between a diverse range of clinicians with involvement of carers. They set out the responsibilities of clinicians to their patients, and provide a framework for thinking about the management of their driving safety.
Dementia: assessment, management and support for people living with dementia and their carersThis NICE guideline covers diagnosing and managing dementia (including Alzheimer’s disease). It aims to improve care by making recommendations on training staff and helping carers to support people living with dementia.
Turning up the volume: unheard voices of people with dementiaThis report published by the Alzheimer’s Society brings together views of more than 3,500 people with dementia, carers and the public on what it is like to live with dementia.
John’s CampaignJohn’s Campaign is about the right of people who care for someone living with dementia to be able to stay with them – and the right of people with dementia to be able to have a family carer stay with them. It applies to all ...
Support at Manchester AirportManhcester airport has improved assistance for people with dementia. Hidden Disabilities at Manchester Airport We are working on ways to identify how we can improve the airport experience for our vulnerable passengers who may not want to share details of their hidden disabilities or use ...
Enabling people with dementia to remain at home: a housing perspectiveThis report published by the Housing Learning and Improvement Network sets out the key role housing providers, and in particular social housing providers, can play in supporting people living with dementia to stay independent in the home of their choice for as long as possible.
Implementation guide and resource pack for dementia careThis guide aims to set out the policy drivers and strategic context for transforming dementia care, and why it is of importance to commissioners, providers and sustainability and transformation partnerships (STPs) in supporting delivery of a number of objectives in the Department of Health’s Prime Minister’s challenge on dementia 2020, published February 2015, which complements the aims of the Five Year Forward View, published in October 2014.
National Audit of Dementia – third reportThe National Audit of Dementia (NAD) (care in general hospitals) measures the performance of general hospitals against criteria relating to care delivery which are known to impact upon people with dementia while in hospital. The third audit collected data between April and November 2016.
Dementia Friendly Housing CharterThis toolkit aims to help professionals in their support of people living with dementia in their homes and facilitate consistency and good practice.
How living with dementia could beThis short animated video highlights how living with dementia could be through the 'well pathway for dementia'. It shows the importance of a holistic partnership approach to supporting the person with dementia, their families and carers within local community settings.
Dementia Atlas: Putting a focus on dementiaThe Dementia Atlas is an interactive map that plots data about dementia care and support, allowing people to compare the quality of dementia care across the country.
Better planning for car ownership and well-being in old ageThis briefing paper published by the Housing Learning and Improvement Network seeks to connect the body of knowledge around the significance of car ownership in achieving well-being for older people to those making decisions that may impact on car ownership among older people.
Fix dementia care – NHS and care homesThis report published by the Alzheimer's Society marks the second phase of a campaign looking at the experiences of people with dementia in a range of health and care settings. It contains the results of a survey of care home managers and the voices of people with dementia, their families and carers.
Dementia rarely travels alone: living with dementia and other conditionsThis report published by the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Dementia examines the scale of difficulty faced by people living with both dementia and other health conditions, and how the health and social care system can provide holistic, person-centred care and support for this growing body of people.
Dementia and comorbidities: Ensuring parity of careThis report published by the International Longevity Centre demonstrates that a failure to prevent, diagnose, and treat depression, diabetes and urinary tract infections in people with dementia could be costing the UK’s health and social care system up to nearly £1 billion per year.
DiADeM (Diagnosis of Advanced Dementia Mandate in Care Homes)This protocol developed by the Yorkshire and Humber Dementia Strategic Clinical Network aims to support GPs to diagnose dementia for people living with advanced dementia in a care home setting.
Immediate post diagnosis support guidanceThis guidance document, published by the London Strategic Clinical Networks, has been created for professionals to support people with dementia and their carers immediately following diagnosis.
Dementia advisers surveyThis report published by Ipsos MORI presents the findings of a survey into the provision of dementia adviser services throughout England.
Prime Minister’s Challenge on Dementia 2020 Implementation PlanThis implementation plan outlines how the 50 commitments set out in the Prime Minister’s challenge on dementia 2020 will be met, ensuring that England becomes the world-leader in dementia care, research and awareness by 2020.
The dementia profileThe dementia profile developed by the Dementia Intelligence Network collects new and existing data on dementia at both Clinical Commissioning Group and local authority level. This will assist the local planning of services and support areas to make sustainable improvements from an easily accessible online platform.
Active Minds – dementia activity resourcesActive Minds produce a suite of activity products to assist people with dementia in leading active, engaging and fulfilling lives - enjoying activities that are meaningful to them.
The Daily SparkleThe Daily Sparkle is a professionally written daily and weekly reminiscence and activity tool supported by the UK's leading care organisations such as the NHS, AgeUK and DementiaUK.
Joint declaration on post-diagnostic dementia care and supportThis joint declaration signed by signatories across government, health, social care and the third sector sets out a shared commitment to deliver good quality post-diagnostic dementia care.
Dementia core skills education and training frameworkThis framework published by Skills for Health, Health Education England and Skills for Care sets out the essential skills and knowledge necessary for all staff involved in dementia care.
Dementia and homecare: driving quality and innovationThis report published by the United Kingdom Homecare Association demonstrates how skilled homecare can play a pivotal role in enabling people with dementia to live well in their preferred familiar environment. Through a series of innovative practice examples, the report shows why good homecare should ...
Making your home dementia friendlyThis booklet published by the Alzheimer's Society aims to help people with dementia to live well in their own home. It describes ways to create or adapt the home environment so that it remains a safe and familiar place. This can help make daily living activities easier and keep people in touch with the things they enjoy doing.
Tailored resource for carers and care providers on supporting people to live well with dementiaThis resource published by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) highlights the key messages from 10 quality statements which form the quality standard for supporting people to live well with dementia and shows what they mean for carers and care providers.
On the journey to becoming a dementia friendly organisationThis paper shares the lessons that have been learned through the Joseph Rowntree Foundation’s Dementia without Walls programme which started in June 2012 with a vision of making the UK a better place for people with dementia.
Developing a national user movement of people with dementiaThis report published by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation explores the learning from the Dementia Engagement and Empowerment Project (DEEP), a national network that engages and empowers people with dementia to influence the services and policies that affect them.
Accessible Information StandardThe Accessible Information Standard tells organisations how they should ensure that disabled patients receive information in formats that they can understand and they receive appropriate support to help them to communicate.
A proposal for a UK dementia eye care pathwayThis article published in the journal Optometry in Practice introduces a proposal for a UK dementia eye care pathway and outlines the areas that should be covered within a pathway.
Dementia DiariesDementia Diaries is a national project that brings together people’s diverse experiences of living with dementia as a series of audio diaries.
Dementia and People with Intellectual Disabilities: Guidance on their Assessment, Diagnosis, Interventions and SupportThis guidance published by the British Psychological Society aims to promote effective and timely assessment, diagnosis, interventions and support to people with intellectual disabilities who develop dementia.
Creating a dementia friendly workplace: A practical guide for employersThis guide published by the Alzheimer's Society is designed to help employers provide support for staff members with dementia. It may also be a useful resource for people living with, or affested by, dementia in the workplace.
The Sound Doctor: Getting the best out of life with dementiaA series of films providing information to families living with dementia through the entertaining medium of TV/Film.
Duty of Candour: Information for all providersThis document published by the Care Quality Commission sets out how meeting the Duty of Candour regulation will be central to both registration and inspection for NHS bodies and all other care providers regulated by the CQC.
Prime Minister’s challenge on dementia 2020The Prime Minister recently launched the government’s five year vision for the future of dementia care, support and research, which follows on from the existing Prime Minister’s Challenge on Dementia, launched in March 2012.
No Secrets: guidance on protecting vulnerable adults in careThis guidance document published by the Department of Health sets out a code of practice for the protection of vulnerable adults in care.
Collaborative Care and Support Planning: an introductionThis animation, commissioned by the Royal College of General Practitioners, sets out the collaborative care and support planning process in a short, easy to understand way.
Pain in People with Dementia: A Silent TragedyThis report, published by Napp Pharmaceuticals, draws on a survey of interviews with experts, major providers of care, and on desk research. It quantifies the problem and sets out the issues in recognising, assessing and managing pain in people with dementia.
10 Top Tips for supporting carers of people living with cancerThis guidance produced by Macmillan Cancer Support offers some top tips for primary care practitoners to support carers of people living with cancer.
Wearing glasses with dementia factsheetThis factsheet is about the issues people with dementia who need to wear glasses may face. It will be useful for people with dementia, their families, carers and professionals.
Eye examinations for people with dementia factsheetThis factsheet provides information on eye examinations for people with dementia. It will be useful for people with dementia, their families, carers and professionals.
Dementia Revealed: What primary care needs to knowThis toolkit written by Dr Elizabeth Barrett is intended as an educational resource for use by GPs and practice nurses to expand their knowledge and confidence.
Cracks in the pathwayThis report presents the findings of a Care Quality Commission review of the care people living with dementia receive as they moved between care homes and acute hospitals.
Five Year Forward ViewThe Five Year Forward View published by NHS England sets out why the NHS needs to change and various models of care which could be provided in the future to deliver transformed care for patients.
State of Care 2013/14This report published by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) reveals wide variation in the quality and safety of care for conditions such as dementia in England.
Improving the delivery of adult diabetes care through integrationThis report published by Diabetes UK explains how diabetes care can be improved to achieve better outcomes for people with diabetes. The challenge for commissioners and healthcare providers locally is to make the system work to support that.
National Diabetes AuditThe National Diabetes Audit (NDA) is a major national clinical audit, which measures the effectiveness of diabetes healthcare against NICE Clinical Guidelines and NICE Quality Standards, in England and Wales.
A vision of care fit for the twenty-first centuryThis report published by the Commission on Residential Care offers a vision of housing with care fit for the twenty-first century, not bound by existing definitions but based on the outcomes that people want and value.
Diabetes sample service specificationThe service specification, published by NHS England, outlines the provision of high quality care for all those with diabetes. It describes all the services needed to provide a complete care pathway for people with diabetes.
Building on the National Dementia Strategy: Change, progress and prioritiesThis report published by the All Party Parliamentary Party Group on Dementia (APPG) calls for a new long term strategy for dementia to be a worthy successor to the National Dementia Strategy for Dementia in England and the Prime Minister's challenge on dementia.
Telehealth and Telecare AwareThis online information portal provides a news and information service for people interested in telecare and telehealth.
Better care for older peopleThis online resource published by the General Medical Council aims to help doctors challenge the stereotypes associated with older people and tackle the most common concerns older people have about their care.
Continence Product AdvisorThe Continence Product Advisor is a website providing evidence-based guidance on how to select appropriate products for managing incontinence and use them effectively.
Dementia-friendly technology charterThe Dementia-friendly technology charter gives people with dementia and their carers information on how to access technology. It also provides guidance to health, housing and social care professionals on how to make technology work for people based on their individual needs.
Improving cancer patient experience: A top tips guideThis guide published by Macmillan Cancer Support provides top tips to support professionals make service improvements in response to the National Cancer Survey and deliver improved patient experience.
Cancer Delivery Support ToolThe Cancer Delivery Support Tool developed by Macmillan Cancer Support is an electronic support tool to assist GPs and Health Professionals to make an early diagnosis of five types of cancer: Oesophageal, Pancreatic, Ovarian, Colorectal and Lung.
Improving the quality of cancer care in primary careThis toolkit developed by Macmillan Cancer Support aims to support the primary care professionals to develop initiatives and programmes which have a positive impact on the care of people daiagnosed with cancer, their families and carers.
Cancer information factsheetsThese factsheets published by Macmillan Cancer Support cover a variety of topics relating to cancer, such as chemotherapy drugs, less common cancer types and practical issues for cancer care professionals.
Making your home a better place to live with dementiaThis briefing published by Care and Repair England outlines how people might adapt their homes to help better manage the symptoms associatted with dementia.
Duty to Care? Supporting and involving unpaid carers of people at the end of lifeThis resource covers the three plenary discussion sessions at the ‘Duty to Care?' conference held in 2013 facilitated by the National Council for Palliative Care. Three detailed scenarios were debated to help identify and explore the practical issues involved in being or supporting a carer.
Driving and dementiaThis Alzheimer's Society factsheet explains the legal situation around driving and dementia, and gives some tips on stopping driving.
Initial review following diagnosisThis guidance outlines the steps that a practitioner should consider during an initial review with a patient that has received a formal diagnosis of dementia.
AT DementiaAT Dementia is web-based information resource on assistive technologies (including telecare) for people with dementia.
Choosing your hospitalMost patients can choose which hospital they are seen in according to what matters most to them, whether it's location, waiting times, reputation, clinical performance, visiting policies, parking facilities or other patients' comments.
Diabetes care planning reviewPractitioners should provide an annual care planning review to all people with diabetes to ensure that each patient gets the right support for managing their diabetes. This short film produced by Diabetes UK aims to help patients to understand what care planning is, and how they can get more involved in their diabetes care.
The dementia guideThis guide produced by the Alzheimer's Society is for anyone who has recently been told they have dementia.
Life After Death: Six steps to improve support in bereavementThis briefing paper published by the National Council for Palliative Care identifies six steps to address bereavement as a major public policy issue.
10 key steps to improving timely diagnosis: A resource pack for Commissioners and General PracticesThis resource pack sets out key steps for Commissioners, and key steps for General Practices to improve the diagnosis of dementia, and the diagnosis pathway.
The Care Bill: factsheetsThese factsheets will help practitioners to better support patients and carers to get the care and support they need, following the changes introduced by the Care Bill, published in 2013.
Putting dementia on the mapPutting dementia on the map published by the Department of Health draws on data and information about dementia health and care, dementia friendly communities and research.
Dementia: A state of the nation report on dementia care and support in EnglandThis report, published by the Department of Health, sets out what is known about dementia care, support and research. It highlights where improvements are being made and where improvements are needed.
Virtual Hospital modelling toolThe Virtual Hospital modelling tool, developed by the Dementia Services Development Centre, aims to show good design can help to make an acute hospital setting dementia-friendly.
Thinking Ahead: a planning guide for familiesThis guidance, published by the Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities, provides a clear framework to help the families of people with learning disabilities plan for the future and address the concerns they have.
Diabetes care pathwayThis NICE care pathway defines clinical best practice for diabetes care. It covers managing type 1 and type 2 diabetes.
Peer support networks and dementia advisers: evaluationThis report, published by the Department of Health, provides the findings of the Healthbridge evaluation into the role that dementia advisers and peer support networks can provide in post diagnostic support for people with dementia and their carers.
ICD deactivation at the end of life: Principles and practiceDesigned for any health professionals involved in caring for patients with an Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator (ICD), this document discusses issues relating to ICDs in the management of advanced heart disease.
Diabetes Risk ScoreThe Diabetes Risk Score is an assessment tool which aims to identify individuals with impaired glucose regulation (IGR) and is designed to predict an individual’s risk of developing Type 2 diabetes within the next ten years. It was developed by University of Leicester and University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust in collaboration with Diabetes UK.
Journey of Caring: An analysis of long-term care for dementiaThis report published by Alzheimer’s Disease International highlights the importance of helping people with dementia to remain independent and living in their own homes as part of the local community for as long as possible.
The Triangle of Care – carers included: A guide to best practice for dementia careThe Triangle of Care is a model for dementia care that supports a partnership approach between the person with dementia, the staff member and carer. It is designed to ensure that carers are appropriately included and involved in the care of people with dementia, particularly in hospital settings.
Building dementia-friendly communities: A priority for everyoneThis report, published by the Alzheimer's Society, explores evidence from people with dementia about their experiences of living in their community and the ten key things they would like to see in a dementia-friendly community.
Dementia adviser service: evaluationThis report published by the Alzheimer's Society presents the findings of an evaluation of the Pathfinder Dementia Adviser services from the perspective of service users.
Assistive technology – devices to help with everyday livingThis factsheet published by the Alzheimer's Society explores technological developments that can help make life easier for people with dementia and their carers in certain situations.
National Audit of Dementia in General HospitalsThe second report of the National Audit of Dementia in General Hospitals identifies continuing problems in the quality of care received by people with dementia in hospitals in England and Wales.
Cataracts and dementia factsheetThe information in this factsheet will help people in with both dementia and sight loss and how to help someone with dementia cope with surgery.
Guidance for Learning Disability Partnership BoardsThis booklet offers guidance to Learning Disability Partnership Boards to help them ensure that carers of people with learning disabilities, and carers with learning disabilities are supported and involved in local service developments which affect their lives, and the lives of the people they care for.
NHS Continuing Healthcare e-learning toolThis e-learning tool developed by NHS England and the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services will support all practitioners to improve assessment and decision making around NHS Continuing Healthcare.
Dementia: Finding housing solutionsThis report, published by the National Housing Federation, highlights how good housing and related services can impact positively on the lives of people with dementia, from delaying more intensive forms of care to preventing admission and readmission to hospital.
CMG48: Support for commissioning of dementia careThis guidance produced by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) summarises the key commissioning issues and the resource impact that will arise from implementing improvements in the quality of care for people with dementia, in line with the statements and measures that comprise the NICE quality standards for dementia.
QS30: Supporting people to live well with dementiaThis quality standard, published by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), covers the care and support of people with dementia.
Cardiovascular Disease Outcomes StrategyThis outcomes strategy published by the Department of Health identifies ten key actions for local authority and NHS commissioners and providers to deliver improvements in patient outcomes.
Making a Difference in Dementia: Nursing StrategyThis nursing vision and strategy for dementia care, published by the Department of Health, makes clear that every nurse can make a difference to the care of people with dementia.
Best practice for commissioning diabetes servicesThis guidance published by Diabetes UK aims to help commissioners understand the nature of integrated diabetes care, why it is so important and to provide a signpost to other documents that will be of help in the commissioning process.
Low expectations: attitudes on choice, care and community for people with dementia in care homesThis report published by the Alzheimer’s Society stresses the need to lift expectations and to strengthen existing minimum standards to boost quality of life for people with dementia in care homes.
Support and care for people living with dementia from minority communitiesThis report outlines recommendations to improve support and care for people with dementia from minority communities in the North East.
Dementia FriendsDementia Friends is an Alzheimer’s Society initiative that aims to give a million people a better understanding of dementia by 2015.
Handy guide to selecting a care homeThis guide published by the Alzheimer’s Society is designed to be taken into care homes by people with dementia and their families and provides an independent and objective guide to what makes good quality care.
Implementing local diabetes networksImplementing Local Diabetes Networks, published by Diabetes UK, is for commissioners to explain the importance and composition of a local diabetes network.
Supporting people with dementia at homeThis training resource published by the Alzheimer’s Society aims to help homecare workers provide excellent person centred support for people with dementia who are living at home.
Hospital 2 Home resource packThis resource is designed to make it easier for health and social care professionals involved in hospital discharge to support older patients in returning home safely after a hospital stay and reduce the risk of readmission to hospital.
Find me good careThis website developed by the Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) is designed to help people find the right care and support to suit their needs and lifestyle, whether at a time of crisis or as they plan for the future.
The Right Care: creating dementia friendly hospitalsThe Right Care is a call to action to transform the acute hospital experience for people with dementia and their carers.
Taking medication ‘just like that’This campaign led by the British Heart Foundation (BHF) aimed to remind people how vital heart medicines and raise awareness that millions of people could be putting their lives in danger by not taking their medicines as prescribed.
Ten tips for communicating with a person with dementiaThese top tips produced by the Family Caregiver Alliance will help practitioners and those caring for a person with dementia to improve communication skills and ability to handle the difficult behaviour.
The Right Prescription: resource packThis resource pack will support pharmacists, who play a crucial role in medicines optimisation, to have critical conversations about the prescription of antipsychotics in dementia and reduce inappropriate prescribing.
National dementia and antipsychotic prescribing auditThe National dementia and antipsychotic prescribing audit aims to gather information from primary care to establish a national picture of prescribing antipsychotic medication in people with dementia.
Unlocking Diagnosis: The key to improving the lives of people with dementiaThis report published by the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Dementia (APPG) explores the barriers to dementia diagnosis in the UK. It makes recommendations to improve diagnosis rates and provide better post diagnosis support for people with dementia.
New models of care for dementiaThis report proposes a new understanding of the dementia journey and a revised model of care for dementia, aimed at improving experiences and outcomes, and informing service redesign and commissioning.
Moving into a care home: advice for lesbian, gay and bisexual peopleThis factsheet published by the Alzheimers Society provides some advice for lesbian, gay and bisexual people on choosing a suitable care home and suggests things to think about when the person moves in.
Drugs used to relieve behavioural and psychological symptoms in dementiaThis factsheet produced by the Alzheimer’s Society explores the different types of drugs that can be used to treat these symptoms if non-pharmalogical treatments have not worked.
Personalisation and dementia: a practitioner’s guide to self-directed support for people living with dementiaThis guide to personalisation and dementia has been written for, and with input from, people living with dementia, their families and friends, and the practitioners who support them.
Case for change – Communities for people living with dementiaThis document explains the evidence that has been used in designing the service to support people with dementia, whether living at home or in care homes, as well as dementia-specific elements of other Communities.
An evaluation of dementia support worker rolesThis report presents an evaluation of existing models of community-based support for people with dementia, their families and carers.
Caring, compassionate, skilled – transforming the dementia workforceThis guidance will support commissioners to better understand workforce planning and development issues that may impact staff working with people with dementia and their carers and families.
Improving the care of people with dementia in general hospitalsDignity in dementia; improving care in general hospital settings, a Royal College of Nursing led project, has launched tools to improve the care of people with dementia in general hospitals.
Request for proposal: action plan to improve care for people with dementia in hospitalThis is a request for a proposal to improve care for people with dementia in hospital.
Service specification for dementia: better care at home, and in care homesThis specification has been designed to support primary care in the assessment and management of people with problematic symptoms of dementia or other complex presentations living at home, in a care home or other residential setting.
Service specification for dementia: mental health liaison service for general and community hospitalsThis specification has been designed to assist commissioners in the delivery of a service to support general and community hospitals to deliver better care to people with dementia.
Template action plan to improve care for people with dementia in the communityThis is a template action plan for use by local authorities and commissioning consortia working together under the auspices of Health and Well-being Boards to improve care for those people with dementia who live in their own homes or in some other residential setting.
Optimising treatment and care for behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementiaThis best practice guide has been developed in consultation with an advisory group of leading clinicians specialising in dementia.
Case for change – mental health liaison service for dementia care in hospitalsThis document explains the evidence that has been used to identify eligible patients and for the design of mental health liaison services in general and community hospitals and its core components.
Reducing the use of antipsychotic drugsThis leaflet is for people with dementia and their carers who want to know more about behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia and how they can be prevented and treated.
The £20 Billion Question – An inquiry into improving lives through cost-effective dementia servicesThis report published by the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Dementia (APPG) explores the the evidence for cost effective models of dementia care. It makes recommendations to focus on early intervention and prevention to reduce early entry to residential care and reduce unnecessary hospital admissions.
Understanding out of hospital dementia careThis report, published by Healthcare at Home, explores home-based models of care that will keep people with dementia out of hospital.
Support, Stay, Save: care and support of people with dementia in their own homesThis report provides evidence from over 2,000 carers, people with dementia and home care workers on the aspirations, experiences and outcomes of providing dementia care in the community in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Echocardiography guidelines for valve quantificationThis poster contains guidelines for echocardiography valve quantification developed by the Education Committee of the British Society of Echocardiography.
Diabetes in adults quality standardThis NICE quality standard defines clinical best practice for diabetes care. It provides specific, concise quality statements, measures and audience descriptors to provide patients and the public, health and social care professionals, commissioners and service providers with definitions of high-quality care.
NICE Clinical guideline CG42 Dementia: supporting people with dementia and their carers in health and social careThis guideline, published by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE), makes specific recommendations on Alzheimer's disease, dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), fronto temporal dementia, vascular dementia and mixed dementias, as well as recommendations that apply to all types of dementia.
Befriending works: building resilience in local communitiesThis report published by the Mentoring and Befriending Foundation provides an overview of how befriending can contribute to improving the health and well-being outcomes of vulnerable people at risk of social isolation or exclusion from mainstream society.
What about me? Remembering the needs of carersThis short leaflet published by Marie Curie Cancer Care is a good starting point for anyone working in health, social care or other setting who is likely to come into contact with people approaching the end of life and their carers.
Diabetes and your heartThis booklet is for people who have diabetes, and for their families and friends. It may also be useful if you don’t have diabetes but you have been told you may develop it in the future.
This is me'This is me' is a leaflet produced by the Alzheimer's Society to help hospital staff better understand the needs of people with dementia.
Dementia: ethical issuesThis report published by the Nuffield Council on Bioethics presents an ethical framework to help practitioners who face dilemmas in connection with the everyday care of someone with dementia.
Counting the cost: caring for people with dementia on hospital wardsThis report published by the Alzheimer's Society reveals unacceptable variations in the quality of care for people with dementia in hospital and puts forward recommendations to improve dementia care, shorten the length of stay and reduce costs.
Commissioning domiciliary care for people with dementia and their carersThe purpose of this paper is to assist commissioners in ensuring that homecare for people with dementia is appropriate to their needs and/or the needs of their carers.
Supporting Family Carers of People with Learning DisabilitiesThis resource pack produced by the Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities and the Sharing Caring Project at Sheffield Mencap supports practitioners to develop and provide the best information and support to family carers of people with learning disabilities.
Dementia and People with Learning DisabilitiesThis document jointly published by the Royal College of Psychiatrists and the British Psychological Society provides guidance on the assessment, diagnosis, treatment and support of people with learning disabilities who develop dementia.
Dementia patient decision aidThis decision aid is intended to assist health professionals considering prescribing acetylcholinesterase inhibitor medication (donepezil, galantamine or rivastigmine) for patients to improve symptoms of dementia and reduce the rate of decline in mental function.
Prepared to care – Challenging the dementia skills gapThis report published by the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Dementia (APPG) explores the scale of the challenge in training the caring professions in dementia, and how it may be met.
See me, not just the dementiaThis report looks at the experiences of people with dementia living in care homes in England, with a particular focus on whether their care offers dignity and respect.
Always a last resort: Inquiry into the prescription of antipsychotic drugs to people with dementia living in care homesThis report published by the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Dementia (APPG) examines the problem of the over prescription of antipsychotic drugs to people with dementia living in care homes and proposes workables solutions.
Activity Memory Group BramhallThe Activity Memory Group in Bramhall offers a friendly activity group with a light lunch and entertainment. The group meets on a Tuesday 12.30-2.30pm at Bramhall United Reformed Church in Bramhall.Bramhall United Reformed Church, Robbins Lane, Bramhall, Stockport, SK7 2PE0161 485 5826
The Kitchen – dementia drop in on MondaysThe Kitchen NEW Dementia Drop In The Kitchen: weekly drop in on Monday 11am-1pm – Chestergate The Kitchen runs a weekly dementia drop in from 11:00am until 13:00pm on Mondays supported by volunteers, AGEUK Stockport, The Wellbeing Network and Signpost Stockport for Carers. The drop in is for ...SK1 1LZ, Graylaw House, Chestergate, Stockport Town Centre0161 804 44 00hello@pureinnovations.co.ukhttps://www.pureinnovations.co.uk/what-we-offer/our-cafes/the-kitchen/
Woodbank Dementia Friendly Walking GroupWe are a friendly group who have a light walk around the park followed by a brew in Vernon Cafe. We meet on a Tuessday 1.30 at Vernon Park Cafe on Turncroft Lane in Offerton. This group is run in conjunction with Boroughcare. For further ...Vernon Park Cafe, Turncroft Lane, Offerton, Stockport, SK1 4AR
Admiral Nurse Dementia HelplineThe Admiral Nurse Dementia Helpline is for anyone with a question or concern about dementia. From looking out for the first symptoms of Alzheimer’s, to understanding the challenges of living with someone with vascular dementia, Admiral Nurses have the knowledge and experience to understand the situation and suggest answers that might be hard to find elsewhere.2nd Floor, Resource for London, 356 Holloway Road, London, N7 6PA0845 257 9406direct@dementiauk.orghttps://www.dementiauk.org/information-support/admiral-nursing-direct/
Dementia UKDementia UK is a national charity, committed to improving quality of life for all people affected by dementia. The charity provides Admiral Nurses, specialist dementia nurses who provide practical and emotional support to family carers of people with dementia.2nd Floor, Resource for London, 356 Holloway Road, London, N7 6PA020 7697 4160info@dementiauk.orghttps://www.dementiauk.org
Socially yours Allotment GroupSocially yours Allotment Group is run at Heathside Park Allotments in Cheadle. The allotment is open Tuesday, Friday and Sunday. It is accessible to everyone of all abilities to come and try their hand at growing plants and crops. Heathside Park Road, Cheadle Heath, Stockport, SK3 0RB0161 480 4893 or 0161 477 8355info@qualitycarecheadle.co.ukhttps://allotmentsstockport.org/heathside-park/
Walking for WellnessWould you like to go walking with others? Walking for Wellness offers the opportunity to be supported in joining other people with dementia who enjoy walking and having " time out"0161 256 3024walking04wellness@gmail.comwalkingforwellness405210401.wordpress.com
The Marple Drop InCome and join us at Marple Cricket Club every Friday 11.30am-1.30pm. The group is run by Chris Armitage who is a member of EDUCATE. For further enquires please contact 0161 477 6999.Marple Cricket Club, Bowden Lane, Marple, SK6 6LJ0161 477 6999
Stepping Hill Dementia CafeUsing the hospital as an inpatient or outpatient? Living with a diagnosis of dementia? Stepping Hill Dementia Cafe is located on the Main hosptal corridor, just over on the right from main reception. Call in for a quick chat away from the ward with your ...
Dementia AdventureDementia Adventure is a registered charity dedicated to supporting people with dementia to get outdoors, connect with nature, themselves and their community, and retain a sense of adventure in their lives.Unit 11, Old Park Farm, Main Road, Ford End, Essex, CM3 1LN01245 237548info@dementiaadventure.co.uk http://www.dementiaadventure.co.uk/
Ladder to the MoonLadder to the Moon provides workforce and service development that enables health and care organisations to develop active, creative, vibrant care services. It uses approaches that incorporate creativity and the arts, and involve staff, older people living with dementia and other long-term conditions, and the wider community.Studio 522, Highgate Studios, 53-79 Highgate Road, London, NW5 1TL0203 784 9649info@laddertothemoon.co.ukhttp://www.laddertothemoon.co.uk
Health Education EnglandHealth Education England (HEE) works across England to deliver high quality education and training for a better health and healthcare workforce.1st Floor, Blenheim House, Duncombe Street, Leeds, LS1 4PLhee.enquiries@nhs.nethttps://hee.nhs.uk/
HealthwatchHealthwatch England is the national consumer champion in health and care. We have significant statutory powers to ensure the voice of the consumer is strengthened and heard by those who commission, deliver and regulate health and care services.Skipton House, 80 London Road, London, SE1 6LH03000 683 000enquiries@healthwatch.co.ukhttp://www.healthwatch.co.uk
The ExtraCare Charitable TrustThe ExtraCare Charitable Trust is a not for profit developer and operator of ExtraCare Villages and Housing schemes which has retirement villages and housing schemes across the Midlands and North. ExtraCare's award-winning Enriched Opportunities Programme® (EOP) supports residents with dementia and dementia-related conditions.7 Harry Weston Road, Binley Business Park, Coventry, CV3 2SN024 7650 6011betterlives@extracare.org.ukhttp://www.extracare.org.uk
Arts 4 DementiaArts 4 Dementia helps develop activities at arts venues to re-energise and inspire people in the early stages of dementia and their carers. The Music Base, King's Place, 90 York Way, London, N1 9AG020 7520 1492info@arts4dementia.org.ukhttps://www.arts4dementia.org.uk/
All-Party Parliamentary Group on Dementia (APPG)The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Dementia (APPG) is a cross party group made up of MPs and Peers with an interest in dementia.House of Commons, London, SW1A 0AAappg@alzheimers.org.ukhttp://www.alzheimers.org.uk/appg
Sporting Memories NetworkThe Sporting Memories Network, also known as Replay, is a national charity which promotes the use of sporting memories to improve the wellbeing of older people and to tackle dementia, depression and social isolation.Orchard House, Long Street, Topcliffe. North Yorkshire, YO7 3RLadmin@sportingmemoriesnetwork.comhttp://sportingmemoriesnetwork.com
Dementia Action AllianceThe Dementia Action Alliance brings together organisations across England committed to transforming the lives of people with dementia and their carers.Devon House, 58 St Katharine's Way, London, E1W 1LBhttp://www.dementiaaction.org.uk
Faculty for the Psychology of Older PeopleThe Faculty for the Psychology of Older People (FPoP), formely known as PSIGE, is part of the British Psychological Society's Division of Clinical Psychology. It works to encourage the exchange of information, ideas and expertise about psychological approaches with older people.St Andrews House, 48 Princess Road East, Leicester, LE1 7DR0116 252 9515Reinhard.Guss@kmpt.nhs.ukhttp://www.psige.org/info/dementia+workstream
British Institute of Learning DisabilitiesBritish Institute of Learning Disabilities (BILD) wants people with learning disabilities to be valued equally, participate fully in their communities and be treated with dignity and respect.Birmingham Research Park, 97 Vincent Drive, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2SQ0121 415 6960enquiries@bild.org.ukhttp://www.bild.org.uk/
British Heart FoundationThe British Heart Foundation is a UK charity leading the fight against coronary heart disease funding pioneering research to transform the lives of people living with heart and circulatory conditions.Greater London House, 180 Hampstead Road, London, NW1 7AW020 7554 0000http://www.bhf.org.uk/
Diabetes UKDiabetes UK is a leading charity that cares for, connects with and campaigns on behalf of every person affected by or at risk of diabetes.Macleod House, 10 Parkway, London, NW1 7AA0345 123 2399info@diabetes.org.ukhttp://www.diabetes.org.uk/
Self Management UKSelf Management UK provide support and advice for people living with a long term health condition, such as asthma, diabetes, heart disease, COPD, arthritis and chronic pain.32-36 Loman Street, London SE1, United Kingdom03333 445 840hello@selfmanagementuk.orghttp://selfmanagementuk.org/
Dementia Services Development CentreThe Dementia Services Development Centre is an international centre of knowledge and expertise dedicated to improving the lives of people with dementia.Iris Murdoch Building, University of Stirling, Stirling, FK9 4LA, Scotland01786 467740http://www.dementia.stir.ac.uk
Disabled Living FoundationThe Disabled Living Foundation (DLF) is a national charity providing impartial advice, information and training on independent living.Landmark House, Hammersmith Bridge Road, London, W6 9EJ0300 999 0004info@dlf.org.ukhttp://www.dlf.org.uk/
Employers for CarersEmployers for Carers provides practical, ‘hands-on’, help to employers to support carers in their workforce.20 Great Dover Street, London, SE1 4LX020 7378 4956employers@carersuk.orghttp://www.employersforcarers.org/
Bladder and Bowel CommunityThe Bladder and Bowel Community is the UK wide charity for people with bladder and bowel control problems. It provides information and support services, including a confidential helpline, for anyone affected by these conditions as well as their families, carers and healthcare professionals. SATRA Innovation Park, Rockingham Road, Kettering, Northants, NN16 9JH0845 345 0165info@bladderandbowelfoundation.orghttp://www.bladderandbowelfoundation.org/
Foundation for People with Learning DisabilitiesThe Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities influences government and local authority policies and services so that they better meet the needs of people with learning disabilities, their families and carers.1st Floor, Colechurch House, 1 London Bridge Walk, London, SE1 2SX020 7803 1100http://learningdisabilities.org.uk/
The National Valuing Families ForumThe National Valuing Families Forum brings together a network of regional family carer organisations to consult and feed into government policy and legislation affecting those with learning disabilities and their families.32-36 Loman Street, London, SE1 0EHrhannan@carers.orghttp://professionals.carers.org/health/the-national-valuing-families-forum,7028,PR.html
Marie Curie Cancer CareMarie Curie Cancer Care is a UK charity dedicated to the care of people with terminal illnesses.89 Albert Embankment, London, SE1 7TP0800 716 146supporter.relations@mariecurie.org.ukhttp://www.mariecurie.org.uk
Macmillan Cancer SupportMacmillan Cancer Support is a national charitable organisation that provides practical, medical and financial support and push for better cancer care.Macmillan Cancer Support, 89 Albert Embankment, London, SE1 7UQ0808 808 0000http://www.macmillan.org.uk
Foundation for Assistive TechnologyThe Foundation for Assistive Technology aims to develop a thriving market in equipment that promotes independent living and meets the real needs of disabled and older people. 302 Tower Bridge Business Centre, 46-48 East Smithfield, London, E1W 1AW0300 330 1430 http://www.fastuk.org/
Assist UKAssist UK leads a UK wide network of locally-situated Disabled Living Centres. Most centres include a permanent exhibition of products and equipment that provide people with opportunities to see and try products and equipment to support them to live independently.Redbank House, 4 St Chad's Street, Manchester, M8 8QA0161 850 9757general.info@assist-uk.orghttp://assist-uk.org/
Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA)The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) maintain registers of drivers and vehicles in Great Britain. It is important that practitioners encourage their patients with dementia to inform the DVLA of their diagnosis.DVLA, Swansea, SA99 1TU0300 790 6806eftd@dvla.gsi.gov.ukhttps://www.gov.uk/dvla-medical-enquiries
Parkinson’s UKParkinsonism is a feature associated with some dementias, particularly Parkinson's dementia and dementia with Lewy bodies. Parkinson's UK offers support for patients and carers, including excellent advice on coping with daily activities.215 Vauxhall Bridge Road, London, SW1V 1EJ0808 800 0303hello@parkinsons.org.ukhttp://www.parkinsons.org.uk
Alzheimer’s SocietyAlzheimer's Society is a membership organisation, which works to improve the quality of life of people affected by dementia in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.Devon House, 58 St Katharine's Way, London, E1W 1LB020 7423 3500enquiries@alzheimers.org.ukhttp://www.alzheimers.org.uk/
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Home > SOCIAL_SCIENCES > Iuridica > Vol. 89
Acta Universitatis Lodziensis. Folia Iuridica
Ademia: Agamben and the Idea of the People
Gian Giacomo Fusco, University of Kent; Uczelnia ŁazarskiegoFollow
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6977-2832 Fusco Gian Giacomo
In the volume Stasis. Civil War as a Political Paradigm, the Italian philosopher Giorgio Agamben advances the thesis that ademia – the absence of a people (a-demos) – is a constitutive element of the modern state. When confronted with the fact that modern political and juridical thought elevated the people to the role of the sole chief constituent agent and the ultimate source of the legitimacy of constituted orders, this thesis turns out to be rather problematic. In this work, I will explore Agamben’s notion of ademia, retracing the main lines of its theoretical development and reconsidering it in relation to different interpretations of the idea of the people. Most notably, I will demonstrate how Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Carl Schmitt in challenging the conundrums that the idea of the people inevitably entails ended up in revealing the ultimate absence of the people in the political space of the constituted order of the state. In doing so, I will try to show how Agamben’s notion of ademia is helpful is grasping some of the main paradoxes and conundrums underpinning the meaning and the uses of the idea of the people in legal and political thought.
Agamben, Ademia, People, Multitude, Rousseau, Schmitt
Agamben, Giorgio. 1998. Homo Sacer: Sovereign Power and Bare Life. Translated by Daniel Heller-Roazen. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.
Agamben, Giorgio. 2000. Means without End: Notes on Politics. Translated by Cesare Casarino, Vincenzo Binetti. Minneapolis–London: University of Minnesota Press.
Agamben, Giorgio. 2005. The Time That Remains: A Commentary on the Letter to the Romans. Translated by Patricia Dailey. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2005.
Agamben, Giorgio. 2015. Stasis. Civil War as a Political Paradigm. Translated by Nicolas Heron. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
Althusser, Louis. 2007. “Rousseau: The Social Contract”. In Politics and History. 128–129. Translated by Ben Brewster. London: Verso.
Badiou, Alain. 2016. “Twenty-Four Notes on the Uses of the Word ‘People’”. In What Is a People? 21–31. Edited by Alain Badiou, Pierre Bourdieu, Judith Butler, Georges Didi-Huberman, Sadri Khiari, Jacques Rancière. New York: Columbia University Press.
Canivez, Patrice. 2004. “Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s Concept of People”. Philosophy & Social Criticism 30(4): 393–412.
Cassin, Barbara. 2014. Dictionary of Untranslatables. A Philosophical Lexicon. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Durantaye de la, Leland. 2009. Giorgio Agamben: A Critical Introduction. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.
Falk, Francesca. 2011. Eine gestische Geschichte der Grenzen: wie der Liberalismus an der Grenze an seine Grenze kommt. Munich: Fink.
Foucault, Michel. 2007. Security, Territory, Population. Lectures at the Collège de France 1997–1978. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
Hardt, Michael. Antonio Negri. 2004. Multitude: War and Democracy in the Age of Empire. New York: Penguin.
Hobbes, Thomas. 1983. De Cive. Latin Version. Edited by Howard Warrender. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
Jellinek, Georg. 1914. Allgemeine Staatslehre. Berlin: Häring
Laclau, Ernesto. 2005. On Populist Reason. London: Verso.
Manin, Bernard. 1997. The Principles of Representative Democracy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Mouffe, Chantal. Ernesto Laclau. 1986. Hegemony and Socialist Strategy. London: Verso.
Negri, Antonio. 1999. Insurgencies. Constituent Power and the Modern State. Translated by Maurizia Boscagli. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
Piasentier, Marco. Davide Tarizzo. 2016. “‘The Government of a Multitude’: Hobbes on Political Subjectification”. In The Routledge Handbook to Biopolitics. Prozorov. 36–49. Edited by Simona Rentea, Sergei Prozorov. London: Routledge.
Possenti, Vittorio. 1988. “Sul concetto di popolo: momenti della filosofia pubblica antica e moderna”. Rivista di Filosofia Neo-Scolastica 80(3): 395–423.
Rash, William. 2014. “Carl Schmitt’s Defence of Democracy”. In The Oxford Handbook of Carl Schmitt. Edited by Jens Meierhenrich, Oliver Simons. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Rousseau, Jean-Jacques. 2002. The Social Contract and the First and Second Discourses. Edited by Susan Dunn. New Heaven: Yale University Press.
Schmitt, Carl. 2005. Political Theology. Four Chapter on the Concept of Sovereignty. Translated by George Schwab. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.
Schmitt, Carl. 2008. Constitutional Theory. Translation by Jeffery Seitzer. Durham: Duke University Press.
Schmitt, Carl. 2014. Dictatorship. Cambridge: Polity Press.
Sieyès, Emmanuel Joseph. 2003. Political Writings: Including the Debate Between Sieyès and Tom Paine in 1791. Indianapolis: Hackett Classics.
Virno, Paolo. 2004. A Grammar of the Multitude: For an Analysis of Contemporary Forms of Life. New York: Semiotext(e).
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Genocide in motion pictures (1)
Political atrocities (1)
Morag, Raya (1)
Documentary films (1)
Mass murderers (1)
PERFORMING ARTS / Film / Genres / Documentary (1)
Perpetrator Cinema
Morag, Raya
Person(s): Morag, Raya
Title: Perpetrator Cinema
Subtitle: Confronting Genocide in Cambodian Documentary
Publisher(s): Columbia University Press
Subject(s): Documentary films ; Genocide in motion pictures ; Genocide ; Mass murderers ; Political atrocities ; PERFORMING ARTS / Film / Genres / Documentary
Abstract: Perpetrator Cinema explores a new trend in the cinematic depiction of genocide that has emerged in Cambodian documentary in the late twentieth- and early twenty-first centuries. While past films documenting the Holocaust and genocides in Yugoslavia, Rwanda, and elsewhere have focused on collecting and foregrounding the testimony of survivors and victims, the intimate horror of the autogenocide enables post–Khmer Rouge Cambodian documentarians to propose a direct confrontation between the first-generation survivor and the perpetrator of genocide. These films break with Western tradition and disrupt the political view that reconciliation is the only legitimate response to atrocities of the past. Rather, transcending the perpetrator’s typical denial or partial confession, this extraordinary form of “duel” documentary creates confrontational tension and opens up the possibility of a transformation in power relations, allowing viewers to access feelings of moral resentment.Raya Morag examines works by Rithy Panh, Rob Lemkin and Thet Sambath, and Lida Chan and Guillaume Suon, among others, to uncover the ways in which filmmakers endeavor to allow the survivors’ moral status and courage to guide viewers to a new, more complete understanding of the processes of coming to terms with the past. These documentaries show how moral resentment becomes a way to experience, symbolize, judge, and finally incorporate evil into a system of ethics. Morag’s analysis reveals how perpetrator cinema provides new epistemic tools and propels the recent social-cultural-psychological shift from the era of the witness to the era of the perpetrator
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Jason Silva
Kirk Borne
Data Minds
Dawn of the Data Marketplace
How Edge Processing May Save Your Life
Embracing Dark Data
Value of Data: Teaching the Future with AI
Enabling Remote Viewership
Seeing What Matters
HomePERSONALFuturist vs. Geneticist: Hacking Genes Like Software
Jan. 16, 2018 at 8:39 am
Futurist vs. Geneticist: Hacking Genes Like Software
Jan 16, 18 bionicsData MindsfuturistpollprostheticsWIRED
The future is coming at us very fast, but not everyone agrees on what it will look like when it gets here.
For some, the future involves hacking genes like software. While many dream about where the horizons of medicine and health technologies will lead, we decided to get a reality check on five predicted breakthroughs from both a well-known geneticist and a futurist in this two-part series.
While neither expects the imminent realization of a sci-fi future where people are genetically pre-programmed, both offered optimism, as well as cautionary words, about the dramatic changes we are about to see. We also want to know what you think, and invite you to jump in with your thoughts via the poll question following each scenario.
Left: Professor of Medicine and Genetics at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Director of The Institute for Aging Research; Right: CEO of Six to Start, author of A History of the Future in 100 Objects, former neuroscientist.
Hacking Genes and DNA Like Software
SCENARIO: Human data mining is expected to become the ultimate coding project in the near future. That may play out in a few different ways inside the bodies of tomorrow: through the mapping of your genome, understanding your microbiome, or even analyzing your cardiovascular state. Either way, the possibility of the data contained in your genetic material becoming as modular and malleable as software—complete with features fit to be toggled on and off—will come with its share of advantages and concerns.
This has great promise theoretically, but we still are a long way from finding what is going on and hacking our DNA like software. Currently, the DNA sequence of an individual can be accessed, but we still can’t explain why one gene is related to a particular disease. What’s missing is epigenetics, which is the mechanism by which the environment interacts with the gene. This scenario of “DNA hackable as software” doesn’t address that. To unfold the many mysteries of epigenetics is a huge task. We are making progress but we’re on the frontier and the study is relatively young. Our biology carries a lot of information and holds many mysteries, and we’re still trying to solve that puzzle.
Our DNA is certainly more hackable than it used to be. In the old days, gene therapy could be pretty dangerous but with things like CRISPR, it’s more do-able. There are trials going on using CRISPR to alter DNA to cure very specific single gene-related diseases and that’s exciting. Still, it’ll take a while before it’s hackable as software. Some things are going to be easier to change, and some will be harder. But we humans are influenced by a large number of our genes and we don’t fully understand all of that. So this seems more far off. I do wonder, however, that when it’s easier to do, whether people will want to hack themselves. Some people will want to change DNA so they can run faster or have greater lung capacity. That could be useful.
When we hack human DNA there may be unforeseen downsides and consequences. Do the potential advantages outweigh the risk?
Yes. The large potential upside is worth taking a chance.
No. Too many long-term uncertainties.
Too early to tell. Get back to me when we can actually do it.
Full-Blown Genetic Medical Histories
SCENARIO: Examining your genetics as part of the history process has the potential to reveal various qualities and unique aspects of your biological makeup – especially heart health. Current big data research is leading to a future where unlocking the data in a full genome sequencing will alert tomorrow’s cardiologists to the hidden risk factors facing their patients. That’s only a small slice of what the data going into your giant genetic permanent record will be capable of, including hacking genes.
We have so much biological data that we’re pulling in from so many places. Now we have to figure out how to weave all the data together, so we can learn how one bit of data works with the other. Then we can learn and decide what is important and what is not. What bit of information leads to insights and which aren’t helpful. This is the great challenge for data analysts. When the data is spread apart and siloed, it may not make much sense. But once we dig into one layer and another and connect the dots — determining what interactions cause cancer or heart disease or diabetes and weigh what is important and what isn’t, — great things can happen.
This is interesting, but you have to take into account a lot of other factors too, like diet, exercise, local pollution. Still, we know there’s a big hereditary connection between your genes and illness. So there’s a lot of potential here. We just have to be careful not to make spurious lines. The cost of getting your genome sequenced is getting lower and it’s become easier. But when you have all this data, what does it mean? Maybe you can draw a line between a single gene or a pattern of genes and a disease. Then what do you do with it? That’s where machine learning comes in. We can tease out the relationship between genomes and what they’ll accomplish in the real world. There’s a lot of potential there.
If you could see your entire genomic health map, would it change the way you live your life?
Yes. I like working with as much information as I can get.
No. I am who I am and don’t want to change that.
In some specific areas, yes. But over the long term, no.
Bespoke Medicines Suited To Your Genes
SCENARIO: The more we know about how our genes impact health, the better we get at designing highly-targeted treatments. Personalized healthcare involves tailoring medicine to a patient’s unique genetic makeup. Today, it works by integrating a person’s genetic blueprint and data on their lifestyle, and then comparing it alongside thousands of others to predict illness and determine the best treatment. Different approaches to this new way of using data for hacking genes and to target medicine are expected to bring innovations in many areas.
The complexities of this are daunting. Here’s why: there are more than 7 billion people in the world, and each one has a unique genetic fingerprint. Add to that the fact that a disease may impact each of those 7 billion in a different way, creating even more mutations. So, first off, you’re dealing with an incredibly complex genetic puzzle. Can we unravel all the genetic signatures to create a “highly targeted treatment” for an individual patient? And can we do it at an efficient cost? That’s unlikely. Instead of creating medicine suitable to an individual’s genes, I think the wiser course would be to use big data-type analytic techniques to gather and study a whole range of genetic variants and find out what mutations produce and protect which diseases. This kind of study will have much greater impact on a larger group of people than trying to craft individualized medicine designed for one person.
This is one of those things that always feels like it’s 10 years off, and I’m not sure why it’s never worked out. Frankly, I wonder if it makes sense from a business point of view. It’s expensive to develop drugs, which is why drug companies typically work on making drugs that can be sold to as many people as possible and as frequently as possible. There are certain diseases that affect too few people for drug companies to devote much time and effort to researching. A company probably wouldn’t make money if you had to make 1,000 different drugs for 1,000 different subgroups of people and geno-types. If that changes, if we can figure faster or more efficient ways of researching and developing/testing drugs then it should become economical. We could flip it around and say which of the existing medicines should you use considering your genotype.
Should medical researchers target the most pervasive diseases, or focus on individualized care?
They should target the most pervasive diseases and help as many people as possible.
Individualized medicine is the future. Let’s concentrate on that.
A mix of both. Target the big killer diseases of today, but keep up steady efforts to customize medicine.
Read Part II and subscribe below to DataMakesPossible.com to be notified new articles go live.
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Admired/Reviews
Commencement Addresses
On the Drug War
On Newspapering and Journalism
On the Orioles
On Police/Crime
On Television
Introductions/Liner Notes
Books, DVDs, Music
“But I’m not a lawyer. I’m an agent.”
Just over a quarter century ago, when I was a young scribbler traipsing around the metro desk of the Baltimore Sun, I had an early opportunity to learn a lesson about money, about ethics, about capitalism and, in particular, about the American entertainment industry. And Dorothy Simon, she raised no fools. I only needed to learn it once.
I learned about something called “packaging.”
And now, finally, my apostasy from newspapering having delivered me from Baltimore realities to film-set make-believe, I am suprised and delighted that many of the fellow scribblers with whom I share a labor union have at last acquired the same hard, ugly lesson:
Packaging is a lie. It is theft. It is fraud. In the hands of the right U.S. Attorney, it might even be prima facie evidence of decades of racketeering. It’s that fucking ugly.
For those of you not in the film and television world, there is no shame in tuning out right now because at its core, the argument over packaging now ongoing between film and television writers and their agents is effectively an argument over an embarrassment of riches. The American entertainment industry is seemingly recession-proof and television writing, specifically, is such a growth industry nowadays that even good and great novelists must be ordered back to their prose manuscripts by book editors for whom the term “showrunner” has become an affront. A lot of people are making good money writing television drama. And so, this fresh argument is about who is making more of that money, and above all, where the greatest benefits accrue. If you have no skin in the game, I think it reasonable, even prudent, to deliver a no-fucks-to-give exhale and proceed elsewhere.
If, on the other hand, you are my brother or sister in the Writers Guild of America — East or West, it matters not when we stand in solitarity — or conversely, if you are a grasping, fuckfailing greedhead with the Association of Talent Agents, then you might wanna hang around for this:
Here is the story of how as a novice to this industry, I was grifted by my agents and how I learned everything I ever needed to know about packaging. And here is why I am a solid yes-vote on anything my union puts before me that attacks the incredible ethical affront of this paradigm. Packaging is a racket. It’s corrupt. It is without any basis in either integrity or honor. This little narrative will make that clear. And because I still have a reportorial soul and a journalistic God resides in the details, I will name a name wherever I can.
To begin, I wrote a book. It was a non-fiction account of a year I spent with a shift of homicide detectives in Baltimore, a city ripe with violence and miscalculation. Published in 1991, “Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets” was repped by my literary agent at the time, an independent attorney who I found because his other clients included some other ink-stained newspaper reporters. Late in 1987, the Baltimore Police Department agreed to let me into its homicide unit for a year beginning that January, so I needed to quickly acquire an agent to sell the project to a publishing house and secure an advance on which to live while I took a leave-of-absence from my newspaper. This agent — and damn, I wish I could name the goniff, but I later signed a cash settlement that said I wouldn’t — was the first name that came to me. I did not shop around; I was in a hurry. My bad.
Three years later, with the book ready to publish, this shyster suggested to me that he was entirely capable of going to Hollywood with it for a sale of the dramatic rights. And knowing less than a bag of taters about Hollywood, I was ready to agree until my book editor, the worthy John Sterling, then helming the Houghton Mifflin publishing house, told me in no uncertain terms that this was a mistake.
It was customary, John explained, for even the best literary agents to pair with a colleague at one of the bigger entertainment agencies and split the commission. My literary agent would give up half of his 15 percent to the other agency, but he would gain the expertise of an organization with the connections to move the property around and find the right eyeballs in the film and television industry. So I called my agent back and insisted.
With some initial reluctance, he eventually chose to go with Creative Artists Agency — one of the Big Four, as they call the largest entertainment entities repping talent, and an agent in CAA’s literary division by the name of Matt Snyder. After making the deal with CAA, my literary agent called me back and said it was customary for me to give up a larger percentage commission as I now had two agents working on my behalf. How much more? He suggested that he should keep his 15 percent and I should pay CAA an additional 10 percent. So a quarter of the profits from the sale of book would now be siphoned to agency commissions.
I called back John Sterling and asked: Is this right?
John nearly dropped the phone. No, that is not how it works. Again, he explained that my literary agent was supposed to split the existing 15 percent commission on the book with CAA. The literary agent was supposed to keep 7.5 percent and give the other half to CAA, which in no way was entitled to any cash above and beyond that split.
I called my agent back. No, you split the existing 15 points, I told him. He threw a few chunks of pouty guilt at me, but I shrugged him off. This first attempt at a grift should have warned me, but hey, I was young.
Advance the story a couple months later:
CAA has sent the book to about a dozen A-list film directors, where it lays in their offices like a stale bagel, unloved and unsold. No one can figure out how to transform a year in the professional lives of a half dozen Baltimore death investigators into a feature film. Matt Snyder is bereft of a next idea. He does have one small-option offer from a small indy company. I get on the phone with a producer there and ask for his credits and it’s pretty clear, even to me, that it’s short money for a project that probably goes nowhere.
I call Snyder back.
Hey, I wonder aloud, how about Barry Levinson? He’s from Baltimore. He makes movies. Maybe he’ll like it. Did I mention he’s from Baltimore? Have you seen Diner? Tin Men? I sure do love me some Diner.
This is the sum of my contribution to the initial sale of Homicide to Levinson and NBC, but let’s at least note that it’s the only salient action that would matter, because when CAA sent the book to Levinson, it turned out he was in negotiations with NBC to deliver a television series. Gail Mutrux in his office read the book and put it in front of her boss; Homicide: Life on the Street was born.
So, great.
Then the contract comes back from Baltimore Pictures and while it’s all found money for a police reporter and rewrite man who’s working for union scale at The Sun, I check with some other authors who have sold stuff to Hollywood and they all acknowledge it’s on the low-end of where such offers usually reside. Fine for the option money, a little light on the contingent pilot, pick-up and episodic payments and, of course, farce on the definition of net profits. So I call Matt Snyder back and say so: This seems a little light and it’s a first offer. Let’s go back to Levinson with a counter.
And Matt Snyder of CAA acts as if his client, me, has just thrown a dead, rancid dog on the table. This is my first book sale to Hollywood and Barry Levinson is an A-lister; I should be grateful for this offer and worried that if I nickel-and-dime, Levinson may develop something else for his first television series. Reluctantly, as if he is being asked to traverse a vale of danger and uncertainty, Snyder eventually agrees to go back and see if he can’t get, maybe, a bump in the per-episode royalty, maybe $250 an hour. He’ll fight for me. He’ll see what gives. And sure enough, the per-episode fee goes up by 10 percent after Snyder, relentless carnivore that he is, returns to his client with pride and some pocket change.
And now, here’s where the real fun starts:
We push forward a decade to 2002 when I have sold my own dramatic television series to HBO. The Wire pilot turned out well enough that the project is set to get a first-season order from HBO and my television agent, Jeff Jacobs of CAA, suggests to me that this thing might really have legs.
“We want to package you,” he offers.
“Package me?”
“Yeah, we’ll take a package on this project and you get your ten-percent commission back. Like with Homicide?
Hanh? “Jake, what the fuck are you talking about.”
“Homicide was packaged and we’ll do the same thing with The Wire.”
“Jake, slow down, what the hell does ‘packaged’ mean?”
And for the first time, Jacobs explains it to me: In order that my agents — the folks who held an absolute fiduciary responsibility to negotiate in good faith on my behalf and on behalf of my book — could be players in the creation of the TV project from that book, in order that they could own a chunk of the project itself and profit by millions of dollars from the work I had asked them to sell, they were willing to return my 7.5 percent commission and the commissions of any other talent they represented, packaging all of us together in a happy bundle for the network. Yes, incredibly, to avoid the most overt and untenable conflict-of-interest, they were willing to heroically give back to me a few thousand dollars in exchange for millions of dollars in points on a piece of NBC’s Homicide: Life on the Street which ran for seven years.
“Jake, no one told me. No one said anything to me. Ever.”
There was a quiet on the phone. Until I asked a second question: “What other talent did you package with me?”
“Barry Levinson.”
At which point, there was no more quiet.
“Jake, do you mean to say that you represented me, a pissant police reporter from Baltimore in a head-on negotiation with one of Hollywood’s A-list directors and you also represented the director? You represented both sides in the sale of my book and when the low-ball offer came to me, Matt fucking Snyder acted like it was the only offer I might ever get? Is that what you motherfuckers did?”
“I thought you knew.”
“I did not know.”
“Didn’t Matt inform you?”
He did not. Not in any of our conversations.
“Did your book agent tell you?”
He did not.
Then I asked another question: “Jake, do you have any written consent from me on file in which I authorize you to rep both sides of the sale of my book? I will answer that for you: You do not. I never authorized this. Not to CAA. Not to my book agent. I never gave informed consent. I couldn’t. Because I was never informed.”
Had CAA, in fact, returned the 7.5 percent of my commission?
They had — to my book agent, who pocketed it. Quietly. I immediately wrote a letter to that grasping bastard: Dear thief, you will remit all of that 7.5 percent to me by week’s end or I will write up what happened here and have it posted on every Newspaper Guild bulletin board in every newsroom on the Mid-Atlantic seaboard and you will be known for what you are. Further, I might also contact a U.S. Attorney about a failure of fiduciary responsibility so fundamental that it effectively constitutes the sharing of a bribe in exchange for an agreement to reduce the sale price of my book. Suffice to say, a check to me for the full 7.5 percent arrived within days.
Then I turned to CAA, a Big Four agency that was once fully content to screw me over when I was a stumblefuck newspaper reporter who to their thinking could only provide them with a book or two for sale. Years later, I was now a client about to become a showrunner on a premiere cable network. I had a little more leverage.
“Jake, I’m firing you and I’m taking The Wire and everything else with me.”
“Look,” he pleaded, “I know you’re mad. I don’t blame you. But personally, I didn’t do any of this. I’ve been straight up with you. I wasn’t your agent then. I wasn’t involved in packaging your book.”
No, I explained, but your agency was. And the profits from that are fungible. You’ve been good, Jake. You’ve been fair. But on a lie of omission, CAA — your agency — made millions and millions of dollars and did so by undercutting my negotiation with Levinson and failing to inform me of an absolute conflict of interest. I gotta go.
“What can we do to make this right?”
I thought about that because unlike the fucksquib in CAA’s literary department who should die of venereal boils, I actually liked my TV agent. He had, in fact, been forthright and fair in all of my subsequent years in television. So I explained that the agency had made millions off the conflict of interest and that for a reasonable “taste of their taste” of Homicide, whatever that was, I would remain as his client.
He ran that back up the ladder and came back a few days later: “We can’t do that. If we agree to give you a percentage of our packaging fees, it would set a bad precedent for all of our other packages.”
“Motherfucker, you’re talking about bad precedents? CAA repped both sides of a negotiation without informing me so that your taste of the profits would dwarf mine, your client. How much money did CAA actually make on Homicide?”
Jake wasn’t allowed to say. Transparency was not an option. Instead, he suggested another path:
“What about a one-time lump sum payment that isn’t officially tied to our package?”
Eventually, frustrated but willing to compromise to keep Jake as my agent, I agreed to allow CAA to write a check for the same “penalty” that I had exacted from my literary agent. Another 7.5 percent of my original commission came back and yes, Jeff Jacobs has remained my agent to this moment. Oh, I also asked Jake to make his CAA colleague get on the phone. I had some things to say.
I said them, and incredibly, the fiduciary pratfall and ethical void known as Matt Snyder stayed on the other end of that call insisting — after admitting he had no record whatsoever of me being informed of the conflict-of-interest between myself and the buyer of my book, or any claimed recollection of having informed me of such in all of our conversations — that he had done nothing improper, that my literary agent should have explained it all to me.
“Matt — absent any evidence of informed consent by me — that you and CAA proceeded to negotiate with Barry Levinson, whom you also represented, is a prima facie conflict-of-interest and a breach of fiduciary duty. If you were a realtor secretly representing both sides of a house sale, your license would be torn up. If you were a lawyer, you’d be disbarred.”
There was only a small pause before he explained himself:
Yes you are. Yes you fucking are.
So much of television and film is packaged by the Big Four agencies — CAA, ICM, WME and UTA — that it is now said to be the lion’s share of their income, so much in fact that they are running to Wall Street for equity investment in their producerial role. Fuck repping actors or directors or writers to earn a living. What rube would settle for 10 percent of anything when you can play for 100 percent of your larger stake in a film or a movie?
But of course, the astounding conflict-of-interest that underlies the corruption of packaging doesn’t simply end with the fact that agents no longer have any incentive to properly service the smaller and less advantaged client when they are repping both sides of a negotiation. Never mind the relentless obscenity of telling a seller that you can also rep the buyer and claim to still fight for top dollar.
The greater offense is that packaging has now artificially reduced the salaries of all screenwriters over decades, so much so that entry-level salaries for staffwriters and story editors in television, for example, are exactly where they were a decade ago save for the cost-of-living increases that the writer’s union achieved on its own. For junior producers, it’s even worse: The salaries for co-executive producers are about 16 percent less than where they were two contracts ago.
The agencies themselves like to claim that this is because shows now order fewer episodes and shorter broadcast seasons than in the past and that this structural change has more to do with the stagnation than packaging. But of course, that also begs a question: Where the fuck have the agents been to argue on behalf of their clients for a different pay structure, one that acknowledges the changing reality of fewer episodes and more work in the production of each episode?
I’ll tell you where they’ve been. They’ve been in another room, counting cash. Again, the problem with packaging is not merely that clients are poorly repped in negotiations with other clients. No, it’s bigger than that. The problem is that the agency incentive to package shows and provide larger payments to themselves has obliterated any serious thought about aggressively negotiating on behalf of any writer, or actor, or director, large or small.
Why bother to fight for 10 percent of a few dollars more for this story editor or that co-executive producer of some actor or director when to NOT do so means less freight on the operating budgets of the projects that you yourself hope to profit from? Why serve your clients as representatives with a fiduciary responsibility and get the last possible dollar for them, when you stand to profit by splitting the proceeds of a production not with labor, but with management — the studios who are cutting you in on the back end? Why put your client’s interest in direct opposition to your own?
No reason at all.
Perhaps the ugliest tell in the current negotiations between the WGA and the agencies is the incredible, self-oblivious claim by the ATA that writers are naive to think that any of the vast packaging fees, if denied to talent agencies by studios, would ever find their way into the pockets of the writers themselves. No, they insist, the studios will just pocket that money and writers themselves will be no better off.
You grifting, soulless fuckbonnets. You are so divorced from your fundamental ethos that you have actually just made this argument: You as agents are capable of achieving millions in benefits FOR YOURSELVES; you can leverage these profits FOR YOURSELVES if you are permitted to do so. However, you are claiming in the next lying, mendacious breath that you couldn’t possible achieve any such outcome if you had to do it merely on behalf of YOUR CLIENTS.
In the face of that incredible self-own, I can only respond with a singular question that I would ask of any rank parasite: If you can only leverage profit for yourself, but not for me, what the fuck do I need you for? Why are you on this ride at all? At the point that he can only achieve benefit for himself and not for his client, what the fuck good is an agent?
Years ago, when I first learned about packaging, I asked Jeff Jacobs that same question. He had no good reply then. He has none now. He is still my agent because his agency wrote me a check for some of the damage done in secret and because he promised in no uncertain terms that I would never be packaged again. Nor would my projects be packaged; even though as a showrunner, I could now benefit from lopsided negotiations with others, I won’t do that to fellow writers, actors and directors. This has been the case for nearly two decades now; at the end of every business year, I write a check for 10 percent to CAA and with this client at least, Jake has no incentive to do anything but chase the last dollar for both of us. That’s what an honest agent does. That is ALL an honest agent does.
Has it helped the writers on my shows to never be packaged? Not as much as it ought. Why not? Because, quite obviously, the entire universe of screenwriters has had salaries and work-quotes depressed for decades by agents who have failed to do their fundamental duty and negotiate for better. I know this because I see the comparable quotes that come into HBO business affairs and how closely they hew to WGA minimums; as a showrunner, it’s not possible to demand that a network spend more of its money to hire writers above their quotes and the quotes of colleagues. Packaging has, over decades, crippled and circumvented the market for entertainment writers. And every negotiation by every writer with every studio or production entity begins with that fundamental reality. Only the end of packaging will restore a market in which writers are paid competitively for writing. And only an agent whose priority is having his client paid competitively is a means to achieving that result.
That this corruption has been allowed to go on this long is testament to the greed of the agencies themselves, to the inertia of the talent unions to this point, and to the anecdotal claims of some independent moviemakers that certain film projects only get made because of packaging by talent agencies. But hey, I’m calling bullshit on that, too. For one thing, this simply constitutes a failure to imagine a world that never had a chance to come to be, a world in which agents work aggressively for a film project not because they have a larger cut of the product, but because the 10 percent commissions on every sold project is the only true currency on which they can rely. And secondly, it’s fair to suggest that as many movies failed to get made because the packaging limited the negotiation only to writers, directors and actors at a given agency. That’s right: Why get the best talent for the best possible iteration of a story when it doesn’t maximize profit for the agency involved? The tail is wagging the fuck out of the entire dog, often to the great detriment of the work itself.
All in all, I’m delighted that the WGA has finally caught up to this malignant thievery and if indeed, the membership of my union is overwhelmingly convinced of the need to carry this fight forward, then I am certainly a good vote for such. I’ve been a good vote for such since anyone bothered to explain this horror show to me, however belatedly.
I’m for implementing a new code of conduct that requires any agency to abandon packaging before it can be permitted to negotiate with signatories to the WGA contract. And if that means I’ll have to depart from CAA and Jeff Jacobs, then that’s what it means. Bless you, Jake, but right is right and wrong is wrong.
Hell, I’m for more than that. Personally, I’m for filing a civil suit against the ATA and the Big Four for an overt and organized breach of fiduciary duty in which they have effectively pretended to represent clients while taking bribes from studios to keep those clients’ salaries and benefits lowered across the board. Looking not merely at civil law, but at the federal statutes against extortion and bribery, a curious and ambitious U.S. Attorney might enjoy a deeper dive into the realm of racketeering, because for the life of me, I can’t see a difference between packaging and any prosecutable case of bid-rigging or bribery I ever covered as a reporter in federal or state courts.
For that matter, I’m for riding around Bel Air and Westwood and Santa Monica in a rental car, running up in the driveways of these grifting motherfuckers and slashing tires. I’ve got that much contempt for this level of organized theft and for the tone-deaf defense of it by the ATA. But that’s me as an ex-reporter and a showrunner and a generally pissed-off writer talking. That guy is all in. As a WGAE council member, I’ll eschew the vandalism and listen to the members and support the will of the union as a whole. I just hope, after all these years of being robbed, that my colleagues are as united and as angry as they ought to be.
‘The Wire’ Creator Rips “Greedhead” Agencies over Packaging – Deadline (2019) | ????? ??? FREE PRESS says:
[…] work includes Homicide: Life On The Street, The Wire, Treme and The Deuce. He wrote a post on his personal blog The Audacity Of Despair that grasps the conflict of interest charges leveled by writers against agencies in a personal and […]
‘The Wire’ Creator Rips “Greedhead” Agencies over Packaging – Deadline - GistTree says:
[…] work entails Homicide: Life On The Avenue, The Wire, Treme and The Deuce. He wrote a submit on his personal blog The Audacity Of Despair that grasps the warfare of passion charges leveled by writers against companies in a private and […]
Liv Brandão says:
Hi Mr. Simon,
I’m the Brazilian reporter who interviewed you a few months ago. I’ve just watched City of God for the second time (the first one was almost 20 years ago), and now I have a follow up question: were you inspired by Fernando Meirelles’ movie? The way the kids kill Lil’ Ze is very similar to the way Omar dies in The Wire. There are many parallels between season 4 and City of God. Please let me know if I’m wrong.
David Simon says:
I know the work, but I have yet to watch City of God, which is no credit to me. It sounds like I need to see it and an embarrassment that I haven’t to this point.
On the Unlikelihood of Book Options Becoming Films (Important for Writers) - Gail Carriger says:
[…] But I’m not a lawyer. I’m an agent. […]
@amirpars_ says:
For some reason, you blocked me on Twitter for sending you two posts;
1. Commenting on your tweet praising Chomsky, by pointing out that he was a vociferous supporter of Castro, Chavez and Pol Pot.
2. Asking if you’d read Jason L. Riley’s “Please don’t help us”, as a counter argument against Michelle Alexander’s dreadful “The New Jim Crow”.
Can you please tell me which of these was offending to the extent that it deserved blocking?
Or is it more that you think of any person disagreeing with you as evil, regardless of where the facts lie?
My twitter feed is not, for me, a public opinion page. I curate it, leaving the voices I find interesting and coherent whether they reflect my opinions or not. Your rank and simplistic dismissal of Alexander’s work — which I know to be precisely true from two decades of reporting on the criminal justice system and the drug war in one city — assured me that I wasn’t going to miss anything going forward. If you think you seriously contended with the world that Alexander presented by offering up Riley’s treatise, then the loss of your voice in my feed is of little moment. Sorry.
Simon David says:
I’m Simon David.
This is weird.
I’m a documentary filmmaker and I’ve been mistaken for you before. I like your cinema and feel strangely connected to you…Hope we get a chance to chat over our names and view of cinema.
All the best and stay safe,
Simon David
A Ajanovic says:
I work for a Catalan NGO. We are interested in getting in touch with you for one of our international campaigns in defense of Human Rights, particularly Freedom of Speech in Spain. Could you come back to us so we can send you the Manifesto we’re planning to make public in one month and a half? Thanks a lot, and best regards,
The Fizz Weekly Update – The Fat & Happy Edition (2020-01-08) – Towards the Purrfect Pint says:
[…] ‘But I’m not a lawyer. I’m an agent.’ – Audacity of Despair. David Simon (@aodespair) is one of my favorite writers. He’s responsible for a whole host of amazing books and TV dramas, including Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets, The Wire, and more recently, The Deuce. He also writes insightful, and wonderfully abrasive blog posts and rails on Twitter in a way that is raw, honest, and makes for a delicious read. […]
Strength in Numbers: Hollywood Writers Union Clashes With Agents says:
[…] between writers and agents. It is a practice that writers have long protested and one that writer David Simon calls “organized theft” in a lengthy summons for solidarity between WGA writers against the […]
Megan McCartney says:
To the webmistress,
Is there any way to purchase a signed copy of the Wire DVD set by David? My boyfriend is the biggest fan and watches this series at least once a year. I wanted to get him the best Christmas present and I know he would love this.
If not possible, thanks for your time!
Pedro Luis Martín Olivares: Sin intermediarios – Pedro luis Martín Olivares| Cine | Blog Oficial says:
[…] o avatares azules con el lema “I Stand With the WGA”. Simon dedicó a este asunto un tremendo post en su blog personal, The Audacity of Despair. “Los agentes”, lamenta el creador de The […]
Nancy Hardin says:
I remember my shock when, after I first came to LA from the New York publishing world decades ago to work as a literary agent at a small agency, I was excoriated for giving material to the clients I felt were best suited for it rather than first running it by the agency’s tv packaging clients. Attempting to make a creative fit was the last priority on the list and I soon learned that this was the practice everywhere, not just at the agency where I briefly worked. So I’m cheering from the sidelines for a change to finally be made.
Leni Bitter says:
Hi Nancy, are you still in LA? Would love to hear how things are going, especially now in the last couple of months…
Have a great week and take care.
Jean-Marc says:
So glad this hit Deadline—what a read. Thanks for sharing this with such transparency, David.
To TV Writers, Pay Fight With Agents Has Another Villain: Wall Street – KhaNews says:
[…] clients have chafed at these arrangements over the years, arguing that they divert profits to agencies when they should […]
To TV Writers, Pay Fight With Agents Has Another Villain: Wall Street | IdubaiNews.com says:
Hollywood Writers Trace Friction With Agents to Wall Street - Tanjarin says:
Hollywood Writers Trace Friction With Agents to Wall Street - Aksamlije says:
Hollywood Writers Trace Friction With Agents to Wall Street | | anastasios pallis says:
Hollywood Writers Trace Friction With Agents to Wall Street | 1 Business says:
Hollywood's Labor Force Has Always Had to Fight for Workers' Rights - B-Updated says:
[…] a class conflict, as well; screenwriters allege that talent agents typically pull in far more money than screenwriters themselves, whose incomes […]
News, Culture, Trending: R.I.P. Gary Stewart and Angel Walker, Judith Baca’s Mural and More – L.A. Weekly – Trendz says:
[…] David Simon (The Wire, Treme, Deuce) delivered a blistering tirade about his agents on his personal blog, accusing them of a conflict of interest in regard to their negotiating on his behalf. As reported […]
As someone who’s been working in film for over 30 years as a music editor, I was clueless about packaging, but it got me to thinking. We all know how the business has changed since 2008, with all the mid budget films gone, and along with that, film workers’ steadily rising rates of pay (or pay altogether), only to be replaced by union scale or whatever the studios deem fit to pay above scale, a take it or leave it attitude I haven’t experienced since my long ago non-union days.
So my question is, what do you think is responsible for this change? I, along with my co-workers, have attributed it to the market crash of 2008-09 and the new business model the studios have since followed: This almost all eggs in the mega budget super hero pic, with the few remaining going to lower budgeted films. The mid budget films that used to hold up the studios’ bottom line, and kept everyone working, gone. Which means if you can’t get a gig on one of the very few big budget films, good luck earning a living off low budget films or tv. And if you’re also paying alimony & child support? Oy!
Your article made me suspect something else working to lower film workers’ rates since. After all, there have been market fluctuations over time that have not affected the business of film in any but the most incremental ways. Since 2008, so many film workers have lost homes, experienced divorce, and worse, their lives irrevocably changed forever.
So I’m wondering if you think the packaging fees have affected the business in this way, or is it simply the market crash, or is it something more?
since you are strongly immersed in the industry – and I am a new writer around the block – I was wondering if there are any new developments in the last 12 months worth noting?
The Hollywood Fight That’s Tearing Apart Writers and Agents, Explained – Vulture | Unhinged Group says:
[…] compensation on behalf of their clients, too. It’s a sentiment that The Wire creator David Simon expressed in a charactersitically heated way: “If you can only leverage profit for yourself, but not […]
The WGA’s Mountainous Fight With Hollywood Companies, Defined – Vulture – MediaMoneyHQ says:
[…] compensation on behalf of their purchasers, too. It’s a sentiment that The Wire creator David Simon expressed in a charactersitically heated manner: “At the same time as you happen to might well possibly […]
Hollywood Writers File Suit, Escalating Their Fight With Talent Agents - Riz Mania says:
[…] Simon, in a widely shared entry he posted on his personal blog last month, wrote of packaging: “It is theft. It is fraud. In the hands of the right U.S. attorney, it might even […]
Hollywood Writers File Suit, Escalating Their Fight With Talent Agents | WWE- World Wide Experts says:
Hollywood Writers File Suit, Escalating Their Fight With Talent Agents - World Media Today says:
Hollywood Writers File Suit, Escalating Their Fight With Talent Agents | 7Loop says:
Hollywood Writers File Suit, Escalating Their Fight With Talent Agents | | anastasios pallis says:
[…] Simon, in a widely shared entry he posted on his personal blog last month, wrote of packaging: “It is theft. It is fraud. In the hands of the right U.S. attorney, it might […]
lopia says:
hello david i’m a Chinese guy and I want to say I really like your work, the Deuce, the Wire, they’re fantastic.
Hollywood Writers File Suit, Escalating Their Fight With Talent Agents | 1 Business says:
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types of insulator materials
Learn about the following insulation materials: Fiberglass (or fiber glass)--which consists of extremely fine glass fibers--is one of the most ubiquitous insulation materials. The strain insulator is similar to the suspension insulator type. As a result of its recycled content, this product uses minimal energy to manufacture. In many cases, it is best to install insulation before a wall is completed, but even if this is not done, there are types of insulation that can help. We illustrate and include photographs of insulation materials that would not be expected to contain asbestos as well as asbestos-containing materials. Some materials possess the properties of both conductors and insulators, such as silicone and germanium. Insulation further prevents current from contact with other conductors, resists electrical leakage and offers protection from all environmental conditions. Other polystyrene insulation materials similar to MEPS are expanded polystyrene (EPS) and extruded polystyrene (XPS). It provides more flexibility to the overhead line. Insulators are classified into six different major types. Thus, there are two types of post insulators: (i) Station post insulators and (ii) Line post insulators. It is mostly used in the overhead transmission system or line. The pin types of insulators are mostly used in the distribution system. Like a suspension insulator, a strain insulator can be used in the overhead transmission line. Bulky materials resist conductive and -- to a lesser degree -- convective heat flow in a building cavity. Insulation materials run the gamut from bulky fiber materials such as fiberglass, rock and slag wool, cellulose, and natural fibers to rigid foam boards to sleek foils. ft. attic at R-30. All closed-cell polyurethane foam insulation made today is produced with a non-HCFC (hydrochlorofluorocarbon) gas as the foaming agent. Note to Editors. Radiant Barriers. Vermiculite insulation materials aren't widely used today because they sometimes contain asbestos. All of these materials are produced using recycled waste materials. Foam board or liquid foam can be used to manufacture a SIP. Bulky materials resist conductive and -- to a lesser degree -- convective heat flow in a building cavity. Aluminum foil can also act as a radiant barrier. My pleasure to share with DipsLab readers. These foams are similar to conventional polyurethane foams, but are more flexible. If you compare insulator and conductor, both have the opposite properties. One major disadvantage of phenolic foam is that it can shrink up to 2% after curing, which makes it less popular today. The stay insulator known as the Egg Insulator because it looks like an oval or rectangular shape. List of insulation materials. The boards also make effective sound-absorbing panels for interior partitions. Some natural fibers--including cotton, sheep's wool, straw, and hemp--are used as insulation materials. This creates a type of loose-fill insulation made of pellets that can be poured into place or mixed with cement to create a lightweight, less heat-conductive concrete. per cubic foot. Reflective foil, if installed correctly and facing an open air space, can also act as a radiant barrier. Inorganic substances like metals and plasmas that readily lose and gain electrons top the list of conductors. It has many electrical components such as conductor, tower (electrical pole), insulator…. It doesn't require additional chemicals to make it fire resistant, and it is commonly available as blanket (batts and rolls) and loose-fill insulation. Good information about insulators. These six types of insulators are selected on the bases of voltage rating. Let’s talk about Electrical Machine and insulators. It's commonly used in two different types of insulation: blanket (batts and rolls) and loose-fill and is also available as rigid boards and duct insulation. Polystyrene loose-fill or bead insulation typically has a lower R-value compared to the foam board. Fiberglass loose-fill insulation is made from molten glass that is spun or blown into fibers. In the electrical system, the specific insulating materials used like porcelain, glass, steatite, polymer, ceramic, PVC. Slow expanding foam is also available, which is intended for cavities in existing homes. Whether you need attic insulation, crawl space insulation or office building wall insulation, there is a material that works for your project. It requires less maintenance as compared to other insulator types. These panels, although more expensive, are more fire and water vapor-diffusion resistant than EPS. Insulators used for high-voltage power transmission are made from glass, porcelain or composite polymer materials. Basically, an insulator protects devices from overload. Common insulation materials are wool, fiberglass, rock wool, polystyrene, polyurethane, and goose feather etc. Post insulators are similar to Pin insulators, but post insulators … Cellulose insulation typically requires no moisture barrier and, when installed at proper densities, cannot settle in a building cavity. Cellulose is primarily made from recycled newsprint. These beads can be used as a pouring insulation for concrete blocks or other hollow wall cavities, but they are extremely lightweight, take a static electric charge very easily, and are notoriously difficult to control. Thanks, Sreenath for reaching out to my blog. Most thermal drift occurs within the first two years after the insulation material is manufactured, after which the R-value remains unchanged unless the foam is damaged. Cellulose Insulation Manufacturers Association. One product uses recycled blue jean manufacturing trim waste. INSULATION TYPE: Blanket Batts and Rolls. It is commonly used to insulate the live parts of equipment or conductor from the earth. Reflective foil, if installed correctly and facing an open air space, can also act as a radiant barrier. For more comfortable installation with less itch and dust, look for encapsulated roll insulation or batting wrapped in plastic. This number is determined by the type of insulation, its thickness, density, and where and how the insulation … Wall panels made of polyisocyanurate are typically 3.5 inches (89 mm) thick. These materials are very poor conductors of heat and are therefore good thermal insulators. The live conductor is protected by wrapping the insulation. If you want to add insulation to your attic, use an insulation contractor who is trained and certified in handling asbestos. Types of Insulation The chart contains information on common types of insulation, as well as tips on where and how to use them. If you look outside, you can see the electrical overhead system which is used for the transmission and distribution of electricity. Consumers can choose from among many types of insulation that save money and improve comfort. All Rights Reserved. Testing suggests that the stabilized R-value of rigid foam with metal foil facings remains unchanged after 10 years. They are broadly classified into three types of electrical insulation based on their operating voltage levels and applications. It provides good air sealing and is fire resistant and won't sustain a flame. measurement of a material's capacity to resist heat flow from one side Polyisocyanurate insulation is available as a liquid, sprayed foam, and rigid foam board. … A post insulator is more or less similar to a pin insulator. The table below compares the… Insulators made from porcelain rich in alumina are used where high mechanical strength is a … The newer BIBS HP is an economical hybrid system that combines BIBS with spray polyurethane foam. High-density fiberglass batts for a 2 by 4 inch (51 by 102 millimeter [mm]) stud-framed wall has an R-15 value, compared to R-11 for "low density" types. The electrical insulator is a device that provides the required insulation between the line conductor and earth. Post insulators are commonly used in the substation or generating substation. Loose-fill insulation must be applied using an insulation-blowing machine in either open-blow applications (such as attic spaces) or closed-cavity applications (such as those found inside existing walls or covered attic floors). The voltage operating capacity of the insulator is from 11 kV to 765 kV. EPS is commonly produced in blocks. In a substation, it is suitable for different voltage levels (from a higher to lower voltage). Cellulose insulation is made from recycled paper products, primarily newsprint, and has a very high recycled material content, generally 82% to 85%. But, in electrical power systems, the insulators with porcelain material are the best and used in transmission & distribution system. Facings are fastened to insulation materials during the manufacturing process. Spray Foam Insulation. The strain insulator is similar to the suspension insulator type. UF foam contains no fire retardant. Pin type Insulator. A single piece of pin insulator is used in 11kV, and the double piece is applied to 25kV. Rigid foam boards trap air or another gas to resist heat flow. Phenolic foamed-in-place insulation uses air as the foaming agent. The specially designed AttiCat machine conditions the insulation by adding millions of tiny air pockets that give the material its insulating power and energy-saving R-value over time. But, it has slightly different specifications and working roles. Only a few sources of vermiculite have been found to contain more than tiny trace amounts. Thanks, for sharing the important information. Because it provides high resistance. Sharing my knowledge on this blog makes me happy. It can also be made into laminated insulation panels with a variety of facings. Organic molecules are mostly insulators because they're held together by covalent (shared electron) bonds and because hydrogen bonding helps stabilize many molecules. Some manufacturers use polyisocyanurate as the insulating material in structural insulated panels (SIPs). The suspension insulator is called as Disc Insulator. With closed-cell foam, the high-density cells are closed and filled with a gas that helps the foam expand to fill the spaces around it. Stay insulator is used only in the distributions line. It is made of shredded paper plus a fire retardant chemical known as a borate. These insulators are poor conductors of heat, which is why they effectively form protection. Urea-formaldehyde (UF) foam was used in homes during the 1970s and early 1980s. It must be added, thermal insulation is primarily based on the very low thermal conductivity of gases. Ceiling boards and thermos designs are good examples of heat insulators. This type of insulator is used in the high voltage overhead distribution line. Mostly, suspension insulator is made of glass or porcelain insulating materials. The most common types of materials used for loose-fill insulation include cellulose, fiberglass, and mineral (rock or slag) wool. Over time, the R-value of XPS insulation can drop as some of the low-conductivity gas escapes and air replaces it--a phenomenon is known as thermal drift or ageing. It can also be made into laminated insulation panels with a variety of facings. @ 2021 – DipsLab.com. The paper is first reduced to small pieces and then fiberized, creating a product that packs tightly into building cavities and inhibits airflow. Polyurethane is a foam insulation material that contains a low-conductivity gas in its cells. Some types of facing can also act as an air barrier, radiant barrier, and/or vapor barrier and some even provide flame resistance. In a transmission line, why suspension insulator is better than others? In the circular turn or bend position, a shackle insulator can work. A pin insulator is best for supporting low voltage line conductors. Low-density, open-cell polyurethane foams use air as the blowing agent and have an R-value that doesn't change over time. From the material used to how it is installed, building insulation is remarkably diverse. Polyurethane insulation is available as a liquid sprayed foam and rigid foam board. The symbolic representation of the insulator: Moreover, the insulating material plays an important role in the making of various electrical and electronic circuits and overhead power systems. Ceiling panels are up to 7.5 inches (190 mm) thick. Insulator has good mechanical strength for the conductor load. Learn more about where to insulate. It is currently available only as a foamed-in-place insulation. Always it is placed in a vertical position. … Suspension insulators are most beneficial than the other insulator. Primarily, it is used in bend or arm place of the transmission line. Multiple insulator materials are easily available in the market. In the figure, the pin type insulator is shown. Other types of insulation are used in dielectric applications for radio frequency cables. The foam is water vapor permeable, remains flexible, and is resistant to wicking of moisture. It helps to protect switchgear, transformer, and other systems in a substation. For use as insulation, sheep's wool is also treated with borate to resist pests, fire, and mold. BIBS is blown in dry, and tests have shown that walls insulated with a BIBS system are significantly better filled than those insulated using other forms of fiberglass insulation such as batts. Porcelain insulators are made from clay, quartz or alumina and feldspar, and are covered with a smooth glaze to shed water. Polystyrene--a colorless, transparent thermoplastic--is commonly used to make foam board or beadboard insulation, concrete block insulation, and a type of loose-fill insulation consisting of small beads of polystyrene. Cementitious insulation material is a cement-based foam used as sprayed-foam or foamed-in-placed insulation. Other less common materials such as cementitious and phenolic foams and vermiculite and perlite are also available. Which type of Insulators used in Power System? Over time, the R-value of polyisocyanurate insulation can drop as some of the low-conductivity gas escapes and air replaces it -- a phenomenon is known as thermal drift or ageing. Ceiling panels are up to 7.5 inches (190 mm) thick. Building a new energy-efficient home requires carefully selecting where you place and install insulation materials. Polyurethane foam insulation is available in closed-cell and open-cell formulas. This article provides an overview of the main options in … In an overhead power system, insulators work as a protector which is made by insulating materials like ceramic, glass, and porcelain. Post Insulator. Read more: 6 different Insulator types with specification, properties and uses. In the distribution line, the metallic strip is used to connect the shackle insulator. Find product information and locate professional services for insulation and air sealing. Mineral wool is usually produced from 75% post-industrial recycled content. The paper is broken down into cellular fibers that provide insulation. The insulator is used to support the overhead conductor. Straw bale construction, popular 150 years ago on the Great Plains of the United States, has received renewed interest. The insulator works as a protective device when the sudden fault condition or voltage change occurs in the line conductor. It occurs in small size as compared to other insulators. Controlling moisture can make your home more energy-efficient, less costly to heat and cool, and more comfortable. Jump to navigation Jump to search. Here, I am describing one of the most important overhead system’s components called the Electrical Insulator. The insulator work as a Protector or Protective device. Insulating the entire building envelope of your home saves money and improves comfort. The denser products are intended for insulating areas with limited cavity space, such as cathedral ceilings. The multiple discs can be used based on voltage level (low to high). Shackle Insulator occurs in small size on the overhead distribution system. Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable EnergyForrestal Building1000 Independence Avenue, SWWashington, DC 20585. Which Insulation is used in an Electrical Machine? Glass type materials are used in strain/ suspension type insulators. Adding insulation to your home is a sound investment that is likely pay for itself quickly in reduced utility bills. Liquid foam can be injected between two wood skins under considerable pressure, and, when hardened, the foam produces a strong bond between the foam and the skins. XPS is most commonly used as foam board insulation. I am very glad and motivate, if my knowledge can contribute to the learner. High-density batts for a 2 by 6 inch (51 by 152 mm) frame wall offer R-21, and high-density batts for an 8.5-inch (216-mm) spaces yield about an R-30 value. Wall panels made of polyurethane are typically 3.5 inches (89 mm) thick. Common facing materials include kraft paper, white vinyl sheeting, and aluminum foil. Manufacturers now produce medium- and high-density fiberglass batt insulation products that have slightly higher R-values than the standard batts. Still, if you have vermiculite insulation in your attic, do not disturb it. Molded expanded polystyrene (MEPS), commonly used for foam board insulation, is also available as small foam beads. Water vapor can easily pass through it, and it breaks down at prolonged temperatures above 190°F (88°C). It is now used primarily for masonry walls in commercial and industrial buildings. Foam board or liquid foam can be used to manufacture a SIP. Experimental data indicates that most thermal drift occurs within the first two years after the insulation material is manufactured. Liquid foam can be injected between two wood skins under considerable pressure, and, when hardened, the foam produces a strong bond between the foam and the skins. Common insulation materials are wool, fiberglass, rock wool, polystyrene, polyurethane, and goose feather etc. This is all about different insulator types, uses, and their specification. Insulator has very high resistivity (offers very high resistance). The material used in the insulator is waterproof or non-porous. Sheep's wool batts for a 2 by 4 inch and 2 by 6 inch stud-framed wall offer an R-13 and R-19 value, respectively. Here, the insulator is used for connecting many other electrical components. The electrical insulator has a high resistivity. Like polyiso foam, the R-value of closed-cell polyurethane insulation can drop over time as some of the low-conductivity gas escapes and air replaces it in a phenomenon known as thermal drift or ageing. For low voltage … Low-density foams are sprayed into open wall cavities and rapidly expand to seal and fill the cavity. A facing protects the insulation's surface, holds the insulation together, and facilitates fastening to building components. When damp sprayed, a small amount of moisture is added at the spray nozzle tip, activating natural starches in the product and causing it to adhere inside the cavity. Insulation materials run the gamut from bulky fiber materials such as fiberglass, rock and slag wool, cellulose, and natural fibers to rigid foam boards to sleek foils. Cotton insulation consists of 85% recycled cotton and 15% plastic fibers that have been treated with borate--the same flame retardant and insect/rodent repellent used in cellulose insulation. Pin insulator can sustain up to 11kV voltage capacity. Air krete® is pumped into closed cavities. Types of building insulation can be broken down in many different ways. Fiberglass: Fiberglass is the most common insulation material. Types of Disc Insulators. The liquid foam expands very slowly, reducing the chance of damaging the wall from overexpansion. If one disc can sustain an 11kv voltage capacity and six discs can sustain 66kv voltage. Radiant barriers are effective for reducing summer heat gain in cooling climates. Because, if any of the disc damages from the suspension insulator, the remaining disc will operate. Pin Type Electrical Insulator. It can hold large quantities of water, which is an advantage for use in some walls, but repeated wetting and drying can leach out the borate. The pin insulator has a simple construction. Suspension insulator requires more height for supporting the multiple discs. Rock wool, a man-made material consisting of natural minerals like basalt or diabase. Foil and plastic facings on rigid polyurethane foam panels can help stabilize the R-value, slowing down thermal drift. I have completed master in Electrical Power System. These substances are the heart of modern electronics and feature four valence electrons, providing the switching abilities required by transistors, integrated chips and computer processors. Top 12 Difference between Conductor and Insulator in Tabular Form, [AIR 5] GATE EE Study Plan shared by Sayantan Bhattacharya, Insulating Materials & Insulation Classes, Electrical & Electronics Abbrivations Dictionary. Strain Insulator. A radiant barrier is a single reflective surface that faces an … Cementitious foam costs about as much as polyurethane foam, is nontoxic and nonflammable, and is made from minerals (like magnesium oxide) extracted from seawater. One type of cementitious spray foam insulation known as air krete® contains magnesium silicate and has an initial consistency similar to shaving cream. In new construction, cellulose can be either damp-sprayed or installed dry behind netting. It has relatively higher number of petticoats and rain sheds. UF foam insulation uses compressed air as the foaming agent. It is used in higher voltage condition i.e. Disc insulators are classified into types which include suspension type and strain type. Which is the Best Electrical Insulator Material? This type of insulator has strong mechanical strength. Vermiculite and perlite consist of very small, lightweight pellets, which are made by heating rock pellets until they pop. Depending on the application, insulation generally is from plastic, … Known as either blown-in or loose-fill, this type … R-38 batts for 12-inch (304-mm) spaces are also available. Insulators including plastic, Styrofoam and reflective materials may be used to stop thermal energy from moving to certain regions. Cellulose can also be blown dry into netting stapled over building cavities. Slag wool, a man-made material from blast furnace slag (the waste matter that forms on the surface of molten metal). It’s made from fine glass fibers and is most often used in batts, rolls and loose-fill ... Cellulose: Cellulose insulation is made from recycled paper products. It is made up of material which has high mechanical strength. How to identify types of insulation used in buildings & their mechanical systems: This series of articles provides details about all types of building insulation, identifying each type of insulation. Cellulose, a fiber insulation material with a high recycled content, is blown into a home attic. Especially, glass types of insulators used in the lightweight condition. Strain insulator- In high voltage line, strain insulator are used. Highly reflective foils in radiant barriers and reflective insulation systems reflect radiant heat away from living spaces, making them particularly useful in cooling climates. Due to this high resistance, electrical current does not flow from one point to another. This kind of insulation is done with aid of spray holders. INSULATION MATERIALS AND PROPERTIES MP-1 SECTION 2 INSULATION MATERIALS AND PROPERTIES 2.1 DEFINITION OF INSULATION Insulations are defined as those materials or combinations of materials which retard the flow of heat energy by performing one or more of the following functions: 1. Polyisocyanurate or polyiso is a thermosetting type of plastic, closed-cell foam that contains a low-conductivity, hydrochlorofluorocarbon-free gas in its cells. And sometimes I delve in Python programming. Insulation effectiveness is measured by its thermal resistance value, or R-value, a number between 1 and 60 that reflects the material’s resistance to heat transfer. Both MEPS and XPS are often used as the insulation for structural insulating panels (SIPs) and insulating concrete forms (ICFs). How to insulate shipping container homes means you have to consider the R-values of your insulation material. Foamed-in-place applications of polyisocyanurate insulation are usually cheaper than installing foam boards, and perform better because the liquid foam molds itself to all of the surfaces. Blown-in / loose-fill insulation. Depending upon the size and orientation of the air space, this can add another R-2 to the overall thermal resistance. It has a high relative permittivity of insulator material. In most U.S. climates, vapor diffusion retarders can help prevent moisture problems, increase energy efficiency, and improve comfort in homes. A medium-density batt offers R-13 for the same space. Each insulator can have multiple insulating discs. Cellulose insulation includes cellulose cells that have natural insulating power. In existing structures, installers remove a strip of exterior siding, usually about waist high; drill a row of three inch holes, one into each stud bay, through the wall sheathing; insert a special filler tube to the top of the wall cavity; and blow the insulation into the building cavity, typically to a density of 3.5 lb. Difference Between Insulator, Insulating and Dielectric Materials In the transmission and distribution systems, six different types of insulators are used. These panels, although more expensive, are more fire and water vapor-diffusion resistant than EPS. If you have any point to discuss about insulators, write in the comment section. Important Electrical Insulator Properties. Your articles are Very knowledgeable, & useful for electrical engineer, electrical contractor, electrical students. It must be added, thermal insulation is primarily based on the very low thermal conductivity of gases. The better the insulation, the higher the R-value. The process of fusing straw into boards without adhesives was developed in the 1930s. They also insulate 30% to 40% better for given thickness. Cellulose insulation is used in both new and existing homes, as loose-fill in open attic installations and dense packed in building cavities such as walls and cathedral ceilings. Post type insulators are mostly used in substations, but in some cases, they can be used for overhead lines also. Types of Insulation. Insulator is a material or a device which restrics the flow of free electrons (or charge). Conserve … Best for: Do-it-yourself insulation of … Depending upon the size and orientation of the air space, this can add another R-2 to the overall thermal resistance. Most manufacturers use 40% to 60% recycled glass content. Its R-value is similar to other fibrous insulation types. Know what best suits your purpose. Open-cell foam cells are not as dense and are filled with air, which gives the insulation a spongy texture and a lower R-value. One variation of fiberglass loose-fill insulation is the Blow-In-Blanket System® (BIBS). These materials are very poor conductors of heat and are therefore good thermal insulators. Blowing the insulation should take less than 1.5 hours and the whole job can be completed in less than 4 hours based on a 1,000 sq. Sprayed or foamed-in-place applications of polyurethane insulation are usually cheaper than installing foam boards, and these applications usually perform better because the liquid foam molds itself to all of the surfaces. EPS and XPS are both made from polystyrene, but EPS is composed of small plastic beads that are fused together and XPS begins as a molten material that is pressed out of a form into sheets. The term "mineral wool" typically refers to two types of insulation material: Mineral wool contains an average of 75% post-industrial recycled content.
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Downtown Austin Alliance Foundation presents second installment of Writing on the Walls
Urban art series to result in four new murals on Bouldin Creek
The Downtown Austin Alliance Foundation is partnering with Manifold Real Estate, Oak Pointe Real Estate and Michael Hsu Architecture to install four murals on Bouldin Creek, a newly constructed office building at the intersection of Oltorf Street and South Lamar Boulevard. The four murals are a continuation of Writing on the Walls, the Foundation’s signature program that spotlights urban art and elevates the importance of art, diversity and public spaces in the community.
“We are excited about the second installation of Writing on the Walls and working with the public and private sectors, and nonprofit organizations to pair local artists with walls and funders,” Molly Alexander, executive director of the Downtown Austin Alliance Foundation, said. “The project at Bouldin Creek allows us to support the work of local artists while creating new and unique places to connect downtown with our community and along transit corridors.”
The murals at Bouldin Creek celebrate the characteristics and cultural significance of South Austin and the greenbelt. Organic elements and colors inspired by nature blend with structure to create modern art with features that are familiar to Austin.
“We integrate art into our projects to design memorable experiences. Local artists and craftspeople elevate spaces and offer perspectives that are reflective of the community,” Micah Land, partner at Michael Hsu Office of Architecture, said. “These murals reflect the legacy of the site with references to cooling water currents—carving forward paths, ebbs and flows, upward movement and urban patterns that echo the energy of Austin.”
The four murals are all designed by local artists—Soledad Ferandez-Whitechurch, Tyler Hobbs, Sophie Roach and Jana Swec. The first of the four installations will begin on Thursday, October 29.
Soledad Fernadez-Whitechurch’s mural located in the parking garage will be an amalgam between geographical imagery and a modern and optimistic outlook for the future.
Tyler Hobbs was the first artist to commence painting on the most visible wall on the front of the building facing Oltorf. In his work, he explores how patterns, processes and randomness can both capture and distort elements of our natural reality.
Sophie Roach painted the mural inside the building lobby using familiar shapes, patterns and her own intuition to create a unique visual language based on spontaneity and rhythm.
Jana Swec, a fine art painter, featured an ocean horizon on her mural that is also located in the parking garage.
The Foundation, which launched the inaugural Writing on the Wall series in March with the creation of Austin’s largest mural—among other activations and murals—works to foster a creative environment that enhances and improves public spaces for the community. It aims to empower Austinites and encourage social engagement through community-driven initiatives that celebrate the spirit of Austin. The Foundation is seeking new walls downtown and on transit corridors to help create new opportunities for art and expression in the community.
For more information about Writing on the Walls, click here.
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Generic: Tamoxifen
Tamoxifen is a drug that is used as a complementary therapy for breast cancer. It is used for a period of 5 years after the end of surgery and chemotherapy and has been shown in different studies to significantly reduce the likelihood of a recurrence of the tumor.
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Technically, it is classified as a selective modulator of estrogen receptors. Its mechanism of action is based on its antiestrogenic effect, that is, it blocks the action of this hormone that stimulates the development of tumor cells. It is not useful in all breast cancers, but only in those whose cells have specific estrogen receptors. Breast tumors are heterogeneous at the cellular level and only 60% present hormonal receptors of this type.
Its action is not limited to the breast, because different organs have receptors for estrogen. In the uterus it has paradoxically an estrogenic agonist effect and in the bone it improves the assimilation of calcium, which is why it is beneficial in osteoporosis, in the case of menopausal women. Since in the premenopausal women it can generate the opposite effect, increasing the loss of bone mineral density.
In some patients, an increase in the thickness of the innermost part of the uterus (endometrial hyperplasia) occurs as a side effect. In less than 1% of people treated can cause the onset of uterine cancer, so annual reviews are recommended to detect this condition. Other side effects are hot flashes and vaginal dryness.
Despite the adverse effects that are sometimes serious, the benefits of the drug are far superior to its disadvantages, improving the quality of life and survival of patients.
It has been seen in several studies that tamoxifen can produce an increase in transaminases (ALAT and ASAT) in blood, which are biomarkers of liver damage, the damage in hepatocytes makes these enzymes go into the bloodstream. An increase in the size of the hepatocytes was also observed, which leads to the appearance of cholestasis and steatohepatitis and there have also been cases of cholestatic jaundice and fatty liver, which may even cause the death of the patient.
In published cases, two lesion patterns predominate: cholestasis with or without cytolysis and steatohepatitis, pattern of lesion similar to that produced by estrogen.
The conclusion we reached is that although the hepatotoxicity of tamoxifen is not very frequent, it can cause chronic liver damage with or without steatohepatitis, most of the times with little clinical symptoms, so that all patients under treatment with tamoxifen for prolonged periods they must have a periodic control of liver enzymes, as a way to prevent chronic injuries.
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Stuart H. Bright, of Bright Industries, Named Drug Prevention Resources Board Chair
byBecky Vance, CEO
Media Contact: Becky Vance, CEO
Email: bvance@dpri.com
(Irving, Texas) – Drug Prevention Resources, the oldest non-profit prevention organization in Texas, has appointed Stuart H. Bright chairman of its board of directors. Mr. Bright previously served as vice chairman and is also chief compliance officer for Bright Equities, LLC, a boutique financial services firm operated by Bright Industries, a family owned and operated company with expertise in oil and gas, commercial and residential real estate development, home building, hospitality, and financial services.
Prior to working with Bright Equities, he served as vice president for State Bank & Trust Co., a family-owned and operated community bank with three locations in the Dallas Metroplex.
“Drug Prevention Resources is incredibly fortunate to have someone with Stuart’s expertise and community commitment leading our board,” said Becky Vance, president and CEO, Drug Prevention Resources. “Stuart is a true servant leader who will honor our 80-year history and guide us as we proudly serve the communities of North Texas with evidence-based prevention programming for many more years to come.”
Mr. Bright is a graduate of Southern Methodist University. He and his wife, Heidi, live in Lewisville with their three daughters. He is an avid hunter/shooter, spending as much time on the family ranch as possible. He also enjoys golfing and is a member at The Lakes at Castle Hills.
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Drug Prevention Resources (DPR) is a Texas 501(c)(3) nonprofit charitable organization on a mission to create the first drug-free generation through collaboration, innovation, education and advocacy. We collaborate with community partners to educate youth and adults on the power of prevention. We work with community leaders to advocate for policies that keep kids and communities healthy, safe and thriving. Innovation has fueled our agency and helped us remain a leader in North Texas for nearly 85 years.
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Business News›Startups›Indian startups shine bright in many hues
Indian startups shine bright in many hues
ET Bureau Last Updated: Aug 09, 2016, 09:22 AM IST
The Economic Times Startup Awards serve not only to recognise enterprise, innovation and achievement but also to bring out the diversity in India’s startup universe
The Economic Times Startup Awards serve not only to recognise enterprise, innovation and achievement but also to bring out the diversity in India’s startup universe.
The Awards choose winners in eight categories, for each of which a shortlist is made for an eminent jury to choose from. The Startup Of The Year proved to be Freshdesk, a company that offers a cloud-based customer engagement software service to businesses big and small. It has customers around the world and competes with the likes of Salesforce.
The award for Top Innovator went to a biotech company, Mitra, which works on cancer drugs. Zerodha, a discount broking firm that plans to get a non-banking finance company licence, won the Bootstrap Champ award.
Ather Energy, which makes electric scooters, snagged the award for Campus startups, for which IIT-Chennai seems particularly hospitable. Meena Ganesh won the Woman Ahead award for her role in founding many companies, including Protea, which offers medical care at home.
AgroStar is the star Social Enterprise among startups, for its attempt to bring technology to the farmer. For canny funding of startups, Avnish Bajaj was an easy choice, with his investments in Ola, Quikr and Practo. Freecharge founder Kunal Shah is the Comeback Kid of the year.
Clearly, Indian startups defy the stereotype of being e-commerce clones for the most part. Some have ambition on a global scale, and some are well on the way to achieving it. Some address felt needs in heathcare, financial management and farming. Campuses spawn big dreams from small budgets. Women are still a rarity in the startup world but are making their presence felt. And discerning investors abound, to fuel dreams and convert ideas into profitable businesses. And Indian startups are just starting up!
This piece appeared as an editorial opinion in the print edition of The Economic Times.
ET Startup Awards 2016
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Home Personal Financy Diversity star Robert Anker dies in car crash at 27 – BBC...
Diversity star Robert Anker dies in car crash at 27 – BBC News
Image copyright @robanker90
Robert Anker, a former member of dance group Diversity, who won Britain’s Got Talent in 2009, has died in a car crash in Canada.
The 27-year-old was killed when his car collided with a pick-up truck in Ontario, local media reports say.
Mr Anker, who was born in Essex, moved to Canada last year and married his girlfriend, Cyndi.
The group said in a Twitter post that he “inspired so many with his talent and was taken far too soon”.
Skip Twitter post by @Diversity_Tweet
A former member of our group has tragically passed away. He inspired so many with his talent and was taken far too soon.
R.I.P Rob
— Diversity (@Diversity_Tweet) July 29, 2017
End of Twitter post by @Diversity_Tweet
After making his name with the 2009 Britain’s Got Talent winners, Mr Anker went on to appear in videos for music stars such as Paloma Faith and Jessie J.
‘Incredible talent’
He also appeared in the West End show Thriller Live. In a Facebook post, the show announced that it was dedicating Friday evening’s performance to Mr Anker’s memory.
“He had incredible talent, great personality and was very popular amongst many. We send our deepest condolences to his family and friends,” the post said.
X-Factor choreographer Dean Lee tweeted: “Rob Anker. I have no words to speak after hearing of your passing. This is truly heart breaking. Thanks for the memories. Shine bright.”
Skip Twitter post by @DeanAnthLee
Rob Anker. I have no words to speak after hearing of your passing. This is truly heart breaking. Thanks for the memories.
Shine bright.
— D E A N L E E (@DeanAnthLee) July 28, 2017
End of Twitter post by @DeanAnthLee
His cousin, Rochelle Hanson, has set up a JustGiving page to raise money to help family members attend his funeral in Canada.
She wrote: “On 27th July 2017, Robert Anker aged 27 was involved in a fatal car accident in Canada and sadly passed away at the scene.
“We are raising funds for his family to be able to cover all costs for their trip to go and arrange his funeral in Canada.
“We would love to ensure that his family don’t worry or stress about money at this time.”
York Regional Police in Canada said the crash occurred on July 27 just before 06:00 local time (11:00 BST), when a Chevy Cobalt collided with a Ford F550 pick-up truck.
They said the 27-year-old driver of the Chevy died at the scene, while the driver of the truck was uninjured.
A Foreign Office spokesman said: “We are aware of the death of a British man in Canada. We are providing assistance to his family at this sad time”.
Read more: www.bbc.co.uk
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Home > ~ Tangents > Non Sequiturs > Harreld Hire Alibi Update
Harreld Hire Alibi Update
September 30, 2015 By Mark 4 Comments
Among the new facts disclosed last Thursday, surrounding the hiring of J. Bruce Harreld to be president of the University of Iowa, was the previously unknown role played by Iowa State University President Steven Leath.
The day before applications were due for the vacant University of Iowa presidency, J. Bruce Harreld met with four members of the Board of Regents and had dinner with Iowa State University President Steven Leath.
Given the importance of Friday’s unintentional admissions by members of the Board of Regents that Harreld’s hire was indeed improper, it’s understandable that Leath’s apparently minor role in the recruitment of Harreld has received little attention. In a follow-up piece about Leath on Friday, however, Press-Citizen and Des Moines Register higher-education reporter Jeff Charis-Carlson detailed a particularly noteworthy assertion by Leath that fundamentally changes the narrative surrounding Regents President Bruce Rastetter.
From the beginning of the Harreld saga until last Friday the focus of attention has been on the hiring process and result. Lurking in the background, also from the beginning, has been a deep suspicion by many that Regents President Bruce Rastetter orchestrated the hiring of the candidate he wanted all along. But until last Friday that issue remained secondary to questions about the hire itself, including whether Harreld was even qualified for the job.
As might be expected in that context, each new defense of the regents’ unanimous vote for Harreld addressed those same concerns, including responses from Governor Terry Branstad, from acting University of Iowa President Jean Robillard, from Regents President Rastetter himself, and from other members of the Board of Regents. All spoke in support of the election, in support of the regents’ right to make the decision they made, and in support of Harreld.
Now here are the opening graphs of Charis-Carlson’s PC/DSM article.
The president of Iowa State University said Friday it was his idea to host a dinner this summer for Bruce Harreld, who was then a prospective applicant for the University of Iowa presidency.
ISU President Steven Leath said that Bruce Rastetter, president of the Iowa Board of Regents, had asked Leath for permission to share his contact information with Harreld, to which Leath agreed. Rastetter was recruiting Harreld, a former IBM executive, along with a few other candidates, as a replacement for then retiring UI President Sally Mason.
After Harreld and Leath made contact, Leath invited him to dinner July 30 at the president’s residence. The dinner was preceded by several meetings in Ames that Rastetter had arranged between Harreld and four other members of the Iowa Board of Regents, two of whom were members of the UI Presidential Search and Screen Committee.
Take a look at the first sentence in the text above. That is not a statement in defense of Harreld as a candidate, nor a statement in defense of the regents’ right to hire whomever they choose, nor a statement in defense of the hiring process, and it is not a statement in defense of the reputations of the other eight members of the Board of Regents. It is, instead, the first statement I can find, by someone in a position to know, which is solely a defense against the percolating charge that Regents President Rastetter personally orchestrated the hiring of J. Bruce Harreld.
Until now — and admittedly I may have missed something — there has only been speculation about Rastetter’s behind-the-scenes role. Until last Friday, any defense of Rastetter’s actions by others, and by Rastetter himself, spoke solely to the hire. And yet suddenly, on Friday, we have Leath’s flat statement that it was his idea to invite Harreld to dinner — a statement that has virtually nothing to do with Harreld’s hire, and everything to do with whether Rastetter orchestrated the hiring process.
Which means that right there is an alibi. And from the sitting president of Iowa State University, no less.
What’s particularly curious about Leath’s unambiguous assertion — that he himself proposed hosting a dinner with Harreld which did take place — is that it makes no sense given the context of the interaction that Leath admits to having had with Rastetter. Despite the fact that Rastetter openly acknowledges orchestrating Harreld’s visit with other regents on that day, at Rastetter’s own place of business in Ames, Leath asserts a diametrically opposed narrative in which Rastetter calls him for permission to give out what I assume to be Leath’s personal contact info, as opposed to the readily available contact information used to reach Leath in his official capacity as the President of Iowa State University.
But if Rastetter said nothing about Harreld’s schedule for that day, how would Leath know to invite Harreld to dinner? And if Rastetter did detail Harreld’s schedule, wouldn’t the open block of time around dinner have to be communicated by Rastetter to Leath? If so, why is Leath making such an iron-clad factual statement when it’s unnecessary? Are we really to believe that Rastetter made no mention of Harreld being free for dinner? Or that Rastetter made no mention of when Harreld was leaving town? Or that Rastetter made no mention of how hungry Harreld might be at the end of his long day privately hobnobbing with four members of the Board of Regents? Why go out on that limb when you don’t have to go out on that limb?
The obvious answer is that Leath is providing Rastetter with the first salvo in what will become a barrage of similar alibis designed to give Rastetter plausible deniability. And as far as that goes, if the two men stick to their stories nobody will ever be able to prove otherwise. And yet, simply by providing Rastetter with an alibi for the dinner that Leath had with Harreld, Leath has now made himself a player in the original question, which is how someone with Harreld’s demonstrable lack of qualifications managed to get himself unanimously elected by the regents.
Despite being presented three fully qualified candidates with excellent credentials, the Board of Regents, either as a result of incompetence or corruption, gave preferential treatment to the one finalist who couldn’t spell IBM on his resume after working for IBM for thirteen years. Then they gave that candidate $4,000,000. It’s the kind of thing that looks worse and worse the closer you look at it, and has so much stink on it that you can’t blame everyone involved for wafting up to the press and asserting that nothing improper happened, even as every attempt to do so makes it that much more apparent that everything about the Harreld hire was improper.
Had Leath simply said that Rastetter asked him to host a dinner, Leath would be in the clear on a day when Rastetter’s manipulative fingers were already all over Harreld’s itinerary. But that’s not what Leath said. What Leath said was that dinner was his idea, and that Rastetter — a man known to broker deals all over the country on behalf of Governor Terry Branstad, and the man who brokered Harreld’s face-to-face meeting with four other regents on that same day — merely called Leath for permission to disclose Leath’s personal contact info to Harreld.
Now, if you’re still finding it hard to imagine that the fine, upstanding members of the Board of Regents conspired to elect J. Bruce Harreld — with or without the aid of acting University of Iowa President Jean Robillard, and Iowa State University President Steven Leath — or even that eight of them just took their marching orders from Regents President Rastetter, let alone that they all then turned around and lied about it to the press, remember this from an earlier post about the Harreld hire.
From the point of view of business and politics, while not everyone is corrupt, the only thing that matters is whether an action — an actual deed — is illegal or not. Or, more accurately, provably illegal. From that perspective it literally does not matter what a businessperson says or what a politician says. Unless you’ve got a promise in writing you’ve got nothing, because the only real test is whether an act or deed will hold up in court. Yes, people in business and politics pay lip service to customers and citizens, but in the end the only thing they fear — the only authority that gives them pause — is the legal system. Not the law, but the legal system.
Which is of course why people in business and politics often work as hard at undermining the legal system as they do at selling goods or implementing policy. If there’s only one obstacle keeping you from unbridled power, then weakening, co-opting or corrupting that obstacle is going to be a top priority. If you’re in business, maybe you bend the law legally, through campaign contributions and brokering power behind the scenes. Or maybe you do it illegally, by paying people off or threatening to reveal them in compromising situations. If you’re in politics maybe you bend the law legally, by appointing people to the courts who share your views. Or maybe you do it illegally by taking bribes. Or, if you’re really corrupt, maybe you just make up laws to suit your needs.
Speaking of which, did you know it’s a federal crime to lie to the United States Government? Because a lot of people don’t know that. All you have to do is say something that’s not true when asked, and you can be charged with breaking a federal law even if you’ve otherwise done nothing wrong over the course of your entire life.
Making false statements (18 U.S.C. § 1001) is the common name for the United States federal crime laid out in Section 1001 of Title 18 of the United States Code, which generally prohibits knowingly and willfully making false or fraudulent statements, or concealing information, in “any matter within the jurisdiction” of the federal government of the United States, even by mere denial. A number of notable people have been convicted under the section, including Martha Stewart, Rod Blagojevich, Scooter Libby, Bernard Madoff, and Jeffrey Skilling.
This statute is used in many contexts. Most commonly, prosecutors use this statute to reach cover-up crimes such as perjury, false declarations, and obstruction of justice and government fraud cases.
Normally, unless you’re put under oath in court, you can lie all you want and it’s not illegal — and that includes lying to the press, even if you’re an elected official. There is, literally, no law against it. You can say anything you want, and it means nothing in terms of the legal system. (Perhaps not surprisingly, politicians and their cronies tend to make broad use of that discretionary power.)
Now, here are two people who do know about Section 1001: Governor Terry Branstad and Regents President Bruce Rastetter. They know because it’s the third rail in every waking minute of their lives. As long as they don’t screw up and tell a flat-out lie to the United States of America they can pretty much do what they want.
And here are three people who should bone up on Section 1001: acting University of Iowa President Jean Robillard, University of Iowa President-elect J. Bruce Harreld, and Iowa State University President Steven Leath. They should do that so they don’t accidentally tell a lie to someone who can put them in jail, because it doesn’t have to be a big lie at all. Just a little lie — like the kind you tell when you’re covering for someone — can trigger a conviction under Section 1001.
So while it’s super-great that ISU President Stephen Leath has stepped up to forcefully reassure everyone that Regents President Bruce Rastetter did not orchestrate Leath’s dinner with Harreld, after Rastetter already acknowledged orchestrating Harreld’s meeting with four other regents at Rastetter’s place of business in Ames on that same day, I’m not sure his reassurance counts for much. In fact, it’s hard to imagine that Rastetter didn’t at least discuss the idea of dinner, or suggest it, or arrange it in advance, or flat-out tell Leath he was going to have dinner with Harreld or else, so I have to wonder how Leath’s answer might differ if he was talking to a U.S. Attorney instead of the local press.
As to what to do about all these fine-upstanding people who keep coming forward to explain the stink on them, here’s what I said close to two weeks ago, while discussing the stain of corruption that the hire was leaving on the otherwise sterling reputation of the state of Iowa:
And a good first step would be removing Bruce Rastetter from the Board of Regents, replacing Jean Robillard as the acting president of the University of Iowa, giving J. Bruce Harreld the opportunity to withdraw from the position that was offered to him before he is deposed, and freeing the remaining members of the regents from whatever oath of secrecy or pledge of confidentiality or double-secret probation is being used as a pretext to keep them from speaking to the press and explaining why we should still have faith in them.
Having now heard incoherent rationales from several other members of the Board of Regents, I have to agree with the University of Iowa’s Faculty Assembly for the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences — which reached the same conclusion over a week ago — that the entire board must be replaced. Unfortunately, while Tuesday’s taunting and condescending defense of the board by Governor Branstad was obviously designed to enrage the faculty and change the subject, it really only spoke to how disingenuous he seems to have become after six terms in office.
If Governor Branstad does want to leave the current board open to further investigation for the improper hire of J. Bruce Harreld, then the claim that he has no power to replace corrupt political appointees does give him political cover when that day arrives. On the other hand, the governor surely also knows that he could simply ask the sitting board members — whom he appointed — to resign, and they would all do so in order to restore faith in the board and in the governor himself.
If there are any elders in the state who can grasp the damage being done, and they have influence, I would suggest that it’s time to void the Harreld hire and make a change at the Board of Regents before it becomes too late to make a change. Which is of course what Governor Branstad and Regents President Rastetter are stalling for. Then again, that’s how long-term politicians who confuse themselves with the state usually fall.
One minute they’re throwing their political weight around like a schoolyard bully because that’s all they know. Then the next minute one of their corrupt cronies is getting investigated and perhaps even flipped by the federal government, prompting heads of major corporations to mysteriously resign in the middle of the night. All those years spent hammering together a thin facade of respectability, and in the end it gets blown to smithereens by the pathological desire for unbridled power.
Filed Under: Non Sequiturs Tagged With: Harreld
« « Harreld Hire Impropriety Update | Harreld Hire Hijacking Update » »
Ditchwalk Delivered via E-Mail
TV says
It is funny that the paper Harreld presented to Mary Andringa in Ames is “Leading Proactive Punctuated Change” by Michael Tushman, Charles O’Reilly and Bruce Harreld. The paper not read by Andgringa. But Harreld is 3rd author, indicating he didn’t write it.
Maybe Tushman is interested in the presidency?
I believe Andringa also wrote this: “Higher education, as you articulated in our meeting, is heading toward crisis,” she said. “Crisis necessitates change — it may be the big challenge that can energize you in the next 5 years.”
Wonder what crisis she knows about?
And this: Mr. Harreld “was installed in his position for a particular purpose,” Mr. McLeod said, “and that is to ‘turn the university around.’”
What is getting turned around?
Lastly people confuse Boston Chicken with Boston Market. Harreld led Boston Chicken, which went bankrupt a couple years after he left. He was also sued for the IPO where it was claimed the officers inflated Boston Chicken’s IPO price to enrich management.
Ditchwalk says
The Harreld hire, from both the point of view of the regents and Harreld himself, is simply a marketing campaign. There is no ‘there’ there — either in his work experience or his later career as a consultant.
You can see that, painfully, in the video of his presentation, where he keeps falling back on the safety of his ‘great to greater’ line. Even for guruspeak it’s sad.
I believe Boston Chicken became Boston Market in 1995, for marketing reasons. (Broadening the appeal, etc.)
Comment Policy: Ditchwalk is a wild place, but not without tending. On-topic comments are welcomed, appreciated and preserved. Off-topic or noxious comments are, like invasive species, weeded out.
Harreld Hire Hijacking Update says:
[…] you read the previous post you probably found yourself thinking something like […]
Harreld Hire Leath Update says:
[…] — as far as I can tell — who has given Regents President Bruce Rastetter even the teensiest alibi against the charge that Rastetter rigged the election of President-elect J. Bruce Harreld at the […]
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This is the long awaited 5 string version of the Marcus Miller Signature bass.
As opposed to the Japanese made 4 string, the 5 string version is made in the US, using only top materials. Furthermore, Marcus joined the Fender R&D from the first day in order to develop a 5 string that he could be proud of.
As you probably know, simply making a 5 string version of a really good 4 stringer is no warranty at all that the bass will sound anything like it's cousin, and this does not only affect the sound and performance of the low B, but also the overall feel and sound of the instrument. With the 4 string version, it was just the Fender team recreating a bass as similar as possible to Marcus' own '77 Jazz Bass (and they did a great job, by the way), but in order to develop the 5 string version, they did not take anything for granted, and actually had to reject lots of bridges, preamps and pickup designs until they nailed it.
The result is a 5 string bass that really sounds and feels like a 4 string, and with a great low B that actually sounds like it is part from the same instrument (do you know what we mean?).
From Marcus Miller's website http://www.marcusmiller.com/
Marcus Miller:
"I've been working with Fender on the MM 5 (Marcus Miller 5 string model) for awhile now. It's the first time I really sat down and worked with someone on the design of a bass. The MM 4 is basically a copy of my existing 1977 4 string bass but I got into the 5 and worked to develop a bass that I would like.
The biggest difference is the curve of the neck (neck radius). The thing that bothers me about most 5's is that the necks feel very flat. It starts to feel like a classical acoustic guitar. For the MM 5 we worked on making the neck radius more round - more in the direction of the curve of an acoustic bass neck (although not as drastic). The result is an instrument that feels REALLY good in your hands. Guys at Fender said this was the best feeling 5 string they ever played.
The spacing between the strings is great for slapping or finger style. Some 5 strings are difficult to slap on because the strings are so close together. I also feel like close spacing prevents you from really digging into a note. It's cool when you're playing certain styles where you are really concentrating on your bass. But when you're in the middle of some funk or when you're headbanging or dancing and playing, you really need to be able to dig into your notes!
Next, we worked on the tuning of the pre-amp. This is where you determine what frequencies the pre-amp will affect. We started with a tuning similar to my 4 string then adjusted it to help the B string sound like it blends in with the rest of the instrument. We also worked to give the bass a great sound with the pre-amp off. This is a sound I've been using more and more. When you play with the pre-amp off, it sounds more like a classic Jazz Bass - more growly.
The bridge is a new design from Fender. We went through a bunch of bridges (they were sending me all sorts of bridges made from all types of exotic metals!) and decided that this one felt/sounded the best.
What I like best about the bass is that it still has that classic feel and sound. If Fender had made a 5 string bass in 1977, this would be it.
With this bass, you can play as modern as you want or as 'old school' as you want and you won't have to change basses.
The MM 5 is produced here in the states, as opposed to the MM 4 which is made in Japan. The extra features along with the domestic production is what accounts for the increase in price. The MM 5 is still inexpensive compared to other 5's (btw, the 4 string is a ridiculous bargain in my opinion!)."
Fender Marcus Miller V Natural (USA)
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Marleaux Strings 30-128
Gruvgear Fretwraps String Mute Large x1
Tokai SGB60 Cherry
DAddario EXL 280 Piccolo 20-52
Boreal Orange 3m
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Pamelia Brott
EPC Members Commended at the CEHHS Faculty & Staff Recognition Ceremony
Fourteen members of EPC were commended at the College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences Faculty and Staff Recognition Ceremony on April 25, 2018.
To see photos from the event, please go to the “EPC at the 2018 CEHHS Faculty & Staff Recognition Ceremony” album on our EPC Facebook page.
CEHHS Board of Advisors Faculty Support Award
Awarded to recognize current/past accomplishments or future projects of one outstanding faculty member for teaching/research/service efforts in any area within CEHHS.
Gary Skolits
Program Coordinator & Associate Professor in Evaluation, Statistics & Measurement
“It truly was a special privilege to be recognized in my role as an EPC faculty member. The nomination by faculty peers alone was a special honor to me; the subsequent commendation at the college level will always remain a highlight of my faculty career.”
Helen B. Watson Outstanding Faculty Research Award
Awarded to a full-time faculty member or team within the departments of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies; Educational Psychology and Counseling; Kinesiology, Recreation, and Sport Studies; or Theory and Practice in Teacher Education.
Louis Rocconi
Assistant Professor in Evaluation, Statistics & Measurement
“It is a tremendous honor to be selected for this prestigious award. I am truly humbled to receive recognition for my research and grateful to be a part of this esteemed department and college.”
Louie M. & Betty M. Phillips Faculty Support in Education
Awarded to a faculty member in the College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences related to the preparation of teachers involved in K-12 education. This award serves to highlight outstanding research and teaching efforts.
Melinda Gibbons
Program Coordinator & Professor in Counselor Education
“I am humbled and honored to be recognized for my research and outreach activities. I am also happy to have the opportunity for others to learn about the need for this type of engaged scholarship.”
Casey A. Barrio Minton
Professor in Counselor Education
– Recognized under Presidents of National/International Professional Organizations for being President-Elect of Southern Association of Counselor Education & Supervision
Program Coordinator & Associate Professor in School Counseling
– Recognized under Recipients of National/International Professional Awards for National Career Development Association Fellow
Synthia Clark
Administrative Specialist I
– Recognized under UT Support Staff Service Awards for five years of service
Stephanie Cowherd
Associate Director of Center for Literacy, Education & Employment
– Recognized under Grants & Contracts Recipients for the TN DHS-DRS, Tennessee Department of Human Services, Division of Rehabilitation Services, $797,060
Lisa Crawford
– Recognized under Grants & Contracts Recipients for the Coordinated School Health Events, Tennessee Department of Education, $270,759
– Recognized under Grants & Contracts Recipients for the Partners in Education (PIE) Conference Support, Tennessee Department of Education, $1,308,909
– Recognized under Grants & Contracts Recipients for the TDOE Summer Trainings, Tennessee Department of Education, $621,980
Melinda M. Gibbons
– Recognized under Recipients of National/International Professional Awards for the Counseling Vision & Innovation Award from the Association for Counselor Education & Supervision
– Recognized under Chancellor’s Honors Awards for Research & Creative Achievement
Craig Howard
Assistant Professor of Instructional Technology
– Recognized under Recipients of National/International Professional Awards for the Distance Learning Best Practice Award from the Association for Educational Communications & Technology Division
Robert Kronick
Professor in Counselor Education & Director of University-Assisted Community Schools
– Recognized under Authors/Editors of Books & Assessments for Community Engagement: Principles, Strategies, and Practices
– Recognized under Authors/Editors of Books & Assessments for Wicked Problems and the Community School Solution
– Recognized under Recipients of National/International Professional Awards for Counselor Education of the Year from American Mental Health Counseling Association
R. Steve McCallum
Professor for School Psychology
– Recognized under Editors/Co-Editors of Peer Reviewed Publications for being Co-Founder & Consulting Editor of Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment
Program Coordinator & Associate Professor of Evaluation, Statistics & Measurement
– Recognized under Editors/Co-Editors of Peer Reviewed Publications for being Co-Editor of The Qualitative Review
Program Coordinator & Associate Professor in Adult Learning
– Recognized under Editors/Co-Editors of Peer Reviewed Publications for being Co-Editor of Adult Education Quarterly
– Recognized under Recipients of National/International Professional Awards for the Outstanding Service Award by The American Association of Adult and Continuing Education
Duren Thompson
Instructional Designer & Program Coordinator
– Recognized under UT Support Staff Service Awards for twenty years of service
Lisa Yamagata-Lynch
Program Coordinator & Professor in Instructional Technology/Learning Environments & Educational Studies
CEHHS Faculty & Staff Recognition Ceremony
Center for Literacy, Education & Employment
University-Assisted Community Schools
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Duels of the Planeswalkers 2012: Wielding Steel Review (Part 1 of 2)
For every point, it seems, there must be a counterpoint. Much of our look at Duels of the Planeswalkers thus far has focused on decks that have either significantly evolved a previously-employed archetype (in Duels 2009), or instead chosen to focus on a different facet of the namesake planeswalker.
Today, we look at a deck that has remained largely unchanged.
Unsheathe Your Sword
Being a traditional White Weenie deck shell, Wielding Steel frontloads its creature contingent with a plethora of cheap beaters. The playset of Elite Vanguards should come as little surprise by now, as they’re a fixture of the preconstructed scene in decks featuring this archetype. They aren’t the only familiar faces. Weapons of the Warrior featured a pair each of the Kitesail Apprentice and Kor Duelist, and this updated list sees little reason to differ. Both of these naturally become better when equipped, not even counting the bonus conferred by whatever equipment you’ve stuck on them.
A new face appears in the form of a pair of Gideon’s Lawkeepers, a functional reprint of the Goldmeadow Harrier and a classic of type in White (see: Master Decoy, Stun Sniper). Tappers fill an important role in a swarm deck, letting you remove an opponent’s best blocker from contention. Of course, this usually comes at the cost of tapping your tapper, so it is not without an opportunity cost in terms of aggressive output.
Moving on to your two-drops, the backbone of the slot is another playset, this time of Glory Seekers. These are the Runeclaw Bears of White, dull but dependable. Kor Outfitters are another Kor creature that has a natural affinity for gear, and again we find a trio included in the deck. Once again, there are echoes of Weapons of the Warrior with the inclusion of the Stoneforge Mystic, even if as before the mana savings you can realise from her activated ability are fairly minimal.
With much of the deck behind us, we find some support players in the three-drops before we climb to the top of the mana curve for the closers. Gideon’s Avenger was another planeswalker-themed cycle card in Magic 2012, and synergised with the aforementioned Lawkeeper. Tap a creature down, the Avenger gets bigger and can attack with one less defender to worry about. There’s a further synergy here with the deck’s other three-drop, the Kor Hookmaster. A spell-on-a-stick, the Hookmaster can lock down an opposing creature for a turn, just what the Avenger likes to see.
Finally, we come to the top of the curve with some of the deck’s closing options. A pair of Serra Avengers are a classic White closer, a five-mana evasive threat. That’s dangerous enough once you land her, as she can support both on offense and defense, but in an equipment-filled deck she’s a natural target. Finally, there’s a Captain of the Watch. Another holdover from Gideon’s first deck, this does no favours to an argument for differentiation- this might be the least-evolved deck we’ve seen from one generation to the next.
Gideon’s Lawkeeper
Point it at the Enemy
The central point of Wielding Steel is its suite of equipment- indeed, it’s the deck’s raison d’etre. In the deck’s previous incarnation, we saw Kitesails, Trusty Machetes, and a Pennon Blade, and all three reapppear here in the same quantities. The Kitesails offer some provision for evasion, which is quite useful in a cheap, ground-based-assault deck that is susceptible to stalling in the red zone once an opponent starts bringing their larger threats on-line. Although this is mitigated somewhat by the presence of the tappers, making creatures harder to block without ‘wasting’ a card to do so is always good.
The Machete and Blade both are simple stats-pumpers, with the latter having the distinction of being an artifact that you can play for less through the Mystic. In lieu of a pair of Bone Saws, though, we get an Infiltration Lens from Scars of Mirrodin. This is a solid piece of gear that offsets the tendency of your creatures to be outclassed on the attack by giving you the prospect of free cards if they’re blocked. Although later on your cards are likely to be cheapp creatures given the concentration of them here, sometimes numbers rather than brute strength are what get you there.
There’s also a copy of Strider Harness. Somewhat expensive to play but very cheap to equip, this can help add a touch of aggression to the deck by letting your beaters hit faster. Of course, to get that you have to pay three mana for a card that does nothing on its own, so it’s almost like you’re simply ‘charging up’ and in the end breaking somewhat even.
For removal, again the deck wants to do most of its talking in the red zone. As a result, you’re looking at a trio of Arrests as the full extent of it, and it’s not nearly robust enough to reliably appear from game to game. In that sense, it’s almost like a bonus, but given the presence of the Lawkeepers you’re not entirely powerless to affect the other side of the table. All the same, it’s still better than the Guard Duties that polluted the previous deck.
Finally, there’s a single copy of Brave the Elements, an uncommon from Zendikar. Like many protection spells, this one can serve a number of purposes ranging from countermagic to ersatz removal spell to alpha-strike enabler. As a miser’s copy, it’s a useful inclusion.
Given the obvious parallels between this and Gideon’s previous deck, we don’t expect a lot of differences between how this and Weapons of the Warrior play out. Still, every deck deserves its own day, and we’ll be taking Gideon to war.
Read more from Duels of the Planeswalkers (2012), Duels of the Planeswalkers (digital)
← Duels of the Planeswalkers 2012: Machinations Review (Part 2 of 2)
Duels of the Planeswalkers 2012: Wielding Steel Review (Part 2 of 2) →
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Algorithms, Part I
Universidad de Princeton
4.9 (8,304 calificaciones) | 780 mil estudiantes inscritos
This course covers the essential information that every serious programmer needs to know about algorithms and data structures, with emphasis on applications and scientific performance analysis of Java implementations. Part I covers elementary data structures, sorting, and searching algorithms. Part II focuses on graph- and string-processing algorithms. All the features of this course are available for free. It does not offer a certificate upon completion.
Data Structure, Algorithms, Java Programming
Incredible learning experience. Every programmer in industry should take this course if only to dispel the idea that with the advent of cloud computing exponential algorithms can still ruin your day!
Extremely well designed course. The assignments touch all the concepts taught in the class. Lot of concepts get clarified when you try to reach 100% on each assignment. Highly recommend this course.
Elementary Sorts
We introduce the sorting problem and Java's Comparable interface. We study two elementary sorting methods (selection sort and insertion sort) and a variation of one of them (shellsort). We also consider two algorithms for uniformly shuffling an array. We conclude with an application of sorting to computing the convex hull via the Graham scan algorithm.
Sorting Introduction14:43
Selection Sort6:59
Insertion Sort9:28
Shellsort10:47
Shuffling7:39
Convex Hull13:50
Kevin Wayne
Phillip Y. Goldman '86 Senior Lecturer
Robert Sedgewick
William O. Baker *39 Professor of Computer Science
Now, we'll look at Shellsort which is a bit elementary on the face of it but it's not at all elementary as you'll see. The idea of Shellsort is that Insertion Sort is inefficient because elements really move only one position at the time even when we're kind of know that they have a long way to go. The idea behind Shellsort is that we'll move entries several positions at a time and the way we're going to do it, it's called h-sorting the array. So, an h-sorted array is h different inter leaves sorted sub-sequences so in this case with h=4 if we start at L and look at every fourth element - M, P, T - then it's sorted. If we start in the second place at E and look at every fourth element, it's sorted. So this is 4 interleave sequences, that's a 4-sorted array. And what we're going to do is implement a sorting method that h-sort for decreasing sequences of values of h. This is one of the oldest sorting methods invented by Shell in 1959. So, in this case, it starts out with the input example shown and then the 13-sort - a few items are moved, 4-sort - a few more are moved, and then finally, a 1-sort. And the idea is that each of the sorts can be implemented with only a few exchanges given that the previous ones happened. So first thing is how do we get an array h-sorted? That's actually pretty easy. We just use Insertion Sort but instead of going one back every time we come with a new item, we go h back. So for example when we come to this A in the Insertion Sort, then it's, we look at the array before that and then there was M and E in the positions three back so we exchange the A with the larger one to its left, that's M and then the other larger one to its left, that's E and then put it into position. So the code is the same as insertion, as for Insertion Sort, except that when we go backwards through the array we skip by h instead of just by one. That's how we h-sort an array. And the idea is we're going to use Insertion Sort because of two reasons based on our understanding of how Insertion Sort works. While the first thing is if the increments are big then the size of the sub arrays that we're sorting are pretty small so any sorting method including Insertion Sort is going to work well. But the other thing is if the increments are small because we've done previous h-sorts for bigger values of h, the array is partially sorted and so Insertions Sort is going to be fast. You wouldn't work to use Shellsort as the basis for h-sorting because that always takes quadratic time no matter what order there is in the array. So let's look at example of Shellsort with increment 7, 3, and 1. So, we start with this sort example and then 7-sorting it - just involves doing insertion sort but just reaching back 7 each time. In this case, the 4 subfiles stretched out at seven each only have two elements in them. And then we 3-sort. Now, because it's 7-sorted and a 3-sort elements are either already in placed or on a go back a few strides. On this case, it's only the A that goes back two. And then we 1-sort and again because of the fact that it's been 7-sorted and 3-sorted, the arrays are almost in order when it comes time to do the 1-sort and most of the items only go back one or two positions. So we have to do a few extra passes to do the higher sorts but the each element moves only a little bit on each path and that's how Shellsort gains its efficiency. So actually once you 1-sort, that's Insertion Sort so you're going to always get a sorted result. The only difference is how efficient is that. Now the intuition behind Shellsort and actually the mathematical fact is that if you've got an array that's h-sorted and then you k-sort it for another value k different from h, it's still h-sorted. This is one of those mathematical facts that seems obvious but then if you try to prove that maybe it's a little more subtle than you think. So, if you think of all this is, is, is trivial and easy, go ahead and try to write down a proof that a g-sorted array remains g-sorted even after it's h-sorted. But most people will accept that and it's a fact and that's how Shellsort gains efficiency. Now there's another problem is what increment sequence should we use for Shellsort. One of the first things you might think of is let's try powers of two. Actually that one doesn't work at all, very well at all because it winds up not comparing elements in even positions with elements in the odd positions until the 1-sort which means performance can be bad. Shell's original idea is to try powers to two minus one and that works okay. Knuth when he wrote his books in the 60s proposed the increment sequence 3x + 1. We'll start with the 1, 4, 13, 40, 121, 364 like that and that's good because it's easy to compute. When we're using in Shellsort of course, we find the largest increment less than our file size and then do the sorts for decreasing values of that increment. But finding the best increment sequence is a research problem that has confounded people for quite a long time. Here's an increment sequence that I found after maybe a year's work and it works well but nobody knows if that's the best one. So here's the implementation in Java of Shellsort for Knuth's 3x + 1 increment sequence. We'll just go ahead and compute the increments that are less than n, n / 3 and then starting at that increment whatever it is and say, we started 364 then next time we need an increment, we'll just divide it by 3, 364 integer divide by 3, 364 integer / 3 it gets 121, 40 and so forth. So, this h = h / 3 gets us to the next increment. And then, the implementation is just Insertion Sort. We just go through starting at h for i and when we do the insertion, the j loop, we decrement j by h each time, otherwise the code is exactly like Insertion Sort. So, just adding this extra loop for h-sorting and this extra loop to compute the increments to Insertion Sort, we get a slightly more complicated piece of code but its much, much more efficient. Here's what it looks like for a bigger array. We start with the randomly ordered input and you can see that it gets more and more in order on each time that we h-sort for the decreasing values of h. Here's an animation. This animation does the whole h-sort for each subarray. It's a little better feeling for what's going on. And now to do the high ones pretty quickly and now it's doing the 1-sort and again it steps through the array pretty quickly. If it's partially sorted it doesn't make much difference - does the higher sorts a little bit faster. But that's simple to implement and very efficient sorting algorithm. Now, the analysis of Shellsort is still open. Now, there's a few things that we can say. For example we can say that the number of comparison and the worst case is O(N3/2) for the 3x + 1 increments. But actually in practice it's much less than that. The problem is nobody knows an accurate model for describing the number of compares taken by Shellsort for any interesting increment sequence. This seems to be with a small value, multiple of n times the number of increments used which is some multiple maybe of n log n but nobody is been able to find an accurate model that proves that for any interesting increment sequence for Shellsort. So, why we are interested in this algorithm? Well, it's a simple idea that leads to substantial performance gains. It's very useful in practice because it's pretty fast except for very huge arrays. It's going to beat even the classical sophisticated methods for medium sized arrays. And it doesn't take much code. It's often used in embedded systems or in hardware sort type systems because there's so little code involved to implement it. And it just leads to a lot of interesting questions. This gets to the intellectual challenge of developing algorithms. If you think what we've been studying so far is trivial, go ahead and find a better increment sequence. Try some technique to discover one and try to say something about the average-case performance of Shellsort. People have been trying to do that for 50 years without a whole lot of success. So, the lesson is that we can develop good algorithms or good implementations without much code but there are some out there that are still waiting discovery. It could be that there are some increment sequence out there that make Shellsort more efficient than any other method, any of the sorting method that we know for pratical file size, no one can deny that. That's Shellsort or first non-trivial sorting method.
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Keyword: Vietnam news
Diplomacy helps raise Vietnam’s position in international arena: veteran diplomat
Over the past five years, Vietnam’s external affairs have produced outstanding results, thus helping consolidate national security, create favourable conditions for economic development and elevate the country’s position in the international arena.
Communications work for 13th National Party Congress prepared thoroughly: official
The communications work for the upcoming 13th National Party Congress has been prepared thoroughly and specifically, Le Manh Hung, Vice Chairman of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for Information and Education, has said.
Public security force enters “new ready” status to ensure safety for 13th National Party Congress
The Ministry of Public Security has made thorough preparations with hundreds of plans to ensure security and safety for the 13th National Party Congress starting on January 25, its spokesman Maj. Gen. To An Xo told the Vietnam News Agency in a recent interview.
Laos targets 3.8 billion USD from tourism revenue in 2021
The Lao government has set a revenue target of over 3.8 billion USD for the tourism industry in the next five years, with about 15 million tourists visiting the Southeast Asian country after the COVID-19 pandemic is under control.
Vietnam’s success in fighting COVID-19, maintaining growth a miracle: Japanese expert
Vietnam has made an impression on the international community as a safe country with great economic potential, and its success in controlling the COVID-19 pandemic and maintaining economic growth has been miraculous, a Japanese expert has said.
Winners of the fifth National Press Awards on Party building, called “Bua Liem Vang” (Golden Hammer & Sickle), were announced at a ceremony in Hanoi on January 13.
Winners of the fifth National Press Awards on Party building, called “Bua Liem Vang” (Golden Hammer & Sickle), were announced at a ceremony in Hanoi on January 13 evening.
People urged to enhance vigilance against terrorist organisation
People should stay vigilant against the “Trieu Dai Viet” (Viet Dynasty) that has been identified as a terrorist organisation by the Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security, a police officer has said.
Press centre for 13th National Party Congress to open on January 22
A press centre for the 13th National Party Congress is to be opened at the National Convention Centre in Hanoi on January 22.
Austal CEO: Australian firms see great chance to do successful business in Vietnam
Australian businesses will have a great chance to be successful with their business in Vietnam once they embrace and respect the local culture, treat Vietnamese workforce with respect, and speak a little slower than they do at home, said Austal CEO Patrick Gregg.
Bright future of sustainable development ahead for Phu Quoc city: official
Huynh Quang Hung, Chairman of the Phu Quoc City People’s Committee, talks to the Vietnam News Agency on the establishment of Phu Quoc city – the country’s first island city.
Singer Tung Duong dominates 2021 Devotion Music Awards
Vietnamese divo Tung Duong once again emerged as the big winner at the 16th Devotion Music Awards, held online in Hanoi and HCM City on January 7.
Online networking event boosts Vietnam-Thailand trade ties
A Vietnam-Thailand Online Business Matching event was held in Hanoi on January 7 to connect Vietnamese and Thai companies in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
VietnamPlus, Insider cooperate in digital transformation in journalism
The VietnamPlus e-newspaper of the Vietnam News Agency (VNA) and Insider, the world’s first multichannel growth management platform, on January 6 signed a strategic cooperation agreement with the aim of fostering digital transformation in journalism and potential of the communications market in data collection and analysis.
2021 Devotion Music Awards launched
Nominees for nine categories of the 2021 Cong hien (Devotion) Music Awards were announced by the Vietnam News Agency’s daily The Thao and Van Hoa (Sport and Culture) on January 4.
Winners of Press Awards marking 75th anniversary of NA announced
The most outstanding works of the Press Awards that marks the 75th anniversary of the National Assembly were announce at a ceremony in Hanoi on January 4 night. NA Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan was prominent among delegates at the award ceremony.
Top 10 issues that defined the global economy in 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a heavy impact on every aspect of life in 2020, and the global economy had been especially hard hit. The Vietnam News Agency has selected the ten most significant global economic issues during the year.
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#baseball #KBO
Underachieving ball club severs ties with American infielder
Sports 17:37 November 30, 2018
SEOUL, Nov. 30 (Yonhap) -- South Korean baseball club Lotte Giants severed ties with American second baseman Andy Burns on Friday.
The underachieving Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) team had been expected to cut Burns, and it was made official when the league office unveiled the list of released players from all 10 clubs.
Burns offered some pop from the bottom half of the Giants' lineup in 2018 with 23 home runs and 34 doubles, but he also committed 22 errors, 14 more than in 2017.
The Giants finished seventh and missed the postseason, despite boasting the KBO's highest payroll at 10.5 billion won (US$9.4 million).
KBO teams may still hold on to reserve rights to their foreign players even if they don't re-sign them. In that case, such players can't join another KBO team for five years without the consent of their previous team.
But players like Burns are free to sign with any KBO team.
Clubs have often been reluctant to grant foreign players their unconditional release because they didn't want their ex-players to compete for rivals and hurt them in the future.
In all, from 662 players on active rosters for the 2018 season, 66 players have since become free agents or are completing their mandatory military service. After the season, teams have cut an additional 73 players.
Among other foreign players, the NC Dinos, dead last in 2018 after a string of four consecutive playoff appearances, released all three of their imports -- pitchers Logan Verrett and Wang Wei-Chung, and outfielder Xavier Scruggs. They signed former major league right-hander Drew Rucinski earlier on Friday.
The reigning champion SK Wyverns chose to retain rights on right-hander Merrill Kelly, even though the American is expected to seek opportunities in the majors. The Wyverns are trying to re-sign Dominican right-hander Angel Sanchez and Canadian slugger Jamie Romak for another season.
The KT Wiz have already replaced their two American starters from the 2018 season, Dustin Nippert and Ryan Feierabend, with two new pitchers, and relinquished rights to both as well.
This likely spells the end of a long and mostly successful KBO career for the 37-year-old Nippert. The 2016 regular season MVP is the KBO's winningest foreign pitcher ever with 102 victories and also its longest-tenured foreign pitcher with eight seasons -- the first seven of which were with the Doosan Bears.
Nippert was 8-8 in 29 starts with a 4.25 ERA, perhaps not impressive enough to convince teams to pursue the aging veteran.
jeeho@yna.co.kr
Latest News Sports
News Focus Sports
KBO club threatens legal action vs. league office over discipline of team exec
With new-look roster, coaching staff, Eagles hoping to fly higher in KBO
With seasons on hold due to coronavirus, baseball and football leagues moving in opposite directions
Ryu Hyun-jin to slide into No. 1 spot in thin Blue Jays' rotation
S. Korean MLB hopefuls face long waiting game amid uncertainty, mixed reviews
Ex-President Park to take COVID-19 test after being exposed to patient
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Bashable
A multi-platform media and entertainment website
By Bassam Alkantar | 23/06/2016 | Companies | 0 comments
Grohe and the Egyptian Food Bank introduce roof plantations solutions
GROHE, the world leading German manufacturer of sanitary fittings, partnered with The Egyptian Food Bank (EFB) to address hunger in Egypt ahead of the holy month of Ramadan through the distribution of food packs and construction of roof plantations to more than 1000 families.
‘Turn Water into Food’ is the continuation of the Green Mosque program launched back in 2013 in Egypt were GROHE was able to save 5,000 liters of water following the installation of its faucets in Amr Ibn El-As Mosque. This year, the amount of saved water was converted into food packs and roof plantation modules to be distributed to families in the greatest need during Ramadan; literally ‘turning water into food’.
“At GROHE, takes sustainability very seriously” said Simon G Shaya GM and President, GROHE East Med, Middle East and Africa. “Our WaterCare program did not only increase water conservation awareness in the region, it has also enabled us to finance sustainable food resources for families in need to improve their standard of living. When it came to think of a partner to help us in our mission in Egypt, we could not think of any other than the Egyptian Food Bank.”
GROHE partnership with EFB this year didn’t only evolve around the distribution of food packs, but included the launch of a new roof plantation module, a sustainable water conserving agriculture method that can harvest 660 plants in one unit adding EGP 14,400 to one household’s yearly income.
“EFB is fortunate to have the generous support of GROHE to alleviate hunger and strengthen local communities”, said Dr. Moez El-Shodi, CEO and co-founder of the EFB. “Our roof plantation solution will provide needy families with sustained source of vegetables and fruits and a monthly income to help with their day to day living needs”.
GROHE supports local communities wherever possible, and as part of the GROHE WaterCare campaign – the more you save, the more you enjoy – GROHE is aiming to increase awareness of water consumption and conservation possibilities across the region.
Egyptian Food BankGrohe
Bassam Alkantar
Bassam Alkantar is a Lebanese Journalist and Human Rights Activist | bashable.tech is A Lebanese multi-platform media and entertainment website.
Making the World Better
This Holiday Season Huawei’s got your back with the best Gifts!
Hadeel Youness
T. Gargour & Fils announces the introduction of Mercedes-Benz E-Mobility in Lebanon
Maryana Sreyeldeen
As if Made from One Piece: GROHE Offers Individual System Solutions for the Entire Work Area Around the Kitchen Sink
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Embassies.info
British Consulate in Bordeaux, France
British Consulate in Bordeaux, France located at 2nd Floor, 353, Boulevard du President Wilson. View larger location map, get driving directions to the Consulate of United Kingdom or view address, phone, fax, email, office hours, official website.
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Difference between revisions of "User:Z5019799"
Maternal pregnancy is divided into three stages of growth and development - the first trimester which involves organogenesis via cellular proliferation, differentiation, and morphogenesis; the second trimester which is centred around organ development and functioning as well as foetal expansion and recognisable movement (quickening); and the third trimester during which the foetus undergoes rapid weight gain.
Pregnancy is divided into three stages of growth and development - the first trimester which involves organogenesis via cellular proliferation, differentiation, and morphogenesis; the second trimester which is centred around organ development and functioning as well as foetal expansion and recognisable movement (quickening); and the third trimester during which the foetus undergoes rapid weight gain.
==Second Trimester Foetal Development==
The '''second trimester''' encompasses the foetal weeks 12-24, or clinical gestational weeks 14-26, according to the UCSF Medical Centre and is referred to as the "golden period of pregnancy" since many first trimester discomforts such as nausea, fatigue, breast tenderness, and frequent urination are alleviated as the maternal body adapts to the changing gestational physiology - nevertheless increased placental secretions of progesterone, estrogen, and human placental lactogen, as well as increased abdominal pressure can elicit heartburn, constipation, abdominal pain, and leg cramps.
The '''second trimester''' encompasses the foetal weeks 12-24, or clinical gestational weeks 14-26, according to the UCSF Medical Centre and is referred to as the "golden period of pregnancy" since many first trimester discomforts such as nausea, fatigue, breast tenderness, and frequent urination are alleviated as the maternal body adapts to the changing gestational physiology - nevertheless increased placental secretions of progesterone, estrogen, and human placental lactogen, as well as increased abdominal pressure can elicit heartburn, constipation, abdominal pain, and leg cramps. <ref>University of California San Francisco; Pregnancy Trimesters; http://www.ucsfhealth.org/conditions/pregnancy/trimesters.html</ref>
During the second trimester of pregnancy, the organ rudiments formed in the embryo stage expand in size and further differentiate in response to cellular signalling and gene cascades to coordinate specialised physiological functions needed to support the growing foetus. The foetus begins to exert pressure on the mother's stomach and bladder, and by month 5 limb movements can be felt. In addition to foetal growth and development, the placenta also increases in size to increase foetal blood supply and secretes hormones to redirect maternal glucose, amino acids, and free fatty acids towards the foetus to satisfy its increasing metabolic demands.
During the second trimester of pregnancy, the organ rudiments formed in the embryo stage expand in size and further differentiate in response to cellular signalling and gene cascades to coordinate specialised physiological functions needed to support the growing foetus. The foetus begins to exert pressure on the mother's stomach and bladder, and by month 5 limb movements can be felt. In addition to foetal growth and development, the placenta also increases in size to increase foetal blood supply and secretes hormones to redirect maternal glucose, amino acids, and free fatty acids towards the foetus to satisfy its increasing metabolic demands. <ref>http://musculoskeletalsurgerycenter.com/your-health/?/101070/Fetal-Development-by-Trimester</ref>
<ref name ="Aboutkids">The Second Trimester; http://www.aboutkidshealth.ca/en/resourcecentres/pregnancybabies/pregnancy/fetaldevelopment/pages/the-second-trimester.aspx</ref>
<ref name = "Mayo">Foetal Development; http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-living/pregnancy-week-by-week/in-depth/fetal-development/art-20046151</ref>
<ref name = "Portal">Foetal Development by Trimester - Timeline of Body Systems; http://education-portal.com/academy/lesson/fetal-development-by-trimester-timeline-of-body-systems.html</ref>
==Skin and Musculoskeletal System==
During the second trimester the musculoskeletal system must develop to provide an adequate bony framework to enclose the internal viscera and confer structural support.
* In the embryonic stage, the paraxial mesoderm of the trilaminar embryonic disc differentiates into somites which are re-organised to form the epithelial dermomyotome (cells have tight junctions, regular shape, well organisation) and the mesenchymal sclerotome (loosely arranged and associated cells with large extracellular matrix that lack polarity and rigidity).
* In the embryonic stage<ref name ="Larsen"/>, the paraxial mesoderm of the trilaminar embryonic disc differentiates into somites which are re-organised to form the epithelial dermomyotome (cells have tight junctions, regular shape, well organisation) and the mesenchymal sclerotome (loosely arranged and associated cells with large extracellular matrix that lack polarity and rigidity).
** The dermatome forms the dermis (connective tissue underlying epidermis), the myotome forms the epaxial (dorsal) and hypaxial (ventrolateral) muscles of the body wall and limbs, and the sclerotome forms the vertebral column and intervertebral discs.
* In the second trimester, the '''epaxial and hypaxial muscles''' of the thorax and abdomen grow, become segmented, and innervated by the dorsal and ventral rami of the spinal nerves respectively. For example the hypaxial muscles form the intercostal muscles in the thorax and the external oblique, internal oblique, transversus abdominis, and rectus abdominis in the abdomen.
* In the second trimester, the '''epaxial and hypaxial muscles''' of the thorax and abdomen grow, become segmented, and innervated by the dorsal and ventral rami of the spinal nerves respectively. For example the hypaxial muscles form the intercostal muscles in the thorax and the external oblique, internal oblique, transversus abdominis, and rectus abdominis in the abdomen. <ref name = "Larsen">Larsen's human embryology(2009). In Schoenwolf G. C., Larsen W. J. (. J. (Eds.),. Philadelphia: Philadelphia : Churchill Livingstone/Elsevier. </ref>
* Growth of lone bones occurs by '''longitudinal expansion at epiphysial plates, widening of the diaphysis, and endochondrial ossification''' which continues throughout gestation and childhood. The long bones in the upper and lower limbs develop greatly in the second trimester to their expected sizes at childbirth.
* The extensive musculoskeletal development in the second trimester allows the baby to move its limbs - the mother may feel the baby kick as early as week 15 and usually by week 20 (this is called '''quickening''').
* The extensive musculoskeletal development in the second trimester allows the baby to move its limbs - the mother may feel the baby kick as early as week 15 and usually by week 20 (this is called '''quickening'''). <ref name = "Portal"/>
[[Image: Mesoderm_development_and_Pax_02.jpg|500px|center|Musculoskeletal development|]]
There is also considerable development of skin and fat during the second trimester.
* Skin epidermis, a derivative of the peripheral surface ectoderm, is thinly formed over the baby in week 15 and richly vascularised due to vascular endothelial growth factor and angiogenic growth factor. There is differentiation of the epidermis into its five distinct epithelial layers - stratum basalis, stratum spinosum, stratum granulosum, stratum lucidum, and stratum corneum - and loose connective tissue forms the dermal layer underneath. The epidermis and dermis are interdigitated by invaginating epidermal ridges and projecting dermal papillae which form the fingerprints.
* Skin epidermis, a derivative of the peripheral surface ectoderm, is thinly formed over the baby in week 15 and richly vascularised due to vascular endothelial growth factor and angiogenic growth factor. There is differentiation of the epidermis into its five distinct epithelial layers - stratum basalis, stratum spinosum, stratum granulosum, stratum lucidum, and stratum corneum - and loose connective tissue forms the dermal layer underneath. The epidermis and dermis are interdigitated by invaginating epidermal ridges and projecting dermal papillae which form the fingerprints. <ref name = "Larsen"/>
* Langerhan cells (antigen presenting cells), Merkel cells (tactile epithelium), and melanocytes (neural crest derivatives producing pigmentation) migrate into the epidermis.
* The '''ectoderm also forms accessory structures''' in the skin - e.g. fingernails (week 14/15), hair follicles, and sebaceous and sweat glands.
* In the fifth month of pregnancy (week 17-22), hair follicles form "soft, downy" '''lanugo hair''' which covers the foetal skin, head, and forms eyebrows. The '''vernix caseosa''' (week 17) covers the skin and protects the foetus from the surrounding amniotic fluid.
* Fat growth initiates as early as week 15 and becomes significant after week 23 - this is essential brown fat oxidation provides thermal insulation and protection from cold environments in the extra-uterine environment.
* Fat growth initiates as early as week 15 and becomes significant after week 23 - this is essential brown fat oxidation provides thermal insulation and protection from cold environments in the extra-uterine environment. <ref>http://www.baby2see.com/development/second_trimester.html</ref>
[[Image:Fetal_integumentary_histology_01.jpg|center|Maturation of epithelium in the epidermis|]]
==Respiratory System==
[[Image: Lung_branching.gif|right|thumb|x280px|Lung morphogenesis. Source http://dev.biologists.org/content/133/9/1611/F1.expansion.html]]
[[Image: Lung_branching.gif|right|thumb|x280px|Lung morphogenesis. <ref name = "PMID16613830"/>]]
[[Image: Lung_alveoli_development_cartoon.jpg|thumb|right|x280px|Stage Development of Lung Alveoli]]
In the embryonic and foetal stages of development, the lung is collapsed and its function is replaced by the placental circulation which coordinates the oxygenation of blood and the diffusion of carbon dioxide into the maternal bloodstream. The respiratory system recevies only 7% of foetal blood supply in utero.
Differentiation of the lateral plate mesoderm gives rise to the mesenchyme of the lung; including its connective tissue, the smooth muscle surrounding the airway and blood vessels, endothelial cells which form vasculature, the cartilage, lympathic drainage systems, and mesothelial cells lining the external pleural surface. Early lung morphogenesis in the second trimester is controlled by various cell signalling proteins such as fibroblast growth factor and sonic hedgehog protein, giving rise to a tree-like system of epithelial tubules and sacs surrounded by vasculature.
Differentiation of the lateral plate mesoderm gives rise to the mesenchyme of the lung; including its connective tissue, the smooth muscle surrounding the airway and blood vessels, endothelial cells which form vasculature, the cartilage, lympathic drainage systems, and mesothelial cells lining the external pleural surface. Early lung morphogenesis in the second trimester is controlled by various cell signalling proteins such as fibroblast growth factor and sonic hedgehog protein, giving rise to a tree-like system of epithelial tubules and sacs surrounded by vasculature. <ref name = "PMID16613830"><pubmed>16613830</pubmed></ref>
* In the '''embryonic stage''', the endodermal foregut forms a ventral evagination called the respiratory diverticulum which bifurcates into the right and left primary bronchial buds; these structures differentiate into the main bronchi and the respiratory diverticulum forms the trachea and larynx.
* In the '''embryonic stage''', the endodermal foregut forms a ventral evagination called the respiratory diverticulum which bifurcates into the right and left primary bronchial buds; these structures differentiate into the main bronchi and the respiratory diverticulum forms the trachea and larynx. <ref name = "PMID20691848"><pubmed>20691848</pubmed></ref>
* In the second trimester, the lungs are in the '''pseudoglandular (weeks 6-16)''' and undergo '''expansive branching into bronchopulmonary segments''' with terminal bronchioles.
* In the '''canalicular stage (weeks 16-28)''' of respiratory development, the terminal bronchioles further divide into multiple respiratory bronchioles which '''form terminal sacs (primitive alveoli)''' in the early third trimester. The alveoli are canalised by a dense capillary network giving rise to the air-blood tissue barrier.
* In the '''canalicular stage (weeks 16-28)''' of respiratory development, the terminal bronchioles further divide into multiple respiratory bronchioles which '''form terminal sacs (primitive alveoli)''' in the early third trimester. The alveoli are canalised by a dense capillary network giving rise to the air-blood tissue barrier. <ref name = "PMID16613830"/>
* '''Vascular endothelial growth factor and angiogenic growth factor''' result in the development of respiratory vasculature - a dense network of blood vessels, especially capillaries, form through the recruitment of endothelial cells in close apposition with the lung epithelium. This process continues during the third trimester as the mesenchyme surrounding the alveoli becomes vascularised to facilitate rapid gaseous exchange by diffusion.
* '''Vascular endothelial growth factor and angiogenic growth factor''' result in the development of respiratory vasculature - a dense network of blood vessels, especially capillaries, form through the recruitment of endothelial cells in close apposition with the lung epithelium. This process continues during the third trimester as the mesenchyme surrounding the alveoli becomes vascularised to facilitate rapid gaseous exchange by diffusion. <ref name = "Larsen"/> <ref name = "PMID16613830"/>
* '''Maturation of lung epithelium''' initiates in the second trimester through epithelial-to-mesenchymal interactions in the lateral plate mesoderm, resulting in the rudiments of ciliated, secretory, and neuroendocrine epithelium in the proximal bronchioles and Type 1 (squamous supporting cells) and '''Type 2 (secrete pulmonary surfactant)''' in the distal alveoli.
* '''Maturation of lung epithelium''' initiates in the second trimester through epithelial-to-mesenchymal interactions in the lateral plate mesoderm, resulting in the rudiments of ciliated, secretory, and neuroendocrine epithelium in the proximal bronchioles and Type 1 (squamous supporting cells) and '''Type 2 (secrete pulmonary surfactant)''' in the distal alveoli. <ref name = "PMID20691848"/>
Although the lungs are not functional, the foetus may practice breathing by swallowing amniotic fluid which promotes lung growth. Since alveoli development occurs in the late second trimester or early third trimester, pre-term babies born in the second trimester have low concentrations of pulmonary surfactant which is needed to lower the surface tension of alveolar fluid and keep the alveoli patent (open) during inhalation. This can cause pulmonary edema (alveoli filled with proteinaceous fluid) which leads to Respiratory Distress Syndrome as greater intra-thoracic pressure needs to be generated for inhalation. Corticosteroids (cortisol) can be administered to stimulate production of pulonary surfactant.
[[Image:Lung_development_2nd_trimester.png|thumb|center|400px|Respiratory tree-like system.]]
[[Image:Lung_development_2nd_trimester.png|thumb|center|400px|Respiratory tree-like system - my own drawing.]]
==Central Nervous System==
The major developmental changes, in the second trimester, regarding the central nervous system involves expansion and specialisation of various regions of the brain; this enables it to process various types of sensory information and coordinate it with an appropriate mechanical or biochemical response. Proliferation of sensory neurons, innervation of the peripheral glands, and neural development allows the foetus to be responsive to light (Vision), taste, sound (hearing), sensation, and smell.
* The '''auditory system''' (hearing) starts to develop between week 12-16 by forming a '''vacuole''' filled with perilymph fluid. Cartilage ossification occurs during weeks 16-24 to form ear bones.
* The '''auditory system''' (hearing) starts to develop between week 12-16 by forming a '''vacuole''' filled with perilymph fluid. Cartilage ossification occurs during weeks 16-24 to form ear bones. <ref name = "Wiki"/>
* Sense of '''taste''' forms through the development of the tongue - epithelial maturation, formation of taste buds, secretion of mucous, development of tongue muscles, and innervation by sensory neurons
* Sense of '''smell''' develops through innervation of '''olfactory receptors''' in the nose.
* '''Touch and sensation''' develops through differentiation of the epidermis and dermis to '''form mechanoreceptors sensitive to pressure.'''
* '''Touch and sensation''' develops through differentiation of the epidermis and dermis to '''form mechanoreceptors sensitive to pressure.''' <ref>Mescher, A. L. (2013). The nucleus. Junqueira's basic histology: Text and atlas (13th ed., pp. 69). United States: McGraw Hill. </ref>
** Tactile epithelial '''Merkel cells''' (sensitive mechanoreceptors needed for light touch sensation), Sensory receptors and their peripheral nerves in the dermal layer allow sensation of light and deep touch.
** '''Meissner corpuscles''' are superficial within the dermis and are sensitive to fine, discriminative touch.
* Vasculature and visceral organs visible through the skin
* External genitals (vulva in females; penis in males) develop and sex is determined.
* External genitals (vulva in females; penis in males) develop and sex is determined. <ref name ="Medline">Medline Foetal Development Timeline; http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002398.htm </ref>
* Glandular lungs - branching of bronchopulmonary segments, Type 2 alveolar cells begin to secrete surfactant (only significant in late second trimester)
* Kidneys produce urine which is discharge into amniotic fluid, and liver produces bile
* Kidneys produce urine which is discharge into amniotic fluid, and liver produces bile <ref name = "Mayo"/>
* Cartilage surrounds sites of future bone growth, ossification is most pronounced in week 17 and 18 - i.e. limbs
* Thin skin forms around the foetus - accessory structures such as hair follicles, sweat and sebaceous glands, and fingernails begin to form
* Facial structures (eyes, ears, mouth) migrate towards proper location - sucking and swallowing motions observed, baby can hear, taste, touch
* Fat accumulation for chemical thermiogenesis
* Fat accumulation for chemical thermiogenesis <ref name ="Mayo"/>
|-bgcolor="E1DEF2"
* Lanugo hair and vernix caseosa covers foetus
* Brain sulcation and designated areas for five senses are formed
* Brain sulcation and designated areas for five senses are formed <ref name ="Wiki">http://embryology.med.unsw.edu.au/embryology/index.php?title=Second_Trimester</ref>
* Ovaries and vagina form in females
* Ovaries and vagina form in females <ref name = "Aboutkids"/>
* Circulatory and renal systems fully operational
* Significant growth in muscles and bones - limbs are fully formed and movements can be recognised
* Rapid eye movements and formation of eyebrows and eyelids
* Rapid eye movements and formation of eyebrows and eyelids <ref name = "Aboutkids"/>
* Lungs gradually progress from canalicular to saccular and surfactant secretion becomes significant
* Bone marrow and spleen produces red blood cells
* Meconium formation - first bowel movenet - and discharge into amniotic fluid
* Meconium formation - first bowel movenet - and discharge into amniotic fluid <ref name ="Mayo"/>
1 Second Trimester Foetal Development
2 Skin and Musculoskeletal System
4 Central Nervous System
5 Summary of the Second Trimester
Second Trimester Foetal Development
The second trimester encompasses the foetal weeks 12-24, or clinical gestational weeks 14-26, according to the UCSF Medical Centre and is referred to as the "golden period of pregnancy" since many first trimester discomforts such as nausea, fatigue, breast tenderness, and frequent urination are alleviated as the maternal body adapts to the changing gestational physiology - nevertheless increased placental secretions of progesterone, estrogen, and human placental lactogen, as well as increased abdominal pressure can elicit heartburn, constipation, abdominal pain, and leg cramps. [1]
During the second trimester of pregnancy, the organ rudiments formed in the embryo stage expand in size and further differentiate in response to cellular signalling and gene cascades to coordinate specialised physiological functions needed to support the growing foetus. The foetus begins to exert pressure on the mother's stomach and bladder, and by month 5 limb movements can be felt. In addition to foetal growth and development, the placenta also increases in size to increase foetal blood supply and secretes hormones to redirect maternal glucose, amino acids, and free fatty acids towards the foetus to satisfy its increasing metabolic demands. [2] [3] [4] [5]
Skin and Musculoskeletal System
In the embryonic stage[6], the paraxial mesoderm of the trilaminar embryonic disc differentiates into somites which are re-organised to form the epithelial dermomyotome (cells have tight junctions, regular shape, well organisation) and the mesenchymal sclerotome (loosely arranged and associated cells with large extracellular matrix that lack polarity and rigidity).
The dermatome forms the dermis (connective tissue underlying epidermis), the myotome forms the epaxial (dorsal) and hypaxial (ventrolateral) muscles of the body wall and limbs, and the sclerotome forms the vertebral column and intervertebral discs.
In the second trimester, the epaxial and hypaxial muscles of the thorax and abdomen grow, become segmented, and innervated by the dorsal and ventral rami of the spinal nerves respectively. For example the hypaxial muscles form the intercostal muscles in the thorax and the external oblique, internal oblique, transversus abdominis, and rectus abdominis in the abdomen. [6]
Growth of lone bones occurs by longitudinal expansion at epiphysial plates, widening of the diaphysis, and endochondrial ossification which continues throughout gestation and childhood. The long bones in the upper and lower limbs develop greatly in the second trimester to their expected sizes at childbirth.
The extensive musculoskeletal development in the second trimester allows the baby to move its limbs - the mother may feel the baby kick as early as week 15 and usually by week 20 (this is called quickening). [5]
Skin epidermis, a derivative of the peripheral surface ectoderm, is thinly formed over the baby in week 15 and richly vascularised due to vascular endothelial growth factor and angiogenic growth factor. There is differentiation of the epidermis into its five distinct epithelial layers - stratum basalis, stratum spinosum, stratum granulosum, stratum lucidum, and stratum corneum - and loose connective tissue forms the dermal layer underneath. The epidermis and dermis are interdigitated by invaginating epidermal ridges and projecting dermal papillae which form the fingerprints. [6]
Langerhan cells (antigen presenting cells), Merkel cells (tactile epithelium), and melanocytes (neural crest derivatives producing pigmentation) migrate into the epidermis.
The ectoderm also forms accessory structures in the skin - e.g. fingernails (week 14/15), hair follicles, and sebaceous and sweat glands.
In the fifth month of pregnancy (week 17-22), hair follicles form "soft, downy" lanugo hair which covers the foetal skin, head, and forms eyebrows. The vernix caseosa (week 17) covers the skin and protects the foetus from the surrounding amniotic fluid.
Fat growth initiates as early as week 15 and becomes significant after week 23 - this is essential brown fat oxidation provides thermal insulation and protection from cold environments in the extra-uterine environment. [7]
Lung morphogenesis. [8]
Stage Development of Lung Alveoli
The primary function of the respiratory system is to facilitate gaseous exchange between the external environment and the bloodstream, through diffusion across the lung alveoli, in order to oxygenate pulmonary blood via inhalation and remove carbon dioxide via exhalation.
Differentiation of the lateral plate mesoderm gives rise to the mesenchyme of the lung; including its connective tissue, the smooth muscle surrounding the airway and blood vessels, endothelial cells which form vasculature, the cartilage, lympathic drainage systems, and mesothelial cells lining the external pleural surface. Early lung morphogenesis in the second trimester is controlled by various cell signalling proteins such as fibroblast growth factor and sonic hedgehog protein, giving rise to a tree-like system of epithelial tubules and sacs surrounded by vasculature. [8]
In the embryonic stage, the endodermal foregut forms a ventral evagination called the respiratory diverticulum which bifurcates into the right and left primary bronchial buds; these structures differentiate into the main bronchi and the respiratory diverticulum forms the trachea and larynx. [9]
In the second trimester, the lungs are in the pseudoglandular (weeks 6-16) and undergo expansive branching into bronchopulmonary segments with terminal bronchioles.
In the canalicular stage (weeks 16-28) of respiratory development, the terminal bronchioles further divide into multiple respiratory bronchioles which form terminal sacs (primitive alveoli) in the early third trimester. The alveoli are canalised by a dense capillary network giving rise to the air-blood tissue barrier. [8]
Vascular endothelial growth factor and angiogenic growth factor result in the development of respiratory vasculature - a dense network of blood vessels, especially capillaries, form through the recruitment of endothelial cells in close apposition with the lung epithelium. This process continues during the third trimester as the mesenchyme surrounding the alveoli becomes vascularised to facilitate rapid gaseous exchange by diffusion. [6] [8]
Maturation of lung epithelium initiates in the second trimester through epithelial-to-mesenchymal interactions in the lateral plate mesoderm, resulting in the rudiments of ciliated, secretory, and neuroendocrine epithelium in the proximal bronchioles and Type 1 (squamous supporting cells) and Type 2 (secrete pulmonary surfactant) in the distal alveoli. [9]
Respiratory tree-like system - my own drawing.
The auditory system (hearing) starts to develop between week 12-16 by forming a vacuole filled with perilymph fluid. Cartilage ossification occurs during weeks 16-24 to form ear bones. [10]
Sense of taste forms through the development of the tongue - epithelial maturation, formation of taste buds, secretion of mucous, development of tongue muscles, and innervation by sensory neurons
Sense of smell develops through innervation of olfactory receptors in the nose.
Touch and sensation develops through differentiation of the epidermis and dermis to form mechanoreceptors sensitive to pressure. [11]
Tactile epithelial Merkel cells (sensitive mechanoreceptors needed for light touch sensation), Sensory receptors and their peripheral nerves in the dermal layer allow sensation of light and deep touch.
Meissner corpuscles are superficial within the dermis and are sensitive to fine, discriminative touch.
Pacinian corpuscles are found deep in the dermis and respond to coarse touch, pressure, and vibrations.
Root hair plexus detect vibrations of hair and surround the base of the hair follicles.
Brain Development Links: Week 4.5 exterior | Week 5 exterior | Week 5 interior | 3 month | 3 month hindbrain | 4 month | 5 month | Gray's Neural Images | Neural System Development
651 Human Embryo Brain (week 4.5 exterior view)
652 Human Embryo Brain (week 5 exterior view)
653 Human Embryo Brain (week 5 interior view)
654 Human Fetal Brain (3 months)
Images courtesy of http://embryology.med.unsw.edu.au/embryology/index.php?title=Neural_-_Cerebrum_Development
Summary of the Second Trimester
Foetal Week Changes in Development
Vasculature and visceral organs visible through the skin
External genitals (vulva in females; penis in males) develop and sex is determined. [12]
Glandular lungs - branching of bronchopulmonary segments, Type 2 alveolar cells begin to secrete surfactant (only significant in late second trimester)
Kidneys produce urine which is discharge into amniotic fluid, and liver produces bile [4]
Cartilage surrounds sites of future bone growth, ossification is most pronounced in week 17 and 18 - i.e. limbs
Tongue development - formation of tongue pores and taste buds, epithelium secrete mucous, innervation by sensory neurons
Pancreas produces glucagon and insulin
Canalicur stage of respiratory growth
Thin skin forms around the foetus - accessory structures such as hair follicles, sweat and sebaceous glands, and fingernails begin to form
Facial structures (eyes, ears, mouth) migrate towards proper location - sucking and swallowing motions observed, baby can hear, taste, touch
Fat accumulation for chemical thermiogenesis [4]
Lanugo hair and vernix caseosa covers foetus
Brain sulcation and designated areas for five senses are formed [10]
Ovaries and vagina form in females [3]
Circulatory and renal systems fully operational
Significant growth in muscles and bones - limbs are fully formed and movements can be recognised
Rapid eye movements and formation of eyebrows and eyelids [3]
Lungs gradually progress from canalicular to saccular and surfactant secretion becomes significant
Bone marrow and spleen produces red blood cells
Meconium formation - first bowel movenet - and discharge into amniotic fluid [4]
↑ University of California San Francisco; Pregnancy Trimesters; http://www.ucsfhealth.org/conditions/pregnancy/trimesters.html
↑ http://musculoskeletalsurgerycenter.com/your-health/?/101070/Fetal-Development-by-Trimester
↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 The Second Trimester; http://www.aboutkidshealth.ca/en/resourcecentres/pregnancybabies/pregnancy/fetaldevelopment/pages/the-second-trimester.aspx
↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Foetal Development; http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-living/pregnancy-week-by-week/in-depth/fetal-development/art-20046151
↑ 5.0 5.1 Foetal Development by Trimester - Timeline of Body Systems; http://education-portal.com/academy/lesson/fetal-development-by-trimester-timeline-of-body-systems.html
↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 Larsen's human embryology(2009). In Schoenwolf G. C., Larsen W. J. (. J. (Eds.),. Philadelphia: Philadelphia : Churchill Livingstone/Elsevier.
↑ http://www.baby2see.com/development/second_trimester.html
↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 <pubmed>16613830</pubmed>
↑ 9.0 9.1 <pubmed>20691848</pubmed>
↑ 10.0 10.1 http://embryology.med.unsw.edu.au/embryology/index.php?title=Second_Trimester
↑ Mescher, A. L. (2013). The nucleus. Junqueira's basic histology: Text and atlas (13th ed., pp. 69). United States: McGraw Hill.
↑ Medline Foetal Development Timeline; http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002398.htm
Retrieved from ‘https://embryology.med.unsw.edu.au/embryology/index.php?title=User:Z5019799&oldid=139693’
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Abkhazia, Georgia, China, Caucasus
China to invest in electric cars, mobile phones and roads in Abkhazia?
A Chinese delegation visited the breakaway region of Georgia for investment talks, eliciting diplomatic pushback in Georgia.
Giorgi Lomsadze Nov 14, 2019
Chinese and Abkhazian officials discuss investments in Sukhumi. (photo: MFA Abkhazia)
Chinese investors are scoping out Abkhazia, the breakaway Georgian territory that lies along China’s planned global trade route, the Belt and Road Initiative.
Representatives from several Chinese-led business associations and the mobile operator China Unicom held meetings with Abkhazian officials in Sukhumi this week. The two sides discussed establishing a special trade zone to produce cell phones, Abkhazia’s state news agency reported. Also discussed: the potential for creating an electric car assembly plant.
China is already building an electric car plant and has other investment projects across Abkhazia’s de facto border in Georgia proper. Abkhazia is recognized by most of the rest of the world as part of Georgia, but Russia has formally recognized its independence and heavily backs the territory economically and militarily.
With its plans to reinvent the Silk Road, China is getting closer to becoming an important economic and, consequently, geopolitical player in the Caucasus. China's main interest in the Caucasus is business, but it is inevitably bumping up against the wall of regional politics.
To pressure Abkhazia to come back to Tbilisi’s fold, the Georgian government has been trying to keep foreign investors away from the region and to bolster international support of Georgia’s claim over Abkhazia. Russia, meanwhile, is Abkhazia’s main champion abroad, trying to attract investment to the region and to recruit new backers of Abkhazian independence.
Back in 2015, China Railway signed a memorandum in Moscow on restoring Abkhazia’s railway, which was destroyed during the separatist war in the early 1990s and has only been partly restored since. The Chinese investment was meant to connect Abkhazia to the Russian’s side of the Caucasus, and to build railways, ports and airports.
That project has faltered. Russian troops have instead worked on restoring the missing bits of Abkhazia’s railway network that is operated and partly owned by Russia. While talk of Chinese investment continues in Abkhazia, Georgia will be standing in the way.
In response to the delegation to Sukhumi, Tbilisi requested explanations from the Chinese embassy in Georgia. According to the Georgian Foreign Ministry, the embassy “reiterated its respect and support for sovereignty and territorial integrity of Georgia.” The embassy has made no public comment to that effect.
In spite of Beijing’s good relations with Moscow, China no doubt has its own territorial troubles to worry about and antagonizing Georgia for a small investment project may not be worth the candle for China.
Giorgi Lomsadze is a journalist based in Tbilisi, and author of Tamada Tales.
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Ayzirek Imanaliyeva
Eurasianet © 2021
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Playing by Heart
By Lisa Schwarzbaum
Updated January 22, 1999 at 05:00 AM EST
On last year’s release schedule, Playing by Heart was called Dancing About Architecture, the idea being, ostensibly, that it’s as impossible to explain love as it is to cha-cha in homage to Frank Lloyd Wright. The new title is, in a post-Seinfeldian way, about nothing. The old title at least provided a blueprint to writer-director Willard Carrol’s precarious construction of linked skits: The plot of this romantic drama is, at heart, a feat of self-conscious structural engineering. (For dramatic waltzing equal to the greatest architectural masterpiece, there’s Max Ophuls’ ”La Ronde.”)
Carrol’s idea is to shuffle struggling couples under an inviting Los Angeles sky. (Master cinematographer Vilmos Zsigmond, who shot Close Encounters of the Third Kind, here makes L.A. look sexy — and also innocent.) An uptight single woman (Gillian Anderson) meets an attractive single man (Jon Stewart) and works hard to screw things up. A glitter-dusted club girl (Angelina Jolie) with a tough hide and a soft center bumps up against a blue-haired club boy (Ryan Phillippe) with a tough hide and a soft center, and they fight their obvious rightness for each other. A tense mother (Ellen Burstyn) flutters awkwardly around her dying gay son (Jay Mohr). An aging couple (Gena Rowlands and Sean Connery) faces a health crisis and relives an old marital crisis. A stuck married couple (Dennis Quaid and Madeleine Stowe) explores separate fantasies.
These pairs of Angelenos wear their quirks so brightly, they might as well be dressed in safety orange. The entertainment, then, comes down to performances by hip actors, enjoying their nicely lit parts. It’s fun to see Anderson acting so self-destructively neurotic. It’s neat to see Connery and pitch-perfect Rowlands purring and growling like the Lion King and Queen. And it’s cool to see Jolie in anything, since, with her high-rising talent, she stands out like a skyscraper in this low-rise landscape. C+
Willard Carroll
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The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing
In this swinging, funny, and tender study of contemporary relationships, examined in seven linked stories, Melissa Bank refutes, once and for all, the popular notion of neurotic thirtysomething single women. Jane Rosenal, the heroine, isn’t sex-starved, fertility-obsessed, or magnetically drawn to making foolish choices. She’s just a bright, warm, attractive advertising executive with a functioning family, a klatch of friends, an ex-boyfriend or two, and a confidence that her instincts are essentially in working order, even if her romantic life is subject to power outages.
As is inevitable in a collection, some stories are stronger and more passionately presented than others. (Bank frustratingly collapses ”You Could Be Anyone” into a sketch when it teases with material enough for a novel.) And sometimes, just occasionally, the author’s snappy heroine is a gust or two breezier and more self- congratulatory than circumstances require. But all is redeemed — and the prepublication excitement about Girls’ Guide is warranted — by the title story, in which Jane tries, hilariously, to ”meet and keep” a man by using the kind of guidelines set forth in such regressive maiden manuals as ”The Rules.”
The revolutionary, exciting part of ”Girls’ Guide” is that Jane learns she doesn’t need rules, or wiles, or a slimming wardrobe. Like Bridget Jones, she just needs to be herself and stay in the water. Ditto for Bank, who fishes deep in her literary debut and hooks a winner.
Melissa Bank
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Are ''CSI'''s characters stuck in a rut
Are ''CSI'''s characters stuck in a rut -- The creators and stars of fall's new TV dramas are looking to gain critical respect by deepening their characters
By Whitney Pastorek
Updated August 12, 2005 at 04:00 AM EDT
There’s a mantra being repeated by the creators and stars of fall’s new TV dramas: ”It’s. Not. A. Procedural.” Though viewers love their Law & Orders and CSIs — impersonal, plot-driven crime franchises — Hollywood execs now seem to be going against their better ratings judgment to get attention and critical respect.
”Bones is not CSI: Washington, D.C.,” announces Hart Hanson, creator of the Fox series about forensics experts aiding the FBI. ”It’s like we took what CSI does and smushed it with West Wing.” Jeff Davis, creator of Criminal Minds (a CBS series about FBI profilers), considers his show a ”suspense thriller. Suspense is built on characters — we have to care about them to fear for them.” Actors agree. ”I love watching procedurals,” says Bones star Emily Deschanel. But given the plight of, say, L&O‘s Elisabeth Rohm, who learned in her final scene that her character was actually a lesbian (”I knew what L&O was when I took the job,” reassures Rohm), Deschanel points out that ”We don’t know what’s going on with the characters. As an actor, that’s hard.”
One cautionary tale: Last season, CSI: NY gave Gary Sinise inner pain to gnaw on and wound up a franchise-low 21st in the ratings. What did CSI creator Anthony Zuiker learn? ”It’s fine to have splashes of character, but people are in love with the procedure and the science.”
So which way to go — crime or character development? Here’s some free advice from Desperate Housewives creator Marc Cherry, who knows from both: ”As long as someone does a procedural that’s fresh and inventive, people will find it.” It’s a little long for a mantra, but we’ve heard worse.
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HomePosts tagged 'doctors'
Would You Take The Bubble Baba Challenge?
December 9, 2014 December 8, 2014 fasab Factoids, Unusual 19th Cenury, accident, Al Wallpaper Wolff, alcohol, animals, ant queens, antibodies, author, barrier, Bird´s Nest Restaurant, birth day, born British subjects, British city, Bubble Baba Challenge, Chicago, China, churchyard, classic red phone booths, cocktail lounge, Colorado, Creator, crushed diamonds and gems, cuisine, curing diphtheria, cursed, customers, diamond encrusted crystal bottle, disease, Dmitry Bulawinov, doctors, Earth Dragon, Edgar A Perry, Edgar Allen Poe, education, Eliot Ness, English architecture, enlisted in the United States Army, Entertainment, Europe´s oldest tree, fact, factoid, factoids, facts, false name, fearless agent, federal law-enforcement agents, first state to officially legalize cannabis, float down a river embracing a rubber woman, Fortingall, fortress, Harry Potter, humans, ice-filtered, illegal alcohol, imitation, immune system, infected with diphtheria, information, J Adams, J K Rowling, J Q Adams, Jackson, James Dean, Jefferson, Jim the horse, joke, last surviving member, launch a satellite into orbit, law enforcement, Legal, Little Bastard, London, Madison, massive fireball, mechanic, Monroe, Nordic birch charcoal, official name, Perthshire, platinum, Porsche 550 Spyder, Privacy, Purple Frontier, rampant, remembered, rhodium, rocket, Russian, Scotland, serum, smoking a joint, Soneva Kiri Eco Resort, space flight and exploration, spectacular views, sporting event, state of Washington, Thailand, Thames Town, The Billionaire Vodka, The Great Wall of China, time in the joint, trivia, unique opportunity, United States, Untouchables, US Presidents, Vanguard TV3, village, Vodka, W Harrison, Washington, with great success, workers, world´s most expensive vodka, Yew tree
We’ll find out later whether or not you would take the Bubble Baba Challenge.
In the meantime have a look at this week’s selection of facts.
Harry Potter shares the same birth day
as his creator J K Rowling,
his is July 31, 1980 and
Rowling’s July 31, 1966.
A Yew tree located in the churchyard of
the village of Fortingall in Perthshire, Scotland,
is estimated to be 3,000 – 5,000 years old
which many believe makes it Europe´s oldest tree.
With its massive trunk of 52 feet (16 meters) in diameter,
the yew is still in good health and may last for many more centuries.
Thames Town is a little town situated in the heart of China
that is an imitation of a classic British city
with traditional English architecture, cuisine,
and even those classic red phone booths
we all identify with London.
Still in China, “The Great Wall of China”
did not get that official name
until the end of the 19th Century.
Previously it had been known by names
such as “barrier”, “rampart”, “fortress”,
“Purple Frontier” or “Earth Dragon”.
The United States has had some remarkable successes
in the field of space flight and exploration.
However it wasn’t always that way.
The very first time they tried to launch a satellite into orbit,
on December 6, 1957 (Vanguard TV3),
the rocket lost thrust only 4 feet (1.2 m) above the launch pad
and fell back to the ground, its fuel tanks
rupturing and creating a massive fireball,
damaging the launch pad and destroying the rocket.
Due to limited data measurement methods in these early days,
though, the cause was never fully determined.
If you like Vodka then look out for a bottle of
“The Billionare Vodka“,
the world´s most expensive vodka.
It is first ice-filtered, then filtered through
Nordic birch charcoal and lastly passed
through sand made from crushed diamonds and gems.
It is sold in a platinum and rhodium encased,
diamond encrusted crystal bottle and
will set you back only $3.75 million dollars.
No more time in the joint for smoking a joint,
at least not in the U.S. state of Washington,
the first state to officially legalize cannabis
in a state law in December 2012,
with the state of Colorado following close behind.
Ant queens can live for up to 30 years,
about 100 times longer than solitary insects of a similar size.
Workers live from 1 to 3 years.
Eight US Presidents were born British subjects:
Washington, J. Adams, Jefferson, Madison,
Monroe, J. Q. Adams, Jackson, and W. Harrison.
Jim the horse, a former milk wagon horse,
was responsible for curing diphtheria.
He was infected with diphtheria
but unlike other animals he didn’t die.
Doctors found that Jim’s immune system
was able to create antibodies to fight the disease
and this allowed doctors to make a serum for humans,
with great success, helping to save the lives
of millions of humans and animals around the world.
Al ‘Wallpaper’ Wolff is best remembered
as having been the last surviving member
of the group of eleven federal law-enforcement agents,
led by Eliot Ness, known as the Untouchables.
Wolff was the fearless agent and a ferocious
persecutor of those who obtained illegal alcohol.
Strangely, once he retired from law enforcement
and alcohol was legal he got involved in
the cocktail lounge business in Chicago.
He died in March 1998 at the age of 95.
In 1827, world famous author Edgar Allan Poe
enlisted in the United States Army
using the false name “Edgar A. Perry”.
He claimed to be 22 years old
even though he was just 18.
James Dean’s silver Porsche 550 Spyder,
the car he died in following an accident in 1955,
was known as the “Little Bastard”
and said to be cursed.
After it was sold for parts,
the car fell and crushed a mechanic’s legs;
later, a doctor who bought the car’s engine
was killed in a car accident;
another victim who bought the transmission
was severely injured in a crash;
the tires sold from Little Bastard
blew out simultaneously,
sending their buyer to the hospital;
and lastly a truck carrying the car’s shell crashed,
killing the driver.
The Bird´s Nest Restaurant, located in
the Soneva Kiri Eco Resort in Thailand,
gives the customers privacy,
as well as the unique opportunity to
admire spectacular views while dining.
Tree nests hang 16 feet above the ground
and are served by waiters who use a zip line
to deliver the food and drinks.
A typical dinner for two costs about $450.
Finally, time for those of a nervous disposition to look away.
Officially known as the “Bubble Baba Challenge”,
this is an unusual (to say the least) sporting event
where participants float down a river
embracing a rubber woman.
The idea was apparently dreamt up
by a Russian, Dmitry Bulawinov,
initially as a joke at a party
where the men got drunk!
(It could have been worse!)
First Day Of The Month, First Quiz Of The Month.
December 1, 2014 November 23, 2014 fasab Questions, Tests 1884, 31 days, abbreviation, acre, band, Barracuda, biology, carats, characteristic, chemistry, colors, conkers, diamonds, doctors, dolly, drummer, education, element, Entertainment, first month, formula, gallon, general knowledge, Geography, hectare, history, human Biology, indigestion, inherited material, invented, Lewis Waterman, mass, math, mathematics, maths, measure, medical oath, milligrams, month, movies, music, nature, nylon, physics, Piebald horse, Polygraph, precious gems, PVC, quarts, questions, quiz, quizzes, science, silk, square meters, square yards, Stewart Copeland, stomach acidity, subtract, television studio, test, tests, thickness, trees, tv, unit, volume, world's largest lizard, year
Welcome to December at the fasab blog.
We are into the last month of the year – where did the other eleven go? should be one of today’s questions perhaps.
But of course it isn’t. Instead you have the usual random selection, a few easy ones and a few quite difficult, with some more that lie between the two extremes.
As usual, if you get stuck, you can find the answers waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay down below, but please NO cheating!
Q. 1: How many quarts are there in a gallon?
Q. 2: Which element is used to treat indigestion and stomach acidity?
Q. 3: We all know that diamonds and precious gems are measured in carats, but one carat is the equivalent of how many milligrams?
a) 100 b) 200 c) 300 d) 400 e) 500
Q. 4: What is the unit used to measure the thickness of silk or nylon?
Q. 5: In Physics, mass divided by volume is the formula for what?
Q. 6: If you subtracted the number of square yards in an acre from the number of square meters in a hectare, what number would you be left with?
Q. 7: You’ve seen them on TV and in the movies, what is the more common name for a ‘Polygraph’?
Q. 8: Which is the world’s largest lizard?
Q. 9: What does the abbreviation ‘PVC’ stand for?
Q. 10: What is the name of the medical oath taken by doctors?
Q. 11: From which trees do conkers come?
Q. 12: What is a Barracuda?
Q. 13: In human Biology what is a unit of inherited material that contains a particular characteristic?
Q. 14: A ‘Piebald’ horse consists of which two colors?
Q. 15: What is 70% of 70?
Q. 16: What is the first month of the year to have 31 days that follows another month of 31 days?
Q. 17: In 1884, what was invented by Lewis Waterman?
Q. 18: If I was your age ten years before you were born and I’m 50, how old are you?
Q. 19: What sits on a ‘dolly’ in a television studio?
Q. 20: Stewart Copeland was the drummer with which band?
A. 1: 4.
A. 2: Magnesium.
A. 3: The correct answer is b) 200.
A. 4: Denier.
A. 5: Density.
A. 6: 5,160 (there are 10,000 square meters in a hectare and 4,840 square yards in an acre, so your calculation should be 10,000 – 4840 = 5,160 )
A. 7: A lie detector.
A. 8: The Komodo Dragon, found in the Indonesian islands of Komodo, Rinca, Flores, Gili Motang, and Padar.
A. 9: Polyvinylchloride.
A. 10: Hippocratic oath.
A. 11: Horse Chestnut.
A. 12: It is the name of the ferocious fish, shaped like a torpedo which is found in warm seas and is closely related to the sea-perch, although you get the point if you just said ‘fish’.
A. 13: A ‘Gene’.
A. 14: Black and White.
A. 15: 49.
A. 16: August.
A. 17: The Fountain Pen. Established in 1884 in New York City by Lewis Edson Waterman, the Waterman pen company is still a major manufacturer of luxury fountain pens, in fact it is one of the few remaining first-generation fountain pen companies.
A. 18: You would be 20.
A. 19: A camera.
A. 20: The Police.
Did You Know? – Another Round Of Fabulous Facts!
August 12, 2014 August 9, 2014 fasab Factoids, Unusual 100 year anniversary, 1800s, 1971, 1986, 19th largest empire in history, 2014, adventurer, American businessman, ancient Egypt, Are we boring you Mr. Rodale, assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, attract flies, bank robbery, battlefield, belief that insanity is caused by changes in the moon, believing they saw what the really didn’t, bomb, bomb squad, Bosnian Serb, Brian Wells, burning ice, cavalry charge, choose your own favorite, coffins, compulsive hoarders, convince, country, covered in honey, delude, derived, Dick Cavett, Dick Cavett Show, died, died on the toilet, Disney, doctors, Duchess Sophie, education, Elvis Presley, Entertainment, exoplanet, fact, factoid, factoids, facts, fast asleep, first person to fly solo nonstop around the world in a balloon, future year, Gavrilo Princip, german, German infantry division, Great War, heart attack, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Homer and Langley Collyer, information, interviewed, irony, James Stephen "Steve" Fossett, Jerome Irving Rodale, June 28, killed, languages on Earth, last words, Latin word, light years, live to 100, luna, lunatic, mechanisms, Mongolian, Mongolian cavalry division, Moon, necklace, organic farming, Papua New Guinea, People, people were buried alive, pharaoh, pizza deliveryman, prescription drugs, proponent of healthy eating, Random, record-setting aviator, ring a bell in the graveyard, Roman Empire, run down by a a sugar-crazy taxi driver, sailor, Sarajevo, servants, spelling and grammatical errors, stopped by the police, story, Tomorrowland, trivia, US Constitution, World War I, WWII
Another random bunch of facts for you today.
I think I prefer the final one the best because of its irony and the fact that it illustrates that people can sometimes delude and convince themselves into believing they saw what the really didn’t.
Anyway, here they are, so choose your own favorite, but whatever you do….
The US Constitution contains many
spelling and grammatical errors.
The term ‘Lunatic’ is derived from the Latin word ‘luna’ meaning ‘moon’.
It originated from the belief that insanity is caused by changes in the moon.
Thirty-three light years away there is an
exoplanet completely covered in burning ice.
James Stephen “Steve” Fossett was an American businessman,
and a record-setting aviator, sailor, and adventurer
who, in 2002, became the first person to
fly solo nonstop around the world in a balloon.
At its peak the Roman Empire
stretched for 2.51 million square miles,
but it was only the 19th largest empire in history.
Throughout the 1800s people were buried alive so often
that coffins included mechanisms to allow those people
to ring a bell in the graveyard.
Homer and Langley Collyer, two compulsive hoarders,
were found buried beneath a collapsed pile of
the things they had stored in their house over the years.
The last time a cavalry charge was used on the battlefield
was during WWII when a Mongolian cavalry division
charged a German infantry division.
Two thousand Mongolians were killed
and not a single German died.
In ancient Egypt some servants were covered in honey
to attract flies away from the pharaoh.
(I suppose it’s better than the alternative!)
June 28, 2014 was the 100 year anniversary of the assassination
of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria,
heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne,
who was killed in Sarajevo along with his wife Duchess Sophie
by Bosnian Serb Gavrilo Princip.
This was the incident that led to the Great War,
also now known as World War I.
Although several notable people died on the toilet,
one of the most famous is probably Elvis Presley.
Doctors attributed his death to too many prescription drugs.
When pizza deliveryman Brian Wells
was stopped by the police in the middle of a bank robbery
no one believed his story that he had been forced to do it
by some people he had delivered pizza to.
He kept on pleading with the officers saying that
the necklace he was wearing was a bomb.
Unfortunately for him though,
the bomb squad didn’t show up early enough.
Almost one-seventh (840) of all the languages on Earth
are spoken in one country…
Papua New Guinea.
When it was first built,
Disney’s Tomorrowland
was supposed to represent
the far off future year of 1986.
A famous proponent of healthy eating and organic farming,
Jerome Irving Rodale died of a heart attack
while being interviewed on the Dick Cavett Show in 1971.
Some of his last words were that [he] would
“live to 100, unless [he was] run down by a a sugar-crazy taxi driver”.
Appearing fast asleep during the show, Dick Cavett joked
“Are we boring you, Mr. Rodale?”
before discovering that his 72-year-old guest had indeed died.
Many people are convinced they saw this on TV
but the incident was never aired.
Did You Know? The Fact File Is Open Again.
July 15, 2014 July 14, 2014 fasab Factoids, Unusual Addict, Air Force One, alleviate pain, ancient Rome, archeological discoveries, baby birds, Billboard Charts, blink, body, brain, brain surgery, buried, Chernobyl disaster, Chinese government, contaminated, cultures, cure sickness, die in battle, Disney Park employees, disrespectful, doctors, drilling holes in the brain, dropping a penny, Earth’s magnetic fields, Earth’s solid inner core, economy, education, educational, Empire State Building, English King, Entertainment, equal and opposite, fact, factoid, facts, food, gift giving, Hey Jude, information, Latin, Latin word, Leeds University, Leicester car park, Lemur, liquid outer core, luxury commercials, men, most number-one singles, mothers, mouth, nests, nocturnal nature, open brain surgery, pain receptors, patients, plane, radioactive material, Random, reaction, record, reject, Richard III, scientists, slaves, soldiers, spins, spirit of the dead, stomach, The Beatles, the president, trepanation, trivia, two fingers, whole hand, women
Yes, the fact file is open again.
Another random selection covering science, music, history, archaeology, nature and even brain surgery!
Women blink twice as much as men.
Picking up baby birds and returning them to their nests
will not cause their mothers to reject them.
It takes food approximately seven seconds
to get from your mouth to your stomach.
The brain has no pain receptors so it doesn’t feel anything.
This is why doctors are able to perform open brain surgery
on patients that are still awake.
But brain surgery is not something new.
In the past some cultures practiced “trepanation”,
or the act of drilling holes in the brain
to alleviate pain and cure sickness.
More than 5 million people live in areas
that are considered to be “contaminated”
with radioactive material from the Chernobyl disaster.
The body of the last English King to die in battle, Richard III,
was finally found buried under a Leicester car park
in what was one of the most astonishing
archaeological discoveries of the last few decades.
The Chinese government
attempted to crack down on gift giving
by banning certain luxury commercials.
The economy immediately started falling.
Disney Park employees are required to point
with either the whole hand or using two fingers.
This is because some cultures see pointing
with one finger as disrespectful
Dropping a penny from the top of the
Empire State Building would not kill someone
Lemur comes from a Latin word that means
“spirit of the dead”.
The person that named them cited their
nocturnal nature as a source of influence.
For many years scientists couldn’t figure out
how the Earth’s solid inner core spins one way
and the liquid outer core spins the other.
Scientists at Leeds University recently found
that the answer lies in a simple “equal and opposite” reaction
based around Earth’s magnetic fields.
The word “Addict” comes from ancient Rome
when soldiers were awarded slaves known as “addicts”,
which is the Latin word for slave.
It eventually came to refer to a person
who was a slave to anyone or anything.
Air Force One is not the name of a specific plane,
but the name of any plane carrying the president.
The Beatles still hold the record for the
most number-one singles in the Billboard Charts.
They had twenty in all
and their biggest seller was “Hey Jude”.
Did You Know? It’s Fascinating Fact day.
October 22, 2013 October 22, 2013 fasab Factoids 1600s, 1912 Cadillac, actor, airplane, Albert Einstein, American automobile, an informed and appreciative sports spectator, and nothing but the truth, Apollo 7, astronaut, automatic transmissions, Beano, beans, Bingo, blind engineer, broken, car design, Chicago, clavicle, coal-mining capital of the US, collar bone, cosmonaut, course, cover of Playboy, cruise control, Deutsch, doctors, Dunkin Donuts, dutch, education, elective C-sections, English Common Law, Entertainment, fact, facts, fear of God’s wrath, first man, first walled city in the world, flatulence, freeze-dried ice cream, Gateway Arch, general knowledge, german, German ancestry, Harlem, Harlem Globetotters, Hawaii, hood ornament, hospital staffing, Howard Johnson, human bone, humans, induced labors, information, invented, Jericho, John Quincy Adams, knowledge, Lancaster County, Lincoln Beachey, long-distance charges, loop-de-loop, mascot, Massachusetts, Misc, Miscellaneous, mission to space, modern scholars, Monroe Doctrine, nature, Nobel Prize, numbered squares, Ohio State, penalties for perjury, Pennsylvania Dutch, Peter Sellers, Pilot, players, Quincy, Ralph Teetor, random facts, reputation, southeastern Pennsylvania, Sports for the Spectator, St. Louis, state, students, swearing, telephone cards, the truth, the whole truth, theory of relativity, top-producing coal mines, Tuesday, West Virginia, what day were you born on, witnesses, Wyoming
It’s another “Did You Know” day on the fasab blog.
More random facts to get your head around.
The first Dunkin Donuts and the first Howard Johnson’s
were both in Quincy, Massachusetts.
The Pennsylvania Dutch are not really Dutch.
They are a people of German ancestry living in
southeastern Pennsylvania, primarily in Lancaster County.
“German” in German is “Deutsch.”
The Gateway Arch in St. Louis
is as wide at its base as it is tall (630 feet).
Ohio State offers a course called “Sports for the Spectator.”
Students are taught how to be
“an informed and appreciative sports spectator.”
Telephone cards first took off in Hawaii,
since long-distance charges from the far-flung state
were higher than anywhere else in the country.
What day were you born on?
Apparently Tuesday is the most popular day of the week for giving birth,
a fact that has nothing to do with Nature
and everything to do with hospital staffing;
elective C-sections and induced labors
are often scheduled during traditional working hours.
The majority of the text in the Monroe Doctrine
was actually penned by John Quincy Adams.
Despite its reputation as a cosmonaut staple,
freeze-dried ice cream only made one mission to space.
In 1968, it provided instant sugar rushes to the astronauts of Apollo 7.
In car design circles, a hood ornament is properly called a “mascot.”
The first American automobile to sport a mascot was the 1912 Cadillac.
Albert Einstein never received a Nobel Prize
for his theory of relativity.
On November 18th, 1913, pilot Lincoln Beachey was the
first person to make a complete loop-de-loop in an airplane.
The first man to appear on the cover of Playboy
was the actor Peter Sellers.
West Virginia is no longer the coal-mining capital of the U.S.,
nine of the ten top-producing coal mines are currently located in Wyoming.
The popular game Bingo was originally called “Beano”
because players used beans to cover the numbered squares.
Cruise control and automatic transmissions were invented
by a blind engineer named Ralph Teetor.
Modern scholars believe that Jericho,
settled around 10,000 years ago,
was the first walled city in the world.
The human bone most often broken is the clavicle (collar bone).
Swearing to tell
dates back to English Common Law.
Interestingly enough, there were no penalties for perjury until the 1600s;
prior to that time, it was believed that the fear of God’s wrath
was enough to keep witnesses honest.
According to doctors, humans have an average
of 14 episodes of flatulence per day.
(I always knew I was above average!)
The Harlem Globetotters were originally a Chicago based team (1927).
They did not play a game in Harlem until the 1960s.
Did You Know? Another Rummage Through The Fasab Fact Files
June 18, 2013 June 2, 2013 fasab Factoids, Humour, Unusual 000 square miles, 100, 1792, 1933, 1949 ENIAC computer, 1976, actor, Al Gore, americans, amusing, Ancient Egyptians, astronauts, Australia, author, book, brain, British monarch, camels, Canadian, cartoon character, ceremony, Charles I, chew, city block, coded signal, cry, deaths of their cats, Dewey-decimal category, doctors, education, Eiffel Tower, eighteenth century, Einstein, England, Entertainment, eyebrows, fact, factoid, factoids, facts, fan letters, figure 8 pattern, flush the toilet, French resistance, freshman, gravity, Harvard, headdresses, Humor, Humour, information, Isaac Asimov, Jannene Swift, John has a long moustache, los angeles, married, mickey mouse, Misc, Miscellaneous, morbid fear of ferns, mourn, nerve impulses, Nullarbor Plain, quarter inch square, Random, researchers, rock, roommates, Russian, secretary, shaved, Sigmund Freud, silicon chip, sitting, space, steps, tears, Tokyo, Tommy Lee Jones, toupees for dogs, tree, trivia, Vice President, women's wigs, WWII
Hello again and welcome to another rummage through the fasab fact files.
As random as ever, this selection covers many centuries and many countries so you should find something of interest.
1 in 5 of the world’s doctors are Russian.
The Nullarbor Plain of Australia covers
100,000 square miles (160,900 km) without a tree.
In 1933, Mickey Mouse, an animated cartoon character,
received 800,000 fan letters.
Nerve impulses to and from the brain
travel as fast as 170 miles (274 km) per hour.
Ancient Egyptians shaved off their eyebrows
to mourn the deaths of their cats.
Canadian researchers have found that
Einstein’s brain was 15% wider than normal.
Isaac Asimov is the only author
to have a book in every Dewey-decimal category.
The shortest British monarch was Charles I,
who was 4 feet 9 inches.
Sigmund Freud had a morbid fear of ferns.
(Something to do with his mother no doubt!)
Camels chew in a figure 8 pattern.
In space, astronauts cannot cry,
because there is no gravity,
so the tears can’t flow.
There are 1,792 steps in the Eiffel Tower
A silicon chip a quarter inch square
has the capacity of the original 1949 ENIAC computer,
which occupied a city block.
About a third of all Americans flush the toilet
while they’re still sitting on it.
Actor Tommy Lee Jones and vice president Al Gore
were freshman roommates at Harvard.
In eighteenth century England,
women’s wigs were sometimes 4 feet high.
These remarkable headdresses were dusted with flour
and decorated with stuffed birds, replicas of gardens,
plates of fruit, or even model ships.
In 1976 a Los Angeles secretary named Jannene Swift
officially married a 50 pound rock.
The ceremony was witnessed by more than 20 people.
In Tokyo, they sell toupees for dogs.
John has a long moustache was the coded signal
used by the French Resistance in WWII
Did They Really Mean To Say That? Newspaper Headlines Nightmares, Part Three!!!
June 12, 2013 June 11, 2013 fasab Bloopers, CLASSIFIED, comedy, Humour, Language alive, amusing, bean supper, bug spray, cheer, Comedy, Diana, died, doctors, dry cleaners, dwi, Entertainment, federal agents, Feds, fish, fish need water, fools, frozen, funeral homes, funny, gas, gas company, Governor, gun shop, help, hiring, home, homeless, homeless man, homicide, homicide victims, hospitals, house arrest, Humor, Humour, kayaking, lawyers, Misc, Miscellaneous, newspaper, newspaper editor, newspaper editors, newspaper headline, newspaper headline writer, newspaper headline writers, newspaper headlines, newspaper stories, newspapers, Oakland Airport, pilots, police, raid, Random, same spot, security firm, senior citizens, stupid people, stupidity, talk to police, water, working
Another mid-week selection of linguistic catastrophes in the form of newspaper headlines that went sadly wrong.
I bet the authors were congratulating themselves when they wrote them on how clever they had been.
Sorry (at them), but hurrah to us, they had quite the opposite result.
Jobs Blow For Sex Workers
April 25, 2013 fasab comedy, Humour, Language, Puns a little behind in his work, amputated, amusing, arms, asphalt, bad jokes, bakers, barmaid, beer, blanket factory, boyfriend, bread recipes, broke it off, butcher, chlorine, Comedy, complete idiot, condoms, deja Moo, deserted island, Dick-taker, dockyard, doctors, dragon, drink, Entertainment, every conceivable occasion, fascist hooker, folded, funny, gene pool, geometry, get me into trouble, girlfriend, grass related puns, hangover, heard this bull before, Humor, Humour, jokes, knead, leaving me, lecture, legs, marooned, meat grinder, menstrual cycle, Misc, Miscellaneous, missing, mythical creature puns, nine-year-old, obsession, one for the road, parts, people's eyes, period, physician's garden, play on words, pointless, pub, pun, pun day, puns, purple, Random, sand, Scotch on the rocks, sea, silly jokes, sod off, stumped, stupid, sun, throwing acid, wife, wooden leg, word play, word plays, wrath of grapes
Thought it was safe?
Sorry, pun day again folks.
Deja Moo:
The feeling that you’ve heard this bull before.
I’m not a complete idiot
Some parts are just missing.
The gene pool could use a little chlorine.
A hangover is the wrath of grapes.
A man walks into a bar with a slab of asphalt under his arm and says:
“A beer please, and one for the road.”
Did you hear about the butcher backed into the meat grinder?
He got a little behind in his work.
She had a boyfriend with a wooden leg,
but broke it off.
Without geometry, life is pointless.
Bakers trade bread recipes on a knead to know basis.
I used to work in a blanket factory, but it folded.
Condoms should be used on every conceivable occasion.
Dockyard:
A physician’s garden.
A guy was confused about why the doctors had amputated his arms and legs.
In fact he was stumped.
A man wakes up on a deserted island
only to find that the sun, sand and sea are all purple.
He cried: “Oh no, I’ve been marooned!”
Men need to stop telling jokes about women’s menstrual cycle!
My girlfriend said that she’s leaving me,
because of my constant grass related puns.
I told her to sod off.
My wife gave me a lecture about
my obsession with mythical creature puns.
It didn’t half Dragon.
A nine-year-old lad walks into a pub and yells at the barmaid for a Scotch on the rocks.
‘Do you want to get me into trouble?’ she replies.
‘Maybe later,’ says the boy, ‘but now I just want a drink’.
The Weirdest Of Coincidences
March 17, 2013 fasab Doctors, Hospitals, Humour, Medical, Stories, Uncategorized, Unusual 11:00 am, accident and emergency, another dimension, answers, clergymen, Coincidences, deaths, doctors, dying, evil entities, funny, health, holy objects, hospital, hospital management, Humor, Humour, Intensive Care Unit, laws of probability, life support system, medical, medical condition, medical experts, medicine, medium, Misc, Miscellaneous, mystery, nervous, nurses, one in a million, patients, phenomenon, portal, prayer books, puzzled, questions, Random, reason, scientists, stupid people, stupidity, Sunday mornings, super natural, surgical, sweeper, the same bed, the same time, tv, vacuum cleaner, ward off the evil spirits, wards, Weird, Weirdest, wooden crosses, work, worldwide team of experts
The hospital was just like any other.
It had accident and emergency, medical, surgical and all the other usual departments and wards. It also had an Intensive Care Unit, well staffed and managed, just like any other.
Except that this Intensive Care Unit wasn’t just like any other. Patients kept dying in this unit.
Not only that, but they always died in the same bed, and at the same time, on Sunday mornings at about 11:00 am, regardless of their medical condition.
It had been that way for a while and doctors, nurses and the hospital management were not only puzzled, but rather nervous too.
What could possibly be the reason? The laws of probability made this occurrence way more than one in a million.
Some even thought it had to have something to do with the super natural.
Had something terrible happened in that ward sometime in the past?
Was the hospital built on the site of some awful tragedy that had taken place years ago?
Was there some kind of portal to another dimension where evil entities could enter and leave?
There were many more questions than answers, but no one could solve the mystery as to why the deaths always occurred in the same bed and around the same time, 11:00 am Sunday.
Eventually a worldwide team of experts was assembled to investigate the cause of the incidents. It included scientists, medical experts, a crew with electronic detection equipment, several clergymen and even a medium.
They were prepared for anything and everything.
Or so they thought.
The next Sunday morning, a few minutes before 11:00 am all of the doctors and nurses nervously waited with the team of experts outside the ward to see for themselves what the terrible phenomenon was all about.
Some were holding wooden crosses, others prayer books and other holy objects to ward off the evil spirits.
Then, just when the clock struck 11:00 am, the ward door suddenly burst open.
The crowd of watchers gasped.
Pookie Johnson, the part-time Sunday sweeper, entered the ward.
He walked over to the wall beside the offending bed, unplugged the life support system and plugged in his vacuum cleaner.
Turns out the culprit was Pookie and not a spookie after all.
It’s Thursday And That Means Another Excuse For A Few More Bad Jokes
October 25, 2012 fasab comedy, Humour, Language, Puns, Uncategorized, Unusual assaulted, back up plan, beaver, cartoonist, chip monk, coffee, Comedy, cost of living, dam, dead batteries, doctors, electrician, Entertainment, free of charge, friar, funerals, funny, ground, hare, heart, Humor, Humour, ketchup, magician, making faces, marriage, Misc, Miscellaneous, monastery, mud, mustard, Organ donors, parking space, patience, peanuts, pistol. Algebra, play on words, pun, puns, Random, relish, rubber band, sentence, sketchy, steak, strength, taste, tough neighborhood, traveler, truck. volts, vegetarian, wagon, watch factory, weapon of math disruption, word, word play
Yes, it’s Thursday and that means another excuse for a few more bad jokes in the shape of the word plays called puns.
Organ donors put their heart into it.
Two peanuts were walking in a tough neighborhood and one of them was a-salted.
A hungry traveler stops at a monastery and is taken to the kitchens.
A brother is frying chips.
‘Are you the friar?’ he asks.
‘No. I’m the chip monk,’ he replies.
Why does the coffee taste like mud?
Because it was ground a couple of minutes ago.
The dead batteries were given out free of charge.
I could not pull out of my parking space, so I used my back up plan.
I relish the fact that you’ve mustard the strength to ketchup to me.
The magician got so mad he pulled his hare out.
To some – marriage is a word … to others – a sentence.
A rubber band pistol was confiscated from algebra class because it was a
weapon of math disruption.
The man who worked at the watch factory was very funny.
He stood about all day making faces.
I decided that becoming a vegetarian was a missed steak.
Experts say the cost of funerals have risen by 50%,
they blame it on the cost of living.
Cartoonist found dead in home.
Details are sketchy.
Old doctors never die they just lose their patience.
I saw a beaver movie last night, it was the best dam movie I’ve ever seen.
Did you hear about the electrician who claimed that his truck was a volts wagon.
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What role do you think the unannounced character is, and who are they?
Raindrop8246 • last edited by
I think the unannounced character will fit into the tank slot but I don’t know what abilities they could have, the tanks at the moment revolve around creating opportunities for the team to move in. The other thing they excel in is absorbing damage and surviving in the front line which helps extend team fights and increases the chance of your team winning, so what abilities could this new person have?
I feel like an ability could be one where they absorb damage in an aura and any teammate in the aura gets a damage boost and the amount of damage gained is how much damage is absorbed? Another could be a temporary front facing barrier with a lot of with a lot of HP that lasts 12 seconds or until destroyed and the cooldown would begin on destruction. As for ultimates, I couldn’t decide what another tank could have which would be useful enough for the team to utilise so that’s something I can’t decide.
Who do you think it is, and what abilities do you think they could have?
Abide By Karma • last edited by
@Raindrop8246 i agree i feel like it will be another tank if not another support but im guessing tank.
@Raindrop8246 But as far as abilities,supers,characters i have no clue. I think one of if not the strongest thing bleeding edge has IMO. Would behow diverse each character is and give them there own story ninja theory did a great job as far as creativity goes.
Evade This5965 • last edited by
Before Cass came out, I figured there would be 4 of each (Heavy/Assassin/Support) but now that we have 5 assassins I'm actually assuming the last character is also an assassin. The reason being it would seem, from the developer's perspective, your typical team comp would have 1 Heavy, 2 Assassins, and 1 Supports, which would make sense if the total number of characters was 3, 6, and 3 respectively. However, it could be anything honestly, and I wouldn't mind another Heavy for sure.
A passive aoe defense buff would definitely be a great basic ability for a Heavy to have, which is basically that damage reduction aura you have. To fit the general design of the game though, it wouldn't be too strong, comparable to Kulev's passive healing perhaps.
A shield user is definitely on the table, especially since the only wall-type abilities are on supports (Miko's Kinetic Shield and Zerocool's Firewall). If it operated like a Kinetic Shield but included melee attacks you could move around while blocking damage up to a cap, tanking for your team. That'd be pretty great. You could take away evade like they've done with most Heavy's and replace the stamina bar with a recharging "block" bar. Then just grant them some kind of movement/CC as specials instead and have them focus on blocking to be viable. If you give them a slightly higher health pool and maaaaybe the ability to regenerate out of combat like Zerocool they should be more than viable. Without a built in self-heal or self-shield they'll have a harder time keeping up with other Heavy's, but the recharging block bar and general team synergy should make them great picks for any team.
Personally, I'd like to see a Heavy with some micro-invulnerability specials. There's some of that in Supers, then there's Maeve's Vanish, but a fast cast but very short invulnerability on a character that can't evade, perhaps one that puts them in a stasis but lets them use some kind of AOE that works during it, would be pretty fun to play and have a higher skill cap. Like I was saying before, I'd also like to see more wall-like abilities, perhaps even total terrain creation that would let them corner targets.
If it's an Assassin I have some ideas for that, I even posted a Chain-based character concept on the subreddit when I was feeling a little creative. Either way, I'm super excited to find out who it is!
x AmberPrice • last edited by
I personally feel like a new Support character would be the best fit right now. Or at least a Tank with some sort of AoE or healing ability (Makutu already fits that role to some extent however). A support is a vital pick for a team comp, I've not yet seen a successful team without a combination of Kulev, Miko and/or Zerocool. That's the downside IMO. At least one of your team of 4 is almost guaranteed to be a Support, and right now that choice is limited to 3. I don't think any of us have played enough to get a sense of whether a Kulev or Miko as a solo Support is completely viable but from my lengthy Alpha experience it appeared either a Zerocool as a solo Support or BOTH Kulev and Miko filling the Support role were the combination being used the most and with the most success.
Again there wasn't really enough time to form any considerable "meta" but the only thing I noticed creeping in was either Zerocool OR Kulev AND Miko being the only 2 alternatives and either of the 2 was necessity for every team. The rest of the characters could be mixed n matched as long as you had a base of Zerocool OR Kulev and Miko. So the viable choices were really limited to 2 in the Support category (again from my experience).
That's why I'd quite like a 4th Support to disrupt that a little bit. Perhaps one that could serve as an alternative to Zerocool - another healer that can target a considerable amount of healing output.
In terms of the hidden design, I don't know why but beyond the Hammond similarities and hamster wheel stereotype I can't help but think it looks like an electrically charged fish bowl or something. That's my wild guess.
I had quite a bit of success running only 1 support in the team... in the ~10 games I've gotten to play so far lol. So yeah, the meta isn't set in stone yet at all. I do think an over-reliance on supports stems from inexperience with the game though, and that should change with time. Like you said, Zerocool is the only one with considerable healing power (ignoring supers) but that's a trade off he pays for in being offensively negligible. He's also really easy to chase away from the fight. His escapes are definitely strong, but if he's running he's not healing and that's often good enough.
The problem is that healing orbs are very common and easily accessible. A lot of fights will be about making trades, then establishing control of the orb spawns and either killing the enemy or forcing them away from objectives to find healing elsewhere. Healing is definitely strong, but it just means that the team with less healing will need to engage harder and make up for it with superior damage and control, and use that superior trading ability to keep the orbs under their control.
In terms of non-support fighters, Makutu is an excellent support tank and can support/heal/peel for an ally decently by himself, at least well enough to skirmish and get out. There are also the self-healers: Buttercup, Maeve, Nidhoggr, and the self-shielder El Bastardo. That only leaves Cass, Daemon, and Gizmo as being particularly vulnerable to making trades. Cass and Daemon have enough mobility and survivability though to make that much less of a problem, as they can quickly get out, grab an orb, and show up again soon after. That leaves Gizmo as the only character I would say absolutely needs to be babied with a healer. Gizmo has strong zoning and carrying ability though, so that makes sense.
The only one I'm really unsure about is Nidhoggr, because even though he has self-heal it doesn't seem to be all that good... maybe balancing will fix that, or mods.
That being said, I think I agree that another support is a good idea at this stage. For the Heavy's, you already have a nice split of Control Tank (Buttercup), Dive Tank (El Bastardo), and Support Tank (Makutu). The supports have a mixed bag of Burst, Zoning, and Utility but could probably use another Control option. Stasis is strong but not enough to call Miko a controller, and neither of her supers offer that option either. Kulev has Bamboozle, which is arguably the strongest CC in the game next to Sleep, but as a super it's not reliable. I'm thinking a support with a simple push special, like knocks enemies back or something, would be highly desirable...
Aaahhg I don't care what it is I just want to see the new fighter I'm so excited >_<
@Evade-This5965
You make a good point about a large number of characters having self healing abilities, including Mods making this more powerful. Regardless though, as such a vital aspect of a team composition even with solo healing abilities and controlling healing orbs on the field, I still feel like there is a slight lack of variety in that area, at least in comparison to the variety in other roles so far! Always difficult to comment from our limited play times! If you had success then I've no doubt there is success to be had with running a Solo Miko or Solo Kulev, it just never really seemed like a thing during my games! Looking forward to testing this myself during the Beta!
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He moved on another one like a b***h.
Can you imagine the president of your country being credibly accused of rape and it is not even worth being put on the front page of any of the major newspapers in your country? Sadly, this is what is happening now here in America.
Of course, when your president is Donald trump, you already know that he has bragged about assaulting women on tape and was still elected. You already know that over 20 women have already accused him of sexual misconduct towards them, and of being the pig that we know that he is capable of being.
The most recent accuser is a woman who alleges that Mr. trump raped her in the dressing room of a fancy New York store and that it lasted for about three minutes (Frankly, that's about two minutes longer than most of us would expect.), and that she wasn't sure how much of his private parts had penetrated her. (No surprise there.)
Anyway, Mr. trump, in typical trump fashion, has lashed out against the woman by saying that she isn't his type. Not that he would never do such a thing, but that she is not his type. Do you see what we are working with here? If you guessed sociopath move to the head of the class. Then he declared, in typical trumpian fashion, that he has never met the woman and does not know who she is. And yet there are photos that prove otherwise. This follows a pattern, He has declared in the past that he does not know his accusers, only to have photos show up to prove otherwise/
trump's biggest asset right now is "media fatigue", because frankly it is so hard to be shocked by his actions these days.
Speaking of the media, just because there is fatigue that doesn't that they should lose their willingness to get to the bottom of every story, and report it to America. This story has not been getting the attention it deserves, and I suspect that this is because editors and news producers, like the rest of the county, have fallen victim to Mr. trump's gaslighting tactics.
“I tried to f— her,” I moved her on like a bitch– and she was married.... When you’re a star you can grab them by the pussy."
Or apparently even rape them.
Truth said...
The white race is a disease.
Think of the fantasy said...
Try watching her interview with Anderson Cooper on CNN. The woman is batshit crazy.
Also, she just happens to be selling a book.
Field jumps the gun again.
Republicans are all about the sexual assault and behavioral control of women, like the 100+ women that the Missouri GOP just put through state mandated sexual assault at Planned Parenthood for 21 days until the doctors finally refused and the GOP said, OK, you're right, our bad, carry on.
Fergus is harder to deal with though, as 1) he wants to fuck his own daughter, and 2) any time he looks at or thinks about a woman it seems like a form of sexual assault.
Perhaps when he is no longer protected by the presidency he will see some justice, and perhaps he will live long enough to serve a sizable fraction of the sentence.
Paradoctor said...
The orange pig said that he didn't rape her because she's not his type. Which says that he does rape women who are his type. So women: don't be his type.
Don't worry Doug, progressive and poor women can still abort children. Some lives matter.
Her story is not provable in court because he's an experienced criminal; but I entirely believe it because we know him all too well.
http://rudepundit.blogspot.com/2019/06/the-president-of-united-states-is.html
"Don't worry Doug, progressive and poor women can still abort children. Some lives matter."
Oh best believe conservatives have abortions too. Remember the holier than thou Republican pro-life congressman who sent his mistress to the clinic? Trust, it ain't just a liberal thing.
It's poor women being affected by these bullshit laws. Rich women will always be able to get on a plane and fly somewhere civilized.
She’s clearly mentally ill and being used as a proxy. This is a form of elder abuse.
Shameful.
It looks as if the Evangelicals new "Savior-in-Chief" Comrade David Dennison is once again facing accusations of rape, this time from a credible known public figure.
It won't be a jump to say sadist Republicans will have their favorite prayer posse led by one of their many sadist religious leaders laying hands on the criminal women molesting megalomaniac Dennison by Friday in the oval office.
The now Russian oligarch financed GOP is headed to the long awaited political trash heap in a ball of flames, shame and religious hypocrisy second only to their imaginary white Jesbus.
Drumpfuck could rip a fetus out of a woman and eat it raw on national teevee and his base wouldn't care. Why? Because they don't care what he does or who gets hurt. They are the worst of the worst human beings ever. And stoopid fucking wingnuts, to boot.
America, we the people deserve better. Hurry 2020; we're the laughing stock of the globe. (Another woman disrespected, think of your mothers and sisters). SMH.
Another lie.
When will you learn?
You mean Trump’s denials? We’ve learned. The whole world has learned.
"Try watching her interview with Anderson Cooper on CNN. The woman is batshit crazy."
What specifically led you to conclude that she is batshit crazy? Mu hunch is that you are a little off balance for not providing some evidence to back your claim.
Obama: Likes it up the ass. Hates police. Hates law and order. Presided over a massive increase in murders in our biggest cities.
Trump: likes women.
I'll take Trump.
"What specifically led you to conclude that she is batshit crazy?"
Just listen to her. If you find her remotely credible, you are batshit crazy.
I can see why anyfuckingmoose likes Drumpf. He lies just like Drumpf about murder rates.
https://www.factcheck.org/2016/07/dueling-claims-on-crime-trend/
Drumpf 20 to.....phuck it. Just give his orange ass the deAth penalty with absolutely no chances to grope Ivanka.
Anonymous 10:45 made four false statements about Obama, and one false statement about Trump.
Drumpf does not like women. He doesn't respect women. They are here for his pleasure and to lie for him. That is all.
https://thinkprogress.org/lawsuit-republican-elections-official-indiana-america-voting-security-threat-connie-lawson-c5dedc85a7a7/
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/ncna1018836
Bumped into Capt. Bill Norwood (ret.) UAL's first Black pilot at San Fran airport. Still. great guy😄
Drumpf's IRS is showing favoritism to Drumpf's billionaire buds.
https://www.salon.com/2019/06/24/a-real-estate-deal-that-should-have-raised-red-flags-at-the-irs_partner/
wolf.....wolf......wolf......
How so???
Re Anonymous 1:10:
troll... troll... troll..,
The slow-motion trainwreck that has come to define Trump-accuser E. Jean Carroll's publicity blitz has been painful to watch, one more example of our corrupt media -- as a means to smear Trump -- psychologically abusing someone who is obviously unwell and unreliable.
Things finally came to a head on Monday night when Carroll slurred something so outrageous even CNN's basement-rated Anderson Cooper was speechless.
"I think most people think of rape as being sexy -- think of the fantasies," she said.
To begin with, her nearly 25-year-old accusation against Trump, her claim he raped her (although she now says it wasn't rape, but a "fight") at Bergdorf Goodman Department Store in Manhattan, is ludicrous.
Rape?
In a department store?
In Manhattan?
One scream and Trump’s entire life would have been over.
If that isn't ludicrous enough, when she was asked last week if she would press assault charges against Trump, she told MSNBC's Lawrence O'Donnell that doing so would be "disrespectful to the women who are down on the border who are being raped around the clock down there without any protection."
"The women have very little protection there," she added. "It would just be disrespectful." And then she rambled on about all the rapes all around the world and how her bringing charges against Trump "just doesn’t make sense to me."
Well, that's not an answer. It is, though, the most awkward pivot to a left-wing political talking point in the history of cable news.
https://tinyurl.com/y5onha64
The Barack Obama years were horrible, with race baiting, race riots, cities burning, Middle East wars, embassies burning, trading good jobs for McJobs, weaponizing government agencies against opponents, endless lies, incompetence, and undermining the foundations of our country. Democrats are hoping to bring that back.
I believe this bullshit like I believe in global warming:
Colorado’s snowpack is 40 times normal after rare summer solstice dump
https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2019/06/24/colorados-snowpack-is-over-percent-normal-after-rare-summer-solstice-dump/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.a88bcdc6775b
"The Barack Obama years were horrible......"
Only in your imagination. Obama rescued us from a second great depression, got the ACA through congress, dealt with Bush's two wars, and more than doubled the stock market.
Those were terrible years. NOT!
To Anonymous at 2:18 PM
Here are just a few of Obama's many accomplishments.
1. Passed Health Care Reform: After five presidents over a century failed to create universal health insurance, signed the Affordable Care Act (2010). It will cover 32 million uninsured Americans beginning in 2014 and mandates a suite of experimental measures to cut health care cost growth, the number one cause of America’s long-term fiscal problems.
2. Passed the Stimulus: Signed $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in 2009 to spur economic growth amid greatest recession since the Great Depression. Weeks after stimulus went into effect, unemployment claims began to subside. Twelve months later, the private sector began producing more jobs than it was losing, and it has continued to do so for twenty-three straight months, creating a total of nearly 3.7 million new private-sector jobs.
3. Passed Wall Street Reform: Signed the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (2010) to re-regulate the financial sector after its practices caused the Great Recession. The new law tightens capital requirements on large banks and other financial institutions, requires derivatives to be sold on clearinghouses and exchanges, mandates that large banks provide “living wills” to avoid chaotic bankruptcies, limits their ability to trade with customers’ money for their own profit, and creates the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (now headed by Richard Cordray) to crack down on abusive lending products and companies.
4. Ended the War in Iraq: Ordered all U.S. military forces out of the country. Last troops left on December 18, 2011.
5. Began Drawdown of War in Afghanistan: From a peak of 101,000 troops in June 2011, U.S. forces are now down to 91,000, with 23,000 slated to leave by the end of summer 2012. According to Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, the combat mission there will be over by next year.
6. Eliminated Osama bin laden: In 2011, ordered special forces raid of secret compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, in which the terrorist leader was killed and a trove of al-Qaeda documents was discovered.
7. Turned Around U.S. Auto Industry: In 2009, injected $62 billion in federal money (on top of $13.4 billion in loans from the Bush administration) into ailing GM and Chrysler in return for equity stakes and agreements for massive restructuring. Since bottoming out in 2009, the auto industry has added more than 100,000 jobs. In 2011, the Big Three automakers all gained market share for the first time in two decades. The government expects to lose $16 billion of its investment, less if the price of the GM stock it still owns increases.
8. Recapitalized Banks: In the midst of financial crisis, approved controversial Treasury Department plan to lure private capital into the country’s largest banks via “stress tests” of their balance sheets and a public-private fund to buy their “toxic” assets. Got banks back on their feet at essentially zero cost to the government.
9. Repealed “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”: Ended 1990s-era restriction and formalized new policy allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military for the first time.
Why am I not a doctor yet? Maybe I should put down the fried chicken and watermelon and get my fat ass out of the basement for once.
More left wing pabulum and delusional talk......
"Here are just a few of Obama's many accomplishments.
1. Passed Health Care Reform: After five presidents over a century failed to create universal health insurance, signed the Affordable Care Act (2010). It will cover 32 million uninsured Americans beginning in 2014 and mandates a suite of experimental measures to cut health care cost growth, the number one cause of America’s long-term fiscal problems."
Then after this, since 2010 health care cost skyrocketed so the average person could not afford private health insurance. Obama care was designed to fail from the get go so Single Payer could be implemented.
OBAMA=FAIL
"2. Passed the Stimulus: Signed $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in 2009 to spur economic growth amid greatest recession since the Great Depression. Weeks after stimulus went into effect, unemployment claims began to subside. Twelve months later, the private sector began producing more jobs than it was losing, and it has continued to do so for twenty-three straight months, creating a total of nearly 3.7 million new private-sector jobs."
Big fucking deal. Got $600 bucks back of my own tax money. This was just another Democratic feel good hand out. Had no lasting impact for the economy.
Anonymous said..
"Big fucking deal. Got $600 bucks back of my own tax money. This was just another Democratic feel good hand out. Had no lasting impact for the economy."
I think you are talking about the $600 per person stimulus that Bush handed out in 2008.
Justin Fairfax said...
"Her story is not provable in court because he's an experienced criminal; but I entirely believe it because we know him all too well."
Levels of pretend-credulity once reserved for radicals have reached the mainstream.
Here’s a summary:
Length of term
Closing Dow Jones Industrial Average
Percentage increase in the Dow Jones Industrial Average
+ 149 percent
- 25 percent
+ 45 percent
Pride! said...
San Francisco just banned the sale of e-cigarettes. No vaping or plastic straws allowed.
But it’s still legal there to knowingly ejaculate your ooey gooey HIV+ load into another man’s filthy asshole... you just can’t vape while you infect hairless boy after hairless boy with your putrid, diseased ejaculate.
Hey Gambler2, so you like black men? What attracts them to you? Your flat ass or flat rack?
Bwahahahahahahaha!!!!!
Pridel, the thing for you to do is offer your mouth as a diseased cum repository and save all them hairless boys.
First, let's be clear; my ass isn't flat and neither is my rack. Now that that's out of the way: I like all kinds men and all kinds of men like me. I've been married several times and only one of my husbands was black.
As to what attracts black man or other men to me, I think it's my intellect and my tendency to listen when they talk. And I make intelligent comments on what they say. In addition, I'm not bad looking and I was considered pretty when I was young.
By the way, what's with this? "Bwahahahahahahaha!!!!!"
Why are you laughing?
"Just listen to her. If you find her remotely credible, you are batshit crazy."
This is not an answer to my question. I rather expected that you could make at least one point. I guess not.
This lady’s memoir about all the famous men like Donald Trump and Hunter S. Thompson who just can’t stop raping her due to her overwhelming sexiness reads like a cross between a bodice ripper romance novel entitled The Maiden Who Was Ravished by the Pirate Captain and a Letter to Penthouse.
Why do Republicans hate and fear women so much?
Captain Coalpoker said...
Why has Doug never gotten laid?
Why do whooteemoos like Gambler2 think they belong on a black blog just because they like black d*ck?
Bwahahahahahahaha!!,
Reality is bitch said...
I miss the real Yisheng, constantly denigrating working-class white people whose taxes funded her 40-year quixotic quest to become a doctor. Decade after decade of affirmative action schooling and handouts courtesy of the largesse of white America for which she had not a scintilla of gratitude, only scorn for the people who facilitated her pursuit of a career credential which she lacked half the brainpower to attain.
Then she flunked out and never posted here again.
Bwahahahahahahaha!!!!!!
"Why do whooteemoos like Gambler2 think they belong on a black blog just because they like black d*ck?
Bwahahahahahahaha!!,"
Well, Yisheng, since you asked: I can't speak for anyone else, but I will tell you why I belong here. First, Field welcomes all who who wish to join the group. Nowhere does he say this blog is only for black people. Second, since my husband died I don't have as much contact with the black community as I had before, and I miss it.
As for your inane comment about "black d*ck", I married my husband because he was intelligent, witty, kind, generous, and honest. In addition we shared the same political views, same sense of humor, and most important, the same values. And I loved him dearly and I still do.
So make of that what you will. And have a nice night.
Clown World Productions said...
Believe women.
Gambler2 Aska White Woman: Thank you for your poise, intelligence and honesty, in the face of poser posters here lacking all of those qualities. They think their insults 'win', but honor and truth are yours.
The very vileness of their lies prove that we have completed Step One: we have won the argument. Step Two is to win the fight.
S.D. said...
Yisheng was a racist, a retard, and a cunt.
Thank you, Para Doctor. You are very kind. After 35 year of enjoying a wonderful "mixed marriage", I have already experienced many incidents of bigots' disapproval. I knew from the beginning it would be that way. It rolls off my back like water from a duck. I know that we are right and they are wrong.
New police video shows Jussie Smollett with rope around neck after alleged hate crime hoax:
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/jussie-smollett-new-police-video-shows-actor-with-rope-around-neck-in-alleged-hate-crime-hoax/
"The Barack Obama years were horrible,"
Not in my industry. Record profits, record contract, expansion and hiring through the roof. No complaints here.
Deplorable Dan said...
PilotX and the Koch brothers were happy with Obama.
" PilotX and the Koch brothers were happy with Obama.
So there's that."
I and the majority of Americans were happy with Obama. Don't you read or watch anything other than right-wing propaganda?
"Your flat ass or flat rack?"
Nah, brothas like round asses.
"PilotX and the Koch brothers were happy with Obama."
Then the Koch's are overjoyed about the trump EPA.
People loved Obama and hated his policies. Obama got elected, despite having no qualifications for running anything, because white America thought it would show they weren't racist and everything could finally start to be cool.
Instead he squandered a historic opportunity by inflaming divisions even deeper for political gain. His economic policies delayed what should have been a quick recovery and paid Wall Street donors with money taken directly from the middle and working classes. He rammed through a deeply flawed health insurance bill that he knew wouldn't work, depending on the "stupidity of the American voter". He was a petty, small man who whiffed at an easy softball.
"Then the Koch's are overjoyed about the trump EPA."
Koch Bros are Never Trumpers who have indicated they will be supporting the Dem candidate in 2020. Keeping borders open and wages down comes first.
Wall Street is all yours now.
"People loved Obama and hated his policies."
And you are full of it. It runs out your ears, your mouth, and your fingers when you type. Give it up and get some new talking points. And stop watching or listening to all that right-wing bull sh*t.
As for Obama not being qualified to be president, he was a damn site more qualified than the orange monster. At least Obama read the constitution and understood how our government works - something that Trump couldn't learn in a hundred years.
Koch bros were not happy with Obama, but they are horrified of Drumkpfuck the dumbfuck because Drumpfuck is a dumbfuck. Like the Ayatollah said, he is mentally retarded.
"Koch bros were not happy with Obama, but they are horrified of Drumkpfuck the dumbfuck because Drumpfuck is a dumbfuck. Like the Ayatollah said, he is mentally retarded."
You got that right, Mike!
NBC News has a story on Ag Sec Perdue. Basically he and Wilted Weenie knew they were throwing farmers under the bus with WW’s ego trade war.
Farmers are ‘casualties’ of Trump’s trade war, agriculture secretary admits
“You can’t pay the bills with patriotism,” Sonny Perdue said.
June 25, 2019, 9:40 AM CDT / Source: Reuters
Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue acknowledged that American farmers are “casualties” of President Donald Trump’s trade war with China, according to an interview broadcast on Tuesday.
Perdue told CNN he did not expect a trade deal to be reached when Trump meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping this month at the G-20 summit in Japan but hopes one can be struck by the end of the year.
The Trump administration has designated aid for farmers, a key constituency that helped him win the election in 2016, but they still have been among the hardest hit from the trade dispute with China.
“I think they are one of the casualties with trade disruption, yes,” Perdue told CNN. “We knew going in that when you flew the penalty flag on China, the retaliation, if it came, would be against the farmer.
Stakes are high for G-20 talks with China, but ‘you can only fight so many wars,’ say economists
“I’ve told the president — and the president understands — you can’t pay the bills with patriotism,” Perdue told CNN. “We know that and certainly he knows that. That’s why he’s trying to supplement the damage they’re having from trade disruptions with market facilitation.”
The Trump administration last month unveiled a $16 billion aid package for farmers to offset losses from the 10-month trade war with China. Payment rates to farmers would be determined by where they farm rather than what crops they grow.
The trade dispute, which escalated this month after Washington and Beijing raised tariffs on imports of each other’s goods, has left U.S. farmers sitting on record volumes of soybeans with China halting purchases. China once was a destination for more than 60 percent of U.S. soybean exports.6
"Instead he squandered a historic opportunity by inflaming divisions even deeper for political gain."
Huh? He tried to reach across the aisle at every opportunity. It was McConnell who publically stated he was going to do everything possible to make him a one term president. C'mon man!
Huh? He tried to reach across the aisle at every opportunity.
"The officer acted... stupidly."
"If I had a son, he would look like Trayvon."
Yeah, right. "Reach across the aisle." Asshole.
The officer DID act stupidly and if he had a son he WOULD look like Trayvon. Sorry you're such a snowflake.
Reminds me of when I was coming back to the states from London. I was in the security line and this really blonde Nordic looking woman with the bluest eyes ever was standing near me with two Hitler wet dream kids with almost white blonde hair and blue eyes. The security guard asks me if this is my family. I just gave him a blank stare and asked "really"? "Look at this girl and boy". He had to laugh cause we all know Motherland genes are strong, no way I have platnum blonde kids with blue eyes😂
NRATV is gone. Bon voyage.
"I was in the security line and this really blonde Nordic looking woman with the bluest eyes ever was standing near me with two Hitler wet dream kids with almost white blonde hair and blue eyes."
Someone has issues.
"Someone has issues."
Yeah, the snowflake above.😂
The officer DID act stupidly
Doing his job, trying to report the end of the interaction to central was "acting stupidly"? Gates wouldn't stop shouting at him for doing his job, making certain that Gates' own home was not being burglarized. The total ingratitude of Gates is iconic, just like yours.
if he had a son he WOULD look like Trayvon.
And would act like Trayvon too. Identifying with burglar and attempted murderer Martin over victim Zimmerman is anti-American to the point of treason.
Sorry you're such a snowflake.
I already knew you're not remotely American, regardless of what your papers say. "US citizen" has no social or civilizational meaning anymore. It has been progressively debased and diluted since 1965.
You have to go. You don't have to go back, but you won't stay here.
Anonymous said.....
"You have to go. You don't have to go back, but you won't stay here."
Who in the hell do you think you are that you can tell someone "you won't stay here?" You don't even have the intestinal fortitude to post with a screen name.
Sure kid, whatever you say.
A cop is an idiot if he thinks a 70 year old is a burgler. Sure he broke in and quickly put up pictures of himself in a house.Yeah, the cop was a genius.
Trayvon was walking back home when a creepy wannabe cop kept stalking him after the dispatcher told him to not follow.
"You don't even have the intestinal fortitude to post with a screen name."
He is kind of a snowflake. 😂
PilotX @ 10:35.... be careful what you say to authorities, you might be mistaken for a kidnapper.
https://www.npr.org/2018/10/10/656155483/video-georgia-woman-calls-police-on-black-babysitter
"PilotX @ 10:35.... be careful what you say to authorities, you might be mistaken for a kidnapper."
Ha! London is a bit more progressive than Georgia.😂
Watch what happens when Black kid's backpack accidentally brushes a privileged white ass while she was sleeping standing up. Meet cornerstore Caroline scream assault at 9 year old Black.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AYep3LwjjW4&t=3s
I've seen a bunch of them things Blacks do to get hassled by coops, PilotX. Jogging, walking, running, running fast, picking up trash with a deadly weapon at school or at home. Sitting in yer front yard. Exercising your dog. It never ends.
Watch what happens when Black kid's backpack accidentally brushes a privileged white ass while she was sleeping standing up.
Watch what happens when a white girl decides to "taste brown sugar."
Watch what happens when a white girl accepts a black "sugar daddy". She winds up dead.
Watch what happens when a black decides that white women haven't been sufficiently accepting of his advances and decides to kill someone in response.
Whites have EVERY RIGHT AND OBLIGATION to object strenuously to any contact from blacks. Even violently. Blacks are not humans; they are vicious, dangerous, deadly animals. They should be kept away from humans, and punished or killed if they disrespect boundaries. Since they are all about "disrespect", neither they nor their apologists have any business objecting. None whatsoever.
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Black people are privileged
to live in white societies and or communities
an committing crime non stop against the host
that provides these savage scum bags free of everything
like clothing,food,shelter,education,entertainment hell
they even have their own damn channel called BET and their
own month (black history month) that is preserved for them
an they have the audacity,atrocity to complain,whine,nit pick,
cherry pick,groan,moan and call quite a lot of things or most
or everything racist,oppressed,slavery,discriminating,prejudice,
white privilege,racial profiling when things don't go their way
an or just so they can get things their way not to mention they
want to be immune against the officers and laws thinking that white
people should make a exception for them by letting their kind break
the laws,rules,policies while they expect everyone to just follow
the laws. they even celebrate,praise the deaths of the Zebra murders
on youtube in the comment's section a couple things I want to state
is even when they get caught red handed they always use (I didn't
do nothing") excuse the other one would be is they will always defend
their own race even though they know he,she,it have done the crime
other being is that when ever they fail & the actions they take
they blame it on Caucasians
another thing I love that I find
ironic is when these cretins indict
white people for cultural appropriation
when they themselves are the ones that are doing
it everyday for example wearing western clothing,
speaking the white man's linguistics,living in a
house an apartment and condominium an mansion that
was guess what built from the white man of course I
should also add that black women straighten an or bleach,dye
their hair and both genders are uncle tom's acting white an or
white washed the ones that are and bleaching theirs skin in fact
their so called black culture is nothing more than a derivative
from another race of culture that is white culture since
considering they do not have one of their own barely.
if you call what they have back
in the Sub Saharan African continent
a culture which is gibberish an their
culture,heritage,civilization stealer's
(Afro centric revisionist's) claiming everybody's
culture is their's when it isn't and claiming they
did great feats like Hidden figures the Tuskegee an
black invention's. well for one thing Hidden Figures
is mostly true except it wasn't the three black women
that got white Astronaut's to the moon it was a white
man named Jack Crenshaw an the Tuskegee air men
were not ace pilots as some like to believe,think,
know and the black invention's weren't the first ones
to be created by black inventor's
I have a few more things to say
like when it comes to crime in America
an massacres in Sub Saharan Africa and Haiti
including an or excluding black on black crime,
black on white crime,black on yellow crime,black
on brown crime depending on the person's perspectives
since it will vary from person to person if they factor
in these crimes with the massacres counting future ones
they would be in the millions
or hundreds of millions if you add
over the decades how many times black
on black crime,black on white crime,black
on yellow crime black on brown crime,massacres
happened in fifteenth century Haiti all the way
through twenty first century America,Europe,Sub
Saharan Africa.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_massacres_in_Kenya
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_massacres_in_Nigeria
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Massacres_in_the_Democratic_Republic_of_the_Congo
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_massacres_in_Rwanda
https://tightroperecords.com/Black-Invention-Myths.htm
http://conservative-headlines.com/2015/02/the-tuskegee-airmen-myths/
https://www.tuskegee.edu/Content/Uploads/Tuskegee/files/Nine_Myths_About_the_Tuskegee_Airmen.pdf
https://www.ajc.com/blog/get-schooled/uga-professor-teaching-black-kids-survival-tactics-rather-than-how-thrive/1uMWIvBwEXzwi2tQlqvw2H/
https://www.insidehighered.com/admissions/article/2019/05/20/college-board-will-add-adversity-score-everyone-taking-sat
FEMALE CALL GIRLS KOLKATA
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Ordinary Joe.
Is this who we are?
When hawks surround a chicken.
A big bust, and is it time for reparations?
Tired of his act?
Why we kneel.
Stories you should be reading but aren't.
The "electability" question.
Banished, and knowing a con when I see one.
Not being best.
An American embarrassment.
A "nasty" lie.
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Tom Cruise works for the good guys and the bad in first American Made trailer
Tom Cruiese is currently promoting his latest project, the action-adventure horror movie „The Mummy“, but the first trailer for his upcoming flick is already on line thanks to Universal Pictures.
The A list star is TWA pilot Barry Seal in American Made, and thanks to his desire for adventure, and gift for flying, he will get involved in major CIA covert operation and with the Medellin cartel all in the same time.
Image via Universal
Irish actor Domhnall Gleeson will also be in American Made as the CIA recruiting agent Monty Schafer, and the audience will also see fellow co-stars Sarah Wright, Jayma Mays, Jesse Plemons, Lola Kirke in the supporting roles.
Gary Spinelli penned the script, while Doug Liman sat down in the directorial chair for American Made. The real Barry Seal was assassinated on February 19, 1986 aged just 46.
Here’s the official synopsis for American Made:
In Universal Pictures’ American Made, Tom Cruise reunites with his Edge of Tomorrow director, Doug Liman (The Bourne Identity, Mr. and Mrs. Smith), in this international escapade based on the outrageous (and real) exploits of a hustler and pilot unexpectedly recruited by the CIA to run one of the biggest covert operations in U.S. history.
American Made opens 29 September in US, but up until then check out the first trailer.
Tagsamerican madeBarry SealDomhnall Gleesontom cruise
It’s not just for Wonder Woman: We ...
The student has surpassed the teacher: it’s ...
Can Cruise pull a Travolta?
The Mummy film review
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FOR LOCAL ORDERS
OUR PHYSICAL STORE
REMAINS CLOSED
due to extreme concerns
of the PANDEMIC
Bowling Green, Ohio 43402
In 1970, nine years after leaving the United States to study music in Canada, Beverly Glenn-Copeland released two self-titled albums. Both were a stunning showcase of classical and jazz accummen, layered with poetry and accompanied by some of the best players of the time. Original pressings now fetch thousands of dollars. Glenn-Copeland then vanished as a recording artist until his re-emergence in 1986 with the release (just a few hundred copies on cassette) of what many now believe to be his masterpiece, Keyboard Fantasies. Thirty years later, revered Japanese record-collector Ryota Masuko came across one of those cassettes and went on a mission to turn other audiophiles onto Glenn-Copeland's work and to find the artist himself. Word spread and a cult following was quickly amassed. Transmissions is a career-spanning album that includes compositions from his early works and his cult-status release, Keyboard Fantasies. It also includes both new and archival unreleased tracks and live versions.
https://findersrecords.com 5400863035211
Label: TRANSGRESSIVE
Artist: Beverly Glenn-Copeland
Vinyl - LP+7in
1. La Vita
2. Ever New
3. Colour of Anyhow (CBC Q Live Version)
4. Deep River (Live at Le Guess Who)
5. Don't Despair
6. Durocher
7. River Dreams
8. This Side of Grace
9. Sunset Village
10. In the Image
11. A Little Talk
12. Montreal Main (The Buddha in the Palm)
13. Erzili
Copyright © findersrecords
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Word definitions
Find the word definition
Enter the word
What is "cows"
Crossword clues for cows
Female whales
Daunts
Sights at 127-Across
Domesticated bovine animals as a group regardless of sex or age
Muleys
Homecoming animals
Intimidates
Cud chewers
Mad ones are bad
Bossy types?
The Collaborative International Dictionary
cows \cows\ n. pl. [pl. of cow.] domesticated bovine animals as a group regardless of sex or age; as, wait till the cows come home.
Syn: cattle, kine, oxen, Bos taurus.
n. (plural of cow English) vb. (en-third-person singular of: cow)
n. domesticated bovine animals as a group regardless of sex or age; "so many head of cattle"; "wait till the cows come home"; "seven thin and ill-favored kine"- Bible; "a team of oxen" [syn: cattle, kine, oxen, Bos taurus]
Cows (band)
Cows were a post-hardcore/ punk blues band from Minneapolis, Minnesota. The band formed in 1987 and disbanded in 1998. They were known for a unique mixture of punk rock and blues played with large amounts of noise and surreal humour; their music is often considered noise rock. Their CD releases are often difficult to find, as most of them are out of print, with the exception of Whorn and Orphan's Tragedy. Some of their albums, such as their debut album, Taint Pluribus Taint Unum, were never released in CD format.
They have a star on what is probably the most famous venue in the area, First Avenue. After disbanding, Shannon Selberg went on to front the band Heroine Sheiks.
Cows (TV series)
Cows is a surreal sitcom produced by Eddie Izzard for Channel 4 in 1997. All actors appeared in cow suits. After the pilot was produced, the show was cancelled by Channel 4 and was never aired. It was written by Nick Whitby and Izzard, and starred Pam Ferris and James Fleet. It was produced by David Tyler.
Usage examples of "cows".
These men, some with only six cows, a few pigs and poultry, still made up most of our practice and they were the truly rich characters, but they were beginning to wonder if they could make a living on this scale, and one or two had sold out to the bigger men.
It was late afternoon when he would normally have been bringing in his cows for milking, and I wondered at his presence in the town until he turned round and I saw that his arm was in a sling.
Up till the official licencing of bulls, the farmers had used any available male bovine to get their cows in calf.
To use a high-class, pedigree, proven bull to inseminate large numbers of cows for farmers who could never afford to own such an animal was and is a splendid idea.
Several weeks later I was called to the Scott farm to see a sick calf and the first thing I saw was Rip bringing the cows in for milking.
He owned a herd of good Ayrshire cows and ran a few turkeys and chickens on the side.
The cows never ailed a thing, and all I did was eat lovely food, bask out on the deck and sleep in a super cabin.
On the Klaipeda voyage I had learned a lot about the behaviour of animals aboard ship, and now I had the chance to observe the reaction of cows to being whisked into the air I felt a faint twinge of alarm when I remembered a story of how a veterinary surgeon had been in charge of some racehorses flying to America, and one of the animals had gone berserk and kicked a hole in the side of the aircraft.
I have often said that I wished all cows were Jerseys, and I felt it again that day.
I do not think I have ever seen a more beautiful group of cattle mostly heifers with a few young cows, and all of them fine-boned and graceful, with their lambent, kind eyes regarding us with mild interest as they took their places.
Some cows and bullocks were natural bullies, and one animal could impose a reign of terror on its more timid neighbours, driving them away viciously from food troughs in open yards and inflicting savage wounds on any that resisted.
I have seen cows chewing their cud while I sawed away, and this merciful improvement in our method signalled the end of all the old things.
He kept a few dairy cows on a smallholding on the edge of the town and augmented his income by operating a retail round among the citizens of Darrowby.
Some of them had four cows, others a few pigs, but Lionel had the lot.
There were only six cows in the little cobbled byre with its low roof and wooden partitions and they all had names.
words rhyming with cows, words from word "cows", words starting with "c", words starting with "co", words starting with "cow", words ending with "s", words ending with "ws", words ending with "ows", words containing "o", words containing "ow",
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Copyright © 2020 Firefly Creative. All rights reserved. Firefly Creative Solutions Limited. Registered in England No. 06305215 Vat No. 878546855
Kia unveils bold new Rebrand
Sean Langridge January 7, 2021
The car brand recently revealed its new logo and brand slogan in a world-record-breaking light show in Seoul that rivalled any international New Year’s celebration.
Car brand Kia has unveiled its new logo and brand slogan, the latest in a string of car companies revamping their image for a rapidly changing contemporary market. Displaying a dramatically different typographic approach, shape and new colour scheme, the new logo is far from a brand tweak, but reveals a bravely large step away from its old image.
Kia’s old logo was its word mark in all caps but separate letterforms, its signifying detail being the missing horizontal bar on the ‘A’, which has stayed for the rebrand. The word mark places heavy visual emphasis on the acutely angled ‘K’ and ‘A’ forward slants, and has a new similarly angled chamfer to the top left of the ‘K’ and bottom right of the ‘A’ that mirror each other. While the type is less clearly legible than the old logo, the mark is nonetheless a bolder and more coherent, modern symbol.
The branding also replaces its red, white and black branding with black on white, though it may reveal more colourways in a forthcoming full brand strategy presentation on 15 January. This, and the new typography, aligns the brand more strongly with its parent company Hyundai. However, unlike Hyundai, Kia has removed its oval shaped badge for this rebrand – something the recent rebrands of Nissan, Toyota, BMW, and Vauxhall haven’t done.
Kia also announced its new brand slogan, “Movement that inspires” – replacing its former slogan “Power to surprise” – adding that its “bold transformation and all-new brand purpose… represents [its] ambitions to establish a leadership position in the future mobility industry by revamping nearly all facets of its business”.
Article Source: It’sNiceThat
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Women in Prehistoric Indo European Society
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Throughout the 19th century scholars believed that the Proto Indo European (PIE) society had cross cousin marriage, matrilineal descent, and matriarchy (a female version of patriarchy). Then by the middle of the 20th century, the backlash was proclaiming just the opposite: that PIE society was patrilineal and patriarchical, and had husband centered residence. Friedrich (1966:9) even speculated that "widows may have been marked for some mortuary ritual; sacrifice and interment with the husband."
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Women and the Bolsheviks
History by: Anonymous
The woman question had a rich history in Russia. It developed from the 1830s and 1840s on when the works of Charles Fourier was read in Russian intelligentsia circles. Charles Fourier proclaimed the equality of men and women
Shipwrecks at Peruvian Sea 16th to 20th century catalogue
History by: Carlos Garcia Granthon
Here, in this book, you will find a listing of 241 slips of confirmed shipwrecks, which correspond to about 271 vessels, conforming a relation of the most important sinkings since the 16th century to the 20th century, occurred in Peruvian water and/...
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This book features the lives of Hiram and Lillian Shaddox. It was written by their children and grandchildren as a tribute to them. It describes the hard times (and good times) of life on Shaddock Branch during the Great Depression years of the ear...
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The Sanity of Square Enix is Questionable
According to Andriasang, Square Enix is working on an RPG that you can "play on the go and on whatever platform you want." Other than this sounding pretty impossible, I don't see these facts adding up
Contributed by Matt Jonas on August 1st, 2012 in Categories News PostsWith content involving Tags Final Fantasy XIII, Final Fantasy XIII-2, Final Fantasy XIII-3, imaginary games, Lunacy, Matt Jonas, RPGs, sanity, Square Enix, Square Enix being stupid, Tripping Balls
According to Andriasang, Square Enix is working on an RPG that you can “play on the go and on whatever platform you want.” Other than this sounding pretty impossible, I don’t see these facts adding up. Companies such as Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony are very negative toward cross-system compatibility and are vehemently against the concept of allowing an Xbox 360 game to talk to a PlayStation 3 game, or vice versa.
So just how is this going to work then? Is it going to be a browser-based RPG? The last time I checked, not every device could access the Internet, and a 3DS or PSVita Web browser is going to be far less equipped processor-wise to handle an RPG with a massive graphical demand.
Square Enix is also working on Final Fantasy XII-2-II, apparently.
Yet Square Enix producer Ryutaro Ichimura insists that his fantasy RPG (as in it doesn’t exist) is a “hardware-less” “action RPG” that you can “play anywhere.” So, like an imaginary game? I play imaginary games all the time. Sometimes I’m pretending Super Mario is jumping along the top of the buildings in my street, or that I have to make a cup of coffee without touching the kitchen floor because it has turned into lava.
What I’m trying to say is that these are very big claims: Just because the world ends in December of this year doesn’t mean you can make wild promises that you can’t keep. In time we’ll see just how mediocre and average this idea turns out. I really doubt that Square Enix has tapped into gestalt and offered us an RPG we can play in our own minds.
It could also be something like FarmVille, in which case the phrase “action-RPG” is completely inaccurate and someone needs to fire this guy.
Matt Jonas 224
Email: mjonas@gamecola.net
Website: http://www.youtube.com/escaperoutebritish
They asked me to share a little biographical information about myself. My name is Matt. Good night, everybody.
Be Careful What You Search For #67
Whatever these people were actually searching for, we hope they one day found it.
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Newly Knighted
The 13 freshmen that scatter the roster of the Gannon University wrestling team this season have done anything but take down the squad.
With their first duel meet of the season coming Wednesday against Penn State Du Bois in the Hammermill Center, the Knights are leaning on the first-year grapplers to fill the void left by the graduation of Gannon’s all-time wins leader, Zack McKendree, and two former all-Americans, Tony Petrella and A.J. Milanak.
But so far, the newly Knighted wrestlers have been up to the challenge. A mix of true and redshirt freshmen, the group has accounted for 28 of the team’s 45 wins and two of its top-5 finishes throughout the first three Open events of the season.
“We lost a lot of older guys,” said redshirt freshman Adam Weinell, who has already finished third and fourth in the 133-pound division this season. “We knew we had to step up and be a big part of the team.”
They just didn’t know how large of a role they’d play in helping the Knights keep pace with their average of nine victories a season over the past four years. Weinell, who leads the team in wins, boasts a 9-4 record through three opens while seven other freshmen have recorded multiple victories on the mat.
According to redshirt Scott Bulzan, the success has surprised everyone but themselves.
“I expected us to hold our own and come out, compete and do just as well as we did last year,” said Bulzan, who notched two victories in the Buffalo Open on Nov. 11.
Redshirt senior Jose Matos said that the positive impact the wrestlers had this year are a tribute to effectiveness of coach Don Henry’s program, his ability to recruit hardworkers and the freshmen’s willingness to adapt to it.
“A lot are redshirt freshmen so they had the ability to learn from the older guys,” Matos said. “It shows that coach Henry is doing the right thing. They’re coming in here and beating guys they shouldn’t be beating.”
Despite the hot start, things haven’t been all forfeits and pins for Gannon as the group of freshman had to overcome the mental side of wrestling. Stepping onto the mat with an opponent who’s years older can leave a wrestler overmatched in experience and confidence.
“Oh yeah, wrestling with all those other guys that have been here and have all that experience is tough,” Bulzan said. “You have to be determined to go out there and beat those older guys. You can’t really think about it.”
Whatever practice may have done to tear anyone down, the preseason opens helped build everyone up. Now entering their first dual-meet of the year, the Knights are confident that they can compete with any team.
“We know we practice harder than anyone out there,” Weinell said.
“We know we’re a tougher team overall. Some of the younger guys realized they can compete and win. The winning and losing has helped bring us together.”
The opens haven’t just prepared Gannon to enter the dual-meet season full steam ahead mentally, but also technically.
“You can see the little habits change that only other wrestlers can see,” said Matos of the team’s development through the season’s first month. “They got their lumps but they were bound to learn. They’re learning a lot faster than I did.”
It hasn’t been just the coaches and current wrestlers who have helped the freshmen develop – even though Weinell and Bulzan praised both groups – as former Knights have also played a role.
According to Bulzan, Milanak has been in and out of practice, showing the younger wrestlers the finer aspects of the sport.
“Those guys were NCAA qualifiers and were really good,” Bulzan said. “It helped just to see their work ethic and the way they worked out. I got to see the way champions practiced.”
It would be wise for the future of Gannon’s wrestling program to take notes from Milanak and others when they had the chance, because, when asked how important this group is the team’s success, Matos was hardpressed to find an answer.
“Man, I can’t even put that into words.”
ZACK McDERMOTT
Gannon prepared to opt-in to fall and winter sports despite PSAC cancellation
PSAC announces scheduling update
Strong trial times look promising for women’s swimming
Men’s swimming aims to build on strong season
Men’s wrestling returns 3 All-Americans, 10 starters
Women’s wrestling team improves in second season
World Series ends with COVID controversy
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Enrollment enhanced through technology
In an economic climate where the value of higher education is constantly being questioned, Gannon University has maintained enrollment figures and even increased those numbers by around 200 through a combination of technology and traditional recruitment strategies.
This consistent effort is especially difficult due to a declining population of prospective students in Western Pennsylvania – a region that supplies Gannon with the largest percentage of students. The entire organization relies on a constant stream of new students each and every year.
“Higher education is incredibly complex,” said Andrew Miller, director of enrollment services information systems. “You’re a hotel, you’re an athletic powerhouse, you’re an academic institution, you’re a financial institution and you’re a facilities management institution. There’s hundreds and hundreds of things that the president’s staff have to grapple with, and no one thing is right.”
Miller, who has been at Gannon for almost a year, is responsible for information systems, technology and operations for enrollment services. He’s also the lead on the project converting enrollment over to the new Ellucian Recruiter CRM system. CRM, or customer relationship managament software, has emerged as a staple of most consumer-facing businesses and has become more ingrained into the scope of higher education recruitment.
Miller believes that by merging the old with the new, Gannon is able to recruit quality students more efficiently than ever. “It’s really cool to see quality work ethic combined with this technological revolution that’s happening because people here really want Gannon to succeed and they’re willing to put the time and effort into things to make that happen.”
According to its website, ellucian.com, “Ellucian Recruiter is advanced student recruitment and enrollment management software that provides insight into your prospect pool, using enrollment probability and predictive modeling to help you identify your ideal prospects.”
Based on the criteria admissions staff places into the system, Recruiter can automate workflows to make enrollment recruitment more streamlined and cost-effective – just one of the many advantages to synthesizing technology with the traditional recruitment cycle.
Higher retention, new students and other initiatives such as dual-enrollment and graduate admissions have contributed to the increase of two-hundred students recently in enrollment. Miller said that all of these factors are a focus of the US Government, and highlighted that Gannon is doing its part to encourage students to maintain a holistic college career through all four years.
“We have always done a very good job at having solid organizational processes,” said Miller. Keeping students informed, telling them what they need to do, what they’re missing, and keeping in contact with them is a top priority. Miller also said that the numerous scholarships and awards that are granted to students every year contribute to the solid numbers.
In addition to the traditional recruitment strategies, Miller discussed new strategic initiatives that will help keep new student numbers high in the coming years.
“Investing more into mobile devices, recruitment technology such as the CRM program Recruiter, bulk email services, social media – all of those things are helping increase the brand recognition and enrollment for the university,” said Miller. “It’s not just one thing, but everything working in concert to make Gannon a competitor in higher education.”
Keefer Kopco, a senior theatre communication arts major and editor-in-chief of Edge magazine supports the recent technological advances in admissions recruitment. “Potential students who are looking at Gannon, or any other school, have such a well-rounded view of student life and the campus mentality that it’s becoming easier and easier to find a school that fits them like a glove,” said Kopco.
October is an especially busy month for undergraduate admissions, because fall travel occurs and enrollment advisers travel across the nation to encourage students to attend Gannon. However, lots of activity happens at home as well. Saturday, Gannon will host its Fall Open House which is organized and run by Emily Kleps, associate director of the office of admissions.
Gannon, with its updated CRM software and solid enrollment numbers, is in a great position for the coming year.
MICHAEL HAAS
COVID-19 alters commencement path
Palumbo pictures bring history to the hallways
Students voice concerns at town hall
University denies claims in student lawsuit
Political and Personal Peace to give students tranquility on Election Day
Professors guide election discussions
Election opens door for students to engage
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The Koi Pond of Discontent
Don’t be fooled, stirring a feeding frenzy is not meaningful accomplishment
Koi Pond, Nagasaki, Japan (pic by Japanexperterna )
Koi ponds are supposed to be peaceful places, both as decorative landscaping and as places for reflection and peaceful mediation. The koi themselves, elevated to a higher place of respect than their fellow carps, are beautiful if somewhat persnickety creatures who exist mostly to look pretty and eat on command. It’s living, breathing, peaceable entertainment.
But dump enough food in the tranquil waters of the koi pond, and you will get a feeding frenzy. They can’t help themselves.
We have two narratives in the news cycle that are only there because President Trump has dumped them into the waters to create a feeding frenzy. And like the colorful carp of the koi pond, the commentariat and media cannot help but swarm at the splashes.
For the umpteenth time, President Trump has publicly swiped at the late Sen. John McCain. He is also feuding with the very much alive George Conway, husband of counselor to the president, Kellyanne Conway. Both of these stories get plenty of play on the networks, in columns, on social media, and in the news cycle.
And neither story matters a bit except for the splashing entertainment of the political theater feeding frenzy.
The John McCain-Donald feud far predates the latter’s political career, going at least as far back as the 90s and the Senator being among the congressional voices opposing the famed real estate developers seeking of federal funding for a project. Add in the fact the men are opposites in chosen paths of life, and both could get bitter and nasty with a grudge, and you have the makings of good, old-fashioned hate. But John McCain is dead, and the presidents continued vitriol, justified in his mind or not, is yet another example of his propensity towards pettiness. The honored war hero John McCain and the long-time politician John McCain is it’s own complicated legacy, but it is a completed legacy now left to history to judge with the man’s passing. The president should let it go, but won’t for reasons known only to him, and his savvy media instincts and experience tells him every time he throws out the nibblet of McCain criticism the feeding frenzy will gather. I suspect the president will continue, if not escalate, his comments directed at the late John McCain, after all no reason to pull punches when the other party can no longer hit back. It’s just the kind of fight President Trump likes; personal, petty, safe for him to engage in on his own terms, no danger of losing anything of value to him.
At the same time, the media drama triangle that has escalated between the president, Kellyanne Conway, and her husband George Conway has been getting more attention. Conway the husband has sniped at Conway the wife’s boss before, but President Trump has seen fit to give it the full Twitter treatment over the last few days after George Conway questioned his mental health, including punctuating a tweet with the terribly original burn of “a stone cold LOSER & husband from hell!” This has lead to the spectacle of Kellyanne Conway, in her role as counselor to the president and frequent talking head representative, to defend her boss the president against a private citizen who is her husband.
“He left it alone for months out of respect for me,” Conway, a senior Trump aide, told POLITICO in a brief telephone interview. “But you think he shouldn’t respond when somebody, a non-medical professional accuses him of having a mental disorder? You think he should just take that sitting down?”
“Don’t play psychiatrist any more than George should be,” she added. “You’re not a psychiatrist and he’s not, respectfully.”
Well, then, that should settle that right down. Now if she could just convince the president to move on to other, more pressing issues.
Everyone participating in this should know better. There is nothing wrong with being koi in the pond. Just don’t pretend that idly swimming while waiting on the next dumping of Trump-brand media feed equates to accomplishing anything more than being an amusement to the president who is getting what he wants every time the frenzy commences. The problem is this; if your job is reporting, writing, or otherwise creating content on current political events, grabbing one of Trump’s tweets o’ the day is an easy way to fill your quota without having to unduly burden your creative circuits. The story arcs of interpersonal feuding write themselves, and have worked as drivers of content for time immemorial. Everything from Greek tragedies to professional wrestling storylines to TV & film is driven by interpersonal conflict, something Kellyanne Conway herself acknowledges:
“Yesterday George spent the day tweeting about the president,” she noted. “I spent my day doing two one-hour briefings with press and intergovernmental affairs people, agency people from all across the country and then over an hour briefing that I led in the Oval Office with the president and first lady in the cabinet on opioids at one year, so this is what I do here. I think it probably looks differently if everybody is turning into ‘Gossip Girl’”
Small fish, in a small pond, doing small things. The discerning media consumer will concluded it warrants a passing glance. But nothing else.
Do as you will.
Originally published at ordinary-times.com on March 20, 2019.
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102-year-old New York woman born during Spanish Flu pandemic beats COVID-19 twice
by: Taylor Delandro and Nexstar Media Wire
Posted: Dec 4, 2020 / 06:15 AM EST / Updated: Dec 4, 2020 / 06:15 AM EST
CHICAGO (NewsNation Now) — A 102-year-old New York woman who was born during the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic has now survived COVID-19 twice.
Angelina Friedman, who lives in a nursing home in Mohegan Lake, New York recently survived her second bout with the disease, according to the North Westchester Restorative Therapy & Nursing Center.
Friedman was first diagnosed with COVID-19 in March. In October, shortly before her 102nd birthday, she was diagnosed with the virus again. She recovered in mid-November.
WATCH: Missouri doctor acts out what a COVID-19 patient will see in final moments
“She’s an amazingly resilient, strong woman,” Joanne Merola, Freidman’s daughter described her mother in a Facebook comment.
During the 1918 flu pandemic, Friedman was born on a passenger ship taking immigrants from Italy to New York City. Her mother died giving birth on the ship.
How to watch NewsNation: WGNA Channel Finder
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Hot Fuss
Day & Age
Somebody Told Me
Don't Waste Your Wishes
Imploding The Mirage
Run For Cover (Workout Mix)
Mr. Brightside (Remixes)
Somebody Told Me (Remixes)
Wonderful Wonderful
Wonderful Wonderful (Deluxe)
Direct Hits
Dying Breed
Caution (Dave Audé Remix)
Capodanno 2020 Rock Hits
Party Tyme Karaoke - Rock Male Hits 2 (Vocal...
Goats Head Soup (Deluxe)
and 265 other albums
About The Killers
What does it mean that one of the early 21st century's best British bands is actually from Las Vegas? They might not fit into a convenient theory, but the Killers haven't wasted much time since their formation in 2002: Even before their debut album, Hot Fuss, appeared on Island in mid-2004, they were already selling out headlining shows in England. Named for a fictional group in a New Order video, the Killers practice a tense, stylish brand of rock in the vein of U2 and Bruce Springsteen, with lyrical left turns that recall classic Bowie. With their roots in glam and new wave, and their undeniable talent, the Killers have helped breathe fresh air into the '00s alt rock scene. Bebop Digital
British Sea Power, Coldplay, Elefant, Finger Eleven, Interpol, The Strokes
What does it mean that one of the early 21st century's best British bands is actually from Las Vegas? They might not fit into a convenient theory, but the Killers haven't wasted much time since their formation in 2002: Even before their debut album, Hot Fuss, appeared on Island in mid-2004, they were already selling out headlining shows in England. Named for a fictional group in a New Order video, the Killers practice a tense, stylish brand of rock in the vein of U2 and Bruce Springsteen, with lyrical left turns that recall classic Bowie. With their roots in glam and new wave, and their undeniable talent, the Killers have helped breathe fresh air into the '00s alt rock scene.
Bebop Digital
Alt/Punk
'00s Post-Punk
My Own Soul's Warning
Classic Christmas Songs 2020
Scarlet (The Killers & Jacques Lu Cont Remix)
Caution (Remixes)
80s, 90s, 00s
Mr Brightside (Instrumental Version)
Nightmarish
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Blog HomeCircuit Route PlannerCircuit for Teams Circuit Package Tracker
RoadWarrior vs Circuit: Comparing Route Optimization Software
If you need to plan an efficient route — either as a delivery driver or a dispatcher managing a team of delivery drivers — you’ll need to use route optimization software. Planning routes manually is never guaranteed to get you the fastest route possible, even when you’re using mapping tools. And if you’re managing multiple drivers on complex routes, this is even tougher.
Luckily, there are various route planning tools to choose from. In this post, we’re going to be comparing one route planning software, RoadWarrior, against our own platform, Circuit.
We’ll be highlighting the main features of each software, helping you understand which one ideally suits your needs. The post will take a deep dive and compare the routing functionality, pricing tiers, and delivery management capabilities of RoadWarrior and Circuit’s platforms.
Circuit Route Planner & Circuit for Teams
If you’re looking for a platform to help you with simple route planning and optimization, you can download the Circuit Route Planner app from the Apple App Store (for iPhone/iOS) or Google Play Store (for Android).
It’s free to plan routes of up to 10 stops (compared to Route Warrior’s 8 stops), and our “Pro” plan is $20 per month for routes up to 500 stops. With both the free plan and the Pro plan, you can optimize an unlimited number of routes per day. And with Pro, you can save an even bigger amount of time by importing spreadsheet lists of delivery addresses.
Note: As we’ll explain later, RoadWarrior’s “Pro” tier is cheaper ($10 per month), but routes can only be a maximum of 120 stops, and there’s a cap of 512 stops per day.
The Circuit Route Planner app is designed specifically for delivery drivers, and it’s trusted by more than 50,000 worldwide (and counting). On average, each driver saves an hour per day.
And if you’re working with — or managing — a team of drivers, Circuit offers another solution that helps you with route optimization and route monitoring, while adding extra functionality that allows you to manage deliveries and run a smooth operation. Enter, Circuit for Teams.
Introducing the Circuit for Teams Delivery Management Platform
As we’ll explain in more detail later in this guide, Circuit for Teams goes up against RoadWarrior’s recently-launched “Team” subscription tier — the top plan in their range.
While the route optimization capabilities of Circuit’s Route Planner and RoadWarrior are pretty similar, when it comes to comparing the more advanced functionality in the high-tier plans, i.e. Circuit for Teams vs Team RoadWarrior, there are many more points of difference.
To summarize: Circuit for Teams is designed specifically for delivery teams, offering functionality that helps drivers and dispatchers operate their delivery routes better. Team RoadWarrior is more “generic”, focused mainly on routing and monitoring driver fleets in the field.
For example, on top of route optimization for multiple drivers and real-time driver tracking (which both platforms offer), Circuit for Teams also provides:
Proof of Delivery (POD):
Your delivery drivers can capture POD photos with their smartphone, meaning they’re able to leave packages in safe locations (and prove it) if the recipient isn’t home.
And with the Circuit for Teams app, they can also collect electronic signatures (a.k.a. e-signatures). The proof of delivery is then uploaded to the cloud, and the dispatcher back at HQ can access it anytime they want via their web app.
Delivery Tracking and Recipient Updates:
Circuit for Teams allows you to update recipients via email and SMS, meaning you can automatically ping them with an accurate delivery ETA when drivers set out on their route.
With Circuit, your post-delivery recipient updates can also contain the proof of delivery photo — showing customers exactly where the package has been left safely by the driver:
Multi-Capacity Vehicles (Coming Soon):
It’s common for couriers and delivery companies to have multiple vehicles which are different sizes, especially when working with contract drivers. When there’s large trucks, smaller vans, and cars in the mix, that means each driver can handle different volumes (or different items).
Soon, with Circuit for Teams, you’ll be able to specify the capacity of each vehicle in your fleet. This means you can customize the amount of stops that are allocated to large trucks and small cars, allowing you to do 100% efficient fleet-level route optimization. Stay tuned for this.
Key Takeaways: Why Choose Circuit for Teams?
Circuit for Teams is a user friendly route planner for delivery teams with multiple drivers, but it offers much more than just calculating better driving directions.
Dispatchers and managers can plan the best route in a couple of minutes by uploading their list of stops, and routes are optimized according to time windows and priority stops. Drivers access routes via their own smartphone app, and follow whichever GPS navigation app they prefer (e.g. Google Maps, Waze, or Apple Maps).
With Circuit, driver management and route monitoring is easy. You can swap routes between drivers at the last minute, and track vehicles as they go about their route. This allows you to keep recipients in the loop manually if needed, although automatic email and SMS recipient updates will also inform them of when to expect their package.
Our built-in electronic proof of delivery minimizes lost packages and customer disputes, and ensures that drivers can maximize the number of deliveries they make in any given day.
Circuit for Teams Pricing
Circuit for Teams comes in three possible tiers.
With Dispatch ($40 per month), you get route planning for multiple drivers, real-time route monitoring, and spreadsheet import.
Our Recipient plan ($60 per month) offers all this, plus proof of delivery and recipient updates.
Our Premium plan ($100 per month) offers everything on both of these smaller plans, plus you can export data to other services — and you’ll get multi-capacity vehicles.
For just ~3% of what you pay your drivers, you could have them deliver 20% more packages.
If you manage a team of drivers and want a simple, cost-effective way to keep track of them (while making their routes more efficient), sign up for a free 7-day trial of Circuit.
RoadWarrior: Key Features and Pricing Tiers
RoadWarrior is a route planning and optimization app, which is available as an app for iOS and Android. The highest tier (“Team”) is available as a web-based application, although drivers can still use their RoadWarrior smartphone app in combination with the dispatcher’s Team account.
Basic & Pro Tier Functionality
RoadWarrior’s Basic tier is free of charge, and contains all the standard route optimization features for an individual driver. For example, drivers can enter addresses into the app (maximum of 8 stops per route, compared to Circuit’s 10) and the algorithm will calculate the most efficient directions. With this Basic tier, you get a combined cap of just 48 daily optimized stops — whereas on the Circuit Route Planner, there’s no daily limit.
These routes, though limited, can account for time constraints and schedules. You can also add “Drop Stops” if you need to pick something up from another location before delivering it.
However, if you want to upload a bulk list of stops and access the reporting functionality, you’ll need to pay $10 for the Pro subscription. This tier also increases your maximum route size to 120 stops, with a cap of 512 daily stops in total. Both plans are limited to one individual driver.
Team RoadWarrior Functionality
As we mentioned earlier, Team RoadWarrior is what you’ll need if you want to optimize routes for multiple drivers — and this is the product that you might compare against Circuit for Teams.
Team RoadWarrior is a platform for dispatchers, transferring the routing software capabilities from the app into a web-based application. Here, the dispatcher or manager can plan routes, assign routes to drivers, and manage or update routes that are in progress.
One of the key benefits of Team is that you can group routes into zones, meaning you can schedule certain drivers into their preferred parts of a town or city.
Team RoadWarrior Pricing
The pricing structure is pretty complicated for the Team product. They work on quotas, meaning you pay for “virtual driver packs”. If you pay the base rate without a driver pack, it costs $20 per month for a maximum route size of 120 stops, with 1021 daily stops per day. This can be used by a maximum of 5 drivers. By adding another pack (totalling $40), you add another 5 drivers to the plan and get 1536 daily optimized stops — still with a cap of 120 for each route.
As you add more virtual driver packs (at $20 increments), you get more drivers and a higher number of stops optimized per day.
Final Thoughts: RoadWarrior vs Circuit
When it comes to route planning and optimization, both RoadWarrior and Circuit use robust routing algorithms, which help drivers to efficiently deliver more parcels.
However, if you’re running a delivery team and you want more than just better routing, the Circuit for Teams platform is probably a better fit. This is because it has been designed specifically to help delivery companies, couriers, and small business delivery teams.
RoadWarrior offers some nice features like spreadsheet uploading, zonal grouping, data sync, and reporting in its Team platform — but it lacks proof of delivery, delivery tracking, recipient updates, and other features that make delivery operations easier.
At Circuit, we’re constantly talking to customers and developing new features based on their feedback.
PS. You can also check out another article that might help: RouteXL vs Circuit. And in our comparison of route planning solutions, you’ll find details of how Circuit stands up against RouteXL, Route4Me, and OptimoRoute.
Matt Goolding
Freelancer Writer
Matt Goolding is a writer and content strategist, based in the Netherlands. He writes with leaders and teams in a variety of industries. You can find him on LinkedIn or via mattgoolding.com.
Delivery Software: 7 Key Features for Managing Deliveries, and Why They Matter
In this post, we’re going to explore what delivery software actually does, highlighting the key features that we’ve built into our own product, Circuit for Teams.
The Business of Delivery
How to Start a Delivery Service: A Step-by-Step Guide with Real-Life Examples
This article shows you how to start a delivery service by taking the best practices from our customers who have used Circuit for Teams, our delivery software.
How Dispatchers and Managers Benefit From Using a Delivery Driver Tracking App
In this post, you’ll learn about what you need in a delivery driver tracking app, and we’ll introduce you to our delivery software, Circuit for Teams.
How a Package Delivery App Helps You Deliver Packages Quickly and Securely
This post covers how a package delivery app can help you deliver your packages quickly, efficiently, and securely.
Small Business Deliveries
How M20 Refills Uses Circuit to Help Accomplish Its Eco-Friendly Mission
Read how M20 Refills saves time planning and executing routes by using Circuit’s route planner app to deliver its eco-friendly products.
How YYC Local Wipes Used Circuit to Improve Its Local Delivery Process
A look a how YYC Local Wipes uses Circuit’s route planning tool to deliver hand sanitizer wipes to its customers.
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Exploration, curiosity, and empathy: A look inside the UW MSTI program from two current students.
There are no “typical” students in the UW’s MS in Technology Innovation degree. They bring a shared love of technology and come with diverse educational backgrounds, interest areas, and levels of experience. Each brings a unique perspective and skillset to their team projects, class discussions, and coursework.
We interviewed two current students, Vivian Wang and Chuck Scott, to learn how their very different paths ultimately led them to the University of Washington and how they’ll leverage the degree they’ll receive this coming December.
Vivian Wang
“I graduated from the University of Washington with an art history degree, and then I worked about a year as a project coordinator and recruiter. I’ve always been interested in technology, but not professionally. I had taken a few CS classes, but that was it.
A lot of my friends were in computer science and tech; the whole tech world was around my life. When you look at it from the outside, you might think art and tech don’t collide, but I think there are a lot of similarities. Curation is about understanding the user’s view; we have to understand the perfect position and sequence for the artwork. Curation is visitor-obsession work, and technology is customer-obsession work.
When I started the MSTI, my mindset was simply to explore new things and learn what it was like in the tech field. I didn’t have a clear direction. I knew for sure that I wasn’t going to become a software engineer, and I also knew that I was interested in project management. Design and prototyping stood out to me more than coding. My mindset initially was to learn and, of course, eventually find a job. Gradually through the program, I’ve learned I love product management, product design, and user experience.
One of the projects I worked on during the MSTI program was an indoor navigation robot that would help tourists find their way around an airport. I’d love to keep working on that and make an actual deliverable. From a project management standpoint, I learned a lot; it’s important to consider the whole problem.
One of my concerns before starting the program was that it was too broad, but I’ve found it was a good fit for me. As an art history undergrad, I would suffer in computer science classes. But this program is good because they teach you the basics of many subjects, and you have a good chance of working on whichever piece you’re most interested in, digging deeper into it. I found out I’m interested in project management and product design, so in my projects, I’d work on those things as the PM or UX designer. That naturally gave me more opportunities in areas that I’m interested in.”
Chuck Scott
“I did six years as a hospital corpsman in the military right out of high school and then six years at UW Medicine doing outpatient clinical care before returning to school and graduating in 2019 from UW Bothell with a Bachelor of Arts in business. I was looking for an opportunity to change career paths entirely. I knew I wanted to pursue a grad program of some sort and truly master some areas. Business was a natural course for my undergrad, but not a true passion. The MSTI program allowed me the opportunity to explore more technology than I’d been exposed to, and to also direct my career towards the tech industry.
I wanted to have intensive training in technical areas, like programming, sensors & circuits, a little hardware development, cloud development, and more. Those interests have stayed pretty consistent; my main goal has been to learn technical skills–the design thinking skills were a bonus.
Working in the GIX Prototyping Labs has been one of the most memorable parts of the whole experience for me. I’ve connected not only with the work of making, but also the making and hacking community.
The design process is truly key, and the solution is rarely as simple as we expect it to be. Lots of our work is actually delaying the technical development while we dive into a problem space. It’s learning how to be empathetic to the user and understand the underlying factors that make up the entire situation. You delay the technical development until you understand what you need to make for the user, and then you begin the iterative process of making the solution. Using a full design-thinking lens has been interesting because it allows you to tackle any problem.
My background was in business roles even before getting my undergraduate degree, so I felt strong on the business aspect before starting. I still feel strongly about those, but now I’m able to apply equal abilities to other disciplines. I’m not a software engineer, but I can get into the code base and understand it and add value. Being able to work side-by-side with engineers and designers while keeping a conversation going about development and iteration has been a very positive experience for me.
For me, intellectual curiosity in a new realm, and willingness to push myself were very important–for others, it could be something else. As I see it, the purpose of the program is to experience that interdisciplinary mix; you don’t need to be an expert in every field, but you should be curious about it. There are things you might not be interested in until you have the exposure to them. You need the openness, curiosity, and willingness to push yourself to grow. Those are traits that are very common amongst all of us.
I’ll be the first to admit that I was very nervous about coding when I started here; I just didn’t have a lot of experience when I started. I did the tech bootcamp and went through the classes and had great teammates. I’m doing significantly more programming day-to-day than I ever thought I would. Those were strengths that I built from ground zero that I’m proud of. I remember someone telling me that you learn as much from the people around you as you do from your classes. I’ve learned so much from being exposed to people with such diverse skill sets, and I think it’s better that not everyone is the same.”
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Home » News » Nebraska lawmakers OK proposals to plan for climate change, boost wind energy
Nebraska lawmakers OK proposals to plan for climate change, boost wind energy
Source: By ZACH PLUHACEK, Lincoln Journal Star • Posted: Sunday, April 17, 2016
Environmentalists notched a pair of victories in the Nebraska Legislature last week, with measures aimed at boosting wind energy development and preparing the state for the effects of climate change.
More people are beginning to acknowledge climate change exists, said Sen. Ken Haar of Malcolm, a longtime champion of environmental issues.
“I think that’s progress,” he said.
Haar’s proposal establishing a special panel of lawmakers to examine climate change was adopted on a 28-3 vote. Because the resolution doesn’t carry the weight of law, it does not require approval from Gov. Pete Ricketts.
The wind energy bill sponsored by Omaha Sen. John McCollister overcame a filibuster for the second time to pass on a 34-10 vote, and now awaits the governor’s OK.
Both measures faced some opposition.
Not everyone believes in climate change, said Sen. Dave Bloomfield of Hoskins, likening the phenomenon — which is backed by a majority of scientific community — to the “sky falling.”
“We’ve studied this thing to death,” Bloomfield said. “Studied it back and forth.”
Opponents of McCollister’s bill argued it will give preferential treatment to wind over other power sources and prop up an industry that survives only because of government assistance.
The bill (LB824) exempts private wind energy developers from having to apply with the Nebraska Power Review Board, which regulates the state’s publicly owned utility industry.
Many chose to support the change for economic reasons, not because of an environmental agenda.
They said the measure eliminates an unnecessary impediment to wind energy developments, allowing Nebraska to become more competitive in the regional power market and potentially reducing energy costs and luring green-minded businesses to the state.
Sen. Dan Watermeier of Syracuse said his views on wind energy have “morphed” during his time in the Legislature.
He used to oppose it; now he believes there is a business case to support it.
“Our customers are demanding a certain mix of renewables, and we have to recognize that,” Watermeier said.
Wind producers are expected to act fast if they are interested in building in Nebraska: Federal production tax credits will begin to shrink for projects that aren’t started this year.
Haar said it’s too early to tell how many wind developments the state might see with passage of McCollister’s bill.
“We’ve opened the doors now,” he said.
Haar’s climate change resolution (LR455) acknowledges the potential for dramatic effects on Nebraska’s water resources, ecosystems, farming and ranching operations and urban areas.
Legislative leaders, including five committee chairpersons, are tasked with crafting a climate plan framework to address those effects. The findings are due before the Legislature reconvenes next year.
Haar said he expects to co-chair the panel along with Sen. Tyson Larson of O’Neill.
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Bolivians are very polite and tend to be more on the formal side.
Bolivia is one of the wettest countries in the world. The annual rainfall is over 500cm (196.8in).
Find in-depth views on current international business topics?
Read the globalEDGE Blog
Bolivia: History
The Spanish conquer Bolivia, which becomes a part of the vice-royalty of Peru.
1824 Simon Bolivar, a Venezuelan freedom fighter, liberates the country from Spanish rule.
Bolivia gains its independence.
Bolivia becomes landlocked after losing its mineral-rich, coastal territory to Chile following the War of the Pacific.
The rubber rich province of Acre on the Brazilian border is sold to Brazil after Bolivia is unsuccessful in quelling an autonomous rebellion in the region.
The military regime is overthrown and new president, Victor Paz Estenssoro, introduces economic reforms including the nationalization of tin mines and land distribution.
US and European nations suspend aid alleging corruption and drug trafficking. Aid resumed three years later following the country's introduction of austerity measures.
The tin market collapses, resulting in the loss of twenty-one thousand miner jobs.
2004 A major deal is signed to allow Bolivia to export gas via a Peruvian port.
Bolivia completes its gas nationalization program, giving the state control over foreign energy firms operating in the country.
The presidents of Bolivia, Venezuela, and Argentina sign joint energy deals worth more than $1 billion.
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4-year-old N.B. art prodigy is taking the art world by storm
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By Alex Cooke The Canadian Press
Posted April 29, 2018 12:09 pm
Updated April 30, 2018 9:08 am
Advait Kolarkar, 4, is seen in this undated handout photo. When he's not playing with dinosaurs or reading a book, 4-year-old Advait Kolarkar uses paint, canvases and his imagination to create internationally-recognized abstract artwork. The preschooler is already selling his paintings for thousands of dollars and has had his art featured in three exhibits. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO, Shruti Kolarkar
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When he’s not playing with dinosaurs or reading a book, four-year-old Advait Kolarkar uses paint, canvases and his imagination to create internationally recognized abstract artwork.
The preschooler is already selling his paintings for thousands of dollars and has had his art featured in three exhibits.
Paintings made byAdvait Kolarkar, 4, is seen in this undated handout photo. When he’s not playing with dinosaurs or reading a book, 4-year-old Advait Kolarkar uses paint, canvases and his imagination to create internationally-recognized abstract artwork. The preschooler is already selling his paintings for thousands of dollars and has had his art featured in three exhibits. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO, Shruti Kolarkar
His mother Shruti said in an interview Sunday that Advait first picked up the paintbrush when he was less than a year old and displayed a prowess for painting right away.
“He was creating something, not just playing with colours,” she said. “He had a sense of composition and colour.”
READ MORE: This is why sustainable fashion matters
Kolarkar said her son began creating “amazing compositions” by the age of one, and attracted the attention of a gallery curator in his hometown of Pune, India.
After observing the toddler for six months, the Art2Day gallery hosted Advait’s first exhibition when the boy was just two years old, shortly before the family migrated to Saint John, N.B., in 2016.
Earlier this month Advait shared his paintings at Artexpo New York, which is touted as the world’s largest fine art marketplace.
According to the Artexpo website, the exhibition draws tens of thousands of art enthusiasts and industry insiders each year.
In the past, the event has hosted the likes of pop art pioneer Andy Warhol, multimedia artist Robert Rauschenberg, and expressionist painter LeRoy Neiman.
More than 400 exhibiting artists, galleries and publishers showcased their work at the exhibition this year.
“They are really renowned artists, and when you see your son’s work among those artists, it feels really proud,” said Kolarkar, noting that Advait’s booth drew big crowds.
American artist Howard Schoor, who was at Artexpo to display his work at an exhibition for the first time, said that when he met Advait at the event, he felt a kinship with the young boy despite a 75-year age difference.
“What Advait and myself have in common is that we both started painting two years ago,” he said. “The difference is I’m 79 years old and he’s four years old.”
Advait Kolarkar, 4, is seen in this undated handout photo. When he’s not playing with dinosaurs or reading a book, 4-year-old Advait Kolarkar uses paint, canvases and his imagination to create internationally-recognized abstract artwork. The preschooler is already selling his paintings for thousands of dollars and has had his art featured in three exhibits.
Schoor spent decades collecting art before he took up painting, and said his sharp eye for quality work made him recognize Advait’s potential right away.
“I think there’s just something where when you look at a lot of art over a period of time, you can sort of sense what will be acceptable, and collectible, and valuable,” he said.
“I think this young man has a unique talent that he’s been able to express at a very early age.”
Kolarkar said she’s proud that her son’s work is gaining recognition.
To date, she said Advait has earned around $23,000 from selling his paintings.
Other than starting elementary school next year, Kolarkar isn’t sure what’s in her son’s future – but she said the family will support him if he chooses to pursue art as a full-time career when he’s older.
“His happiness is very important to us,” she said. “We want him to enjoy art the way he’s enjoying now throughout his life.”
© 2018 The Canadian Press
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HomeNew Thinking--with Joe Bartuah -Ukraine crisis: Russia under pressure at G20 summit
Ukraine crisis: Russia under pressure at G20 summit
November 15, 2014 New Thinking--with Joe Bartuah -, The World 0
Russia has been rebuked by Western leaders about its role in the Ukraine crisis, at a G20 summit in Australia. Canadian PM Stephen Harper told Russian President Vladimir Putin that Russia needed to "get out of Ukraine". US President Barack Obama said Moscow's "aggression" in Ukraine was a "threat to the world", while Britain threatened more sanctions unless Russia stopped "destabilising" its neighbour. READ MORE OF THIS STORY
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May 10, 2020 May 18, 2020 goodnewseverybodycom Uncategorized
Works??
Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19): Significance of Lockdown with Statistical Simulations
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHqNsQECSTQ
2,231 views•Premiered Apr 5, 2020
LEARN & APPLY: Lean and Six Sigma
As everyone knows, currently the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) is a pandemic disease spread across the world and almost every government has initiated lockdown in their countries.
In this video, we are going to see some introduction of COVID-19 and the significance of lockdown in reducing the number of deaths due to this pandemic by the use of statistics (Flattening the curve) with Simulation.
This video contains the following topics:
1) What is Pandemic?
2) The current situation for COVID-19 (Novel Coronavirus)
3) The Exponential growth of COVID-19 (Novel Coronavirus)
4) Flattening the curve for COVID-19 (Novel Coronavirus)
5) Importance of ‘Flattening the Curve’ related to COVID-19 (Novel Coronavirus)
6) The options like Lockdown, Good Hygiene Practices, and Social Distancing to flatten the curve
7) Four Simulations illustrating the impact of social distancing and Lockdown on the spread of COVID-19 (Novel Coronavirus)
I am sure you will like this video.
For references, I had taken all the charts and information from
• World Economic Forum
• World Health Organization and
• The Washington Post
Nepal in full lockdown amid coronavirus pandemic, but finding few Covid-19 cases due to lack of test
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIHvSY2ypOQ
553,056 views•Apr 1, 2020
“..Nepal has been under lockdown since March 24, 2020, and had reported only five confirmed infections of the coronavirus that causes Covid-19 as of April 2. The country has extended the nationwide isolation until April 7. But officials admit Nepal lacks resources to fight the disease, and that fewer than 1,000 coronavirus tests have been done there so far.
COVID-19 Insights: Sweden – Is No Lockdown Working?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f8JhC7jaiIc
84,952 views•Streamed live on Apr 16, 2020
Drbeen Medical Lectures
159K subscriber
*some types (e.g. need to have folks that work in the nursing homes limit their exposure to the community) of “lockdown” should be implemented
Dr. Fauci vs. Dr. Wittkowski: Endless Mitigations or Herd Immunity
Notes and references for Herd Immunity and a Second Wave
COVID-19 Insights: Herd Immunity and Second Wave
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LahKxReur6I
Hydroxychloroquine prophylaxis for COVID-19 contacts in India
Sahaj Rathi
Pranav Ish
Ashwini Kalantri
Shriprakash Kalantri
Published:April 17, 2020 thelancet.com
“..The Indian Council of Medical Research, under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, has recommended chemoprophylaxis with hydroxychloroquine (400 mg twice on day 1, then 400 mg once a week thereafter) for asymptomatic health-care workers treating patients with suspected or confirmed COVID-19, and for asymptomatic household contacts of confirmed cases.2
The document states “its use in prophylaxis is derived from available evidence of benefit as treatment and supported by preclinical data”. Although some in-vitro evidence supports the antiviral activity of hydroxychloroquine and its precursor chloroquine, there is no peer-reviewed publication that evaluates either drug for exposure prophylaxis of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Even for treatment of diagnosed cases, only one small study reported faster nasopharyngeal viral clearance, with no data for clinical improvement.3
This evidence, or the lack thereof, hardly justifies state-endorsed, widespread use of hydroxychloroquine for prophylaxis…”
First Large-scale U.S. Study on Hydroxychloroquine COVID-19 Prophylaxis Begins in Detroit Feature | Coronavirus (COVID-19) | April 10, 2020 dicardiology.com
“..The “Will Hydroxychloroquine Impede or Prevent COVID-19,” or WHIP COVID-19, study is a 3,000-subject look at whether hydroxychloroquine prevents front-line workers from contracting the COVID-19 virus. This is a randomized, double-blinded study designed to produce a scientific answer to the question: Does it work? Preliminary results are expected in about four months. Currently, there are no FDA-approved preventions, vaccines or treatments for the novel coronavirus (COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2) virus…”
NOT??
Rwanda: COVID-19 cases rise despite lockdown
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMKHLpcXO5A
19,772 views•Apr 8, 2020
The number of infections continues to rise in Rwanda – despite the government ordering a total lockdown eighteen (21 March) days ago.
Health workers say they have enough medical supplies and ventilators for those who may need critical care.
But many governments in Africa, are struggling to keep up with the amount of testing required to measure the extent of the outbreak.
Al Jazeera’s Catherine Soi reports.
Why lockdowns are the wrong policy – Swedish expert Prof. Johan Giesecke
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bfN2JWifLCY
That was one of the more extraordinary interviews we have done here at UnHerd.
Professor Johan Giesecke, one of the world’s most senior epidemiologists, advisor to the Swedish Government (he hired Anders Tegnell who is currently directing Swedish strategy), the first Chief Scientist of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, and an advisor to the director general of the WHO, lays out with typically Swedish bluntness why he thinks:
Dr. Daniel Erickson says the lockdowns have a minimal impact on containing Coronavirus
651,262 views•Apr 27, 2020
KUSI News
Dr. Erickson Interviews Dr. Wittkowski – #ReopenUSA
34,370 views•Apr 14, 2020
All Scripture For All Life
Compare the very different approaches to the COVID-19 pandemic. See how they interpret the data. Which approach do you think better fits reality? Which position best supports what the Bible says about quarantining? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UVNUJ…
Sal: After this short research, I feel “we” need a mixture of both “some” type of lockdown with some “lenient” and “strict” measures depending on the circumstances in the particular demographic, situation, area, etc.. We need that “herd immunity” ,but slowly (small steps) get the population “open”. We just don’t want to “flood” our medical hospital system. Also, we need to give “options” and let the population know various “medical treatments’ (not cures) like medication, home remedies, holistic medicines, etc…
*see Medical: Coronavirus stories of “possible” Cures, Recovery, Treatments, Healings, etc… goodnewshealthandfitness.wordpress.com
CONTINUE LOCKDOWN? FT. LORD of the RINGS (LOTR Voice Impressions Dub)
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Tagged Africa, Asian, both, cases, compare, Coronavirus, debate, distancing, doctor, doctors, Enforcement, Europe, European, Fauci, Germany, herd, immune, immunity, impact, law, lockdown, lockdowns, measures, mild, minimum, mitigations, model, moderate, mutate, need, Nepal, neutral, of, open, options, perspective, process, Rwanda, second, slow, social, society, some, States, Swedish, type, United, vaccinations, vaccines, wave, Wittkowski, working, works
Movie Reflection: “Goonies”
« Apr Dec »
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CENNINO CENNINI LIBRO ARTE PDF
Edicion Facsimilar (Spanish Edition) [Cennino Cennini] on *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Este libro del arte ofrece multiples e interesantes. After more than 80 years, a long-awaited new English translation of Cennino Cennini’s fourteenth century artist handbook Il Libro dell’Arte (LdA) comes to. Mai Cennino Cennini: Libro dell’arte. Klein, Bruno. In: Das Konstanzer Konzil: – ; Weltereignis des Mittelalters; Katalog. Darmstadt
Author: Mikam Ball
Uploader: Shagami
Cennino d’Andrea Cennini c.
He srte a student of Agnolo Gaddi in Florence. Gaddi trained under his father, called Taddeo Gaddi, who trained with Giotto. Cennini was born in Colle di Val d’ElsaTuscany. After training as an artist with Agnolo Gaddi in Florence he worked at the court of Francesco Novello da Carrara in Padua for some years before apparently returning to Colle di Val d’Elsa.
He is remembered mainly for having authored Il libro dell’arte. Thought to have been written around the turn of the 15th century, the book is a “how to” on late Medieval and early Renaissance painting. It contains information on pigmentsbrushesdrawing, panel paintingthe art of frescopainting on fabrics and casting, amongst other techniques and tricks.
Cennini also mentions oil painting in passing, which was important for dispelling the myth, propagated by Giorgio Vasari and Karel Van Manderthat oil painting was invented by Jan van Eyck although Theophilus Roger of Helmerhausen clearly gives instructions for oil-based painting in his treatise, On Divers Arts, written in The dates of Cennini’s life are highly speculative.
ANTHROPOLOGY ART AND AESTHETICS COOTE PDF
It is often falsely assumed that he was alive in because that date appears on the earliest of the four extant copies of his manuscript. However, an administrative document from Colle di Val d’Elsa dated probably refers to his son; if this is the case then the document makes it clear that Cennini was dead by this time.
Cennino Cennini: Libro dell’arte
The techniques Cennini describes range from ones which were already in use in the 13th century to ones which were innovative in the late fourteenth century. However, there is no evidence in his writing of the exciting developments in oil painting taking place in the early 15th century, suggesting that his book was written not long after the cejnini of the century.
The extent to which Cennini intended to provide a practical handbook for the apprentice painter is disputed. Some scholars believe that his book was a presentation book or a guild book instead. Along with technical methods, Cennini offered advice on the sort of lifestyle to which a young painter should subscribe.
There is another cause which, if you indulge it, can make your hand so unsteady that it will waver more, and flutter far more, than leaves do in the wind, and this is indulging too much in the company of women.
According to Victoria Finlayin her book Colour: Finlay writes that he “used and adapted Cennino’s advice extensively – preparing panels, tinting cennihi different colours, and making brand new works look as if they had been varnished some time before by beating egg-white, left overnight and then applying it with a brushjust as the master advised.
In the s, Boskovits established a small oeuvre for Cennini, which has been confirmed by later scholarship. The two paintings pictured above were added to the corpus at a later date.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved from ” https: Art technological sources births deaths People from the Province of Siena 14th-century Italian painters Italian male painters 15th-century Italian painters Tuscan painters Italian Renaissance painters.
Views Read Edit View history. In other projects Wikimedia Commons. This page was last edited on 4 Marchat By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikimedia Commons has media related to Cennino Cennini.
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Travel & Escape
Real Estate, Breaking News, Finance | Happy Home Magazine
Saturday in Downsview Park Grand Opening this Weekend
Over the last few months, we’ve learned a lot about Saturday in Downsview Park, a new Graziani + Corazza Architects-designed condominium community from Mattamy Homes, coming to Keele Street in Toronto’s Downsview Park area. This weekend, the project will celebrate a marketing milestone with the Grand Opening of its new on-site presentation centre at 2995 Keele Street, where visitors will be treated to a preview of the new project.
The community’s first building, a boutique 10-storey condo, is offering a range of 2 bedroom suites. Priced from the low-$500,000s including parking, with many offering spacious outdoor terraces and patios, these suites are geared towards multiple demographics including professionals, families, and first-time buyers.
Saturday in Downsview Park, image courtesy of Mattamy
Residents will have access to a selection of amenities set to include a glass-enclosed two-storey lobby featuring study nooks, communal meeting areas, and a 24/7 concierge service, as well as a party room complete with catering kitchen, dining room, an outdoor terrace. Other spaces on offer include a “gathering gallery”, a landscaped courtyard, a fitness centre with a separate yoga studio, a children’s playroom/flex space adjoining the party room, and a dog wash station.
Lobby, Saturday in Downsview Park, image courtesy of Mattamy
Complementing the amenities, the project’s location next to Downsview Park offers residents 291 acres of outdoor living and nature, as well as programmed events like open-air concerts, a weekend Merchants Market with more than 500 vendors, and year-round sports activities. In addition, the location’s proximity to Downsview Park GO and TTC station will allow for easy commuting around the city and surrounding region.
Those interested can visit the presentation centre’s grand opening on Saturday November 10th and Sunday November 11th, with doors set to open at 11 AM.
Additional information and images can be found in our database file for the project, linked below. Want to get involved in the discussion? Check out the associated Forum threads, or leave a comment in the field provided at the bottom of this page.
To request more info directly from Saturday in Downsview Park click here
Want To Change Your Life? Start Earning Up To $5,000 Per Week After Watching This Video. Click Here!
Plaza Resubmits 2452 Bloor with DRP Suggested Alterations
Couple from Toronto buys dream home in Mushaboom
MUSHABOOM – A couple who lived and raised a family in downtown Toronto developed a five-year plan in 2015 to purchase their dream home.
In September they moved into the home – located on Malagash Island in Mushaboom on Nova Scotia’s stunning Eastern Shore – that met and exceeded their best dreams for their retirement.
The Camerons, Bruce and Tanya, decided in 2019 they would explore the Maritimes to see what real estate was available to become their potential retirement home. In the spring of 2020, during a global pandemic, the real estate boom hit their city, and they were hearing the same for Nova Scotia. Our province was their first-choice for attaining their desire for an entirely different lifestyle – away from the busyness of the city.
“We had $300,000 to $350,000 as a home value in mind to buy. Our semi-detached located off Danforth in Toronto was priced at $850,000. We wanted to come out ahead, so we would be secure in retirement,” Tanya said.
Their century-old home had prime location near the subway and GO Transit Line for a great 13-minute commute downtown.
“We enjoyed our community,” explains Bruce “… we had great neighbours, young children around and street parties – lots of social activity.”
Bruce says, “Our agent suggested a starting quote of $899,000. We did not do any renovations and only some staging. Fifty couples went through and we received four significant offers. Six days later we sold – with zero conditions – and a price of over a million dollars. We just requested a closing of September 2020 to get the kids off to school – which we got.”
The couple got more than they had anticipated.
Rabobank Announces Leadership Changes in U.S., Canadian Offices
NEW YORK, Dec. 16, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — Rabobank, the leading global food and agribusiness bank, has appointed two of its top executives, Tamira Treffers-Herrera and Robert Sinescu, to become Co-Heads of North American Client Coverage, positioning the Bank for future growth in the region.
Treffers-Herrera has also assumed the role of Vice Chairperson and Head of the Atlanta office, where she additionally oversees Rabobank Mexico, which is led by Eduardo Palacios. Sinescu is the Head of the Chicago office, and also oversees Rabobank Canada, led by Marc Drouin, who was recently appointed as Canada’s General Manager.
Treffers-Herrera and Sinescu report to David Bassett, Head of Wholesale Banking North America, the Bank’s corporate and investment banking business for the region based in New York.
“Both Tamira and Robert have a demonstrated history of strong leadership, operational excellence and passion for our clients,” Bassett said. “Their broad experience and deep sector expertise will be invaluable in delivering dynamic results for clients while accelerating our growth trajectory in North America.”
Each office will have an even greater focus on key Food & Agribusiness sectors and clients: The Chicago office will drive growth in sectors including Dairy, Farm Inputs and Grains & Oilseeds, which are also key areas of focus for the Canada office. The Atlanta office will focus heavily on sectors such as Animal Protein, Beverages, Sugar, and Supply Chains, which are important sectors in Mexico as well.
“Rabobank is fully committed to our clients throughout North America, and we believe our new sector-focused coverage will improve our ability to provide knowledge-based, value-added solutions that benefit our clients,” Bassett said.
Treffers-Herrera was most recently based in London as CEO of Rabobank’s European Region from 2016-2020, where she took the organization through Brexit. Prior to that, she worked in the Atlanta office from 2002-2016. During her tenure in Atlanta, Treffers-Herrera served as Global Sector Head – Consumer Food & Beverages, and prior to that she was a senior banker for a portfolio of large beverage and consumer foods clients. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Kentucky, a Master of Arts from the Patterson School of Diplomacy and International Commerce and has studied at The University of Chicago Booth School of Business and Harvard Business School.
Sinescu has been with Rabobank for over 21 years and was previously General Manager of Rabobank Canada, where he oversaw all operations, business development, commercial strategy and relationships with regulators. In addition, he continues to serve as CEO of Rabo Securities Canada Inc. Prior to Canada, he was a senior banker, Head of Corporate Banking, European Sector Head for Sugar, and a member of the Management Team for Rabobank France. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Business from the Bucharest School of Business, a Master of Business Administration & Management and a Master of Science in Banking and Corporate Finance from Sorbonne University in Paris, and has studied at Brown University.
Drouin has worked with Rabobank’s Canadian team for more than nine years and most recently served as a senior banker, Head of Rabobank Canada’s AgVendor Program and a member of Rabobank Canada’s Management Team. He brings extensive wholesale banking experience within the Dairy, G&O, CPG and Supply Chain sectors. Drouin holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from McGill University and a Master of Business Administration in International Finance, Marketing and Management from the Schulich School of Business at York University.
Greybrook Realty Partners & Marlin Spring Brand Jointly Owned Asset Manager – Greyspring Apartments
TORONTO, Dec. 14, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Greybrook Realty Partners and Marlin Spring are pleased to announce the new branding of their jointly owned investment and asset management firm, Greyspring Apartments. With a portfolio of more than 2,000 units and CAD$375 million in assets under management, Greyspring Apartments is focused on the acquisition and repositioning of multi-family assets throughout Canada.
The new name and branding is an important step in Greyspring’s evolution as an independent operating business. Formed in 2018 by long standing-partners Marlin Spring and Greybrook Realty Partners, Greyspring Apartments was established with the goal of building a leading asset management firm with a robust portfolio of residential rental real estate assets in primary and secondary markets across Canada.
Greyspring’s talented team of real estate, asset management and finance professionals is overseen and guided by the Management Board, whose members include Benjamin Bakst, CEO, Marlin Spring; Elliot Kazarnovksy, CFO, Marlin Spring; Sasha Cucuz, CEO, Greybrook Securities Inc.; Peter Politis, CEO, Greybrook Realty Partners; Chris Salapoutis, President & COO, Greybrook Realty Partners; Ashi Mathur, President, Marlin Spring; and Karl Brady. In addition to his role on the Management Board, Karl Brady leads Greyspring Apartments as its President.
“We are pleased to announce the official name and branding of a business we formed with our partners at Marlin Spring a few years ago,” said Peter Politis, CEO, Greybrook Realty Partners. “Greyspring has been diligently focused on the execution of strategic value-add programs across its portfolio that are improving the quality of housing for tenants and overall asset values. For Greybrook investors, expanding from our core business in real estate development to the value-add space through Greyspring, has allowed us to provide our clients with investment opportunities that diversify their real estate investment portfolios.”
“Marlin Spring and Greybrook have partnered on many residential real estate projects in recent years,” said Benjamin Bakst, CEO and Cofounder, Marlin Spring. “To a great extent, Greyspring illustrates our approach to partnerships. We believe in, and strive for, responsible growth through deepening our relationships with our trusted partners. With Greyspring, we’ve formalized our focus on providing better and more affordable living experiences for Canadians. This vision aligns with our mission to deliver exceptional real estate value to all our stakeholders with an uncompromising adherence to our core values.”
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Boyd's Battery
Illustration depicting how to wear your Boyd's Battery.
An advertising circular for Boyd's Battery.
The Boyd's Battery (or Boyd's Miniature Galvanic Battery) is an electro-therapeutic medical medallion, advertised as a generator of healing electric current for the wearer, where this current was said to be produced by the reaction of the varying metals constituting the battery with the wearer's skin (as a galvanic response).
3 Effects
The battery was advertised as having been invented by Professor J.C. Boyd, for whom it is named, and sold beginning in 1878 through regional agents of Boyd's Galvanic Battery Co. However, in New York Supreme Court proceedings, Boyd himself testified that he was unaware who had invented the medallion, and that the Galvanic battery business had been purchased and operated by Ellis H. Elias on his behalf.[1] Further testimonial, given in the same trial by Richard H. Elias, contended that Ellis H. Elias had been in business with George Sagendorph previously, that the business belonged to Ellis H. Elias, and he had simply continued selling Sagendorph's Battery under Boyd's name.[1] (All of which is quite contrary to later advertorial claims by Boyd Co. that Sagendorph had swindled the design.)
The battery itself is approximately 3 centimetres in diameter, and is composed of 12 individual disks of copper, brass, German silver, and nickel, surrounding a central copper rosette, itself with a brass disk plugged into the centre, all of which is encircled by a brass ring.
According to the advertising copy, a Boyd's Battery acts according to the principles of Galvanism, whereby "the union of two or more metals" (through Galvanic corrosion) produces electricity. In the case of Boyd's Battery, the electrolyte is said to be the "natural humidity of the skin", which in reacting with the different metals of the medallion produces a "constant but gentle flow of electricity."[2]
Among other afflictions, a Boyd's Battery was recommended to those subject to any of the following symptoms: "Restless Nights, Nightmare, Palpitation of the Heart, Loss of Confidence, Dizziness, Fainting Spells, Loss of Memory, Fullness of Blood, Fits of Melancholy, Debilitated, Lack of Power of Will and Action, Disordered Condition of the Liver, Blood, Kidneys, or Urinary Organs". It was proposed that "these troubles arise mostly from relaxation or debility, for the relief of which electricity is eminently adapted."[3]
"Boyd's Miniature Galvanic Battery Paperwork!" (electrotherapymuseum.com) — scans of original advertising and testimonials for Boyd's Battery.
↑ 1.0 1.1 John C. Boyd vs. Richard H. Elias and Jennie C. Elias. 329. Supreme Court of New York. 1882. https://books.google.com/books?id=87qtRL2WrTAC
↑ "ELECTRICITY AS A CURATIVE AGENT. The Investigations and Discoveries of Prof. J. C. Boyd. Facts about "Boyd's Battery." Thousands of Cases of Disease Cured thereby.". United States Official Postal Guide. 1881. https://books.google.com/books?id=YsJGAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA752&lpg=PA752. Retrieved 2015-10-31.
↑ "THE BLOOD IS THE LIFE! ACCOMPLISHED AT LAST! THE EFFICACY OF ELECTRICITY! - attested by Dr. H. Baer, General Agent for the South". The News and Courier (Charleston, SC). 1888-06-29. [Refer: "Charleston News & Courier" archives ($$)]
Medical Medallions (Galvanic Electricity for the Cure)
Ellis H. Elias & Co.
Sagendorph's Battery
Elias Electro Galvanic Medal
Other Outfits
Richardson's Magneto-Galvanic Battery
Flanigan's Miniature Double Medical Galvanic Battery
Dr. D. J. Smith's Electro-Polarizer or Stomach Battery
Dr. Henry Oliver's Galvanic Battery or Electro-Polarizer
Downing's Improved Battery
Dr. Cooper's Battery
Médaille Electro-Médicale de E. Osselin
Médaille Électro-Galvanique de I. Morana
Médaille Électro-Magnétique de Carolus
London Galvanic Generator
Allen's Battery
Retrieved from "https://hatch.kookscience.com/w/index.php?title=Boyd%27s_Battery&oldid=13828"
Medical Medallions
Electro-Therapeutic Medicine
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Defending the Homeland: New Invention Helps Protect Healthcare Workers During COVID-19 Pandemic
Navy Lt. Caroline Mosher, a nurse anesthesia student at USU's Graduate School of Nursing, conducts "proof-of-concept" testing using the “COVID-19 Airway Management Isolation Chamber,” or CAMIC. (Photo courtesy of LtCol Robert Long)
7/9/2020 By: Sharon Holland, Office of External Affairs, Uniformed Services University
If necessity and innovation are the driving forces behind invention, then the “COVID-19 Airway Management Isolation Chamber,” or CAMIC, is the perfect creation. The device, conceived, designed, built and tested by Military Health System and the Army’s Telemedicine and Advanced Technology Research Center (TATRC) personnel, may be the answer to protecting health care workers from COVID-19 and other viruses during patient care.
CAMIC, which recently received approval from the FDA for emergency use, is currently the first and only FDA-approved adjunct personal protective equipment (PPE) of its kind with a negative pressure vacuum validated to be effective in containing and reducing aerosols and airborne particles. (https://www.fda.gov/emergency-preparedness-and-response/mcm-legal-regulatory-and-policy-framework/emergency-use-authorization#covidppe)
The idea for the device came from Army Maj. (Dr.) Steven Hong, an assistant professor of Surgery at the Uniformed Services University (USU) and chief of Head and Neck Surgical Oncology and Reconstructive Surgery at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (WRNMMC). As he watched the COVID-19 crisis unfold across the world, Hong saw how it was overwhelming the healthcare systems in Italy and New York. He knew that COVID-19 was very contagious and healthcare workers, especially within his specialty of head and neck surgery where they are often exposed to nasal and respiratory droplets, seemed to be more vulnerable.
“The news of the lack of adequate PPE, especially in New York at that time, was alarming and we realized there could be an adjunct PPE that could better protect healthcare workers,” Hong said.
He started thinking of ways to develop a three-dimensional airway tent to use during the pandemic, and turned to Army Capt. (Dr.) Timothy Blood, a USU alumnus and clinical teaching fellow, and an otolaryngology (ear, nose, and throat, or ENT) resident at WRNMMC, for ideas. They reached out to some colleagues and quickly assembled a team made up primarily of other Army ENT surgeons and residents with ties to USU, including Army Maj. (Dr.) Charles Riley, an assistant professor of surgery at USU and staff ENT surgeon at Fort Belvoir Community Hospital; Army Maj. (Dr.) Douglas Ruhl, assistant professor at USU and staff ENT surgeon at Madigan Army Medical Center (MAMC); USU clinical teaching fellow and WRNMMC ENT resident Army Capt. (Dr.) Jonathan “Nate” Perkins; and Army 2nd Lt. Joseph Krivda, a second-year medical student at USU. The team also includes Army Maj. (Dr.) Paul Wistermayer, an ENT resident at MAMC and Mr. Nathan Fisher, an engineer from TATRC.
“Dr. Hong asked if I was interested in developing a device to more safely perform tracheostomy on patients in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Initial reports in China documented a high rate of transmission to the OR team from procedures involving the nasal cavity and airway. Given the sheer number of intubations (and likely need for tracheostomy) estimated, we wanted to make something to decrease the risk to our team and OR staff in the event of a tracheostomy,” said Blood.
Krivda’s USU medical school class was largely sidelined from patient care when their clerkship rotations were suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Like many of his classmates, he was looking for ways to stay involved. He had talked with Hong throughout his first year of medical school about getting involved in research, so when Krivda returned to campus, his timing was impeccable.
“I do not have an engineering background, and if you told me a month ago that I would be an inventor on a U.S. Army patent, I would not have believed you. But when there is a serious problem to be addressed, like the one posed by coronavirus transmission to healthcare workers, I’m more than willing to work tirelessly to find a solution, and being a part of this team gave me the opportunity to do just that.”
After the initial design and prototypes were made, the team realized that while the CAMIC would function well for tracheostomy, its true use would be for intubation and possibly for nebulization and for non-invasive ventilation to decrease the need for ventilator use and ICU requirements.
“We wanted to develop a 3D-printed chamber to contain aerosolization from airway procedures. Initially, we wanted to go from the top of the patient’s head to the mid-chest. Quickly this was noted to be too bulky and was shortened to go to the top of the shoulders. After identifying that the chamber could have broad implications both at home and abroad for the care of COVID-19 patients, the design drastically changed,” said Blood.
PVC piping was selected for the chamber’s frame because of its strength, availability, and cost, but an outer liner was more difficult to design, Blood said. “While testing out our design in the OR, we discovered a polyethylene bag that worked great as a chamber liner and we have been moving forward since then.” Cost of the first prototype? About $15, he said.
The team worked with nurse anesthetists and anesthesiologists for proof-of-concept testing. USU neuroscience graduate, Army Lt. Col. Robert Long, and USU CRNA student Navy Lt. Caroline Mosher, were among the anesthesia personnel testing the chamber’s viability at WRNMMC.
“They flat told us that the widely available clear acrylic intubation box design made it difficult to use given the rigid hole placement and the fact that the top of the box is contacted when performing an intubation. It was at that time we tried to come up with a better solution,” said Blood.
The overall structure of the frame was adapted using input from the anesthesia staff and senior members from multiple departments throughout WRNMMC and MAMC. Given the aerosolizable nature of the virus, the team was careful to include a suction to provide a way to remove particles. However, the change that truly set their design and patent apart from any other intubation systems was incorporating an air/oxygen port to the frame. By adding air within the chamber the inventors found the CAMIC was more tolerable and allowed particulate removal without decreasing efficacy.
“What really demonstrated the absolute need to push the design was when we performed our cough test using fluorescent powder. The CAMIC completely contained the particles while the clear acrylic box allowed egress of the powder into the room in alarming amounts. It was easy to see how many people in the OR or ER might get infected during airway procedures,” said Blood.
Although it is intended to keep aerosol particulate isolated inside the chamber, surgeons can still use the device while performing procedures. Holes in the side of the chamber provide access to the patient. These holes are easily sealed with tape if access is no longer needed, and testing suggests that they are able to contain and evaluate droplet and aerosol particulate in a very efficient manner. The CAMIC has a drawstring to close over the chest for an adequate seal, and while it was designed to decrease risk to the team and OR staff, it does not decrease the need for full PPE.
The CAMIC is equipped with an in-frame suction and air inlet providing a laminar flow environment which is the key to the device. The proof-of-concept intubation using the CAMIC and further testing with both ear and airway cases demonstrated the ability to work through the CAMIC effectively. The team has yet to perform a tracheostomy. Initially, they said, it might take a little longer than normal for routine cases but they feel the decreased aerosolization secondary to surgical manipulation and decreased risk to the team and OR staff is worth the extra few minutes.
“It has been a whirlwind of ideas and countless hours of validation and testing. We have been able to go from concept to design, build, validation, redesign, rebuild, revalidation x 10, IRB process, patent process, and FDA Emergency Use Authorization clearance in less than six weeks. It has been truly remarkable to see the dedication and motivation of my team,” said Hong. “I spent the last couple of years in one of the most innovative environments, Silicon Valley, and the mantra that this team has carried throughout this process reminds me of that time.”
Hong said the fact that they were able to get this far in a process that typically takes much longer is largely because of the people behind the scenes.
“To me, it was a combination of three things. First, obviously there was the need for some additional type of PPE beyond what was already available due to the extensive shortages created by the uncertainty and chaos created by Covid-19. As they say ‘necessity is the mother of all inventions.’ Second, the conducive environment that was facilitated by our leaders and the institution as a whole was critical. From the IRB to our direct leadership, everyone went out of their way to guide us and assist in accelerating this entire process. Their encouragement and support in this process cannot be overstated. And, most importantly, it was just the sheer willpower of our team members, especially our junior members, Capt. Tim Blood, Capt. Nathan Perkins, Capt. Paul Wistermeyer, and 2nd Lt. Joe Krivda. They probably have worked harder in the last three to four weeks than they had in a long time,” he said.
Blood echoes that sentiment. “We have had an extremely dedicated team at the Walter Reed, Belvoir and Madigan Otolaryngology departments. We all have different strengths and we are contributing wherever we can. Multiple things needed to occur simultaneously from patent application, IRB submission, FDA application, testing, and writing for the papers, we worked well together. We have also had the blessing of our clinic chief to continue with testing and development of the project. We wanted to go through the proper channels to provide the greatest benefit to patients in the future. In the midst of the pandemic, healthcare workers are doing anything they can to protect themselves to allow treatment of more patients. We wanted to help with that goal any way possible. Right now multiple Defense Health Agency and civilian sites are using the CAMIC as an urgently needed low tech solution to protect healthcare workers during the pandemic.”
Although the CAMIC was approved for emergency use by the FDA, the device will still need to go through a regular approval process in the future. In the meantime, the U.S. Army Medical Research and Development Command is seeking manufacturing partners through its technology transfer program as a long-term solution, Hong said.
“Much like the flu of 1918, SARS, MERS and now COVID-19, respiratory pandemics will continue to occur. Additionally, the CAMIC could potentially be adaptable for any respiratory infection to decrease risk to healthcare workers. Active TB, and all sorts of easily transmissible respiratory infections occurred before COVID-19 and will continue to occur,” he continued. “Additionally, we have been looking at making the CAMIC capable of being used for transport (EMS) and evacuation purposes for both first responders in the U.S. and for transport outside the country. We hope that it will be used in the near future to help protect our health care workers, alleviate the PPE shortages, and potentially help patients avoid early intubations by being able to safely receive nebulization treatments or BIPAP without fear of spreading aerosols widely.”
The device is currently being used at Walter Reed, Fort Belvoir, Fort Hood, Fort Bliss, Madigan, U.S. Central Command, Kapiolani Hospital in Honolulu, and INOVA Alexandria and Fairfax. Furthermore, says Krivda, the CAMIC’s simple design and availability of parts allows it to be easily constructed at practically any hospital in the world.
“Although we are dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic now, I am absolutely certain that the military will be called on in the future to battle other pandemics,” said Hong. “One of our main objectives will be to develop a more operational-friendly CAMIC that could be used downrange or for transport of infectious patients. Dr. Douglas Ruhl is currently leading this next-step effort and we look forward to the next generation of innovations.”
Blood agrees that their invention is important to the military’s readiness mission.
“The goal of the CAMIC is to provide additional protection for frontline healthcare workers to ensure decreased nosocomial infections and overall healthier hospital staff. This directly improves the deployability of medics, corpsman, nurses, physicians, and others. While we have not done human testing with non-invasive positive pressure ventilation (NIPPV)/nebulization yet, we feel our data suggest that our device might allow NIPPV/nebs to be used safely. The ability to safely provide NIPPV and avoid endotracheal intubation would be a game changer and this would provide the capability to conserve vital ventilators and ICU space, thus freeing additional resources that can be used in other aspects of military readiness,” he said.
The entire team credits the support from their department and command leadership and other Military Health System colleagues as key to their success in going from concept to emergency use in rapid fashion.
“In a miniscule amount of time, this team has created, tested, and proven an idea that can and will go on to have an immense impact – I am incredibly grateful to have been a part of it,” said Krivda.
Disclaimer: Re-published content may be edited for length and clarity. Read original post.
Meeting References (12)
Navy PA continues to care for COVID-19 caregivers
As a PAt, Osborn works hand-in-hand with supervising physicians and surgeons.
NICoE & ISC Network maintain TBI care during COVID-19
The Network leveraged their geographic distribution to help each other quickly adapt to changing times.
Coronavirus | Traumatic Brain Injury
San Antonio volunteers sought for Warp Speed vaccine trials
DOD sites are open on a voluntary basis to Military Health System beneficiaries.
COVID-19 Vaccine Efforts | Coronavirus
Army combat medic earns U.S. citizenship, plans to continue serving
The native of Brazil is part of the COVID-19 testing team.
Army doctors provide COVID-19 safety tips for the holiday season
Celebrating the holidays during a pandemic may bring additional challenges for people this year.
Coronavirus | November Toolkit | November Holidays and Observances
Military Health System participating in COVID-19 vaccine trial
How you can help test the vaccine.
Coronavirus | COVID-19 Vaccine Efforts
DHA leaders recognize CCP collection campaign contributors & donors
The ceremony honored those who contributed to exceeding the goal of collecting 10,000 units of COVID-19 convalescent plasma.
Coronavirus | Convalescent Plasma Collection Program
NMRTU Everett staff collaborate to ensure Patient Centered Care
NMRTU Everett was commended by the MHS 2020 Advancement towards High Reliability Healthcare Awards Program as a Patient Centeredness Award winner.
Combat Support | Public Health | Coronavirus
Naval Medical Forces Pacific’s commander tours NH Twentynine Palms
Weber was briefed on the implementation of MHS GENESIS...and the hospital's response to COVID-19.
Combat Support | Health Readiness | Coronavirus | MHS GENESIS
Forging of civil-military anvil against COVID-19 focus at GHSA
“Defense partnerships around the world are key.”
Coronavirus | Global Health Engagement | Health Readiness | Global Health Engagement
Walter Reed, VA focus on joint efforts in 3D medical application
The JIF award focuses on the Department of Defense/VA 3D Printing Consortium for Medical Applications.
Research and Innovation | Technology
BAMC, Argentine Army medical providers share COVID-19 best practices
U.S. Army South facilitated the virtual subject matter expert (SME) exchange between BAMC and CMMH.
Coronavirus | Global Health Engagement | Technology | COVID-19 Vaccine Efforts | Public Health | Convalescent Plasma Collection Program
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Content Advisory, Businesses, Businesses in GTA V,
Businesses in GTA Online
Locations in GTA V
Locations in GTA V in Los Santos
Locations in GTA Online
Locations in GTA Online in Los Santos
Safehouses
Safehouses in GTA V
Properties in GTA V
Vanilla Unicorn
What is The Vanilla Unicorn?
ACTIVE BUSINESS
Appearance(s)
Strawberry, Los Santos
Tagline(s)
"Seeing is relieving" (Website)
Leon (formerly)
Known employees
Fufu
Filly Stirrups
Daisy Cutter
Unnamed Stripper #1
DJ Paddock Punter
DJ Mare
Unnamed Bar Girl
$10 (drinks)
$40 (private dance)
Occupant(s)
Wade Hebert
Parking capacity
"Chain of topless bars rebranded as 'gentleman's clubs' to make middle-aged men feel better about the direction their lives have taken."
―Description at LCN.com.
Vanilla Unicorn is a strip club featured in Grand Theft Auto V and Grand Theft Auto Online. In GTA V, the player can buy stocks from them in the Lcn-exchange.com website.
2 Influence
3 Strippers
4 As a Safehouse
5 Prominent Appearances in Missions
5.1 Grand Theft Auto V
5.2 Grand Theft Auto Online
5.2.1 Heists
7.1 Special Events
7.2 Social Media Pages Coming Soon
7.3 Cuisine
7.4 Employment
8.1 Vanilla Unicorn
9 Glitches
The club is located on Elgin Avenue, next to the Olympic Freeway in Strawberry, Los Santos, State of San Andreas.
It has several sections, some known are the Real Class, and Beautiful Ladies Class. The club itself is divided into a stage (resembling a penis, another example of Rockstar's crude humor), bar, private rooms, a small office and the stripper's dressing room. The latter keeps a large snake as a pet, which will not move in any case.
Franklin is seen in the club during his personal trailer, hanging out with Lamar. He seems to be friends with the bouncer/doorman since he always greets Franklin as "Mr. C". The doorman will also recognize Michael after Hang Ten, suggesting they visit the club frequently, especially to see Trevor and plan the Union Depository heist. Following Hang Ten, Wade Hebert can be found in one of the booths near the entrance, being fawned over by two strippers.
The music heard inside Vanilla Unicorn is from Non-Stop-Pop FM. In the enhanced version, the music heard inside is taken from various radio stations. As with all other radio stations in the game, only 10 or so songs will play on a randomized loop. Wade may comment on the small song selection if the player walks by him where he will comment, "They only play like, six songs in here. It's kinda making me crazy."
The club is a frequent Families gang hangout location, as it is located deep in their turf in Strawberry. Members can be seen standing outside the club and there is always a member sitting by one of the tables near the bartender.
In Grand Theft Auto Online, the strip club is locked until level 6.
The strip club's official website is www.vanillaunicorn.xxx.
The club name is a play on the real-life strip club chain Spearmint Rhino, as both names contain a flavor and an animal with a horn on its head (though fictional in this case).
Also, judging by the club's location in Strawberry (Inglewood) and its exterior, it seems to be based on the real life strip club Bare Elegance, but with a different interior.
"For the finest girls in Los Santos visit the Vanilla Unicorn, objectifying women since 1984."
―Text message the player receives upon reaching rank 6 in Grand Theft Auto Online.
In the strip club, the player can pay $40 (pocket cash only) to receive a topless dance in private. The protagonist can flirt with the stripper or touch her to increase a "Like" meter. However, there is a bouncer in the private room that walks back and forth, and if the bouncer catches the protagonist touching the dancer three times, the protagonist will be kicked out of the club. If the protagonist likes her enough, he can choose to take her home, similar to the girlfriends in Grand Theft Auto IV. Additionally, the strippers will be added to the characters' cell phone contacts, much like the women met in the Maisonette 9 from The Ballad of Gay Tony, and can be taken home without receiving a dance first. However, some strippers do not sleep around.
After Trevor acquires the Vanilla Unicorn, he, Michael and Franklin can touch the strippers without the risk of being ejected. For Trevor, lap dances are free and the strippers call him "sir".
After a stripper is taken home for the first time, her number will be available on the contacts list on the player's phone. The player can then call her at night to pick her up and take her home, but if called during the day she will make an excuse. She will usually send pictures of herself to the player too after being taken home. Sometimes when picked up, strippers will give the player a blowjob while he is driving her home. This can easily be noticed by pressing the button to look behind while driving, as well as the comments made by her and the player.
If a stripper is attacked or killed, either at the club or in transit during a booty call, she will be alive and well during her next shift at the club. She will, however, be mad at the player; they will have to restore her "like" bar in order to re-acquire her as a booty call. Also, in GTA V, when taking a stripper home, the stripper will get mad and leave the player when it looks like they're leaving her behind.
In Grand Theft Auto Online, the player can get a lap dance, again for $40, only there is no bouncer in the area of the private rooms and they can hold the stripper without the worry of being kicked out. They once again must raise a Like bar, which can be worked on by tossing dollar bills during the stripper's pole dance, holding the stripper during lap dances, or using their microphone to flirt with the stripper. Filling the flirt bar will add a bit to the Like bar at a time. Most of them also have their voice lines disabled, unless they have unique lines that are not gender-specific.
If particular strippers with whom their Like meters are high enough, are working at the time and a private dance is purchased for one of them, the game will inform the player that there is a girl available that the stripper is willing to dance with (a double lapdance), and they need to be asked to join before entering the private rooms. The second dancer will need to be paid as usual before she agrees.
If the player wishes to max out the Like meter, it must be done in one session as it is reset with every new session.
Once the Like bar is full, the stripper will give the player her number and if rung, she will come to the player's apartment (the more high-end it is, the better) to perform free lap dances in a predesignated armchair (though not topless) for the player and their friends. Only one stripper at a time can be invited over.
When not performing, she will stand by the chair and dance in place. As long as a player is in range and able to activate a lap dance she will stay. If the mobile phone is active or a player is not in range, she will ask for interaction until an in-game notice warns that she will leave if she becomes bored from being ignored. Once she reaches that point, she will say goodbye and simply walk out of the apartment.
For some reason, topless dances could not be received in Grand Theft Auto Online, even though it is described as a topless bar by Lcn-exchange.com. Additionally, only Nikki, Chastity, and Fufu worked in the club in GTA Online in the original version. These issues were changed in the Enhanced Version in patch 1.27, however.
The strippers currently working at the club are:
Chastity[O]
Cheetah[O]
Fufu[O]
Infernus[O][V]
Juliet[O][V]
Nikki[O][V]
Peach[O]
Sapphire[O][V]
[O] - Available to take home in Grand Theft Auto Online.
[V] - Available to take home in Grand Theft Auto V.
The strippers work in shifts: Sapphire, Fufu, Infernus and Peach work together, between 20:00 and 08:00, as do Juliet, Nikki, Chastity and Cheetah, between 08:00 and 20:00. In each shift there are two strippers who are available to take home and two who aren't. If the player is looking for a particular stripper and doesn't see her, they can return later when the strippers change shifts. In GTA Online, the strippers work in groups of three instead of four and the time is randomized. Sapphire, Infernus, and Chastity work together. Fufu, Peach, and Juliet work together. And Cheetah, Nikki, and Juliet work together. Juliet is the only stripper to appear in multiple shifts.
As a Safehouse
Following "Hang Ten", Trevor "acquires" the Vanilla Unicorn as a safehouse, replacing Floyd's Apartment, which loses its function as a safehouse in the mission. Once acquired (at no cost to the player), Trevor can roam freely around the backrooms of the club, and is also able to get lap dances for free and touch the dancers at will (Franklin and Michael also can now touch freely, but still have to pay).
This is one of five safehouses in Grand Theft Auto series to be given to the player after killing the owner, the others being the Vercetti Estate, Brian Jeremy's Safehouse, Lancaster Safehouse and the Playboy X's Penthouse.
Other features of the club-as-safehouse:
Drinks are now free for Trevor at the bar.
Trevor can have an unlimited number of drinks at the bar, until he passes out.
The stripper's changing room doubles as Trevor's wardrobe (although only stripper gear is visible on the racks, Trevor's regular wardrobe cache is available).
The back office has a saving location, the couch, plus a health pack. Trevor can also come and go using a rear entrance. Strangely, although there is a computer in the office, he cannot use it to access the internet.
The parking lot on the north side can store up to two vehicles. Sometimes Trevor's Bodhi will be seen parked in the parking area to the east, but vehicles will not be saved if parked there. Note that the other two characters can access the vehicles parked in the lot as well, but only Trevor can park them to be saved.
Wade will be found in one of the lapdance alcoves with two dancers draped over him. He will also be present if Franklin and Michael visit and will make references to Trevor if they pass close by.
Unlike other safehouses, if Michael or Franklin fires their weapon inside or at the parking after Hang Ten, Trevor will not call or text them to stop.
Prominent Appearances in Missions
The Jewel Store Job (ending cutscene)
Chasing Shots (Deathmatch)
The Humane Labs Raid
Memo to all dancers: Effective immediately. Do not work nude on the pole. Pole work must be done when wearing bottoms only.
May 6, 2012 - To all dancers: Dancers wishing to be on the schedule must submit requests no later than Thursday evening. Management notice.
Strictly no food in the dressing room.
For walkouts please see DJ or floater.
Bonus - To all employees: You may receive a $150 reward for recommending a beautiful entertainer to work at Vanilla Unicorn. She may be hired if she passes a rigorous audition and interview. The entertainer must fulfill her required schedule during her trial period. Your reward will be waiting.
Attention all ladies: Vanilla Unicorn now has ladies' tees and shorties. Available in black and red. Small and medium. $10 for a tee or shortie. Ask at the front desk. Get your Christmas orders in early to avoid disappointment.
January 24, 2012 - To all dancers: Once again it is necessary so remind all dancers that we are a nude club. When dancing on stage all dancers must be fully nude no later than half way through the second song.
No excessive cell phone usage: No cell phones on floor.
Notice: This dressing room is monitored by closed circuit TV.
August 24, 2012 - To: Dancers. RE: Excessive tardiness. Due to an increase in poor time keeping, we are beginning to track attendance effective from May 1st. If an entertainer is late more than three times in a month, she will be given the opportunity to add an additional shift to the schedule.
Memo to all dancers: Please don't 'hang out' in the massage chair. All employees must pay for use of chair.
Have an unforgettable bachelor party at the Vanilla Unicorn. We supply party hats, jimmy hats, and antifungal cream. Just don't forget your Fleeca card, cause we'll max it out!
Social Media Pages Coming Soon
So you can stay connected with your favorite dancers as they beg you to come back and spend more of your kid's college money on trolips.
Ready to eat? What better way to impress hot women than by whispering sweet nothings in her ear and shoving 20s into her g-string while you're covered in hot wing sauce and blue cheese dressing.
Think you have what it takes to work at Los Santos's most popular, legendary gentlemen's club? Look down; do you see a pair of fake tits? Is your head empty? You're halfway on your way to a career in taking men's money while not putting out.
This page describes content that may be contrary to Fandom standards.
Please take care to ensure any media added is fully compliant with the Fandom Terms of Use and Community Guidelines. Offending material will be removed without notice.
Front view.
Front view (daylight).
Interior floor plan.
Carpark.
Stage.
View from the stage.
DJ's booth.
Private rooms.
Trevor's office.
Strippers' dressing room.
Trevor in the Vanilla Unicorn.
A reference to Jimmy Hopkins, the protagonist of "Bully," a game also made by Rockstar.
Wade with two unnamed strippers.
The snake in the dressing room.
Advertisement #1.
A fish tank at bar in Vanilla Unicorn.
A Vanilla Unicorn sign next to bar.
Vanilla Unicorn dance and drinks menu.
A beer cooler at the bar in Vanilla Unicorn.
Multiple Vanilla Unicorn condom packs.
A Vanilla Unicorn mug.
Multiple beer company branded novelty sticks and straws and other decoration stuff.
A Vanilla Unicorn calendar.
Vanilla Unicorn notices #1.
Before v1.01, the club would occasionally lock itself (even after Trevor acquires it as a safehouse) and remain inaccessible for the rest of the game, disabling its function as a safehouse. As of 1.18 it has not been fixed for pre 1.01 players, however the club can still be entered. Even after the patch, some players have still reported these problems.
There is a very rare glitch that occurs in GTA Online. When asking Nikki or Fufu for a dance or when watching them dancing on the pole, their name appears as "Juliet" and Juliet's number will appear in the player's phone after the dance. If the player tries to contact Juliet, however, they will receive the "engaged" tone.
When walking behind the club, sometimes 2 cars could spawn atop each other.
The woman near the entrance carries a pistol that can be seen by killing her. Oddly, even if she is shot at, she will not shoot back.
Jimmy De Santa has a Vanilla Unicorn calendar in his bedroom.
The strip club was opened in 1984, the same year that the events of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories took place.
For some reason, after Hang Ten, security guards never react. When attacking people inside, they will not move, as well as when fighting police forces inside. If attacked, however, they will pull out a pistol and engage the player.
Before Hang Ten, if the player shows up wearing only underwear (as any protagonist), the bouncer will comment "Where yo' pants at, fool?".
While having a private dance in the Japanese version of the game, the strippers are wearing pasties, instead of having their nipples exposed.
Placed around the club are posters advertising two strippers (Filly Stirrups and Daisy Cutter), and two DJ's (DJ Mare and DJ Paddock Punter). Despite being pictured, and having scheduled days, the two strippers do not appear. It is also unknown if the in-house DJ is one of the two mentioned on the posters.
Stickers of Vice City's Pole Position Club can be found on the payphone located inside the entrance.
In an MC Contact Mission of Guns for Hire, some strippers carry Pistols as it counts as a target for other players to kill them. This marks the first time that strippers can use weapons upon starting Guns for Hire.
The strip club will be unavailable if Guns for Hire has started at this location. Entering the Strip Club while the mission is ongoing will result the targets to kill the player outside of the Motorcycle Club.
In GTA Online, if the player leaves the lobby or signs out while the stripper is still there, a bill for cleaning the apartment will be the first notice they receive the next time they sign in, costing around $50-$100.
Retrieved from "https://gta.fandom.com/wiki/Vanilla_Unicorn?oldid=1278401"
Content Advisory
Businesses in GTA V
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GAY TIMES May 1989
June 1, 1968 February 20, 2019 ~ potbellypig1
Tabloid tittle-tattle reached a new high of stupidity on 2 April in The People (Wendy Henry’s ugly pup). The front page announced, “Bet Lynch’s Hubby is Gay”.
Now then, who are they talking about? Alec Gilroy the landlord of the Rovers Return? Surely he is Bet Lynch’s hubby. But then again, they might be referring to the husband of Julie Goodyear the actress who plays Bet Lynch. She recently married an American called Richard Skrob. Do they mean him?
No, indeed, they mean Roy Barraclough, the man who plays Alec Gilroy, the husband of the fictional character Bet Lynch. Are you still with me? I hope so because we haven’t got round to Bet Lynch yet, who is also gay – that is to say, Julie Goodyear who plays the part who is, in fact, now Bet Gilroy because she married Alec Gilroy who is played by Roy Barraclough who is gay.
Mr Barraclough was cornered by The People while on holiday in Greece. Was he suitably ashamed? “I am gay and proud of it,” said the actor. “I am discreet and what I do behind my own front door is up to me. Still, I’m honest and as you’ve asked me, I can’t deny it.”
That didn’t stop The People which maundered on about “the gay shock” and “Roy’s amazing double life.”
But I fear they’ve pulled this trick a little too often. Nobody cares any more. Roy Barraclough and Julie Goodyear play two of the best-loved characters on British television and the pubic do not wish to see them crucified. Whether it is her intention or not, the editor of The People is actually turning the tide in our favour.
Ms Henry might be losing her touch. Her marbles went some time ago.
Mrs Thatcher seems to be having a bit of a problem at the moment. Her popularity (inexplicable as it is) at last seems to be showing signs of diminishing. The Labour Party was actually ahead in one opinion poll.
It’s at times like these that Maggie’s press acolytes go into action, trying to reverse the trend. If Mrs Thatcher’s policies are a load of dangerous rubbish, then the only way to keep her in power is to make those of the opposition sound even worse.
One proven way to frighten those delicate voters is, of course, to drag the gay bogey out of the closet. “Labour Plan New Laws to Protect Gays” screeched one headline in The Sun (20 Mar). “Labour will make discrimination against gays or lesbians a criminal offence” reported the most loyal mouthpiece of our unspeakable Prime Minister. In the light of Section 28, Labour’s small movement towards protecting our rights might seem overdue. But as far as The Sun is concerned these are “shock measures”.
The Left’s support is fine on paper, but how real is the support within the party for gay rights? What happens when it comes to the crunch? How many Patricia (“We’re losing pensioners’ votes because of the gay thing”) Hewitts are there under the red flag?
Well, as far as reactions to inflated press stories go, we have a mixed bag — some Labour councils are defiant, some defensive. Let’s look at a few of the ‘loony left’ stories from this month and examine the reactions.
First we have Patrick Moore, the telly astronomer. Most people consider him a harmless eccentric, but a report in the London Evening Standard (30 Mar) reveals him to be a venomous homophobe. Joining forces with barmy Baroness Cox he denounced “the innocently titled (book) The Milkman’s on His Way at a recent committee meeting in the Lords”.
According to The Standard, the David Rees bestseller has been “placed on the ILEA positive images list sent out to school libraries, and Moore claimed at the meeting: ‘Our children are being corrupted and depraved by it’.” (Just for the record, Mr Moore is unmarried and, as far as I know, childless).
The star gazer then begins to sound rather like one of the slobbering hypocrites who feature so prominently in Gay Times’ own wonderful cartoon Fermenting Fruits: “Pure sexual perversion …children will read it and try it out and get Aids. It is an obscene publication and the ILEA are as guilty as drug peddlers for recommending it.”
The most revealing part of the report (because nobody is going to be influenced by the hysteria of a crank like Moore) is the defensive reaction of an ILEA spokesman: “We don’t actually recommend books as such,” he is quoted as saying, “The book was marred by voyeurism and overtly explicit accounts of sexual activities.”
For our next example we move to Ealing in West London, where a “hard Left” council is supposed to have an equal employment policy covering lesbians and gay men. To be fair, they’ve taken more than their share of stick about it, but now the Ealing Gazette (17 Mar) says: “Catholic … parents were told the phrase ‘Ealing Council welcomes applications from lesbians and gay men’ would be dropped in an advert for a head teacher at Our Lady of the Visitation Roman Catholic School in Greenford. But the line cropped up in a national newspaper — and angry Catholics thought the council had included it deliberately.” But, of course, they hadn’t.
Ealing’s equal opportunity policy is as strong as a rock —until the first set of bigots comes along and demands its removal. The Council then accedes without a murmur.
Meanwhile in another London borough — Haringey —home of the first local authority Lesbian and Gay Unit, there is more controversy over the ‘positive images’ policy. But this time criticism comes not from some Holy Joe ‘parents group’ but a teacher in a local school. HW Medwell wrote to City Limits, the London listings magazine (6 Apr) following an article about the aftermath of Clause 28 by Melissa Benn and Rose Collis. “Haringey Council has been surprisingly quiet on the issue,” he says, “In the secondary schools where I have I taught, the Positive Images policy has been something you read about in the Tory press. No informational literature on Positive Images has been distributed to teachers or other staff during the period of controversy; nor has there been any verbal guidance from the ILEA. We’ve had to think of our own answers to the oft-repeated question ‘When do we start having gay lessons?’ and our own ways of coping with the marked increase of the traditionally high quota of heterosexist filth we meet in the classrooms. Benn and Collis could fruitfully have explored the reasons why a ‘radical’ council should behave in this way.”
A little better is the reaction of Brent Council which was reported in The Evening Standard (3 Apr) as “planning sex advice sessions where people are encouraged to ‘talk dirty’. The proposal is part of the borough’s Aids awareness campaign, designed to break down sexual barriers.”
As usual the first whinger on the scene is Tory group spokesman Leslie Winter who is quoted as saying: “It is absolute nonsense when you consider all the other problems we have.”
Apparently, the council which is “on the brink of a financial crisis” is to ask the Government for £300,000 to pay for the Creative Sex Workshop scheme. “It is based on an American project called Hot, Horny and Healthy, which uses blue movies to encourage people to attend. Brent’s Aids adviser, Vernal Scott said: ‘They put on porno films with people wearing condoms and it’s very popular’.”
Deputy council leader Pam Jordan said: “Anything that makes people aware of the Aids peril has got to be a good thing.”
Anybody with the brass neck to ask Mrs Thatcher for three hundred grand for a Hot, Horny and Healthy project gets full marks from me.
The Leicester Mercury (9 Mar) gleefully reported the banning of ten national newspapers from a students’ union because they were deemed to be “anti-gay”. The ban was presented as ludicrous and good only for mockery, especially since one of the banned titles was The Guardian, seen by many as the only pro-gay paper in the country.
But how consistent is The Guardian in its approach to gay matters? There can be little doubt that it has carried many excellent, thoughtful features that wouldn’t have looked out of place in this magazine. It doesn’t neglect major news stories of interest to gay people, either. But occasionally something slips through the net. One such piece was “Case of the limp-wristed stud” which appeared on 23rd March. It was supposed to be a funny account, by Shelley Bovey, of a cat which had been purchased for “80 quid” for stud purposes. The cat, Claude, showed no interest in the females presented to him which made Shelley Bovey immediately assume that he is gay: “At rest he turns his head affectedly to one side. One paw is tucked under his chest. The other droops languidly. Our stud cat is undeniably limp-wristed.” Then Claude starts a relationship with the tom cat from next door. “One bound through the cat flap and he and Black Tom are greeting each other affectionately, nose to nose. That casual first kiss is just part of a new familiar ritual. Claude then gets down and rolls enticingly in front of Black Tom. Then they disappear, but I don’t wish to go into that. Afterwards . . . they sit on the table outside the kitchen window, close together, exuding contentment, wrists dangling limply over the edge of the table.” Shelley Bovey says, “Not that I am any kind of homophobe”. I’ll believe her, thousands wouldn’t.
I know it’s supposed to be a bit of fun, but there was something unpleasant about the imagery and the cheap cracks which left me feeling uncomfortable. All the same, I wouldn’t ban The Guardian on the strength of it.
Considering the apparent distaste with which the tabloids view gay sex, they don’t half seem fascinated by it. Take this example from The Sunday Mirror (26 Mar), under the headline “Three-men-in-a-bed gay sex romps”: “We chatted and had a few drinks and Hugh and the other man started kissing each other … They became quite intimate. I was sitting in another chair in the lounge, watching them. The other guy went out of the room and Hugh encouraged me over to him and we started kissing and fondling. Soon afterwards we all went upstairs to Hugh’s bedroom and it all got rather involved after that. We were naked and it was a tangle of arms and legs. We all had sex with each other.” Then there follows an explanation about who dominated whom.
When you recall the hoo-ha over Colin’s kiss in EastEnders, I wonder if that righteous, campaigning newspaper The Sun will now organise a telephone poll asking whether The Sunday Mirror ought to be banned because it brings explicit gay sex into the front rooms of “real” families?
Gratuitous Insults Department: “Eartha Kitt is a founder member of the Showbiz Greats Club … despite her ghastly camp followers.” —John Knight, Sunday Mirror (19 Mar)
“I was going to get engaged but I have just discovered the awful truth about my future mum-in-law. She is gay. Now all my friends have found out and say I should finish with him, pointing out that our children could be at risk if they had a gay grandmother.” — Letter to Sun’s Agony column (20 Mar).
Jesus-in-Jackboots department: “Is it not true that for long enough now the Anglican Church in general has soft-pedalled about the sins of the flesh? I find it particularly distressing when a flabby attitude towards this issue goes hand in hand with a sentimental solicitude for Aids victims. It smacks of hypocrisy for a Church to lay claim to sympathy for a group of sufferers, and yet to withhold the full power of its collective voice against one method by which they may have become infected.” — letter in The Church Times (31 Mar).
Posted in 1989
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Victims of ‘recovered memory’: ‘We remembered whatever they wanted’
We’ve written before about the early Satanic panic cases, both here and in the USA. Many will remember the infamous Rochdale case in 1990, when children from a total of six families on a council estate had their children removed into local authority care. This came about because the parent of one seven-year-old, whose child was exhibiting disturbed behaviour, was seen by two social workers who attributed the boy’s behaviour to involvement in ritual abuse. Eventually all four children in that family were taken into care.
Interviews with those children appeared to implicate children from the other families in “horrifying organised ritual abuse of some kind”, and allegations were made that the children had also received “drugs of some sort”.
When the case got to court, Mr Justice Douglas Brown rejected these allegations, and was highly critical of the interviewing techniques used. He said interviews had been conducted with little regard for the Cleveland recommendations. Virtually all the information the children gave came in response to leading or suggestive questions, and the social workers had failed to differentiate the children’s descriptions of fact from fantasy.
By the early 2000s, 12 of the 20 children whose lives had been ripped apart launched lawsuits against the local council for negligence in its duty of care toward them.
Manchester-based solicitor Richard Scorer, Head of Abuse Law at Slater & Gordon, represented some of the Rochdale victims. In his review of Dr Julia Shaw’s 2016 book The Memory Illusion: Remembering, forgetting, and the science of false memory, Mr Scorer notes,
Recovered memory never made much headway in the United Kingdom. (I have represented many hundreds of victims of sexual abuse; almost none have claimed a recovered memory in the commonly understood sense.) But the ‘Satanic panic’, which also germinated in America, did make it to the UK, with spectacularly damaging consequences. In the early 1990s, social workers in Rochdale, Nottingham and Orkney became convinced that children had been abused in satanic rituals, witchcraft and devil worship. The children concerned—from poor, vulnerable families living in isolated council estates—were seized in dawn raids. In most cases the courts eventually concluded that no abuse had ever occurred. In the meantime, however, children had been torn from their parents and families destroyed.
A few years later, when those children became adults, I represented some of them in seeking damages for their unwarranted removal into care. They described their experiences very graphically. Utterly bewildered and terrified, they had been subjected to hours of relentless pressure and leading questions. Before long, as one of them told me, ‘we simply had no idea what we really remembered or didn’t remember, so we just remembered whatever they wanted’.
We know that “false memories” can be deliberately created in adults—in fact, Dr Shaw describes in this video how she is able to cause false memories in normal adults within three interviews:
The children from Rochdale have stated that they were forced to “remember whatever they wanted”, as presumably well-meaning but extremely misguided social workers hectored and pressured them to remember events which had never occurred.
Of course this brings to mind RD’s children, who were removed from the relative safety of their London home and taken to an isolated hotel in Morocco by their mother and her psychopathic boyfriend. For a full month they were dragged out of bed in the middle of the night for “questioning”; they were beaten with spoons, punched in the head, kicked in the “front privates”, burned, forced to kneel in their underpants while water was poured over them, threatened with burial and abandonment in the desert.
We know that RD’s children said “whatever they wanted”, not only because they both stated that they had been forced to lie by Abe with their mother’s approval and consent, but because Ella has since admitted that some of the things she and Abe forced the children to say were not, in fact, the truth.
Abe and Ella’s few remaining supporters continue to cling to the original words of the children (including, one presumes, the parts which Ella has admitted that she invented). But anyone who understands how easily children can be made to say, and even believe, things which are patently false must stand firmly with the children themselves, not the false words that were forced out of them.
#StandWithTheChildren
24/11/2017 in Fair comment. Tags: Abraham Christie, child abuse, Ella Draper, satanic panic, Satanic ritual abuse
‘We Believe the Children’: Echoes of 1980s moral panic
‘We Believe the Children’: 1980s moral panic echoes in Hoaxtead
Things that make us go ‘hmm…’
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169 thoughts on “Victims of ‘recovered memory’: ‘We remembered whatever they wanted’”
Illuminating stuff, EC! Thank you.
Why can’t the hoaxers get it into their thick skulls that the children told Police something which Ella only admitted this year, wasn’t true, which can only mean the children must have been originally COACHED to say it??
Great post. That video of Dr Shaw was interesting too.
Great post, EC.
Sorry to go off topic so quickly, but I thought I should let you GCHQ bastards know that you’re all suspended from duty with immediate effect. I know because this lady told me so and I’m too scared to argue with her:
Neelu says I don’t have to go to work tomorrow! Good to know.
Aww bless, she has a supporter:
It’s funny—I’ve asked them this, and they always change the subject. Ditto when I ask them about RD’s alleged tattoo, which he supposedly had but Ella never noticed.
Shameless:
Half of nine is two? When was this brought in? Bloody Tories.
Hang on a minute, wasn’t Neelu once a pharmacist? It’s a bit alarming that she’s unable to do even elementary arithmetic any longer.
Rupert was sentenced at the end of August, for two nine-month sentences to be served concurrently. Quick, Neelu, what’s half nine?
(Shh…no one tell her it’s 4.5!)
All right, Neelu, now count with me: September, October, November, December, and half of January. That’s 4.5 months. And it’s late November now…or at least, it is on Earth. Who knows how time is measured on the Planet Zog?
LOL snap!
I should point out that the above edict is accompanied by a giant photo of herself. Is this megalomania?
Great article EC.
Rupert, a whistleblower? LMAO
BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA………………BAHAHAHAHAHAHA……BAHAHAHAHAHA
Maybe he has been upto something in prison, but he certainly wasn’t a whistleblower on the outside.
Neelu for the Nut house.
God doesn’t exist, and neither does Satan. These fruitloops are insane.
Also, why would serving half his sentence mean he had the right to be set free? How does that work, Neelu? LOL
Nut house?
Squirrel den?
Actually my understanding is that for sentences less than a year long, prisoners are released at the halfway mark if their behaviour while in prison is good. If I’m wrong, jump in!
Beautifully stated! Very very nice work 🙂
No, I get that. Prisoners are often released on parole early, especially if they’ve exhibited good behaviour inside. I was querying what gives him an automatic right to be set free, though reading my question back I can see I should have made that clearer.
Oh, but he did blow the whistle on Angies bumslap 🙂
Fair enough, PT – I was just being overly cautious in light of something someone said last week:
https://hoaxteadresearch.wordpress.com/2017/11/17/rupert-quaintance-appeal-quashed/#comment-87047
Thanks Justin. 🙂
Weaselwatch says:
Alternatively, who would like to rip up a bunch of money and flush it straight down the loo? Might as well do that as give it to The Weasel.
Vincent de Paul says:
I wonder if Cressida Dick knows she doesn’t have to go to work tomorrow!
When adults confess to crimes they did not commit because of coercion, etc., what chance do children have. As that person said, “we remembered whatever they wanted”. A child taken from the safety of their home, tired, frightened & wanting to go back to their loved ones would naturally say what someone in authority wanted them to say as innocent adults will do under repeated duress.
https://www.innocenceproject.org/causes/false-confessions-admissions/
Why do innocent people confess?
The reasons that people falsely confess are complex and varied, but what they tend to have in common is a belief that complying with the police by saying that they committed the crime in question will be more beneficial than continuing to maintain their innocence.
The factors that can contribute to a false confession during a police interrogation include:
mental impairment
ignorance of the law
fear of violence
the actual infliction of harm
the threat of a harsh sentence
misunderstanding the situation
I welcome this. As Head Tea Lady at GCHQ I’ve never bloody well been paid anyway. Not even when I went out of my way to get that nice section head George Soros his favourite digestive biscuits so just wait until next week and they run out. Expect fireworks and I wouldn’t be surprised if Sir John Paterson comes in for special treatment from the Jewish Illuminati.
On a serious note : as a teenage victim of a drugging (possibly the first “date rape drug” it was that long ago) brutal rape by 3 men and a bashing that police described as attempted murder followed by a being dumped in the gutter of Notting Hill road at 3am – I remember every single detail and face and still do.
I only had confusion about remember name details but 12 months later while I was recovering by working on a friend’s country property I picked up a newspaper to find my attackers had been busted in a huge heroin import and they all received up to 20 years jail which somewhat avoided me the necessity of a debilitating trial.
# in contrast to what seems popular opinion I found the 2 detectives who I dealt with to be sympathetic and discreet given the circumstances. Perhaps because they were from a central London police station and maybe more sophisticated.
Others may have had different experiences.
Having no idea of Rupert’s behavior in jail, he probably should be released as it serves no useful purpose keeping him locked up any longer.
That however would be up to the relevant authorities though and as Neelu has just fired all public servants (presumably including prison Governors and wardens) what’s the point of writing to them?
And who is running the jail, preparing food, ensuring prisoner’s safety etc etc.
Have I found the Tiny Flaw to Neelu’s plan?
I’m so sorry to hear that happened to you, GoS. I think most victims of trauma of that sort will remember most details; we may try not to think about it, but forget? Not likely.
I’m glad to hear the police treated you well; I think that’s a matter of luck of the draw for the most part.
So very sorry to hear that GoS. What a terrible thing to have happened to you, ( I hate saying thing, it does not describe what I feel). I personally have had no doings with the police but a young girl that is dear to me was gang raped when she was 15 & the Police were exceptionally good with & to her & treated her with the greatest of respect. I am so glad you did not have to testify, my young friend’s case did not get to trial either, one man was done for underage sexual offences, the other 4 skipped the country. From my understanding the DPP stated that a date rape case is very hard to prove.
Yes he did to a degree but it was more than a bum slap and more than a fondle of his bum/ass.
And Angela if you’re reading this fine blog as I know you do every morning when you have your 1st smoke, could you please blow the whistle for once in your life and tell us the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth before Rupert writes his Memoirs and everyone finds out what really happened in Lanazarote and also outside Holborn Police Station, you see I know but I’m giving you the opportunity of confessing one of the sins you committed against Rupert.
Neelu is able to control herself, as she is not breaking her lifetime Restraining Order but Sabine is.
I’m not even sure if she is actually mentally ill, though I’m not qualified to say she is or not.
Rupert has not claimed he is mentally ill, as his Mental Health was not mentioned in Court and that would have been the time for him to state if he felt he was.
I’m not so sure now he has been incarcerated.
My opinion/s on Neelu, Rupert and their ilk is really neither here nor there, though I think there is a lot of scamming going on for some of them to claim Disability Benefits.
Eye spy says:
Oh gawd not this old trick…. He’s obviously skint. I doubt that the t shirts will ever materialise.
Good point, Sam.
And who’s going to fix her pothole now that she’s sacked all the council workers? I’m not sure she’s thought this through.
She might not be breaking her Hampstead restraining order but she frequently breaks her lifetime King Charles Hospital one.
http://www.perceptions.couk.com/ctorder.txt
A more detailed presentation by Dr. Shaw:
Siphoning off Mobile phones, collecting money for t-shirts, whatever next?
Ooo yes, good point, the hospital legal department need to report her, what with last year’s R.O. they might get her stopped though possibly don’t want the publicity?
So Rupert is sending out ‘distress letters’ ? So, no remorse yet then?
Still the “Poor me” routine from him..
Frisco 66 says:
First rant of the day from Banana-Schnozz:
“Meredith Maran, award-winning journalist and author of several best-selling nonfiction books discusses her family’s devastation and ultimate redemption around her experience of false memory. Set against the backdrop of the sex-abuse scandals, beginning with the infamous McMartin preschool trial, Maran shares with incredible honesty, her unbelievable personal story.”
If I’m honest, I didn’t think Neelu would approve that little slice of borderline racism. Guess I was wrong.
But she’s not an Islamist.
43 subscribers? Not 5,000, then 😀
He must be desperate as he’s admitted he didn’t believe there was anything going on in Hampstead and now he’s contacted Neelu who does??
But she can still be opposed to racism, right?
Morgan?
26 thumbs down ……. cos it is not liked, who can’t take criticism……. ?
27 thumbs down now.
Name she was born with.
Costa-Crespi sounds like a doughnut.
Yes the fruitloops soon go running when difficult questions are asked of them.
So sorry to hear that GOS. Us little people are never shown any appreciation from the head honchos at GCHQ
I do love a piece of juicy gossip so come on Angie spill the beans about yourself and Rupert
Well Christmas is just around the corner so i’m guessing he will come up with as many potential money makers as he can to make sure that he at least has a good festive period.
I don’t mind the death threats – it’s the grammar I can’t cope with.
The Sock Drawer says:
68 now 😉
He’s an unhappy little bunny, isn’t he.
Crespi is her ex-husband. Poor bastard.
So sorry to hear that GOS. There really are some evil people in this world and i hope that Karma does exist for their awful actions.
One word Paterson, TWAT.
I remember you talking about this before, Sam. So horrible what you went through and sad to know there are people out there like that. Good for you for pulling through and standing tall.
Eaten Mess says:
Rare footage of a young Kris on her wedding day, footloose on the dance floor.
Queen Neelu (aka Chairman Chaudhari) update:
Mental health services in the UK really have gone to shit. But then again, if she is not an immediate danger to herself or others, they will leave her too it.
Not to mention that a lot of people use their phones for internet banking and lots of private information on the mini computers that are modern smart phones.
I wouldn’t trust anyone I didn’t know with an old mobile of mine for that reason, doesn’t matter if you format the phone, people can use recovery software to get banking and personal details.
Jeez Neelu is getting even more nuttier and incoherent (who would have thought that was even possible?)
Obviously the stress of losing her house is getting to her
Bitter man in his cheap flat by the railway line – spouting anti-semitism to spite his nose.
Titarse Frosty the Snowman says:
Well, I’d be happy to donate a “cheese pizza”, Eugene.
Thank you but I don’t ever call myself a victim or a survivor. I think I must come from a long line of tough people who have faced adversity and survived by “compartmentalizing” bad events from the past.
I only wrote that as I find the notion of “recovered memory” as very odd as I can remember nearly every incident in my life, good and bad.
I’m also well aware of all the things they now talk about : “survivor guilt” and the idea that you feel some how responsible for something bad that has happened to you. So that’s a very positive thing they talk to victims of rape etc today.
I believe the notion they keep pressing upon victims of rape or child abuse : “their / your life has been ruined forever” a shocking thing to do to victims and also to keep repeating it is sending a message to future victims that should something terrible happen to them, their life has been ruined. People can be amazingly resilient.
But I can only talk for myself as we all respond differently to events, good or bad.
See the video here
Kim's Corpus Callosum says:
Well glad this clears up a few things.
Mad Moo says:
https://news.sky.com/story/top-brands-pull-youtube-ads-over-paedophilia-fears-11141271
Two of the world’s best-known brands are withdrawing their advertising from YouTube and Google over fears they were featured on “inappropriate” and “exploitative” content featuring children.
It’s a start, but more needs to be done. Hit them where it hurts as they do not appear to take down videos reported by the public which contain this terrible content.
She is approaching the nuttiness of a squirrel turd.
Ah, I see what you’re saying now.
How to know things have gone completely to shit in your life: You start considering writing emails to Neelu.
Yes, both adults and children can quite easily be convinced that they have done things they did not really do. It’s not magic, it’s simply human psychology and the oddities of memory.
When I was a young pup, for example, my younger brother used to describe in great and vivid detail things that had happened to him, or that he’d seen. Only problem was, these things had all happened to me, before he was born. He wasn’t lying—he had just heard the stories often enough that he had managed to insert himself into them, in his memory.
81 Notifications, 9 direct hits. Then another notification came in with a 10th strike 🙂
https://postimg.org/gallery/1g69jkwcc/
The above are all removals for Anti-Jewish posts.
John Paterson (x4)
John Alexander (x1)
Andy Devine (x4)
Peter Green (x1)
“I believe the notion they keep pressing upon victims of rape or child abuse : “their / your life has been ruined forever” a shocking thing to do to victims and also to keep repeating it is sending a message to future victims that should something terrible happen to them, their life has been ruined”
Absolutely right. Yes, traumatic events can have long-lasting impacts, but “ruin your life”? Hardly. As you say, everyone reacts differently, and to make a blanket statement like that seems to me incredibly irresponsible.
I remember reading, for example, a study on resilience in children who’d been sexually abused. It seems that the a great deal depended upon how the adults in the kids’ lives reacted on learning of the abuse. When the adults blamed the children or went overboard expressing their horror, the children took that on board and had much worse outcomes than when the adults ensured the kids were safe, reassured them that they’d done nothing wrong, and told them they’d make every effort to find and bring their assailant to justice, but it wasn’t the children’s problem to deal with.
The children in the latter group showed very few signs of trauma when they were interviewed a year after the abuse had ended. They viewed it as “just something that happened”, not a defining moment in their lives.
I’m afraid this story is more common than many would like to believe. It’s very sad, but I’m glad she eventually faced up to the truth.
Nicely done!! Of course, I doubt it will improve the mood of the Schnozz that Schnorred.
For services to seamless,interminable prevarication and failure to impress even one jot by extreme over usage of random,official sounding terms,the academy of bandwidth wastage,hereby wish to formally announce that Neelu Berry really pushed the boat out with her latest outburst of entirely pointless old shite that has no substance or value whatsoever,apart from perhaps a few laughs.
If Rupert has been writing wingey letters to Neelu and thereby inviting abusive phone calls other communications to the prison, I wouldn’t class that as “good behaviour”. If he had any sense he would keep his head down. In fact, changing his name and staying away from social media would be a good move.
YOU DAMN RIGHT YOU ARE, LMAO 🙂
I don’t know what they think a protest outside of the family courts will do. He was warned many times not to do what he was doing. His constant videos & posts harrassing the social workers involved, even going to protest outside one person’s house & at the end of the road where another person lives was horrific, also his wishing that one would get cancer! Imo, his behaviour was escalating by his recent posts, (which I reported for harassment many many times, but they did not go against FB’s infamous community standards), he was becoming a real danger to the social workers involved.
Isn’t it such a good feeling to be appreciated by people 🙂
I’ve heard the expression ‘don’t cut your nose off to spite your face’. Would that apply to Paterson as well?
And refusal to accept his guilt or any responsibility for what he’s done surely can’t count in his favour in the early release stakes.
Go Keef (whoever you are)! LOL
Blimey, they’re all standing up to Mad Moo today, lol.
Do I detect the smell of burning martyr?
Lawyer, doesn’t he mean Solicitor?
Praterson is such a b sh.tter.
And what corrupt police officer is controlling me Johnnie lad?
Evidence my good man, a name or 2.
The Cunning Linguist says:
‘Lawyer’ is a catch-all term that covers both solicitors and barristers.
“The term Lawyer is a generic term used to describe anyone who is a Licensed Legal Practitioner qualified to give legal advice in one or more areas of law. Put simply, Solicitors and Barristers are both types of Lawyer.”
https://www.slatergordon.co.uk/media-centre/blog/2014/09/difference-between-a-lawyer-a-solicitor-and-a-barrister-explained
He won’t like this at all. I got his John alexander account, again, twice, and his Peter Green one more 🙂
I am day 🙂
It may be working, some people are directly reporting to advertisers having given up on YouTube….
Lol Mad Moo.
It’ll probably all die down by tomorrow and will be forgotten.
Angela didn’t go to that court appearance either!
Some JournoAngie is.
What kind of logic is that John?
Blocked =Jewish.
Madness, what is he on?
Yes I remember you also mentioning it before Sam.
Angela has heard and read stories about MK Ultra experiments and now she claims it happened to her…
Ooo good points and Weasel is into all that hacking, so an obvious thing that he might think to do…
Interpreter, please?
And a certain Algona-based arsehole says he didn’t know he was a rapist and murderer until it came to him in a dream!
He want’s to spread more lies and slander, thus negating the truth, and putting the hoax in a positive light?
Project bullshit, to render facts and logic, null and void?
Has he written to Mrs. Power-Disney, Sabine, Jake or Kevin Weaver?
Tracey Beanz is one of the ones Nathan thinks is working with other Youtubers and Hoaxtead to undermine him, lol. Here she is, live with Paterson’s buddies.
Nathan really is a bit of a precious snowflake, isn’t he?
Scrap that, the video is choppy and then ends as they can’t hear each other. Amateur’s.
Well all the cakes I got in for the SAS he promised to send to me, have gone off, now. 😦
That’s too bad. Waste of perfectly good cake. Some people have no consideration.
I’m detecting an RD connection here.
That video’s gawn already!
Don’t worry, Sheva – they are on their way. They just got a bit sidetracked on the way:
Yes, he is! Paranoid.
John, ask the hoax promoters …. they are experts at it.
Is that a premium phone number ? A new way for scammers to rake it in, in their last gasps before defeat ?
Crikey, I’ll get cooking and do my hair and stuff 🙂
Yeah, the sound issues brought a halt to proceedings.
“reptilian Aliens exist”.
Nice to see Seaman and Wilcock (a poor man’s David Icke), teaming up over their joint love of Russia, and Conspiracy theories.
Something interesting she said was that children are more compliant in taking false memories and if you feed them leading questions they’re more likely to follow along with the situation.
Sound like the Satanic-panic Therapists had an easy job with some of the vicious lies they filled young minds with.
This one been posted here yet? Terrible, terrible tragedies…
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/11/24/belief-witchcraft-demonic-possession-linked-1500-child-abuse/
[belief in] “Witchcraft and demonic possession are linked to almost 1,500 child abuse cases a year, the first Government statistics on the topic show.
Experts warned that an increasing number of children were being abused by adults who want to “get the devil out of them”.”
He’s resorted to loving his own comments, lol.
Disturbing stuff, Justin. It’s people like Angela and Christine who do this kind of crap to kids, saying they’re exorcising demons.
Are you familiar with this, by the way?
“Gambaga Witch camp is a segregated community within Gambaga township in the Northern Region of Ghana established in the 18th century to accommodate alleged witches and wizards who are banished from their communities.
The camp has about 25 round huts, and holds about 100 women. No health services or indoor plumbing are available.
Many women in Ghana’s witch camps are widows and it is thought that relatives accused them of witchcraft in order to take control of their husbands’ possessions. Other old women in the camp have been accused of using black magic to cause misfortunes in their community. Many women also are mentally ill, a little understood problem in Ghana. In Gambaga, the women are given protection by the local chieftain and in return, pay him and work in his fields.”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gambaga_Witch_camp
And this recent movie is about a 9-year-old girl who’s put in a similar camp in Zambia:
Take a look at her actually implanting a false memory in this adult. Imagine how easy it would be with a child.
Oh God. I wonder how many of his fellow prisoners he’s annoyed by claiming that he was put in prison for “nothing”…
Yes, it’s not terribly difficult to do. You can see Dr Shaw guiding the person toward the “memory”, shaping her answers by praising her when she delivers the “correct” (i.e. false) answer, using social pressure tactics, etc. And you can see that the woman whose memory she is “re-shaping” is stressed by the experience. Her face is flushed, she is fidgeting…but she’s still going along with what the interviewer is suggesting.
74. He’s on a roll!
I think Dawn might be her actual sister. Apparently Debs is as popular in her family as APD is in hers. About as welcome as a skunk at a picnic.
I think this is what we (those of us who complain on FB and you tube) should be focusing on….
In the immortal words of Charlotte Alton Ward, “Bollocks. Bollocks. Bollock. Wibble”.
Erm…this guy knows that HuffPost doesn’t actually pay, right? So saying Seaman “worked for” HuffPost is a bit like claiming that Angela Power-Disney is a journalist.
More like “they allowed his posts to be published on their site until they realised he was a complete nutter, at which time he was unceremoniously shown the door and they removed all his stuff to hide their shame”.
Jake – hahahaahhahahahaha. If he ever visits Angie he should keep his hand on his flower. Just sayin’.
Is that Jake’s way of saying ‘shut up and move on’?
Is Dee le Vesconte (who’s on her friend list) her sister too, do we know? Or perhaps another relative? I’ve always wondered.
Gaaads! That’s awful 🙂
When Ruby met Debbie…
Don’t worry David Seaman’s here to tie it into Pizzagate. Failing to realise, he is part of the problem.
The Shampoo Liberation Front says:
Accidentally on purpose…?
Noooo – don’t do it, Ange! 😮
Robert Green for Jail 2018 says:
When Ruby met Robbie. Zzzzzz…
I must say, I’m all for Spelling Bee Awards when it comes to the word ‘Hoaxtead’.
First person to spot the irony of this sentence wins a can of McEwan’s…
Tabloid headline: Mrs Bean Beams While Bob Breaches his Restraining Order!
Porridge again Robert?
I bet some asshole is not too happy about todays post lol.
I don’t really understand the ‘sentence’.
Is it he will need to drink plenty of irony brew to sober up?
Possibly, I’m not sure.
This is a genuine post from someone who found some money & wanted to return it.
Haha, yep! 😉
I see what she was meaning now, EC. LOL!
Sunk-Cost Hoaxers Can't Stop says:
Has Bean and Green are living in their own perverted dream.
Sick creeps.
I wan’t disputing that, I was just implying – albeit lightheartedly – that I wouldn’t put it past Angela to try to reclaim it herself 🙂
That too, lol. For me, it was the fact that he’s expressing his well documented kiddy rape fantasies in the same breath as accusing us of being obsessed with sex. Which we’re not, by the way – he’s referring to Spiny’s meme there, which was a dig at the longstanding allegation that Robert Green’s involvement in Holliehoax may have been motivated by his sexual designs on Ms. Greig.
Keekee says:
Dear ghost
The problem with traumatic memories is they are intrusive not repressed. Take a look at the shoah interviews all across youtube – incredible detail and clear on what they remember and dont remember. All in first person tense with details only someone who was there would remember and think salient. If holocaust survivors dont convince these wankers of the BS theory of repressed memory for trauma its probably because they think the holocaust didnt happen.
Your incredibly personal disclosures are typical- hope you have dealt with with this stuff. Sorry you had to.
😂 True!
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Reinforcement Learning based Energy Management of Multi-Mode Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles for Commuter Route
Pengyue Wang, William Northrop
Optimization-based (OB) methods used in vehicle energy management strategies (EMSs) have the potential to significantly increase fuel economy and extend the electric-only range of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs). However, OB methods are difficult to apply to current real-world vehicles because accurate detailed and high-resolution information about the future, including second-by-second vehicle velocity trajectory data, are not currently available in the current transportation infrastructure. In this paper, a practical reinforcement learning (RL) algorithm for automatic mode-switching of a multimode PHEV is introduced. The PHEV used in the work was a 2016 Chevrolet Volt driven on a simulated commuter route. The goal is to blend the charge depleting and charge sustaining modes during the trip to reduce gasoline consumption and extend electric-only range. The RL algorithm was first trained offline on recorded trips and then used in real-time when the vehicle was driven on a new trip of the same route. While OB methods like dynamic programming can find globally optimal solutions given complete information about a future trip, the RL method developed here does not require detailed future trip information and still obtains substantial improvements. Results show that the fuel economy on a miles per gallon equivalent (MPGe) basis was improved between 5.5% and 6.4% for a tested commuter route as a function of starting battery state of charge using the developed algorithm. The developed method provides an immediate solution to extend electric-only range in PHEVs used on daily commuter routes.
SAE Technical Papers
2020-April
https://doi.org/10.4271/2020-01-1189
SAE 2020 World Congress Experience, WCX 2020 - Detroit, United States
Duration: Apr 21 2020 → Apr 23 2020
10.4271/2020-01-1189
Fingerprint Dive into the research topics of 'Reinforcement Learning based Energy Management of Multi-Mode Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles for Commuter Route'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.
Plug-in hybrid vehicles Engineering & Materials Science
Reinforcement learning Engineering & Materials Science
Energy management Engineering & Materials Science
Fuel economy Engineering & Materials Science
Learning algorithms Engineering & Materials Science
Dynamic programming Engineering & Materials Science
Gasoline Engineering & Materials Science
Wang, P., & Northrop, W. (2020). Reinforcement Learning based Energy Management of Multi-Mode Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles for Commuter Route. SAE Technical Papers, 2020-April(April). https://doi.org/10.4271/2020-01-1189
Reinforcement Learning based Energy Management of Multi-Mode Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles for Commuter Route. / Wang, Pengyue; Northrop, William.
In: SAE Technical Papers, Vol. 2020-April, No. April, 14.04.2020.
Wang, P & Northrop, W 2020, 'Reinforcement Learning based Energy Management of Multi-Mode Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles for Commuter Route', SAE Technical Papers, vol. 2020-April, no. April. https://doi.org/10.4271/2020-01-1189
Wang P, Northrop W. Reinforcement Learning based Energy Management of Multi-Mode Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles for Commuter Route. SAE Technical Papers. 2020 Apr 14;2020-April(April). https://doi.org/10.4271/2020-01-1189
Wang, Pengyue ; Northrop, William. / Reinforcement Learning based Energy Management of Multi-Mode Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles for Commuter Route. In: SAE Technical Papers. 2020 ; Vol. 2020-April, No. April.
@article{3da274777fa94d0180280bae2a4fada3,
title = "Reinforcement Learning based Energy Management of Multi-Mode Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles for Commuter Route",
abstract = "Optimization-based (OB) methods used in vehicle energy management strategies (EMSs) have the potential to significantly increase fuel economy and extend the electric-only range of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs). However, OB methods are difficult to apply to current real-world vehicles because accurate detailed and high-resolution information about the future, including second-by-second vehicle velocity trajectory data, are not currently available in the current transportation infrastructure. In this paper, a practical reinforcement learning (RL) algorithm for automatic mode-switching of a multimode PHEV is introduced. The PHEV used in the work was a 2016 Chevrolet Volt driven on a simulated commuter route. The goal is to blend the charge depleting and charge sustaining modes during the trip to reduce gasoline consumption and extend electric-only range. The RL algorithm was first trained offline on recorded trips and then used in real-time when the vehicle was driven on a new trip of the same route. While OB methods like dynamic programming can find globally optimal solutions given complete information about a future trip, the RL method developed here does not require detailed future trip information and still obtains substantial improvements. Results show that the fuel economy on a miles per gallon equivalent (MPGe) basis was improved between 5.5% and 6.4% for a tested commuter route as a function of starting battery state of charge using the developed algorithm. The developed method provides an immediate solution to extend electric-only range in PHEVs used on daily commuter routes.",
author = "Pengyue Wang and William Northrop",
doi = "10.4271/2020-01-1189",
volume = "2020-April",
journal = "SAE Technical Papers",
publisher = "SAE International",
number = "April",
note = "SAE 2020 World Congress Experience, WCX 2020 ; Conference date: 21-04-2020 Through 23-04-2020",
T1 - Reinforcement Learning based Energy Management of Multi-Mode Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles for Commuter Route
AU - Wang, Pengyue
AU - Northrop, William
N2 - Optimization-based (OB) methods used in vehicle energy management strategies (EMSs) have the potential to significantly increase fuel economy and extend the electric-only range of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs). However, OB methods are difficult to apply to current real-world vehicles because accurate detailed and high-resolution information about the future, including second-by-second vehicle velocity trajectory data, are not currently available in the current transportation infrastructure. In this paper, a practical reinforcement learning (RL) algorithm for automatic mode-switching of a multimode PHEV is introduced. The PHEV used in the work was a 2016 Chevrolet Volt driven on a simulated commuter route. The goal is to blend the charge depleting and charge sustaining modes during the trip to reduce gasoline consumption and extend electric-only range. The RL algorithm was first trained offline on recorded trips and then used in real-time when the vehicle was driven on a new trip of the same route. While OB methods like dynamic programming can find globally optimal solutions given complete information about a future trip, the RL method developed here does not require detailed future trip information and still obtains substantial improvements. Results show that the fuel economy on a miles per gallon equivalent (MPGe) basis was improved between 5.5% and 6.4% for a tested commuter route as a function of starting battery state of charge using the developed algorithm. The developed method provides an immediate solution to extend electric-only range in PHEVs used on daily commuter routes.
AB - Optimization-based (OB) methods used in vehicle energy management strategies (EMSs) have the potential to significantly increase fuel economy and extend the electric-only range of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs). However, OB methods are difficult to apply to current real-world vehicles because accurate detailed and high-resolution information about the future, including second-by-second vehicle velocity trajectory data, are not currently available in the current transportation infrastructure. In this paper, a practical reinforcement learning (RL) algorithm for automatic mode-switching of a multimode PHEV is introduced. The PHEV used in the work was a 2016 Chevrolet Volt driven on a simulated commuter route. The goal is to blend the charge depleting and charge sustaining modes during the trip to reduce gasoline consumption and extend electric-only range. The RL algorithm was first trained offline on recorded trips and then used in real-time when the vehicle was driven on a new trip of the same route. While OB methods like dynamic programming can find globally optimal solutions given complete information about a future trip, the RL method developed here does not require detailed future trip information and still obtains substantial improvements. Results show that the fuel economy on a miles per gallon equivalent (MPGe) basis was improved between 5.5% and 6.4% for a tested commuter route as a function of starting battery state of charge using the developed algorithm. The developed method provides an immediate solution to extend electric-only range in PHEVs used on daily commuter routes.
U2 - 10.4271/2020-01-1189
DO - 10.4271/2020-01-1189
VL - 2020-April
JO - SAE Technical Papers
JF - SAE Technical Papers
IS - April
T2 - SAE 2020 World Congress Experience, WCX 2020
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Rhythmic nature of thigmomorphogenesis and thermal stress of Phaseolus vulgaris L. shoots
C. Anderson-Bernadas, G. Cornelissen, C. M. Turner, W. L. Koukkari
Effects of mechanical stress (or stimulus) on the length of Phaseolus vulgaris L. (cv. Kentucky Wonder pole bean) shoots displayed a 24h rhythm, relative to the time of day that plants were subjected to stress. Shoots were shorter when subjected to mechanical stress near the end of the dark span and the beginning of the light span. Mechanical stress also affected the ultradian shoot movement rhythm (circumnutation) of P. vulgaris. Generally, horizontal shoot movements (monitored at 10 min intervals) displayed a mean period of about 1.4 h. After a brief exposure to mechanical stress (e.g., 10 rubs), the mean period increased to about 2.0 h. Effects of thermal stress were similar to those of mechanical stress. When plants were exposed briefly (5 min) to either high (45 °C) or low (0 °C) temperatures, the period increased to about 2.1 h. Regardless of whether plants were subjected to mechanical or cold stress, ultradian periodicity was restored to its original period length after one cycle.
Circumnutation
Phaseolus vulgaris L.
Thigmomorphogenesis
Ultradian
Fingerprint Dive into the research topics of 'Rhythmic nature of thigmomorphogenesis and thermal stress of Phaseolus vulgaris L. shoots'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.
Phaseolus Medicine & Life Sciences
Mechanical Stress Medicine & Life Sciences
mechanical stress Agriculture & Biology
thermal stress Agriculture & Biology
Heat-Shock Response Medicine & Life Sciences
Phaseolus vulgaris Agriculture & Biology
shoots Agriculture & Biology
nutation Agriculture & Biology
Anderson-Bernadas, C., Cornelissen, G., Turner, C. M., & Koukkari, W. L. (1997). Rhythmic nature of thigmomorphogenesis and thermal stress of Phaseolus vulgaris L. shoots. Journal of Plant Physiology, 151(5), 575-580. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0176-1617(97)80233-7
Rhythmic nature of thigmomorphogenesis and thermal stress of Phaseolus vulgaris L. shoots. / Anderson-Bernadas, C.; Cornelissen, G.; Turner, C. M.; Koukkari, W. L.
In: Journal of Plant Physiology, Vol. 151, No. 5, 01.01.1997, p. 575-580.
Anderson-Bernadas, C, Cornelissen, G, Turner, CM & Koukkari, WL 1997, 'Rhythmic nature of thigmomorphogenesis and thermal stress of Phaseolus vulgaris L. shoots', Journal of Plant Physiology, vol. 151, no. 5, pp. 575-580. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0176-1617(97)80233-7
Anderson-Bernadas C, Cornelissen G, Turner CM, Koukkari WL. Rhythmic nature of thigmomorphogenesis and thermal stress of Phaseolus vulgaris L. shoots. Journal of Plant Physiology. 1997 Jan 1;151(5):575-580. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0176-1617(97)80233-7
Anderson-Bernadas, C. ; Cornelissen, G. ; Turner, C. M. ; Koukkari, W. L. / Rhythmic nature of thigmomorphogenesis and thermal stress of Phaseolus vulgaris L. shoots. In: Journal of Plant Physiology. 1997 ; Vol. 151, No. 5. pp. 575-580.
@article{af4332818b0f482ea1a636c454f83641,
title = "Rhythmic nature of thigmomorphogenesis and thermal stress of Phaseolus vulgaris L. shoots",
abstract = "Effects of mechanical stress (or stimulus) on the length of Phaseolus vulgaris L. (cv. Kentucky Wonder pole bean) shoots displayed a 24h rhythm, relative to the time of day that plants were subjected to stress. Shoots were shorter when subjected to mechanical stress near the end of the dark span and the beginning of the light span. Mechanical stress also affected the ultradian shoot movement rhythm (circumnutation) of P. vulgaris. Generally, horizontal shoot movements (monitored at 10 min intervals) displayed a mean period of about 1.4 h. After a brief exposure to mechanical stress (e.g., 10 rubs), the mean period increased to about 2.0 h. Effects of thermal stress were similar to those of mechanical stress. When plants were exposed briefly (5 min) to either high (45 °C) or low (0 °C) temperatures, the period increased to about 2.1 h. Regardless of whether plants were subjected to mechanical or cold stress, ultradian periodicity was restored to its original period length after one cycle.",
keywords = "Circadian, Circumnutation, Phaseolus vulgaris L., Rhythm, Stress, Thigmomorphogenesis, Ultradian",
author = "C. Anderson-Bernadas and G. Cornelissen and Turner, {C. M.} and Koukkari, {W. L.}",
journal = "Journal of Plant Physiology",
publisher = "Urban und Fischer Verlag GmbH und Co. KG",
T1 - Rhythmic nature of thigmomorphogenesis and thermal stress of Phaseolus vulgaris L. shoots
AU - Anderson-Bernadas, C.
AU - Cornelissen, G.
AU - Turner, C. M.
AU - Koukkari, W. L.
N2 - Effects of mechanical stress (or stimulus) on the length of Phaseolus vulgaris L. (cv. Kentucky Wonder pole bean) shoots displayed a 24h rhythm, relative to the time of day that plants were subjected to stress. Shoots were shorter when subjected to mechanical stress near the end of the dark span and the beginning of the light span. Mechanical stress also affected the ultradian shoot movement rhythm (circumnutation) of P. vulgaris. Generally, horizontal shoot movements (monitored at 10 min intervals) displayed a mean period of about 1.4 h. After a brief exposure to mechanical stress (e.g., 10 rubs), the mean period increased to about 2.0 h. Effects of thermal stress were similar to those of mechanical stress. When plants were exposed briefly (5 min) to either high (45 °C) or low (0 °C) temperatures, the period increased to about 2.1 h. Regardless of whether plants were subjected to mechanical or cold stress, ultradian periodicity was restored to its original period length after one cycle.
AB - Effects of mechanical stress (or stimulus) on the length of Phaseolus vulgaris L. (cv. Kentucky Wonder pole bean) shoots displayed a 24h rhythm, relative to the time of day that plants were subjected to stress. Shoots were shorter when subjected to mechanical stress near the end of the dark span and the beginning of the light span. Mechanical stress also affected the ultradian shoot movement rhythm (circumnutation) of P. vulgaris. Generally, horizontal shoot movements (monitored at 10 min intervals) displayed a mean period of about 1.4 h. After a brief exposure to mechanical stress (e.g., 10 rubs), the mean period increased to about 2.0 h. Effects of thermal stress were similar to those of mechanical stress. When plants were exposed briefly (5 min) to either high (45 °C) or low (0 °C) temperatures, the period increased to about 2.1 h. Regardless of whether plants were subjected to mechanical or cold stress, ultradian periodicity was restored to its original period length after one cycle.
KW - Circadian
KW - Circumnutation
KW - Phaseolus vulgaris L.
KW - Rhythm
KW - Thigmomorphogenesis
KW - Ultradian
JO - Journal of Plant Physiology
JF - Journal of Plant Physiology
|
cc/2021-04/en_middle_0087.json.gz/line3059
|
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| 0.540695
| 0.459305
|
Thermochemical analysis of core correlation and scalar relativistic effects on molecular atomization energies
Jan M.L. Martin, Andreas Sundermann, Patton L. Fast, Donald G Truhlar
A new, and more accurate set of parameters for estimating the core correlation binding energy for molecules containing H, Li, Be, B, C, N, O, F, Al, Si, P, S, and Cl are introduced. It is demonstrated that the mean unsigned error in the estimate of the sum of these contributions is a factor of 6-12 smaller than the values being fit. As a result, it is possible to estimate most of the error caused by these effects in thermochemical calculations at negligible cost.
https://doi.org/10.1063/1.481960
10.1063/1.481960
Fingerprint Dive into the research topics of 'Thermochemical analysis of core correlation and scalar relativistic effects on molecular atomization energies'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.
atomizing Physics & Astronomy
Atomization Chemical Compounds
relativistic effects Physics & Astronomy
Binding energy Chemical Compounds
scalars Physics & Astronomy
estimates Physics & Astronomy
Molecules Chemical Compounds
estimating Physics & Astronomy
Martin, J. M. L., Sundermann, A., Fast, P. L., & Truhlar, D. G. (2000). Thermochemical analysis of core correlation and scalar relativistic effects on molecular atomization energies. Journal of Chemical Physics, 113(4), 1348-1358. https://doi.org/10.1063/1.481960
Thermochemical analysis of core correlation and scalar relativistic effects on molecular atomization energies. / Martin, Jan M.L.; Sundermann, Andreas; Fast, Patton L.; Truhlar, Donald G.
Martin, JML, Sundermann, A, Fast, PL & Truhlar, DG 2000, 'Thermochemical analysis of core correlation and scalar relativistic effects on molecular atomization energies', Journal of Chemical Physics, vol. 113, no. 4, pp. 1348-1358. https://doi.org/10.1063/1.481960
Martin JML, Sundermann A, Fast PL, Truhlar DG. Thermochemical analysis of core correlation and scalar relativistic effects on molecular atomization energies. Journal of Chemical Physics. 2000 Jul 1;113(4):1348-1358. https://doi.org/10.1063/1.481960
Martin, Jan M.L. ; Sundermann, Andreas ; Fast, Patton L. ; Truhlar, Donald G. / Thermochemical analysis of core correlation and scalar relativistic effects on molecular atomization energies. In: Journal of Chemical Physics. 2000 ; Vol. 113, No. 4. pp. 1348-1358.
@article{6e29f489fe0046ebb4508f9c4ba72a35,
title = "Thermochemical analysis of core correlation and scalar relativistic effects on molecular atomization energies",
abstract = "A new, and more accurate set of parameters for estimating the core correlation binding energy for molecules containing H, Li, Be, B, C, N, O, F, Al, Si, P, S, and Cl are introduced. It is demonstrated that the mean unsigned error in the estimate of the sum of these contributions is a factor of 6-12 smaller than the values being fit. As a result, it is possible to estimate most of the error caused by these effects in thermochemical calculations at negligible cost.",
author = "Martin, {Jan M.L.} and Andreas Sundermann and Fast, {Patton L.} and Truhlar, {Donald G}",
doi = "10.1063/1.481960",
T1 - Thermochemical analysis of core correlation and scalar relativistic effects on molecular atomization energies
AU - Martin, Jan M.L.
AU - Sundermann, Andreas
AU - Fast, Patton L.
AU - Truhlar, Donald G
N2 - A new, and more accurate set of parameters for estimating the core correlation binding energy for molecules containing H, Li, Be, B, C, N, O, F, Al, Si, P, S, and Cl are introduced. It is demonstrated that the mean unsigned error in the estimate of the sum of these contributions is a factor of 6-12 smaller than the values being fit. As a result, it is possible to estimate most of the error caused by these effects in thermochemical calculations at negligible cost.
AB - A new, and more accurate set of parameters for estimating the core correlation binding energy for molecules containing H, Li, Be, B, C, N, O, F, Al, Si, P, S, and Cl are introduced. It is demonstrated that the mean unsigned error in the estimate of the sum of these contributions is a factor of 6-12 smaller than the values being fit. As a result, it is possible to estimate most of the error caused by these effects in thermochemical calculations at negligible cost.
U2 - 10.1063/1.481960
DO - 10.1063/1.481960
|
cc/2021-04/en_middle_0087.json.gz/line3062
|
__label__cc
| 0.730138
| 0.269862
|
Transanal endoscopic microsurgery resection of rectal tumors: Outcomes and recommendations
Ben M. Tsai, Charles O. Finne, Johan F. Nordenstam, Dimitrios Christoforidis, Robert D. Madoff, Anders Mellgrev
Purpose: Transanal endoscopic microsurgery provides a minimally invasive alternative to radical surgery for excision of benign and malignant rectal tumors. The purpose of this study was to review our experience with transanal endoscopic microsurgery to clarify its role in the treatment of different types of rectal pathology. Methods: A prospective database documented all patients undergoing transanal endoscopic microsurgery from October 1996 through June 2008. We analyzed patient and operative factors, complications, and tumor recurrence. For recurrence analysis, we excluded patients with fewer than 6 months of follow-up, previous excisions, known metastases at initial presentation, and those who underwent immediate radical resection following transanal endoscopic microsurgery. Results: Two hundred sixty-nine patients underwent transanal endoscopic microsurgery for benign (n = 158) and malignant (n = 111) tumors. Procedure-related complications (21%) included urinary retention (10.8%), fecal incontinence (4.1%), fever (3.8%), suture line dehiscence (1.5%), and bleeding (1.5%). Local recurrence rates for 121 benign and 83 malignant tumors were 5% for adenomas, 9.8% for T1 adenocarcinoma, 23.5% for T2 adenocarcinoma, 100% for T3 adenocarcinoma, and 0% for carcinoid tumors. All 6 (100%) recurrent adenomas were retreated with endoscopic techniques, and 8 of 17 (47%) recurrent adenocarcinomas underwent salvage procedures with curative intent. Conclusions: Transanal endoscopic microsurgery is a safe and effective method for excision of benign and malignant rectal tumors. Transanal endoscopic microsurgery can be offered for (1) curative resection of benign tumors, carcinoid tumors, and select T1 adenocarcinomas, (2) histopathologic staging in indeterminate cases, and (3) palliative resection in patients medically unfit or unwilling to undergo radical resection.
https://doi.org/10.1007/DCR.0b013e3181bbd6ee
Local excision
Rectal tumor
Transanal endoscopic microsurgery
10.1007/DCR.0b013e3181bbd6ee
Fingerprint Dive into the research topics of 'Transanal endoscopic microsurgery resection of rectal tumors: Outcomes and recommendations'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.
Transanal Endoscopic Microsurgery Medicine & Life Sciences
Rectal Neoplasms Medicine & Life Sciences
Adenocarcinoma Medicine & Life Sciences
Carcinoid Tumor Medicine & Life Sciences
Adenoma Medicine & Life Sciences
Fecal Incontinence Medicine & Life Sciences
Tsai, B. M., Finne, C. O., Nordenstam, J. F., Christoforidis, D., Madoff, R. D., & Mellgrev, A. (2010). Transanal endoscopic microsurgery resection of rectal tumors: Outcomes and recommendations. Diseases of the colon and rectum, 53(1), 16-23. https://doi.org/10.1007/DCR.0b013e3181bbd6ee
Transanal endoscopic microsurgery resection of rectal tumors : Outcomes and recommendations. / Tsai, Ben M.; Finne, Charles O.; Nordenstam, Johan F.; Christoforidis, Dimitrios; Madoff, Robert D.; Mellgrev, Anders.
In: Diseases of the colon and rectum, Vol. 53, No. 1, 01.01.2010, p. 16-23.
Tsai, BM, Finne, CO, Nordenstam, JF, Christoforidis, D, Madoff, RD & Mellgrev, A 2010, 'Transanal endoscopic microsurgery resection of rectal tumors: Outcomes and recommendations', Diseases of the colon and rectum, vol. 53, no. 1, pp. 16-23. https://doi.org/10.1007/DCR.0b013e3181bbd6ee
Tsai BM, Finne CO, Nordenstam JF, Christoforidis D, Madoff RD, Mellgrev A. Transanal endoscopic microsurgery resection of rectal tumors: Outcomes and recommendations. Diseases of the colon and rectum. 2010 Jan 1;53(1):16-23. https://doi.org/10.1007/DCR.0b013e3181bbd6ee
Tsai, Ben M. ; Finne, Charles O. ; Nordenstam, Johan F. ; Christoforidis, Dimitrios ; Madoff, Robert D. ; Mellgrev, Anders. / Transanal endoscopic microsurgery resection of rectal tumors : Outcomes and recommendations. In: Diseases of the colon and rectum. 2010 ; Vol. 53, No. 1. pp. 16-23.
@article{57bc0374b11f4dd1875e8e2ce0f78d1e,
title = "Transanal endoscopic microsurgery resection of rectal tumors: Outcomes and recommendations",
abstract = "Purpose: Transanal endoscopic microsurgery provides a minimally invasive alternative to radical surgery for excision of benign and malignant rectal tumors. The purpose of this study was to review our experience with transanal endoscopic microsurgery to clarify its role in the treatment of different types of rectal pathology. Methods: A prospective database documented all patients undergoing transanal endoscopic microsurgery from October 1996 through June 2008. We analyzed patient and operative factors, complications, and tumor recurrence. For recurrence analysis, we excluded patients with fewer than 6 months of follow-up, previous excisions, known metastases at initial presentation, and those who underwent immediate radical resection following transanal endoscopic microsurgery. Results: Two hundred sixty-nine patients underwent transanal endoscopic microsurgery for benign (n = 158) and malignant (n = 111) tumors. Procedure-related complications (21%) included urinary retention (10.8%), fecal incontinence (4.1%), fever (3.8%), suture line dehiscence (1.5%), and bleeding (1.5%). Local recurrence rates for 121 benign and 83 malignant tumors were 5% for adenomas, 9.8% for T1 adenocarcinoma, 23.5% for T2 adenocarcinoma, 100% for T3 adenocarcinoma, and 0% for carcinoid tumors. All 6 (100%) recurrent adenomas were retreated with endoscopic techniques, and 8 of 17 (47%) recurrent adenocarcinomas underwent salvage procedures with curative intent. Conclusions: Transanal endoscopic microsurgery is a safe and effective method for excision of benign and malignant rectal tumors. Transanal endoscopic microsurgery can be offered for (1) curative resection of benign tumors, carcinoid tumors, and select T1 adenocarcinomas, (2) histopathologic staging in indeterminate cases, and (3) palliative resection in patients medically unfit or unwilling to undergo radical resection.",
keywords = "Local excision, Rectal tumor, Transanal endoscopic microsurgery",
author = "Tsai, {Ben M.} and Finne, {Charles O.} and Nordenstam, {Johan F.} and Dimitrios Christoforidis and Madoff, {Robert D.} and Anders Mellgrev",
doi = "10.1007/DCR.0b013e3181bbd6ee",
T1 - Transanal endoscopic microsurgery resection of rectal tumors
T2 - Outcomes and recommendations
AU - Tsai, Ben M.
AU - Finne, Charles O.
AU - Nordenstam, Johan F.
AU - Christoforidis, Dimitrios
AU - Madoff, Robert D.
AU - Mellgrev, Anders
N2 - Purpose: Transanal endoscopic microsurgery provides a minimally invasive alternative to radical surgery for excision of benign and malignant rectal tumors. The purpose of this study was to review our experience with transanal endoscopic microsurgery to clarify its role in the treatment of different types of rectal pathology. Methods: A prospective database documented all patients undergoing transanal endoscopic microsurgery from October 1996 through June 2008. We analyzed patient and operative factors, complications, and tumor recurrence. For recurrence analysis, we excluded patients with fewer than 6 months of follow-up, previous excisions, known metastases at initial presentation, and those who underwent immediate radical resection following transanal endoscopic microsurgery. Results: Two hundred sixty-nine patients underwent transanal endoscopic microsurgery for benign (n = 158) and malignant (n = 111) tumors. Procedure-related complications (21%) included urinary retention (10.8%), fecal incontinence (4.1%), fever (3.8%), suture line dehiscence (1.5%), and bleeding (1.5%). Local recurrence rates for 121 benign and 83 malignant tumors were 5% for adenomas, 9.8% for T1 adenocarcinoma, 23.5% for T2 adenocarcinoma, 100% for T3 adenocarcinoma, and 0% for carcinoid tumors. All 6 (100%) recurrent adenomas were retreated with endoscopic techniques, and 8 of 17 (47%) recurrent adenocarcinomas underwent salvage procedures with curative intent. Conclusions: Transanal endoscopic microsurgery is a safe and effective method for excision of benign and malignant rectal tumors. Transanal endoscopic microsurgery can be offered for (1) curative resection of benign tumors, carcinoid tumors, and select T1 adenocarcinomas, (2) histopathologic staging in indeterminate cases, and (3) palliative resection in patients medically unfit or unwilling to undergo radical resection.
AB - Purpose: Transanal endoscopic microsurgery provides a minimally invasive alternative to radical surgery for excision of benign and malignant rectal tumors. The purpose of this study was to review our experience with transanal endoscopic microsurgery to clarify its role in the treatment of different types of rectal pathology. Methods: A prospective database documented all patients undergoing transanal endoscopic microsurgery from October 1996 through June 2008. We analyzed patient and operative factors, complications, and tumor recurrence. For recurrence analysis, we excluded patients with fewer than 6 months of follow-up, previous excisions, known metastases at initial presentation, and those who underwent immediate radical resection following transanal endoscopic microsurgery. Results: Two hundred sixty-nine patients underwent transanal endoscopic microsurgery for benign (n = 158) and malignant (n = 111) tumors. Procedure-related complications (21%) included urinary retention (10.8%), fecal incontinence (4.1%), fever (3.8%), suture line dehiscence (1.5%), and bleeding (1.5%). Local recurrence rates for 121 benign and 83 malignant tumors were 5% for adenomas, 9.8% for T1 adenocarcinoma, 23.5% for T2 adenocarcinoma, 100% for T3 adenocarcinoma, and 0% for carcinoid tumors. All 6 (100%) recurrent adenomas were retreated with endoscopic techniques, and 8 of 17 (47%) recurrent adenocarcinomas underwent salvage procedures with curative intent. Conclusions: Transanal endoscopic microsurgery is a safe and effective method for excision of benign and malignant rectal tumors. Transanal endoscopic microsurgery can be offered for (1) curative resection of benign tumors, carcinoid tumors, and select T1 adenocarcinomas, (2) histopathologic staging in indeterminate cases, and (3) palliative resection in patients medically unfit or unwilling to undergo radical resection.
KW - Local excision
KW - Rectal tumor
KW - Transanal endoscopic microsurgery
U2 - 10.1007/DCR.0b013e3181bbd6ee
DO - 10.1007/DCR.0b013e3181bbd6ee
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Treatment Receipt and Outcomes of Self-Reported Voice Problems in the US Population Aged ≥65 Years
Schelomo Marmor, Stephanie Misono
Objectives: (1) Characterize the US population aged ≥65 years with self-reported voice problems, (2) describe voice treatment characteristics in this group, and (3) identify factors associated with self-reported voice improvement.
Study Design: Retrospective cohort study.
Setting: Population-based cross-sectional US national survey sample.
Subjects and Methods: We identified a cohort of adults aged ≥65 years from the 2012 National Health Interview Survey, a population-based US national survey. Descriptive and multivariable regression analyses were performed.
Results: The prevalence of self-reported voice problems in this cohort was 10%. Of those, 44% reported voice problems for >1 month. The strongest predictor of reporting voice improvement was receipt of voice treatment (odds ratio, 3.50; 95% confidence interval, 1.36-9.00), after adjusting for sex, age, race, education, and health status. Eleven percent reported voice treatment, which included 20% of those with moderate or worse voice problem severity. Female sex and worse health status were associated with reporting voice treatment. Among those with voice treatment, 38% reported "better," 33% "same," and 29% "worse" voice symptoms over the past year, compared to 17%, 67%, and 16%, respectively, among those without treatment. Health status influenced likelihood of reporting voice improvement but not universally.
Conclusions: We observed a significant self-reported burden of voice problems in the US population aged ≥65 years. Most are untreated and thus not well represented in the current literature. Vocal improvement was strongly associated with treatment. Further investigation is needed to clarify patient and treatment characteristics most associated with vocal improvement.
2473974X18774023
OTO Open
https://doi.org/10.1177/2473974X18774023
PubMed: MeSH publication types
10.1177/2473974X18774023
Fingerprint Dive into the research topics of 'Treatment Receipt and Outcomes of Self-Reported Voice Problems in the US Population Aged ≥65 Years'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.
Population Medicine & Life Sciences
Health Status Medicine & Life Sciences
Health Surveys Medicine & Life Sciences
Cohort Studies Medicine & Life Sciences
Retrospective Studies Medicine & Life Sciences
Interviews Medicine & Life Sciences
Marmor, S., & Misono, S. (2018). Treatment Receipt and Outcomes of Self-Reported Voice Problems in the US Population Aged ≥65 Years. OTO Open, 2(2), 2473974X18774023. https://doi.org/10.1177/2473974X18774023
Treatment Receipt and Outcomes of Self-Reported Voice Problems in the US Population Aged ≥65 Years. / Marmor, Schelomo; Misono, Stephanie.
In: OTO Open, Vol. 2, No. 2, 28.11.2018, p. 2473974X18774023.
Marmor, S & Misono, S 2018, 'Treatment Receipt and Outcomes of Self-Reported Voice Problems in the US Population Aged ≥65 Years', OTO Open, vol. 2, no. 2, pp. 2473974X18774023. https://doi.org/10.1177/2473974X18774023
Marmor S, Misono S. Treatment Receipt and Outcomes of Self-Reported Voice Problems in the US Population Aged ≥65 Years. OTO Open. 2018 Nov 28;2(2):2473974X18774023. https://doi.org/10.1177/2473974X18774023
Marmor, Schelomo ; Misono, Stephanie. / Treatment Receipt and Outcomes of Self-Reported Voice Problems in the US Population Aged ≥65 Years. In: OTO Open. 2018 ; Vol. 2, No. 2. pp. 2473974X18774023.
@article{f6cd08fedf804f11aa627ff4209de456,
title = "Treatment Receipt and Outcomes of Self-Reported Voice Problems in the US Population Aged ≥65 Years",
abstract = "Objectives: (1) Characterize the US population aged ≥65 years with self-reported voice problems, (2) describe voice treatment characteristics in this group, and (3) identify factors associated with self-reported voice improvement.Study Design: Retrospective cohort study.Setting: Population-based cross-sectional US national survey sample.Subjects and Methods: We identified a cohort of adults aged ≥65 years from the 2012 National Health Interview Survey, a population-based US national survey. Descriptive and multivariable regression analyses were performed.Results: The prevalence of self-reported voice problems in this cohort was 10%. Of those, 44% reported voice problems for >1 month. The strongest predictor of reporting voice improvement was receipt of voice treatment (odds ratio, 3.50; 95% confidence interval, 1.36-9.00), after adjusting for sex, age, race, education, and health status. Eleven percent reported voice treatment, which included 20% of those with moderate or worse voice problem severity. Female sex and worse health status were associated with reporting voice treatment. Among those with voice treatment, 38% reported {"}better,{"} 33% {"}same,{"} and 29% {"}worse{"} voice symptoms over the past year, compared to 17%, 67%, and 16%, respectively, among those without treatment. Health status influenced likelihood of reporting voice improvement but not universally.Conclusions: We observed a significant self-reported burden of voice problems in the US population aged ≥65 years. Most are untreated and thus not well represented in the current literature. Vocal improvement was strongly associated with treatment. Further investigation is needed to clarify patient and treatment characteristics most associated with vocal improvement.",
author = "Schelomo Marmor and Stephanie Misono",
doi = "10.1177/2473974X18774023",
pages = "2473974X18774023",
journal = "OTO Open",
T1 - Treatment Receipt and Outcomes of Self-Reported Voice Problems in the US Population Aged ≥65 Years
AU - Marmor, Schelomo
AU - Misono, Stephanie
N2 - Objectives: (1) Characterize the US population aged ≥65 years with self-reported voice problems, (2) describe voice treatment characteristics in this group, and (3) identify factors associated with self-reported voice improvement.Study Design: Retrospective cohort study.Setting: Population-based cross-sectional US national survey sample.Subjects and Methods: We identified a cohort of adults aged ≥65 years from the 2012 National Health Interview Survey, a population-based US national survey. Descriptive and multivariable regression analyses were performed.Results: The prevalence of self-reported voice problems in this cohort was 10%. Of those, 44% reported voice problems for >1 month. The strongest predictor of reporting voice improvement was receipt of voice treatment (odds ratio, 3.50; 95% confidence interval, 1.36-9.00), after adjusting for sex, age, race, education, and health status. Eleven percent reported voice treatment, which included 20% of those with moderate or worse voice problem severity. Female sex and worse health status were associated with reporting voice treatment. Among those with voice treatment, 38% reported "better," 33% "same," and 29% "worse" voice symptoms over the past year, compared to 17%, 67%, and 16%, respectively, among those without treatment. Health status influenced likelihood of reporting voice improvement but not universally.Conclusions: We observed a significant self-reported burden of voice problems in the US population aged ≥65 years. Most are untreated and thus not well represented in the current literature. Vocal improvement was strongly associated with treatment. Further investigation is needed to clarify patient and treatment characteristics most associated with vocal improvement.
AB - Objectives: (1) Characterize the US population aged ≥65 years with self-reported voice problems, (2) describe voice treatment characteristics in this group, and (3) identify factors associated with self-reported voice improvement.Study Design: Retrospective cohort study.Setting: Population-based cross-sectional US national survey sample.Subjects and Methods: We identified a cohort of adults aged ≥65 years from the 2012 National Health Interview Survey, a population-based US national survey. Descriptive and multivariable regression analyses were performed.Results: The prevalence of self-reported voice problems in this cohort was 10%. Of those, 44% reported voice problems for >1 month. The strongest predictor of reporting voice improvement was receipt of voice treatment (odds ratio, 3.50; 95% confidence interval, 1.36-9.00), after adjusting for sex, age, race, education, and health status. Eleven percent reported voice treatment, which included 20% of those with moderate or worse voice problem severity. Female sex and worse health status were associated with reporting voice treatment. Among those with voice treatment, 38% reported "better," 33% "same," and 29% "worse" voice symptoms over the past year, compared to 17%, 67%, and 16%, respectively, among those without treatment. Health status influenced likelihood of reporting voice improvement but not universally.Conclusions: We observed a significant self-reported burden of voice problems in the US population aged ≥65 years. Most are untreated and thus not well represented in the current literature. Vocal improvement was strongly associated with treatment. Further investigation is needed to clarify patient and treatment characteristics most associated with vocal improvement.
U2 - 10.1177/2473974X18774023
DO - 10.1177/2473974X18774023
SP - 2473974X18774023
JO - OTO Open
JF - OTO Open
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Home » Free Travel Writings » THE TRAVELS OF MARCO POLO V.1 Part1 » THE TRAVELS OF MARCO POLO V1 Part2 » THE TRAVELS OF MARCO POLO V1 Part4
THE TRAVELS OF MARCO POLO V1 Part4
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In an effort to bring as much free information to the public; we will be uploading some free non copyrighted books that can help prepare one for their adventure. We will also be added other titles, and our own books as well. We will add links to where you can buy these in other formats but they may not be free. For now feel free to search these documents to information on history from the original Explore Travelers.
The Journals Of Lewis and Clark
CHAPTER LVIII.
OF THE KINGDOM OF EGRIGAIA.
Starting again from Erguiul you ride eastward for eight days, and then come to a province called EGRIGAIA, containing numerous cities and villages, and belonging to Tangut.[NOTE 1] The capital city is called CALACHAN.[NOTE 2] The people are chiefly Idolaters, but there are fine churches belonging to the Nestorian Christians. They are all subjects of the Great Kaan. They make in this city great quantities of camlets of camel’s wool, the finest in the world; and some of the camlets that they make are white, for they have white camels, and these are the best of all. Merchants purchase these stuffs here, and carry them over the world for sale.[NOTE 3]
We shall now proceed eastward from this place and enter the territory that was formerly Prester John’s.
NOTE 1.—Chinghiz invaded Tangut in all five times, viz. in 1205, 1207, 1209 (or according to Erdmann, 1210-1211), 1218, and 1226-1227, on which last expedition he died.
A. In the third invasion, according to D’Ohsson’s Chinese guide (Father
Hyacinth), he took the town of Uiraca, and the fortress of Imen, and
laid siege to the capital, then called Chung-sing or Chung-hing, now
Ning-hsia.
Rashid, in a short notice of this campaign, calls the first city Erica, Erlaca, or, as Erdmann has it, Artacki. In De Mailla it is Ulahai.
B. On the last invasion (1226), D’Ohsson’s Chinese authority says that
Chinghiz took Kanchau and Suhchau, Cholo and Khola in the province of
Liangcheu, and then proceeded to the Yellow River, and invested Lingchau,
south of Ning-hsia.
Erdmann, following his reading of Rashiduddin, says Chinghiz took the cities of Tangut, called Arucki, Kachu, Sichu, and Kamichu, and besieged Deresgai (D’Ohsson, Derssekai), whilst Shidergu, the King of Tangut, betook himself to his capital Artackin.
D’Ohsson, also professing to follow Rashid, calls this “his capital Irghai, which the Mongols call Ircaya.” Klaproth, illustrating Polo, reads “Eyircai, which the Mongols call Eyircayá.”
Pétis de la Croix, relating the same campaign and professing to follow Fadlallah, i.e. Rashiduddin, says the king “retired to his fortress of Arbaca.”
C. Sanang Setzen several times mentions a city called Irghai, apparently in Tangut; but all we can gather as to his position is that it seems to have lain east of Kanchau.
We perceive that the Arbaca of P. de la Croix, the Eyircai of Klaproth, the Uiraca of D’Ohsson, the Artacki or Artackin of Erdmann, are all various readings or forms of the same name, and are the same with the Chinese form Ulahai of De Mailla, and most probably the place is the Egrigaia of Polo.
We see also that Erdmann mentions another place Aruki ([Arabic]) in connection with Kanchau and Suhchau. This is, I suspect, the Erguiul of Polo, and perhaps the Irghai of Sanang Setzen.
Rashiduddin seems wrong in calling Ircayá the capital of the king, a circumstance which leads Klaproth to identify it with Ning-hsia. Pauthier, identifying Ulahai with Egrigaya, shows that the former was one of the circles of Tangut, but not that of Ning-hsia. Its position, he says, is uncertain. Klaproth, however, inserts it in his map of Asia, in the era of Kúblái (Tabl. Hist. pl. 22), as Ulakhai to the north of Ning-hsia, near the great bend eastward of the Hwang-Ho. Though it may have extended in this direction, it is probable, from the name referred to in next note, that Egrigaia or Ulahai is represented by the modern principality of ALASHAN, visited by Prjevalsky in 1871 and 1872.
[New travels and researches enable me to say that there can be no doubt that Egrigaia = Ning-hsia. Palladius (l.c. 18) says: “Egrigaia is Erigaia of the Mongol text. Klaproth was correct in his supposition that it is modern Ning-h’ia. Even now the Eleuths of Alashan call Ning-h’ia, Yargai. In M. Polo’s time this department was famous for the cultivation of the Safflower (carthamus tinctorius). [Siu t’ung kien, A.D. 1292.]” Mr. Rockhill (cf. his Diary of a Journey) writes to me that Ning-hsia is still called Irge Khotun by Mongols at the present day. M. Bonin (J. As., 1900. I. 585) mentions the same fact.
Palladius (19) adds: “Erigaia is not to be confounded with Urahai, often mentioned in the history of Chingis Khan’s wars with the Tangut kingdom. Urahai was a fortress in a pass of the same name in the Alashan Mountains. Chingis Khan spent five months there (an. 1208), during which he invaded and plundered the country in the neighbourhood. [Si hia shu shi.] The Alashan Mountains form a semicircle 500 li in extent, and have over forty narrow passes leading to the department of Ning-hia; the broadest and most practicable of these is now called Ch’i-mu-K’ow; it is not more than 80 feet broad. [Ning hia ju chi.] It may be that the Urahai fortress existed near this pass.”
“From Liang-chow fu, M. Polo follows a special route, leaving the modern
postal route on his right; the road he took has, since the time of the
Emperor K’ang-hi, been called the courier’s route.” (Palladius, 18.)—H.
C.]
NOTE 2.—Calachan, the chief town of Egrigaia, is mentioned, according to Klaproth, by Rashiduddin, among the cities of Tangut, as KALAJÁN. The name and approximate position suggest, as just noticed, identity with Alashan, the modern capital of which, called by Prjevalsky Dyn-yuan-yin, stands some distance west of the Hwang-Ho, in about lat. 39°. Polo gives no data for the interval between this and his next stage.
[The Dyn-yuan-yin of Prjevalsky is the camp of Ting-yuan-yng or Fu-ma- fu of M. Bonin, the residence of the Si-wang (western prince), of Alashan, an abbreviation of Alade-shan (shan, mountain in Chinese), Alade = Eleuth or Oelöt; the sister of this prince married a son of Prince Tuan, the chief of the Boxers. (La Géographie, 1901. I. 118.) Palladius (l.c. 19) says: “Under the name of Calachan, Polo probably means the summer residence of the Tangut kings, which was 60 li from Ning-hia, at the foot of the Alashan Mountains. It was built by the famous Tangut king Yuen-hao, on a large scale, in the shape of a castle, in which were high terraces and magnificent buildings. Traces of these buildings are visible to this day. There are often found coloured tiles and iron nails 1 foot, and even 2 feet long. The last Tangut kings made this place their permanent residence, and led there an indolent and sensual life. The Chinese name of this residence was Ho-lan shan Li-Kung. There is sufficient reason to suppose that this very residence is named (under the year 1226) in the Mongol text Alashai nuntuh; and in the chronicles of the Tangut Kingdom, Halahachar, otherwise Halachar apparently in the Tangut language. Thus M. Polo’s Calachan can be identified with the Halachar of the Si hia shu shi, and can be taken to designate the Alashan residence of the Tangut kings.”—H. C.]
NOTE 3.—Among the Buraets and Chinese at Kiakhta snow-white camels, without albino character, are often seen, and probably in other parts of Mongolia. (See Erdmann, II. 261.) Philostratus tells us that the King of Taxila furnished white camels to Apollonius. I doubt if the present King of Taxila, whom Anglo-Indians call the Commissioner of Ráwal Pindi, could do the like.
Cammellotti appear to have been fine woollen textures, by no means what are now called camlets, nor were they necessarily of camel’s wool, for those of Angora goat’s wool were much valued. M. Douet d’Arcq calls it “a fine stuff of wool approaching to our Cashmere, and sometimes of silk.” Indeed, as Mr. Marsh points out, the word is Arabic, and has nothing to do with Camel in its origin; though it evidently came to be associated therewith. Khamlat is defined in F. Johnson’s Dict.: “Camelot, silk and camel’s hair; also all silk or velvet, especially pily and plushy,” and Khaml is “pile or plush.” Camelin was a different and inferior material. There was till recently a considerable import of different kinds of woollen goods from this part of China into Ladakh, Kashmir, and the northern Panjáb. [Leaving Ning-hsia, Mr. Rockhill writes (Diary, 1892, 44): “We passed on the road a cart with Jardine and Matheson’s flag, coming probably from Chung-Wei Hsien, where camel’s wool is sold in considerable quantities to foreigners. This trade has fallen off very much in the last three or four years on account of the Chinese middlemen rolling the wool in the dirt so as to add to its weight, and practising other tricks on buyers.”—H. C.] Among the names of these were Sling, Shirum, Gurun, and Khoza, said to be the names of the towns in China where the goods were made. We have supposed Sling to be Sining (note 2, ch. lvii.), but I can make nothing of the others. Cunningham also mentions “camlets of camel’s hair,” under the name of Suklát, among imports from the same quarter. The term Suklát is, however, applied in the Panjáb trade returns to broadcloth. Does not this point to the real nature of the siclatoun of the Middle Ages? It is, indeed, often spoken of as used for banners, which implies that it was not a heavy woollen:
“There was mony gonfanoun
Of gold, sendel, and siclatoun.”
(King Alisaundre, in Weber, I. 85.)
But it was also a material for ladies’ robes, for quilts, leggings, housings, pavilions. Franc. Michel does not decide what it was, only that it was generally red and wrought with gold. Dozy renders it “silk stuff brocaded with gold”; but this seems conjectural. Dr. Rock says it was a thin glossy silken stuff, often with a woof of gold thread, and seems to derive it from the Arabic sakl, “polishing” (a sword), which is improbable. Perhaps the name is connected with Sikiliyat, “Sicily.”
(Marsh on Wedgwood, and on Webster in N. Y. Nation, 1867; Douet D’Arcq, p. 355; Punjab Trade Rep., App. ccxix.-xx.; Ladak, 242; Fr.-Michel Rech. I. 221 seqq.; Dozy, Dict. des Vêtements, etc.; Dr. Rock’s Ken. Catal. xxxix.-xl.)
CHAPTER LIX.
CONCERNING THE PROVINCE OF TENDUC, AND THE DESCENDANTS OF PRESTER JOHN.
Tenduc is a province which lies towards the east, and contains numerous towns and villages; among which is the chief city, also called TENDUC. The king of the province is of the lineage of Prester John, George by name, and he holds the land under the Great Kaan; not that he holds anything like the whole of what Prester John possessed.[NOTE 1] It is a custom, I may tell you, that these kings of the lineage of Prester John always obtain to wife either daughters of the Great Kaan or other princesses of his family.[NOTE 2]
In this province is found the stone from which Azure is made. It is obtained from a kind of vein in the earth, and is of very fine quality.[NOTE 3] There is also a great manufacture of fine camlets of different colours from camel’s hair. The people get their living by their cattle and tillage, as well as by trade and handicraft.
The rule of the province is in the hands of the Christians, as I have told you; but there are also plenty of Idolaters and worshippers of Mahommet. And there is also here a class of people called Argons, which is as much as to say in French Guasmul, or, in other words, sprung from two different races: to wit, of the race of the Idolaters of Tenduc and of that of the worshippers of Mahommet. They are handsomer men than the other natives of the country, and having more ability, they come to have authority; and they are also capital merchants.[NOTE 4]
You must know that it was in this same capital city of Tenduc that Prester John had the seat of his government when he ruled over the Tartars, and his heirs still abide there; for, as I have told you, this King George is of his line, in fact, he is the sixth in descent from Prester John.
Here also is what we call the country of GOG and MAGOG; they, however, call it UNG and MUNGUL, after the names of two races of people that existed in that Province before the migration of the Tartars. Ung was the title of the people of the country, and Mungul a name sometimes applied to the Tartars.[NOTE 5]
And when you have ridden seven days eastward through this province you get near the provinces of Cathay. You find throughout those seven days’ journey plenty of towns and villages, the inhabitants of which are Mahommetans, but with a mixture also of Idolaters and Nestorian Christians. They get their living by trade and manufactures; weaving those fine cloths of gold which are called Nasich and Naques, besides silk stuffs of many other kinds. For just as we have cloths of wool in our country, manufactured in a great variety of kinds, so in those regions they have stuffs of silk and gold in like variety.[NOTE 6]
All this region is subject to the Great Kaan. There is a city you come to called SINDACHU, where they carry on a great many crafts such as provide for the equipment of the Emperor’s troops. In a mountain of the province there is a very good silver mine, from which much silver is got: the place is called YDIFU. The country is well stocked with game, both beast and bird.[NOTE 7]
Now we will quit that province and go three days’ journey forward.
NOTE 1.—Marco’s own errors led commentators much astray about Tanduc or
Tenduc, till Klaproth put the matter in its true light.
Our traveller says that Tenduc had been the seat of Aung Khan’s sovereignty; he has already said that it had been the scene of his final defeat, and he tells us that it was still the residence of his descendants in their reduced state. To the last piece of information he can speak as a witness, and he is corroborated by other evidence; but the second statement we have seen to be almost certainly erroneous; about the first we cannot speak positively.
Klaproth pointed out the true position of Tenduc in the vicinity of the great northern bend of the Hwang-Ho, quoting Chinese authorities to show that Thianté or Thianté-Kiun was the name of a district or group of towns to the north of that bend, a name which he supposes to be the original of Polo’s Tenduc. The general position entirely agrees with Marco’s indications; it lies on his way eastward from Tangut towards Chagannor, and Shangtu (see ch. lx., lxi.), whilst in a later passage (Bk. II. ch. lxiv.), he speaks of the Caramoran or Hwang-Ho in its lower course, as “coming from the lands of Prester John.”
M. Pauthier finds severe fault with Klaproth’s identification of the name Tenduc with the Thianté of the Chinese, belonging to a city which had been destroyed 300 years before, whilst he himself will have that name to be a corruption of Tathung. The latter is still the name of a city and Fu of northern Shansi, but in Mongol time its circle of administration extended beyond the Chinese wall, and embraced territory on the left of the Hwang-Ho, being in fact the first Lu, or circle, entered on leaving Tangut, and therefore, Pauthier urges, the “Kingdom of Tanduc” of our text.
I find it hard to believe that Marco could get no nearer TATHUNG than in the form of Tanduc or Tenduc. The origin of the last may have been some Mongol name, not recovered. But it is at least conceivable that a name based on the old Thianté-Kiun might have been retained among the Tartars, from whom, and not from the Chinese, Polo took his nomenclature. Thianté had been, according to Pauthier’s own quotations, the military post of Tathung; Klaproth cites a Chinese author of the Mongol era, who describes the Hwang-Ho as passing through the territory of the ancient Chinese city of Thianté; and Pauthier’s own quotation from the Modern Imperial Geography seems to imply that a place in that territory was recently known as Fung-chau-Thianté-Kiun.
In the absence of preciser indications, it is reasonable to suppose that the Plain of Tenduc, with its numerous towns and villages, was the extensive and well-cultivated plain which stretches from the Hwang-Ho, past the city of Kuku-Khotan, or “Blue Town.” This tract abounds in the remains of cities attributed to the Mongol era. And it is not improbable that the city of Tenduc was Kuku-Khotan itself, now called by the Chinese Kwei-hwa Ch’eng, but which was known to them in the Middle Ages as Tsing-chau, and to which we find the Kin Emperor of Northern China sending an envoy in 1210 to demand tribute from Chinghiz. The city is still an important mart and a centre of Lamaitic Buddhism, being the residence of a Khutukhtu, or personage combining the characters of cardinal and voluntarily re-incarnate saint, as well as the site of five great convents and fifteen smaller ones. Gerbillon notes that Kuku Khotan had been a place of great trade and population during the Mongol Dynasty.
[The following evidence shows, I think, that we must look for the city of Tenduc to Tou Ch’eng or Toto Ch’eng, called Togto or Tokto by the Mongols. Mr. Rockhill (Diary, 18) passed through this place, and 5 li south of it, reached on the Yellow River, Ho-k’ou (in Chinese) or Dugus or Dugei (in Mongol). Gerbillon speaks of Toto in his sixth voyage in Tartary. (Du Halde, IV. 345.) Mr. Rockhill adds that he cannot but think that Yule overlooked the existence of Togto when he identified Kwei-hwa Ch’eng with Tenduc. Tou Ch’eng is two days’ march west of Kwei-hwa Ch’eng, “On the loess hill behind this place are the ruins of a large camp, Orch’eng, in all likelihood the site of the old town” (l.c. 18). M. Bonin (J. As. XV. 1900, 589) shares Mr. Rockhill’s opinion. From Kwei-hwa Ch’eng, M. Bonin went by the valley of the Hei Shui River to the Hwang Ho; at the junction of the two rivers stands the village of Ho-k’au (Ho-k’ou) south of the small town To Ch’eng, surmounted by the ruins of the old square Mongol stronghold of Tokto, the walls of which are still in a good state of preservation.—(La Géographie, I. 1901, p. 116.)
On the other hand, it is but fair to state that Palladius (21) says: “The name of Tenduc obviously corresponds to T’ien-te Kiun, a military post, the position of which Chinese geographers identify correctly with that of the modern Kuku-hoton (Ta tsing y t’ung chi, ch. on the Tumots of Kuku-hoton). The T’ien-te Kiun post existed under this name during the K’itan (Liao) and Kin Dynasties up to Khubilai’s time (1267); when under the name of Fung-chow it was left only a district town in the department of Ta-t’ung fu. The Kin kept in T’ien-te Kiun a military chief, Chao-t’ao- shi, whose duty it was to keep an eye on the neighbouring tribes, and to use, if needed, military force against them. The T’ien-te Kiun district was hardly greater in extent than the modern aïmak of Tumot, into which Kuku-hoton was included since the 16th century, i.e. 370 li from north to south, and 400 li from east to west; during the Kin it had a settled population, numbering 22,600 families.”
In a footnote, Palladius refers to the geographical parts of the Liao shi, Kin shi, and Yuen shi, and adds: “M. Polo’s commentators are wrong in suspecting an anachronism in his statement, or trying to find Tenduc elsewhere.”
We find in the North-China Herald (29th April, 1887, p. 474) the following note from the Chinese Times: “There are records that the position of this city [Kwei-hwa Ch’eng] was known to the builder of the Great Wall. From very remote times, it appears to have been a settlement of nomadic tribes. During the last 1000 years it has been alternately possessed by the Mongols and Chinese. About A.D. 1573, Emperor Wan-Li reclaimed it, enclosed a space within walls, and called it Kwei-hwa Ch’êng.”
Potanin left Peking on the 13th May, 1884, for Kuku-khoto (or Kwei-hwa-Ch’eng), passing over the triple chain of mountains dividing the Plain of Peking from that on which Kuku-khoto is situate. The southernmost of these three ridges bears the Chinese name of Wu-tai-shan, “the mountain of five sacrificial altars,” after the group of five peaks, the highest of which is 10,000 feet above the sea, a height not exceeded by any mountain in Northern China. At its southern foot lies a valley remarkable for its Buddhist monasteries and shrines, one of which, “Shing-tung-tze,” is entirely made of brass, whence its name.
“Kuku-Khoto is the depôt for the Mongolian trade with China. It contains two hundred tea-shops, five theatres, fifteen temples, and six Mongol monasteries. Among its sights are the Buddhist convent of Utassa, with its five pinnacles and has-reliefs, the convent of Fing-sung-si, and a temple containing a statue erected in honour of the Chinese general, Pai-jin- jung, who avenged an insult offered to the Emperor of China.” (Proc. R. G. S. IX. 1887, p. 233.)—H. C.]
A passage in Rashiduddin does seem to intimate that the Kerait, the tribe of Aung Khan, alias Prester John, did occupy territory close to the borders of Cathay or Northern China; but neither from Chinese nor from other Oriental sources has any illustration yet been produced of the existence of Aung Khan’s descendants as rulers in this territory under the Mongol emperors. There is, however, very positive evidence to that effect supplied by other European travellers, to whom the fables prevalent in the West had made the supposed traces of Prester John a subject of strong interest.
Thus John of Monte Corvino, afterwards Archbishop of Cambaluc or Peking, in his letter of January, 1305, from that city, speaks of Polo’s King George in these terms: “A certain king of this part of the world, by name George, belonging to the sect of the Nestorian Christians, and of the illustrious lineage of that great king who was called Prester John of India, in the first year of my arrival here [circa 1295-1296] attached himself to me, and, after he had been converted by me to the verity of the Catholic faith, took the Lesser Orders, and when I celebrated mass used to attend me wearing his royal robes. Certain others of the Nestorians on this account accused him of apostacy, but he brought over a great part of his people with him to the true Catholic faith, and built a church of royal magnificence in honour of our God, of the Holy Trinity, and of our Lord, the Pope, giving it the name of the Roman Church. This King George, six years ago, departed to the Lord, a true Christian, leaving as his heir a son scarcely out of the cradle, and who is now nine years old. And after King George’s death, his brothers, perfidious followers of the errors of Nestorius, perverted again all those whom he had brought over to the Church, and carried them back to their original schismatical creed. And being all alone, and not able to leave His Majesty the Cham, I could not go to visit the church above-mentioned, which is twenty days’ journey distant…. I had been in treaty with the late King George, if he had lived, to translate the whole Latin ritual, that it might be sung throughout the extent of his territory; and whilst he was alive I used to celebrate mass in his church according to the Latin rite.” The distance mentioned, twenty days’ journey from Peking, suits quite well with the position assigned to Tenduc, and no doubt the Roman Church was in the city to which Polo gives that name.
Friar Odoric, travelling from Peking towards Shensi, about 1326-1327, also visits the country of Prester John, and gives to its chief city the name of Tozan, in which perhaps we may trace Tathung. He speaks as if the family still existed in authority.
King George appears again in Marco’s own book (Bk. IV. ch. ii.) as one of Kúblái’s generals against Kaidu, in a battle fought near Karakorúm. (Journ. As. IX. 299 seqq.; D’Ohsson, I. 123; Huc’s Tartary, etc. I. 55 seqq.; Koeppen, II. 381; Erdmann’s Temudschin; Gerbillon in Astley, IV. 670;Cathay, pp. 146 and 199 seqq.)
NOTE 2.—Such a compact is related to have existed reciprocally between the family of Chinghiz and that of the chief of the Kunguráts; but I have not found it alleged of the Kerait family except by Friar Odoric. We find, however, many princesses of this family married into that of Chinghiz. Thus three nieces of Aung Khan became wives respectively of Chinghiz himself and of his sons Juji and Tului; she who was the wife of the latter, Serkukteni Bigi, being the mother of Mangú, Hulaku, and Kúblái. Dukuz Khatun, the Christian wife of Hulaku, was a grand-daughter of Aung Khan.
The name George, of Prester John’s representative, may have been actually Jirjis, Yurji, or some such Oriental form of Georgius. But it is possible that the title was really Gurgán, “Son-in-Law,” a title of honour conferred on those who married into the imperial blood, and that this title may have led to the statements of Marco and Odoric about the nuptial privileges of the family. Gurgán in this sense was one of the titles borne by Timur.[1]
[The following note by the Archimandrite Palladius (Eluc. 21-23) throws a great light on the relations between the families of Chinghiz Khan and of Prester John.
“T’ien-te Kiun was bounded on the north by the Yn-shan Mountains, in and beyond which was settled the Sha-t’o Tu-K’iu tribe, i.e. Tu-K’iu of the sandy desert. The K’itans, when they conquered the northern borders of China, brought also under their rule the dispersed family of these Tu- K’iu. With the accession of the Kin, a Wang Ku [Ongot] family made its appearance as the ruling family of those tribes; it issued from those Sha- t’o Tu-K’iu, who once reigned in the north of China as the How T’ang Dynasty (923-936 A.D.). It split into two branches, the Wang-Ku of the Yn- shan, and the Wang-Ku of the Lin-t’ao (west of Kan-su). The Kin removed the latter branch to Liao-tung (in Manchuria). The Yn-shan Wang-Ku guarded the northern borders of China belonging to the Kin, and watched their herds. When the Kin, as a protection against the inroads of the tribes of the desert, erected a rampart, or new wall, from the boundary of the Tángut Kingdom down to Manchuria, they intrusted the defence of the principal places of the Yn-shan portion of the wall to the Wang-Ku, and transferred there also the Liao-tung Wang-Ku. At the time Chingiz Khan became powerful, the chief of the Wang-Ku of the Yn-shan was Alahush; and at the head of the Liao-tung Wang-Ku stood Pa-sao-ma-ie-li. Alahush proved a traitor to the Kin, and passed over to Chinghiz Khan; for this he was murdered by the malcontents of his family, perhaps by Pa-sao-ma-ie-li, who remained true to the Kin. Later on, Chingiz Khan married one of his daughters to the son of Alahush, by name Po-yao-ho, who, however, had no children by her. He had three sons by a concubine, the eldest of whom, Kiun-pu-hwa, was married to Kuyuk Khan’s daughter. Kiun-pu-hwa’s son, Ko- li-ki-sze, had two wives, both of imperial blood. During a campaign against Haidu, he was made prisoner in 1298, and murdered. His title and dignities passed over in A.D. 1310 to his son Chuan. Nothing is known of Alahush’s later descendants; they probably became entirely Chinese, like their relatives of the Liao-tung branch.
“The Wang-Ku princes were thus de jure the sons-in-law of the Mongol Khans, and they had, moreover, the hereditary title of Kao-t’ang princes (Kao-t’ang wang); it is very possible that they had their residence in ancient T’ien-te Kiun (although no mention is made of it in history), just as at present the Tumot princes reside in Kuku-hoton.
“The consonance of the names of Wang-Khan and Wang-Ku (Ung-Khan and Ongu) led to the confusion regarding the tribes and persons, which at Marco Polo’s time seems to have been general among the Europeans in China; Marco Polo and Johannes de Monte Corvino transfer the title of Prester John from Wang-Khan, already perished at that time, to the distinguished family of Wang-Ku. Their Georgius is undoubtedly Ko-li-ki-sze, Alahush’s great-grandson. That his name is a Christian one is confirmed by other testimonies; thus in the Asu (Azes) regiment of the Khan’s guards was Ko-li-ki-sze, aliàs Kow-r-ki (d. 1311), and his son Ti-mi-ti-r. There is no doubt that one of them was Georgius, and the other Demetrius. Further, in the description of Chin-Kiang in the time of the Yuen, mention is made of Ko-li-ki-sze Ye-li-ko-wen, i.e. Ko-li-ki-sze, the Christian, and of his son Lu-ho (Luke).
“Ko-li-ki-sze of Wang-ku is much praised in history for his valour and his love for Confucian doctrine; he had in consequence of a special favour of the Khan two Mongol princesses for wives at the same time (which is rather difficult to conciliate with his being a Christian). The time of his death is correctly indicated in a letter of Joannes de M. Corvino of the year 1305: ante sex annos migravit ad Dominum. He left a young son Chu-an, who probably is the Joannes of the letter of Ioannes (Giovani) de M. Corvino, so called propter nomen meum, says the missionary. In another Wang-ku branch, Si-li-ki-sze reminds one also of the Christian name Sergius.”—H. C.]
NOTE 3.—”The Lapis Armenus, or Azure,… is produced in the district of
Tayton-fu (i.e. Tathung), belonging to Shansi.” (Du Halde in Astley,
IV. 309; see also Martini, p. 36.)
NOTE 4.—This is a highly interesting passage, but difficult, from being corrupt in the G. Text, and over-curt in Pauthier’s MSS. In the former it runs as follows: “Hil hi a une jenerasion de jens que sunt appellés Argon, qe vaut à dire en françois Guasmul, ce est à dire qu’il sunt né del deus generasions de la lengnée des celz Argon Tenduc et des celz reduc et des celz que aorent Maomet. Il sunt biaus homes plus que le autre dou païs et plus sajes et plus mercaant.” Pauthier’s text runs thus: “Il ont une generation de gens, ces Crestiens qui ont la Seigneurie, qui s’appellent Argon,qui vaut a dire Gasmul; et sont plus beaux hommes que les autres mescreans et plus sages. Et pour ce ont il la seigneurie et sont bons marchans.” And Ramusio: “Vi è anche una sorte di gente che si chiamano Argon, per che sono nati di due generazioni, cioè da quella di Tenduc che adorano gl’ idoli, e da quella che osservano la legge di Macometto. E questi sono i piu belli uomini che si trovino in quel paese e più savi, e più accorti nella mercanzia.“
In the first quotation the definition of the Argon as sprung de la lengnée, etc., is not intelligible as it stands, but seems to be a corruption of the same definition that has been rendered by Ramusio, viz. that the Argon were half-castes between the race of the Tenduc Buddhists and that of the Mahomedan settlers. These two texts do not assert that the Argon were Christians. Pauthier’s text at first sight seems to assert this, and to identify them with the Christian rulers of the province. But I doubt if it means more than that the Christian rulers have under them a people called Argon, etc. The passage has been read with a bias, owing to an erroneous interpretation of the word Argon in the teeth of Polo’s explanation of it.
Klaproth, I believe, first suggested that Argon represents the term Arkhaiún, which is found repeatedly applied to Oriental Christians, or their clergy, in the histories of the Mongol era.[2] No quite satisfactory explanation has been given of the origin of that term. It is barely possible that it may be connected with that which Polo uses here; but he tells us as plainly as possible that he means by the term, not a Christian, but a half-breed.
And in this sense the word is still extant in Tibet, probably also in Eastern Turkestan, precisely in Marco’s form, ARGON. It is applied in Ladak, as General Cunningham tells us, specifically to the mixt race produced by the marriages of Kashmirian immigrants with Bot (Tibetan) women. And it was apparently to an analogous cross between Caucasians and Turanians that the term was applied in Tenduc. Moorcroft also speaks of this class in Ladak, calling them Argands. Mr. Shaw styles them “a set of ruffians called Argoons, half-bred between Toorkistan fathers and Ladak mothers…. They possess all the evil qualities of both races, without any of their virtues.” And the author of the Dabistan, speaking of the Tibetan Lamas, says: “Their king, if his mother be not of royal blood, is by them called Arghún, and not considered their true king.” [See p. 291, my reference to Wellby’s Tibet.—H. C.] Cunningham says the word is probably Turki, [Arabic], Arghún, “Fair,” “not white,” as he writes to me, “but ruddy or pink, and therefore ‘fair.’ Arghún is both Turki and Mogholi, and is applied to all fair children, both male and female, as Arghun Beg, Arghuna Khatun,” etc.[3] We find an Arghún tribe named in Timur’s Institutes, which probably derived its descent from such half-breeds. And though the Arghún Dynasty of Kandahar and Sind claimed their descent and name from Arghún Khan of Persia, this may have had no other foundation.
There are some curious analogies between these Argons of whom Marco speaks and those Mahomedans of Northern China and Chinese Turkestan lately revolted against Chinese authority, who are called Tungani, or as the Russians write it Dungen, a word signifying, according to Professor Vámbéry, in Turki, “a convert.”[4] These Tungani are said by one account to trace their origin to a large body of Uighúrs, who were transferred to the vicinity of the Great Wall during the rule of the Thang Dynasty (7th to 10th century). Another tradition derives their origin from Samarkand. And it is remarkable that Rashiduddin speaks of a town to the west or north-west of Peking, “most of the inhabitants of which are natives of Samarkand, and have planted a number of gardens in the Samarkand style.”[5] The former tradition goes on to say that marriages were encouraged between the Western settlers and the Chinese women. In after days these people followed the example of their kindred in becoming Mahomedans, but they still retained the practice of marrying Chinese wives, though bringing up their children in Islam. The Tungani are stated to be known in Central Asia for their commercial integrity; and they were generally selected by the Chinese for police functionaries. They are passionate and ready to use the knife; but are distinguished from both Manchus and Chinese by their strength of body and intelligent countenances. Their special feature is their predilection for mercantile speculations.
Looking to the many common features of the two accounts—the origin as a half-breed between Mahomedans of Western extraction and Northern Chinese, the position in the vicinity of the Great Wall, the superior physique, intelligence, and special capacity for trade, it seems highly probable that the Tungani of our day are the descendants of Marco’s Argons. Otherwise we may at least point to these analogies as a notable instance of like results produced by like circumstances on the same scene; in fact, of history repeating itself. (See The Dungens, by Mr. H. K. Heins, in the Russian Military Journal for August, 1866, and Western China, in the Ed. Review for April, 1868;[6] Cathay, p. 261.)
[Palladius (pp. 23-24) says that “it is impossible to admit that Polo had meant to designate by this name the Christians, who were called by the Mongols Erkeun [Ye li ke un]. He was well acquainted with the Christians in China, and of course could not ignore the name under which they were generally known to such a degree as to see in it a designation of a cross-race of Mahommetans and heathens.” From the Yuen ch’ao pi shi and the Yuen shi, Palladius gives some examples which refer to Mahommedans.
Professor Devéria (Notes d’Épig. 49) says that the word [Greek: Árchon] was used by the Mongol Government as a designation for the members of the Christian clergy at large; the word is used between 1252 and 1315 to speak of Christian priests by the historians of the Yuen Dynasty; it is not used before nor is it to be found in the Si-ngan-fu inscription (l.c. 82). Mr. E. H. Parker (China Review, xxiv. p. 157) supplies a few omissions in Devéria’s paper; we note among others: “Ninth moon of 1329. Buddhist services ordered to be held by the Uighúr priests, and by the Christians [Ye li ke un].”
Captain Wellby writes (Unknown Tibet, p. 32): “We impressed into our service six other muleteers, four of them being Argoons, who are really half-castes, arising from the merchants of Turkestan making short marriages with the Ladakhi women.”—H. C.]
Our author gives the odd word Guasmul as the French equivalent of Argon. M. Pauthier has first, of Polo’s editors, given the true explanation from Ducange. The word appears to have been in use in the Levant among the Franks as a name for the half-breeds sprung from their own unions with Greek women. It occurs three times in the history of George Pachymeres. Thus he says (Mich. Pal. III. 9), that the Emperor Michael “depended upon the Gasmuls, or mixt breeds ([Greek: symmíktoi]), which is the sense of this word of the Italian tongue, for these were born of Greeks and Italians, and sent them to man his ships; for the race in question inherited at once the military wariness and quick wit of the Greeks, and the dash and pertinacity of the Latins.” Again (IV. 26) he speaks of these “Gasmuls, whom a Greek would call [Greek: digeneis], men sprung from Greek mothers and Italian fathers.” Nicephorus Gregoras also relates how Michael Palaeologus, to oppose the projects of Baldwin for the recovery of his fortunes, manned 60 galleys, chiefly with the tribe of Gasmuls ([Greek: génos tou Gasmoulikou]), to whom he assigns the same characteristics as Pachymeres. (IV. v. 5, also VI. iii. 3, and XIV. x. 2.) One MS. of Nicetas Choniates also, in his annals of Manuel Comnenus (see Paris ed. p. 425), speaks of “the light troops whom we call Basmuls.” Thus it would seem that, as in the analogous case of the Turcopuli, sprung from Turk fathers and Greek mothers, their name had come to be applied technically to a class of troops. According to Buchon, the laws of the Venetians in Candia mention, as different races in that island, the Vasmulo, Latino, Blaco, and Griego.
Ducange, in one of his notes on Joinville, says: “During the time that the French possessed Constantinople, they gave the name of Gas-moules to those who were born of French fathers and Greek mothers; or more probably Gaste-moules, by way of derision, as if such children by those irregular marriages … had in some sort debased the wombs of their mothers!” I have little doubt (pace tanti viri) that the word is in a Gallicized form the same with the surviving Italian Guazzabúglio, a hotch-potch, or mish-mash. In Davanzati’s Tacitus, the words “Colluviem illam nationum” (Annal. II. 55) are rendered “quello guazzabuglio di nazioni,” in which case we come very close to the meaning assigned to Guasmul. The Italians are somewhat behind in matters of etymology, and I can get no light from them on the history of this word. (See Buchon, Chroniques Etrangères, p. xv.;Ducange, Gloss. Graecitatis, and his note on Joinville, in Bohn’s Chron. of the Crusades, 466.)
NOTE 5.—It has often been cast in Marco’s teeth that he makes no mention of the Great Wall of China, and that is true; whilst the apologies made for the omission have always seemed to me unsatisfactory. [I find in Sir G. Staunton’s account of Macartney’s Embassy (II. p. 185) this most amusing explanation of the reason why Marco Polo did not mention the wall: “A copy of Marco Polo’s route to China, taken from the Doge’s Library at Venice, is sufficient to decide this question. By this route it appears that, in fact, that traveller did not pass through Tartary to Pekin, but that after having followed the usual track of the caravans, as far to the eastward from Europe as Samarcand and Cashgar, he bent his course to the south-east across the River Ganges to Bengal (!), and, keeping to the southward of the Thibet mountains, reached the Chinese province of Shensee, and through the adjoining province of Shansee to the capital, without interfering with the line of the Great Wall.”—H. C.] We shall see presently that the Great Wall is spoken of by Marco’s contemporaries Rashiduddin and Abulfeda. Yet I think, if we read “between the lines,” we shall see reason to believe that the Wall was in Polo’s mind at this point of the dictation, whatever may have been his motive for withholding distincter notice of it.[7] I cannot conceive why he should say: “Here is what we call the country of Gog and Magog,” except as intimating “Here we are beside the GREAT WALL known as the Rampart of Gog and Magog,” and being there he tries to find a reason why those names should have been applied to it. Why they were really applied to it we have already seen. (Supra, ch. iv. note 3.) Abulfeda says: “The Ocean turns northward along the east of China, and then expands in the same direction till it passes China, and comes opposite to the Rampart of Yájúj and Májúj;” whilst the same geographer’s definition of the boundaries of China exhibits that country as bounded on the west by the Indo-Chinese wildernesses; on the south, by the seas; on the east, by the Eastern Ocean; on the north, by the land of Yájúj and Májúj, and other countries unknown. Ibn Batuta, with less accurate geography in his head than Abulfeda, maugre his travels, asks about the Rampart of Gog and Magog (Sadd Yájúj wa Majúj) when he is at Sin Kalán, i.e. Canton, and, as might be expected, gets little satisfaction.
[Illustration: The Rampart of Gog and Magog]
Apart from this interesting point Marsden seems to be right in the general bearing of his explanation of the passage, and I conceive that the two classes of people whom Marco tries to identify with Gog and Magog do substantially represent the two genera or species, TURKS and MONGOLS, or, according to another nomenclature used by Rashiduddin, the White and Black Tartars. To the latter class belonged Chinghiz and his MONGOLS proper, with a number of other tribes detailed by Rashiduddin, and these I take to be in a general way the MUNGUL of our text. The Ung on the other hand, are the UNG-kut, the latter form being presumably only the Mongol plural of UNG. The Ung-kút were a Turk tribe who were vassals of the Kin Emperors of Cathay, and were intrusted with the defence of the Wall of China, or an important portion of it, which was called by the Mongols Ungu, a name which some connect with that of the tribe. [See note pp. 288-9.] Erdmann indeed asserts that the wall by which the Ung-kut dwelt was not the Great Wall, but some other. There are traces of other great ramparts in the steppes north of the present wall. But Erdmann’s arguments seem to me weak in the extreme.
[Mr. Rockhill (Rubruck, p. 112) writes: “The earliest mention I have found of the name Mongol in Oriental works occurs in the Chinese annals of the After T’ang period (A.D. 923-934), where it occurs in the form Meng-ku. In the annals of the Liao Dynasty (A.D. 916-1125) it is found under the form Meng-ku-li. The first occurrence of the name in the Tung chien kang mu is, however, in the 6th year Shao-hsing of Kao-tsung of the Sung (A.D. 1136). It is just possible that we may trace the word back a little earlier than the After T’ang period, and that the Meng-wa (or ngo as this character may have been pronounced at the time), a branch of the Shih-wei, a Tungusic or Kitan people living around Lake Keule, to the east of the Baikal, and along the Kerulun, which empties into it, during the 7th and subsequent centuries, and referred to in the T’ang shu (Bk. 219), is the same as the later Meng-ku. Though I have been unable to find, as stated by Howorth (History, i. pt. I. 28), that the name Meng-ku occurs in the T’ang shu, his conclusion that the northern Shih-wei of that time constituted the Mongol nation proper is very likely correct…. I. J. Schmidt (Ssanang Setzen, 380) derives the name Mongol from mong, meaning ‘brave, daring, bold,’ while Rashiduddin says it means ‘simple, weak’ (d’Ohsson, i. 22). The Chinese characters used to transcribe the name mean ‘dull, stupid,’ and ‘old, ancient,’ but they are used purely phonetically…. The Mongols of the present day are commonly called by the Chinese Ta-tzu, but this name is resented by the Mongols as opprobrious, though it is but an abbreviated form of the name Ta-ta-tzu, in which, according to Rubruck, they once gloried.”—H. C.]
Vincent of Beauvais has got from some of his authorities a conception of the distinction of the Tartars into two races, to which, however, he assigns no names: “Sunt autem duo genera Tartarorum, diversa quidem habentia idiomata, sed unicam legem ac ritum, sicut Franci et Theutonici.” But the result of his effort to find a realisation of Gog and Magog is that he makes Guyuk Kaan into Gog, and Mangu Kaan into Magog. Even the intelligent Friar Ricold says of the Tartars: “They say themselves that they are descended from Gog and Magog: and on this account they are calledMogoli, as if from a corruption of Magogoli.” (Abulfeda in Büsching, IV. 140, 274-275; I. B. IV. 274; Golden Horde, 34, 68; Erdmann, 241-242, 257-258; Timk. I. 259, 263, 268; Vinc. Bellov. Spec. Hist. XXIX. 73, XXXI. 32-34; Pereg. Quat. 118; Not. et Ext. II. 536.)
NOTE 6.—The towns and villages were probably those immediately north of the Great Wall, between 112° and 115° East longitude, of which many remains exist, ascribed to the time of the Yuen or Mongol Dynasty. This tract, between the Great Wall and the volcanic plateau of Mongolia, is extensively colonised by Chinese, and has resumed the flourishing aspect that Polo describes. It is known now as the Ku-wei, or extramural region.
[After Kalgan, Captain Younghusband, on the 12th April, 1886, “passed through the [outer] Great Wall … entering what Marco Polo calls the land of Gog and Magog. For the next two days I passed through a hilly country inhabited by Chinese, though it really belongs to Mongolia; but on the 14th I emerged on to the real steppes, which are the characteristic features of Mongolia Proper.” (Proc. R. G. S. X., 1888, p. 490.)—H. C.]
Of the cloths called nakh and nasij we have spoken before (supra ch. vi. note 4). These stuffs, or some such as these, were, I believe, what the mediaeval writers called Tartary cloth, not because they were made in Tartary, but because they were brought from China and its borders through the Tartar dominions; as we find that for like reason they were sometimes called stuffs of Russia. Dante alludes to the supposed skill of Turks and Tartars in weaving gorgeous stuffs, and Boccaccio, commenting thereon, says that Tartarian cloths are so skilfully woven that no painter with his brush could equal them. Maundevile often speaks of cloths of Tartary (e.g. pp. 175, 247). So also Chaucer:
“On every trumpe hanging a broad banere Of fine Tartarium.”
Again, in the French inventory of the Garde-Meuble of 1353 we find two pieces of Tartary, one green and the other red, priced at 15 crowns each. (Flower and Leaf, 211; Dante, Inf. XVII. 17, and Longfellow, p. 159; Douet d’Arcq, p. 328; Fr.-Michel, Rech. I. 315, II. 166 seqq.)
NOTE 7.—SINDACHU (Sindacui, Suidatui, etc., of the MSS.) is SIUEN-HWA-FU, called under the Kin Dynasty Siuen-te-chau, more than once besieged and taken by Chinghiz. It is said to have been a summer residence of the later Mongol Emperors, and fine parks full of grand trees remain on the western side. It is still a large town and the capital of a Fu, about 25 miles south of the Gate on the Great Wall at Chang Kia Kau, which the Mongols and Russians call Kalgan. There is still a manufacture of felt and woollen articles here.
[Mr. Rockhill writes to me that this place is noted for the manufacture of buckskins.—H. C.]
Ydifu has not been identified. But Baron Richthofen saw old mines north-east of Kalgan, which used to yield argentiferous galena; and Pumpelly heard of silver-mines near Yuchau, in the same department.
[In the Yuen-shi it is “stated that there were gold and silver mines in the districts of Siuen-te-chow and Yuchow, as well as in the Kiming shan Mountains. These mines were worked by the Government itself up to 1323, when they were transferred to private enterprise. Marco Polo’s Ydifu is probably a copyist’s error, and stands instead of Yuchow.” (Palladius, 24, 25.)—H. C.]
[1] Mr. Ney Elias favours me with a curious but tantalising communication on this subject: “An old man called on me at Kwei-hwa Ch’eng (Tenduc), who said he was neither Chinaman, Mongol, nor Mahomedan, and lived on ground a short distance to the north of the city, especially allotted to his ancestors by the Emperor, and where there now exist several families of the same origin. He then mentioned the connection of his family with that of the Emperor, but in what way I am not clear, and said that he ought to be, or had been, a prince. Other people coming in, he was interrupted and went away…. He was not with me more than ten minutes, and the incident is a specimen of the difficulty in obtaining interesting information, except by mere chance…. The idea that struck me was, that he was perhaps a descendant of King George of Tenduc; for I had your M. P. before me, and had been inquiring as much as I dared about subjects it suggested…. At Kwei-hwa Ch’eng I was very closely spied, and my servant was frequently told to warn me against asking too many questions.”
I should mention that Oppert, in his very interesting monograph, Der Presbyter Johannes, refuses to recognise the Kerait chief at all in that character, and supposes Polo’s King George to be the representative of a prince of the Liao (supra, p. 205), who, as we learn from De Mailla’s History, after the defeat of the Kin, in which he had assisted Chinghiz, settled in Liaotung, and received from the conqueror the title of King of the Liao. This seems to me geographically and otherwise quite inadmissible.
[2] The term Arkaiun, or Arkaun, in this sense, occurs in the Armenian History of Stephen Orpelian, quoted by St. Martin. The author of the Tárikh Jahán Kushai, cited by D’Ohsson, says that Christians were called by the Mongols Arkáún. When Hulaku invested Baghdad we are told that he sent a letter to the Judges, Shaikhs, Doctors and Arkauns, promising to spare such as should act peaceably. And in the subsequent sack we hear that no houses were spared except those of a few Arkauns and foreigners. In Rashiduddin’s account of the Council of State at Peking, we are told that the four Fanchan, or Ministers of the Second Class, were taken from the four nations of Tájiks, Cathayans, Uighúrs, and Arkaun. Sabadin Arkaun was the name of one of the Envoys sent by Arghun Khan of Persia to the Pope in 1288. Traces of the name appear also in Chinese documents of the Mongol era, as denoting some religious body. Some of these have been quoted by Mr. Wylie; but I have seen no notice taken of a very curious extract given by Visdelou. This states that Kúblái in 1289 established a Board of nineteen chief officers to have surveillance of the affairs of the Religion of the Cross, of the Marha, the Siliepan, and the Yelikhawen. This Board was raised to a higher rank in 1315: and at that time 72 minor courts presiding over the religion of the Yelikhawen existed under its supervision. Here we evidently have the word Arkhaiun in a Chinese form; and we may hazard the suggestion that Marha, Siliepan and Yelikhawen meant respectively the Armenian, Syrian, or Jacobite, and Nestorian Churches. (St. Martin, Mém. II. 133, 143, 279; D’Ohsson, II. 264; Ilchan, I. 150, 152; Cathay, 264; Acad. VII. 359; Wylie in J. As. V. xix. 406. Suppt. toD’Herbelot, 142.)
[3] The word is not in Zenker or Pavet de Courteille.
[4] Mr. Shaw writes Toongânee. The first mention of this name that I know of is in Izzat Ullah’s Journal. (Vide J. R. A. S. VII. 310.) The people are there said to have got the name from having first settled in Tungan. Tung-gan is in the same page the name given to the strong city of T’ung Kwan on the Hwang-ho. (See Bk. II. ch. xli. note 1.) A variety of etymologies have been given, but Vámbéry’s seems the most probable.
[5] Probably no man could now say what this means. But the following note from Mr. Ney Elias is very interesting in its suggestion of analogy: “In my report to the Geographical Society I have noticed the peculiar Western appearance of Kwei-hwa-ch’eng, and the little gardens of creepers and flowers in pots which are displayed round the porches in the court-yards of the better class of houses, and which I have seen in no other part of China. My attention was especially drawn to these by your quotation from Rashiduddin.”
[6] A translation of Heins’ was kindly lent me by the author of this
article, the lamented Mr. J. W. S. Wyllie.
[7] I owe the suggestion of this to a remark in Oppert’s Presbyter
Johannes, p. 77.
CHAPTER LX.
CONCERNING THE KAAN’S PALACE OF CHAGANNOR.
At the end of those three days you find a city called CHAGAN NOR [which is as much as to say White Pool], at which there is a great Palace of the Grand Kaan’s;[NOTE 1] and he likes much to reside there on account of the Lakes and Rivers in the neighbourhood, which are the haunt of swans[NOTE 2] and of a great variety of other birds. The adjoining plains too abound with cranes, partridges, pheasants, and other game birds, so that the Emperor takes all the more delight in staying there, in order to go a-hawking with his gerfalcons and other falcons, a sport of which he is very fond.[NOTE 3]
There are five different kinds of cranes found in those tracts, as I shall tell you. First, there is one which is very big, and all over as black as a crow; the second kind again is all white, and is the biggest of all; its wings are really beautiful, for they are adorned with round eyes like those of a peacock, but of a resplendent golden colour, whilst the head is red and black on a white ground. The third kind is the same as ours. The fourth is a small kind, having at the ears beautiful long pendent feathers of red and black. The fifth kind is grey all over and of great size, with a handsome head, red and black.[NOTE 4]
Near this city there is a valley in which the Emperor has had several little houses erected in which he keeps in mew a huge number of cators which are what we call the Great Partridge. You would be astonished to see what a quantity there are, with men to take charge of them. So whenever the Kaan visits the place he is furnished with as many as he wants. [NOTE 5]
NOTE 1.—[According to the Siu t’ung kien, quoted by Palladius, the palace in Chagannor was built in 1280.—H. C.]
NOTE 2.—”Ou demeurent sesnes.” Sesnes, Cesnes, Cecini, Cesanae, is a mediaeval form of cygnes, cigni, which seems to have escaped the dictionary-makers. It occurs in the old Italian version of Brunetto Latini’s Tresor, Bk. V. ch. xxv., as cecino; and for other examples, see Cathay, p. 125.
NOTE 3.—The city called by Polo CHAGAN-NOR (meaning in Mongol, as he says, “White Lake”) is the Chaghan Balghasun mentioned by Timkowski as an old city of the Mongol era, the ruined rampart of which he passed about 30 miles north of the Great Wall at Kalgan, and some 55 miles from Siuen-hwa, adjoining the Imperial pastures. It stands near a lake still called Chaghan-Nor, and is called by the Chinese Pe-ching-tzu, or White City, a translation of Chaghan Balghasun. Dr. Bushell says of one of the lakes (Ichi-Nor), a few miles east of Chaghan-Nor: “We … found the water black with waterfowl, which rose in dense flocks, and filled the air with discordant noises. Swans, geese, and ducks predominated, and three different species of cranes were distinguished.”
The town appears as Tchahan Toloho in D’Anville. It is also, I imagine, the Arulun Tsaghan Balghasun which S. Setzen says Kúblái built about the same time with Shangtu and another city “on the shady side of the Altai,” by which here he seems to mean the Khingan range adjoining the Great Wall. (Timk. II. 374, 378-379; J. R. G. S. vol. xliii.; S. Setz. 115.) I see Ritter has made the same identification of Chaghan-Nor (II. 141).
NOTE 4.—The following are the best results I can arrive at in the identification of these five cranes.
1. Radde mentions as a rare crane in South Siberia Grus monachus, called by the Buraits Kará Togorü, or “Black Crane.” Atkinson also speaks of “a beautiful black variety of crane,” probably the same. The Grus monachus is not, however, jet black, but brownish rather. (Radde, Reisen, Bd. II. p. 318; Atkinson. Or. and W. Sib. 548.)
2. Grus leucogeranus (?) whose chief habitat is Siberia, but which sometimes comes as far south as the Punjab. It is the largest of the genus, snowy white, with red face and beak; the ten largest quills are black, but this barely shows as a narrow black line when the wings are closed. The resplendent golden eyes on the wings remain unaccounted for; no naturalist whom I have consulted has any knowledge of a crane or crane-like bird with such decorations. When ’tis discovered, let it be the Grus Poli!
3. Grus cinerea.
4. The colour of the pendants varies in the texts. Pauthier’s and the G. Text have red and black; the Lat. S. G. black only, the Crusca black and white, Ramusio feathers red and blue (not pendants). The red and black may have slipt in from the preceding description. I incline to believe it to be the Demoiselle, Anthropoides Virgo, which is frequently seen as far north as Lake Baikal. It has a tuft of pure white from the eye, and a beautiful black pendent ruff or collar; the general plumage purplish-grey.
5. Certainly the Indian Sáras (vulgo Cyrus), or Grus antigone, which answers in colours and grows to 52 inches high.
NOTE 5.—Cator occurs only in the G. Text and the Crusca, in the latter with the interpolated explanation “cioè contornici” (i.e. quails), whilst the S. G. Latin has coturnices only. I suspect this impression has assisted to corrupt the text, and that it was originally written or dictated ciacor orçacor, viz. chakór, a term applied in the East to more than one kind of “Great Partridge.” Its most common application in India is to the Himalayan red-legged partridge, much resembling on a somewhat larger scale the bird so called in Europe. It is the “Francolin” of Moorcroft’s Travels, and the Caccabis Chukor of Gray. According to Cunningham the name is applied in Ladak to the bird sometimes called the Snow-pheasant, Jerdan’s Snow-cock, Tetraogallus himalayensis of Gray. And it must be the latter which Moorcroft speaks of as “the gigantic Chukor, much larger than the common partridge, found in large coveys on the edge of the snow;… one plucked and drawn weighed 5 lbs.”; described by Vigne as “a partridge as large as a hen-turkey”; the original perhaps of that partridge “larger than a vulture” which formed one of the presents from an Indian King to Augustus Caesar. [With reference to the large Tibetan partridge found in the Nan-shan Mountains in the meridian of Sha-chau by Prjevalsky, M. E. D. Morgan in a note (P. R. Geog. S. ix. 1887, p. 219), writes: “Megaloperdrix thibetanus. Its general name in Asia is ullar, a word of Kirghiz or Turkish origin; the Mongols call it hailik, and the Tibetans kung-mo. There are two other varieties of this bird found in the Himalaya and Altai Mountains, but the habits of life and call-note of all three are the same.”] From the extensive diffusion of the term, which seems to be common to India, Tibet, and Persia (for the latter, see Abbott in J. R. G. S. XXV. 41), it is likely enough to be of Mongol origin, not improbably Tsokhor, “dappled or pied.” (Kovalevsky, No. 2196, and Strahlenberg’s Vocabulary; see also Ladak, 205; Moorcr. I. 313, 432; Jerdan’s Birds of India, III. 549, 572;Dunlop, Hunting in Himalaya, 178; J. A. S. B. VI. 774.)
The chakór is mentioned by Baber (p. 282); and also by the Hindi poet Chand (Rás Mála, I. 230, and Ind. Antiquary, I. 273). If the latter passage is genuine, it is adverse to my Mongol etymology, as Chand lived before the Mongol era.
The keeping of partridges for the table is alluded to by Chaucer in his portrait of the Franklin, Prologue, Cant. Tales:
“It snewed in his hous of mete and drinke,
Of alle deyntees that men coud of thinke,
After the sondry sesons of the yere,
So changed he his mete and his soupere.
Full many a fat partrich hadde he in mewe,
And many a breme and many a luce in stewe.”
CHAPTER LXI.
OF THE CITY OF CHANDU, AND THE KAAN’S PALACE THERE.
And when you have ridden three days from the city last mentioned, between north-east and north, you come to a city called CHANDU,[NOTE 1] which was built by the Kaan now reigning. There is at this place a very fine marble Palace, the rooms of which are all gilt and painted with figures of men and beasts and birds, and with a variety of trees and flowers, all executed with such exquisite art that you regard them with delight and astonishment.[NOTE 2]
Round this Palace a wall is built, inclosing a compass of 16 miles, and inside the Park there are fountains and rivers and brooks, and beautiful meadows, with all kinds of wild animals (excluding such as are of ferocious nature), which the Emperor has procured and placed there to supply food for his gerfalcons and hawks, which he keeps there in mew. Of these there are more than 200 gerfalcons alone, without reckoning the other hawks. The Kaan himself goes every week to see his birds sitting in mew, and sometimes he rides through the park with a leopard behind him on his horse’s croup; and then if he sees any animal that takes his fancy, he slips his leopard at it,[NOTE 3] and the game when taken is made over to feed the hawks in mew. This he does for diversion.
Moreover [at a spot in the Park where there is a charming wood] he has another Palace built of cane, of which I must give you a description. It is gilt all over, and most elaborately finished inside. [It is stayed on gilt and lackered columns, on each of which is a dragon all gilt, the tail of which is attached to the column whilst the head supports the architrave, and the claws likewise are stretched out right and left to support the architrave.] The roof, like the rest, is formed of canes, covered with a varnish so strong and excellent that no amount of rain will rot them. These canes are a good 3 palms in girth, and from 10 to 15 paces in length. [They are cut across at each knot, and then the pieces are split so as to form from each two hollow tiles, and with these the house is roofed; only every such tile of cane has to be nailed down to prevent the wind from lifting it.] In short, the whole Palace is built of these canes, which (I may mention) serve also for a great variety of other useful purposes. The construction of the Palace is so devised that it can be taken down and put up again with great celerity; and it can all be taken to pieces and removed whithersoever the Emperor may command. When erected, it is braced [against mishaps from the wind] by more than 200 cords of silk.[NOTE 4]
The Lord abides at this Park of his, dwelling sometimes in the Marble Palace and sometimes in the Cane Palace for three months of the year, to wit, June, July, and August; preferring this residence because it is by no means hot; in fact it is a very cool place. When the 28th day of [the Moon of] August arrives he takes his departure, and the Cane Palace is taken to pieces.[NOTE 5] But I must tell you what happens when he goes away from this Palace every year on the 28th of the August [Moon].
You must know that the Kaan keeps an immense stud of white horses and mares; in fact more than 10,000 of them, and all pure white without a speck. The milk of these mares is drunk by himself and his family, and by none else, except by those of one great tribe that have also the privilege of drinking it. This privilege was granted them by Chinghis Kaan, on account of a certain victory that they helped him to win long ago. The name of the tribe is HORIAD.[NOTE 6]
Now when these mares are passing across the country, and any one falls in with them, be he the greatest lord in the land, he must not presume to pass until the mares have gone by; he must either tarry where he is, or go a half-day’s journey round if need so be, so as not to come nigh them; for they are to be treated with the greatest respect. Well, when the Lord sets out from the Park on the 28th of August, as I told you, the milk of all those mares is taken and sprinkled on the ground. And this is done on the injunction of the Idolaters and Idol-priests, who say that it is an excellent thing to sprinkle that milk on the ground every 28th of August, so that the Earth and the Air and the False Gods shall have their share of it, and the Spirits likewise that inhabit the Air and the Earth. And thus those beings will protect and bless the Kaan and his children and his wives and his folk and his gear, and his cattle and his horses, his corn and all that is his. After this is done, the Emperor is off and away.[NOTE 7]
But I must now tell you a strange thing that hitherto I have forgotten to mention. During the three months of every year that the Lord resides at that place, if it should happen to be bad weather, there are certain crafty enchanters and astrologers in his train, who are such adepts in necromancy and the diabolic arts, that they are able to prevent any cloud or storm from passing over the spot on which the Emperor’s Palace stands. The sorcerers who do this are called TEBET and KESIMUR, which are the names of two nations of Idolaters. Whatever they do in this way is by the help of the Devil, but they make those people believe that it is compassed by dint of their own sanctity and the help of God.[NOTE 8] [They always go in a state of dirt and uncleanness, devoid of respect for themselves, or for those who see them, unwashed, unkempt, and sordidly attired.]
These people also have a custom which I must tell you. If a man is condemned to death and executed by the lawful authority, they take his body and cook and eat it. But if any one die a natural death then they will not eat the body.[NOTE 9]
There is another marvel performed by those BACSI, of whom I have been speaking as knowing so many enchantments.[NOTE 10] For when the Great Kaan is at his capital and in his great Palace, seated at his table, which stands on a platform some eight cubits above the ground, his cups are set before him [on a great buffet] in the middle of the hall pavement, at a distance of some ten paces from his table, and filled with wine, or other good spiced liquor such as they use. Now when the Lord desires to drink, these enchanters by the power of their enchantments cause the cups to move from their place without being touched by anybody, and to present themselves to the Emperor! This every one present may witness, and there are ofttimes more than 10,000 persons thus present. ‘Tis a truth and no lie! and so will tell you the sages of our own country who understand necromancy, for they also can perform it.[NOTE 11]
And when the Idol Festivals come round, these Bacsi go to the Prince and say: “Sire, the Feast of such a god is come” (naming him). “My Lord, you know,” the enchanter will say, “that this god, when he gets no offerings, always sends bad weather and spoils our seasons. So we pray you to give us such and such a number of black-faced sheep,” naming whatever number they please. “And we beg also, good my lord, that we may have such a quantity of incense, and such a quantity of lignaloes, and”—so much of this, so much of that, and so much of t’other, according to their fancy—”that we may perform a solemn service and a great sacrifice to our Idols, and that so they may be induced to protect us and all that is ours.”
The Bacsi say these things to the Barons entrusted with the Stewardship, who stand round the Great Kaan, and these repeat them to the Kaan, and he then orders the Barons to give everything that the Bacsi have asked for. And when they have got the articles they go and make a great feast in honour of their god, and hold great ceremonies of worship with grand illuminations and quantities of incense of a variety of odours, which they make up from different aromatic spices. And then they cook the meat, and set it before the idols, and sprinkle the broth hither and thither, saying that in this way the idols get their bellyful. Thus it is that they keep their festivals. You must know that each of the idols has a name of his own, and a feast-day, just as our Saints have their anniversaries.[NOTE 12]
They have also immense Minsters and Abbeys, some of them as big as a small town, with more than two thousand monks (i.e. after their fashion) in a single abbey.[NOTE 13] These monks dress more decently than the rest of the people, and have the head and beard shaven. There are some among these Bacsi who are allowed by their rule to take wives, and who have plenty of children.[NOTE 14]
Then there is another kind of devotees called SENSIN, who are men of extraordinary abstinence after their fashion, and lead a life of such hardship as I will describe. All their life long they eat nothing but bran,[NOTE 15] which they take mixt with hot water. That is their food: bran, and nothing but bran; and water for their drink. ‘Tis a lifelong fast! so that I may well say their life is one of extraordinary asceticism. They have great idols, and plenty of them; but they sometimes also worship fire. The other Idolaters who are not of this sect call these people heretics—Patarins as we should say[NOTE 16]—because they do not worship their idols in their own fashion. Those of whom I am speaking would not take a wife on any consideration.[NOTE 17] They wear dresses of hempen stuff, black and blue,[NOTE 18] and sleep upon mats; in fact their asceticism is something astonishing. Their idols are all feminine, that is to say, they have women’s names.[NOTE 19]
Now let us have done with this subject, and let me tell you of the great state and wonderful magnificence of the Great Lord of Lords; I mean that great Prince who is the Sovereign of the Tartars, CUBLAY by name, that most noble and puissant Lord.
NOTE 1.—[There were two roads to go from Peking to Shangtu: the eastern road through Tu-shi-k’ow, and the western (used for the return journey) road by Ye-hu ling. Polo took this last road, which ran from Peking to Siuen-te chau through the same places as now; but from the latter town it led, not to Kalgan as it does now, but more to the west, to a place called now Shan-fang pú where the pass across the Ye-hu ling range begins. “On both these roads nabo, or temporary palaces, were built, as resting-places for the Khans; eighteen on the eastern road, and twenty-four on the western.” (Palladius, p. 25.) The same author makes (p. 26) the following remarks: “M. Polo’s statement that he travelled three days from Siuen-te chau to Chagannor, and three days also from the latter place to Shang-tu, agrees with the information contained in the ‘Researches on the Routes to Shangtu.’ The Chinese authors have not given the precise position of Lake Chagannor; there are several lakes in the desert on the road to Shangtu, and their names have changed with time. The palace in Chagannor was built in 1280” (according to the Siu t’ung kien).—H. C.]
NOTE 2.—Chandu, called more correctly in Ramusio Xandu, i.e. SHANDU, and by Fr. Odorico Sandu, viz. SHANG-TU or “Upper Court,” the Chinese title of Kúblái’s summer residence at Kaipingfu, Mongolicè Keibung (see ch. xiii. of Prologue) [is called also Loan king, i.e. “the capital on the Loan River,” according to Palladius, p. 26.—H. C.]. The ruins still exist, in about lat. 40° 22′, and a little west of the longitude of Peking. The site is 118 miles in direct line from Chaghan-nor, making Polo’s three marches into rides of unusual length.[1] The ruins bear the Mongol name ofChao Naiman Sumé Khotan, meaning “city of the 108 temples,” and are about 26 miles to the north-west of Dolon-nor, a bustling, dirty town of modern origin, famous for the manufactory of idols, bells, and other ecclesiastical paraphernalia of Buddhism. The site was visited (though not described) by Père Gerbillon in 1691, and since then by no European traveller till 1872, when Dr. Bushell of the British Legation at Peking, and the Hon. T. G. Grosvenor, made a journey thither from the capital, by way of the Nan-kau Pass (supra p. 26), Kalgan, and the vicinity of Chaghan-nor, the route that would seem to have been habitually followed, in their annual migration, by Kúblái and his successors.
The deserted site, overgrown with rank weeds and grass, stands but little above the marshy bed of the river, which here preserves the name of Shang- tu, and about a mile from its north or left bank. The walls, of earth faced with brick and unhewn stone, still stand, forming, as in the Tartar city of Peking, a double enceinte, of which the inner line no doubt represents the area of the “Marble Palace” of which Polo speaks. This forms a square of about 2 li (2/3 of a mile) to the side, and has three gates—south, east, and west, of which the southern one still stands intact, a perfect arch, 20 ft. high and 12 ft. wide. The outer wall forms a square of 4 li (1-1/3 mile) to the side, and has six gates. The foundations of temples and palace-buildings can be traced, and both enclosures are abundantly strewn with blocks of marble and fragments of lions, dragons, and other sculptures, testifying to the former existence of a flourishing city, but exhibiting now scarcely one stone upon another. A broken memorial tablet was found, half buried in the ground, within the north-east angle of the outer rampart, bearing an inscription in an antique form of the Chinese character, which proves it to have been erected by Kúblái, in honour of a Buddhist ecclesiastic called Yun-Hien. Yun-Hien was the abbot of one of those great minsters and abbeys of Bacsis, of which Marco speaks, and the exact date (no longer visible) of the monument was equivalent to A.D. 1288.[2]
[Illustration: Heading In the Old Chinese Seal-Character, of an INSCRIPTION on a Memorial raised by KÚBLÁI-KAAN to a Buddhist Ecclesiastic in the vicinity of his SUMMER-PALACE at SHANG-TU in Mongolia. Reduced from a facsimile obtained on the spot by Dr. S. W. Bushell, 1872. (About one- Forth the Length and Breadth of Original.)]
This city occupies the south-east angle of a more extensive enclosure, bounded by what is now a grassy mound, and embracing, on Dr. Bushell’s estimate, about 5 square miles. Further knowledge may explain the discrepancy from Marco’s dimension, but this must be the park of which he speaks.[3] The woods and fountains have disappeared, like the temples and palaces; all is dreary and desolate, though still abounding in the game which was one of Kúblái’s attractions to the spot. A small monastery, occupied by six or seven wretched Lamas, is the only building that remains in the vicinity. The river Shangtu, which lower down becomes the Lan [or Loan]-Ho, was formerly navigated from the sea up to this place by flat grain-boats.
[Mgr. de Harlez gave in the T’oung Pao (x. p. 73) an inscription in Chuen character on a stele found in the ruins of Shangtu, and built by an officer with the permission of the Emperor; it is probably a token of imperial favour; the inscription means: Great Longevity.—H. C.]
In the wail which Sanang Setzen, the poetical historian of the Mongols, puts, perhaps with some traditional basis, into the mouth of Toghon Temur, the last of the Chinghizide Dynasty in China, when driven from his throne, the changes are rung on the lost glories of his capital Daïtu (see infra, Book II. ch. xi.) and his summer palace Shangtu; thus (I translate from Schott’s amended German rendering of the Mongol):
“My vast and noble Capital, My Daïtu, My splendidly adorned!
And Thou my cool and delicious Summer-seat, my Shangtu-Keibung!
Ye, also, yellow plains of Shangtu, Delight of my godlike Sires!
I suffered myself to drop into dreams,—and lo! my Empire was gone!
Ah Thou my Daïtu, built of the nine precious substances!
Ah my Shangtu-Keibung, Union of all perfections!
Ah my Fame! Ah my Glory, as Khagan and Lord of the Earth!
When I used to awake betimes and look forth, how the breezes blew
loaded with fragrance!
And turn which way I would all was glorious perfection of beauty!
Alas for my illustrious name as the Sovereign of the World!
Alas for my Daïtu, seat of Sanctity, Glorious work of the Immortal
KÚBLÁI!
All, all is rent from me!”
It was, in 1797, whilst reading this passage of Marco’s narrative in old
Purchas that Coleridge fell asleep, and dreamt the dream of Kúblái’s
Paradise, beginning:
“In Xanadu did Kubla Khan
A stately pleasure-dome decree:
Where Alph, the sacred River, ran
Through caverns measureless to man
Down to a sunless sea.
So twice five miles of fertile ground
With walls and towers were girdled round:
And there were gardens bright with sinuous rills
Where blossomed many an incense-bearing tree;
And here were forests ancient as the hills,
Enfolding sunny spots of greenery.”
It would be a singular coincidence in relation to this poem were Klaproth’s reading correct of a passage in Rashiduddin which he renders as saying that the palace at Kaiminfu was “called Langtin, and was built after a plan that Kúblái had seen in a dream, and had retained in his memory.” But I suspect D’Ohsson’s reading is more accurate, which runs: “Kúblái caused a Palace to be built for him east of Kaipingfu, called Lengten; but he abandoned it in consequence of a dream.” For we see from Sanang Setzen that the Palaces of Lengten and Kaiming or Shangtu were distinct; “Between the year of the Rat (1264), when Kúblái was fifty years old, and the year of the Sheep (1271), in the space of eight years, he built four great cities, viz. for Summer Residence SHANGTU KEIBUNG Kürdu Balgasun, for Winter Residence Yeke DAÏTU Khotan, and on the shady side of the Altai (see ch. li. note 3, supra) Arulun TSAGHAN BALGASUN, and Erchügin LANGTING Balgasun.” A valuable letter from Dr. Bushell enables me now to indicate the position of Langtin: “The district through which the river flows eastward from Shangtu is known to the Mongolians of the present day by the name of Lang-tírh (Lang-ting’rh)…. The ruins of the city are marked on a Chinese map in my possession Pai-dseng-tzu, i.e. ‘White City,’ implying that it was formerly an Imperial residence. The remains of the wall are 7 or 8 li in diameter, of stone, and situated about 40 linorth-north-west from Dolon-nor.”
(Gerbillon in Astley, IV. 701-716; Klaproth, in J. As. sèr. II. tom. xi. 345-350; Schott, Die letzten Jahre der Mongolenherrschaft in China (Berl. Acad. d. Wissensch. 1850, pp. 502-503); Huc’s Tartary, etc., p. seqq.; Cathay, 134, 261; S. Setzen, p. 115; Dr. S. W. Bushell, Journey outside the Great Wall, in J. R. G. S. for 1874, and MS. notes.)
One of the pavilions of the celebrated Yuen-ming-Yuen may give some idea of the probable style, though not of the scale, of Kúblái’s Summer Palace.
Hiuen Tsang’s account of the elaborate and fantastic ornamentation of the famous Indian monasteries at Nalanda in Bahár, where Mr. Broadley has lately made such remarkable discoveries, seems to indicate that these fantasies of Burmese and Chinese architecture may have had a direct origin in India, at a time when timber was still a principal material of construction there: “The pavilions had pillars adorned with dragons, and posts that glowed with all the colours of the rainbow, sculptured frets, columns set with jade, richly chiselled and lackered, with balustrades of vermilion, and carved open work. The lintels of the doors were tastefully ornamented, and the roofs covered with shining tiles, the splendours of which were multiplied by mutual reflection and from moment to moment took a thousand forms.” (Vie et Voyages, 157.)
NOTE 3.—[Rubruck says, (Rockhill, p. 248): “I saw also the envoy of a certain Soldan of India, who had brought eight leopards and ten greyhounds, taught to sit on horses’ backs, as leopards sit.”—H. C.]
NOTE 4.—Ramusio’s is here so much more lucid than the other texts, that I have adhered mainly to his account of the building. The roof described is of a kind in use in the Indian Archipelago, and in some other parts of Transgangetic India, in which the semi-cylinders of bamboo are laid just like Roman tiles.
Rashiduddin gives a curious account of the way in which the foundations of the terrace on which this palace stood were erected in a lake. He says, too, in accord with Polo: “Inside the city itself a second palace was built, about a bowshot from the first: but the Kaan generally takes up his residence in the palace outside the town,” i.e., as I imagine, in Marco’s Cane Palace. (Cathay, pp. 261-262.)
[“The Palace of canes is probably the Palm Hall, Tsung tien, alias Tsung mao tien, of the Chinese authors, which was situated in the western palace garden of Shangtu. Mention is made also in the Altan Tobchi of a cane tent in Shangtu.” (Palladius, p. 27.)—H. C.]
[Illustration: Pavilion at Yuen-ming-Yuen.]
Marco might well say of the bamboo that “it serves also a great variety of other purposes.” An intelligent native of Arakan who accompanied me in wanderings on duty in the forests of the Burmese frontier in the beginning of 1853, and who used to ask many questions about Europe, seemed able to apprehend almost everything except the possibility of existence in a country without bamboos! “When I speak of bamboo huts, I mean to say that posts and walls, wall-plates and rafters, floor and thatch, and the withes that bind them, are all of bamboo. In fact, it might almost be said that among the Indo-Chinese nations the staff of life is a bamboo! Scaffolding and ladders, landing-jetties, fishing apparatus, irrigation wheels and scoops, oars, masts, and yards [and in China, sails, cables, and caulking, asparagus, medicine, and works of fantastic art], spears and arrows, hats and helmets, bow, bowstring and quiver, oil-cans, water-stoups and cooking-pots, pipe-sticks [tinder and means of producing fire], conduits, clothes-boxes, pawn-boxes, dinner-trays, pickles, preserves, and melodious musical instruments, torches, footballs, cordage, bellows, mats, paper; these are but a few of the articles that are made from the bamboo;” and in China, to sum up the whole, as Barrow observes, it maintains order throughout the Empire! (Ava Mission, p. 153; and see also Wallace, Ind. Arch. I. 120 seqq.)
NOTE 5.—”The Emperor … began this year (1264) to depart from Yenking (Peking) in the second or third month for Shangtu, not returning until the eighth month. Every year he made this passage, and all the Mongol emperors who succeeded him followed his example.” (Gaubil, p. 144.)
[“The Khans usually resorted to Shangtu in the 4th moon and returned to Peking in the 9th. On the 7th day of the 7th moon there were libations performed in honour of the ancestors; a shaman, his face to the north, uttered in a loud voice the names of Chingiz Khan and of other deceased Khans, and poured mare’s milk on the ground. The propitious day for the return journey to Peking was also appointed then.” (Palladius, p. 26.)—H. C.]
NOTE 6.—White horses were presented in homage to the Kaan on New Year’s Day (the White Feast), as we shall see below. (Bk. II. ch. xv.) Odoric also mentions this practice; and, according to Huc, the Mongol chiefs continued it at least to the time of the Emperor K’ang-hi. Indeed Timkowski speaks of annual tributes of white camels and white horses from the Khans of the Kalkas and other Mongol dignitaries, in the present century. (Huc’s Tartary, etc.; Tim. II. 33.)
By the HORIAD are no doubt intended the UIRAD or OIRAD, a name usually interpreted as signifying the “Closely Allied,” or Confederates; but Vámbéry explains it as (Turki) Oyurat, “Grey horse,” to which the statement in our text appears to lend colour. They were not of the tribes properly called Mongol, but after their submission to Chinghiz they remained closely attached to him. In Chinghiz’s victory over Aung-Khan, as related by S. Setzen, we find Turulji Taishi, the son of the chief of the Oirad, one of Chinghiz’s three chief captains; perhaps that is the victory alluded to. The seats of the Oirad appear to have been about the head waters of the Kem, or Upper Yenisei.
In A.D. 1295 there took place a curious desertion from the service of Gházán Khan of Persia of a vast corps of the Oirad, said to amount to 18,000 tents. They made their way to Damascus, where they were well received by the Mameluke Sultan. But their heathenish practices gave dire offence to the Faithful. They were settled in the Sáhil, or coast districts of Palestine. Many died speedily; the rest embraced Islam, spread over the country, and gradually became absorbed in the general population. Their sons and daughters were greatly admired for their beauty. (S. Setz. p. 87; Erdmann, 187; Pallas, Samml. I. 5 seqq.; Makrizi, III. 29; Bretschneider, Med. Res. II. p. 159 seqq.)
[With reference to Yule’s conjecture, I may quote Palladius (l.c. p. 27): “It is, however, strange that the Oirats alone enjoyed the privilege described by Marco Polo; for the highest position at the Mongol Khan’s court belonged to the Kunkrat tribe, out of which the Khans used to choose their first wives, who were called Empresses of the first ordo.”—H. C.]
NOTE 7.—Rubruquis assigns such a festival to the month of May: “On the 9th day of the May Moon they collect all the white mares of their herds and consecrate them. The Christian priests also must then assemble with their thuribles. They then sprinkle new cosmos (kumíz) on the ground, and make a great feast that day, for according to their calendar, it is their time of first drinking new cosmos, just as we reckon of our new wine at the feast of St. Bartholomew (24th August), or that of St. Sixtus (6th August), or of our fruit on the feast of St. James and St. Christopher” (25th July). [With reference to this feast, Mr. Rockhill gives (Rubruck, p. 241, note) extracts from Pallas, Voyages, IV. 579, and Professor Radloff, Aus Siberien, I. 378.—H. C.] The Yakuts also hold such a festival in June or July, when the mares foal, and immense wooden goblets of kumíz are emptied on that occasion. They also pour out kumíz for the Spirits to the four quarters of heaven.
The following passage occurs in the narrative of the Journey of Chang
Te-hui, a Chinese teacher, who was summoned to visit the camp of Kúblái in
Mongolia, some twelve years before that Prince ascended the throne of the
Kaans:[4]
“On the 9th day of the 9th Moon (October), the Prince, having called his subjects before his chief tent, performed the libation of the milk of a white mare. This was the customary sacrifice at that time. The vessels used were made of birch-bark, not ornamented with either silver or gold. Such here is the respect for simplicity….
“At the last day of the year the Mongols suddenly changed their camping-ground to another place, for the mutual congratulation on the 1st Moon. Then there was every day feasting before the tents for the lower ranks. Beginning with the Prince, all dressed themselves in white fur clothing….[5]
“On the 9th day of the 4th Moon (May) the Prince again collected his vassals before the chief tent for the libation of the milk of a white mare. This sacrifice is performed twice a year.”
It has been seen (p. 308) that Rubruquis also names the 9th day of the May moon as that of the consecration of the white mares. The autumn libation is described by Polo as performed on the 28th day of the August moon, probably because it was unsuited to the circumstances of the Court at Cambaluc, where the Kaan was during October, and the day named was the last of his annual stay in the Mongolian uplands.
Baber tells that among the ceremonies of a Mongol Review the Khan and his staff took kumiz and sprinkled it towards the standards. An Armenian author of the Mongol era says that it was the custom of the Tartars, before drinking, to sprinkle drink towards heaven, and towards the four quarters. Mr. Atkinson notices the same practice among the Kirghiz: and I found the like in old days among the Kasias of the eastern frontier of Bengal.
The time of year assigned by Polo for the ceremony implies some change. Perhaps it had been made to coincide with the Festival of Water Consecration of the Lamas, with which the time named in the text seems to correspond. On that occasion the Lamas go in procession to the rivers and lakes and consecrate them by benediction and by casting in offerings, attended by much popular festivity.
Rubruquis seems to intimate that the Nestorian priests were employed to consecrate the white mares by incensing them. In the rear of Lord Canning’s camp in India I once came upon the party of his Shutr Suwárs, or dromedary-express riders, busily engaged in incensing with frankincense the whole of the dromedaries, which were kneeling in a circle. I could get no light on the practice, but it was very probably a relic of the old Mongol custom. (Rubr. 363; Erman, II. 397; Billings’ Journey, Fr. Tr. I. 217; Baber, 103; J. As. sèr. V. tom. xi. p. 249; Atk. Amoor, p. 47; J. A. S. B. XIII. 628; Koeppen, II. 313.)
NOTE 8.—The practice of weather-conjuring was in great vogue among the
Mongols, and is often alluded to in their history.
The operation was performed by means of a stone of magical virtues, called Yadah or Jadah-Tásh, which was placed in or hung over a basin of water with sundry ceremonies. The possession of such a stone is ascribed by the early Arab traveller Ibn Mohalhal to the Kímák, a great tribe of the Turks. In the war raised against Chinghiz and Aung Khan, when still allies, by a great confederation of the Naiman and other tribes in 1202, we are told that Sengun, the son of Aung Khan, when sent to meet the enemy, caused them to be enchanted, so that all their attempted movements against him were defeated by snow and mist. The fog and darkness were indeed so dense that many men and horses fell over precipices, and many also perished with cold. In another account of (apparently) the same matter, given by Mir-Khond, the conjuring is set on foot by the Yadachi of Buyruk Khan, Prince of the Naiman, but the mischief all rebounds on the conjurer’s own side.
In Tului’s invasion of Honan in 1231-1232, Rashiduddin describes him, when in difficulty, as using the Jadah stone with success.
Timur, in his Memoirs, speaks of the Jets using incantations to produce heavy rains which hindered his cavalry from acting against them. A Yadachi was captured, and when his head had been taken off the storm ceased.
Baber speaks of one of his early friends, Khwaja Ka Mulai, as excelling in falconry and acquainted with Yadagarí or the art of bringing on rain and snow by means of enchantment. When the Russians besieged Kazan in 1552 they suffered much from the constant heavy rains, and this annoyance was universally ascribed to the arts of the Tartar Queen, who was celebrated as an enchantress. Shah Abbas believed he had learned the Tartar secret, and put much confidence in it. (P. Delia V. I. 869.)
[Grenard says (II. p. 256) the most powerful and most feared of sorcerers [in Chinese Turkestan] is the djâduger, who, to produce rain or fine weather, uses a jade stone, given by Noah to Japhet. Grenard adds (II. 406-407) there are sorcerers (Ngag-pa-snags-pa) whose specialty is to make rain fall; they are similar to the Turkish Yadachi and like them use a stone called “water cristal,” chu shel; probably jade stone.
Mr. Rockhill (Rubruck, p. 245, note) writes: “Rashideddin states that when the Urianghit wanted to bring a storm to an end, they said injuries to the sky, the lightning and thunder. I have seen this done myself by Mongol storm-dispellers. (See Diary, 201, 203.) ‘The other Mongol people,’ he adds, ‘do the contrary. When the storm rumbles, they remain shut up in their huts, full of fear.’ The subject of storm-making, and the use of stones for that purpose, is fully discussed by Quatremère, Histoire, 438-440.” (Cf. also Rockhill, l.c. p. 254.)—H. C.]
An edict of the Emperor Shi-tsung, of the reigning dynasty, addressed in 1724-1725 to the Eight Banners of Mongolia, warns them against this rain-conjuring: “If I,” indignantly observes the Emperor, “offering prayer in sincerity have yet room to fear that it may please Heaven to leave MY prayer unanswered, it is truly intolerable that mere common people wishing for rain should at their own caprice set up altars of earth, and bring together a rabble of Hoshang (Buddhist Bonzes) and Taossé to conjure the spirits to gratify their wishes.”
[“Lamas were of various extraction; at the time of the great assemblies, and of the Khan’s festivities in Shangtu, they erected an altar near the Khan’s tent and prayed for fine weather; the whistling of shells rose up to heaven.” These are the words in which Marco Polo’s narrative is corroborated by an eye-witness who has celebrated the remarkable objects of Shangtu (Loan king tsa yung). These Lamas, in spite of the prohibition by the Buddhist creed of bloody sacrifices, used to sacrifice sheep’s hearts to Mahakala. It happened, as it seems, that the heart of an executed criminal was also considered an agreeable offering; and as the offerings could be, after the ceremony, eaten by the sacrificing priests, Marco Polo had some reason to accuse the Lamas of cannibalism. (Palladius, 28.)—H. C.]
The practice of weather-conjuring is not yet obsolete in Tartary, Tibet, and the adjoining countries.[6]
Weather-conjuring stories were also rife in Europe during the Middle Ages. One such is conspicuously introduced in connection with a magical fountain in the romance of the Chevalier au Lyon:
“Et s’i pant uns bacins d’or fin
A une si longue chaainne
Qui dure jusqu’a la fontainne,
Lez la fontainne troveras
Un perron tel con tu verras
S’au bacin viaus de l’iaue prandre
Et dessor le perron espandre,
La verras une tel tanpeste
Qu’an cest bois ne remandra beste,”
etc. etc.[7]
The effect foretold in these lines is the subject of a woodcut illustrating a Welsh version of the same tale in the first volume of the Mabinogion. And the existence of such a fountain is alluded to by Alexander Neckam. (De Naturis Rerum, Bk. II. ch. vii.)
In the Cento Novelle Antiche also certain necromancers exhibit their craft before the Emperor Frederic (Barbarossa apparently): “The weather began to be overcast, and lo of a sudden rain began to fall with continued thunders and lightnings, as if the world were come to an end, and hailstones that looked like steel-caps,” etc. Various other European legends of like character will be found in Liebrecht’s Gervasius von Tilbury, pp. 147-148.
Rain-makers there are in many parts of the world; but it is remarkable that those also of Samoa in the Pacific operate by means of a rain-stone.
Such weather conjurings as we have spoken of are ascribed by Ovid to
Circe:
“Concipit illa preces, et verba venefica dicit;
Ignotosque Deos ignoto carmine adorat,
Tunc quoque cantato densetur carmine caelum,
Et nebulas exhalat humus.”—Metam. XIV. 365.
And to Medea:—
—”Quum volui, ripis mirantibus, amnes
In fontes rediere suos … (another feat of the Lamas)
… Nubila pello,
Nubilaque induco; ventos abigoque, vocoque.”—Ibid. VII. 199.
And by Tibullus to the Saga (Eleg. I. 2, 45); whilst Empedocles, in verses ascribed to him by Diogenes Laertius, claims power to communicate like secrets of potency:—
“By my spells thou may’st
To timely sunshine turn the purple rains,
And parching droughts to fertilising floods.”
(See Cathay, p. clxxxvii.; Erdm. 282; Oppert, 182 seqq.; Erman,
I. 153; Pallas, Samml. II. 348 seqq.; Timk. I. 402; J. R. A. S.
VII. 305-306; D’Ohsson, II. 614; and for many interesting particulars,
Q. R. p. 428 seqq., and Hammers Golden Horde, 207 and 435 seqq.)
NOTE 9.—It is not clear whether Marco attributes this cannibalism to the Tibetans and Kashmirians, or brings it in as a particular of Tartar custom which he had forgotten to mention before.
The accusations of cannibalism indeed against the Tibetans in old accounts are frequent, and I have elsewhere (see Cathay, p. 151) remarked on some singular Tibetan practices which go far to account for such charges. Della Penna, too, makes a statement which bears curiously on the present passage. Remarking on the great use made by certain classes of the Lamas of human skulls for magical cups, and of human thigh bones for flutes and whistles, he says that to supply them with these the bodies of executed criminals were stored up of the disposal of the Lamas; and a Hindu account of Tibet in the Asiatic Researches asserts that when one is killed in a fight both parties rush forward and struggle for the liver, which they eat (vol. xv).
[Carpini says of the people of Tibet: “They are pagans; they have a most astonishing, or rather horrible, custom, for, when any one’s father is about to give up the ghost, all the relatives meet together, and they eat him, as was told to me for certain.” Mr. Rockhill (Rubruck, p. 152, note) writes: “So far as I am aware, this charge [of cannibalism] is not made by any Oriental writer against the Tibetans, though both Arab travellers to China in the ninth century and Armenian historians of the thirteenth century say the Chinese practised cannibalism. The Armenians designate China by the name Nankas, which I take to be Chinese Nan-kuo, ‘southern country,’ the Manzi country of Marco Polo.”—H. C.]
But like charges of cannibalism are brought against both Chinese and Tartars very positively. Thus, without going back to the Anthropophagous Scythians of Ptolemy and Mela, we read in the Relations of the Arab travellers of the ninth century: “In China it occurs sometimes that the governor of a province revolts from his duty to the emperor. In such a case he is slaughtered and eaten. In fact, the Chinese eat the flesh of all men who are executed by the sword.” Dr. Rennie mentions a superstitious practice, the continued existence of which in our own day he has himself witnessed, and which might perhaps have given rise to some such statement as that of the Arab travellers, if it be not indeed a relic, in a mitigated form, of the very practice they assert to have prevailed. After an execution at Peking certain large pith balls are steeped in the blood, and under the name ofblood-bread are sold as a medicine for consumption. It is only to the blood of decapitated criminals that any such healing power is attributed. It has been asserted in the annals of the Propagation de la Foi that the Chinese executioners of M. Chapdelaine, a missionary who was martyred in Kwang-si in 1856 (28th February), were seen to eat the heart of their victim; and M. Huot, a missionary in the Yun-nan province, recounts a case of cannibalism which he witnessed. Bishop Chauveau, at Ta Ts’ien-lu, told Mr. Cooper that he had seen men in one of the cities of Yun-nan eating the heart and brains of a celebrated robber who had been executed. Dr. Carstairs Douglas of Amoy also tells me that the like practices have occurred at Amoy and Swatau.
[With reference to cannibalism in China see Medical Superstitions an Incentive to Anti-Foreign Riots in China, by D. J. Macgowan, North China Herald, 8th July, 1892, pp. 60-62. Mr. E. H. Parker (China Review, February-March, 1901, 136) relates that the inhabitants of a part of Kwang-si boiled and ate a Chinese officer who had been sent to pacify them. “The idea underlying this horrible act [cannibalism] is, that by eating a portion of the victim, especially the heart, one acquires the valour with which he was endowed.” (Dennys’ Folk-lore of China, 67.)—H. C.]
Hayton, the Armenian, after relating the treason of a Saracen, called Parwana (he was an Iconian Turk), against Abaka Khan, says: “He was taken and cut in two, and orders were issued that in all the food eaten by Abaka there should be put a portion of the traitor’s flesh. Of this Abaka himself ate, and caused all his barons to partake. And this was in accordance with the custom of the Tartars.” The same story is related independently and differently by Friar Ricold, thus: “When the army of Abaga ran away from the Saracens in Syria, a certain great Tartar baron was arrested who had been guilty of treason. And when the Emperor Khan was giving the order for his execution the Tartar ladies and women interposed, and begged that he might be made over to them. Having got hold of the prisoner they boiled him alive, and cutting his body up into mince-meat gave it to eat to the whole army, as an example to others.” Vincent of Beauvais makes a like statement: “When they capture any one who is at bitter enmity with them, they gather together and eat him in vengeance of his revolt, and like infernal leeches suck his blood,” a custom of which a modern Mongol writer thinks that he finds a trace in a surviving proverb. Among more remote and ignorant Franks the cannibalism of the Tartars was a general belief. Ivo of Narbonne, in his letter written during the great Tartar invasion of Europe (1242), declares that the Tartar chiefs, with their dog’s head followers and other Lotophagi (!), ate the bodies of their victims like so much bread; whilst a Venetian chronicler, speaking of the council of Lyons in 1274, says there was a discussion about making a general move against the Tartars, “porce qu’il manjuent la char humaine.” These latter writers no doubt rehearsed mere popular beliefs, but Hayton and Ricold were both intelligent persons well acquainted with the Tartars, and Hayton at least not prejudiced against them.
The old belief was revived in Prussia during the Seven Years’ War, in regard to the Kalmaks of the Russian army; and Bergmann says the old Kalmak warriors confessed to him that they had done what they could to encourage it by cutting up the bodies of the slain in presence of their prisoners, and roasting them! But Levchine relates an act on the part of the Kirghiz Kazaks which was no jest. They drank the blood of their victim if they did not eat his flesh.
There is some reason to believe that cannibalism was in the Middle Ages generally a less strange and unwonted horror than we should at first blush imagine, and especially that it was an idea tolerably familiar in China. M. Bazin, in the second part of Chine Moderne, p. 461, after sketching a Chinese drama of the Mongol era (“The Devotion of Chao-li”), the plot of which turns on the acts of a body of cannibals, quotes several other passages from Chinese authors which indicate this. Nor is this wonderful in the age that had experienced the horrors of the Mongol wars.
That was no doubt a fable which Carpini heard in the camp of the Great Kaan, that in one of the Mongol sieges in Cathay, when the army was without food, one man in ten of their own force was sacrificed to feed the remainder.[8] But we are told in sober history that the force of Tului in Honan, in 1231-1232, was reduced to such straits as to eat grass and human flesh. At the siege of the Kin capital Kaifongfu, in 1233, the besieged were reduced to the like extremity; and the same occurred the same year at the siege of Tsaichau; and in 1262, when the rebel general Litan was besieged in Tsinanfu. The Taiping wars the other day revived the same horrors in all their magnitude. And savage acts of the same kind by the Chinese and their Turk partisans in the defence of Kashgar were related to Mr. Shaw.
Probably, however, nothing of the kind in history equals what Abdallatif, a sober and scientific physician, describes as having occurred before his own eyes in the great Egyptian famine of A.H. 597 (1200). The horrid details fill a chapter of some length, and we need not quote from them.
Nor was Christendom without the rumour of such barbarities. The story of King Richard’s banquet in presence of Saladin’s ambassadors on the head of a Saracen curried (for so it surely was),—
“soden full hastily
With powder and with spysory,
And with saffron of good colour”—
fable as it is, is told with a zest that makes one shudder; but the tale in the Chanson d’Antioche, of how the licentious bands of ragamuffins, who hung on the army of the First Crusade, and were known as the Tafurs,[9] ate the Turks whom they killed at the siege, looks very like an abominable truth, corroborated as it is by the prose chronicle of worse deeds at the ensuing siege of Marrha:—
“A lor cotiaus qu’il ont trenchans et afilés
Escorchoient les Turs, aval parmi les près.
Voiant Paiens, les ont par pièces découpés.
En l’iave et el carbon les ont bien quisinés,
Volontiers les menjuent sans pain et dessalés.”[10]
(Della Penna, p. 76; Reinaud, Rel. I. 52; Rennie’s Peking, II. 244; Ann. de la Pr. de la F. XXIX. 353, XXI. 298; Hayton in Ram. ch. xvii.; Per. Quat. p. 116; M. Paris, sub. 1243; Mél. Asiat. Acad. St. Pétersb. II. 659; Canale in Arch. Stor. Ital. VIII.; Bergm. Nomad. Streifereien, I. 14; Carpini, 638; D’Ohsson, II. 30, 43, 52; Wilson’s Ever Victorious Army, 74; Shaw, p. 48; Abdallatif, p. 363 seqq.; Weber, II. 135; Littré, H. de la Langue Franç. I. 191; Gesta Tancredi in Thes. Nov. Anecd. III. 172.)
NOTE 10.—Bakhshi is generally believed to be a corruption of Bhikshu, the proper Sanscrit term for a religious mendicant, and in particular for the Buddhist devotees of that character. Bakhshi was probably applied to a class only of the Lamas, but among the Turks and Persians it became a generic name for them all. In this sense it is habitually used by Rashiduddin, and thus also in the Ain Akbari: “The learned among the Persians and Arabians call the priests of this (Buddhist) religion Bukshee, and in Tibbet they are styled Lamas.”
According to Pallas the word among the modern Mongols is used in the sense of Teacher, and is applied to the oldest and most learned priest of a community, who is the local ecclesiastical chief. Among the Kirghiz Kazzaks again, who profess Mahomedanism, the word also survives, but conveys among them just the idea that Polo seems to have associated with it, that of a mere conjuror or “medicine-man”; whilst in Western Turkestan it has come to mean a Bard.
The word Bakhshi has, however, wandered much further from its original meaning. From its association with persons who could read and write, and who therefore occasionally acted as clerks, it came in Persia to mean a clerk or secretary. In the Petrarchian Vocabulary, published by Klaproth, we find scriba rendered in Comanian, i.e. Turkish of the Crimea, by Bacsi. The transfer of meaning is precisely parallel to that in regard to our Clerk. Under the Mahomedan sovereigns of India, Bakhshi was applied to an officer performing something like the duties of a quartermaster-general; and finally, in our Indian army, it has come to mean a paymaster. In the latter sense, I imagine it has got associated in the popular mind with the Persian bakhshídan, to bestow, and bakhshísh. (See a note in Q. R. p. 184 seqq.; Cathay, p. 474; Ayeen Akbery, III. 150; Pallas, Samml. II. 126;Levchine, p. 355; Klap. Mém. III.; Vámbéry, Sketches, p. 81.)
The sketch from the life, on p. 326, of a wandering Tibetan devotee, whom I met once at Hardwár, may give an idea of the sordid Bacsis spoken of by Polo.
NOTE 11.—This feat is related more briefly by Odoric: “And jugglers cause cups of gold full of good wine to fly through the air, and to offer themselves to all who list to drink.” (Cathay, p. 143.) In the note on that passage I have referred to a somewhat similar story in the Life of Apollonius. “Such feats,” says Mr. Jaeschke, “are often mentioned in ancient as well as modern legends of Buddha and other saints; and our Lamas have heard of things very similar performed by conjuring Bonpos.” (See p. 323.) The moving of cups and the like is one of the sorceries ascribed in old legends to Simon Magus: “He made statues to walk; leapt into the fire without being burnt; flew in the air; made bread of stones; changed his shape; assumed two faces at once; converted himself into a pillar; caused closed doors to fly open spontaneously; made the vessels in a house seem to move of themselves,” etc. The Jesuit Delrio laments that credulous princes, otherwise of pious repute, should have allowed diabolic tricks to be played before them, “as, for example, things of iron, and silver goblets, or other heavy articles, to be moved by bounds from one end of a table to the other, without the use of a magnet or of any attachment.” The pious prince appears to have been Charles IX., and the conjuror a certain Cesare Maltesio. Another Jesuit author describes the veritable mango-trick, speaking of persons who “within three hours’ space did cause a genuine shrub of a span in length to grow out of the table, besides other trees that produced both leaves and fruit.”
In a letter dated 1st December, 1875, written by Mr. R. B. Shaw, after his last return from Kashgar and Lahore, this distinguished traveller says; “I have heard stories related regarding a Buddhist high priest whose temple is said to be not far to the east of Lanchau, which reminds me of Marco Polo and Kúblái Khan. This high priest is said to have the magic power of attracting cups and plates to him from a distance, so that things fly through the air into his hands.” (MS. Note.—H. Y.)
The profession and practice of exorcism and magic in general is greatly more prominent in Lamaism or Tibetan Buddhism than in any other known form of that religion. Indeed, the old form of Lamaism as it existed in our traveller’s day, and till the reforms of Tsongkhapa (1357-1419), and as it is still professed by the Red sect in Tibet, seems to be a kind of compromise between Indian Buddhism and the old indigenous Shamanism. Even the reformed doctrine of the Yellow sect recognises an orthodox kind of magic, which is due in great measure to the combination of Sivaism with the Buddhist doctrines, and of which the institutes are contained in the vast collection of the Jud or Tantras, recognised among the holy books. The magic arts of this code open even a short road to the Buddhahood itself. To attain that perfection of power and wisdom, culminating in the cessation of sensible existence, requires, according to the ordinary paths, a period of three asankhyas (or say Uncountable Time × 3), whereas by means of the magic arts of the Tantras it may be reached in the course of three rebirths only, nay, of one! But from the Tantras also can be learned how to acquire miraculous powers for objects entirely selfish and secular, and how to exercise these by means of Dhárani or mystic Indian charms.
Still the orthodox Yellow Lamas professedly repudiate and despise the grosser exhibitions of common magic and charlatanism which the Reds still practise, such as knife-swallowing, blowing fire, cutting off their own heads, etc. But as the vulgar will not dispense with these marvels, every great orthodox monastery in Tibet keeps a conjuror, who is a member of the unreformed, and does not belong to the brotherhood of the convent, but lives in a particular part of it, bearing the name of Choichong, or protector of religion, and is allowed to marry. The magic of these Choichong is in theory and practice different from the orthodox Tantrist magic. The practitioners possess no literature, and hand down their mysteries only by tradition. Their fantastic equipments, their frantic bearing, and their cries and howls, seem to identify them with the grossest Shamanist devil dancers.
Sanang Setzen enumerates a variety of the wonderful acts which could be performed through the Dhárani. Such were, sticking a peg into solid rock; restoring the dead to life; turning a dead body into gold; penetrating everywhere as air does; flying; catching wild beasts with the hand; reading thoughts; making water flow backwards; eating tiles; sitting in the air with the legs doubled under, etc. Some of these are precisely the powers ascribed to Medea, Empedocles, and Simon Magus, in passages already cited. Friar Ricold says on this subject: “There are certain men whom the Tartars honour above all in the world, viz. the Baxitae (i.e. Bakhshis), who are a kind of idol-priests. These are men from India, persons of deep wisdom, well-conducted, and of the gravest morals. They are usually acquainted with magic arts, and depend on the counsel and aid of demons; they exhibit many illusions, and predict some future events. For instance, one of eminence among them was said to fly; the truth, however, was (as it proved), that he did not fly, but did walk close to the surface of the ground without touching it; and would seem to sit down without having any substance to support him.” This last performance was witnessed by Ibn Batuta at Delhi, in the presence of Sultan Mahomed Tughlak; and it was professedly exhibited by a Brahmin at Madras in the present century, a descendant doubtless of those Brahmans whom Apollonius saw walking two cubits from the ground. It is also described by the worthy Francis Valentyn as a performance known and practised in his own day in India. It is related, he says, that “a man will first go and sit on three sticks put together so as to form a tripod; after which, first one stick, then a second, then the third shall be removed from under him, and the man shall not fall but shall still remain sitting in the air! Yet I have spoken with two friends who had seen this at one and the same time; and one of them, I may add, mistrusting his own eyes, had taken the trouble to feel about with a long stick if there were nothing on which the body rested; yet, as the gentleman told me, he could neither feel nor see any such thing. Still, I could only say that I could not believe it, as a thing too manifestly contrary to reason.”
Akin to these performances, though exhibited by professed jugglers without claim to religious character, is a class of feats which might be regarded as simply inventions if told by one author only, but which seem to deserve prominent notice from their being recounted by a series of authors, certainly independent of one another, and writing at long intervals of time and place. Our first witness is Ibn Batuta, and it will be necessary to quote him as well as the others in full, in order to show how closely their evidence tallies. The Arab Traveller was present at a great entertainment at the Court of the Viceroy of Khansa (Kinsay of Polo, or Hang-chau fu): “That same night a juggler, who was one of the Kán’s slaves, made his appearance, and the Amír said to him, ‘Come and show us some of your marvels.’ Upon this he took a wooden ball, with several holes in it, through which long thongs were passed, and, laying hold of one of these, slung it into the air. It went so high that we lost sight of it altogether. (It was the hottest season of the year, and we were outside in the middle of the palace court.) There now remained only a little of the end of a thong in the conjuror’s hand, and he desired one of the boys who assisted him to lay hold of it and mount. He did so, climbing by the thong, and we lost sight of him also! The conjuror then called to him three times, but getting no answer, he snatched up a knife as if in a great rage, laid hold of the thong, and disappeared also! By and bye he threw down one of the boy’s hands, then a foot, then the other hand, and then the other foot, then the trunk, and last of all the head! Then he came down himself, all puffing and panting, and with his clothes all bloody, kissed the ground before the Amír, and said something to him in Chinese. The Amír gave some order in reply, and our friend then took the lad’s limbs, laid them together in their places, and gave a kick, when, presto! there was the boy, who got up and stood before us! All this astonished me beyond measure, and I had an attack of palpitation like that which overcame me once before in the presence of the Sultan of India, when he showed me something of the same kind. They gave me a cordial, however, which cured the attack. The Kazi Afkharuddin was next to me, and quoth he, ‘Wallah! ’tis my opinion there has been neither going up nor coming down, neither marring nor mending; ’tis all hocus pocus!'”
Now let us compare with this, which Ibn Batuta the Moor says he saw in China about the year 1348, the account which is given us by Edward Melton, an Anglo-Dutch traveller, of the performances of a Chinese gang of conjurors, which he witnessed at Batavia about the year 1670 (I have forgotten to note the year). After describing very vividly the basket- murder trick, which is well known in India, and now also in Europe, and some feats of bamboo balancing similar to those which were recently shown by Japanese performers in England, only more wonderful, he proceeds: “But now I am going to relate a thing which surpasses all belief, and which I should scarcely venture to insert here had it not been witnessed by thousands before my own eyes. One of the same gang took a ball of cord, and grasping one end of the cord in his hand slung the other up into the air with such force that its extremity was beyond reach of our sight. He then immediately climbed up the cord with indescribable swiftness, and got so high that we could no longer see him. I stood full of astonishment, not conceiving what was to come of this; when lo! a leg came tumbling down out of the air. One of the conjuring company instantly snatched it up and threw it into the basket whereof I have formerly spoken. A moment later a hand came down, and immediately on that another leg. And in short all the members of the body came thus successively tumbling from the air and were cast together into the basket. The last fragment of all that we saw tumble down was the head, and no sooner had that touched the ground than he who had snatched up all the limbs and put them in the basket turned them all out again topsy-turvy. Then straightway we saw with these eyes all those limbs creep together again, and in short, form a whole man, who at once could stand and go just as before, without showing the least damage! Never in my life was I so astonished as when I beheld this wonderful performance, and I doubted now no longer that these misguided men did it by the help of the Devil. For it seems to me totally impossible that such things should be accomplished by natural means.” The same performance is spoken of by Valentyn, in a passage also containing curious notices of the basket-murder trick, the mango trick, the sitting in the air (quoted above), and others; but he refers to Melton, and I am not sure whether he had any other authority for it. The cut on this page is taken from Melton’s plate.
[Illustration: Chinese Conjuring Extraordinary.]
Again we have in the Memoirs of the Emperor Jahángir a detail of the wonderful performances of seven jugglers from Bengal who exhibited before him. Two of their feats are thus described: “Ninth. They produced a man whom they divided limb from limb, actually severing his head from the body. They scattered these mutilated members along the ground, and in this state they lay for some time. They then extended a sheet or curtain over the spot, and one of the men putting himself under the sheet, in a few minutes came from below, followed by the individual supposed to have been cut into joints, in perfect health and condition, and one might have safely sworn that he had never received wound or injury whatever … Twenty-third. They produced a chain of 50 cubits in length, and in my presence threw one end of it towards the sky, where it remained as if fastened to something in the air. A dog was then brought forward, and being placed at the lower end of the chain, immediately ran up, and reaching the other end, immediately disappeared in the air. In the same manner a hog, a panther, a lion, and a tiger were successively sent up the chain, and all equally disappeared at the upper end of the chain. At last they took down the chain and put it into a bag, no one ever discovering in what way the different animals were made to vanish into the air in the mysterious manner above described.”
[There would appear (says the Times of India, quoted by the Weekly Dispatch, 15th September, 1889) to be a fine field of unworked romance in the annals of Indian jugglery. One Siddeshur Mitter, writing to the Calcutta paper, gives a thrilling account of a conjurer’s feat which he witnessed recently in one of the villages of the Hooghly district. He saw the whole thing himself, he tells us, so there need be no question about the facts. On the particular afternoon when he visited the village the place was occupied by a company of male and female jugglers, armed with bags and boxes and musical instruments, and all the mysterious paraphernalia of the peripatetic Jadugar. While Siddeshur was looking on, and in the broad, clear light of the afternoon, a man was shut up in a box, which was then carefully nailed up and bound with cords. Weird spells and incantations of the style we are all familiar with were followed by the breaking open of the box, which, “to the unqualified amazement of everybody, was found to be perfectly empty.” All this is much in the usual style; but what followed was so much superior to the ordinary run of modern Indian jugglery that we must give it in the simple Siddeshur’s own words. When every one was satisfied that the man had really disappeared, the principal performer, who did not seem to be at all astonished, told his audience that the vanished man had gone up to the heavens to fight Indra. “In a few moments,” says Siddeshur, “he expressed anxiety at the man’s continued absence in the aerial regions, and said that he would go up to see what was the matter. A boy was called, who held upright a long bamboo, up which the man climbed to the top, whereupon we suddenly lost sight of him, and the boy laid the bamboo on the ground. Then there fell on the ground before us the different members of a human body, all bloody,—first one hand, then another, a foot, and so on, until complete. The boy then elevated the bamboo, and the principal performer, appearing on the top as suddenly as he had disappeared, came down, and seeming quite disconsolate, said that Indra had killed his friend before he could get there to save him. He then placed the mangled remains in the same box, closed it, and tied it as before. Our wonder and astonishment reached their climax when, a few minutes later, on the box being again opened, the man jumped out perfectly hearty and unhurt.” Is not this rather a severe strain on one’s credulity, even for an Indian jugglery story?]
In Philostratus, again, we may learn the antiquity of some juggling tricks that have come up as novelties in our own day. Thus at Taxila a man set his son against a board, and then threw darts tracing the outline of the boy’s figure on the board. This feat was shown in London some fifteen or twenty years ago, and humorously commemorated in Punch by John Leech.
(Philostratus, Fr. Transl. Bk. III. ch. xv. and xxvii.; Mich. Glycas, Ann. II. 156, Paris ed.; Delrio, Disquis. Magic. pp. 34, 100; Koeppen, I. 31, II. 82, 114-115, 260, 262, 280; Vassilyev, 156; Della Penna, 36; S. Setzen, 43, 353; Pereg. Quat. 117; I. B. IV. 39 and 290 seqq.; Asiat. Researches, XVII. 186; Valentyn, V. 52-54; Edward Melton, Engelsch Edelmans, Zeldzaame en Gedenkwaardige Zee en Land Reizen, etc., aangevangen in den Jaare 1660 en geendigd in den Jaare 1677, Amsterdam, 1702, p. 468; Mem. of the Emp. Jahangueir, pp. 99, 102.)
[Illustration: Grand Temple of Buddha at LHASA]
NOTE 12.—[“The maintenance of the Lamas, of their monasteries, the expenses for the sacrifices and for transcription of sacred books, required enormous sums. The Lamas enjoyed a preponderating influence, and stood much higher than the priests of other creeds, living in the palace as if in their own house. The perfumes, which M. Polo mentions, were used by the Lamas for two purposes; they used them for joss-sticks, and for making small turrets, known under the name of ts’a-ts’a; the joss-sticks used to be burned in the same way as they are now; the ts’a-ts’a were inserted insuburgas or buried in the ground. At the time when the suburga was built in the garden of the Peking palace in 1271, there were used, according to the Empress’ wish, 1008 turrets made of the most expensive perfumes, mixed with pounded gold, silver, pearls, and corals, and 130,000 ts’a-ts’amade of ordinary perfumes.” (Palladius, 29.—H. C.)]
NOTE 13.—There is no exaggeration in this number. Turner speaks of 2500 monks in one Tibetan convent. Huc mentions Chorchi, north of the Great Wall, as containing 2000; and Kúnbúm, where he and Gabet spent several months, on the borders of Shensi and Tibet, had nearly 4000. The missionary itinerary from Nepal to L’hasa given by Giorgi, speaks of a group of convents at a place called Brephung, which formerly contained 10,000 inmates, and at the time of the journey (about 1700) still contained 5000, including attendants. Dr. Campbell gives a list of twelve chief convents in L’hasa and its vicinity (not including the Potala or Residence of the Grand Lama), of which one is said to have 7500 members, resident and itinerary. Major Montgomerie’s Pandit gives the same convent 7700 Lamas. In the great monastery at L’hasa called Labrang, they show a copper kettle holding more than 100 buckets, which was used to make tea for the Lamas who performed the daily temple service. The monasteries are usually, as the text says, like small towns, clustered round the great temples. That represented at p. 224 is at Jehol, and is an imitation of the Potala at L’hasa. (Huc’s Tartary, etc., pp. 45, 208, etc.; Alph. Tibetan, 453; J. A. S. B. XXIV. 219; J. R. G. S. XXXVIII. 168; Koeppen, II. 338.) [La Géographie, II. 1901, pp. 242-247, has an article by Mr. J. Deniker, La Première Photographie de Lhassa, with a view of Potala, in 1901, from a photograph by M. O. Norzunov; it is interesting to compare it with the view given by Kircher in 1670.—H. C.]
[“The monasteries with numbers of monks, who, as M. Polo asserts, behaved decently, evidently belonged to Chinese Buddhists, ho-shang; in Kúblái’s time they had two monasteries in Shangtu, in the north-east and north-west parts of the town.” (Palladius, 29.) Rubruck (Rockhill’s ed. p. 145) says: “All the priests (of the idolaters) shave their heads, and are dressed in saffron colour, and they observe chastity from the time they shave their heads, and they live in congregations of one or two hundred.”—H. C.]
[Illustration: Monastery of Lamas.]
NOTE 14.—There were many anomalies in the older Lamaism, and it permitted, at least in some sects of it which still subsist, the marriage of the clergy under certain limitations and conditions. One of Giorgi’s missionaries speaks of a Lama of high hereditary rank as a spiritual prince who marries, but separates from his wife as soon as he has a son, who after certain trials is deemed worthy to be his successor. [“A good number of Lamas were married, as M. Polo correctly remarks; their wives were known amongst the Chinese, under the name of Fan-sao.” (Ch’ue keng lu, quoted by Palladius, 28.)—H. C.] One of the “reforms” of Tsongkhapa was the absolute prohibition of marriage to the clergy, and in this he followed the institutes of the oldest Buddhism. Even the Red Lamas, or unreformed, cannot now marry without a dispensation.
But even the oldest orthodox Buddhism had its Lay brethren and Lay sisters (Upásaka and Upásiká), and these are to be found in Tibet and Mongolia ( Voués au blanc, as it were). They are called by the Mongols, by a corruption of the Sanskrit, Ubashi and Ubashanza. Their vows extend to the strict keeping of the five great commandments of the Buddhist Law, and they diligently ply the rosary and the prayer-wheel, but they are not pledged to celibacy, nor do they adopt the tonsure. As a sign of their amphibious position, they commonly wear a red or yellow girdle. These are what some travellers speak of as the lowest order of Lamas, permitted to marry; and Polo may have regarded them in the same light.
(Koeppen, II. 82, 113, 276, 291; Timk. II. 354; Erman, II. 304; Alph. Tibet. 449.)
NOTE 15.—[Mr. Rockhill writes to me that “bran” is certainly Tibetan tsamba (parched barley).—H. C.]
NOTE 16.—Marco’s contempt for Patarins slips out in a later passage (Bk. III. ch. xx.). The name originated in the eleventh century in Lombardy, where it came to be applied to the “heretics,” otherwise called “Cathari.” Muratori has much on the origin of the name Patarini, and mentions a monument, which still exists, in the Piazza de’ Mercanti at Milan, in honour of Oldrado Podestà of that city in 1233, and which thus, with more pith than grammar, celebrates his meritorious acts:—
“Qui solium struxit Catharos ut debuit UXIT.”
Other cities were as piously Catholic. A Mantuan chronicler records under 1276: “Captum fuit Sermionum seu redditum fuit Ecclesiae, et capti fuerunt cercha CL Patarini contra fidem, inter masculos et feminas; qui omnes ducti fuerunt Veronam, et ibi incarcerati, et pro magna parteCOMBUSTI.” (Murat. Dissert. III. 238; Archiv. Stor. Ital. N.S. I. 49.)
NOTE 17.—Marsden, followed by Pauthier, supposes these unorthodox ascetics to be Hindu Sanyasis, and the latter editor supposes even the name Sensi or Sensin to represent that denomination. Such wanderers do occasionally find their way to Tartary; Gerbillon mentions having encountered five of them at Kuku Khotan (supra, p. 286), and I think John Bell speaks of meeting one still further north. But what is said of the great and numerous idols of the Sensin is inconsistent with such a notion, as is indeed, it seems to me, the whole scope of the passage. Evidently no occasional vagabonds from a far country, but some indigenous sectaries, are in question. Nor would bran and hot water be a Hindu regimen. The staple diet of the Tibetans is Chamba, the meal of toasted barley, mixed sometimes with warm water, but more frequently with hot tea, and I think it is probable that these were the elements of the ascetic diet rather than the mere bran which Polo speaks of. Semedo indeed says that some of the Buddhist devotees professed never to take any food but tea; knowing people said they mixed with it pellets of sun-dried beef. The determination of the sect intended in the text is, I conceive, to be sought in the history of Chinese or Tibetan Buddhism and their rivals.
Both Baldelli and Neumann have indicated a general opinion that the Taossé or some branch of that sect is meant, but they have entered into no particulars except in a reference by the former to Shien-sien, a title of perfection affected by that sect, as the origin of Polo’s term Sensin. In the substance of this I think they are right. But I believe that in the text this Chinese sect are, rightly or wrongly, identified with the ancient Tibetan sect of Bon-po, and that part of the characters assigned belong to each.
First with regard to the Taossé. These were evidently the Patarini of the Buddhists in China at this time, and Polo was probably aware of the persecution which the latter had stirred up Kúblái to direct against them in 1281—persecution at least it is called, though it was but a mild proceeding in comparison with the thing contemporaneously practised in Christian Lombardy, for in heathen Cathay, books, and not human creatures, were the subjects doomed to burn, and even that doom was not carried out.
[“The Tao-sze,” says M. Polo, “were looked upon as heretics by the other sects; that is, of course; by the Lamas and Ho-shangs; in fact in his time a passionate struggle was going on between Buddhists and Tao-sze, or rather a persecution of the latter by the former; the Buddhists attributed to the doctrine of the Tao-sze a pernicious tendency, and accused them of deceit; and in support of these assertions they pointed to some of their sacred books. Taking advantage of their influence at Court, they persuaded Kúblái to decree the burning of these books, and it was carried out in Peking.” (Palladius, 30.)—H. C.]
The term which Polo writes as Sensin appears to have been that popularly applied to the Taossé sect at the Mongol Court. Thus we are told by Rashíduddín in his History of Cathay: “In the reign of Din-Wang, the 20th king of this (the 11th) Dynasty, TAI SHANG LÁI KÚN, was born. This person is stated to have been accounted a prophet by the people of Khitá; his father’s name was Hán; like Shák-múni he is said to have been conceived by light, and it is related that his mother bore him in her womb no less a period than 80 years. The people who embraced his doctrine were called [Arabic] (Shan-shan or Shinshin).” This is a correct epitome of the Chinese story of Laokiun or Lao-tsé, born in the reign of Ting Wang of the Cheu Dynasty. The whole title used by Rashíduddín, Tai Shang Lao Kiun, “The Great Supreme Venerable Ruler,” is that formerly applied by the Chinese to this philosopher.
Further, in a Mongol [and Chinese] inscription of the year 1314 from the department of Si-ngan fu, which has been interpreted and published by Mr. Wylie, the Taossé priests are termed Senshing. [See Devéria, Notes d’Épigraphie, pp. 39-43, and Prince R. Bonaparte’s Recueil, Pl. xii. No. 3.—H. C.]
Seeing then that the very term used by Polo is that applied by both Mongol and Persian authorities of the period to the Taossé, we can have no doubt that the latter are indicated, whether the facts stated about them be correct or not.
The word Senshing-ud (the Mongol plural) is represented in the Chinese version of Mr. Wylie’s inscription by Sín-sang, a conventional title applied to literary men, and this perhaps is sufficient to determine the Chinese word which Sensin represents. I should otherwise have supposed it to be the Shin-sian alluded to by Baldelli, and mentioned in the quotations which follow; and indeed it seems highly probable that two terms so much alike should have been confounded by foreigners. Semedo says of the Taossé: “They pretend that by means of certain exercises and meditations one shall regain his youth, and others shall attain to be Shien-sien, i.e. ‘Terrestrial Beati,’ in whose state every desire is gratified, whilst they have the power to transport themselves from one place to another, however distant, with speed and facility.” Schott, on the same subject, says: “By Sian orShin-sian are understood in the old Chinese conception, and particularly in that of the Tao-Kiao [or Taossé] sect, persons who withdraw to the hills to lead the life of anchorites, and who have attained, either through their ascetic observances or by the power of charms and elixirs, to the possession of miraculous gifts and of terrestrial immortality.” And M. Pauthier himself, in his translation of the Journey of Khieu, an eminent doctor of this sect, to the camp of the Great Chinghiz in Turkestan, has related how Chinghiz bestowed upon this personage “a seal with a tiger’s head and a diploma” (surely a lion’s head, P’aizah and Yarligh; see infra, Bk. II. ch. vii. note 2), “wherein he was styled Shin Sien or Divine Anchorite.” Sian-jin again is the word used by Hiuen Tsang as the equivalent to the name of the Indian Rishis, who attain to supernatural powers.
[“Sensin is a sufficiently faithful transcription of Sien-seng (Sien-shing in Pekingese); the name given by the Mongols in conversation as well as in official documents, to the Tao-sze, in the sense of preceptors, just as Lamas were called by them Bacshi, which corresponds to the Chinese Sien-seng. M. Polo calls them fasters and ascetics. It was one of the sects of Taouism. There was another one which practised cabalistic and other mysteries. The Tao-sze had two monasteries in Shangtu, one in the eastern, the other in the western part of the town.” (Palladius, 30.) —H.C.]
One class of the Tao priests or devotees does marry, but another class never does. Many of them lead a wandering life, and derive a precarious subsistence from the sale of charms and medical nostrums. They shave the sides of the head, and coil the remaining hair in a tuft on the crown, in the ancient Chinese manner; moreover, says Williams, they “are recognised by their slate-coloured robes.” On the feast of one of their divinities whose title Williams translates as “High Emperor of the Sombre Heavens,” they assemble before his temple, “and having made a great fire, about 15 or 20 feet in diameter, go over it barefoot, preceded by the priests and bearing the gods in their arms. They firmly assert that if they possess a sincere mind they will not be injured by the fire; but both priests and people get miserably burnt on these occasions.” Escayrac de Lauture says that on those days they leap, dance, and whirl round the fire, striking at the devils with a straight Roman-like sword, and sometimes wounding themselves as the priests of Baal and Moloch used to do.
(Astley, IV. 671; Morley in J. R. A. S. VI. 24; Semedo, 111, 114; De Mailla, IX. 410; J. As. sér. V. tom. viii. 138; Schott über den Buddhismus etc. 71; Voyage de Khieou in J. As. sér. VI. tom. ix. 41; Middle Kingdom, II. 247; Doolittle, 192; Esc. de Lauture, Mém. sur la Chine, Religion, 87, 102;Pèler. Boudd. II. 370, and III. 468.)
Let us now turn to the Bon-po. Of this form of religion and its sectaries not much is known, for it is now confined to the eastern and least known part of Tibet. It is, however, believed to be a remnant of the old pre-Buddhistic worship of the powers of nature, though much modified by the Buddhistic worship with which it has so long been in contact. Mr. Hodgson also pronounces a collection of drawings of Bonpo divinities, which were made for him by a mendicant friar of the sect from the neighbourhood of Tachindu, or Ta-t’sien-lu, to be saturated with Sakta attributes, i.e. with the spirit of the Tantrika worship, a worship which he tersely defines as “a mixture of lust, ferocity, and mummery,” and which he believes to have originated in an incorporation with the Indian religions of the rude superstitions of the primitive Turanians. Mr. Hodgson was told that the Bonpo sect still possessed numerous and wealthy Vihars (or abbeys) in Tibet. But from the information of the Catholic missionaries in Eastern Tibet, who have come into closest contact with the sect, it appears to be now in a state of great decadence, “oppressed by the Lamas of other sects, thePeunbo (Bonpo) think only of shaking off the yoke, and getting deliverance from the vexations which the smallness of their number forces them to endure.” In June, 1863, apparently from such despairing motives, the Lamas of Tsodam, a Bonpo convent in the vicinity of the mission settlement of Bonga in E. Tibet, invited the Rev. Gabriel Durand to come and instruct them. “In this temple,” he writes, “are the monstrous idols of the sect of Peunbo; horrid figures, whose features only Satan could have inspired. They are disposed about the enclosure according to their power and their seniority. Above the pagoda is a loft, the nooks of which are crammed with all kinds of diabolical trumpery; little idols of wood or copper, hideous masques of men and animals, superstitious Lama vestments, drums, trumpets of human bones, sacrificial vessels, in short, all the utensils with which the devil’s servants in Tibet honour their master. And what will become of it all? The Great River, whose waves roll to Martaban (the Lu-kiang or Salwen), is not more than 200 or 300 paces distant…. Besides the infernal paintings on the walls, eight or nine monstrous idols, seated at the inner end of the pagoda, were calculated by their size and aspect to inspire awe. In the middle was Tamba-Shi-Rob, the great doctor of the sect of the Peunbo, squatted with his right arm outside his red scarf, and holding in his left the vase of knowledge…. On his right hand sat Keumta-Zon-bo, ‘the All- Good,’ … with ten hands and three heads, one over the other…. At his right is Dreuma, the most celebrated goddess of the sect. On the left of Tamba-Shi-Rob was another goddess, whose name they never could tell me. On the left again of this anonymous goddess appeared Tam-pla-mi-ber,… a monstrous dwarf environed by flames and his head garnished with a diadem of skulls. He trod with one foot on the head of Shakia-tupa [Shakya Thubba, i.e. ‘the Mighty Shakya,’ the usual Tibetan appellation of Sakya Buddha himself]…. The idols are made of a coarse composition of mud and stalks kneaded together, on which they put first a coat of plaster and then various colours, or even silver or gold…. Four oxen would scarcely have been able to draw one of the idols.” Mr. Emilius Schlagintweit, in a paper on the subject of this sect, has explained some of the names used by the missionary. Tamba-Shi-Rob is “_bs_tanpa _g_Shen-rabs,” i.e. the doctrine of Shen-rabs, who is regarded as the founder of the Bon religion. [Cf. Grenard, II. 407.—H. C.] Keun-tu-zon-bo is “Kun-tu-_b_zang-po,” “the All Best.”
[Bon-po seems to be (according to Grenard, II. 410) a “coarse naturism combined with ancestral worship” resembling Taoism. It has, however, borrowed a good deal from Buddhism. “I noticed,” says Mr. Rockhill (Journey, 86), “a couple of grimy volumes of Bönbo sacred literature. One of them I examined; it was a funeral service, and was in the usual Bönbo jargon, three-fourths Buddhistic in its nomenclature.” The Bon-po Lamas are above all sorcerers and necromancers, and are very similar to the kam of the Northern Turks, the bô of the Mongols, and lastly to the Shamans. During their operations, they wear a tall pointed black hat, surmounted by the feather of a peacock, or of a cock, and a human skull. Their principal divinities are the White God of Heaven, the Black Goddess of Earth, the Red Tiger and the Dragon; they worship an idol called Kye’-p’ang formed of a mere block of wood covered with garments. Their sacred symbol is the svastika turned from right to left [Symbol]. The most important of their monasteries is Zo-chen gum-pa, in the north-east of Tibet, where they print most of their books. The Bonpos Lamas “are very popular with the agricultural Tibetans, but not so much so with the pastoral tribes, who nearly all belong to the Gélupa sect of the orthodox Buddhist Church.” A. K. says, “Buddhism is the religion of the country; there are two sects, one named Mangba and the other Chiba or Baimbu.” Explorations made by A——K——, 34. Mangba means “Esoteric,” Chiba (p’yi-ba), “Exoteric,” and Baimbu is Bönbo. Rockhill, Journey, 289, et passim.; Land of the Lamas, 217-218; Grenard, Mission Scientifique, II. 407 seqq.—H. C.]
There is an indication in Koeppen’s references that the followers of the Bon doctrine are sometimes called in Tibet Nag-choi, or “Black Sect,” as the old and the reformed Lamas are called respectively the “Red” and the “Yellow.” If so, it is reasonable to conclude that the first appellation, like the two last, has a reference to the colour of clothing affected by the priesthood.
The Rev. Mr. Jaeschke writes from Lahaul: “There are no Bonpos in our part of the country, and as far as we know there cannot be many of them in the whole of Western Tibet, i.e. in Ladak, Spiti, and all the non-Chinese provinces together; we know, therefore, not much more of them than has been made known to the European public by different writers on Buddhism in Tibet, and lately collected by Emil de Schlagintweit…. Whether they can be with certainty identified with the Chinese Taossé I cannot decide, as I don’t know if anything like historical evidence about their Chinese origin has been detected anywhere, or if it is merely a conclusion from the similarity of their doctrines and practices…. But the Chinese author of the Wei-tsang-tu-Shi, translated by Klaproth, under the title of Description du Tubet (Paris, 1831), renders Bonpo by Taossé. So much seems to be certain that it was the ancient religion of Tibet, before Buddhism penetrated into the country, and that even at later periods it several times gained the ascendancy when the secular power was of a disposition averse to the Lamaitic hierarchy. Another opinion is that the Bon religion was originally a mere fetishism, and related to or identical with Shamanism; this appears to me very probable and easy to reconcile with the former supposition, for it may afterwards, on becoming acquainted with the Chinese doctrine of the ‘Taossé,’ have adorned itself with many of its tenets…. With regard to the following particulars, I have got most of my information from our Lama, a native of the neighbourhood of Tashi Lhunpo, whom we consulted about all your questions. The extraordinary asceticism which struck Marco Polo so much is of course not to be understood as being practised by all members of the sect, but exclusively, or more especially, by the priests. That these never marry, and are consequently more strictly celibatary than many sects of the Lamaitic priesthood, was confirmed by our Lama.” (Mr. Jaeschke then remarks upon the bran to much the same effect as I have done above.) “The Bonpos are by all Buddhists regarded as heretics. Though they worship idols partly the same, at least in name, with those of the Buddhists,… their rites seem to be very different. The most conspicuous and most generally known of their customs, futile in itself, but in the eyes of the common people the greatest sign of their sinful heresy, is that they perform the religious ceremony of making a turn round a sacred object in the opposite direction to that prescribed by Buddhism. As to their dress, our Lama said that they had no particular colour of garments, but their priests frequently wore red clothes, as some sects of the Buddhist priesthood do. Mr. Heyde, however, once on a journey in our neighbouring county of Langskar, saw a man clothed in black with blue borders, who the people said was a Bonpo.”
[Mr. Rockhill (Journey , 63) saw at Kao miao-tzu “a red-gowned, long-haired Bönbo Lama,” and at Kumbum (p. 68), “was surprised to see quite a large number of Bönbo Lamas, recognisable by their huge mops of hair and their red gowns, and also from their being dirtier than the ordinary run of people.”—H. C.]
The identity of the Bonpo and Taossé seems to have been accepted by Csoma de Kórös, who identifies the Chinese founder of the latter, Lao-tseu, with the Shen-rabs of the Tibetan Bonpos. Klaproth also says, “Bhonbp’o, Bhanpo, and Shen, are the names by which are commonly designated (in Tibetan) the Taoszu, or follower of the Chinese philosopher Laotseu.”[11] Schlagintweit refers to Schmidt’s Tibetan Grammar (p. 209) and to the Calcutta edition of the Fo-kouè-ki (p. 218) for the like identification, but I do not know how far any two of these are independent testimonies. General Cunningham, however, fully accepts the identity, and writes to me: “Fahian (ch. xxiii.) calls the heretics who assembled at Râmagrâma Taossé,[12] thus identifying them with the Chinese Finitimists. The Taossé are, therefore, the same as the Swâstikas, or worshippers of the mystic cross Swasti, who are also Tirthakaras, or ‘Pure-doers.’ The synonymous word Punya is probably the origin of Pon or Bon, the Tibetan Finitimists. From the same word comes the Burmese P’ungyi or Pungi.” I may add that the Chinese envoy to Cambodia in 1296, whose narrative Rémusat has translated, describes a sect which he encountered there, apparently Brahminical, as Taossé. And even if the Bonpo and the Taossé were not fundamentally identical, it is extremely probable that the Tibetan and Mongol Buddhists should have applied to them one name and character. Each played towards them the same part in Tibet and in China respectively; both were heretic sects and hated rivals; both made high pretensions to asceticism and supernatural powers; both, I think we see reason to believe, affected the dark clothing which Polo assigns to the Sensin; both, we may add, had “great idols and plenty of them.” We have seen in the account of the Taossé the ground that certain of their ceremonies afford for the allegation that they “sometimes also worship fire,” whilst the whole account of that rite and of others mentioned by Duhalde,[13] shows what a powerful element of the old devil-dancing Shamanism there is in their practice. The French Jesuit, on the other hand, shows us what a prominent place female divinities occupied in the Bon-po Pantheon,[14] though we cannot say of either sect that “their idols are all feminine.” A strong symptom of relation between the two religions, by the way, occurs in M. Durand’s account of the Bon Temple. We see there that Shen-rabs, the great doctor of the sect, occupies a chief and central place among the idols. Now in the Chinese temples of the Taossé the figure of their Doctor Lao-tseu is one member of the triad called the “Three Pure Ones,” which constitute the chief objects of worship. This very title recalls General Cunningham’s etymology of Bonpo.
[Illustration: Tibetan Bacsi]
[At the quarterly fair (yueh kai) of Ta-li (Yun-Nan), Mr. E. C. Baber (Travels, 158-159) says: “A Fakir with a praying machine, which he twirled for the salvation of the pious at the price of a few cash, was at once recognised by us; he was our old acquaintance, the Bakhsi, whose portrait is given in Colonel Yule’s Marco Polo.”—H. C.]
(Hodgson, in J. R. A. S. XVIII. 396 seqq.; Ann. de la Prop, de la Foi, XXXVI. 301-302, 424-427; E. Schlagintweit, Ueber die Bon-pa Sekte in Tibet, in the Sitzensberichte of the Munich Acad. for 1866, Heft I. pp. 1-12; Koeppen, II. 260; Ladak, p. 358; J. As. sér. II. tom. i. 411-412; Rémusat. Nouv. Mél. Asiat. I. 112; Astley, IV. 205; Doolittle, 191.)
NOTE 18.—Pauthier’s text has blons, no doubt an error for blous. In the G. Text it is bloies. Pauthier interprets the latter term as “blond ardent,” whilst the glossary to the G. Text explains it as both blue and white. Raynouard’s Romance Dict. explains Bloi as “Blond.” Ramusio has biave, and I have no doubt that blue is the meaning. The same word (bloie) is used in the G. Text, where Polo speaks of the bright colours of the Palace tiles at Cambaluc, and where Pauthier’s text has “vermeil et jaune et vert et blou,” and again (infra, Bk. II. ch. xix.), where the two corps of huntsmen are said to be clad respectively in vermeil and in bloie. Here, again, Pauthier’s text has bleu. The Crusca in the description of the Sensin omits the colours altogether; in the two other passages referred to it has bioda, biodo.
[“The Tao-sze, says Marco Polo, wear dresses of black and blue linen; i.e. they wear dresses made of tatters of black and blue linen, as can be seen also at the present day.” (Palladius, 30.)—H. C.]
NOTE 19.—[“The idols of the Tao-sze, according to Marco Polo’s statement, have female names; in fact, there are in the pantheon of Taoism a great many female divinities, still enjoying popular veneration in China; such are Tow Mu (the ‘Ursa major,’ constellation), Pi-hia-yuen Kiun (the celestial queen), female divinities for lying-in women, for children, for diseases of the eyes; and others, which are to be seen everywhere. The Tao-sze have, besides these, a good number of male divinities, bearing the title of Kiun in common with female divinities; both these circumstances might have led Marco Polo to make the above statement.” (Palladius, p. 30.)—H. C.]
[1] This distance is taken from a tracing of the map prepared for Dr. Bushell’s paper quoted below. But there is a serious discrepancy between this tracing and the observed position of Dolon-nor, which determines that of Shang-tu, as stated to me in a letter from Dr. Bushell. [See Note 1.]
[2] These particulars were obtained by Dr. Bushell through the Archimandrite Palladius, from the MS. account of a Chinese traveller who visited Shangtu about two hundred years ago, when probably the whole inscription was above ground. The inscription is also mentioned in the Imp. Geography of the present Dynasty, quoted by Klaproth. This work gives the interior wall 5 li to the side, instead of a li, and the outer wall 10 li, instead of 4 li. By Dr. Bushell’s kindness, I give a reduction of his sketch plan (see Itinerary Map, No. IV. at end of this volume), and also a plate of the heading of the inscription. The translation of this is: “Monument conferred by the Emperor of the August Yuen (Dynasty) in memory of His High Eminence Yun Hien (styled) Chang-Lao (canonised as) Shou-Kung (Prince of Longevity).” [See Missions de Chine et du Congo No. 28, Mars, 1891, Bruxelles.]
[3] Ramusio’s version runs thus: “The palace presents one side to the centre of the city and the other to the city wall. And from either extremity of the palace where it touches the city wall, there runs another wall, which fetches a compass and encloses a good 16 miles of plain, and so that no one can enter this enclosure except by passing through the palace.”
[4] This narrative, translated from Chinese into Russian by Father Palladius, and from the Russian into English by Mr. Eugene Schuyler, Secretary of the U.S. Legation at St. Petersburg, was obligingly sent to me by the latter gentleman, and appeared in the Geographical Magazine for January, 1875, p. 7.
[5] See Bk. II. chap. xiv. note 3.
[6] In the first edition I had supposed a derivation of the Persian words Jádú and Jádúgari, used commonly in India for conjuring, from the Tartar use of Yadah. And Pallas says the Kirghiz call their witches Jádugar. (Voy. II. 298.) But I am assured by Sir H. Rawlinson that this etymology is more than doubtful, and that at any rate the Persian (Jádú) is probably older than the Turkish term. I see that M. Pavet de Courteille derives Yadah from a Mongol word signifying “change of weather,” etc.
[7] [See W. Foerster’s ed., Halle, 1887, p. 15, 386.—H. C.]
[8] A young Afghan related in the presence of Arthur Conolly at Herat that on a certain occasion when provisions ran short the Russian General gave orders that 50,000 men should be killed and served out as rations! (I. 346.)
[9] Ar. Táfir, a sordid, squalid fellow.
[10] [Cf. Paulin Paris’s ed., 1848, II. p. 5.—H. C.]
[11] Shen, or coupled with jin “people,” Shenjin, in this sense affords another possible origin of the word Sensin; but it may in fact be at bottom, as regards the first syllable, the same with the etymology we have preferred.
[12] I do not find this allusion in Mr. Beal’s new version of Fahian. [See Rémusat’s éd. p. 227; Klaproth says (Ibid. p. 230) that the Tao-szu are called in Tibetan Bonbò and Youngdhroungpa.—H. C.]
[13] Apparently they had at their command the whole encyclopaedia of modern “Spiritualists.” Duhalde mentions among their sorceries the art of producing by their invocations the figures of Lao-tseu and their divinities in the air, and of making a pencil to write answers to questions without anybody touching it.
[14] It is possible that this may point to some report of the mystic impurities of the Tantrists. The Saktián, or Tantrists, according to the Dabistan, hold that the worship of a female divinity affords a greater recompense. (II. 155.)
BOOK SECOND.
(1.) ACCOUNT OF THE GREAT KAAN CUBLAY; OF HIS PALACES AND CAPITAL; HIS COURT, GOVERNMENT, AND SPORTS.
(2.) CITIES AND PROVINCES VISITED BY THE TRAVELLER ON ONE JOURNEY WESTWARD FROM THE CAPITAL TO THE FRONTIERS OF MIEN IN THE DIRECTION OF INDIA.
(3.) AND ON ANOTHER SOUTHWARD FROM THE CAPITAL TO FUCHU AND ZAYTON.
BOOK II.
PART I.—THE KAAN, HIS COURT AND CAPITAL.
OF CUBLAY KAAN, THE GREAT KAAN NOW REIGNING, AND OF HIS GREAT PUISSANCE.
Now am I come to that part of our Book in which I shall tell you of the great and wonderful magnificence of the Great Kaan now reigning, by name CUBLAY KAAN; Kaan being a title which signifyeth “The Great Lord of Lords,” or Emperor. And of a surety he hath good right to such a title, for all men know for a certain truth that he is the most potent man, as regards forces and lands and treasure, that existeth in the world, or ever hath existed from the time of our First Father Adam until this day. All this I will make clear to you for truth, in this book of ours, so that every one shall be fain to acknowledge that he is the greatest Lord that is now in the world, or ever hath been. And now ye shall hear how and wherefore.[NOTE 1]
NOTE 1.—According to Sanang Setzen, Chinghiz himself discerned young Kúblái’s superiority. On his deathbed he said: “The words of the lad Kúblái are well worth attention; see, all of you, that ye heed what he says! One day he will sit in my seat and bring you good fortune such as you have had in my day!” (p. 105).
The Persian history of Wassáf thus exalts Kúblái: “Although from the frontiers of this country (‘Irák) to the Centre of Empire, the Focus of the Universe, the genial abode of the ever-Fortunate Emperor and Just Kaan, is a whole year’s journey, yet the stories that have been spread abroad, even in these parts, of his glorious deeds, his institutes, his decisions, his justice, the largeness and acuteness of his intellect, his correctness of judgment, his great powers of administration, from the mouths of credible witnesses, of well-known merchants and eminent travellers, are so surpassing, that one beam of his glories, one fraction of his great qualities, suffices to eclipse all that history tells of the Caesars of Rome, of the Chosroes of Persia, of the Khagans of China, of the (Himyarite) Kails of Arabia, of the Tobbas of Yemen, and the Rajas of India, of the monarchs of the houses of Sassan and Búya, and of the Seljukian Sultans.” (Hammer’s Wassaf, orig. p. 37.)
Some remarks on Kúblái and his government by a Chinese author, in a more rational and discriminative tone, will be found below under ch. xxiii., note 2.
A curious Low-German MS. at Cologne, giving an account of the East, says of the “Keyser von Kathagien—syn recht Name is der groisse Hunt!” (Magnus Canis, the Big Bow-wow as it were. See Orient und Occident, vol. i. p. 640.)
CHAPTER II.
CONCERNING THE REVOLT OF NAYAN, WHO WAS UNCLE TO THE GREAT KAAN CUBLAY.
Now this Cublay Kaan is of the right Imperial lineage, being descended from Chinghis Kaan, the first sovereign of all the Tartars. And he is the sixth Lord in that succession, as I have already told you in this book. He came to the throne in the year of Christ, 1256, and the Empire fell to him because of his ability and valour and great worth, as was right and reason.[NOTE 1] His brothers, indeed, and other kinsmen disputed his claim, but his it remained, both because maintained by his great valour, and because it was in law and right his, as being directly sprung of the imperial line.
Up to the year of Christ now running, to wit 1298, he hath reigned two-and-forty years, and his age is about eighty-five, so that he must have been about forty-three years of age when he first came to the throne.[NOTE 2] Before that time he had often been to the wars, and had shown himself a gallant soldier and an excellent captain. But after coming to the throne he never went to the wars in person save once.[NOTE 3] This befel in the year of Christ, 1286, and I will tell you why he went.
There was a great Tartar Chief, whose name was NAYAN,[NOTE 4] a young man [of thirty], Lord over many lands and many provinces; and he was Uncle to the Emperor Cublay Kaan of whom we are speaking. And when he found himself in authority this Nayan waxed proud in the insolence of his youth and his great power; for indeed he could bring into the field 300,000 horsemen, though all the time he was liegeman to his nephew, the Great Kaan Cublay, as was right and reason. Seeing then what great power he had, he took it into his head that he would be the Great Kaan’s vassal no longer; nay more, he would fain wrest his empire from him if he could. So this Nayan sent envoys to another Tartar Prince called CAIDU, also a great and potent Lord, who was a kinsman of his, and who was a nephew of the Great Kaan and his lawful liegeman also, though he was in rebellion and at bitter enmity with his sovereign Lord and Uncle. Now the message that Nayan sent was this: That he himself was making ready to march against the Great Kaan with all his forces (which were great), and he begged Caidu to do likewise from his side, so that by attacking Cublay on two sides at once with such great forces they would be able to wrest his dominion from him.
And when Caidu heard the message of Nayan, he was right glad thereat, and thought the time was come at last to gain his object. So he sent back answer that he would do as requested; and got ready his host, which mustered a good hundred thousand horsemen.
Now let us go back to the Great Kaan, who had news of all this plot.
NOTE 1.—There is no doubt that Kúblái was proclaimed Kaan in 1260 (4th month), his brother Mangku Kaan having perished during the seige of Hochau in Ssechwan in August of the preceding year. But Kúblái had come into Cathay some years before as his brother’s Lieutenant.
He was the fifth, not sixth, Supreme Kaan, as we have already noticed.
(Bk. I. ch. li. note 2.)
NOTE 2.—Kúblái was born in the eighth month of the year corresponding to 1216, and had he lived to 1298 would have been eighty-two years old. [According to Dr. E. Bretschneider (Peking, 30), quoting the Yuen-Shi, Kúblái died at Khanbaligh, in the Tze-t’an tien in February, 1294.—H. C.] But by Mahomedan reckoning he would have been close upon eighty-five. He was the fourth son of Tuli, who was the youngest of Chinghiz’s four sons by his favourite wife Burté Fujin. (See De Mailla, IX. 255, etc.)
NOTE 3.—This is not literally true; for soon after his accession (in 1261) Kúblái led an army against his brother and rival Arikbuga, and defeated him. And again in his old age, if we credit the Chinese annalist, in 1289, when his grandson Kanmala (or Kambala) was beaten on the northern frontier by Kaidu, Kúblái took the field himself, though on his approach the rebels disappeared.
Kúblái and his brother Hulaku, young as they were, commenced their military career on Chinghiz’s last expedition (1226-1227). His most notable campaign was the conquest of Yunnan in 1253-1254. (De Mailla, IX. 298, 441.)
NOTE 4.—NAYAN was no “uncle” of Kúblái’s, but a cousin in a junior generation. For Kúblái was the grandson of Chinghiz, and Nayan was the great-great-grandson of Chinghiz’s brother Uchegin, called in the Chinese annals Pilgutai. [Belgutai was Chinghiz’s step-brother. (Palladius.)—H. C.] On this brother, the great-uncle of Kúblái, and the commander of the latter’s forces against Arikbuga in the beginning of the reign, both Chinghiz and Kúblái had bestowed large territories in Eastern Tartary towards the frontier of Corea, and north of Liaotong towards the Manchu country. [“The situation and limits of his appanage are not clearly defined in history. According to Belgutai’s biography, it was between the Onon and Kerulen (Yuen shi), and according to Shin Yao’s researches (Lo fung low wen kao), at the confluence of the Argun and Shilka. Finally, according to Harabadur’s biography, it was situated in Abalahu, which geographically and etymologically corresponds to modern Butkha (Yuen shi); Abalahu, as Kúblái himself said, was rich in fish; indeed, after the suppression of Nayan’s rebellion, the governor of that country used to send to the Peking Court fishes weighing up to a thousand Chinese pounds (kin.). It was evidently a country near the Amur River.” (Palladius, l.c. 31.)—H. C.] Nayan had added to his inherited territory, and become very powerful. [“History has apparently connected Nayan’s appanage with that of Hatan (a grandson of Hachiun, brother of Chinghiz Khan), whose ordo was contiguous to Nayan’s, on the left bank of the Amur, hypothetically east of Blagovietschensk, on the spot, where still the traces of an ancient city can be seen. Nayan’s possessions stretched south to Kwang-ning, which belonged to his appanage, and it was from this town that he had the title of prince of Kwang-ning (Yuen shi).” (Palladius, l.c. 31.)—H. C.] Kaidu had gained influence over Nayan, and persuaded him to rise against Kúblái. A number of the other Mongol princes took part with him. Kúblái was much disquieted at the rumours, and sent his great lieutenant BAYAN to reconnoitre. Bayan was nearly captured, but escaped to court and reported to his master the great armament that Nayan was preparing. Kúblái succeeded by diplomacy in detaching some of the princes from the enterprise, and resolved to march in person to the scene of action, whilst despatching Bayan to the Karakorum frontier to intercept Kaídu. This was in the summer of 1287. What followed will be found in a subsequent note (ch. iv. note 6). (For Nayan’s descent, see the Genealogical Table in the Appendix (A).)
HOW THE GREAT KAAN MARCHED AGAINST NAYAN.
When the Great Kaan heard what was afoot, he made his preparations in right good heart, like one who feared not the issue of an attempt so contrary to justice. Confident in his own conduct and prowess, he was in no degree disturbed, but vowed that he would never wear crown again if he brought not those two traitorous and disloyal Tartar chiefs to an ill end. So swiftly and secretly were his preparations made, that no one knew of them but his Privy Council, and all were completed within ten or twelve days. In that time he had assembled good 360,000 horsemen, and 100,000 footmen,—but a small force indeed for him, and consisting only of those that were in the vicinity. For the rest of his vast and innumerable forces were too far off to answer so hasty a summons, being engaged under orders from him on distant expeditions to conquer divers countries and provinces. If he had waited to summon all his troops, the multitude assembled would have been beyond all belief, a multitude such as never was heard of or told of, past all counting. In fact, those 360,000 horsemen that he got together consisted merely of the falconers and whippers-in that were about the court![NOTE 1]
And when he had got ready this handful (as it were) of his troops, he ordered his astrologers to declare whether he should gain the battle and get the better of his enemies. After they had made their observations, they told him to go on boldly, for he would conquer and gain a glorious victory: whereat he greatly rejoiced.
So he marched with his army, and after advancing for 20 days they arrived at a great plain where Nayan lay with all his host, amounting to some 400,000 horse. Now the Great Kaan’s forces arrived so fast and so suddenly that the others knew nothing of the matter. For the Kaan had caused such strict watch to be made in every direction for scouts that every one that appeared was instantly captured. Thus Nayan had no warning of his coming and was completely taken by surprise; insomuch that when the Great Kaan’s army came up, he was asleep in the arms of a wife of his of whom he was extravagantly fond. So thus you see why it was that the Emperor equipped his force with such speed and secrecy.
NOTE 1.—I am afraid Marco, in his desire to impress on his readers the great power of the Kaan, is here giving the reins to exaggeration on a great scale.
Ramusio has here the following explanatory addition:—”You must know that in all the Provinces of Cathay and Mangi, and throughout the Great Kaan’s dominions, there are too many disloyal folk ready to break into rebellion against their Lord, and hence it is needful in every province containing large cities and much population, to maintain garrisons. These are stationed four or five miles from the cities, and the latter are not allowed to have walls or gates by which they might obstruct the entrance of the troops at their pleasure. These garrisons as well as their commanders the Great Khan causes to be relieved every two years; and bridled in this way the people are kept quiet, and can make no disturbance. The troops are maintained not only by the pay which the Kaan regularly assigns from the revenues of each province, but also by the vast quantities of cattle which they keep, and by the sale of milk in the cities, which furnishes the means of buying what they require. They are scattered among their different stations, at distances of 30, 40, or 60 days (from the capital); and had Cublay decided to summon but the half of them, the number would have been incredible,” etc.
[Palladius says (p. 37) that in the Mongol-Chinese documents, the Mongol garrisons cantoned near the Chinese towns are mentioned under the name of Aolu, but no explanation of the term is given.—H. C.]
The system of controlling garrisons, quartered at a few miles from the
great cities, is that which the Chinese followed at Kashgar, Yarkand, etc.
It is, in fact, our own system in India, as at Barrackpúr, Dinapúr,
Sikandarábád, Mián Mír.
OF THE BATTLE THAT THE GREAT KAAN FOUGHT WITH NAYAN.
What shall I say about it? When day had well broken, there was the Kaan with all his host upon a hill overlooking the plain where Nayan lay in his tent, in all security, without the slightest thought of any one coming thither to do him hurt. In fact, this confidence of his was such that he kept no vedettes whether in front or in rear; for he knew nothing of the coming of the Great Kaan, owing to all the approaches having been completely occupied as I told you. Moreover, the place was in a remote wilderness, more than thirty marches from the Court, though the Kaan had made the distance in twenty, so eager was he to come to battle with Nayan.
And what shall I tell you next? The Kaan was there on the hill, mounted on a great wooden bartizan,[NOTE 1] which was borne by four well-trained elephants, and over him was hoisted his standard, so high aloft that it could be seen from all sides. His troops were ordered in battles of 30,000 men apiece; and a great part of the horsemen had each a foot-soldier armed with a lance set on the crupper behind him (for it was thus that the footmen were disposed of);[NOTE 2] and the whole plain seemed to be covered with his forces. So it was thus that the Great Kaan’s army was arrayed for battle.
When Nayan and his people saw what had happened, they were sorely confounded, and rushed in haste to arms. Nevertheless they made them ready in good style and formed their troops in an orderly manner. And when all were in battle array on both sides as I have told you, and nothing remained but to fall to blows, then might you have heard a sound arise of many instruments of various music, and of the voices of the whole of the two hosts loudly singing. For this is a custom of the Tartars, that before they join battle they all unite in singing and playing on a certain two-stringed instrument of theirs, a thing right pleasant to hear. And so they continue in their array of battle, singing and playing in this pleasing manner, until the great Naccara of the Prince is heard to sound. As soon as that begins to sound the fight also begins on both sides; and in no case before the Prince’s Naccara sounds dare any commence fighting. [NOTE 3]
So then, as they were thus singing and playing, though ordered and ready for battle, the great Naccara of the Great Khan began to sound. And that of Nayan also began to sound. And thenceforward the din of battle began to be heard loudly from this side and from that. And they rushed to work so doughtily with their bows and their maces, with their lances and swords, and with the arblasts of the footmen, that it was a wondrous sight to see. Now might you behold such flights of arrows from this side and from that, that the whole heaven was canopied with them and they fell like rain. Now might you see on this side and on that full many a cavalier and man-at- arms fall slain, insomuch that the whole field seemed covered with them. From this side and from that such cries arose from the crowds of the wounded and dying that had God thundered, you would not have heard Him! For fierce and furious was the battle, and quarter there was none given.[NOTE 4]
But why should I make a long story of it? You must know that it was the most parlous and fierce and fearful battle that ever has been fought in our day. Nor have there ever been such forces in the field in actual fight, especially of horsemen, as were then engaged—for, taking both sides, there were not fewer than 760,000 horsemen, a mighty force! and that without reckoning the footmen, who were also very numerous. The battle endured with various fortune on this side and on that from morning till noon. But at the last, by God’s pleasure and the right that was on his side, the Great Khan had the victory, and Nayan lost the battle and was utterly routed. For the army of the Great Kaan performed such feats of arms that Nayan and his host could stand against them no longer, so they turned and fled. But this availed nothing for Nayan; for he and all the barons with him were taken prisoners, and had to surrender to the Kaan with all their arms.
Now you must know that Nayan was a baptized Christian, and bore the cross on his banner; but this nought availed him, seeing how grievously he had done amiss in rebelling against his Lord. For he was the Great Kaan’s liegeman,[NOTE 5] and was bound to hold his lands of him like all his ancestors before him.[NOTE 6]
NOTE 1.—”Une grande bretesche.” Bretesche, Bertisca (whence old English Brattice, and Bartizan), was a term applied to any boarded structure of defence or attack, but especially to the timber parapets and roofs often placed on the top of the flanking-towers in mediaeval fortifications; and this use quite explains the sort of structure here intended. The term and its derivative Bartizan came later to be applied to projecting guérites or watch-towers of masonry. Brattice in English is now applied to a fence round a pit or dangerous machinery. (See Muratori, Dissert. I. 334;Wedgwood’s Dict. of Etym. sub. v. Brattice; Viollet le Duc, by Macdermott, p. 40; La Curne de Sainte-Palaye, Dict.; F. Godefroy, Dict.)
[John Ranking (Hist. Res. on the Wars and Sports of the Mongols and Romans) in a note regarding this battle writes (p. 60): “It appears that it is an old custom in Persia, to use four elephants a-breast.” The Senate decreed Gordian III. to represent him triumphing after the Persian mode, with chariots drawn with four elephants. Augustan Hist. vol. ii. p. 65. See plate, p. 52.—H. C.]
NOTE 2.—This circumstance is mentioned in the extract below from Gaubil. He may have taken it from Polo, as it is not in Pauthier’s Chinese extracts; but Gaubil has other facts not noticed in these.
[Elephants came from the Indo-Chinese Kingdoms, Burma, Siam, Ciampa.
—H. C.]
NOTE 3.—The specification of the Tartar instrument of two strings is peculiar to Pauthier’s texts. It was no doubt what Dr. Clarke calls “the balalaika or two-stringed lyre,” the most common instrument among the Kalmaks.
The sounding of the Nakkára as the signal of action is an old Pan-Asiatic custom, but I cannot find that this very striking circumstance of the whole host of Tartars playing and singing in chorus, when ordered for battle and waiting the signal from the boom of the Big Drum, is mentioned by any other author.
The Nakkárah or Nagárah was a great kettledrum, formed like a brazen caldron, tapering to the bottom and covered with buffalo-hide—at least 3-1/2 or 4 feet in diameter. Bernier, indeed, tells of Nakkáras in use at the Court of Delhi that were not less than a fathom across; and Tod speaks of them in Rájpútána as “about 8 or 10 feet in diameter.” The Tartar Nakkárahs were usually, I presume, carried on a camel; but as Kúblái had begun to use elephants, his may have been carried on an elephant, as is sometimes the case in India. Thus, too, P. della Valle describes those of an Indian Embassy at Ispahan: “The Indian Ambassador was also accompanied by a variety of warlike instruments of music of strange kinds, and particularly by certain Naccheras of such immense size that each pair had an elephant to carry them, whilst an Indian astride upon the elephant between the two Naccheras played upon them with both hands, dealing strong blows on this one and on that; what a din was made by these vast drums, and what a spectacle it was, I leave you to imagine.”
Joinville also speaks of the Nakkara as the signal for action: “So he was setting his host in array till noon, and then he made those drums of theirs to sound that they call Nacaires, and then they set upon us horse and foot.” The Great Nakkara of the Tartars appears from several Oriental histories to have been called Kúrkah. I cannot find this word in any dictionary accessible to me, but it is in the Ain Akbari (Kawargah) as distinct from the Nakkárah. Abulfazl tells us that Akbar not only had a rare knowledge of the science of music, but was likewise an excellent performer—especially on the Nakkárah!
[Illustration: Nakkaras. (From a Chinese original.)]
The privilege of employing the Nakkara in personal state was one granted by the sovereign as a high honour and reward.
The crusades naturalised the word in some form or other in most European languages, but in our own apparently with a transfer of meaning. For Wright defines Naker as “a cornet or horn of brass.” And Chaucer’s use seems to countenance this:—
“Pipes, Trompes, Nakeres, and Clariounes,
That in the Bataille blowen blody sounes.”
—The Knight’s Tale.
On the other hand, Nacchera, in Italian, seems always to have retained the meaning of kettle-drum, with the slight exception of a local application at Siena to a metal circle or triangle struck with a rod. The fact seems to be that there is a double origin, for the Arabic dictionaries not only haveNakkarah, but Nakír and Nákúr, “cornu, tuba.” The orchestra of Bibars Bundukdári, we are told, consisted of 40 pairs of kettle-drums, 4 drums, 4 hautbois, and 20 trumpets (Nakír). (Sir B. Frere; Della Valle, II. 21; Tod’s Rájasthán, I. 328; Joinville, p. 83; N. et E. XIV. 129, and following note; Blochmann’s Ain-i-Akbari, pp. 50-51; Ducange, by Haenschel, s.v.; Makrizi, I. 173.)
[Dozy (Supp. aux Dict. Arabes) has [Arabic] [naqqarè] “petit tambour ou timbale, bassin de cuivre ou de terre recouvert d’une peau tendue,” and “grosses timbales en cuivre portées sur un chameau ou un mulet.”—Devic (Dict. Étym.) writes: “Bas Latin, nacara; bas grec, [Greek: anáchara]. Ce n’est point comme on l’a dit, l’Arabe [Arabic] naqïr ou [Arabic] náqör, qui signifient trompette, clairon, mais le persan [Arabic] en arabe, [Arabic] naqara, timbale.” It is to be found also in Abyssinia and south of Gondokoro; it is mentioned in the Sedjarat Malayu.
In French, it gives nacaire and gnacare from the Italian gnacare. “Quatre jouent de la guitare, quatre des castagnettes, quatre des gnacares.” (MOLIÈRE, Pastorale Comique.)—H. C.]
[Illustration: Nakkaras. (From an Indian original.)]
NOTE 4.—This description of a fight will recur again and again till we are very tired of it. It is difficult to say whether the style is borrowed from the historians of the East or the romancers of the West. Compare the two following parallels. First from an Oriental history:—
“The Ear of Heaven was deafened with the din of the great Kurkahs and
Drums, and the Earth shook at the clangour of the Trumpets and Clarions.
The shafts began to fall like the rain-drops of spring, and blood flowed
till the field looked like the Oxus.” (J. A. S. sér. IV. tom. xix. 256)
Next from an Occidental Romance:—
“Now rist grete tabour betyng,
Blaweyng of pypes, and ek trumpyng,
Stedes lepyng, and ek arnyng,
Of sharp speres, and avalyng
Of stronge knighttes, and wyghth meetyng;
Launces breche and increpyng;
Knighttes fallyng, stedes lesyng;
Herte and hevedes thorough kervyng;
Swerdes draweyng, lymes lesyng
Hard assaylyng, strong defendyng,
Stiff withstondyng and wighth fleigheyng.
Sharp of takyng armes spoylyng;
So gret bray, so gret crieyng,
Ifor the folk there was dyeyng;
So muche dent, noise of sweord,
The thondur blast no myghte beo hirde,
No the sunne hadde beo seye,
For the dust of the poudré!
No the weolkyn seon be myght,
So was arewes and quarels flyght.”
—King Alisaunder, in Weber, I. 93-94.
“The eorthe quaked heom undur,
No scholde mon have herd the thondur.”
—Ibid. 142.
Also in a contemporary account of the fall of Acre (1291): “Renovatur ergo bellum terribile inter alterutros … clamoribus interjectis hine et inde ad terrorem; ita ut nec Deus tonans in sublime coaudiri potuisset.” (De Excidio Acconis, in Martene et Durand, V. 780.)
NOTE 5.—”Car il estoit homme au Grant Kaan.” (See note 2, ch. xiv., in Prologue.)
NOTE 6.—In continuation of note 4, chap. ii., we give Gaubil’s conclusion of the story of Nayan: “The Emperor had gone ahead with a small force, when Nayan’s General came forward with 100,000 men to make a reconnaissance. The Sovereign, however, put on a bold front, and though in great danger of being carried off, showed no trepidation. It was night, and an urgent summons went to call troops to the Emperor’s aid. They marched at once, the horsemen taking the foot soldiers on the crupper behind them. Nayan all this while was taking it quietly in his camp, and his generals did not venture to attack the Emperor, suspecting an ambuscade. Liting then took ten resolute men, and on approaching the General’s camp, caused a Fire-Pao to be discharged; the report caused a great panic among Nayan’s troops, who were very ill disciplined at the best. Meanwhile the Chinese and Tartar troops had all come up, and Nayan was attacked on all sides: by Liting at the head of the Chinese, by Yusitemur at the head of the Mongols, by Tutuha and the Emperor in person at the head of his guards and the troops of Kincha (Kipchak). The presence of the Emperor rendered the army invincible, and Nayan’s forces were completely defeated. That prince himself was taken, and afterwards put to death. The battle took place in the vicinity of the river Liao, and the Emperor returned in triumph to Shangtu” (207). The Chinese record given in detail by Pauthier is to the like effect, except as to the Kaan’s narrow escape, of which it says nothing.
As regards the Fire-Pao (the latter word seems to have been applied to military machines formerly, and now to artillery), I must refer to Favé and Reinaud’s very curious and interesting treatise on the Greek fire (du Feu Grégeois). They do not seem to assent to the view that the arms of this description which are mentioned in the Mongol wars were cannon, but rather of the nature of rockets.
[Dr. G. Schlegel (T’oung Pao, No. 1, 1902), in a paper entitled, On the Invention and Use of Fire-Arms and Gunpowder in China, prior to the Arrival of Europeans, says that “now, notwithstanding all what has been alleged by different European authors against the use of gunpowder and fire-arms in China, I maintain that not only the Mongols in 1293 had cannon, but that they were already acquainted with them in 1232.” Among his many examples, we quote the following from the Books of the Ming Dynasty: “What were anciently called P’ao were all machines for hurling stones. In the beginning of the Mongol Dynasty (A.D. 1260), p’ao (catapults) of the Western regions were procured. In the siege [in 1233] of the city of Ts’ai chow of the Kin (Tatars), fire was for the first time employed (in these p’ao), but the art of making them was not handed down, and they were afterwards seldom used.”—H. C.]
CHAPTER V.
HOW THE GREAT KAAN CAUSED NAYAN TO BE PUT TO DEATH.
And when the Great Kaan learned that Nayan was taken right glad was he, and commanded that he should be put to death straightway and in secret, lest endeavours should be made to obtain pity and pardon for him, because he was of the Kaan’s own flesh and blood. And this was the way in which he was put to death: he was wrapt in a carpet, and tossed to and fro so mercilessly that he died. And the Kaan caused him to be put to death in this way because he would not have the blood of his Line Imperial spilt upon the ground or exposed in the eye of Heaven and before the Sun.[NOTE 1]
And when the Great Kaan had gained this battle, as you have heard, all the
Barons and people of Nayan’s provinces renewed their fealty to the Kaan.
Now these provinces that had been under the Lordship of Nayan were four in
number; to wit, the first called CHORCHA; the second CAULY; the third
BARSCOL; the fourth SIKINTINJU. Of all these four great provinces had
Nayan been Lord; it was a very great dominion.[NOTE 2]
And after the Great Kaan had conquered Nayan, as you have heard, it came to pass that the different kinds of people who were present, Saracens and Idolaters and Jews,[NOTE 3] and many others that believed not in God, did gibe those that were Christians because of the cross that Nayan had borne on his standard, and that so grievously that there was no bearing it. Thus they would say to the Christians: “See now what precious help this God’s Cross of yours hath rendered Nayan, who was a Christian and a worshipper thereof.” And such a din arose about the matter that it reached the Great Kaan’s own ears. When it did so, he sharply rebuked those who cast these gibes at the Christians; and he also bade the Christians be of good heart, “for if the Cross had rendered no help to Nayan, in that It had done right well; nor could that which was good, as It was, have done otherwise; for Nayan was a disloyal and traitorous Rebel against his Lord, and well deserved that which had befallen him. Wherefore the Cross of your God did well in that It gave him no help against the right.” And this he said so loud that everybody heard him. The Christians then replied to the Great Kaan: “Great King, you say the truth indeed, for our Cross can render no one help in wrong-doing; and therefore it was that It aided not Nayan, who was guilty of crime and disloyalty, for It would take no part in his evil deeds.”
And so thenceforward no more was heard of the floutings of the unbelievers against the Christians; for they heard very well what the Sovereign said to the latter about the Cross on Nayan’s banner, and its giving him no help.
NOTE 1.—Friar Ricold mentions this Tartar maxim: “One Khan will put another to death, to get possession of the throne, but he takes great care that the blood be not spilt. For they say that it is highly improper that the blood of the Great Khan should be spilt upon the ground; so they cause the victim to be smothered somehow or other.” The like feeling prevails at the Court of Burma, where a peculiar mode of execution without bloodshed is reserved for Princes of the Blood. And Kaempfer, relating the conspiracy of Faulcon at the Court of Siam, says that two of the king’s brothers, accused of participation, were beaten to death with clubs of sandal-wood, “for the respect entertained for the blood-royal forbids its being shed.” See also note 6, ch. vi. Bk. I., on the death of the Khalif Mosta’sim Billah. (Pereg. Quat. p. 115; Mission to Ava, p. 229; Kaempfer; I. 19.)
NOTE 2.—CHORCHA is the Manchu country, Niuché of the Chinese. (Supra, note 2, ch. xlvi. Bk. I.) [“Chorcha is Churchin.—Nayan, as vassal of the Mongol khans, had the commission to keep in obedience the people of Manchuria (subdued in 1233), and to care for the security of the country (Yuen shi); there is no doubt that he shared these obligations with his relative Hatan, who stood nearer to the native tribes of Manchuria.” (Palladius, 32.)—H. C.]
KAULI is properly Corea, probably here a district on the frontier thereof, as it is improbable that Nayan had any rule over Corea. [“The Corean kingdom proper could not be a part of the prince’s appanage. Marco Polo might mean the northern part of Corea, which submitted to the Mongols in A.D. 1269, with sixty towns, and which was subordinated entirely to the central administration in Liao-yang. As to the southern part of Corea, it was left to the king of Corea, who, however, was a vassal of the Mongols.” (Palladius, 32.) The king of Corea (Ko rye, Kao-li) was in 1288 Chyoung ryel wang (1274-1298); the capital was Syong-to, now Kai syeng (K’ai-ch’eng).—H. C.]
BARSKUL, “Leopard-Lake,” is named in Sanang Setsen (p. 217), but seems there to indicate some place in the west of Mongolia, perhaps the Barkul of our maps. This Barskul must have been on the Manchu frontier. [There are in the Yuen-shi the names of the department of P’u-yü-lu, and of the place Pu-lo-ho, which, according to the system of Chinese transcription, approach to Barscol; but it is difficult to prove this identification, since our knowledge of these places is very scanty; it only remains to identify Barscol with Abalahu, which is already known; a conjecture all the more probable as the two names of P’u-yü-lu and Pu-lo-ho have also some resemblance to Abalahu. (Palladius, 32.) Mr. E. H. Parker says (China Review, xviii. p. 261) that Barscol may be Pa-la ssu or Bars Koto [in Tsetsen]. “This seems the more probable in that Cauly and Chorcha are clearly proved to be Corea and Niuché or Manchuria, so that Bars Koto would naturally fall within Nayan’s appanage.”—H. C.]
The reading of the fourth name is doubtful, Sichuigiu, Sichingiu (G. T.), Sichin-tingiu etc. The Chinese name of Mukden is Shing-king, but I know not if it be so old as our author’s time. I think it very possible that the real reading is Sinchin-tingin, and that it represents SHANGKING-TUNGKING, expressing the two capitals of the Khitan Dynasty in this region, the position of which will be found indicated in No. IV. map of Polo’s itineraries. (See Schott, Aelteste Nachrichten von Mongolen und Tartaren, Berlin Acad. 1845, pp. 11-12.)
[Sikintinju is Kien chau “belonging to a town which was in Nayan’s appanage, and is mentioned in the history of his rebellion. There were two Kien-chow, one in the time of the Kin in the modern aimak of Khorchin; the other during the Mongol Dynasty, on the upper part of the river Ta-ling ho, in the limits of the modern aimak of Kharachin (Man chow yuen lew k’ao); the latter depended on Kuang-ning (Yuen-shi). Mention is made of Kien-chow, in connection with the following circumstance. When Nayan’s rebellion broke out, the Court of Peking sent orders to the King of Corea, requiring from him auxiliary troops; this circumstance is mentioned in the Corean Annals, under the year 1288 (Kao li shi, ch. xxx. f. 11) in the following words:—’In the present year, in the fourth month, orders were received from Peking to send five thousand men with provisions to Kien-chow, which is 3000 li distant from the King’s residence.’ This number of li cannot of course be taken literally; judging by the distances estimated at the present day, it was about 2000 li from the Corean K’ai-ch’eng fu (then the Corean capital) to the Mongol Kien-chow; and as much to the Kien-chow of the Kin (through Mukden and the pass of Fa- k’u mun in the willow palisade). It is difficult to decide to which of these two cities of the same name the troops were ordered to go, but at any rate, there are sufficient reasons to identify Sikintinju of Marco Polo with Kien-chow.” (Palladius, 33.)—H. C.]
We learn from Gaubil that the rebellion did not end with the capture of Nayan. In the summer of 1288 several of the princes of Nayan’s league, under Hatan (apparently the Abkan of Erdmann’s genealogies), the grandson of Chinghiz’s brother Kajyun [Hachiun], threatened the provinces north-east of the wall. Kúblái sent his grandson and designated heir, Teimur, against them, accompanied by some of his best generals. After a two days’ fight on the banks of the River Kweilei, the rebels were completely beaten. The territories on the said River Kweilei, the Tiro, or Torro, and theLiao, are mentioned both by Gaubil and De Mailla as among those which had belonged to Nayan. As the Kweilei and Toro appear on our maps and also the better-known Liao, we are thus enabled to determine with tolerable precision Nayan’s country. (See Gaubil, p. 209, and De Mailla, 431 seqq.)
[“The rebellion of Nayan and Hatan is incompletely and contradictorily related in Chinese history. The suppression of both these rebellions lasted four years. In 1287 Nayan marched from his ordo with sixty thousand men through Eastern Mongolia. In the 5th moon (var. 6th) of the same year Khubilai marched against him from Shangtu. The battle was fought in South-Eastern Mongolia, and gained by Khubilai, who returned to Shangtu in the 8th month. Nayan fled to the south-east, across the mountain range, along which a willow palisade now stands; but forces had been sent beforehand from Shin-chow (modern Mukden) and Kuang-ning (probably to watch the pass), and Nayan was made prisoner.
“Two months had not passed, when Hatan’s rebellion broke out (so that it took place in the same year 1287). It is mentioned under the year 1288, that Hatan was beaten, and that the whole of Manchuria was pacified; but in 1290, it is again recorded that Hatan disturbed Southern Manchuria, and that he was again defeated. It is to this time that the narratives in the biographies of Liting, Yuesi Femur, and Mangwu ought to be referred. According to the first of these biographies, Hatan, after his defeat by Liting on the river Kui lui (Kuilar?), fled, and perished. According to the second biography, Hatan’s dwelling (on the Amur River) was destroyed, and he disappeared. According to the third, Mangwu and Naimatai pursued Hatan to the extreme north, up to the eastern sea-coast (the mouth of the Amur). Hatan fled, but two of his wives and his son Lao-ti were taken; the latter was executed, and this was the concluding act of the suppression of the rebellion in Manchuria. We find, however, an important variante in the history of Corea; it is stated there that in 1290, Hatan and his son Lao-ti were carrying fire and slaughter to Corea, and devastated that country; they slew the inhabitants and fed on human flesh. The King of Corea fled to the Kiang-hwa island. The Coreans were not able to withstand the invasion. The Mongols sent to their aid in 1291, troops under the command of two generals, Seshekan (who was at that time governor of Liao-tung) and Namantai (evidently the above-mentioned Naimatai). The Mongols conjointly with the Coreans defeated the insurgents, who had penetrated into the very heart of the country; their corpses covered a space 30 li in extent; Hatan and his son made their way through the victorious army and fled, finding a refuge in the Niuchi (Djurdji) country, from which Laotai made a later incursion into Corea. Such is the discrepancy between historians in relating the same fact. The statement found in the Corean history seems to me more reliable than the facts given by Chinese history.” (Palladius, 35-37.)—H. C.]
NOTE 3.—This passage, and the extract from Ramusio’s version attached to the following chapter, contain the only allusions by Marco to Jews in China. John of Monte Corvino alludes to them, and so does Marignolli, who speaks of having held disputations with them at Cambaluc; Ibn Batuta also speaks of them at Khansa or Hangchau. Much has been written about the ancient settlement of Jews at Kaifungfu, in Honan. One of the most interesting papers on the subject is in the Chinese Repository, vol. xx. It gives the translation of a Chinese-Jewish Inscription, which in some respects forms a singular parallel to the celebrated Christian Inscription of Si-ngan fu, though it is of far more modern date (1511). It exhibits, as that inscription does, the effect of Chinese temperament or language, in modifying or diluting doctrinal statements. Here is a passage: “With respect to the Israelitish religion, we find on inquiry that its first ancestor, Adam, came originally from India, and that during the (period of the) Chau State the Sacred Writings were already in existence. The Sacred Writings, embodying Eternal Reason, consist of 53 sections. The principles therein contained are very abstruse, and the Eternal Reason therein revealed is very mysterious, being treated with the same veneration as Heaven. The founder of the religion is Abraham, who is considered the first teacher of it. Then came Moses, who established the Law, and handed down the Sacred Writings. After his time, during the Han Dynasty (B.C. 206 to A.D. 221), this religion entered China. In (A.D.) 1164, a synagogue was built at P’ien. In (A.D.) 1296, the old Temple was rebuilt, as a place in which the Sacred Writings might be deposited with veneration.”
[According to their oral tradition, the Jews came to China from Si Yih (Western Regions), probably Persia, by Khorasan and Samarkand, during the first century of our era, in the reign of the Emperor Ming-ti (A.D. 58-75) of the Han Dynasty. They were at times confounded with the followers of religions of India, T’ien Chu kiao, and very often with the Mohammedans Hwui-Hwui or Hwui-tzu; the common name of their religion was Tiao kin kiao, “Extract Sinew Religion.” However, three lapidary inscriptions, kept at Kaï-fung, give different dates for the arrival of the Jews in China: one dated 1489 (2nd year Hung Che, Ming Dynasty) says that seventy Jewish families arrived at P’ien liang (Kaï-fung) at the time of the Sung (A. D. 960-1278); one dated 1512 (7th year Chêng Têh) says that the Jewish religion was introduced into China under the Han Dynasty (B.C. 206-A.D. 221), and the last one dated 1663 (2nd year K’ang-hi) says that this religion was first preached in China under the Chau Dynasty (B.C. 1122-255); this will not bear discussion.
The synagogue, according to these inscriptions, was built in 1163, under the Sung Emperor Hiao; under the Yuen, in 1279, the rabbi rebuilt the ancient temple known as Ts’ing Chen sse, probably on the site of a ruined mosque; the synagogue was rebuilt in 1421 during the reign of Yung-lo; it was destroyed by an inundation of the Hwang-ho in 1642, and the Jews began to rebuild it once more in 1653.
The first knowledge Europeans had of a colony of Jews at K’aï-fung fu, in the Ho-nan province, was obtained through the Jesuit missionaries at Peking, at the beginning of the 17th century; the celebrated Matteo Ricci having received the visit of a young Jew, the Jesuits Aleni (1613), Gozani (1704), Gaubil and Domenge who made in 1721 two plans of the synagogue, visited Kaï-fung and brought back some documents. In 1850, a mission of enquiry was sent to that place by the London Society for promoting Christianity among the Jews; the results of this mission were published at Shang-hai, in 1851, by Bishop G. Smith of Hongkong; fac-similes of the Hebrew manuscripts obtained at the synagogue of Kaï-fung were also printed at Shang-haï at the London Missionary Society’s Press, in the same year. The Jewish merchants of London sent in 1760 to their brethren of Kaï-fung a letter written in Hebrew; a Jewish merchant of Vienna, J. L. Liebermann, visited the Kaï-fung colony in 1867. At the time of the T’aï-P’ing rising, the rebels marched against Kaï-fung in 1857, and with the rest of the population, the Jews were dispersed. (J. Tobar, Insc. juives de Kaï-fong-fou, 1900; Henri Cordier, Les Juifs en Chine, and Fung and Wagnall’s Jewish Encyclopedia.) Palladius writes (p. 38), “The Jews are mentioned for the first time in the Yuen shi (ch. xxxiii. p. 7), under the year 1329, on the occasion of the re-establishment of the law for the collection of taxes from dissidents. Mention of them is made again under the year 1354, ch. xliii. fol. 10, when on account of several insurrections in China, rich Mahommetans and Jews were invited to the capital in order to join the army. In both cases they are named Chu hu (Djuhud).”—H. C.]
The synagogue at Kaifungfu has recently been demolished for the sake of its materials, by the survivors of the Jewish community themselves, who were too poor to repair it. The tablet that once adorned its entrance, bearing in gilt characters the name ESZLOYIH (Israel), has been appropriated by a mosque. The 300 or 400 survivors seem in danger of absorption into the Mahomedan or heathen population. The last Rabbi and possessor of the sacred tongue died some thirty or forty years ago, the worship has ceased, and their traditions have almost died away.
(Cathay, 225, 341, 497; Ch. Rep. XX. 436; Dr. Martin, in J. N. China Br. R. A. S. 1866, pp. 32-33.)
CHAPTER VI.
HOW THE GREAT KAAN WENT BACK TO THE CITY OF CAMBALUC.
And after the Great Kaan had defeated Nayan in the way you have heard, he went back to his capital city of Cambaluc and abode there, taking his ease and making festivity. And the other Tartar Lord called Caydu was greatly troubled when he heard of the defeat and death of Nayan, and held himself in readiness for war; but he stood greatly in fear of being handled as Nayan had been.[NOTE 1]
I told you that the Great Kaan never went on a campaign but once, and it was on this occasion; in all other cases of need he sent his sons or his barons into the field. But this time he would have none go in command but himself, for he regarded the presumptuous rebellion of Nayan as far too serious and perilous an affair to be otherwise dealt with.
NOTE 1.—Here Ramusio has a long and curious addition. Kúblái, it says, remained at Cambaluc till March, “in which our Easter occurs; and learning that this was one of our chief festivals, he summoned all the Christians, and bade them bring with them the Book of the Four Gospels. This he caused to be incensed many times with great ceremony, kissing it himself most devoutly, and desiring all the barons and lords who were present to do the same. And he always acts in this fashion at the chief Christian festivals, such as Easter and Christmas. And he does the like at the chief feasts of the Saracens, Jews, and Idolaters. On being asked why, he said: ‘There are Four Prophets worshipped and revered by all the world. The Christians say their God is Jesus Christ; the Saracens, Mahommet; the Jews, Moses; the Idolaters, Sogomon Borcan [Sakya-Muni Burkhan or Buddha], who was the first god among the idols; and I worship and pay respect to all four, and pray that he among them who is greatest in heaven in very truth may aid me.’ But the Great Khan let it be seen well enough that he held the Christian Faith to be the truest and best—for, as he says, it commands nothing that is not perfectly good and holy. But he will not allow the Christians to carry the Cross before them, because on it was scourged and put to death a person so great and exalted as Christ.
“Some one may say: ‘Since he holds the Christian faith to be best, why does he not attach himself to it, and become a Christian?’ Well, this is the reason that he gave to Messer Nicolo and Messer Maffeo, when he sent them as his envoys to the Pope, and when they sometimes took occasion to speak to him about the faith of Christ. He said: ‘How would you have me to become a Christian? You see that the Christians of these parts are so ignorant that they achieve nothing and can achieve nothing, whilst you see the Idolaters can do anything they please, insomuch that when I sit at table the cups from the middle of the hall come to me full of wine or other liquor without being touched by anybody, and I drink from them. They control storms, causing them to pass in whatever direction they please, and do many other marvels; whilst, as you know, their idols speak, and give them predictions on whatever subjects they choose. But if I were to turn to the faith of Christ and become a Christian, then my barons and others who are not converted would say: “What has moved you to be baptised and to take up the faith of Christ? What powers or miracles have you witnessed on His part?” (You know the Idolaters here say that their wonders are performed by the sanctity and power of their idols.) Well, I should not know what answer to make; so they would only be confirmed in their errors, and the Idolaters, who are adepts in such surprising arts, would easily compass my death. But now you shall go to your Pope, and pray him on my part to send hither an hundred men skilled in your law, who shall be capable of rebuking the practices of the Idolaters to their faces, and of telling them that they too know how to do such things but will not, because they are done by the help of the devil and other evil spirits, and shall so control the Idolaters that these shall have no power to perform such things in their presence. When we shall witness this we will denounce the Idolaters and their religion, and then I will receive baptism; and when I shall have been baptised, then all my barons and chiefs shall be baptised also, and their followers shall do the like, and thus in the end there will be more Christians here than exist in your part of the world!’
“And if the Pope, as was said in the beginning of this book, had sent men fit to preach our religion, the Grand Kaan would have turned Christian; for it is an undoubted fact that he greatly desired to do so.”
In the simultaneous patronage of different religions, Kúblái followed the practice of his house. Thus Rubruquis writes of his predecessor Mangku Kaan: “It is his custom, on such days as his diviners tell him to be festivals, or any of the Nestorian priests declare to be holydays, to hold a court. On these occasions the Christian priests enter first with their paraphernalia, and pray for him, and bless his cup. They retire, and then come the Saracen priests and do likewise; the priests of the Idolaters follow. He all the while believes in none of them, though they all follow his court as flies follow honey. He bestows his gifts on all of them, each party believes itself to be his favourite, and all prophesy smooth things to him.” Abulfaragius calls Kúblái “a just prince and a wise, who loved Christians and honoured physicians of learning, whatsoever their nation.”
There is a good deal in Kúblái that reminds us of the greatest prince of that other great Mongol house, Akbar. And if we trusted the first impression of the passage just quoted from Ramusio, we might suppose that the grandson of Chinghiz too had some of that real wistful regard towards the Lord Jesus Christ, of which we seem to see traces in the grandson of Baber. But with Kúblái, as with his predecessors, religion seems to have been only a political matter; and this aspect of the thing will easily be recognised in a re-perusal of his conversation with Messer Nicolas and Messer Maffeo. The Kaan must be obeyed; how man shall worship God is indifferent; this was the constant policy of his house in the days of its greatness. Kúblái, as Koeppen observes, the first of his line to raise himself above the natural and systematic barbarism of the Mongols, probably saw in the promotion of Tibetan Buddhism, already spread to some extent among them, the readiest means of civilising his countrymen. But he may have been quite sincere in saying what is here ascribed to him in this sense, viz.: that if the Latin Church, with its superiority of character and acquirement, had come to his aid as he had once requested, he would gladly have used its missionaries as his civilising instruments instead of the Lamas and their trumpery. (Rubr. 313; Assemani, III. pt. ii. 107; Koeppen, II. 89, 96.)
CHAPTER VII.
HOW THE KAAN REWARDED THE VALOUR OF HIS CAPTAINS.
So we will have done with this matter of Nayan, and go on with our account of the great state of the Great Kaan.
We have already told you of his lineage and of his age; but now I must tell you what he did after his return, in regard to those barons who had behaved well in the battle. Him who was before captain of 100 he made captain of 1000; and him who was captain of 1000 men he made to be captain of 10,000, advancing every man according to his deserts and to his previous rank. Besides that, he also made them presents of fine silver plate and other rich appointments; gave them Tablets of Authority of a higher degree than they held before; and bestowed upon them fine jewels of gold and silver, and pearls and precious stones; insomuch that the amount that fell to each of them was something astonishing. And yet ’twas not so much as they had deserved; for never were men seen who did such feats of arms for the love and honour of their Lord, as these had done on that day of the battle.[NOTE 1]
Now those Tablets of Authority, of which I have spoken, are ordered in this way. The officer who is a captain of 100 hath a tablet of silver; the captain of 1000 hath a tablet of gold or silver-gilt; the commander of 10,000 hath a tablet of gold, with a lion’s head on it. And I will tell you the weight of the different tablets, and what they denote. The tablets of the captains of 100 and 1000 weigh each of them 120 saggi; and the tablet with the lion’s head engraven on it, which is that of the commander of 10,000, weighs 220 saggi. And on each of the tablets is inscribed a device, which runs: “By the strength of the great God, and of the great grace which He hath accorded to our Emperor, may the name of the Kaan be blessed; and let all such as will not obey him be slain and be destroyed.” And I will tell you besides that all who hold these tablets likewise receive warrants in writing, declaring all their powers and privileges.
I should mention too that an officer who holds the chief command of 100,000 men, or who is general-in-chief of a great host, is entitled to a tablet that weighs 300 saggi. It has an inscription thereon to the same purport that I have told you already, and below the inscription there is the figure of a lion, and below the lion the sun and moon. They have warrants also of their high rank, command, and power.[NOTE 2] Every one, moreover, who holds a tablet of this exalted degree is entitled, whenever he goes abroad, to have a little golden canopy, such as is called an umbrella, carried on a spear over his head in token of his high command. And whenever he sits, he sits in a silver chair.[NOTE 3]
To certain very great lords also there is given a tablet with gerfalcons on it; this is only to the very greatest of the Kaan’s barons, and it confers on them his own full power and authority; so that if one of those chiefs wishes to send a messenger any whither, he can seize the horses of any man, be he even a king, and any other chattels at his pleasure. [NOTE 4]
NOTE 1.—So Sanang Setzen relates that Chinghiz, on returning from one of his great campaigns, busied himself in reorganising his forces and bestowing rank and title, according to the deserts of each, on his nine Orlok, or marshals, and all who had done good service. “He named commandants over hundreds, over thousands, over ten thousands, over hundred thousands, and opened his treasury to the multitude of the people” (p. 91).
NOTE 2.—We have several times already had mention of these tablets. (See Prologue, ch. viii. and xviii.) The earliest European allusion to them is in Rubruquis: “And Mangu gave to the Moghul (whom he was going to send to the King of France) a bull of his, that is to say, a golden plate of a palm in breadth and half a cubit in length, on which his orders were inscribed. Whosoever is the bearer of that may order what he pleases, and his order shall be executed straightway.”
These golden bulls of the Mongol Kaans appear to have been originally tokens of high favour and honour, though afterwards they became more frequent and conventional. They are often spoken of by the Persian historians of the Mongols under the name of Páizah, and sometimes Páizah Sir-i-Sher, or “Lion’s Head Paizah.” Thus, in a firmán of Ghazan Khan, naming a viceroy to his conquests in Syria, the Khan confers on the latter “the sword, the august standard, the drum, and the Lion’s Head Paizah.” Most frequently the grant of this honour is coupled with Yarlígh; “to such an one were granted Yarlígh and Páizah” the former word (which is still applied in Turkey to the Sultan’s rescripts) denoting the written patent which accompanies the grant of the tablet, just as the sovereign’s warrant accompanies the badge of a modern Order. Of such written patents also Marco speaks in this passage, and as he uttered it, no doubt the familiar words Yarlígh u Páizah were in his mind. The Armenian history of the Orpelians, relating the visit of Prince Sempad, brother of King Hayton, to the court of Mangku Kaan, says: “They gave him also a P’haiza of gold, i.e. a tablet whereon the name of God is written by the Great Kaan himself; and this constitutes the greatest honour known among the Mongols. Farther, they drew up for him a sort of patent, which the Mongols call Iarlekh,” etc. The Latin version of a grant by Uzbek Khan of Kipchak to the Venetian Andrea Zeno, in 1333,[1] ends with the words: “Dedimus baisa et privilegium cum bullis rubeis,” where the latter words no doubt represent the Yarlígh al-tamghá, the warrant with the red seal or stamp,[2] as it may be seen upon the letter of Arghun Khan. (See plate at ch. xvii. of Bk. IV.). So also Janibek, the son of Uzbek, in 1344, confers privileges on the Venetians, “eisdem dando baissinum de auro“; and again Bardibeg, son, murderer, and successor of Janibeg, in 1358, writes: “Avemo dado comandamento [i.e. Yarlíg] cum le bolle rosse, et lo paysam.”
Under the Persian branch, at least, of the house the degree of honour was indicated by the number of lions’ heads upon the plate, which varied from 1 to 5. The Lion and Sun, a symbol which survives, or has been revived, in the modern Persian decoration so called, formed the emblem of the Sun in Leo, i.e. in highest power. It had already been used on the coins of the Seljukian sovereigns of Persia and Iconium; it appears on coins of the Mongol Ilkhans Ghazan, Oljaitu, and Abusaid, and it is also found on some of those of Mahomed Uzbek Khan of Kipchak.
[Illustration: Seljukian Coin with the Lion and Sun.]
Hammer gives regulations of Ghazan Khan’s on the subject of the Paizah, from which it is seen that the latter were of different kinds as well as degrees. Some were held by great governors and officers of state, and these were cautioned against letting the Paizah out of their own keeping; others were for officers of inferior order; and, again, “for persons travelling on state commissions with post-horses, particular paizah (which Hammer says were of brass) are appointed, on which their names are inscribed.” These last would seem therefore to be merely such permissions to travel by the Government post-horses as are still required in Russia, perhaps in lineal derivation from Mongol practice. The terms of Ghazan’s decree and other contemporary notices show that great abuses were practised with the Paizah, as an authority for living at free quarters and making other arbitrary exactions.
[Illustration: “TABLE D’OR DE COMMANDEMENT,” THE PAIZA OF THE MONGOLS.
FROM A SPECIMEN FOUND IN E. SIBERIA.]
The word Paizah is said to be Chinese, Pai-tseu, “a tablet.” A trace of the name and the thing still survives in Mongolia. The horse-Bai is the name applied to a certain ornament on the horse caparison, which gives the rider a title to be furnished with horses and provisions on a journey.
[Illustration: Second Example of a MONGOL PAIZA, with Superscription in the Uighúr Character, found near the River Dnieper, 1845.]
Where I have used the Venetian term saggio, the French texts have here and elsewhere saics and saies, and sometimes pois. Saic points to saiga, which, according to Dupré de St. Maur, is in the Salic laws the equivalent of a denier or the twelfth part of a sol. Saggio is possibly the same word, or rather may have been confounded with it, but the saggio was a recognised Venetian weight equal to 1/6 of an ounce. We shall see hereafter that Polo appears to use it to indicate the miskál, a weight which may be taken at 74 grains Troy. On that supposition the smallest tablet specified in the text would weigh 18-1/2 ozs. Troy.
I do not know if any gold Paizah has been discovered, but several of silver have been found in the Russian dominions; one near the Dnieper, and two in Eastern Siberia. The first of our plates represents one of these, which was found in the Minusinsk circle of the Government of Yenisei in 1846, and is now in the Asiatic Museum of the Academy of St. Petersburg, For the sake of better illustration of our text, I have taken the liberty to represent the tablet as of gold, instead of silver with only the inscription gilt. The moulded ring inserted in the orifice, to suspend the plate by, is of iron. On the reverse side the ring bears some Chinese characters engraved, which are interpreted as meaning “Publication No. 42.” The inscription on the plate itself is in the Mongol language and Baspa character (supra, Prologue, note 1, ch. xv.), and its purport is a remarkable testimony to the exactness of Marco’s account, and almost a proof of his knowledge of the language and character in which the inscriptions were engraved. It runs, according to Schmidt’s version: “By the strength of the eternal heaven! May the name of the Khagan be holy! Who pays him not reverence is to be slain, and must die!” The inscriptions on the other plates discovered were essentially similar in meaning. Our second plate shows one of them with the inscription in the Uighúr character.
The superficial dimensions of the Yenisei tablet, as taken from Schmidt’s full-size drawing, are 12.2 in. by 3.65 in. The weight is not given.
In the French texts nothing is said of the size of the tablets. But Ramusio’s copy in the Prologue, where the tables given by Kiacatu are mentioned (supra, p. 35), says that they were a cubit in length and 5 fingers in breadth, and weighed 3 to 4 marks each, i.e. 24 to 32 ounces.
(Dupré de St. Maur, Essai sur les Monnoies, etc., 1746, p. viii.; also (on saiga) see Pertz, Script. XVII. 357; Rubruq. 312; Golden Horde, 219-220, 521; Ilch. II. 166 seqq., 355-356; D’Ohsson, III. 412-413; Q. R. 177-180; Ham. Wassáf, 154, 176; Makrizi, IV. 158; St. Martin, Mém. sur l’Arménie, II. 137, 169; M. Mas Latrie in Bibl. de l’Éc. des Chartes, IV. 585 seqq.; J. As. sér. V. tom. xvii. 536 seqq.; Schmidt, über eine Mongol. Quadratinschrift, etc., Acad. St. P., 1847; Russian paper by Grigorieff on same subject, 1846.)
[“The History tells us (Liao Shih, Bk. LVII. f. 2) that the official silver tablets p’ai tzu of the period were 600 in number, about a foot in length, and that they were engraved with an inscription like the above [‘Our imperial order for post horses. Urgent.’] in national characters (kuo tzu), and that when there was important state business the Emperor personally handed the tablet to the envoy, which entitled him to demand horses at the post stations, and to be treated as if he were the Emperor himself travelling. When the tablet was marked ‘Urgent,’ he had the right to take private horses, and was required to ride, night and day, 700 li in twenty-four hours. On his return he had to give back the tablet to the Emperor, who handed it to the prince who had the custody of the state tablets and seals.” (Dr. S. W. Bushell, Actes XI. Cong. Int. Orient., Paris, p. 17.)
“The Kin, in the thirteenth century, used badges of office made of silver. They were rectangular, bore the imperial seal, and an inscription indicative of the duty of the bearer. (Chavannes, Voyageurs chez les Khitans, 102.) The Nü-chên at an earlier date used wooden pai-tzu tied to each horseman and horse, to distinguish them by. (Ma Tuan-lin, Bk. 327, 11.)” (Rockhill, Rubruck, p. 181, note.)
“Tiger’s tablets—Sinice Hu fu, and p’ai tsze in the common language. The Mongols had them of several kinds, which differed by the metal, of which they were made, as well as by the number of pearls (one, two, or three in number), which were incrusted in the upper part of the tablet. Falcon’s tablets with the figure of a falcon were round, and used to be given only to special couriers and envoys of the Khan. [Yuen shi lui pien and Yuen ch’ao tien chang.] The use of the Hu-fu was adopted by the Mongols probably from the Kin.” (Palladius, l.c. p. 39.)
Rubruquis (Rockhill’s ed. pp. 153-154) says:—”And whenever the principal envoy [of Longa] came to court he carried a highly-polished tablet of ivory about a cubit long and half a palm wide. Every time he spoke to the chan or some great personage, he always looked at that tablet as if he found there what he had to say, nor did he look to the right or the left, nor in the face of him with whom he was talking. Likewise, when coming into the presence of the Lord, and when leaving it, he never looked at anything but his tablet.” Mr. Rockhill observes: “These tablets are called hu in Chinese, and were used in China and Korea; in the latter country down to quite recent times. They were made of jade, ivory, bamboo, etc., according to the rank of the owner, and were about three feet long. The hu was originally used to make memoranda on of the business to be submitted by the bearer to the Emperor or to write the answers to questions he had had submitted to them. Odoric also refers to ‘the tablets of white ivory which the Emperor’s barons held in their hands as they stood silent before him.'”
(Cf. the golden tablets which were of various classes with a tiger for image and pearls for ornaments, Devéria, Epigraphie, p. 15 et seq.) —H. C.]
NOTE 3.—Umbrella. The phrase in Pauthier’s text is “Palieque que on dit ombrel.” The Latin text of the Soc. de Géographie has “unum pallium de auro,” which I have adopted as probably correct, looking to Burma, where the old etiquettes as to umbrellas are in full force. These etiquettes were probably in both countries of old Hindu origin. Pallium, according to Muratori, was applied in the Middle Ages to a kind of square umbrella, by which is probably meant rather a canopy on four staves, which was sometimes assigned by authority as an honourable privilege.
But the genuine umbrella would seem to have been used also, for Polo’s contemporary, Martino da Canale, says that, when the Doge goes forth of his palace, “si vait apres lui un damoiseau qui porte une umbrele de dras à or sur son chief,” which umbrella had been given by “Monseigneur l’Apostoille.” There is a picture by Girolamo Gambarota, in the Sala del Gran Consiglio, at Venice, which represents the investiture of the Doge with the umbrella by Pope Alexander III., and Frederick Barbarossa (concerning which see Sanuto Junior, in Muratori, XXII. 512).
The word Parasol also occurs in the Petrarchian vocabulary, (14th century) as the equivalent of saioual (Pers. sáyában or sáiwán, an umbrella). Carpini notices that umbrellas (solinum vel tentoriolum in hastâ) were carried over the Tartar nobles and their wives, even on horseback; and a splendid one, covered with jewels, was one of the presents made to Kuyuk Kaan on his enthronement.
With respect to the honorary character attaching to umbrellas in China, I may notice that recently an English resident of Ningpo, on his departure for Europe, was presented by the Chinese citizens, as a token of honour, with a pair of Wan min sàn, umbrellas of enormous size.
The umbrella must have gone through some curious vicissitudes; for at one time we find it familiar, at a later date apparently unknown, and then reintroduced as some strange novelty. Arrian speaks of the [Greek: skiádia], or umbrellas, as used by all Indians of any consideration; but the thing of which he spoke was familiar to the use of Greek and Roman ladies, and many examples of it, borne by slaves behind their mistresses, are found on ancient vase-paintings. Athenaeus quotes from Anacreon the description of a “beggar on horseback” who
“like a woman bears An ivory parasol over his delicate head.”
An Indian prince, in a Sanskrit inscription of the 9th century, boasts of having wrested from the King of Márwár the two umbrellas pleasing to Parvati, and white as the summer moonbeams. Prithi Ráj, the last Hindu king of Delhi, is depicted by the poet Chand as shaded by a white umbrella on a golden staff. An unmistakable umbrella, copied from a Saxon MS. in the Harleian collection, is engraved in Wright’s History of Domestic Manners, p. 75. The fact that the gold umbrella is one of the paraphernalia of high church dignitaries in Italy seems to presume acquaintance with the thing from a remote period. A decorated umbrella also accompanies the host when sent out to the sick, at least where I write, in Palermo. Ibn Batuta says that in his time all the people of Constantinople, civil and military, great and small, carried great umbrellas over their heads, summer and winter. Ducange quotes, from a MS. of the Paris Library, the Byzantine court regulations about umbrellas, which are of the genuine Pan-Asiatic spirit;—[Greek: skiádia chrysokókkina] extend from the Hypersebastus to the grand Stratopedarchus, and so on; exactly as used to be the case, with different titles, in Java. And yet it is curious that John Marignolli, Ibn Batuta’s contemporary in the middle of the 14th century, and Barbosa in the 16th century, are alike at pains to describe the umbrella as some strange object. And in our own country it is commonly stated that the umbrella was first used in the last century, and that Jonas Hanway (died 1786) was one of the first persons who made a practice of carrying one. The word umbrello is, however, in Minsheu’s dictionary. [See Hobson-Jobson, s.v. Umbrella.—H. C.]
(Murat. Dissert. II. 229; Archiv. Storic. Ital. VIII. 274, 560; Klapr. Mém. III.; Carp. 759; N. and Q., C. and J. II. 180; Arrian, Indica, XVI.; Smith’s Dict., G. and R. Ant., s. v. umbraculum; J. R. A. S. v. 351; Rás Mála, I. 221; I. B. II. 440; Cathay, 381; Ramus. I. f. 301.)
Alexander, according to Athenaeus, feasted his captains to the number of 6000, and made them all sit upon silver chairs. The same author relates that the King of Persia, among other rich presents, bestowed upon Entimus the Gortynian, who went up to the king in imitation of Themistocles, a silver chair and a gilt umbrella. (Bk. I. Epit. ch. 31, and II. 31.)
The silver chair has come down to our own day in India, and is much affected by native princes.
NOTE 4.—I have not been able to find any allusion, except in our author, to tablets, with gerfalcons (shonkár). The shonkár appears, however, according to Erdmann, on certain coins of the Golden Horde, struck at Sarai.
There is a passage from Wassáf used by Hammer, in whose words it runs that the Sayad Imámuddín, appointed (A.D. 683) governor of Shiraz by Arghun Khan, “was invested with both the Mongol symbols of delegated sovereignty, the Golden Lion’s Head, and the golden Cat’s Head.” It would certainly have been more satisfactory to find “Gerfalcon’s Head” in lieu of the latter; but it is probable that the same object is meant. The cut below exhibits the conventional effigy of a gerfalcon as sculptured over one of the gates of Iconium, Polo’s Conia. The head might easily pass for a conventional representation of a cat’s head, and is indeed strikingly like the grotesque representation that bears that name in mediaeval architecture. (Erdmann, Numi Asiatici, I. 339; Ilch. I. 370.)
[Illustration: Sculptured Gerfalcon. (From the Gate of Iconium.)]
[1] “In anno Simiae, octavâ lunâ, die quarto exeunte, juxta fluvium Cobam (the Kuban), apud Ripam Rubeam existentes scripsimus.” The original was in linguâ Persaycá.
[2] See Golden Horde, p. 218.
CONCERNING THE PERSON OF THE GREAT KAAN.
The personal appearance of the Great Kaan, Lord of Lords, whose name is Cublay, is such as I shall now tell you. He is of a good stature, neither tall nor short, but of a middle height. He has a becoming amount of flesh, and is very shapely in all his limbs. His complexion is white and red, the eyes black and fine,[NOTE 1] the nose well formed and well set on. He has four wives, whom he retains permanently as his legitimate consorts; and the eldest of his sons by those four wives ought by rights to be emperor;—I mean when his father dies. Those four ladies are called empresses, but each is distinguished also by her proper name. And each of them has a special court of her own, very grand and ample; no one of them having fewer than 300 fair and charming damsels. They have also many pages and eunuchs, and a number of other attendants of both sexes; so that each of these ladies has not less than 10,000 persons attached to her court.[NOTE 2]
When the Emperor desires the society of one of these four consorts, he will sometimes send for the lady to his apartment and sometimes visit her at her own. He has also a great number of concubines, and I will tell you how he obtains them.
You must know that there is a tribe of Tartars called UNGRAT, who are noted for their beauty. Now every year an hundred of the most beautiful maidens of this tribe are sent to the Great Kaan, who commits them to the charge of certain elderly ladies dwelling in his palace. And these old ladies make the girls sleep with them, in order to ascertain if they have sweet breath [and do not snore], and are sound in all their limbs. Then such of them as are of approved beauty, and are good and sound in all respects, are appointed to attend on the Emperor by turns. Thus six of these damsels take their turn for three days and nights, and wait on him when he is in his chamber and when he is in his bed, to serve him in any way, and to be entirely at his orders. At the end of the three days and nights they are relieved by other six. And so throughout the year, there are reliefs of maidens by six and six, changing every three days and nights.[NOTE 3]
[Illustration: Portrait of Kúblái Kaan. (From a Chinese Engraving.)]
NOTE 1.—We are left in some doubt as to the colour of Kúblái’s eyes, for some of the MSS. read vairs and voirs, and others noirs. The former is a very common epithet for eyes in the mediaeval romances. And in the ballad on the death of St. Lewis, we are told of his son Tristram:—
“Droiz fu comme un rosel, iex vairs comme faucon,
Dès le tens Moysel ne nasqui sa façon.”
The word has generally been interpreted bluish-grey, but in the passage just quoted, Fr.-Michel explains it by brillans. However, the evidence for noirs here seems strongest. Rashiduddin says that when Kúblái was born Chinghiz expressed surprise at the child’s being so brown, as its father and all his other sons were fair. Indeed, we are told that the descendants of Yesugai (the father of Chinghiz) were in general distinguished by blue eyes and reddish hair. (Michel’s Joinville, p. 324; D’Ohsson, II. 475; Erdmann, 252.)
NOTE 2.—According to Hammer’s authority (Rashid?) Kúblái had seven wives; Gaubil’s Chinese sources assign him five, with the title of empress (Hwang-heu). Of these the best beloved was the beautiful Jamúi Khátún (Lady or Empress Jamúi, illustrating what the text says of the manner of styling these ladies), who bore him four sons and five daughters. Rashiduddin adds that she was called Kún Kú, or the great consort, evidently the term Hwang-heu. (Gen. Tables in Hammer’s Ilkhans; Gatibil, 223; Erdmann, 200.)
[“Kúblái’s four wives, i.e. the empresses of the first, second, third, and fourth ordos. Ordo is, properly speaking, a separate palace of the Khan, under the management of one of his wives. Chinese authors translate therefore the word ordo by ‘harem.’ The four Ordo established by Chingis Khan were destined for the empresses, who were chosen out of four different nomad tribes. During the reign of the first four Khans, who lived in Mongolia, the four ordo were considerably distant one from another, and the Khans visited them in different seasons of the year; they existed nominally as long as China remained under Mongol domination. The custom of choosing the empress out of certain tribes, was in the course of time set aside by the Khans. The empress, wife of the last Mongol Khan in China, was a Corean princess by birth; and she contributed in a great measure to the downfall of the Mongol Dynasty.” (Palladius, 40.)
I do not believe that Rashiduddin’s Kún Kú is the term Hwang-keu; it is the term Kiun Chu, King or Queen, a sovereign.—H. C.]
NOTE 3.—Ungrat, the reading of the Crusca, seems to be that to which the others point, and I doubt not that it represents the great Mongol tribe of KUNGURAT, which gave more wives than any other to the princes of the house of Chinghiz; a conclusion in which I find I have been anticipated by De Mailla or his editor (IX. 426). To this tribe (which, according to Vámbéry, took its name from (Turki) Kongur-At, “Chestnut Horse”) belonged Burteh Fujin, the favourite wife of Chinghiz himself, and mother of his four heirs; to the same tribe belonged the two wives of Chagatai, two of Hulaku’s seven wives, one of Mangku Kaan’s, two at least of Kúblái’s including the beloved Jamúi Khátún, one at least of Abaka’s, two of Ahmed Tigudar’s, two of Arghun’s, and two of Ghazan’s.
The seat of the Kungurats was near the Great Wall. Their name is still applied to one of the tribes of the Uzbeks of Western Turkestan, whose body appears to have been made up of fractions of many of the Turk and Mongol tribes. Kungurat is also the name of a town of Khiva, near the Sea of Aral, perhaps borrowed from the Uzbek clan.
The conversion of Kungurat into Ungrat is due, I suppose, to that Mongol tendency to soften gutturals which has been before noticed. (Erdm. 199-200; Hammer, passim; Burnes, III. 143, 225.)
The Ramusian version adds here these curious and apparently genuine particulars:—
“The Great Kaan sends his commissioners to the Province to select four or five hundred, or whatever number may be ordered, of the most beautiful young women, according to the scale of beauty enjoined upon them. And they set a value upon the comparative beauty of the damsels in this way. The commissioners on arriving assemble all the girls of the province, in presence of appraisers appointed for the purpose. These carefully survey the points of each girl in succession, as (for example) her hair, her complexion, eyebrows, mouth, lips, and the proportion of all her limbs. They will then set down some as estimated at 16 carats, some at 17, 18, 20, or more or less, according to the sum of the beauties or defects of each. And whatever standard the Great Kaan may have fixed for those that are to be brought to him, whether it be 20 carats or 21, the commissioners select the required number from those who have attained that standard, and bring them to him. And when they reach his presence he has them appraised anew by other parties, and has a selection made of 30 or 40 of those, who then get the highest valuation.”
Marsden and Murray miss the meaning of this curious statement in a surprising manner, supposing the carat to represent some absolute value, 4 grains of gold according to the former, whence the damsel of 20 carats was estimated at 13_s._ 4_d._! This is sad nonsense; but Marsden would not have made the mistake had he not been fortunate enough to live before the introduction of Competitive Examinations. This Kungurat business was in fact a competitive examination in beauty; total marks attainable 24; no candidate to pass who did not get 20 or 21. Carat expresses n ÷ 24, not any absolute value.
Apart from the mode of valuation, it appears that a like system of selection was continued by the Ming, and that some such selection from the daughters of the Manchu nobles has been maintained till recent times. Herodotus tells that the like custom prevailed among the Adyrmachidae, the Libyan tribe next Egypt. Old Eden too relates it of the “Princes of Moscovia.” (Middle Km. I. 318; Herod. IV. 168, Rawl.; Notes on Russia, Hak. Soc. II. 253.)
CHAPTER IX.
CONCERNING THE GREAT KAAN’S SONS.
The Emperor hath, by those four wives of his, twenty-two male children; the eldest of whom was called CHINKIN for the love of the good Chinghis Kaan, the first Lord of the Tartars. And this Chinkin, as the Eldest Son of the Kaan, was to have reigned after his father’s death; but, as it came to pass, he died. He left a son behind him, however, whose name is TEMUR, and he is to be the Great Kaan and Emperor after the death of his Grandfather, as is but right; he being the child of the Great Kaan’s eldest son. And this Temur is an able and brave man, as he hath already proven on many occasions.[NOTE 1]
The Great Kaan hath also twenty-five other sons by his concubines; and these are good and valiant soldiers, and each of them is a great chief. I tell you moreover that of his children by his four lawful wives there are seven who are kings of vast realms or provinces, and govern them well; being all able and gallant men, as might be expected. For the Great Kaan their sire is, I tell you, the wisest and most accomplished man, the greatest Captain, the best to govern men and rule an Empire, as well as the most valiant, that ever has existed among all the Tribes of Tartars.[NOTE 2]
NOTE 1.—Kúblái had a son older than CHIMKIN or CHINGKIM, to whom Hammer’s Genealogical Table gives the name of Jurji, and attributes a son called Ananda. The Chinese authorities of Gaubil and Pauthier call him Turchi or Torchi, i.e. Dorjé, “Noble Stone,” the Tibetan name of a sacred Buddhist emblem in the form of a dumb-bell, representing the Vajra or Thunderbolt. Probably Dorjé died early, as in the passage we shall quote from Wassáf also Chingkim is styled the Eldest Son: Marco is probably wrong in connecting the name of the latter with that of Chinghiz. Schmidt says that he does not know what Chingkim means.
[Mr. Parker says that Chen kim was the third son of Kúblái (China Review, xxiv. p. 94.) Teimur, son of Chen kim, wore the temple name (miao-hao) of Ch’êng Tsung and the title of reign (nien-hao) of Yuen Chêng and Ta Téh.—H. C.]
Chingkim died in the 12th moon of 1284-1285, aged 43. He had received a Chinese education, and the Chinese Annals ascribe to him all the virtues which so often pertain in history to heirs apparent who have not reigned.
“When Kúblái approached his 70th year,” says Wassáf, “he desired to raise his eldest son Chimkin to the position of his representative and declared successor, during his own lifetime; so he took counsel with the chiefs, in view to giving the Prince a share of his authority and a place on the Imperial Throne. The chiefs, who are the Pillars of Majesty and Props of the Empire, represented that His Majesty’s proposal to invest his Son, during his own lifetime, with Imperial authority, was not in accordance with the precedents and Institutes (Yasa) of the World-conquering Padshah Chinghiz Khan; but still they would consent to execute a solemn document, securing the Kaanship to Chimkin, and pledging themselves to lifelong obedience and allegiance to him. It was, however, the Divine Fiat that the intended successor should predecease him who bestowed the nomination…. The dignitaries of the Empire then united their voices in favour of TEIMUR, the son of Chimkin.”
Teimur, according to the same authority, was the third son of Chimkin; but the eldest, Kambala, squinted; the second, Tarmah (properly Tarmabala for Dharmaphala, a Buddhist Sanskrit name) was rickety in constitution; and on the death of the old Kaan (1294) Teimur was unanimously named to the Throne, after some opposition from Kambala, which was put down by the decided bearing of the great soldier Bayan. (Schmidt, p. 399; De Mailla, IX. 424; Gaubil, 203; Wassáf, 46.)
[The Rev. W. S. Ament (Marco Polo in Cambaluc, p. 106), makes the following remarks regarding this young prince (Chimkin): “The historians give good reasons for their regard for Chen Chin. He had from early years exhibited great promise and had shown great proficiency in the military art, in government, history, mathematics, and the Chinese classics. He was well acquainted with the condition and numbers of the inhabitants of Mongolia and China, and with the topography and commerce of the Empire (Howorth). He was much beloved by all, except by some of his father’s own ministers, whose lives were anything but exemplary. That Kúblái had full confidence in his son is shown by the fact that he put the collecting of taxes in his hands. The native historians represent him as economical in the use of money and wise in the choice of companions. He carefully watched the officers in his charge, and would tolerate no extortion of the people. After droughts, famines or floods, he would enquire into the condition of the people and liberally supply their needs, thus starting them in life again. Polo ascribes all these virtues to the Khan himself. Doubtless he possessed them in greater or less degree, but father and son were one in all these benevolent enterprises.”—H. C.]
NOTE 2.—The Chinese Annals, according to Pauthier and Gaubil, give only ten sons to Kúblái, at least by his legitimate wives; Hammer’s Table gives twelve. It is very probable that xxii. was an early clerical error in the texts of Polo for xii. Dodeci indeed occurs in one MS. (No. 37 of our Appendix F), though not one of much weight.
Of these legitimate sons Polo mentions, in different parts of his work, five by name. The following is the list from Hammer and D’Ohsson, with the Chinese forms from Pauthier in parentheses. The seven whose names are in capitals had the title of Wang or “King” of particular territories, as M. Pauthier has shown from the Chinese Annals, thus confirming Marco’s accuracy on that point.
I. Jurji or Dorjé (Torchi). II. CHIMKIN or CHINGKIM (Yu Tsung, King of Yen, i.e. Old Peking). III. MANGALAI (Mankola, “King of the Pacified West”), mentioned by Polo (infra, ch. xli.) as King of Kenjanfu or Shensi. IV. NUMUGAN (Numukan, “Pacifying King of the North”), mentioned by Polo (Bk. IV. ch. ii.) as with King George joint leader of the Kaan’s army against Kaidu. V. Kuridai (not in Chinese List). VI. HUKAJI (Hukochi, “King of Yunnan”), mentioned by Polo (infra, ch. xlix.) as King of Carajan. VII. AGHRUKJI or UKURUJI (Gaoluchi, “King of Siping” or Tibet). VIII. Abaji (Gaiyachi?). IX. KUKJU or GEUKJU (Khokhochu, “King of Ning” or Tangut). X. Kutuktemur (Hutulu Temurh). XI. TUKAN (Thohoan, “King of Chinnan”). His command lay on the Tungking frontier, where he came to great grief in 1288, in consequence of which he was disgraced. (See Cathay, p. 272.) XII. Temkan (not in Chinese List). Gaubil’s Chinese List omits Hutulu Temurh, and introduces a prince called Gantanpouhoa as 4th son.
M. Pauthier lays great stress on Polo’s intimate knowledge of the Imperial affairs (p. 263) because he knew the name of the Hereditary Prince to be Teimur; this being, he says, the private name which could not be known until after the owner’s death, except by those in the most confidential intimacy. The public only then discovered that, like the Irishman’s dog, his real name was Turk, though he had always been called Toby! But M. Pauthier’s learning has misled him. At least the secret must have been very badly kept, for it was known in Teimur’s lifetime not only to Marco, but to Rashiduddin in Persia, and to Hayton in Armenia; to say nothing of the circumstance that the name Temur Khaghan is also used during that Emperor’s life by Oljaitu Khan of Persia in writing to the King of France a letter which M. Pauthier himself republished and commented upon. (See his book, p. 780.)
CHAPTER X.
CONCERNING THE PALACE OF THE GREAT KAAN.
You must know that for three months of the year, to wit December, January, and February, the Great Kaan resides in the capital city of Cathay, which is called CAMBALUC, [and which is at the north-eastern extremity of the country]. In that city stands his great Palace, and now I will tell you what it is like.
It is enclosed all round by a great wall forming a square, each side of which is a mile in length; that is to say, the whole compass thereof is four miles. This you may depend on; it is also very thick, and a good ten paces in height, whitewashed and loop-holed all round.[NOTE 1] At each angle of the wall there is a very fine and rich palace in which the war-harness of the Emperor is kept, such as bows and quivers,[NOTE 2] saddles and bridles, and bowstrings, and everything needful for an army. Also midway between every two of these Corner Palaces there is another of the like; so that taking the whole compass of the enclosure you find eight vast Palaces stored with the Great Lord’s harness of war.[NOTE 3] And you must understand that each Palace is assigned to only one kind of article; thus one is stored with bows, a second with saddles, a third with bridles, and so on in succession right round.[NOTE 4]
The great wall has five gates on its southern face, the middle one being the great gate which is never opened on any occasion except when the Great Kaan himself goes forth or enters. Close on either side of this great gate is a smaller one by which all other people pass; and then towards each angle is another great gate, also open to people in general; so that on that side there are five gates in all.[NOTE 5]
Inside of this wall there is a second, enclosing a space that is somewhat greater in length than in breadth. This enclosure also has eight palaces corresponding to those of the outer wall, and stored like them with the Lord’s harness of war. This wall also hath five gates on the southern face, corresponding to those in the outer wall, and hath one gate on each of the other faces, as the outer wall hath also. In the middle of the second enclosure is the Lord’s Great Palace, and I will tell you what it is like.[NOTE 6]
You must know that it is the greatest Palace that ever was. [Towards the north it is in contact with the outer wall, whilst towards the south there is a vacant space which the Barons and the soldiers are constantly traversing.[NOTE 7] The Palace itself] hath no upper story, but is all on the ground floor, only the basement is raised some ten palms above the surrounding soil [and this elevation is retained by a wall of marble raised to the level of the pavement, two paces in width and projecting beyond the base of the Palace so as to form a kind of terrace-walk, by which people can pass round the building, and which is exposed to view, whilst on the outer edge of the wall there is a very fine pillared balustrade; and up to this the people are allowed to come]. The roof is very lofty, and the walls of the Palace are all covered with gold and silver. They are also adorned with representations of dragons [sculptured and gilt], beasts and birds, knights and idols, and sundry other subjects. And on the ceiling too you see nothing but gold and silver and painting. [On each of the four sides there is a great marble staircase leading to the top of the marble wall, and forming the approach to the Palace.] [NOTE 8]
The Hall of the Palace is so large that it could easily dine 6000 people; and it is quite a marvel to see how many rooms there are besides. The building is altogether so vast, so rich, and so beautiful, that no man on earth could design anything superior to it. The outside of the roof also is all coloured with vermilion and yellow and green and blue and other hues, which are fixed with a varnish so fine and exquisite that they shine like crystal, and lend a resplendent lustre to the Palace as seen for a great way round.[NOTE 9] This roof is made too with such strength and solidity that it is fit to last for ever.
[On the interior side of the Palace are large buildings with halls and chambers, where the Emperor’s private property is placed, such as his treasures of gold, silver, gems, pearls, and gold plate, and in which reside the ladies and concubines. There he occupies himself at his own convenience, and no one else has access.]
Between the two walls of the enclosure which I have described, there are fine parks and beautiful trees bearing a variety of fruits. There are beasts also of sundry kinds, such as white stags and fallow deer, gazelles and roebucks, and fine squirrels of various sorts, with numbers also of the animal that gives the musk, and all manner of other beautiful creatures,[NOTE 10] insomuch that the whole place is full of them, and no spot remains void except where there is traffic of people going and coming. [The parks are covered with abundant grass; and the roads through them being all paved and raised two cubits above the surface, they never become muddy, nor does the rain lodge on them, but flows off into the meadows, quickening the soil and producing that abundance of herbage.]
From that corner of the enclosure which is towards the north-west there extends a fine Lake, containing foison of fish of different kinds which the Emperor hath caused to be put in there, so that whenever he desires any he can have them at his pleasure. A river enters this lake and issues from it, but there is a grating of iron or brass put up so that the fish cannot escape in that way.[NOTE 11]
Moreover on the north side of the Palace, about a bow-shot off, there is a hill which has been made by art [from the earth dug out of the lake]; it is a good hundred paces in height and a mile in compass. This hill is entirely covered with trees that never lose their leaves, but remain ever green. And I assure you that wherever a beautiful tree may exist, and the Emperor gets news of it, he sends for it and has it transported bodily with all its roots and the earth attached to them, and planted on that hill of his. No matter how big the tree may be, he gets it carried by his elephants; and in this way he has got together the most beautiful collection of trees in all the world. And he has also caused the whole hill to be covered with the ore of azure,[NOTE 12] which is very green. And thus not only are the trees all green, but the hill itself is all green likewise; and there is nothing to be seen on it that is not green; and hence it is called the GREEN MOUNT; and in good sooth ’tis named well.[NOTE 13]
On the top of the hill again there is a fine big palace which is all green inside and out; and thus the hill, and the trees, and the palace form together a charming spectacle; and it is marvellous to see their uniformity of colour! Everybody who sees them is delighted. And the Great Kaan had caused this beautiful prospect to be formed for the comfort and solace and delectation of his heart.
You must know that beside the Palace (that we have been describing), i.e. the Great Palace, the Emperor has caused another to be built just like his own in every respect, and this he hath done for his son when he shall reign and be Emperor after him.[NOTE 14] Hence it is made just in the same fashion and of the same size, so that everything can be carried on in the same manner after his own death. [It stands on the other side of the lake from the Great Kaan’s Palace, and there is a bridge crossing the water from one to the other.][NOTE 15] The Prince in question holds now a Seal of Empire, but not with such complete authority as the Great Kaan, who remains supreme as long as he lives.
Now I am going to tell you of the chief city of Cathay, in which these
Palaces stand; and why it was built, and how.
NOTE 1.—[According to the Ch’ue keng lu, translated by Bretschneider, 25, “the wall surrounding the palace … is constructed of bricks, and is 35 ch’i in height. The construction was begun in A.D. 1271, on the 17th of the 8th month, between three and five o’clock in the afternoon, and finished next year on the 15th of the 3rd month.”—H. C.]
NOTE 2.—Tarcasci (G. T.) This word is worthy of note as the proper form of what has become in modern French carquois. The former is a transcript of the Persian Tarkash; the latter appears to be merely a corruption of it, arising perhaps clerically from the constant confusion of c and t in MSS. (See Defrémery, quoted by Pauthier, in loco.) [Old French tarquais (13th century), Hatzfeldt and Darmesteter’s Dict. gives; “Coivres orent ceinz et tarchais.” (WACE, Rou, III., 7698; 12th century).]
NOTE 3.—[“It seems to me [Dr. Bretschneider] that Polo took the towers, mentioned by the Chinese author, in the angles of the galleries and of the Kung-ch’eng for palaces; for further on he states, that ‘over each gate [of Cambaluc] there is a great and handsome palace.’ I have little doubt that over the gates of Cambaluc, stood lofty buildings similar to those over the gates of modern Peking. These tower-like buildings are called lou by the Chinese. It may be very likely, that at the time of Marco Polo, the war harness of the Khan was stored in these towers of the palace wall. The author of the Ch’ue keng lu, who wrote more than fifty years later, assigns to it another place.” (Bretschneider, Peking, 32.) —H.C.]
[Illustration: IDEAL PLAN of the ANCIENT PALACES of the MONGOL EMPERORS AT
KHANBALIGH according to Dr. Bretschneider]
NOTE 4.—The stores are now outside the walls of the “Prohibited City,” corresponding to Polo’s Palace-Wall, but within the walls of the “Imperial City.” (Middle Kingdom, I. 61.) See the cut at p. 376.
NOTE 5.—The two gates near the corners apparently do not exist in the Palace now. “On the south side there are three gates to the Palace, both in the inner and the outer walls. The middle one is absolutely reserved for the entrance or exit of the Emperor; all other people pass in and out by the gate to the right or left of it.” (Trigautius, Bk. I. ch. vii.) This custom is not in China peculiar to Royalty. In private houses it is usual to have three doors leading from the court to the guestrooms, and there is a great exercise of politeness in reference to these; the guest after much pressing is prevailed on to enter the middle door, whilst the host enters by the side. (See Deguignes, Voyages, I. 262.) [See also H. Cordier’s Hist. des Relat. de la Chine, III. ch. x. Audience Impériale.]
[“It seems Polo took the three gateways in the middle gate (Ta-ming men) for three gates, and thus speaks of five gates instead of three in the southern wall.” (Bretschneider, Peking, 27, note.)—H. C.]
NOTE 6.—Ramusio’s version here diverges from the old MSS. It makes the inner enclosure a mile square; and the second (the city of Taidu) six miles square, as here, but adds, at a mile interval, a third of eight miles square. Now it is remarkable that Mr. A. Wylie, in a letter dated 4th December 1873, speaking of a recent visit to Peking, says: “I found from various inquiries that there are several remains of a very much larger city wall, inclosing the present city; but time would not allow me to follow up the traces.”
Pauthier’s text (which I have corrected by the G. T.), after describing the outer inclosure to be a mile every way, says that the inner inclosure lay at an interval of a mile within it!
[Dr. Bretschneider observes “that in the ancient Chinese works, three concentric inclosures are mentioned in connection with the palace. The innermost inclosed the Ta-nei, the middle inclosure, called Kung-ch’eng or Huang-ch’eng, answering to the wall surrounding the present prohibited city, and was about 6 li in circuit. Besides this there was an outer wall (a rampart apparently) 20 li in circuit, answering to the wall of the present imperial city (which now has 18 li in circuit).” The Huang-ch’eng of the Yuen was measured by imperial order, and found to be 7 li in circuit; the wall of the Mongol palace was 6 li in circuit, according to the Ch’ue keng lu. (Bretschneider, Peking, 24.)—Marco Polo’s mile could be approximately estimated = 2.77 Chinese li. (Ibid. 24, note.) The common Chinese li = 360 pu, or 180 chang, or 1800 ch’i (feet); 1 li = 1894 English feet or 575 mètres; at least according to the old Venice measures quoted in Yule’s Marco Polo, II., one pace = 5 feet. Besides the common li, the Chinese have another li, used for measuring fields, which has only 240 pu or 1200 ch’i. This is the li spoken of in the Ch’ue keng lu. (Ibid. 13, note.)—H. C.]
NOTE 7.—[“Near the southern face of the wall are barracks for the Life
Guards.” (Ch’ue keng lu, translated by Bretschneider, 25.)—H. C.]
NOTE 8.—This description of palace (see opposite cut), an elevated basement of masonry with a superstructure of timber (in general carved and gilded), is still found in Burma, Siam, and Java, as well as in China. If we had any trace of the palaces of the ancient Asokas and Vikramadityas of India, we should probably find that they were of the same character. It seems to be one of those things that belonged to some ancient Panasiatic fashion, as the palaces of Nineveh were of a somewhat similar construction. In the Audience Halls of the Moguls at Delhi and Agra we can trace the ancient form, though the superstructure has there become an arcade of marble instead of a pavilion on timber columns.
[Illustration: Palace at Khan-baligh. (From the Livre des Merveilles.)]
[“The Ta-ming tien (Hall of great brightness) is without doubt what Marco Polo calls ‘the Lord’s Great Palace.’… He states, that it ‘hath no upper story’; and indeed, the palace buildings which the Chinese call tien are always of one story. Polo speaks also of a ‘very fine pillared balustrade’ (thechu lang, pillared verandah, of the Chinese author). Marco Polo states that the basement of the great palace ‘is raised some ten palms above the surrounding soil.’ We find in the Ku kung i lu: ‘The basement of the Ta-ming tien is raised about 10 ch’i above the soil.’ There can also be no doubt that the Ta-ming tien stood at about the same place where now the T’ai-ho tien, the principal hall of the palace, is situated.” (Bretschneider, Peking, 28, note.)
[Illustration: Winter Palace at Peking.]
The Ch’ue keng lu, translated by Bretschneider, 25, contains long articles devoted to the description of the palace of the Mongols and the adjacent palace grounds. They are too long to be reproduced here.—H. C.]
NOTE 9.—”As all that one sees of these palaces is varnished in those colours, when you catch a distant view of them at sunrise, as I have done many a time, you would think them all made of, or at least covered with, pure gold enamelled in azure and green, so that the spectacle is at once majestic and charming.” (Magaillans, p. 353.)
NOTE 10.—[This is the Ling yu or “Divine Park,” to the east of the Wan-sui shan, “in which rare birds and beasts are kept. Before the Emperor goes to Shang-tu, the officers are accustomed to be entertained at this place.” (Ch’ue keng lu, quoted by Bretschneider, 36.)—H. C.]
NOTE 11.—”On the west side, where the space is amplest, there is a lake very full of fish. It is in the form of a fiddle, and is an Italian mile and a quarter in length. It is crossed at the narrowest part, which corresponds to gates in the walls, by a handsome bridge, the extremities of which are adorned by two triumphal arches of three openings each…. The lake is surrounded by palaces and pleasure houses, built partly in the water and partly on shore, and charming boats are provided on it for the use of the Emperor when he chooses to go a-fishing or to take an airing.” (Ibid. 282-283.) The marble bridge, as it now exists, consists of nine arches, and is 600 feet long. (Rennie’s Peking, II. 57.)
Ramusio specifies another lake in the city, fed by the same stream before it enters the palace, and used by the public for watering cattle.
[“The lake which Marco Polo saw is the same as the T’ai-yi ch’i of our days. It has, however, changed a little in its form. This lake and also its name T’ai-yi ch’i date from the twelfth century, at which time an Emperor of the Kin first gave orders to collect together the water of some springs in the hills, where now the summer palaces stand, and to conduct it to a place north of his capital, where pleasure gardens were laid out. The river which enters the lake and issues from it exists still, under its ancient name Kin-shui.” (Bretschneider, Peking, 34.)—H. C.]
NOTE 12.—The expression here is in the Geog. Text, “Roze de l’açur,” and in Pauthier’s “de rose et de l’asur.” Rose Minerale, in the terminology of the alchemists, was a red powder produced in the sublimation of gold and mercury, but I can find no elucidation of the term Rose of Azure. The Crusca Italian has in the same place Terra dello Azzurro. Having ventured to refer the question to the high authority of Mr. C. W. King, he expresses the opinion that Roze here stands for Roche, and that probably the term Roche de l’azur may have been used loosely for blue-stone, i.e. carbonate of copper, which would assume a green colour through moisture. He adds: “Nero, according to Pliny, actually used chrysocolla, the siliceous carbonate of copper, in powder, for strewing the circus, to give the course the colour of his favourite faction, the prasine (or green). There may be some analogy between this device and that of Kúblái Khan.” This parallel is a very happy one.
[Illustration: Mei Shan]
NOTE 13.—Friar Odoric gives a description, short, but closely agreeing in substance with that in the Text, of the Palace, the Park, the Lake, and the Green Mount.
A green mount, answering to the description, and about 160 feet in height, stands immediately in rear of the palace buildings. It is called by the Chinese King-Shan, “Court Mountain,” Wan-su-Shan, “Ten Thousand Year Mount,” and Mei-Shan, “Coal Mount,” the last from the material of which it is traditionally said to be composed (as a provision of fuel in case of siege).[1] Whether this is Kúblái’s Green Mount does not seem to be quite certain. Dr. Lockhart tells me that, according to the information he collected when living at Peking, it is not so, but was formed by the Ming Emperors from the excavation of the existing lake on the site which the Mongol Palace had occupied. There is another mount, he adds, adjoining the east shore of the lake, which must be of older date even than Kúblái, for a Dagoba standing on it is ascribed to the Kin.
[The “Green Mount” was an island called K’iung-hua at the time of the Kin; in 1271 it received the name of Wan-sui shan; it is about 100 feet in height, and is the only hill mentioned by Chinese writers of the Mongol time who refer to the palace grounds. It is not the present King-shan, north of the palace, called also Wan-sui-shan under the Ming, and now the Mei-shan, of more recent formation. “I have no doubt,” says Bretschneider (Peking, l.c. 35), “that Marco Polo’s handsome palace on the top of the Green Mount is the same as the Kuang-han tien” of the Ch’ue keng lu. It was a hall in which there was a jar of black jade, big enough to hold more than 30 piculs of wine; this jade had white veins, and in accordance with these veins, fish and animals have been carved on the jar. (Ibid. 35.) “The Ku kung i lu, in describing the Wan-sui-shan, praises the beautiful shady green of the vegetation there.” (Ibid. 37.) —H. C.]
[“Near the eastern end of the bridge (Kin-ao yü-tung which crosses the lake) the visitor sees a circular wall, which is called yüan ch’eng (round wall). It is about 350 paces in circuit. Within it is an imperial building Ch’eng-kuang tien, dating from the Mongol time. From this circular enclosure, another long and beautifully executed marble bridge leads northwards, to a charming hill, covered with shady trees, and capped by a magnificent white suburga.” (Bretschneider, p. 22.)—H. C.]
In a plate attached to next chapter, I have drawn, on a small scale, the existing cities of Peking, as compared with the Mongol and Chinese cities in the time of Kúblái. The plan of the latter has been constructed (1) from existing traces, as exhibited in the Russian Survey republished by our War Office; (2) from information kindly afforded by Dr. Lockhart; and (3) from Polo’s description and a few slight notices by Gaubil and others. It will be seen, even on the small scale of these plans, that the general arrangement of the palace, the park, the lakes (including that in the city, which appears in Ramusio’s version), the bridge, the mount, etc., in the existing Peking, very closely correspond with Polo’s indications; and I think the strong probability is that the Ming really built on the old traces, and that the lake, mount, etc., as they now stand, are substantially those of the Great Mongol, though Chinese policy or patriotism may have spread the belief that the foreign traces were obliterated. Indeed, if that belief were true, the Mongol Palace must have been very much out of the axis of the City of Kúblái, which is in the highest degree improbable. The Bulletin de la Soc. de Geographie for September 1873, contains a paper on Peking by the physician to the French Embassy there. Whatever may be the worth of the meteorological and hygienic details in that paper, I am bound to say that the historical and topographical part is so inaccurate as to be of no value.
NOTE 14.—For son, read grandson. But the G. T. actually names the Emperor’s son Chingkim, whose death our traveller has himself already mentioned.
[Illustration: Yuan ch’eng]
NOTE 15.—[“Marco Polo’s bridge, crossing the lake from one side to the other, must be identified with the wooden bridge mentioned in the Ch’ue keng lu. The present marble bridge spanning the lake was only built in 1392.” “A marble bridge connects this island (an islet with the hall I- t’ien tien) with the Wan-sui shan. Another bridge, made of wood, 120 ch’i long and 22 broad, leads eastward to the wall of the Imperial Palace. A third bridge, a wooden draw-bridge 470 ch’i long, stretches to the west over the lake to its western border, where the palace Hing-sheng kung [built in 1308] stands.” (Bretschneider, Peking, 36.)—H. C.]
[1] Some years ago, in Calcutta, I learned that a large store of charcoal existed under the soil of Fort William, deposited there, I believe, in the early days of that fortress.
[“The Jihia says that the name of Mei shan (Coal hill) was given to it from the stock of coal buried at its foot, as a provision in case of siege.” (Bretschneider, Peking, 38.)—H. C.]
CHAPTER XI.
CONCERNING THE CITY OF CAMBALUC.
Now there was on that spot in old times a great and noble city called CAMBALUC, which is as much as to say in our tongue “The city of the Emperor.”[NOTE 1] But the Great Kaan was informed by his Astrologers that this city would prove rebellious, and raise great disorders against his imperial authority. So he caused the present city to be built close beside the old one, with only a river between them.[NOTE 2] And he caused the people of the old city to be removed to the new town that he had founded; and this is called TAIDU. [However, he allowed a portion of the people which he did not suspect to remain in the old city, because the new one could not hold the whole of them, big as it is.]
As regards the size of this (new) city you must know that it has a compass of 24 miles, for each side of it hath a length of 6 miles, and it is four-square. And it is all walled round with walls of earth which have a thickness of full ten paces at bottom, and a height of more than 10 paces;[NOTE 3] but they are not so thick at top, for they diminish in thickness as they rise, so that at top they are only about 3 paces thick. And they are provided throughout with loop-holed battlements, which are all whitewashed.
There are 12 gates, and over each gate there is a great and handsome palace, so that there are on each side of the square three gates and five palaces; for (I ought to mention) there is at each angle also a great and handsome palace. In those palaces are vast halls in which are kept the arms of the city garrison.[NOTE 4]
The streets are so straight and wide that you can see right along them from end to end and from one gate to the other. And up and down the city there are beautiful palaces, and many great and fine hostelries, and fine houses in great numbers. [All the plots of ground on which the houses of the city are built are four-square, and laid out with straight lines; all the plots being occupied by great and spacious palaces, with courts and gardens of proportionate size. All these plots were assigned to different heads of families. Each square plot is encompassed by handsome streets for traffic; and thus the whole city is arranged in squares just like a chess-board, and disposed in a manner so perfect and masterly that it is impossible to give a description that should do it justice.][NOTE 5]
Moreover, in the middle of the city there is a great clock—that is to say, a bell—which is struck at night. And after it has struck three times no one must go out in the city, unless it be for the needs of a woman in labour, or of the sick.[NOTE 6] And those who go about on such errands are bound to carry lanterns with them. Moreover, the established guard at each gate of the city is 1000 armed men; not that you are to imagine this guard is kept up for fear of any attack, but only as a guard of honour for the Sovereign, who resides there, and to prevent thieves from doing mischief in the town.[NOTE 7]
NOTE 1.— + The history of the city on the site of Peking goes back to very old times, for it had been [under the name of Ki] the capital of the kingdom of Yen, previous to B.C. 222, when it was captured by the Prince of the T’sin Dynasty. [Under the T’ang dynasty (618-907) it was known under the name of Yu-chau.] It became one of the capitals of the Khitans in A.D. 936, and of the Kin sovereigns, who took it in 1125, in 1151 under the name of Chung-tu. Under the name of Yenking, [given to this city in 1013] it has a conspicuous place in the wars of Chinghiz against the latter dynasty. He captured it in 1215. In 1264, Kúblái adopted it as his chief residence, and founded in 1267, the new city of TATU (“Great Court”), called by the Mongols TAIDU or DAITU since 1271 (see Bk. I. ch. lxi. note 1), at a little distance—Odoric says half a mile—to the north-east of the old Yenking. Tatu was completed in the summer of 1267.
Old Yenking had, when occupied by the Kin, a circuit of 27 li (commonly estimated at 9 miles, but in early works the li is not more than 1/5 of a mile), afterwards increased to 30 li. But there was some kind of outer wall about the city and its suburbs, the circuit of which is called 75 li. [“At the time of the Yuen the walls still existed, and the ancient city of the Kin was commonly called Nan-ch’eng (Southern city), whilst the Mongol capital was termed the northern city.” Bretschneider, Peking, 10.—H. C.] (Lockhart; and see Amyot, II. 553, and note 6 to last chapter.)
Polo correctly explains the name Cambaluc, i.e. Kaan-baligh, “The City of the Kaan.”
NOTE 2.—The river that ran between the old and new city must have been the little river Yu, which still runs through the modern Tartar city, and fills the city ditches.
[Dr. Bretschneider (Peking, 49) thinks that there is a strong probability that Polo speaks of the Wen-ming ho, a river which, according to the ancient descriptions, ran near the southern wall of the Mongol capital.—H. C.]
[Illustration: South Gate of Imperial City at Peking.
“Elle a donze portes, et sor chascune porte a une grandisme palais et biaus.”]
NOTE 3.—This height is from Pauthier’s Text; the G. Text has, “twenty paces,” i.e. 100 feet. A recent French paper states the dimensions of the existing walls as 14 mètres (45-1/2 feet) high, and 14.50 (47-1/4 feet) thick, “the top forming a paved promenade, unique of its kind, and recalling the legendary walls of Thebes and Babylon.” (Ann. d’Hygiène Publique, 2nd s. tom, xxxii. for 1869, p. 21.)
[According to the French astronomers (Fleuriais and Lapied) sent to Peking for the Transit of Venus in December, 1875, the present Tartar city is 23 kil. 55 in circuit, viz. if 1 li = 575 m., 41 li; from the north to the south 5400 mètres; from east to west 6700 mètres; the wall is 13 mètres in height and 12 mètres in width.—H. C.]
[Illustration: PEKING As it is and As it was, about 1290]
[Illustration: Yenking or Old Cambaluc A.D. 1290]
NOTE 4.—Our attempted plan of Cambaluc, as in 1290, differs somewhat from this description, but there is no getting over certain existing facts.
The existing Tartar city of Peking (technically Neï-ch’ing, “The Interior City,” or King-ch’ing, “City of the Court”) stands on the site of Taidu, and represents it. After the expulsion of the Mongols (1368) the new native Dynasty of Ming established their capital at Nanking. But this was found so inconvenient that the third sovereign of the Dynasty re- occupied Taidu or Cambaluc, the repairs of which began in 1409. He reduced it in size by cutting off nearly a third part of the city at the north end. The remains of this abandoned portion of wall are, however, still in existence, approaching 30 feet in height all round. This old wall is called by the Chinese The Wall of the Yuen (i.e. the Mongol Dynasty), and it is laid down in the Russian Survey. [The capital of the Ming was 40 li in circuit, according to the Ch’ang an k’o hua.] The existing walls were built, or restored rather (the north wall being in any case, of course, entirely new), in 1437. There seems to be no doubt that the present south front of the Tartar city was the south front of Taidu. The whole outline of Taidu is therefore still extant, and easily measurable. If the scale on the War Office edition of the Russian Survey be correct, the long sides measure close upon 5 miles and 500 yards; the short sides, 3 miles and 1200 yards. Hence the whole perimeter was just about 18 English miles, or less than 16 Italian miles. If, however, a pair of compasses be run round Taidu and Yenking (as we have laid the latter down from such data as could be had) together, the circuit will be something like 24 Italian miles, and this may have to do with Polo’s error.
[“The Yuen shi states that Ta-tu was 60 li in circumference. The Ch’ue keng lu, a work published at the close of the Yuen Dynasty, gives the same number of li for the circuit of the capital, but explains that li of 240 pu each are meant. If this statement be correct, it would give only 40 common or geographical li for the circuit of the Mongol town.” (Bretschneider, Peking, 13.) Dr. Bretschneider writes (p. 20): “The outlines of Khanbaligh, partly in contradiction with the ancient Chinese records, if my view be correct, would have measured about 50 common li in circuit (13 li and more from north to south, 11.64 from east to west.”)—H. C.]
Polo [and Odoric] again says that there were 12 gates—3 to every side. Both Gaubil and Martini also say that there were 12 gates. But I believe that both are trusting to Marco. There are 9 gates in the present Tartar city—viz. 3 on the south side and 2 on each of the other sides. The old Chinese accounts say there were 11 gates in Taidu. (See Amyot, Mém. II. 553.) I have in my plan, therefore, assumed that one gate on the east and one on the west were obliterated in the reduction of the enceinte by the Ming. But I must observe that Mr. Lockhart tells me he did not find the traces of gates in those positions, whilst the 2 gates on the north side of the old Mongol rampart are quite distinct, with the barbicans in front, and the old Mongol bridge over the ditch still serving for the public thoroughfare.[1]
[“The Yuen shi as well as the Ch’ue keng lu, and other works of the Yuen, agree in stating that the capital had eleven gates. They are enumerated in the following order: Southern wall—(1) The gate direct south (mid.) was called Li-cheng men; (2) the gate to the left (east), Wen-ming men; (3) the gate to the right (west), Shun-ch’eng men. Eastern wall—(4) The gate direct east (mid.), Ch’ung-jen men; (5) the gate to the south-east, Ts’i-hua men; (6) the gate to the north-east, Kuang-hi men. Western wall—(7) The gate direct west (mid.), Ho-i men; (8) the gate to the south-west, P’ing-tse men; (9) the gate to the north-west, Su-ts’ing men. Northern Wall—(10) The gate to the north-west, K’ien-te men; (11) the gate to the north-east, An-chen men.” (Bretschneider, Peking, 13-14.)—H. C.]
When the Ming established themselves on the old Mongol site, population seems to have gathered close about the southern wall, probably using material from the remains of Yenking. This excrescence was inclosed by a new wall in 1554, and was called the “Outer Town.” It is what is called by Europeans the Chinese City. Its western wall exhibits in the base sculptured stones, which seem to have belonged to the old palace of Yenking. Some traces of Yenking still existed in Gaubil’s time; the only relic of it now pointed out is a pagoda outside of the Kwang-An-Man, or western gate of the Outer City, marked in the War Office edition of the Russian Map as “Tower.” (Information from Dr. Lockhart.)
The “Great Palaces” over the gates and at the corner bastions are no doubt well illustrated by the buildings which still occupy those positions. There are two such lofty buildings at each of the gates of the modern city, the outer one (shown on p. 376) forming an elevated redoubt.
NOTE 5.—The French writer cited under note 3 says of the city as it stands: “La ville est de la sorte coupée en échiquier à peu près régulier dont les quadres circonscrits par des larges avenues sont percés eux-mêmes d’une multitude de rues et ruelles … qui toutes à peu prés sont orientées N. et S., E. et O. Une seule volonté a évidemment présidé à ce plan, et jamais édilité n’a eu à exécuter d’un seul coup aussi vaste entreprise.”
NOTE 6.—Martini speaks of the public clock-towers in the Chinese cities, which in his time were furnished with water-clocks. A watchman struck the hour on a great gong, at the same time exhibiting the hour in large characters. The same person watched for fires, and summoned the public with his gong to aid in extinguishing them.
[The Rev. G. B. Farthing mentions (North-China Herald, 7th September, 1884) at T’ai-yuen fu the remains of an object in the bell-tower, which was, and is still known, as one of the eight wonders of this city; it is a vessel of brass, a part of a water-clock from which water formerly used to flow down upon a drum beneath and mark off time into equal divisions.—H. C.]
The tower indicated by Marco appears still to exist. It occupies the place which I have marked as Alarm Tower in the plan of Taidu. It was erected in 1272, but probably rebuilt on the Ming occupation of the city. [“The Yuen yi t’ung chi, or ‘Geography of the Mongol Empire’ records: ‘In the year 1272, the bell-tower and the drum-tower were built in the middle of the capital.’ A bell-tower (chung-lou) and a drum-tower (ku-lou) exist still in Peking, in the northern part of the Tartar City. The ku-lou is the same as that built in the thirteenth century, but the bell-tower dates only from the last century. The bell-tower of the Yuen was a little to the east of the drum-tower, where now the temple Wan-ning sse stands. This temple is nearly in the middle of the position I (Bretschneider) assign to Khanbaligh.” (Bretschneider, Peking, 20.)—H. C.] In the Court of the Old Observatory at Peking there is preserved, with a few other ancient instruments, which date from the Mongol era, a very elaborate water-clock, provided with four copper basins embedded in brickwork, and rising in steps one above the other. A cut of this courtyard, with its instruments and aged trees, also ascribed to the Mongol time, will be found in ch. xxxiii. (Atlas Sinensis, p. 10; Magaillans, 149-151; Chine Moderne, p. 26; Tour du Monde for 1864, vol. ii. p. 34.)
NOTE 7.—”Nevertheless,” adds the Ramusian, “there does exist I know not what uneasiness about the people of Cathay.”
[1] Mr. Wylie confirms my assumption: “Whilst in Peking I traced the old mud wall,… and found it quite in accordance with the outline in your map. Mr. Gilmour (a missionary to the Mongols) and I rode round it, he taking the outside and I the inside…. Neither of us observed the arch that Dr. Lockhart speaks of…. There are gate-openings about the middle of the east and west sides, but no barbicans.” (4th December 1873.)
CHAPTER XII.
HOW THE GREAT KAAN MAINTAINS A GUARD OF TWELVE THOUSAND HORSE, WHICH ARE CALLED KESHICAN.
You must know that the Great Kaan, to maintain his state, hath a guard of twelve thousand horsemen, who are styled KESHICAN, which is as much as to say “Knights devoted to their Lord.” Not that he keeps these for fear of any man whatever, but merely because of his own exalted dignity. These 12,000 men have four captains, each of whom is in command of 3000; and each body of 3000 takes a turn of three days and nights to guard the palace, where they also take their meals. After the expiration of three days and nights they are relieved by another 3000, who mount guard for the same space of time, and then another body takes its turn, so that there are always 3000 on guard. Thus it goes until the whole 12,000, who are styled (as I said) Keshican, have been on duty; and then the tour begins again, and so runs on from year’s end to year’s end.[NOTE 1]
NOTE 1.—I have deduced a reading for the word Quescican (Keshican), which is not found precisely in any text. Pauthier reads Questiau and Quesitau; the G. Text has Quesitam and Quecitain; the Crusca Questi Tan; Ramusio, Casitan; the Riccardiana, Quescitam. Recollecting the constant clerical confusion between c and t, what follows will leave no doubt I think that the true reading to which all these variations point is Quescican.[1]
In the Institutes of Ghazan Khan, we find established among other formalities for the authentication of the royal orders, that they should be stamped on the back, in black ink, with the seals of the Four Commanders of the Four Kiziks, or Corps of the Life Guard.
Wassáf also, in detailing the different classes of the great dignitaries of the Mongol monarchy, names (1) the Noyáns of the Ulus, or princes of the blood; (2) the great chiefs of the tribes; (3) the Amírs of the four Keshik, or Corps of the Body Guard; (4) the officers of the army, commanding ten thousands, thousands, and so on.
Moreover, in Rashiduddin, we find the identical plural form used by our author. He says that, after the sack of Baghdad, Hulaku, who had escaped from the polluted atmosphere of the city, sent “Ilká Noyán and Karábúgá, with 3000 Moghul horse into Baghdad, in order to have the buildings repaired, and to put things generally in order. These chiefs posted sentries from the KISHÍKÁN ([Arabic]), and from their own followings in the different quarters of the town, had the carcases of beasts removed from the streets, and caused the bazaars to be rebuilt.”
We find Kishik still used at the court of Hindustan, under the great kings of Timur’s House, for the corps on tour of duty at the palace; and even for the sets of matchlocks and sabres, which were changed weekly from Akbar’s armoury for the royal use. The royal guards in Persia, who watch the king’s person at night, are termed Keshikchi, and their captain Keshikchi Bashi. [“On the night of the 11th of Jemady ul Sany, A.H. 1160 (or 8th June, 1747), near the city of Khojoon, three days’ journey from Meshed, Mohammed Kuly Khan Ardemee, who was of the same tribe with Nadir Shah, his relation, and Kushukchee Bashee, with seventy of the Kukshek or guard,… bound themselves by an oath to assassinate Nadir Shah.” (Memoirs of Khojeh Abdulkurreem … transl. by F. Gladwin, Calcutta, 1788, pp. 166-167).]
Friar Odoric speaks of the four barons who kept watch by the Great Kaan’s side as the Cuthé, which probably represents the Chinese form Kiesie (as in De Mailla), or Kuesie (as in Gaubil). The latter applies the term to four devoted champions of Chinghiz, and their descendants, who were always attached to the Kaan’s body-guard, and he identifies them with the Quesitan of Polo, or rather with the captains of the latter; adding expressly that the word Kuesie is Mongol.
I see Kishik is a proper name among the Kalmak chiefs; and Keshikten also is the name of a Mongol tribe, whose territory lies due north of Peking, near the old site of Shangtu. (Bk. I. ch. lxi.) [Keshikhteng, a tribe (pu; mong. aimak) of the Chao Uda League (mêng; mong. chogolgân) among the twenty-four tribes of the Nei Mung-ku (Inner Mongols). (See Mayers’ Chinese Government, p. 81.)—H. C.] In Kovalevsky, I find the following:—
(No. 2459) “Keshik, grace, favour, bounty, benefit, good fortune, charity.”
(No. 2461) “Keshikten, fortunate, happy, blessed.”
(No. 2541) “Kichyeku, to be zealous, assiduous, devoted.”
(No. 2588) “Kushiku, to hinder, to bar the way to,” etc.
The third of these corresponds closely with Polo’s etymology of “knights devoted to their lord,” but perhaps either the first or the last may afford the real derivation.
In spite of the different initials ([Arabic] instead of [Arabic]), it can scarcely be doubted that the Kalchi and Kalakchi of Timur’s Institutes are mere mistranscriptions of the same word, e.g.: “I ordered that 12,000 Kalchi, men of the sword completely armed, should be cantoned in the Palace; to the right and to the left, to the front, and in the rear of the imperial diwán; thus, that 1000 of those 12,000 should be every night upon guard,” etc. The translator’s note says of Kalchi, “A Mogul word supposed to mean guards.” We see that even the traditional number of 12,000, and its division into four brigades, are maintained. (See Timour’s Inst., pp. 299 and 235, 237.)
I must add that Professor Vámbéry does not assent to the form Keshikán, on the ground that this Persian plural is impossible in an old Tartar dialect, and he supposes the true word to be Kechilan or Kechiklen, “the night-watchers,” from Kiche or Kichek (Chag. and Uighúr), = “night.”
I believe, however, that Persian was the colloquial language of foreigners at the Kaan’s court, who would not scruple to make a Persian plural when wanted; whilst Rashid has exemplified the actual use of this one.
(D’Ohsson, IV. 410; Gold. Horde, 228, 238; Ilch. II. 184; Q. R. pp. 308-309; Ayeen Akb. I. 270, and Blochmann’s, p. 115; J. As. sèr. IV. tom. xix. 276; Olearius, ed. 1659, I. 656; Cathay, 135; De Mailla, ix. 106; Gaubil, p. 6; Pallas, Samml. I. 35.)
[“By Keshican in Colonel Yule’s Marco Polo, Keshikten is evidently meant. This is a general Mongol term to designate the Khan’s lifeguard. It is derived from the word Keshik, meaning a guard by turns; a corps on tour of duty. Keshik is one of the archaisms of the Mongol language, for now this word has another meaning in Mongol. Colonel Yule has brought together several explanations of the term. It seems to me that among his suppositions the following is the most consistent with the ancient meaning of the word:—
“We find Kishik still used at the court of Hindustan, under the great kings of Timur’s House, for the corps on tour of duty at the palace…. The royal guards in Persia, who watch the King’s person at night, are termed Keshikchi.”
“The Keshikten was divided into a day-watch called Turgaut and a night-watch Kebteul. The Kebte-ul consisted of pure Mongols, whilst the Turgaut was composed of the sons of the vassal princes and governors of the provinces, and of hostages. The watch of the Khan was changed every three days, and contained 400 men. In 1330 it was reduced to 100 men.” (Palladius, 42-43.) Mr. E. H. Parker writes in the China Review, XVIII. p. 262, that they “are evidently the ‘body guards’ of the modern viceroys, now pronounced Kashiha, but, evidently, originally Kêshigha.” —H. C.]
[1] One of the nearest readings is that of the Brandenburg Latin collated by Müller, which has Quaesicam.
CHAPTER XIII.
THE FASHION OF THE GREAT KAAN’S TABLE AT HIS HIGH FEASTS.
And when the Great Kaan sits at table on any great court occasion, it is in this fashion. His table is elevated a good deal above the others, and he sits at the north end of the hall, looking towards the south, with his chief wife beside him on the left. On his right sit his sons and his nephews, and other kinsmen of the Blood Imperial, but lower, so that their heads are on a level with the Emperor’s feet. And then the other Barons sit at other tables lower still. So also with the women; for all the wives of the Lord’s sons, and of his nephews and other kinsmen, sit at the lower table to his right; and below them again the ladies of the other Barons and Knights, each in the place assigned by the Lord’s orders. The tables are so disposed that the Emperor can see the whole of them from end to end, many as they are.[NOTE 1] [Further, you are not to suppose that everybody sits at table; on the contrary, the greater part of the soldiers and their officers sit at their meal in the hall on the carpets.] Outside the hall will be found more than 40,000 people; for there is a great concourse of folk bringing presents to the Lord, or come from foreign countries with curiosities.
In a certain part of the hall near where the Great Kaan holds his table, there [is set a large and very beautiful piece of workmanship in the form of a square coffer, or buffet, about three paces each way, exquisitely wrought with figures of animals, finely carved and gilt. The middle is hollow, and in it] stands a great vessel of pure gold, holding as much as an ordinary butt; and at each corner of the great vessel is one of smaller size [of the capacity of a firkin], and from the former the wine or beverage flavoured with fine and costly spices is drawn off into the latter. [And on the buffet aforesaid are set all the Lord’s drinking vessels, among which are certain pitchers of the finest gold,] which are called verniques,[NOTE 2] and are big enough to hold drink for eight or ten persons. And one of these is put between every two persons, besides a couple of golden cups with handles, so that every man helps himself from the pitcher that stands between him and his neighbour. And the ladies are supplied in the same way. The value of these pitchers and cups is something immense; in fact, the Great Kaan has such a quantity of this kind of plate, and of gold and silver in other shapes, as no one ever before saw or heard tell of, or could believe.[NOTE 3]
[There are certain Barons specially deputed to see that foreigners, who do not know the customs of the Court, are provided with places suited to their rank; and these Barons are continually moving to and fro in the hall, looking to the wants of the guests at table, and causing the servants to supply them promptly with wine, milk, meat, or whatever they lack. At every door of the hall (or, indeed, wherever the Emperor may be) there stand a couple of big men like giants, one on each side, armed with staves. Their business is to see that no one steps upon the threshold in entering, and if this does happen, they strip the offender of his clothes, and he must pay a forfeit to have them back again; or in lieu of taking his clothes, they give him a certain number of blows. If they are foreigners ignorant of the order, then there are Barons appointed to introduce them, and explain it to them. They think, in fact, that it brings bad luck if any one touches the threshold. Howbeit, they are not expected to stick at this in going forth again, for at that time some are like to be the worse for liquor, and incapable of looking to their steps.[NOTE 4]]
And you must know that those who wait upon the Great Kaan with his dishes and his drink are some of the great Barons. They have the mouth and nose muffled with fine napkins of silk and gold, so that no breath nor odour from their persons should taint the dish or the goblet presented to the Lord. And when the Emperor is going to drink, all the musical instruments, of which he has vast store of every kind, begin to play. And when he takes the cup all the Barons and the rest of the company drop on their knees and make the deepest obeisance before him, and then the Emperor doth drink. But each time that he does so the whole ceremony is repeated.[NOTE 5]
I will say nought about the dishes, as you may easily conceive that there is a great plenty of every possible kind. But you should know that in every case where a Baron or Knight dines at those tables, their wives also dine there with the other ladies. And when all have dined and the tables have been removed, then come in a great number of players and jugglers, adepts at all sorts of wonderful feats,[NOTE 6] and perform before the Emperor and the rest of the company, creating great diversion and mirth, so that everybody is full of laughter and enjoyment. And when the performance is over, the company breaks up and every one goes to his quarters.
NOTE 1.—We are to conceive of rows of small tables, at each of which were set probably but two guests. This seems to be the modern Chinese practice, and to go back to some very old accounts of the Tartar nations. Such tables we find in use in the tenth century, at the court of the King of Bolghar (see Prologue, note 2, ch. ii.), and at the Chinese entertainments to Shah Rukh’s embassy in the fifteenth century. Megasthenes described the guests at an Indian banquet as having a table set before each individual. (Athenaeus, IV. 39, Yonge’s Transl.)
[Compare Rubruck’s account, Rockhill’s ed., p. 210: “The Chan sits in a high place to the north, so that he can be seen by all….” (See also Friar Odoric, Cathay, p. 141.)—H. C.]
NOTE 2.—This word (G. T. and Ram.) is in the Crusca Italian transformed into an adjective, “vaselle vernicate d’oro,” and both Marsden and Pauthier have substantially adopted the same interpretation, which seems to me in contradiction with the text. In Pauthier’s text the word is vernigal, pl.vernigaux, which he explains, I know not on what authority, as “coupes sans anses vernies ou laquées d’or.” There is, indeed, a Venetian sea-term, Vernegal, applied to a wooden bowl in which the food of a mess is put, and it seems possible that this word may have been substituted for the unknown Vernique. I suspect the latter was some Oriental term, but I can find nothing nearer than the Persian Barni, Ar. Al-Barníya, “vas fictile in quo quid recondunt,” whence the Spanish word Albornia, “a great glazed vessel in the shape of a bowl, with handles.” So far as regards the form, the change of Barniya into Vernique would be quite analogous to that change of Hundwáníy into Ondanique, which we have already met with. (See Dozy et Engelmann, Glos. des Mots Espagnols, etc., 2nd ed., 1867, p. 73; and Boerio, Diz. del. Dial. Venez.)
[F. Godefroy, Dict., s.v. Vernigal, writes: “Coupe sans anse, vernie ou laquée d’or,” and quotes, besides Marco Polo, the Regle du Temple, p. 214, éd. Soc. Hist. de France:
“Les vernigaus et les escuelles.”
About vernegal, cf. Rockhill, Rubruck, p. 86, note. Rubruck says (Soc. de Géog. p. 241): “Implevimus unum veringal de biscocto et platellum unum de pomis et aliis fructibus.” Mr. Rockhill translates veringal by basket.
Dr. Bretschneider (Peking, 28) mentions “a large jar made of wood and varnished, the inside lined with silver,” and he adds in a note “perhaps this statement may serve to explain Marco Polo’s verniques or vaselle vernicate d’oro, big enough to hold drink for eight or ten persons.”—H. C.]
A few lines above we have “of the capacity of a firkin.” The word is bigoncio, which is explained in the Vocab. Univ. Ital. as a kind of tub used in the vintage, and containing 3 mine, each of half a stajo. This seems to point to the Tuscan mina, or half stajo, which is = 1/3 of a bushel. Hence thebigoncio would = a bushel, or, in old liquid measure, about a firkin.
NOTE 3.—A buffet, with flagons of liquor and goblets, was an essential feature in the public halls or tents of the Mongols and other Asiatic races of kindred manners. The ambassadors of the Emperor Justin relate that in the middle of the pavilion of Dizabulus, the Khan of the Turks, there were set out drinking-vessels, and flagons and great jars, all of gold; corresponding to the coupes (or hanas à mances), the verniques, and the grant peitere and petietes peiteres of Polo’s account. Rubruquis describes in Batu Khan’s tent a buffet near the entrance, where Kumiz was set forth, with great goblets of gold and silver, etc., and the like at the tent of the Great Kaan. At a festival at the court of Oljaitu, we are told, “Before the throne stood golden buffets … set out with full flagons and goblets.” Even in the private huts of the Mongols there was a buffet of a humbler kind exhibiting a skin of Kumiz, with other kinds of drink, and cups standing ready; and in a later age at the banquets of Shah Abbas we find the great buffet in a slightly different form, and the golden flagon still set to every two persons, though it no longer contained the liquor, which was handed round. (Cathay, clxiv., cci.; Rubr. 224, 268, 305; Ilch. II. 183; Della Valle, I. 654 and 750-751.)
[Referring to the “large and very beautiful piece of workmanship,” Mr. Rockhill, Rubruck, 208-209, writes: “Similar works of art and mechanical contrivances were often seen in Eastern courts. The earliest I know of is the golden plane-tree and grape vine with bunches of grapes in precious stones, which was given to Darius by Pythius the Lydian, and which shaded the king’s couch. (Herodotus, IV. 24.) The most celebrated, however, and that which may have inspired Mangu with the desire to have something like it at his court, was the famous Throne of Solomon ([Greek: Solomónteos Thrónos]) of the Emperor of Constantinople, Theophilus (A.D. 829-842)…. Abulfeda states that in A.D. 917 the envoys of Constantine Porphyrogenitus to the Caliph el Moktader saw in the palace of Bagdad a tree with eighteen branches, some of gold, some of silver, and on them were gold and silver birds, and the leaves of the tree were of gold and silver. By means of machinery, the leaves were made to rustle and the birds to sing. Mirkhond speaks also of a tree of gold and precious stones in the city of Sultanieh, in the interior of which were conduits through which flowed drinks of different kinds. Clavijo describes a somewhat similar tree at the court of Timur.”
Dr. Bretschneider (Peking, 28, 29) mentions a clepsydra with a lantern. By means of machinery put in motion by water, at fixed times a little man comes forward exhibiting a tablet, which announces the hours. He speaks also of a musical instrument which is connected, by means of a tube, with two peacocks sitting on a cross-bar, and when it plays, the mechanism causes the peacocks to dance.—H. C.]
Odoric describes the great jar of liquor in the middle of the palace hall, but in his time it was made of a great mass of jade (p. 130).
NOTE 4.—This etiquette is specially noticed also by Odoric, as well as by Makrizi, by Rubruquis, and by Plano Carpini. According to the latter the breach of it was liable to be punished with death. The prohibition to tread on the threshold is also specially mentioned in a Mahomedan account of an embassy to the court of Barka Khan. And in regard to the tents, Rubruquis says he was warned not to touch the ropes, for these were regarded as representing the threshold. A Russo-Mongol author of our day says that the memory of this etiquette or superstition is still preserved by a Mongol proverb: “Step not on the threshold; it is a sin!” But among some of the Mongols more than this survives, as is evident from a passage in Mr. Michie’s narrative: “There is a right and a wrong way of approaching yourt also. Outside the door there are generally ropes lying on the ground, held down by stakes, for the purpose of tying up the animals when they want to keep them together. There is a way of getting over or round these ropes that I never learned, but on one occasion the ignorant breach of the rule on our part excluded us from the hospitality of the family.” The feeling or superstition was in full force in Persia in the 17th century, at least in regard to the threshold of the king’s palace. It was held a sin to tread upon it in entering. (Cathay, 132; Rubr. 255, 268, 319; Plan. Carp. 625, 741; Makrizi, I. 214; Mél. Asiat. Ac. St. Petersb. II. 660; The Siberian Overland Route, p. 97; P. Della Valle, II. 171.)
[Mr. Rockhill writes (Rubruck, p. 104): “The same custom existed among the Fijians, I believe. I may note that it also prevailed in ancient China. It is said of Confucius ‘when he was standing he did not occupy the middle of the gate-way; when he passed in or out, he did not tread on the threshold.’ (Lun-yü, Bk. X. ch. iv. 2.) In China, the bride’s feet must not touch the threshold of the bridegroom’s house, (Cf. Denny’s Folk-lore in China, p. 18.)
“The author of the Ch’ue keng lu mentions also the athletes with clubs standing at the door, at the time of the khan’s presence in the hall. He adds, that next to the Khan, two other life-guards used to stand, who held in their hands ‘natural’ axes of jade (axes found fortuitously in the ground, probably primitive weapons).” (Palladius, p. 43.)—H. C.]
NOTE 5.—Some of these etiquettes were probably rather Chinese than Mongol, for the regulations of the court of Kúblái apparently combined the two. In the visit of Shah Rukh’s ambassadors to the court of the Emperor Ch’êng Tsu of the Ming Dynasty in 1421, we are told that by the side of the throne, at an imperial banquet, “there stood two eunuchs, each having a band of thick paper over his mouth, and extending to the tips of his ears…. Every time that a dish, or a cup of darassun (rice-wine) was brought to the emperor, all the music sounded.” (N. et Ext. XIV. 408, 409.) In one of the Persepolitan sculptures, there stands behind the King an eunuch bearing a fan, and with his mouth covered; at least so says Heeren. (Asia, I. 178.)
NOTE 6.—”Jongleours et entregetours de maintes plusieurs manieres de granz experimenz” (P.); “de Giuculer et de Tregiteor” (G. T.). Ital. Tragettatore, a juggler; Romance, Trasjitar, Tragitar, to juggle. Thus Chaucer:—
“There saw I playing Jogelours,
Magiciens, and Tragetours,
And Phetonisses, Charmeresses,
Old Witches, Sorceresses,” etc.
—House of Fame, III. 169.
“For oft at festes have I wel herd say,
That Tregetoures, within an halle large,
Have made come in a water and a barge,
And in the halle rowen up and doun.
Somtime hath semed come a grim leoun;
Somtime a Castel al of lime and ston,
And whan hem liketh, voideth it anon.”
—The Franklin’s Tale, II. 454.
Performances of this kind at Chinese festivities have already been spoken of in note 9 to ch. lxi. of Book I. Shah Rukh’s people, Odoric, Ysbrandt Ides, etc., describe them also. The practice of introducing such artistes into the dining-hall after dinner seems in that age to have been usual also in Europe. See, for example, Wright’s Domestic Manners, pp. 165-166, and the Court of the Emperor Frederic II., in Kington’s Life of that prince, I. 470. (See also N. et E. XIV. 410; Cathay, 143; Ysb. Ides, p. 95.)
CHAPTER XIV.
CONCERNING THE GREAT FEAST HELD BY THE GRAND KAAN EVERY YEAR ON HIS BIRTHDAY.
You must know that the Tartars keep high festival yearly on their birthdays. And the Great Kaan was born on the 28th day of the September moon, so on that day is held the greatest feast of the year at the Kaan’s Court, always excepting that which he holds on New Year’s Day, of which I shall tell you afterwards.[NOTE 1]
Now, on his birthday, the Great Kaan dresses in the best of his robes, all wrought with beaten gold;[NOTE 2] and full 12,000 Barons and Knights on that day come forth dressed in robes of the same colour, and precisely like those of the Great Kaan, except that they are not so costly; but still they are all of the same colour as his, and are also of silk and gold. Every man so clothed has also a girdle of gold; and this as well as the dress is given him by the Sovereign. And I will aver that there are some of these suits decked with so many pearls and precious stones that a single suit shall be worth full 10,000 golden bezants.
And of such raiment there are several sets. For you must know that the Great Kaan, thirteen times in the year, presents to his Barons and Knights such suits of raiment as I am speaking of.[NOTE 3] And on each occasion they wear the same colour that he does, a different colour being assigned to each festival. Hence you may see what a huge business it is, and that there is no prince in the world but he alone who could keep up such customs as these.
On his birthday also, all the Tartars in the world, and all the countries and governments that owe allegiance to the Kaan, offer him great presents according to their several ability, and as prescription or orders have fixed the amount. And many other persons also come with great presents to the Kaan, in order to beg for some employment from him. And the Great Kaan has chosen twelve Barons on whom is laid the charge of assigning to each of these supplicants a suitable answer.
On this day likewise all the Idolaters, all the Saracens, and all the Christians and other descriptions of people make great and solemn devotions, with much chaunting and lighting of lamps and burning of incense, each to the God whom he doth worship, praying that He would save the Emperor, and grant him long life and health and happiness.
And thus, as I have related, is celebrated the joyous feast of the Kaan’s birthday.[NOTE 4]
Now I will tell you of another festival which the Kaan holds at the New
Year, and which is called the White Feast.
NOTE 1.—The Chinese Year commences, according to Duhalde, with the New Moon nearest to the Sun’s Passage of the middle point of Aquarius; according to Pauthier, with the New Moon immediately preceding the Sun’s entry into Pisces. (These would almost always be identical, but not always.) Generally speaking, the first month will include part of February and part of March. The eighth month will then be September-October (v. ante, ch. ii. note 2).
[According to Dr. S. W. Williams (Middle Kingdom, II. p. 70): “The year is lunar, but its commencement is regulated by the sun. New Year falls on the first new moon after the sun enters Aquarius, which makes it come not before January 21st nor after February 19th.” “The beginning of the civil year, writes Peter Hoang (Chinese Calendar, p. 13), depends upon the good pleasure of the Emperors. Under the Emperor Hwang-ti (2697 B.C.) and under the Hsia Dynasty (2205 B.C.), it was made to commence with the 3rd month yin-yüeh [Pisces]; under the Shang Dynasty (1766 B.C.) with the 2nd month ch’ou-yüeh [Aquarius], and under the Chou Dynasty (1122 B.C.) with the 1st month tzu-yüeh [Capricorn].”—H. C.]
NOTE 2.—The expression “à or batuz” as here applied to robes, is common among the mediaeval poets and romance-writers, e.g. Chaucer:—
“Full yong he was and merry of thought,
And in samette with birdes wrought
And with gold beaten full fetously,
His bodie was clad full richely.”
—Rom. of the Rose, 836-839.
M. Michel thinks that in a stuff so termed the gold wire was beaten out after the execution of the embroidery, a process which widened the metallic surface and gave great richness of appearance. The fact was rather, however, according to Dr. Rock, that the gold used in weaving such tissues was not wire but beaten sheets of gold cut into narrow strips. This would seem sufficient to explain the term “beaten gold,” though Dr. Rock in another passage refers it to a custom which he alleges of sewing goldsmith’s work upon robes. (Fr. Michel, Recherches, II. 389, also I. 371; Rock’s Catalogue, pp. xxv. xxix. xxxviii. cvi.)
NOTE 3.—The number of these festivals and distributions of dresses is thirteen in all the old texts, except the Latin of the Geog. Soc., which has twelve. Thirteen would seem therefore to have been in the original copy. And the Ramusian version expands this by saying, “Thirteen great feasts that the Tartars keep with much solemnity to each of the thirteen moons of the year.”[1] It is possible, however, that this latter sentence is an interpolated gloss; for, besides the improbability of munificence so frequent, Pauthier has shown some good reasons why thirteen should be regarded as an error for three. The official History of the Mongol Dynasty, which he quotes, gives a detail of raiment distributed in presents on great state occasions three times a year. Such a mistake might easily have originated in the first dictation, treize substituted for trois, or rather for the old form tres; but we must note that the number 13 is repeated and corroborated in ch. xvi. Odoric speaks of four great yearly festivals, but there are obvious errors in what he says on this subject. Hammer says the great Mongol Feasts were three, viz. New Year’s Day, the Kaan’s Birthday, and the Feast of the Herds.
Something like the changes of costume here spoken of is mentioned by Rubruquis at a great festival of four days’ duration at the court of Mangku Kaan: “Each day of the four they appeared in different raiment, suits of which were given them for each day of a different colour, but everything on the same day of one colour, from the boots to the turban.” So also Carpini says regarding the assemblies of the Mongol nobles at the inauguration of Kuyuk Kaan: “The first day they were all clad in white pourpre (? albis purpuris, see Bk. I. ch. vi. note 4), the second day in ruby pourpre, the third day in blue pourpre, the fourth day in the finest baudekins.” (Cathay, 141; Rubr. 368; Pl. Car. 755.)
[Mr. Rockhill (Rubruck, p. 247, note) makes the following remarks: “Odoric, however, says that the colours differed according to the rank. The custom of presenting khilats is still observed in Central Asia and Persia. I cannot learn from any other authority that the Mongols ever wore turbans. Odoric says the Mongols of the imperial feasts wore ‘coronets’ (in capite coronati).”—H. C.]
NOTE 4.—[“The accounts given by Marco Polo regarding the feasts of the Khan and the festival dresses at his Court, agree perfectly with the statements on the same subject of contemporary Chinese writers. Banquets were called in the common Mongol language chama, and festival dresseschisun. General festivals used to be held at the New Year and at the Birthday of the Khan. In the Mongol-Chinese Code, the ceremonies performed in the provinces on the Khan’s Birthday are described. One month before that day the civil and military officers repaired to a temple, where a service was performed to the Khan’s health. On the morning of the Birthday a sumptuously adorned table was placed in the open air, and the representatives of all classes and all confessions were obliged to approach the table, to prostrate themselves and exclaim three times: Wan-sui (i.e. ‘Ten thousand years’ life to the Khan). After that the banquet took place. In the same code (in the article on the Ye li ke un [Christians, Erke-un]) it is stated, that in the year 1304,—owing to a dispute, which had arisen in the province of Kiang-nan between the ho-shang (Buddhist priests) and the Christian missionaries, as to precedence in the above-mentioned ceremony,—a special edict was published, in which it was decided that in the rite of supplication, Christians should follow the Buddhist and Taouist priests.” (Palladius, pp. 44-45.)—H. C.]
[1] There are thirteen months to the Chinese year in seven out of every nineteen.
[“This interval of 10 years comprises 235 lunar months, generally 125 long months of 30 days 110 short months of 29 days, (but sometimes 124 long and 111 short months), and 7 intercalary months. The year of twelve months is called a common year, that of thirteen months, an intercalary year.” (P. Hoang, Chinese Calendar, p. 12. —H. C.)]
CHAPTER XV.
OF THE GREAT FESTIVAL WHICH THE KAAN HOLDS ON NEW YEAR’S DAY.
The beginning of their New Year is the month of February, and on that occasion the Great Kaan and all his subjects made such a Feast as I now shall describe.
It is the custom that on this occasion the Kaan and all his subjects should be clothed entirely in white; so, that day, everybody is in white, men and women, great and small. And this is done in order that they may thrive all through the year, for they deem that white clothing is lucky.[NOTE 1] On that day also all the people of all the provinces and governments and kingdoms and countries that own allegiance to the Kaan bring him great presents of gold and silver, and pearls and gems, and rich textures of divers kinds. And this they do that the Emperor throughout the year may have abundance of treasure and enjoyment without care. And the people also make presents to each other of white things, and embrace and kiss and make merry, and wish each other happiness and good luck for the coming year. On that day, I can assure you, among the customary presents there shall be offered to the Kaan from various quarters more than 100,000 white horses, beautiful animals, and richly caparisoned. [And you must know ’tis their custom in offering presents to the Great Kaan (at least when the province making the present is able to do so), to present nine times nine articles. For instance, if a province sends horses, it sends nine times nine or 81 horses; of gold, nine times nine pieces of gold, and so with stuffs or whatever else the present may consist of.][NOTE 2]
On that day also, the whole of the Kaan’s elephants, amounting fully to 5000 in number, are exhibited, all covered with rich and gay housings of inlaid cloth representing beasts and birds, whilst each of them carries on his back two splendid coffers; all of these being filled with the Emperor’s plate and other costly furniture required for the Court on the occasion of the White Feast.[NOTE 3] And these are followed by a vast number of camels which are likewise covered with rich housings and laden with things needful for the Feast. All these are paraded before the Emperor, and it makes the finest sight in the world.
Moreover, on the morning of the Feast, before the tables are set, all the Kings, and all the Dukes, Marquesses, Counts, Barons, Knights, and Astrologers, and Philosophers, and Leeches, and Falconers, and other officials of sundry kinds from all the places round about, present themselves in the Great Hall before the Emperor; whilst those who can find no room to enter stand outside in such a position that the Emperor can see them all well. And the whole company is marshalled in this wise. First are the Kaan’s sons, and his nephews, and the other Princes of the Blood Imperial; next to them all Kings; then Dukes, and then all others in succession according to the degree of each. And when they are all seated, each in his proper place, then a great prelate rises and says with a loud voice: “Bow and adore!” And as soon as he has said this, the company bow down until their foreheads touch the earth in adoration towards the Emperor as if he were a god. And this adoration they repeat four times, and then go to a highly decorated altar, on which is a vermilion tablet with the name of the Grand Kaan inscribed thereon, and a beautiful censer of gold. So they incense the tablet and the altar with great reverence, and then return each man to his seat.[NOTE 4]
When all have performed this, then the presents are offered, of which I have spoken as being so rich and costly. And after all have been offered and been seen by the Emperor, the tables are set, and all take their places at them with perfect order as I have already told you. And after dinner the jugglers come in and amuse the Court as you have heard before; and when that is over, every man goes to his quarters.
NOTE 1.—The first month of the year is still called by the Mongols Chaghan or Chaghan Sara, “the White” or the “White Month”; and the wearing of white clothing on this festive occasion must have been purely a Mongol custom. For when Shah Rukh’s ambassadors were present at the New Year’s Feast at the Court of the succeeding Chinese Dynasty (2nd February, 1421) they were warned that no one must wear white, as that among the Chinese was the colour of mourning. (Koeppen, I. 574, II. 309; Cathay, p. ccvii.)
NOTE 2.—On the mystic importance attached to the number 9 on all such occasions among the Mongols, see Hammer’s Golden Horde, p. 208; Hayton, ch. iii. in Ramusio II.; Not. et Ext. XIV. Pt. I. 32; and Strahlenberg (II. 210 of Amsterd. ed. 1757). Vámbéry, speaking of the Kálín or marriage price among the Uzbegs, says: “The question is always how many times nine sheep, cows, camels, or horses, or how many times nine ducats (as is the custom in a town), the father is to receive for giving up his daughter.” (Sketches of Cent. Asia, p. 103.) Sheikh Ibrahim of Darband, making offerings to Timur, presented nines of everything else, but of slaves eight only. “Where is the ninth?” enquired the court official. “Who but I myself?” said the Sheikh, and so won the heart of Timur. (A. Arabsiadis … Timuri Hist. p. 357.)
NOTE 3.—The elephant stud of the Son of Heaven had dwindled till in 1862 Dr. Rennie found but one animal; now none remain. [Dr. S. W. Williams writes (Middle Kingdom, I. pp. 323-324): “Elephants are kept at Peking for show, and are used to draw the state chariot when the Emperor goes to worship at the Altars of Heaven and Earth, but the sixty animals seen in the days of Kienlung, by Bell, have since dwindled to one or two. Van Braam met six going into Peking, sent thither from Yun-Nan.” These were no doubt carrying tribute from Burmah.—H. C.] It is worth noticing that the housings of cut cloth or appliqué work (“draps entaillez“) are still in fashion in India for the caparison of elephants.
NOTE 4.—In 1263 Kúblái adopted the Chinese fashion of worshipping the tablets of his own ancestors, and probably at the same time the adoration of his own tablet by his subjects was introduced. Van Braam ingenuously relates how he and the rest of the Dutch Legation of 1794 performed the adoration of the Emperor’s Tablet on first entering China, much in the way described in the text.
There is a remarkable amplification in the last paragraph of the chapter as given by Ramusio: “When all are in their proper places, a certain great personage, or high prelate as it were, gets up and says with a loud voice: ‘Bow yourselves and adore!’ On this immediately all bend and bow the forehead to the ground. Then the prelate says again: ‘God save and keep our Lord the Emperor, with length of years and with mirth and happiness.’ And all answer: ‘So may it be!’ And then again the prelate says: ‘May God increase and augment his Empire and its prosperity more and more, and keep all his subjects in peace and goodwill, and may all things go well throughout his Dominion!’ And all again respond: ‘So may it be!’ And this adoration is repeated four times.”
One of Pauthier’s most interesting notes is a long extract from the official Directory of Ceremonial under the Mongol Dynasty, which admirably illustrates the chapters we have last read. I borrow a passage regarding this adoration: “The Musician’s Song having ceased, the Ministers shall recite with a loud voice the following Prayer: ‘Great Heaven, that extendest over all! Earth which art under the guidance of Heaven! We invoke You and beseech You to heap blessings upon the Emperor and the Empress! Grant that they may live ten thousand, a hundred thousand years!’
“Then the first Chamberlain shall respond: ‘May it be as the prayer hath said!’ The Ministers shall then prostrate themselves, and when they rise return to their places, and take a cup or two of wine.”
The K’o-tow (Khéu-théu) which appears repeatedly in this ceremonial and which in our text is indicated by the four prostrations, was, Pauthier alleges, not properly a Chinese form, but only introduced by the Mongols. Baber indeed speaks of it as the Kornish, a Moghul ceremony, in which originally “the person who performed it kneeled nine times and touched the earth with his brow each time.” He describes it as performed very elaborately (nine times twice) by his younger uncle in visiting the elder. But in its essentials the ceremony must have been of old date at the Chinese Court; for the Annals of the Thang Dynasty, in a passage cited by M. Pauthier himself,[1] mention that ambassadors from the famous Hárún ar Rashíd in 798 had to perform the “ceremony of kneeling and striking the forehead against the ground.” And M. Pauthier can scarcely be right in saying that the practice was disused by the Ming Dynasty and only reintroduced by the Manchus; for in the story of Shah Rukh’s embassy the performance of the K’o-tow occurs repeatedly.
[“It is interesting to note,” writes Mr. Rockhill (Rubruck, p. 22), “that in A.D. 981 the Chinese Envoy, Wang Yen-tê, sent to the Uigur Prince of Kao-chang, refused to make genuflexions (pai) to him, as being contrary to the established usages as regards envoys. The prince and his family, however, on receiving the envoy, all faced eastward (towards Peking) and made an obeisance (pai) on receiving the imperial presents (shou-tzu).” (Ma Twan-lin, Bk 336, 13.)—H. C.]
(Gaubil, 142; Van Braam, I. 20-21; Baber, 106; N. et E. XIV. Pt. I. 405, 407, 418.)
The enumeration of four prostrations in the text is, I fancy, quite correct. There are several indications that this number was used instead of the three times three of later days. Thus Carpini, when introduced to the Great Kaan, “bent the left knee four times.” And in the Chinese bridal ceremony of “Worshipping the Tablets,” the genuflexion is made four times. At the court of Shah Abbas an obeisance evidently identical was repeated four times. (Carp. 759; Doolittle, p. 60; P. Della Valle, I. 646.)
[1] Gaubil, cited in Pauthier’s Hist. des Relations Politiques de la Chine, etc., p. 226.
CHAPTER XVI.
CONCERNING THE TWELVE THOUSAND BARONS WHO RECEIVE ROBES OF CLOTH OF GOLD FROM THE EMPEROR ON THE GREAT FESTIVALS, THIRTEEN CHANGES A-PIECE.
Now you must know that the Great Kaan hath set apart 12,000 of his men who are distinguished by the name of Keshican, as I have told you before; and on each of these 12,000 Barons he bestows thirteen changes of raiment, which are all different from one another: I mean that in one set the 12,000 are all of one colour; the next 12,000 of another colour, and so on; so that they are of thirteen different colours. These robes are garnished with gems and pearls and other precious things in a very rich and costly manner.[NOTE 1] And along with each of these changes of raiment, i.e. 13 times in the year, he bestows on each of those 12,000 Barons a fine golden girdle of great richness and value, and likewise a pair of boots of Camut, that is to say of Borgal, curiously wrought with silver thread; insomuch that when they are clothed in these dresses every man of them looks like a king![NOTE 2] And there is an established order as to which dress is to be worn at each of those thirteen feasts. The Emperor himself also has his thirteen suits corresponding to those of his Barons; in colour, I mean (though his are grander, richer, and costlier), so that he is always arrayed in the same colour as his Barons, who are, as it were, his comrades. And you may see that all this costs an amount which it is scarcely possible to calculate.
Now I have told you of the thirteen changes of raiment received from the Prince by those 12,000 Barons, amounting in all to 156,000 suits of so great cost and value, to say nothing of the girdles and the boots which are also worth a great sum of money. All this the Great Lord hath ordered, that he may attach the more of grandeur and dignity to his festivals.
And now I must mention another thing that I had forgotten, but which you will be astonished to learn from this Book. You must know that on the Feast Day a great Lion is led to the Emperor’s presence, and as soon as it sees him it lies down before him with every sign of the greatest veneration, as if it acknowledged him for its lord; and it remains there lying before him, and entirely unchained. Truly this must seem a strange story to those who have not seen the thing![NOTE 3]
NOTE 1.—On the Keshican, see note 1 to chap. xii., and on the changes of raiment note 3 to chap. xiv., and the remarks there as to the number of distributions. I confess that the stress laid upon the number 13 in this chapter makes the supposition of error more difficult. But there is something odd and unintelligible about the whole of the chapter except the last paragraph. For the 12,000 Keshican are here all elevated to Barons; and at the same time the statement about their changes of raiment seems to be merely that already made in chapter xiv. This repetition occurs only in the French MSS., but as it is in all these we cannot reject it.
NOTE 2.—The words Camut and Borgal appear both to be used here for what we call Russia-Leather. The latter word in one form or another, Bolghár, Borgháli, or Bulkál, is the term applied to that material to this day nearly all over Asia. Ibn Batuta says that in travelling during winter from Constantinople to the Wolga he had to put on three pairs of boots, one of wool (which we should call stockings), a second of wadded linen, and a third of Borgháli, “i.e. of horse-leather lined with wolf-skin.” Horse-leather seems to be still the favourite material for boots among all the Tartar nations. The name was undoubtedly taken from Bolghar on the Wolga, the people of which are traditionally said to have invented the art of preparing skins in that manner. This manufacture is still one of the staple trades of Kazan, the city which in position and importance is the nearest representative of Bolghar now.
Camut is explained by Klaproth to be “leather made from the back-skin of a camel.” It appears in Johnson’s Persian Dictionary as Kámú, but I do not know from what language it originally comes. The word is in the Latin column of the Petrarchian Vocabulary with the Persian rendering Sagri. This shows us what is meant, for Saghrí is just our word Shagreen, and is applied to a fine leather granulated in that way, which is much used for boots and the like by the people of Central Asia. [In Turkish saghri or saghri is the name both for the buttocks of a horse and the leather calledshagreen prepared with them. (See Devic, Dict. Étym.)—H. C.] In the commercial lists of our Indian north-west frontier we find as synonymous Saghri or Kímukht, “Horse or Ass-hide.” No doubt this latter word is a form of Kámú or Camut. It appears (as Keimukht, “a sort of leather”) in a detail of imports to Aden given by Ibn al Wardi, a geographer of the 13th century.
Instead of Camut, Ramusio has Camoscia, i.e. Chamois, and the same seems to be in all the editions based on Fra Pipino’s version. It may be a misrendering of camutum or camutium; or is there any real connexion between the Oriental Kámú Kímukht, and the Italian camoscia? (I. B. II. 445;Klapr. Mém. vol. III.; Davies’s Trade Report, App. p. ccxx.; Vámbéry’s Travels, 423; Not. et Ext. II. 43.)
Fraehn (writing in 1832) observes that he knew no use of the word
Bolghár, in the sense of Russian leather, older than the 17th century.
But we see that both Marco and Ibn Batuta use it. (F. on the Wolga
Bulghars, pp. 8-9.)
Pauthier in a note (p. 285) gives a list of the garments issued to certain officials on these ceremonial occasions under the Mongols, and sure enough this list includes “pairs of boots in red leather.” Odoric particularly mentions the broad golden girdles worn at the Kaan’s court.
[La Curne, Dict., has Bulga, leather bag; old Gallic word from which are derived bouge et bougete, bourse; he adds in a note, “Festus writes: ‘Bulgas galli sacculos scorteos vocant.'”—H. C.]
NOTE 3.—”Then come mummers leading lions, which they cause to salute the Lord with reverence.” (Odoric, p. 143.) A lion sent by Mirza Baisangar, one of the Princes of Timur’s House, accompanied Shah Rukh’s embassy as a present to the Emperor; and like presents were frequently repeated. (See Amyot, XIV. 37, 38.)
CHAPTER XVII.
HOW THE GREAT KAAN ENJOINETH HIS PEOPLE TO SUPPLY HIM WITH GAME.
The three months of December, January, and February, during which the Emperor resides at his Capital City, are assigned for hunting and fowling, to the extent of some 40 days’ journey round the city; and it is ordained that the larger game taken be sent to the Court. To be more particular: of all the larger beasts of the chase, such as boars, roebucks, bucks, stags, lions, bears, etc., the greater part of what is taken has to be sent, and feathered game likewise. The animals are gutted and despatched to the Court on carts. This is done by all the people within 20 or 30 days’ journey, and the quantity so despatched is immense. Those at a greater distance cannot send the game, but they have to send the skins after tanning them, and these are employed in the making of equipments for the Emperor’s army.[NOTE 1]
NOTE 1.—So Magaillans: “Game is so abundant, especially at the capital, that every year during the three winter months you see at different places, intended for despatch thither, besides great piles of every sort of wildfowl, rows of four-footed game of a gunshot or two in length: the animals being all frozen and standing on their feet. Among other species you see three sundry kinds of bears … and great abundance of other animals, as stags and deer of different sorts, boars, elks, hares, rabbits, squirrels, wild-cats, rats, geese, ducks, very fine jungle-fowl, etc., and all so cheap that I never could have believed it” (pp. 177-178). As this writer mentions wild-cats, we may presume that the “lions” of Polo also were destined to be eaten.
[“Kubilai Khan kept a whole army, 14,000 men, huntsmen, distributed in Peking and other cities in the present province of Chili (Yuen-shi). The Khan used to hunt in the Peking plain from the beginning of spring, until his departure to Shang-tu. There are in the Peking department many low and marshy places, stretching often to a considerable extent and abounding in game. In the biography of Ai-sie (Yuen shi, chap. cxxxiv.), who was a Christian, it is mentioned that Kubilai was hunting also in the department of Pao-ting fu.” (Palladius, p. 45.)—H. C.]
CHAPTER XVIII.
OF THE LIONS AND LEOPARDS AND WOLVES THAT THE KAAN KEEPS FOR THE CHASE.
The Emperor hath numbers of leopards[NOTE 1] trained to the chase, and hath also a great many lynxes taught in like manner to catch game, and which afford excellent sport.[NOTE 2] He hath also several great Lions, bigger than those of Babylonia, beasts whose skins are coloured in the most beautiful way, being striped all along the sides with black, red, and white. These are trained to catch boars and wild cattle, bears, wild asses, stags, and other great or fierce beasts. And ’tis a rare sight, I can tell you, to see those lions giving chase to such beasts as I have mentioned! When they are to be so employed the Lions are taken out in a covered cart, and every Lion has a little doggie with him. [They are obliged to approach the game against the wind, otherwise the animals would scent the approach of the Lion and be off.][NOTE 3]
There are also a great number of eagles, all broken to catch wolves, foxes, deer, and wild goats, and they do catch them in great numbers. But those especially that are trained to wolf-catching are very large and powerful birds, and no wolf is able to get away from them.[NOTE 4]
NOTE 1.—The Cheeta or Hunting-Leopard, still kept for the chase by native noblemen in India, is an animal very distinct from the true leopard. It is much more lanky and long-legged than the pure felines, is unable to climb trees, and has claws only partially retractile. Wood calls it a link between the feline and canine races. One thousand Cheetas were attached to Akbar’s hunting establishment; and the chief one, called Semend-Manik, was carried to the field in a palankin with a kettledrum beaten before him. Boldensel in the first half of the 14th century speaks of the Cheeta as habitually used in Cyprus; but, indeed, a hundred years before, these animals had been constantly employed by the Emperor Frederic II. in Italy, and accompanied him on all his marches. They were introduced into France in the latter part of the 15th century, and frequently employed by Lewis XI., Charles VIII., and Lewis XII. The leopards were kept in a ditch of the Castle of Amboise, and the name still borne by a gate hard by, Porte des Lions, is supposed to be due to that circumstance. The Moeurs et Usages du Moyen Age (Lacroix), from which I take the last facts, gives copy of a print by John Stradanus representing a huntsman with the leopard on his horse’s crupper, like Kúblái’s (supra, Bk. I. ch. lxi.); Frederic II. used to say of his Cheetas, “they knew how to ride.” This way of taking the Cheeta to the field had been first employed by the Khalif Yazid, son of Moáwiyah. The Cheeta often appears in the pattern of silk damasks of the 13th and 14th centuries, both Asiatic and Italian. (Ayeen Akbery, I. 304, etc.; Boldensel, in Canisii Thesaurus, by Basnage, vol. IV. p. 339; Kington’s Fred. II. I. 472, II. 156; Bochart, Hierozoica, 797; Rock’s Catalogue, passim.)
[The hunting equipment of the Sultan consisted of about thirty falconers on horseback who carried each a bird on his fist. These falconers were in front of seven horsemen, who had behind a kind of tamed tiger at times employed by His Highness for hare-hunting, notwithstanding what may be said to the contrary by those who are inclined not to believe the fact. It is a thing known by everybody here, and cannot be doubted except by those who admit that they believe nothing of foreign customs. These tigers were each covered with a brocade cloth—and their peaceful attitude, added to their ferocious and savage looks, caused at the same time astonishment and fear in the soul of those whom they looked upon. (Journal d’Antoine Galland, trad. par Ch. Schefer, I. p. 135.) The Cheeta (Gueparda jubata) was, according to Sir W. Jones, first employed in hunting antelopes by Hushing, King of Persia, 865 B.C.—H. C.]
NOTE 2.—The word rendered Lynxes is Leu cervers (G. Text), Louz serviers of Pauthier’s MS. C, though he has adopted from another Loups simply, which is certainly wrong. The Geog. Latin has “Linceos i.e. lupos cerverios.” There is no doubt that the Loup-cervier is the Lynx. Thus Brunetto Latini, describing the Loup-cervier, speaks of its remarkable powers of vision, and refers to its agency in the production of the precious stone called Liguire (i.e. Ligurium), which the ancients fancied to come from Lync-urium; the tale is in Theophrastus). Yet the quaint Bestiary of Philip de Thaun, published by Mr. Wright, identifies it with the Greek Hyena:—
“Hyena e Griu num, que nus beste apellum, Ceo est Lucervere, oler fait et mult est fere.”
[The Abbé Armand David writes (Missions Cathol. XXI. 1889, p. 227) that there is in China, from the mountains of Manchuria to the mountains of Tibet, a lynx called by the Chinese T’u-pao (earth-coloured panther); a lynx somewhat similar to the loup-cervier is found on the western border of China, and has been named Lyncus Desgodinsi.—H. C.]
Hunting Lynxes were used at the Court of Akbar. They are also mentioned by A. Hamilton as so used in Sind at the end of the 17th century. This author calls the animal a Shoe-goose! i.e. Siya-gosh (Black-ear), the Persian name of the Lynx. It is still occasionally used in the chase by natives of rank in India. (Brunetto Lat. Tresor, p. 248; Popular Treatises on Science written during Mid. Ages, 94; Ayeen Akbery, u.s.; Hamilt. E. Indies, I. 125; Vigne, I. 42.)
NOTE 3.—The conception of a Tiger seems almost to have dropped out of the European mind during the Middle Ages. Thus in a mediaeval Bestiary, a chapter on the Tiger begins: “Une Beste est qui est apelée Tigre c’est une manière de Serpent.” Hence Polo can only call the Tigers, whose portrait he draws here not incorrectly, Lions. So also nearly 200 years later Barbaro gives a like portrait, and calls the animal Leonza. Marsden supposes judiciously that the confusion may have been promoted by the ambiguity of the Persian Sher.
[Illustration: The Búrgút Eagle. (After Atkinson) “Il a encore aiglies qe sunt afaités à prendre leus et voupes et dain et chavrion, et en prennent assez.”]
The Chinese pilgrim, Sung-Yun (A.D. 518), saw two young lions at the Court of Gandhára. He remarks that the pictures of these animals common in China, were not at all good likenesses. (Beal, p. 200.)
We do not hear in modern times of Tigers trained to the chase, but Chardin says of Persia: “In hunting the larger animals they make use of beasts of prey trained for the purpose, lions, leopards, tigers, panthers, ounces.”
NOTE 4.—This is perfectly correct. In Eastern Turkestan, and among the Kirghiz to this day, eagles termed Búrgút (now well known to be the Golden Eagle) are tamed and trained to fly at wolves, foxes, deer, wild goats, etc. A Kirghiz will give a good horse for an eagle in which he recognises capacity for training. Mr. Atkinson gives vivid descriptions and illustrations of this eagle (which he calls “Bear coote”), attacking both deer and wolves. He represents the bird as striking one claw into the neck, and the other into the back of its large prey, and then tearing out the liver with its beak. In justice both to Marco Polo and to Mr. Atkinson, I have pleasure in adding a vivid account of the exploits of this bird, as witnessed by one of my kind correspondents, the Governor-General’s late envoy to Kashgar. And I trust Sir Douglas Forsyth will pardon my quoting his own letter just as it stands[1]:—”Now for a story of the Burgoot—Atkinson’s ‘Bearcoote.’ I think I told you it was the Golden Eagle and supposed to attack wolves and even bears. One day we came across a wild hog of enormous size, far bigger than any that gave sport to the Tent Club in Bengal. The Burgoot was immediately let loose, and went straight at the hog, which it kicked, and flapped with its wings, and utterly flabbergasted, whilst our Kashgaree companions attacked him with sticks and brought him to the ground. As Friar Odoric would say, I, T. D. F., have seen this with mine own eyes.”—Shaw describes the rough treatment with which the Búrgút is tamed. Baber, when in the Bajaur Hills, notices in his memoirs: “This day Búrgút took a deer.” (Timkowski, I. 414; Levchine, p. 77; Pallas, Voyages, I. 421; J. R. A. S. VII. 305; Atkinson’s Siberia, 493; and Amoor, 146-147; Shaw, p. 157; Baber, p. 249.)
[The Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetus) is called at Peking Hoy tiao (black eagle). (David et Oustalet, Oiseaux de la Chine, p. 8.)—H. C.]
[1] Dated Yangi Hissar, 10th April, 1874.
CHAPTER XIX.
CONCERNING THE TWO BROTHERS WHO HAVE CHARGE OF THE KAAN’S HOUNDS.
The Emperor hath two Barons who are own brothers, one called Baian and the other Mingan; and these two are styled Chinuchi (or Cunichi), which is as much as to say, “The Keepers of the Mastiff Dogs.”[NOTE 1] Each of these brothers hath 10,000 men under his orders; each body of 10,000 being dressed alike, the one in red and the other in blue, and whenever they accompany the Lord to the chase, they wear this livery, in order to be recognized. Out of each body of 10,000 there are 2000 men who are each in charge of one or more great mastiffs, so that the whole number of these is very large. And when the Prince goes a-hunting, one of those Barons, with his 10,000 men and something like 5000 dogs, goes towards the right, whilst the other goes towards the left with his party in like manner. They move along, all abreast of one another, so that the whole line extends over a full day’s journey, and no animal can escape them. Truly it is a glorious sight to see the working of the dogs and the huntsmen on such an occasion! And as the Lord rides a-fowling across the plains, you will see these big hounds coming tearing up, one pack after a bear, another pack after a stag, or some other beast, as it may hap, and running the game down now on this side and now on that, so that it is really a most delightful sport and spectacle.
[The Two Brothers I have mentioned are bound by the tenure of their office to supply the Kaan’s Court from October to the end of March with 1000 head of game daily, whether of beasts or birds, and not counting quails; and also with fish to the best of their ability, allowing fish enough for three persons to reckon as equal to one head of game.]
Now I have told you of the Masters of the Hounds and all about them, and next will I tell you how the Lord goes off on an expedition for the space of three months.
NOTE 1.—Though this particular Bayan and Mingan are not likely to be mentioned in history, the names are both good Mongol names; Bayan that of a great soldier under Kúblái, of whom we shall hear afterwards; and Mingan that of one of Chinghiz’s generals.
The title of “Master of the Mastiffs” belonged to a high Court official at Constantinople in former days, Sámsúnji Báshi, and I have no doubt Marco has given the exact interpretation of the title of the two Barons: though it is difficult to trace its elements. It is read variously Cunici (i.e. Kunichi) and Cinuci (i.e. Chinuchi). It is evidently a word of analogous structure to Kushchi, the Master of the Falcons; Parschi, the Master of the Leopards. Professor Schiefner thinks it is probably corrupted from Noghaichi, which appears in Kovalevski’s Mongol Dict. as “chaesseur qui a soins des chiens courants.” This word occurs, he points out, in Sanang Setzen, where Schmidt translates it Aufseher über Hunde. (See S. S. p. 39.)
The metathesis of Noghai-chi into Kuni-chi is the only drawback to this otherwise apt solution. We generally shall find Polo’s Oriental words much more accurately expressed than this would imply—as in the next chapter. I have hazarded a suggestion of (Or. Turkish) Chong-lt-chi, “Keeper of the Big Dogs,” which Professor Vámbéry thinks possible. (See “chong, big, strong,” in his Tschagataische Sprachstudien, p. 282, and note in Lord Strangford’s Selected Writings, II. 169.) In East Turkestan they call the Chinese Chong Káfir, “The Big Heathen.” This would exactly correspond to the rendering of Pipino’s Latin translation, “hoc est canum magnorum Praefecti.” Chinuchi again would be (in Mongol) “Wolf-keepers.” It is at least possible that the great dogs which Polo terms mastiffs may have been known by such a name. We apply the term Wolf- dog to several varieties, and in Macbeth’s enumeration we have—
——”Hounds, and greyhounds, mongrels, spaniels, curs,
Shoughs, water rugs, and Demi-Wolves.”
Lastly the root-word may be the Chinese Kiuen “dog,” as Pauthier says. The mastiffs were probably Tibetan, but may have come through China, and brought a name with them, like Boule-dogues in France.
[Palladius (p. 46) says that Chinuchi or Cunici “have no resemblance with any of the names found in the Yuen shi, ch. xcix., article Ping chi (military organisation), and relating to the hunting staff of the Khan, viz.: Si pao ch’i (falconers), Ho r ch’i (archers), and Ke lien ch’i (probably those who managed the hounds).”—H. C.]
CHAPTER XX.
HOW THE EMPEROR GOES ON A HUNTING EXPEDITION.
After he has stopped at his capital city those three months that I mentioned, to wit, December, January, February, he starts off on the 1st day of March, and travels southward towards the Ocean Sea, a journey of two days.[NOTE 1] He takes with him full 10,000 falconers, and some 500 gerfalcons besides peregrines, sakers, and other hawks in great numbers; and goshawks also to fly at the water-fowl.[NOTE 2] But do not suppose that he keeps all these together by him; they are distributed about, hither and thither, one hundred together, or two hundred at the utmost, as he thinks proper. But they are always fowling as they advance, and the most part of the quarry taken is carried to the Emperor. And let me tell you when he goes thus a-fowling with his gerfalcons and other hawks, he is attended by full 10,000 men who are disposed in couples; and these are calledToscaol, which is as much as to say, “Watchers.” And the name describes their business.[NOTE 3] They are posted from spot to spot, always in couples, and thus they cover a great deal of ground! Every man of them is provided with a whistle and hood, so as to be able to call in a hawk and hold it in hand. And when the Emperor makes a cast, there is no need that he follow it up, for those men I speak of keep so good a look out that they never lose sight of the birds, and if these have need of help they are ready to render it.
All the Emperor’s hawks, and those of the Barons as well, have a little label attached to the leg to mark them, on which is written the names of the owner and the keeper of the bird. And in this way the hawk, when caught, is at once identified and handed over to its owner. But if not, the bird is carried to a certain Baron, who is styled the Bularguchi, which is as much as to say “The Keeper of Lost Property.” And I tell you that whatever may be found without a known owner, whether it be a horse, or a sword, or a hawk, or what not, it is carried to that Baron straightway, and he takes charge of it. And if the finder neglects to carry his trover to the Baron, the latter punishes him. Likewise the loser of any article goes to the Baron, and if the thing be in his hands it is immediately given up to the owner. Moreover, the said Baron always pitches on the highest spot of the camp, with his banner displayed, in order that those who have lost or found anything may have no difficulty in finding their way to him. Thus nothing can be lost but it shall be incontinently found and restored.[NOTE 4]
And so the Emperor follows this road that I have mentioned, leading along in the vicinity of the Ocean Sea (which is within two days’ journey of his capital city, Cambaluc), and as he goes there is many a fine sight to be seen, and plenty of the very best entertainment in hawking; in fact, there is no sport in the world to equal it!
The Emperor himself is carried upon four elephants in a fine chamber made of timber, lined inside with plates of beaten gold, and outside with lions’ skins [for he always travels in this way on his fowling expeditions, because he is troubled with gout]. He always keeps beside him a dozen of his choicest gerfalcons, and is attended by several of his Barons, who ride on horseback alongside. And sometimes, as they may be going along, and the Emperor from his chamber is holding discourse with the Barons, one of the latter shall exclaim: “Sire! Look out for Cranes!” Then the Emperor instantly has the top of his chamber thrown open, and having marked the cranes he casts one of his gerfalcons, whichever he pleases; and often the quarry is struck within his view, so that he has the most exquisite sport and diversion, there as he sits in his chamber or lies on his bed; and all the Barons with him get the enjoyment of it likewise! So it is not without reason I tell you that I do not believe there ever existed in the world or ever will exist, a man with such sport and enjoyment as he has, or with such rare opportunities.[NOTE 5]
And when he has travelled till he reaches a place called CACHAR MODUN,[NOTE 6] there he finds his tents pitched, with the tents of his Sons, and his Barons, and those of his Ladies and theirs, so that there shall be full 10,000 tents in all, and all fine and rich ones. And I will tell you how his own quarters are disposed. The tent in which he holds his courts is large enough to give cover easily to a thousand souls. It is pitched with its door to the south, and the Barons and Knights remain in waiting in it, whilst the Lord abides in another close to it on the west side. When he wishes to speak with any one he causes the person to be summoned to that other tent. Immediately behind the great tent there is a fine large chamber where the Lord sleeps; and there are also many other tents and chambers, but they are not in contact with the Great Tent as these are. The two audience-tents and the sleeping-chamber are constructed in this way. Each of the audience-tents has three poles, which are of spice-wood, and are most artfully covered with lions’ skins, striped with black and white and red, so that they do not suffer from any weather. All three apartments are also covered outside with similar skins of striped lions, a substance that lasts for ever.[NOTE 7] And inside they are all lined with ermine and sable, these two being the finest and most costly furs in existence. For a robe of sable, large enough to line a mantle, is worth 2000 bezants of gold, or 1000 at least, and this kind of skin is called by the Tartars “The King of Furs.” The beast itself is about the size of a marten.[NOTE 8] These two furs of which I speak are applied and inlaid so exquisitely, that it is really something worth seeing. All the tent-ropes are of silk. And in short I may say that those tents, to wit the two audience-halls and the sleeping-chamber, are so costly that it is not every king could pay for them.
Round about these tents are others, also fine ones and beautifully pitched, in which are the Emperor’s ladies, and the ladies of the other princes and officers. And then there are the tents for the hawks and their keepers, so that altogether the number of tents there on the plain is something wonderful. To see the many people that are thronging to and fro on every side and every day there, you would take the camp for a good big city. For you must reckon the Leeches, and the Astrologers, and the Falconers, and all the other attendants on so great a company; and add that everybody there has his whole family with him, for such is their custom.
The Lord remains encamped there until the spring, and all that time he does nothing but go hawking round about among the canebrakes along the lakes and rivers that abound in that region, and across fine plains on which are plenty of cranes and swans, and all sorts of other fowl. The other gentry of the camp also are never done with hunting and hawking, and every day they bring home great store of venison and feathered game of all sorts. Indeed, without having witnessed it, you would never believe what quantities of game are taken, and what marvellous sport and diversion they all have whilst they are in camp there.
There is another thing I should mention; to wit, that for 20 days’ journey round the spot nobody is allowed, be he who he may, to keep hawks or hounds, though anywhere else whosoever list may keep them. And furthermore throughout all the Emperor’s territories, nobody however audacious dares to hunt any of these four animals, to wit, hare, stag, buck, and roe, from the month of March to the month of October. Anybody who should do so would rue it bitterly. But those people are so obedient to their Lord’s command, that even if a man were to find one of those animals asleep by the roadside he would not touch it for the world! And thus the game multiplies at such a rate that the whole country swarms with it, and the Emperor gets as much as he could desire. Beyond the term I have mentioned, however, to wit that from March to October, everybody may take these animals as he list.[NOTE 9]
After the Emperor has tarried in that place, enjoying his sport as I have related, from March to the middle of May, he moves with all his people, and returns straight to his capital city of Cambaluc (which is also the capital of Cathay, as you have been told), but all the while continuing to take his diversion in hunting and hawking as he goes along.
NOTE 1.—”Vait vers midi jusques à la Mer Occeane, ou il y a deux journées.” It is not possible in any way to reconcile this description as it stands with truth, though I do not see much room for doubt as to the direction of the excursion. Peking is 100 miles as the crow flies from the nearest point of the coast, at least six or seven days’ march for such a camp, and the direction is south-east, or nearly so. The last circumstance would not be very material as Polo’s compass-bearings are not very accurate. We shall find that he makes the general line of bearing from Peking towards Kiangnan, Sciloc or S. East, hence his Midi ought in consistency to represent S. West, an impossible direction for the Ocean. It is remarkable that Ramusio has Greco or N. East, which would by the same relative correction represent East. And other circumstances point to the frontier of Liao-tong as the direction of this excursion. Leaving the two days out of question, therefore, I should suppose the “Ocean Sea” to be struck at Shan-hai-kwan near the terminus of the Great Wall, and that the site of the standing hunting-camp is in the country to the north of that point. The Jesuit Verbiest accompanied the Emperor Kanghi on a tour in this direction in 1682, and almost immediately after passing the Wall the Emperor and his party seem to have struck off to the left for sport. Kúblái started on the “1st of March,” probably however the 1st of the second Chinese month. Kanghi started from Peking on the 23rd of March, on the hunting-journey just referred to.
NOTE 2.—We are told that Bajazet had 7000 falconers and 6000 dog-keepers; whilst Sultan Mahomed Tughlak of India in the generation following Polo’s, is said to have had 10,000 falconers, and 3000 other attendants as beaters. (Not. et Ext. XIII. p. 185.)
The Oriental practice seems to have assigned one man to the attendance on every hawk. This Kaempfer says was the case at the Court of Persia at the beginning of last century. There were about 800 hawks, and each had a special keeper. The same was the case with the Emperor Kanghi’s hawking establishment, according to Gerbillon. (Am. Exot. p. 83; Gerb. 1st Journey, in Duhalde.)
NOTE 3.—The French MSS. read Toscaor; the reading in the text I take from Ramusio. It is Turki, Toskáúl, [Arabic], defined as “Gardien, surveillant de la route; Wächter, Wache, Wegehüter.” (See Zenker, and Pavet de Courteille.) The word is perhaps also Mongol, for Rémusat has Tosiyal = “Veille.” (Mél. As. I. 231.) Such an example of Polo’s correctness both in the form and meaning of a Turki word is worthy of especial note, and shows how little he merits the wild and random treatment which has been often applied to the solution of like phrases in his book.
[Palladius (p. 47) says that he has heard from men well acquainted with the customs of the Mongols, that at the present day in “battues,” the leaders of the two flanks which surround the game, are called toscaul in Mongol.—H. C.]
NOTE 4.—The remark in the previous note might be repeated here. The Bularguji was an officer of the Mongol camp, whose duties are thus described by Mahomed Hindú Shah in a work on the offices of the Perso- Mongol Court. “He is an officer appointed by the Council of State, who, at the time when the camp is struck, goes over the ground with his servants, and collects slaves of either sex, or cattle, such as horses, camels, oxen, and asses, that have been left behind, and retains them until the owners appear and prove their claim to the property, when he makes it over to them. TheBularguji sticks up a flag by his tent or hut to enable people to find him, and so recover their lost property.” (Golden Horde, p. 245.) And in the Appendix to that work (p. 476) there is a copy of a warrant to such a Bularguji or Provost Marshal. The derivation appears therein as from Bularghu, “Lost property.” Here again it was impossible to give both form and meaning of the word more exactly than Polo has done. Though Hammer writes these terminations in ji (dschi), I believe chi (tschi) is preferable. We have this same word Bularghu in a grant of privileges to the Venetians by the Ilkhan Abusaid, 22nd December, 1320, which has been published by M. Mas Latrie: “Item, se algun cavalo bolargo fosse trovado apreso de algun vostro veneciano,” etc.—”If any stray horse shall be found in the possession of a Venetian,” etc. (See Bibl. de l’Ecole des Chartes, 1870—tirage à part, p. 26.)
[“There are two Mongol terms, which resemble this word Bularguchi, viz. Balagachi and Buluguchi. But the first was the name used for the door-keeper of the tent of the Khan. By Buluguchi the Mongols understood a hunter and especially sable hunters. No one of these terms can be made consistent with the accounts given by M. Polo regarding the Bularguchi. In the Kui sin tsa shi, written by Chow Mi, in the former part of the 14th century, interesting particulars regarding Mongol hunting are found.” (Palladius, 47.) In chapter 101. Djan-ch’i, of the Yuen-shi, Falconers are called Ying fang pu lie, and a certain class of the Falconers are termed Bo-lan-ghi. (Bretschneider, Med. Res. I. p. 188.)—H. C.]
NOTE 5.—A like description is given by Odoric of the mode in which a successor of Kúblái travelled between Cambaluc and Shangtu, with his falcons also in the chamber beside him. What Kúblái had adopted as an indulgence to his years and gout, his successors probably followed as a precedent without these excuses.
[With regard to the gout of Kúblái Khan, Palladius (p. 48) writes: “In the Corean history allusion is made twice to the Khan’s suffering from this disease. Under the year 1267, it is there recorded that in the 9th month, envoys of the Khan with a letter to the King arrived in Corea. Kubilai asked for the skin of the Akirho munho, a fish resembling a cow. The envoy was informed that, as the Khan suffered from swollen feet it would be useful for him to wear boots made of the skin of this animal, and in the 10th month, the king of Corea forwarded to the Khan seventeen skins of it. It is further recorded in the Corean history, that in the 8th month of 1292, sorcerers and Shaman women from Corea were sent at the request of the Khan to cure him of a disease of the feet and hands. At that time the king of Corea was also in Peking, and the sorcerers and Shaman women were admitted during an audience the King had of the Khan. They took the Khan’s hands and feet and began to recite exorcisms, whilst Kubilai was laughing.”—H. C.]
NOTE 6.—Marsden and Pauthier identify Cachar Modun with Tchakiri Mondou, or Moudon, which appears in D’Anville’s atlas as the title of a “Levée de terre naturelle,” in the extreme east of Manchuria, and in lat. 44°, between the Khinga Lake and the sea. This position is out of the question. It is more than 900 miles, in a straight line from Peking, and the mere journey thither and back would have taken Kúblái’s camp something like six months. The name Kachar Modun is probably Mongol, and as Katzar is = “land, region,” and Modun = “wood” or “tree,” a fair interpretation lies on the surface. Such a name indeed has little individuality. But the Jesuit maps have a Modun Khotan (“Wood-ville”) just about the locality supposed, viz. in the region north of the eastern extremity of the Great Wall.
[Captain Gill writes (River of Golden Sand, I. p. 111): “This country around Urh-Chuang is admirably described [in Marco Polo, pp. 403, 406], and I should almost imagine that the Kaan must have set off south-east from Peking, and enjoyed some of his hawking not far from here, before he travelled to Cachar Modun, wherever that may have been.”
“With respect to Cachar Modun, Marco Polo intends perhaps by this name Ho-si wu, which place, together with Yang-ts’un, were comprised in the general name Ma t’ou (perhaps the Modun of M. Polo). Ma-t’ou is even now a general term for a jetty in Chinese. Ho-si in the Mongol spelling was Ha-shin. D’Ohsson, in his translation of Rashid-eddin renders Ho-si by Co-shi (Hist. des Mongols, I. p. 95), but Rashid in that case speaks not of Ho-si wu, but of the Tangut Empire, which in Chinese was called Ho-si, meaning west of the (Yellow) River. (See supra, p. 205). Ho-si wu, as well as Yang-ts’un, both exist even now as villages on the Pei-ho River, and near the first ancient walls can be seen. Ho-si wu means: ‘Custom’s barrier west of the (Pei-ho) river.'” (Palladius, p. 45.) This identification cannot be accepted on account of the position of Ho-si wu. —H. C.]
NOTE 7.—I suppose the best accessible illustration of the Kaan’s great tent may be that in which the Emperor Kienlung received Lord Macartney in the same region in 1793, of which one view is given in Staunton’s plates. Another exists in the Staunton Collection in the B. M., of which I give a reduced sketch.
Kúblái’s great tent, after all, was but a fraction of the size of Akbar’s audience-tents, the largest of which held 10,000 people, and took 1000 farráshes a week’s work to pitch it, with machines. But perhaps the manner of holding people is differently estimated. (Aín Akb. 53.)
In the description of the tent-poles, Pauthier’s text has “trois coulombes de fust de pieces moult bien encuierées,” etc. The G. T. has “de leing d’especies mout bien curés,” etc. The Crusca, “di spezie molto belle,” and Ramusio going off at a tangent, “di legno intagliate con grandissimo artificio e indorate.” I believe the translation in the text to indicate the true reading. It might mean camphor-wood, or the like. The tent-covering of tiger-skins is illustrated by a passage in Sanang Setzen, which speaks of a tent covered with panther-skins, sent to Chinghiz by the Khan of the Solongos (p. 77).
[Illustration: The Tents of the Emperor Kienlung.]
[Grenard (pp. 160-162) gives us his experience of Tents in Central Asia (Khotan). “These Tents which we had purchased at Tashkent were the ‘tentes-abris’ which are used in campaign by Russian military workshops, only we made them larger by a third. They were made of grey Kirghiz felt, which cannot be procured at Khotan. The felt manufactured in this town not having enough consistency or solidity, we took Aksu felt, which is better than this of Khotan, though inferior to the felt of Russian Turkestan. These felt tents are extremely heavy, and, once damp, are dried with difficulty. These drawbacks are not compensated by any important advantage; it would be an illusion to believe that they preserve from the cold any better than other tents. In fact, I prefer the Manchu tent in use in the Chinese army, which is, perhaps, of all military tents the most practical and comfortable. It is made of a single piece of double cloth of cotton, very strong, waterproof for a long time, white inside, blue outside, and weighs with its three tipped sticks and its wooden poles, 25 kilog. Set up, it forms a ridge roof 7 feet high and shelters fully ten men. It suits servants perfectly well. For the master who wants to work, to write, to draw, occasionally to receive officials, the ideal tent would be one of the same material, but of larger proportions, and comprising two parallel vertical partitions and surmounted by a ridge roof. The round form of Kirghiz and Mongol tents is also very comfortable, but it requires a complicated and inconvenient wooden frame-work, owing to which it takes some considerable time to raise up the tent.”—H. C.]
NOTE 8.—The expressions about the sable run in the G. T., “et l’apellent les Tartarz les roi des pelaines,” etc. This has been curiously misunderstood both in versions based on Pipino, and in the Geog. Latin and Crusca Italian. The Geog. Latin gives us “vocant eas Tartari Lenoidae Pellonae”; the Crusca, “chiamanle li Tartari Leroide Pelame”; Ramusio in a very odd way combines both the genuine and the blundered interpretation: “E li Tartari la chiamano Regina delle Pelli; e gli animali si chiamano Rondes.” Fraehn ingeniously suggested that this Rondes (which proves to be merely a misunderstanding of the French words Roi des) was a mistake for Kunduz, usually meaning a “beaver,” but also a “sable.” (See Ibn Foszlan, p. 57.) Condux, no doubt with this meaning, appears coupled with vair, in a Venetian Treaty with Egypt (1344), quoted by Heyd. (II. 208.)
Ibn Batuta puts the ermine above the sable. An ermine pelisse, he says, was worth in India 1000 dinárs of that country, whilst a sable one was worth only 400 dinárs. As Ibn Batuta’s Indian dinárs are Rupees, the estimate of price is greatly lower than Polo’s. Some years ago I find the price of aSack, as it is technically called by the Russian traders, or robe of fine sables, stated to be in the Siberian market about 7000 banco rubels, i.e. I believe about 350_l._ The same authority mentions that in 1591 the Tzar Theodore Ivanovich made a present of a pelisse valued at the equivalent of 5000 silver rubels of modern Russian money, or upwards of 750_l._ Atkinson speaks of a single sable skin of the highest quality, for which the trapper demanded 18_l._ The great mart for fine sables is at Olekma on the Lena. (See I. B. II. 401-402; Baer’s Beiträge, VII. 215 seqq.; Upper and Lower Amoor, 390.)
NOTE 9.—Hawking is still common in North China. Pétis de la Croix the elder, in his account of the Yasa, or institutes of Chinghiz, quotes one which lays down that between March and October “no one should take stags, deer, roebucks, hares, wild asses, nor some certain birds,” in order that there might be ample sport in winter for the court. This would be just the reverse of Polo’s statement, but I suspect it is merely a careless adoption of the latter. There are many such traps in Pétis de la Croix. (Engl. Vers. 1722, p. 82.)
CHAPTER XXI.
REHEARSAL OF THE WAY THE YEAR OF THE GREAT KAAN IS DISTRIBUTED.
On arriving at his capital of Cambaluc,[NOTE 1] he stays in his palace there three days and no more; during which time he has great court entertainments and rejoicings, and makes merry with his wives. He then quits his palace at Cambaluc, and proceeds to that city which he has built, as I told you before, and which is called Chandu, where he has that grand park and palace of cane, and where he keeps his gerfalcons in mew. There he spends the summer, to escape the heat, for the situation is a very cool one. After stopping there from the beginning of May to the 28th of August, he takes his departure (that is the time when they sprinkle the white mares’ milk as I told you), and returns to his capital Cambaluc. There he stops, as I have told you also, the month of September, to keep his Birthday Feast, and also throughout October, November, December, January, and February, in which last month he keeps the grand feast of the New Year, which they call the White Feast, as you have heard already with all particulars. He then sets out on his march towards the Ocean Sea, hunting and hawking, and continues out from the beginning of March to the middle of May; and then comes back for three days only to the capital, during which he makes merry with his wives, and holds a great court and grand entertainments. In truth, ’tis something astonishing, the magnificence displayed by the Emperor in those three days; and then he starts off again as you know.
Thus his whole year is distributed in the following manner: six months at his chief palace in the royal city of Cambaluc, to wit, September, October, November, December, January, February;
Then on the great hunting expedition towards the sea, March, April, May;
Then back to his palace at Cambaluc for three days;
Then off to the city of Chandu which he has built, and where the Cane
Palace is, where he stays June, July, August;
Then back again to his capital city of Cambaluc.
So thus the whole year is spent; six months at the capital, three months in hunting, and three months at the Cane Palace to avoid the heat. And in this way he passes his time with the greatest enjoyment; not to mention occasional journeys in this or that direction at his own pleasure.
NOTE 1.—This chapter, with its wearisome and whimsical reiteration, reminding one of a game of forfeits, is peculiar to that class of MSS. which claims to represent the copy given to Thibault de Cepoy by Marco Polo.
Dr. Bushell has kindly sent me a notice of a Chinese document (his translation of which he had unfortunately mislaid), containing a minute contemporary account of the annual migration of the Mongol Court to Shangtu. Having traversed the Kiu Yung Kwan (or Nankau) Pass, where stands the great Mongol archway represented at the end of this volume, they left what is now the Kalgan post-road at Tumuyi, making straight for Chaghan-nor (supra, p. 304), and thence to Shangtu. The return journey in autumn followed the same route as far as Chaghan-nor, where some days were spent in fowling on the lakes, and thence by Siuen-hwa fu (“Sindachu,” supra, p. 295) and the present post-road to Cambaluc.
CHAPTER XXII.
CONCERNING THE CITY OF CAMBALUC, AND ITS GREAT TRAFFIC AND POPULATION.
You must know that the city of Cambaluc hath such a multitude of houses, and such a vast population inside the walls and outside, that it seems quite past all possibility. There is a suburb outside each of the gates, which are twelve in number;[NOTE 1] and these suburbs are so great that they contain more people than the city itself [for the suburb of one gate spreads in width till it meets the suburb of the next, whilst they extend in length some three or four miles]. In those suburbs lodge the foreign merchants and travellers, of whom there are always great numbers who have come to bring presents to the Emperor, or to sell articles at Court, or because the city affords so good a mart to attract traders. [There are in each of the suburbs, to a distance of a mile from the city, numerous fine hostelries[NOTE 2] for the lodgment of merchants from different parts of the world, and a special hostelry is assigned to each description of people, as if we should say there is one for the Lombards, another for the Germans, and a third for the Frenchmen.] And thus there are as many good houses outside of the city as inside, without counting those that belong to the great lords and barons, which are very numerous.
[Illustration: Plain of Cambaluc; the City in the distance; from the Hills on the north-west]
You must know that it is forbidden to bury any dead body inside the city. If the body be that of an Idolater it is carried out beyond the city and suburbs to a remote place assigned for the purpose, to be burnt. And if it be of one belonging to a religion the custom of which is to bury, such as the Christian, the Saracen, or what not, it is also carried out beyond the suburbs to a distant place assigned for the purpose. And thus the city is preserved in a better and more healthy state.
Moreover, no public woman resides inside the city, but all such abide outside in the suburbs. And ’tis wonderful what a vast number of these there are for the foreigners; it is a certain fact that there are more than 20,000 of them living by prostitution. And that so many can live in this way will show you how vast is the population.
[Guards patrol the city every night in parties of 30 or 40, looking out for any persons who may be abroad at unseasonable hours, i.e. after the great bell hath stricken thrice. If they find any such person he is immediately taken to prison, and examined next morning by the proper officers. If these find him guilty of any misdemeanour they order him a proportionate beating with the stick. Under this punishment people sometimes die; but they adopt it in order to eschew bloodshed; for their Bacsis say that it is an evil thing to shed man’s blood].
To this city also are brought articles of greater cost and rarity, and in greater abundance of all kinds, than to any other city in the world. For people of every description, and from every region, bring things (including all the costly wares of India, as well as the fine and precious goods of Cathay itself with its provinces), some for the sovereign, some for the court, some for the city which is so great, some for the crowds of Barons and Knights, some for the great hosts of the Emperor which are quartered round about; and thus between court and city the quantity brought in is endless.
As a sample, I tell you, no day in the year passes that there do not enter the city 1000 cart-loads of silk alone, from which are made quantities of cloth of silk and gold, and of other goods. And this is not to be wondered at; for in all the countries round about there is no flax, so that everything has to be made of silk. It is true, indeed, that in some parts of the country there is cotton and hemp, but not sufficient for their wants. This, however, is not of much consequence, because silk is so abundant and cheap, and is a more valuable substance than either flax or cotton.
Round about this great city of Cambaluc there are some 200 other cities at various distances, from which traders come to sell their goods and buy others for their lords; and all find means to make their sales and purchases, so that the traffic of the city is passing great.
NOTE 1.—It would seem to have been usual to reckon twelve suburbs to
Peking down to modern times. (See Deguignes, III. 38.)
NOTE 2.—The word here used is Fondaco, often employed in mediaeval Italian in the sense nearly of what we call a factory. The word is from the Greek [Greek: pandokeion], but through the Arabic Fandúk. The latter word is used by Ibn Batuta in speaking of the hostelries at which the Mussulman merchants put up in China.
CHAPTER XXIII.
[CONCERNING THE OPPRESSIONS OF ACHMATH THE BAILO, AND THE PLOT THAT WAS FORMED AGAINST HIM.[NOTE 1]
You will hear further on how that there are twelve persons appointed who have authority to dispose of lands, offices, and everything else at their discretion. Now one of these was a certain Saracen named ACHMATH, a shrewd and able man, who had more power and influence with the Grand Kaan than any of the others; and the Kaan held him in such regard that he could do what he pleased. The fact was, as came out after his death, that Achmath had so wrought upon the Kaan with his sorcery, that the latter had the greatest faith and reliance on everything he said, and in this way did everything that Achmath wished him to do.
This person disposed of all governments and offices, and passed sentence on all malefactors; and whenever he desired to have any one whom he hated put to death, whether with justice or without it, he would go to the Emperor and say: “Such an one deserves death, for he hath done this or that against your imperial dignity.” Then the Lord would say: “Do as you think right,” and so he would have the man forthwith executed. Thus when people saw how unbounded were his powers, and how unbounded the reliance placed by the Emperor on everything that he said, they did not venture to oppose him in anything. No one was so high in rank or power as to be free from the dread of him. If any one was accused by him to the Emperor of a capital offence, and desired to defend himself, he was unable to bring proofs in his own exculpation, for no one would stand by him, as no one dared to oppose Achmath. And thus the latter caused many to perish unjustly.[NOTE 2]
Moreover, there was no beautiful woman whom he might desire, but he got hold of her; if she were unmarried, forcing her to be his wife, if otherwise, compelling her to consent to his desires. Whenever he knew of any one who had a pretty daughter, certain ruffians of his would go to the father, and say: “What say you? Here is this pretty daughter of yours; give her in marriage to the Bailo Achmath (for they called him ‘the Bailo,’ or, as we should say, ‘the Vicegerent’),[NOTE 3] and we will arrange for his giving you such a government or such an office for three years.” And so the man would surrender his daughter. And Achmath would go to the Emperor, and say: “Such a government is vacant, or will be vacant on such a day. So-and-So is a proper man for the post.” And the Emperor would reply: “Do as you think best;” and the father of the girl was immediately appointed to the government. Thus either through the ambition of the parents, or through fear of the Minister, all the beautiful women were at his beck, either as wives or mistresses. Also he had some five-and-twenty sons who held offices of importance, and some of these, under the protection of their father’s name, committed scandals like his own, and many other abominable iniquities. This Achmath also had amassed great treasure, for everybody who wanted office sent him a heavy bribe.
In such authority did this man continue for two-and-twenty years. At last the people of the country, to wit the Cathayans, utterly wearied with the endless outrages and abominable iniquities which he perpetrated against them, whether as regarded their wives or their own persons, conspired to slay him and revolt against the government. Amongst the rest there was a certain Cathayan named Chenchu, a commander of a thousand, whose mother, daughter, and wife had all been dishonoured by Achmath. Now this man, full of bitter resentment, entered into parley regarding the destruction of the Minister with another Cathayan whose name was Vanchu, who was a commander of 10,000. They came to the conclusion that the time to do the business would be during the Great Kaan’s absence from Cambaluc. For after stopping there three months he used to go to Chandu and stop there three months; and at the same time his son Chinkin used to go away to his usual haunts, and this Achmath remained in charge of the city; sending to obtain the Kaan’s orders from Chandu when any emergency arose.
So Vanchu and Chenchu, having come to this conclusion, proceeded to communicate it to the chief people among the Cathayans, and then by common consent sent word to their friends in many other cities that they had determined on such a day, at the signal given by a beacon, to massacre all the men with beards, and that the other cities should stand ready to do the like on seeing the signal fires. The reason why they spoke of massacring the bearded men was that the Cathayans naturally have no beard, whilst beards are worn by the Tartars, Saracens, and Christians. And you should know that all the Cathayans detested the Grand Kaan’s rule because he set over them governors who were Tartars, or still more frequently Saracens, and these they could not endure, for they were treated by them just like slaves. You see the Great Kaan had not succeeded to the dominion of Cathay by hereditary right, but held it by conquest; and thus having no confidence in the natives, he put all authority into the hands of Tartars, Saracens, or Christians who were attached to his household and devoted to his service, and were foreigners in Cathay.
Wherefore, on the day appointed, the aforesaid Vanchu and Chenchu having entered the palace at night, Vanchu sat down and caused a number of lights to be kindled before him. He then sent a messenger to Achmath the Bailo, who lived in the Old City, as if to summon him to the presence of Chinkin, the Great Kaan’s son, who (it was pretended) had arrived unexpectedly. When Achmath heard this he was much surprised, but made haste to go, for he feared the Prince greatly. When he arrived at the gate he met a Tartar called Cogatai, who was Captain of the 12,000 that formed the standing garrison of the City; and the latter asked him whither he was bound so late? “To Chinkin, who is just arrived.” Quoth Cogatai, “How can that be? How could he come so privily that I know nought of it?” So he followed the Minister with a certain number of his soldiers. Now the notion of the Cathayans was that, if they could make an end of Achmath, they would have nought else to be afraid of. So as soon as Achmath got inside the palace, and saw all that illumination, he bowed down before Vanchu, supposing him to be Chinkin, and Chenchu who was standing ready with a sword straightway cut his head off. As soon as Cogatai, who had halted at the entrance, beheld this, he shouted “Treason!” and instantly discharged an arrow at Vanchu and shot him dead as he sat. At the same time he called his people to seize Chenchu, and sent a proclamation through the city that any one found in the streets would be instantly put to death. The Cathayans saw that the Tartars had discovered the plot, and that they had no longer any leader, since Vanchu was killed and Chenchu was taken. So they kept still in their houses, and were unable to pass the signal for the rising of the other cities as had been settled. Cogatai immediately dispatched messengers to the Great Kaan giving an orderly report of the whole affair, and the Kaan sent back orders for him to make a careful investigation, and to punish the guilty as their misdeeds deserved. In the morning Cogatai examined all the Cathayans, and put to death a number whom he found to be ringleaders in the plot. The same thing was done in the other cities, when it was found that the plot extended to them also.
After the Great Kaan had returned to Cambaluc he was very anxious to discover what had led to this affair, and he then learned all about the endless iniquities of that accursed Achmath and his sons. It was proved that he and seven of his sons (for they were not all bad) had forced no end of women to be their wives, besides those whom they had ravished. The Great Kaan then ordered all the treasure that Achmath had accumulated in the Old City to be transferred to his own treasury in the New City, and it was found to be of enormous amount. He also ordered the body of Achmath to be dug up and cast into the streets for the dogs to tear; and commanded those of his sons that had followed the father’s evil example to be flayed alive.[NOTE 4]
These circumstances called the Kaan’s attention to the accursed doctrines of the Sect of the Saracens, which excuse every crime, yea even murder itself, when committed on such as are not of their religion. And seeing that this doctrine had led the accursed Achmath and his sons to act as they did without any sense of guilt, the Kaan was led to entertain the greatest disgust and abomination for it. So he summoned the Saracens and prohibited their doing many things which their religion enjoined. Thus, he ordered them to regulate their marriages by the Tartar Law, and prohibited their cutting the throats of animals killed for food, ordering them to rip the stomach in the Tartar way.
Now when all this happened Messer Marco was upon the spot.][NOTE 5]
NOTE 1.—This narrative is from Ramusio’s version, and constitutes one of the most notable passages peculiar to that version.
The name of the oppressive Minister is printed in Ramusio’s Collection Achmach. But the c and t are so constantly interchanged in MSS. that I think there can be no question this was a mere clerical error for Achmath, and so I write it. I have also for consistency changed the spelling of Xandu,Chingis, etc., to that hitherto adopted in our text of Chandu, Chinkin, etc.
NOTE 2.—The remarks of a Chinese historian on Kúblái’s administration may be appropriately quoted here: “Hupilai Han must certainly be regarded as one of the greatest princes that ever existed, and as one of the most successful in all that he undertook. This he owed to his judgment in the selection of his officers, and to his talent for commanding them. He carried his arms into the most remote countries, and rendered his name so formidable that not a few nations spontaneously submitted to his supremacy. Nor was there ever an Empire of such vast extent. He cultivated literature, protected its professors, and even thankfully received their advice. Yet he never placed a Chinese in his cabinet, and he employed foreigners only as Ministers. These, however, he chose with discernment, always excepting the Ministers of Finance. He really loved his subjects; and if they were not always happy under his government, it is because they took care to conceal their sufferings. There were in those days no Public Censors whose duty it is to warn the Sovereign of what is going on: and no one dared to speak out for fear of the resentment of the Ministers, who were the depositaries of the Imperial authority, and the authors of the oppressions under which the people laboured. Several Chinese, men of letters and of great ability, who lived at Hupilai’s court, might have rendered that prince the greatest service in the administration of his dominions, but they never were intrusted with any but subordinate offices, and they were not in a position to make known the malversations of those public blood-suckers.” (De Mailla, IX. 459-460.)
AHMAD was a native of Fenáket (afterwards Sháh-Rúkhia), near the Jaxartes, and obtained employment under Kúblái through the Empress Jamui Khatun, who had known him before her marriage. To her Court he was originally attached, but we find him already employed in high financial office in 1264. Kúblái’s demands for money must have been very large, and he eschewed looking too closely into the character of his financial agents or the means by which they raised money for him. Ahmad was very successful in this, and being a man of great talent and address, obtained immense influence over the Emperor, until at last nothing was done save by his direction, though he always appeared to be acting under the orders of Kúblái. The Chinese authorities in Gaubil and De Mailla speak strongly of his oppressions, but only in general terms, and without affording such particulars as we derive from the text.
The Hereditary Prince Chingkim was strongly adverse to Ahmad; and some of the high Chinese officials on various occasions made remonstrance against the Minister’s proceedings; but Kúblái turned a deaf ear to them, and Ahmad succeeded in ruining most of his opponents. (Gaubil, 141, 143, 151; De Mailla, IX. 316-317; D’Ohsson, II. 468-469.)
[The Rev. W. S. Ament (Marco Polo in Cambaluc, 105) writes: “No name is more execrated than that of Ah-ha-ma (called Achmath by Polo), a Persian, who was chosen to manage the finances of the Empire. He was finally destroyed by a combination against him while the Khan was absent with Crown Prince Chen Chin, on a visit to Shang Tu.” Achmath has his biography under the name of A-ho-ma (Ahmed) in the ch. 205 of the Yuen-shi, under the rubric “Villanous Ministers.” (Bretschneider, Med. Res. I. p. 272.)—H. C.]
NOTE 3.—This term Bailo was the designation of the representative of Venetian dignity at Constantinople, called Podestà during the period of the Latin rule there, and it has endured throughout the Turkish Empire to our own day in the form Balios as the designation of a Frank Consul. [There was also a Venetian bailo in Syria.—H. C.] But that term itself could scarcely have been in use at Cambaluc, even among the handful of Franks, to designate the powerful Minister, and it looks as if Marco had confounded the word in his own mind with some Oriental term of like sound, possibly the Arabic Wáli, “a Prince, Governor of a Province,… a chief Magistrate.” (F. Johnson.) In the Roteiro of the Voyage of Vasco da Gama (2nd ed. Lisbon, 1861, pp. 53-54) it is said that on the arrival of the ships at Calicut the King sent “a man who was called the Bale, which is much the same as Alquaide.” And the Editor gives the same explanation that I have suggested.
I observe that according to Pandit Manphúl the native governor of Kashgar, under the Chinese Amban, used to be called the Baili Beg. [In this case Baili stands for beilêh.—H. C.] (Panjab Trade Report, App. p. cccxxxvii.)
NOTE 4.—The story, as related in De Mailla and Gaubil, is as follows. It contains much less detail than the text, and it differs as to the manner of the chief conspirator’s death, whilst agreeing as to his name and the main facts of the episode.
In the spring of 1282 (Gaubil, 1281) Kúblái and Prince Chingkim had gone off as usual to Shangtu, leaving Ahmad in charge at the Capital. The whole country was at heart in revolt against his oppressions. Kúblái alone knew, or would know, nothing of them.
WANGCHU, a chief officer of the city, resolved to take the opportunity of delivering the Empire from such a curse, and was joined in his enterprise by a certain sorcerer called Kao Hoshang. They sent two Lamas to the Council Board with a message that the Crown Prince was returning to the Capital to take part in certain Buddhist ceremonies, but no credit was given to this. Wangchu then, pretending to have received orders from the Prince, desired an officer called CHANG-Y (perhaps the Chenchu of Polo’s narrative) to go in the evening with a guard of honour to receive him. Late at night a message was sent to summon the Ministers, as the Prince (it was pretended) had already arrived. They came in haste with Ahmad at their head, and as he entered the Palace Wangchu struck him heavily with a copper mace and stretched him dead. Wangchu was arrested, or according to one account surrendered, though he might easily have escaped, confident that the Crown Prince would save his life. Intelligence was sent off to Kúblái, who received it at Chaghan-Nor. (See Book I. ch. lx.) He immediately despatched officers to arrest the guilty and bring them to justice. Wangchu, Chang-y, and Kao Hoshang were publicly executed at the Old City; Wangchu dying like a hero, and maintaining that he had done the Empire an important service which would yet be acknowledged. (De Mailla, IX. 412-413; Gaubil, 193-194; D’Ohsson, II. 470.) [Cf. G. Phillips, inT’oung-Pao, I. p. 220.—H. C.]
NOTE 5.—And it is a pleasant fact that Messer Marco’s presence, and his upright conduct upon this occasion, have not been forgotten in the Chinese Annals: “The Emperor having returned from Chaghan-Nor to Shangtu, desired POLO, Assessor of the Privy Council, to explain the reasons which had led Wangchu to commit this murder. Polo spoke with boldness of the crimes and oppressions of Ahama (Ahmad), which had rendered him an object of detestation throughout the Empire. The Emperor’s eyes were opened, and he praised the courage of Wangchu. He complained that those who surrounded him, in abstaining from admonishing him of what was going on, had thought more of their fear of displeasing the Minister than of the interests of the State.” By Kúblái’s order, the body of Ahmad was taken up, his head was cut off and publicly exposed, and his body cast to the dogs. His son also was put to death with all his family, and his immense wealth confiscated. 714 persons were punished, one way or other, for their share in Ahmad’s malversations. (De Mailla, IX. 413-414.)
What is said near the end of this chapter about the Kaan’s resentment against the Saracens has some confirmation in circumstances related by Rashiduddin. The refusal of some Mussulman merchants, on a certain occasion at Court, to eat of the dishes sent them by the Emperor, gave great offence, and led to the revival of an order of Chinghiz, which prohibited, under pain of death, the slaughter of animals by cutting their throats. This endured for seven years, and was then removed on the strong representation made to Kúblái of the loss caused by the cessation of the visits of the Mahomedan merchants. On a previous occasion also the Mahomedans had incurred disfavour, owing to the ill-will of certain Christians, who quoted to Kúblái a text of the Koran enjoining the killing of polytheists. The Emperor sent for the Mullahs, and asked them why they did not act on the Divine injunction? All they could say was that the time was not yet come! Kúblái ordered them for execution, and was only appeased by the intercession of Ahmad, and the introduction of a divine with more tact, who smoothed over obnoxious applications of the text. (D’Ohsson, II. 492-493.)
CHAPTER XXIV.
HOW THE GREAT KAAN CAUSETH THE BARK OF TREES, MADE INTO SOMETHING LIKE PAPER, TO PASS FOR MONEY OVER ALL HIS COUNTRY.
Now that I have told you in detail of the splendour of this City of the Emperor’s, I shall proceed to tell you of the Mint which he hath in the same city, in the which he hath his money coined and struck, as I shall relate to you. And in doing so I shall make manifest to you how it is that the Great Lord may well be able to accomplish even much more than I have told you, or am going to tell you, in this Book. For, tell it how I might, you never would be satisfied that I was keeping within truth and reason!
The Emperor’s Mint then is in this same City of Cambaluc, and the way it is wrought is such that you might say he hath the Secret of Alchemy in perfection, and you would be right! For he makes his money after this fashion.
He makes them take of the bark of a certain tree, in fact of the Mulberry Tree, the leaves of which are the food of the silkworms,—these trees being so numerous that whole districts are full of them. What they take is a certain fine white bast or skin which lies between the wood of the tree and the thick outer bark, and this they make into something resembling sheets of paper, but black. When these sheets have been prepared they are cut up into pieces of different sizes. The smallest of these sizes is worth a half tornesel; the next, a little larger, one tornesel; one, a little larger still, is worth half a silver groat of Venice; another a whole groat; others yet two groats, five groats, and ten groats. There is also a kind worth one Bezant of gold, and others of three Bezants, and so up to ten. All these pieces of paper are [issued with as much solemnity and authority as if they were of pure gold or silver; and on every piece a variety of officials, whose duty it is, have to write their names, and to put their seals. And when all is prepared duly, the chief officer deputed by the Kaan smears the Seal entrusted to him with vermilion, and impresses it on the paper, so that the form of the Seal remains printed upon it in red; the Money is then authentic. Any one forging it would be punished with death.] And the Kaan causes every year to be made such a vast quantity of this money, which costs him nothing, that it must equal in amount all the treasure in the world.
With these pieces of paper, made as I have described, he causes all payments on his own account to be made; and he makes them to pass current universally over all his kingdoms and provinces and territories, and whithersoever his power and sovereignty extends. And nobody, however important he may think himself, dares to refuse them on pain of death. And indeed everybody takes them readily, for wheresoever a person may go throughout the Great Kaan’s dominions he shall find these pieces of paper current, and shall be able to transact all sales and purchases of goods by means of them just as well as if they were coins of pure gold. And all the while they are so light that ten bezants’ worth does not weigh one golden bezant.
Furthermore all merchants arriving from India or other countries, and bringing with them gold or silver or gems and pearls, are prohibited from selling to any one but the Emperor. He has twelve experts chosen for this business, men of shrewdness and experience in such affairs; these appraise the articles, and the Emperor then pays a liberal price for them in those pieces of paper. The merchants accept his price readily, for in the first place they would not get so good an one from anybody else, and secondly they are paid without any delay. And with this paper-money they can buy what they like anywhere over the Empire, whilst it is also vastly lighter to carry about on their journeys. And it is a truth that the merchants will several times in the year bring wares to the amount of 400,000 bezants, and the Grand Sire pays for all in that paper. So he buys such a quantity of those precious things every year that his treasure is endless, whilst all the time the money he pays away costs him nothing at all. Moreover, several times in the year proclamation is made through the city that any one who may have gold or silver or gems or pearls, by taking them to the Mint shall get a handsome price for them. And the owners are glad to do this, because they would find no other purchaser give so large a price. Thus the quantity they bring in is marvellous, though these who do not choose to do so may let it alone. Still, in this way, nearly all the valuables in the country come into the Kaan’s possession.
When any of those pieces of paper are spoilt—not that they are so very flimsy neither—the owner carries them to the Mint, and by paying three per cent, on the value he gets new pieces in exchange. And if any Baron, or any one else soever, hath need of gold or silver or gems or pearls, in order to make plate, or girdles, or the like, he goes to the Mint and buys as much as he list, paying in this paper-money.[NOTE 1]
Now you have heard the ways and means whereby the Great Kaan may have, and in fact has, more treasure than all the Kings in the World; and you know all about it and the reason why. And now I will tell you of the great Dignitaries which act in this city on behalf of the Emperor.
NOTE 1.—It is surprising to find that, nearly two centuries ago, Magaillans, a missionary who had lived many years in China, and was presumably a Chinese scholar, should have utterly denied the truth of Polo’s statements about the paper-currency of China. Yet the fact even then did not rest on Polo’s statement only. The same thing had been alleged in the printed works of Rubruquis, Roger Bacon, Hayton, Friar Odoric, the Archbishop of Soltania, and Josaphat Barbaro, to say nothing of other European authorities that remained in manuscript, or of the numerous Oriental records of the same circumstance.
The issue of paper-money in China is at least as old as the beginning of the 9th century. In 1160 the system had gone to such excess that government paper equivalent in nominal value to 43,600,000 ounces of silver had been issued in six years, and there were local notes besides; so that the Empire was flooded with rapidly depreciating paper.
The Kin or “Golden” Dynasty of Northern Invaders who immediately preceded the Mongols took to paper, in spite of their title, as kindly as the native sovereigns. Their notes had a course of seven years, after which new notes were issued to the holders, with a deduction of 15 per cent.
The Mongols commenced their issues of paper-money in 1236, long before they had transferred the seat of their government to China. Kúblái made such an issue in the first year of his reign (1260), and continued to issue notes copiously till the end. In 1287 he put out a complete new currency, one note of which was to exchange against five of the previous series of equal nominal value! In both issues the paper-money was, in official valuation, only equivalent to half its nominal value in silver; a circumstance not very easy to understand. The paper-money was called Chao.
The notes of Kúblái’s first issue (1260-1287) with which Polo maybe supposed most familiar, were divided into three classes; (1) Notes of Tens, viz. of 10, 20, 30, and 50 tsien or cash; (2) Notes of Hundreds, viz. of 100, 200, and 500 tsien; and (3) Notes of Strings or Thousands of cash, or in other words of Liangs or ounces of silver (otherwise Tael), viz. of 1000 and 2000 tsien. There were also notes printed on silk for 1, 2, 3, 5, and 10 ounces each, valued at par in silver, but these would not circulate. In 1275, it should be mentioned, there had been a supplementary issue of small notes for 2, 3, and 5 cash each.
Marsden states an equation between Marco’s values of the Notes and the actual Chinese currency, to which Biot seems to assent. I doubt its correctness, for his assumed values of the groat or grosso and tornesel are surely wrong. The grosso ran at that time 18 to the gold ducat or sequin, and allowing for the then higher relative value of silver, should have contained about 5_d._ of silver. The ducat was also equivalent to 2 lire, and the tornese (Romanin, III. 343) was 4 deniers. Now the denier is always, I believe 1/240 of the lira. Hence the tornese would be 9/60 of the grosso.
But we are not to look for exact correspondences, when we see Polo applying round figures in European coinage to Chinese currency.
[Illustration: Bank-Note of the Ming Dynasty]
His bezant notes, I agree with Marsden, here represent the Chinese notes for one and more ounces of silver. And here the correspondence of value is much nearer than it seems at first sight. The Chinese liang or ounce of silver is valued commonly at 6_s._ 7_d._, say roundly 80_d._[1] But the relation of gold and silver in civilized Asia was then (see ch. I. note 4, and also Cathay, pp. ccl. and 442) as 10 to 1, not, as with us now, more than 15 to 1. Wherefore the liang in relation to gold would be worth 120_d._ or 10_s._, a little over the Venetian ducat and somewhat less than the bezant or dínár. We shall then find the table of Chinese issues, as compared with Marco’s equivalents, to stand thus:—
CHINESE ISSUES, AS RECORDED. MARCO POLO’S STATEMENT.
For 10 ounces of silver (viz. }
the Chinese Ting)[2] } 10 bezants.
For 1 ounce of silver, i.e. 1 liang, }
or 1000 tsien (cash) } 1 “
For 500 tsien . . . . . . 10 groats.
200 ” . . . . . . . 5 ” (should have been 4).
100 ” . . . . . . . 2 ”
50 ” . . . . . . . 1 ”
30 ” . . . . . . . 1/2 ” (but the
equivalent of half a groat
would be 25 tsien).
20 ” . . . . . . .
10 ” . . . . . . . 1 tornesel (but the
proportionate equivalent
would be 7-1/2 tsien).
5 ” . . . . . . . 1/2 ” (but prop. equivalent
3-3/4 tsien).
Pauthier has given from the Chinese Annals of the Mongol Dynasty a complete Table of the Issues of Paper-Money during every year of Kúblái’s reign (1260-1294), estimated at their nominal value in Ting or tens of silver ounces. The lowest issue was in 1269, of 228,960 ounces, which at the rate of 120_d._ to the ounce (see above) = 114,480_l._, and the highest was in 1290, viz. 50,002,500 ounces, equivalent at the same estimate to 25,001,250_l._! whilst the total amount in the 34 years was 249,654,290 ounces or 124,827,144_l._ in nominal value. Well might Marco speak of the vast quantity of such notes that the Great Kaan issued annually!
To complete the history of the Chinese paper-currency so far as we can:
In 1309, a new issue took place with the same provision as in Kúblái’s issue of 1287, i.e. each note of the new issue was to exchange against 5 of the old of the same nominal value. And it was at the same time prescribed that the notes should exchange at par with metals, which of course it was beyond the power of Government to enforce, and so the notes were abandoned. Issues continued from time to time to the end of the Mongol Dynasty. The paper-currency is spoken of by Odoric (1320-30), by Pegolotti (1330-40), and by Ibn Batuta (1348), as still the chief, if not sole, currency of the Empire. According to the Chinese authorities, the credit of these issues was constantly diminishing, as it is easy to suppose. But it is odd that all the Western Travellers speak as if the notes were as good as gold. Pegolotti, writing for mercantile men, and from the information (as we may suppose) of mercantile men, says explicitly that there was no depreciation.
The Ming Dynasty for a time carried on the system of paper-money; with the difference that while under the Mongols no other currency had been admitted, their successors made payments in notes, but accepted only hard cash from their people![3] In 1448 the chao of 1000 cash was worth but 3. Barbaro still heard talk of the Chinese paper-currency from travellers whom he met at Azov about this time; but after 1455 there is said to be no more mention of it in Chinese history.
I have never heard of the preservation of any note of the Mongols; but some of the Ming survive, and are highly valued as curiosities in China. The late Sir G. T. Staunton appears to have possessed one; Dr. Lockhart formerly had two, of which he gave one to Sir Harry Parkes, and retains the other. The paper is so dark as to explain Marco’s description of it as black. By Dr. Lockhart’s kindness I am enabled to give a reduced representation of this note, as near a facsimile as we have been able to render it, but with some restoration, e.g. of the seals, of which on the original there is the barest indication remaining.
[Mr. Vissering (Chinese Currency, Addenda, I.-III.) gives a facsimile and a description of a Chinese banknote of the Ming Dynasty belonging to the collection of the Asiatic Museum of the Academy of Sciences at St. Petersburg. “In the eighth year of the period Hung-wu (1375), the Emperor Tai-tsu issued an order to his minister of finances to make the Pao-tsao (precious bills) of the Ta-Ming Dynasty, and to employ as raw material for the composition of those bills the fibres of the mulberry tree.”—H. C.]
Notwithstanding the disuse of Government issues of paper-money from that time till recent years, there had long been in some of the cities of China a large use of private and local promissory notes as currency. In Fuchau this was especially the case; bullion was almost entirely displaced, and the banking-houses in that city were counted by hundreds. These were under no government control; any individual or company having sufficient capital or credit could establish a bank and issue their bills, which varied in amount from 100 cash to 1000 dollars. Some fifteen years ago the Imperial Government seems to have been induced by the exhausted state of the Treasury, and these large examples of the local use of paper-currency, to consider projects for resuming that system after the disuse of four centuries. A curious report by a Committee of the Imperial Supreme Council, on a project for such a currency, appears among the papers published by the Russian Mission at Peking. It is unfavourable to the particular project, but we gather from other sources that the Government not long afterwards did open banks in the large cities of the Empire for the issue of a new paper-currency, but that it met with bad success. At Fuchau, in 1858, I learn from one notice, the dollar was worth from 18,000 to 20,000 cash in Government Bills. Dr. Rennie, in 1861, speaks of the dollar at Peking as valued at 15,000, and later at 25,000 paper cash. Sushun, the Regent, had issued a vast number of notes through banks of his own in various parts of Peking. These he failed to redeem, causing the failure of all the banks, and great consequent commotion in the city. The Regent had led the Emperor [Hien Fung] systematically into debauched habits which ended in paralysis. On the Emperor’s death the Empress caused the arrest and execution of Sushun. His conduct in connection with the bank failures was so bitterly resented that when the poor wretch was led to execution (8th November, 1861), as I learn from an eye-witness, the defrauded creditors lined the streets and cheered.[4]
The Japanese also had a paper-currency in the 14th century. It is different in form from that of China. That figured by Siebold is a strip of strong paper doubled, 6-1/4 in. long by 1-3/4 in. wide, bearing a representation of the tutelary god of riches, with long inscriptions in Chinese characters, seals in black and red, and an indication of value in ancient Japanese characters. I do not learn whether notes of considerable amount are still used in Japan; but Sir R. Alcock speaks of banknotes for small change from 30 to 500 cash and more, as in general use in the interior.
Two notable and disastrous attempts to imitate the Chinese system of currency took place in the Middle Ages; one of them in Persia, apparently in Polo’s very presence, the other in India some 36 years later.
The first was initiated in 1294 by the worthless Kaikhatu Khan, when his own and his ministers’ extravagance had emptied the Treasury, on the suggestion of a financial officer called ‘Izzuddín Muzaffar. The notes were direct copies of Kúblái’s, even the Chinese characters being imitated as part of the device upon them.[5] The Chinese name Chao was applied to them, and the Mongol Resident at Tabriz, Pulad Chingsang, was consulted in carrying out the measure. Expensive preparations were made for this object; offices called Cháo-Khánahs were erected in the principal cities of the provinces, and a numerous staff appointed to carry out the details. Ghazan Khan in Khorasan, however, would have none of it, and refused to allow any of these preparations to be made within his government. After the constrained use of the Chao for two or three days Tabriz was in an uproar; the markets were closed; the people rose and murdered ‘Izzuddín; and the whole project had to be abandoned. Marco was in Persia at this time, or just before, and Sir John Malcolm not unnaturally suggests that he might have had something to do with the scheme; a suggestion which excites a needless commotion in the breast of M. Pauthier. We may draw from the story the somewhat notable conclusion that Block-printing was practised, at least for this one purpose, at Tabriz in 1294.
The other like enterprise was that of Sultan Mahomed Tughlak of Delhi, in 1330-31. This also was undertaken for like reasons, and was in professed imitation of the Chao of Cathay. Mahomed, however, used copper tokens instead of paper; the copper being made apparently of equal weight to the gold or silver coin which it represented. The system seems to have had a little more vogue than at Tabriz, but was speedily brought to an end by the ease with which forgeries on an enormous scale were practised. The Sultan, in hopes of reviving the credit of his currency, ordered that every one bringing copper tokens to the Treasury should have them cashed in gold or silver. “The people who in despair had flung aside their copper coins like stones and bricks in their houses, all rushed to the Treasury and exchanged them for gold and silver. In this way the Treasury soon became empty, but the copper coins had as little circulation as ever, and a very grievous blow was given to the State.”
An odd issue of currency, not of paper, but of leather, took place in Italy a few years before Polo’s birth. The Emperor Frederic II., at the siege of Faenza in 1241, being in great straits for money, issued pieces of leather stamped with the mark of his mint at the value of his Golden Augustals. This leather coinage was very popular, especially at Florence, and it was afterwards honourably redeemed by Frederic’s Treasury. Popular tradition in Sicily reproaches William the Bad among his other sins with having issued money of leather, but any stone is good enough to cast at a dog with such a surname.
[Ma Twan-lin mentions that in the fourth year of the period Yuen Show (B.C. 119), a currency of white metal and deer-skin was made. Mr. Vissering (Chinese Currency, 38) observes that the skin-tallies “were purely tokens, and have had nothing in common with the leather-money, which was, during a long time, current in Russia. This Russian skin-money had a truly representative character, as the parcels were used instead of the skins from which they were cut; the skins themselves being too bulky and heavy to be constantly carried backward and forward, only a little piece was cut off, to figure as a token of possession of the whole skin. The ownership of the skin was proved when the piece fitted in the hole.”
Mr. Rockhill (Rubruck, 201 note) says: “As early as B.C. 118, we find the Chinese using ‘leather-money’ (p’i pi). These were pieces of white deer-skin, a foot square, with a coloured border. Each had a value of 40,000 cash. (Ma Twan-lin, Bk. 8, 5.)”
Mr. Charles F. Keary (Coins and Medals, by S. Lane Poole, 128) mentions that “in the reign of Elizabeth there was a very extensive issue of private tokens in lead, tin, latten, and leather.”—H. C.]
(Klapr. in Mém. Rel. à l’Asie, I. 375 seqq.; Biot, in J. As. sér. III. tom. iv.; Marsden and Pauthier, in loco; Parkes, in J. R. A. S. XIII. 179; Doolittle, 452 seqq.; Wylie, J. of Shanghai Lit. and Scient. Soc. No. I.; Arbeiten der kais. russ. Gesandsch. zu Peking, I. p. 48; Rennie, Peking, etc., I. 296, 347; Birch, in. Num. Chron. XII. 169; Information from Dr. Lockhart; Alcock, II. 86; D’Ohsson, IV. 53; Cowell, in J. A. S. B. XXIX. 183 seqq.; Thomas, Coins of Patan Sovs. of Hind., (from Numism. Chron. 1852), p. 139 seqq.; Kington’s Fred. II. II. 195; Amari, III. 816; W. Vissering, On Chinese Currency, Leiden, 1877.)
[“Without doubt the Mongols borrowed the bank-note system from the Kin. Up to the present time there is in Si-ngan-fu a block kept, which was used for printing the bank-notes of the Kin Dynasty. I have had the opportunity of seeing a print of those bank-notes, they were of the same size and shape as the bank-notes of the Ming. A reproduction of the text of the Kin bank-notes is found in the Kin shi ts’ui pien. This copy has the characters pao kilan (precious charter) and the years of reign Chêng Yew, 1213-1216. The first essay of the Mongols to introduce bank-notes dates from the time of Ogodai Khan (1229-1242), but Chinese history only mentions the fact without giving details. At that time silk in skeins was the only article of a determinate value in the trade and on the project of Ye lü ch’u ts’ai, minister of Ogodai, the taxes were also collected in silk delivered by weight. It can therefore be assumed that the name sze ch’ao (i.e. bank-notes referring to the weight of silk) dates back to the same time. At any rate, at a later time, as, under the reign of Kubilai, the issuing of banknotes was decreed, silk was taken as the standard to express the value of silver and 1000 liang silk was estimated = 50 liang (or 1 ting) silver. Thus, in consequence of those measures, it gradually became a rule to transfer the taxes and rents originally paid in silk, into silver. The wealth of the Mongol Khans in precious metals was renowned. The accounts regarding their revenues, however, which we meet with occasionally in Chinese history, do not surprise by their vastness. In the year 1298, for instance, the amount of the revenue is stated in the Siu t’ung Kien to have been:—
19,000 liang of gold = (190,000 liang of silver, according to the exchange of that time at the rate of 1 to 10).
60,000 liang of silver.
3,600,000 ting of silver in bank-notes (i.e. 180 millions liang); altogether 180,250,000 liang of silver.
The number seems indeed very high for that time. But if the exceedingly low exchange of the bank-notes be taken into consideration, the sum will be reduced to a modest amount.” (Palladius, pp. 50-51.)—H. C.]
[Dr. Bretschneider (Hist. Bot. Disc., I. p. 4) makes the following remark:—”Polo states (I. 409) that the Great Kaan causeth the bark of great Mulberry-trees, made into something like paper, to pass for money.” He seems to be mistaken. Paper in China is not made from mulberry-trees but from the Broussonetia papyrifera, which latter tree belongs to the same order of Moraceae. The same fibres are used also in some parts of China for making cloth, and Marco Polo alludes probably to the same tree when stating (II. 108) “that in the province of Cuiju (Kwei chau) they manufacture stuff of the bark of certain trees, which form very fine summer clothing.”—H. C.]
[1] Even now there are at least eight different taels (or liangs) in extensive use over the Empire, and varying as much as from 96 to 106; and besides these are many local taels, with about the same limits of variation.—(Williamson’s Journeys, I. 60.)
[2] [The Archimandrite Palladius (l.c., p. 50, note) says that “the ting of the Mongol time, as well as during the reign of the Kin, was a unit of weight equivalent to fifty liang, but not to ten liang. Cf. Ch’u keng lu, and Yuen-shi, ch. xcv. The Yuen pao, which as everybody in China knows, is equivalent to fifty liang (taels) of silver, is the same as the ancient ting, and the character Yuen indicates that it dates from the Yuen Dynasty.”—H. C.]
[3] This is also, as regards Customs payments, the system of the
Government of modern Italy.
[4] The first edition of this work gave a facsimile of one of this unlucky
minister’s notes.
[5] On both sides, however, was the Mahomedan formula, and beneath that the words Yiranjín Túrjí, a title conferred on the kings of Persia by the Kaan. There was also an inscription to the following effect: that the Emperor in the year 693 (A.H.) had issued these auspicious chao, that all who forged or uttered false notes should be summarily punished, with their wives and children, and their property confiscated; and that when these auspicious notes were once in circulation, poverty would vanish, provisions become cheap, and rich and poor be equal (Cowell). The use of the termchao at Tabriz may be compared with that of Banklot, current in modern India.
CHAPTER XXV.
CONCERNING THE TWELVE BARONS WHO ARE SET OVER ALL THE AFFAIRS OF THE GREAT KAAN.
You must know that the Great Kaan hath chosen twelve great Barons to whom he hath committed all the necessary affairs of thirty-four great provinces; and now I will tell you particulars about them and their establishments.
You must know that these twelve Barons reside all together in a very rich and handsome palace, which is inside the city of Cambaluc, and consists of a variety of edifices, with many suites of apartments. To every province is assigned a judge and several clerks, and all reside in this palace, where each has his separate quarters. These judges and clerks administer all the affairs of the provinces to which they are attached, under the direction of the twelve Barons. Howbeit, when an affair is of very great importance, the twelve Barons lay in before the Emperor, and he decides as he thinks best. But the power of those twelve Barons is so great that they choose the governors for all those thirty-four great provinces that I have mentioned, and only after they have chosen do they inform the Emperor of their choice. This he confirms, and grants to the person nominated a tablet of gold such as is appropriate to the rank of his government.
Those twelve Barons also have such authority that they can dispose of the movements of the forces, and send them whither, and in such strength, as they please. This is done indeed with the Emperor’s cognizance, but still the orders are issued on their authority. They are styled SHIENG, which is as much as to say “The Supreme Court,” and the palace where they abide is also called Shieng. This body forms the highest authority at the Court of the Great Kaan; and indeed they can favour and advance whom they will. I will not now name the thirty-four provinces to you, because they will be spoken of in detail in the course of this Book.[NOTE 1]
NOTE 1.—Pauthier’s extracts from the Chinese Annals of the Dynasty, in illustration of this subject, are interesting. These, as he represents them, show the Council of Ministers usually to have consisted of twelve high officials, viz.: two Ch’ing-siang [Chinese] or (chief) ministers of state, one styled, “of the Right,” and the other “of the Left”; four called P’ing-chang ching-ssé, which seems to mean something like ministers in charge of special departments; four assistant ministers; two Counsellors.
Rashiduddin, however, limits the Council to the first two classes: “Strictly speaking, the Council of State is composed of four Ch’ing-sang (Ch’ing-siang) or great officers (Wazírs he afterwards terms them), and four Fanchán (P’ing-chang) or associated members, taken from the nations of the Tajiks, Cathayans, Ighurs, and Arkaun” (i.e. Nestorian Christians). (Compare p. 418, supra.)
[A Samarkand man, Seyyd Tadj Eddin Hassan ben el Khallal, quoted in the Masálak al Absár, says: “Near the Khan are two amírs who are his ministers; they are called Djing San [Arabic] (Ch’ing-siang). After them come the two Bidjan [Arabic] (P’ing Chang), then the two Zoudjin [Arabic] (Tso Chen), then the two Yudjin [Arabic] (Yu Chen), and at last the Landjun [Arabic] (Lang Chang), head of the scribes, and secretary of the sovereign. The Khan holds a sitting every day in the middle of a large building called Chen [Arabic] (Sheng), which is very like our Palace of Justice.” (C. Schefer, Cent. Ec. Langues Or., pp. 18-19.)—H. C.]
In a later age we find the twelve Barons reappearing in the pages of Mendoza: “The King hath in this city of Tabin (Peking), where he is resident, a royal council of twelve counsellors and a president, chosen men throughout all the kingdom, and such as have had experience in government many years.” And also in the early centuries of the Christian era we hear that the Khan of the Turks had his twelve grandees, divided into those of the Right and those of the Left, probably a copy from a Chinese order then also existing.
But to return to Rashiduddin: “As the Kaan generally resides at the capital, he has erected a place for the sittings of the Great Council, called Sing…. The dignitaries mentioned above are expected to attend daily at the Sing, and to make themselves acquainted with all that passes there.”
The Sing of Rashid is evidently the Shieng or Sheng (Scieng) of Polo. M. Pauthier is on this point somewhat contemptuous towards Neumann, who, he says, confounds Marco Polo’s twelve Barons or Ministers of State with the chiefs of the twelve great provincial governments called Sing, who had their residence at the chief cities of those governments; whilst in fact Polo’s Scieng (he asserts) has nothing to do with the Sing, but represents the Chinese word Siang “a minister,” and “the office of a minister.” [There was no doubt a confusion between Siang [Chinese] and Sheng [Chinese].—H. C.]
It is very probable that two different words, Siang and Sing, got confounded by the non-Chinese attachés of the Imperial Court; but it seems to me quite certain that they applied the same word, Sing or Sheng, to both institutions, viz. to the High Council of State, and to the provincial governments. It also looks as if Marco Polo himself had made that very confusion with which Pauthier charges Neumann. For whilst here he represents the twelve Barons as forming a Council of State at the capital, we find further on, when speaking of the city of Yangchau, he says: “Et si siet en ceste cité uns des xii Barons du Grant Kaan; car elle est esleue pour un des xii sieges,” where the last word is probably a mistranscription of Sciengs, or Sings, and in any case the reference is to a distribution of the empire into twelve governments.
To be convinced that Sing was used by foreigners in the double sense that I have said, we have only to proceed with Rashiduddin’s account of the administration. After what we have already quoted, he goes on: “The Sing of Khanbaligh is the most eminent, and the building is very large….Sings do not exist in all the cities, but only in the capitals of great provinces…. In the whole empire of the Kaan there are twelve of these Sings; but that of Khanbaligh is the only one which has Ching-sangs amongst its members.” Wassáf again, after describing the greatness of Khanzai (Kinsay of Polo) says: “These circumstances characterize the capital itself, but four hundred cities of note, and embracing ample territories, are dependent on its jurisdiction, insomuch that the most inconsiderable of those cities surpasses Baghdad and Shiraz. In the number of these cities are Lankinfu and Zaitun, and Chinkalán; for they call Khanzai a Shing, i.e. a great city in which the high and mighty Council of Administration holds its meetings.” Friar Odoric again says: “This empire hath been divided by the Lord thereof into twelve parts, each one thereof is termed a Singo.”
Polo, it seems evident to me, knew nothing of Chinese. His Shieng is no direct attempt to represent any Chinese word, but simply the term that he had been used to employ in talking Persian or Turki, in the way that Rashiduddin and Wassáf employ it.
I find no light as to the thirty-four provinces into which Polo represents the empire as divided, unless it be an enumeration of the provinces and districts which he describes in the second and third parts of Bk. II., of which it is not difficult to reckon thirty-three or thirty-four, but not worth while to repeat the calculation.
[China was then divided into twelve Sheng or provinces: Cheng-Tung, Liao-Yang, Chung-Shu, Shen-Si, Ling-Pe (Karakorum), Kan-Suh, Sze-ch’wan, Ho-Nan Kiang-Pe, Kiang-Ché, Kiang-Si, Hu-Kwang and Yun-Nan. Rashiduddin (J. As., XI. 1883, p. 447) says that of the twelve Sing, Khanbaligh was the only one with Chin-siang. We read in Morrison’s Dict. (Pt. II. vol. i. p. 70): “Chin-seang, a Minister of State, was so called under the Ming Dynasty.” According to Mr. E. H. Parker (China Review, xxiv. p. 101), Ching Siang were abolished in 1395. I imagine that the thirty-four provinces refer to the Fu cities, which numbered however thirty-nine, according to Oxenham’s Historical Atlas.—H. C.]
(Cathay, 263 seqq. and 137; Mendoza, I. 96; Erdmann, 142; Hammer’s Wassáf, p. 42, but corrected.)
CHAPTER XXVI.
HOW THE KAAN’S POSTS AND RUNNERS ARE SPED THROUGH MANY LANDS AND PROVINCES.
Now you must know that from this city of Cambaluc proceed many roads and highways leading to a variety of provinces, one to one province, another to another; and each road receives the name of the province to which it leads; and it is a very sensible plan.[NOTE 1] And the messengers of the Emperor in travelling from Cambaluc, be the road whichsoever they will, find at every twenty-five miles of the journey a station which they call Yamb,[NOTE 2] or, as we should say, the “Horse-Post-House.” And at each of those stations used by the messengers, there is a large and handsome building for them to put up at, in which they find all the rooms furnished with fine beds and all other necessary articles in rich silk, and where they are provided with everything they can want. If even a king were to arrive at one of these, he would find himself well lodged.
At some of these stations, moreover, there shall be posted some four hundred horses standing ready for the use of the messengers; at others there shall be two hundred, according to the requirements, and to what the Emperor has established in each case. At every twenty-five miles, as I said, or anyhow at every thirty miles, you find one of these stations, on all the principal highways leading to the different provincial governments; and the same is the case throughout all the chief provinces subject to the Great Kaan.[NOTE 3] Even when the messengers have to pass through a roadless tract where neither house nor hostel exists, still there the station-houses have been established just the same, excepting that the intervals are somewhat greater, and the day’s journey is fixed at thirty-five to forty-five miles, instead of twenty-five to thirty. But they are provided with horses and all the other necessaries just like those we have described, so that the Emperor’s messengers, come they from what region they may, find everything ready for them.
And in sooth this is a thing done on the greatest scale of magnificence that ever was seen. Never had emperor, king, or lord, such wealth as this manifests! For it is a fact that on all these posts taken together there are more than 300,000 horses kept up, specially for the use of the messengers. And the great buildings that I have mentioned are more than 10,000 in number, all richly furnished, as I told you. The thing is on a scale so wonderful and costly that it is hard to bring oneself to describe it.[NOTE 4]
But now I will tell you another thing that I had forgotten, but which ought to be told whilst I am on this subject. You must know that by the Great Kaan’s orders there has been established between those post-houses, at every interval of three miles, a little fort with some forty houses round about it, in which dwell the people who act as the Emperor’s foot-runners. Every one of those runners wears a great wide belt, set all over with bells, so that as they run the three miles from post to post their bells are heard jingling a long way off. And thus on reaching the post the runner finds another man similarly equipt, and all ready to take his place, who instantly takes over whatsoever he has in charge, and with it receives a slip of paper from the clerk, who is always at hand for the purpose; and so the new man sets off and runs his three miles. At the next station he finds his relief ready in like manner; and so the post proceeds, with a change at every three miles. And in this way the Emperor, who has an immense number of these runners, receives despatches with news from places ten days’ journey off in one day and night; or, if need be, news from a hundred days off in ten days and nights; and that is no small matter! (In fact in the fruit season many a time fruit shall be gathered one morning in Cambaluc, and the evening of the next day it shall reach the Great Kaan at Chandu, a distance of ten days’ journey.[NOTE 5] The clerk at each of the posts notes the time of each courier’s arrival and departure; and there are often other officers whose business it is to make monthly visitations of all the posts, and to punish those runners who have been slack in their work.[NOTE 6]) The Emperor exempts these men from all tribute, and pays them besides.
Moreover, there are also at those stations other men equipt similarly with girdles hung with bells, who are employed for expresses when there is a call for great haste in sending despatches to any governor of a province, or to give news when any Baron has revolted, or in other such emergencies; and these men travel a good two hundred or two hundred and fifty miles in the day, and as much in the night. I’ll tell you how it stands. They take a horse from those at the station which are standing ready saddled, all fresh and in wind, and mount and go at full speed, as hard as they can ride in fact. And when those at the next post hear the bells they get ready another horse and a man equipt in the same way, and he takes over the letter or whatever it be, and is off full-speed to the third station, where again a fresh horse is found all ready, and so the despatch speeds along from post to post, always at full gallop, with regular change of horses. And the speed at which they go is marvellous. (By night, however, they cannot go so fast as by day, because they have to be accompanied by footmen with torches, who could not keep up with them at full speed.)
Those men are highly prized; and they could never do it, did they not bind hard the stomach, chest and head with strong bands. And each of them carries with him a gerfalcon tablet, in sign that he is bound on an urgent express; so that if perchance his horse break down, or he meet with other mishap, whomsoever he may fall in with on the road, he is empowered to make him dismount and give up his horse. Nobody dares refuse in such a case; so that the courier hath always a good fresh nag to carry him.[NOTE 7]
Now all these numbers of post-horses cost the Emperor nothing at all; and I will tell you the how and the why. Every city, or village, or hamlet, that stands near one of those post-stations, has a fixed demand made on it for as many horses as it can supply, and these it must furnish to the post. And in this way are provided all the posts of the cities, as well as the towns and villages round about them; only in uninhabited tracts the horses are furnished at the expense of the Emperor himself.
(Nor do the cities maintain the full number, say of 400 horses, always at their station, but month by month 200 shall be kept at the station, and the other 200 at grass, coming in their turn to relieve the first 200. And if there chance to be some river or lake to be passed by the runners and horse-posts, the neighbouring cities are bound to keep three or four boats in constant readiness for the purpose.)
And now I will tell you of the great bounty exercised by the Emperor towards his people twice a year.
NOTE 1.—The G. Text has “et ce est mout sçue chouse“; Pauthier’s Text, “mais il est moult celé” The latter seems absurd. I have no doubt that sçue is correct, and is an Italianism, saputo having sometimes the sense of prudent or judicious. Thus P. della Valle (II. 26), speaking of Shah Abbas: “Ma noti V.S. i tiri di questo re, saputo insieme e bizzarro,” “acute with all his eccentricity.”
NOTE 2.—Both Neumann and Pauthier seek Chinese etymologies of this Mongol word, which the Tartars carried with them all over Asia. It survives in Persian and Turki in the senses both of a post-house and a post-horse, and in Russia, in the former sense, is a relic of the Mongol dominion. The ambassadors of Shah Rukh, on arriving at Sukchu, were lodged in the Yám-Khána, or post-house, by the city gate; and they found ninety-nine such Yams between Sukchu and Khanbaligh, at each of which they were supplied with provisions, servants, beds, night-clothes, etc. Odoric likewise speaks of the hostelries called Yam, and Rubruquis applies the same term to quarters in the imperial camp, which were assigned for the lodgment of ambassadors. (Cathay, ccii. 137; Rubr. 310.)
[Mr. Rockhill (Rubruck, 101, note) says that these post-stations were established by Okkodai in 1234 throughout the Mongol empire. (D’Ohsson, ii. 63.) Dr. G. Schlegel (T’oung Pao, II. 1891, 265, note) observes that iam is not, as Pauthier supposed, a contraction of yi-mà, horse post-house (yi-mà means post-horse, and Pauthier makes a mistake), but represents the Chinese character [Chinese], pronounced at present chán, which means in fact a road station, a post. In Annamite, this character [Chinese] is pronounced tram, and it means, according to Bonet’s Dict. Annamite-Français: “Relais de poste, station de repos.” (See Bretschneider, Med. Res. I. p. 187 note.)—H. C.]
NOTE 3.—Martini and Magaillans, in the 17th century, give nearly the same account of the government hostelries.
NOTE 4.—Here Ramusio has this digression: “Should any one find it difficult to understand how there should be such a population as all this implies, and how they can subsist, the answer is that all the Idolaters, and Saracens as well, take six, eight, or ten wives apiece when they can afford it, and beget an infinity of children. In fact, you shall find many men who have each more than thirty sons who form an armed retinue to their father, and this through the fact of his having so many wives. With us, on the other hand, a man hath but one wife; and if she be barren, still he must abide by her for life, and have no progeny; thus we have not such a population as they have.
“And as regards food, they have abundance; for they generally consume rice, panic, and millet (especially the Tartars, Cathayans, and people of Manzi); and these three crops in those countries render an hundred-fold. Those nations use no bread, but only boil those kinds of grain with milk or meat for their victual. Their wheat, indeed, does not render so much, but this they use only to make vermicelli, and pastes of that description. No spot of arable land is left untilled; and their cattle are infinitely prolific, so that when they take the field every man is followed by six, eight, or more horses for his own use. Thus you may clearly perceive how the population of those parts is so great, and how they have such an abundance of food.”
NOTE 5.—The Burmese kings used to have the odoriferous Durian transmitted by horse-posts from Tenasserim to Ava. But the most notable example of the rapid transmission of such dainties, and the nearest approach I know of to their despatch by telegraph, was that practised for the benefit of the Fatimite Khalif Aziz (latter part of 10th century), who had a great desire for a dish of cherries of Balbek. The Wazir Yakub ben-Kilis caused six hundred pigeons to be despatched from Balbek to Cairo, each of which carried attached to either leg a small silk bag containing a cherry! (Quat. Makrizi, IV. 118.)
NOTE 6.—”Note is taken at every post,” says Amyot, in speaking of the Chinese practice of last century, “of the time of the courier’s arrival, in order that it may be known at what point delays have occurred.” (Mém. VIII. 185.)
NOTE 7.—The post-system is described almost exactly as in the text by Friar Odoric and the Archbishop of Soltania, in the generation after Polo, and very much in the same way by Magaillans in the 17th century. Posts had existed in China from an old date. They are spoken of by Mas’udi and the Relations of the 9th century. They were also employed under the ancient Persian kings; and they were in use in India, at least in the generation after Polo. The Mongols, too, carried the institution wherever they went.
Polo describes the couriers as changed at short intervals, but more usually in Asiatic posts the same man rides an enormous distance. The express courier in Tibet, as described by “the Pandit,” rides from Gartokh to Lhasa, a distance of 800 miles, travelling day and night. The courier’s coat issealed upon him, so that he dares not take off his clothes till the seal is officially broken on his arrival at the terminus. These messengers had faces cracked, eyes bloodshot and sunken, and bodies raw with vermin. (J. R. G. S. XXXVIII. p. 149.) The modern Turkish post from Constantinople to Baghdad, a distance of 1100 miles, is done in twenty days by four Tartars riding night and day. The changes are at Sivas, Diarbekir, and Mosul. M. Tchihatcheff calculates that the night riding accomplishes only one quarter of the whole. (Asie Mineure, 2’de Ptie. 632-635.)—See I. p. 352, paï tze.
CHAPTER XXVII.
HOW THE EMPEROR BESTOWS HELP ON HIS PEOPLE, WHEN THEY ARE AFFLICTED WITH DEARTH OR MURRAIN.
Now you must know that the Emperor sends his Messengers over all his Lands and Kingdoms and Provinces, to ascertain from his officers if the people are afflicted by any dearth through unfavourable seasons, or storms or locusts, or other like calamity; and from those who have suffered in this way no taxes are exacted for that year; nay more, he causes them to be supplied with corn of his own for food and seed. Now this is undoubtedly a great bounty on his part. And when winter comes, he causes inquiry to be made as to those who have lost their cattle, whether by murrain or other mishap, and such persons not only go scot free, but get presents of cattle. And thus, as I tell you, the Lord every year helps and fosters the people subject to him.
[There is another trait of the Great Kaan I should tell you; and that is, that if a chance shot from his bow strike any herd or flock, whether belonging to one person or to many, and however big the flock may be, he takes no tithe thereof for three years. In like manner, if the arrow strike a boat full of goods, that boat-load pays no duty; for it is thought unlucky that an arrow strike any one’s property; and the Great Kaan says it would be an abomination before God, were such property, that has been struck by the divine wrath, to enter into his Treasury.[NOTE 1]]
NOTE 1.—The Chinese author already quoted as to Kúblái’s character (Note 2, ch. xxiii. supra) says: “This Prince, at the sight of some evil prognostic, or when there was dearth, would remit taxation, and cause grain to be distributed to those who were in destitution. He would often complain that there never lacked informers if balances were due, or if corvées had been ordered, but when the necessities of the people required to be reported, not a word was said.”
Wassáf tells a long story in illustration of Kúblái’s justice and consideration for the peasantry. One of his sons, with a handful of followers, had got separated from the army, and halted at a village in the territory of Bishbaligh, where the people gave them sheep and wine. Next year two of the party came the same way and demanded a sheep and a stoup of wine. The people gave it, but went to the Kaan and told the story, saying they feared it might grow into a perpetual exaction. Kúblái sharply rebuked the Prince, and gave the people compensation and an order in their favour. (De Mailla, ix. 460; Hammer’s Wassaf, 38-39.)]
CHAPTER XXVIII.
HOW THE GREAT KAAN CAUSES TREES TO BE PLANTED BY THE HIGHWAYS.
The Emperor moreover hath taken order that all the highways travelled by his messengers and the people generally should be planted with rows of great trees a few paces apart; and thus these trees are visible a long way off, and no one can miss the way by day or night. Even the roads through uninhabited tracts are thus planted, and it is the greatest possible solace to travellers. And this is done on all the ways, where it can be of service. [The Great Kaan plants these trees all the more readily, because his astrologers and diviners tell him that he who plants trees lives long.[NOTE 1]
But where the ground is so sandy and desert that trees will not grow, he causes other landmarks, pillars or stones, to be set up to show the way.]
NOTE 1.—In this Kúblái imitated the great King Asoka, or Priyadarsi, who in his graven edicts (circa B.C. 250) on the Delhi Pillar, says: “Along the high roads I have caused fig-trees to be planted, that they may be for shade to animals and men. I have also planted mango-trees; and at every half-coss I have caused wells to be constructed, and resting-places for the night. And how many hostels have been erected by me at various places for the entertainment of man and beast.” (J. A. S. B. IV. 604.) There are still remains of the fine avenues of Kúblái and his successors in various parts of Northern China. (See Williamson, i. 74.)
CHAPTER XXIX.
CONCERNING THE RICE-WINE DRUNK BY THE PEOPLE OF CATHAY.
Most of the people of Cathay drink wine of the kind that I shall now describe. It is a liquor which they brew of rice with a quantity of excellent spice, in such fashion that it makes better drink than any ther kind of wine; it is not only good, but clear and pleasing to the eye.[NOTE 1] And being very hot stuff, it makes one drunk sooner than any other wine.
NOTE 1.—The mode of making Chinese rice-wine is described in Amyot’s Mémoires, V. 468 seqq. A kind of yeast is employed, with which is often mixed a flour prepared from fragrant herbs, almonds, pine-seeds, dried fruits, etc. Rubruquis says this liquor was not distinguishable, except by smell, from the best wine of Auxerre; a wine so famous in the Middle Ages, that the Historian Friar, Salimbene, went from Lyons to Auxerre on purpose to drink it.[1] Ysbrand Ides compares the rice-wine to Rhenish; John Bell to Canary; a modern traveller quoted by Davis, “in colour, and a little in taste, to Madeira.” [Friar Odoric (Cathay, i. p. 117) calls this wine bigni; Dr. Schlegel (T’oung Pao, ii. p. 264) says Odoric’s wine was probably made with the date Mi-yin, pronounced Bi-im in old days. But Marco’s wine is made of rice, and is called shao hsing chiu. Mr. Rockhill (Rubruck, p. 166, note) writes: “There is another stronger liquor distilled from millet, and called shao chiu: in Anglo-Chinese, samshu; Mongols call it araka, arrak, and arreki. Ma Twan-lin (Bk. 327) says that the Moho (the early Nu-chên Tartars) drank rice wine (mi chiu), but I fancy that they, like the Mongols, got it from the Chinese.”
Dr. Emil Bretschneider (Botanicon Sinicum, ii. pp. 154-158) gives a most interesting account of the use and fabrication of intoxicating beverages by the Chinese. “The invention of wine or spirits in China,” he says, “is generally ascribed to a certain I TI, who lived in the time of the Emperor Yü. According to others, the inventor of wine was TU K’ANG.” One may refer also to Dr. Macgowan’s paper On the “Mutton Wine” of the Mongols and Analogous Preparations of the Chinese. (Jour. N. China Br. R. As. Soc., 1871-1872, pp. 237-240.)—H. C.]
[1] Kington’s Fred. II. II. 457. So, in a French play of the 13th century, a publican in his patois invites custom, with hot bread, hot herrings, and wine of Auxerre in plenty:—
“Chaiens, fait bon disner chaiens;
Chi a caut pain et caus herens,
Et vin d’Aucheurre à plain tonnel.”—
(Théat. Franç. au Moyen Age, 168.)
CHAPTER XXX.
CONCERNING THE BLACK STONES THAT ARE DUG IN CATHAY, AND ARE BURNT FOR FUEL.
It is a fact that all over the country of Cathay there is a kind of black stones existing in beds in the mountains, which they dig out and burn like firewood. If you supply the fire with them at night, and see that they are well kindled, you will find them still alight in the morning; and they make such capital fuel that no other is used throughout the country. It is true that they have plenty of wood also, but they do not burn it, because those stones burn better and cost less.[NOTE 1]
[Moreover with that vast number of people, and the number of hot baths that they maintain—for every one has such a bath at least three times a week, and in winter if possible every day, whilst every nobleman and man of wealth has a private bath for his own use—the wood would not suffice for the purpose.]
NOTE 1.—There is a great consumption of coal in Northern China, especially in the brick stoves, which are universal, even in poor houses. Coal seems to exist in every one of the eighteen provinces of China, which in this respect is justly pronounced to be one of the most favoured countries in the world. Near the capital coal is mined at Yuen-ming-yuen, and in a variety of isolated deposits among the hills in the direction of the Kalgan road, and in the district round Siuen-hwa-fu. (Sindachu of Polo, ante ch. lix.) But the most important coal-fields in relation to the future are those of Shan-tung Hu-nan, Ho-nan, and Shan-si. The last is eminently the coal and iron province of China, and its coal-field, as described by Baron Richthofen, combines, in an extraordinary manner, all the advantages that can enhance the value of such a field except (at present) that of facile export; whilst the quantity available is so great that from Southern Shan-si alone he estimates the whole world could be supplied, at the present rate of consumption, for several thousand years. “Adits, miles in length, could be driven within the body of the coal…. These extraordinary conditions … will eventually give rise to some curious features in mining… if a railroad should ever be built from the plain to this region … branches of it will be constructed within the body of one or other of these beds of anthracite.” Baron Richthofen, in the paper which we quote from, indicates the revolution in the deposit of the world’s wealth and power, to which such facts, combined with other characteristics of China, point as probable; a revolution so vast that its contemplation seems like that of a planetary catastrophe.
In the coal-fields of Hu-nan “the mines are chiefly opened where the rivers intersect the inclined strata of the coal-measures and allow the coal-beds to be attacked by the miner immediately at their out-croppings.”
At the highest point of the Great Kiang, reached by Sarel and Blakiston, they found mines on the cliffs over the river, from which the coal was sent down by long bamboo cables, the loaded baskets drawing up the empty ones.
[Many coal-fields have been explored since; one of the most important is the coal-field of the Yun-nan province; the finest deposits are perhaps those found in the bend of the Kiang; coal is found also at Mong-Tzu, Lin-ngan, etc.; this rich coal region has been explored in 1898 by the French engineer A. Leclère. (See Congrès int. Géog., Paris, 1900, pp. 178-184.)—H. C.]
In various parts of China, as in Che-kiang, Sze-ch’wan, and at Peking, they form powdered coal, mixed with mud, into bricks, somewhat like our “patent fuel.” This practice is noticed by Ibn Batuta, as well as the use of coal in making porcelain, though this he seems to have misunderstood. Rashiduddin also mentions the use of coal in China. It was in use, according to citations of Pauthier’s, before the Christian era. It is a popular belief in China, that every provincial capital is bound to be established over a coal-field, so as to have a provision in case of siege. It is said that during the British siege of Canton mines were opened to the north of the city.
(The Distribution of Coal in China, by Baron Richthofen, in Ocean Highways, N.S., I. 311; Macgowan in Ch. Repos. xix. 385-387; Blakiston, 133, 265; Mid. Kingdom, I. 73, 78; Amyot, xi. 334; Cathay, 261, 478, 482; Notes by Rev. A. Williamson in J. N. Ch. Br. R. A. S., December, 1867;Hedde and Rondot, p. 63.)
Aeneas Sylvius relates as a miracle that took place before his eyes in Scotland, that poor and almost naked beggars, when stones were given them as alms at the church doors, went away quite delighted; for stones of that kind were imbued either with brimstone or with some oily matter, so that they could be burnt instead of wood, of which the country was destitute. (Quoted by Jos. Robertson, Statuta Eccles. Scotic. I. xciii.)
CHAPTER XXXI.
HOW THE GREAT KAAN CAUSES STORES OF CORN TO BE MADE, TO HELP HIS PEOPLE WITHAL IN TIME OF DEARTH.
You must know that when the Emperor sees that corn is cheap and abundant, he buys up large quantities, and has it stored in all his provinces in great granaries, where it is so well looked after that it will keep for three or four years.[NOTE 1]
And this applies, let me tell you, to all kinds of corn, whether wheat, barley, millet, rice, panic, or what not, and when there is any scarcity of a particular kind of corn, he causes that to be issued. And if the price of the corn is at one bezant the measure, he lets them have it at a bezant for four measures, or at whatever price will produce general cheapness; and every one can have food in this way. And by this providence of the Emperor’s, his people can never suffer from dearth. He does the same over his whole Empire; causing these supplies to be stored everywhere, according to calculation of the wants and necessities of the people.
NOTE 1.—”Le fait si bien estuier que il dure bien trois ans ou quatre” (Pauthier): “si bien estudier” (G.T.). The word may be estiver (It. stivare), to stow, but I half suspect it should be estuver in the sense of “kiln-dry,” though both the Geog. Latin and the Crusca render it gubernare.[1] Lecomte says: “Rice is always stored in the public granaries for three or four years in advance. It keeps long if care be taken to air it and stir it about; and although not so good to the taste or look as new rice, it is said to be more wholesome.”
The Archbishop of Soltania (A.D. 1330) speaks of these stores. “The said Emperor is very pitiful and compassionate … and so when there is a dearth in the land he openeth his garners, and giveth forth of his wheat and his rice for half what others are selling it at.” Kúblái Kaan’s measures of this kind are recorded in the annals of the Dynasty, as quoted by Pauthier. The same practice is ascribed to the sovereigns of the T’ang Dynasty by the old Arab Relations. In later days a missionary gives in the Lettres Edifiantes an unfavourable account of the action of these public granaries, and of the rascality that occurred in connection with them. (Lecomte, II. 101; Cathay, 240; Relat. I. 39; Let. Ed. xxiv. 76.)
[The Yuen-shi in ch. 96 contains sections on dispensaries (Hui min yao kü), granary regulations (Shi ti), and regulations for a time of dearth (Chen Sü). (Bretschneider, Med. Res. I. p. 187.)—H. C.]
[1] Marsden observes incidentally (Hist. of Sumatra, 1st edition, p. 71) that he was told in Bengal they used to dry-kiln the rice for exportation, “owing to which, or to some other process, it will continue good for several years.”
CHAPTER XXXII.
OF THE CHARITY OF THE EMPEROR TO THE POOR.
I have told you how the Great Kaan provides for the distribution of necessaries to his people in time of dearth, by making store in time of cheapness. Now I will tell you of his alms and great charity to the poor of his city of Cambaluc.
You see he causes selection to be made of a number of families in the city which are in a state of indigence, and of such families some may consist of six in the house, some of eight, some of ten, more or fewer in each as it may hap, but the whole number being very great. And each family he causes annually to be supplied with wheat and other corn sufficient for the whole year. And this he never fails to do every year. Moreover, all those who choose to go to the daily dole at the Court receive a great loaf apiece, hot from the baking, and nobody is denied; for so the Lord hath ordered. And so some 30,000 people go for it every day from year’s end to year’s end. Now this is a great goodness in the Emperor to take pity of his poor people thus! And they benefit so much by it that they worship him as he were God.
[He also provides the poor with clothes. For he lays a tithe upon all wool, silk, hemp, and the like, from which clothing can be made; and he has these woven and laid up in a building set apart for the purpose; and as all artizans are bound to give a day’s labour weekly, in this way the Kaan has these stuffs made into clothing for those poor families, suitable for summer or winter, according to the time of year. He also provides the clothing for his troops, and has woollens woven for them in every city, the material for which is furnished by the tithe aforesaid. You should know that the Tartars, before they were converted to the religion of the Idolaters, never practised almsgiving. Indeed, when any poor man begged of them they would tell him, “Go with God’s curse, for if He loved you as He loves me, He would have provided for you.” But the sages of the Idolaters, and especially the Bacsis mentioned before, told the Great Kaan that it was a good work to provide for the poor, and that his idols would be greatly pleased if he did so. And since then he has taken to do for the poor so much as you have heard.[NOTE 1]]
NOTE 1.—This is a curious testimony to an ameliorating effect of Buddhism on rude nations. The general establishment of medical aid for men and animals is alluded to in the edicts of Asoka;[1] and hospitals for the diseased and destitute were found by Fahian at Palibothra, whilst Hiuen Tsang speaks of the distribution of food and medicine at the Punyasálás or “Houses of Beneficence,” in the Panjáb. Various examples of a charitable spirit in Chinese Institutions will be found in a letter by Père d’Entrecolles in the XVth Recueil of Lettres Edifiantes; and a similar detail inNevius’s China and the Chinese, ch. xv. (See Prinsep’s Essays, II. 15; Beal’s Fah-hian, 107; Pèl. Boudd. II. 190.) The Tartar sentiment towards the poor survives on the Arctic shores:—”The Yakuts regard the rich as favoured by the gods; the poor as rejected and cast out by them.” (Billings, Fr. Tranls. I. 233.)
[1] As rendered by J. Prinsep. But I see that Professor H. H. Wilson did not admit the passage to bear that meaning.
CHAPTER XXXIII.
[CONCERNING THE ASTROLOGERS IN THE CITY OF CAMBALUC.]
[There are in the city of Cambaluc, what with Christians, Saracens, and Cathayans, some five thousand astrologers and soothsayers, whom the Great Kaan provides with annual maintenance and clothing, just as he provides the poor of whom we have spoken, and they are in the constant exercise of their art in this city.
They have a kind of astrolabe on which are inscribed the planetary signs, the hours and critical points of the whole year. And every year these Christian, Saracen, and Cathayan astrologers, each sect apart, investigate by means of this astrolabe the course and character of the whole year, according to the indications of each of its Moons, in order to discover by the natural course and disposition of the planets, and the other circumstances of the heavens, what shall be the nature of the weather, and what peculiarities shall be produced by each Moon of the year; as, for example, under which Moon there shall be thunderstorms and tempests, under which there shall be disease, murrain, wars, disorders, and treasons, and so on, according to the indications of each; but always adding that it lies with God to do less or more according to His pleasure. And they write down the results of their examination in certain little pamphlets for the year, which are called Tacuin, and these are sold for a groat to all who desire to know what is coming. Those of the astrologers, of course whose predictions are found to be most exact, are held to be the greatest adepts in their art, and get the greater fame.[NOTE 1]
And if any one having some great matter in hand, or proposing to make a long journey for traffic or other business, desires to know what will be the upshot, he goes to one of these astrologers and says: “Turn up your books and see what is the present aspect of the heavens, for I am going away on such and such a business.” Then the astrologer will reply that the applicant must also tell the year, month, and hour of his birth; and when he has got that information he will see how the horoscope of his nativity combines with the indications of the time when the question is put, and then he predicts the result, good or bad, according to the aspect of the heavens.
You must know, too, that the Tartars reckon their years by twelves; the sign of the first year being the Lion, of the second the Ox, of the third the Dragon, of the fourth the Dog, and so forth up to the twelfth;[NOTE 2] so that when one is asked the year of his birth he answers that it was in the year of the Lion (let us say), on such a day or night, at such an hour, and such a moment. And the father of a child always takes care to write these particulars down in a book. When the twelve yearly symbols have been gone through, then they come back to the first, and go through with them again in the same succession.]
NOTE 1.—It is odd that Marsden should have sought a Chinese explanation of the Arabic word Takwím even with Tavernier before him: “They sell in Persia an annual almanac called Tacuim, which is properly an ephemeris containing the longitude and latitude of the planets, their conjunctions and oppositions, and other such matter. The Tacuim is full of predictions regarding war, pestilence, and famine; it indicates the favourable time for putting on new clothes, for getting bled or purged, for making a journey, and so forth. They put entire faith in it, and whoever can afford one governs himself in all things by its rules.” (Bk. V. ch. xiv.)
The use of the term by Marco may possibly be an illustration of what I have elsewhere propounded, viz. that he was not acquainted with Chinese, but that his intercourse and conversation lay chiefly with the foreigners at the Kaan’s Court, and probably was carried on in the Persian language. But not long after the date of our Book we find the word used in Italian by Jacopo Alighieri (Dante’s son):—
“A voler giudicare
Si conviene adequare
Inprimo il Taccuino,
Per vedere il cammino
Come i Pianeti vanno
Per tutto quanto l’anno.”
—Rime Antiche Toscane, III. 10.
Marco does not allude to the fact that almanacs were published by the Government, as they were then and still are. Pauthier (515 seqq.) gives some very curious details on this subject from the Annals of the Yuen. In the accounts of the year 1328, it appears that no less than 3,123,185 copies were printed in three different sizes at different prices, besides a separate almanac for the Hwei-Hwei or Mahomedans. Had Polo not omitted to touch on the issue of almanacs by Government he could scarcely have failed to enter on the subject of printing, on which he has kept a silence so singular and unaccountable.
The Chinese Government still “considers the publication of a Calendar of the first importance and utility. It must do everything in its power, not only to point out to its numerous subjects the distribution of the seasons,… but on account of the general superstition it must mark in the almanac the lucky and unlucky days, the best days for being married, for undertaking a journey, for making their dresses, for buying or building, for presenting petitions to the Emperor, and for many other cases of ordinary life. By this means the Government keeps the people within the limits of humble obedience; it is for this reason that the Emperors of China established the Academy of Astronomy.” (Timk. I. 358.) The acceptance of the Imperial Almanac by a foreign Prince is considered an acknowledgment of vassalage to the Emperor.
It is a penal offence to issue a pirated or counterfeit edition of the Government Almanac. No one ventures to be without one, lest he become liable to the greatest misfortunes by undertaking the important measures on black-balled days.
The price varies now, according to Williams, from 1-1/2_d._ to 5_d._ a copy. The price in 1328 was 1 tsien or cash for the cheapest edition, and 1 liang or tael of silver for the édition de luxe; but as these prices were in paper-money it is extremely difficult to say, in the varying depreciation of that currency, what the price really amounted to.
[Illustration: Mongol Compendium Instrument seen in the Observatory
Garden]
[Illustration: Mongol Armillary Sphere in the Observatory Garden]
[“The Calendars for the use of the people, published by Imperial command, are of two kinds. The first, Wan-nien-shu, the Calendar of Ten Thousand Years, is an abridgment of the Calendar, comprising 397 years, viz. from 1624 to 2020. The second and more complete Calendar is the Annual Calendar, which, under the preceding dynasties, was named Li-je, Order of Days, and is now called Shih-hsien-shu, Book of Constant Conformity (with the Heavens). This name was given by the Emperor Shun-chih, in the first year of his reign (1644), on being presented by Father John Schall (Tang Jo-wang) with a new Calendar, calculated on the principles of European science. This Annual Calendar gives the following indications: (1°) The cyclical signs of the current year, of the months, and of all the days; (2°) the long and short months, as well as the intercalary month, as the case maybe; (3°) the designation of each day by the 5 elements, the 28 constellations, and the 12 happy presages; (4°) the day and hour of the new moon, of the full moon, and of the two dichotomies, Shang-hsien and Hsia-hsien; (5°) the day and hour for the positions of the sun in the 24 zodiacal signs, calculated for the various capitals of China as well as for Manchuria, Mongolia, and the tributary Kingdoms; (6°) the hour of sunrise and sunset and the length of day and night for the principal days of the month in the several capitals; (7°) various superstitious indications purporting to point out what days and hours are auspicious or not for such or such affairs in different places. Those superstitious indications are stated to have been introduced into the Calendar under the Yüan dynasty.” (P. Hoang, Chinese Calendar, pp. 2-3.)—H. C.]
We may note that in Polo’s time one of the principal officers of the
Mathematical Board was Gaisue, a native of Folin or the Byzantine
Empire, who was also in charge of the medical department of the Court.
Regarding the Observatory, see note at p. 378, supra.
And I am indebted yet again to the generous zeal of Mr. Wylie of Shanghai, for the principal notes and extracts which will, I trust, satisfy others as well as myself that the instruments in the garden of the Observatory belong to the period of Marco Polo’s residence in China.[1]
The objections to the alleged age of these instruments were entirely based on an inspection of photographs. The opinion was given very strongly that no instrument of the kind, so perfect in theory and in execution, could have been even imagined in those days, and that nothing of such scientific quality could have been made except by the Jesuits. In fact it was asserted or implied that these instruments must have been made about the year 1700, and were therefore not earlier in age than those which stand on the terraced roof of the Observatory, and are well known to most of us from the representation in Duhalde and in many popular works.
The only authority that I could lay hand on was Lecomte, and what he says was not conclusive. I extract the most pertinent passages:
“It was on the terrace of the tower that the Chinese astronomers had set their instruments, and though few in number they occupied the whole area. But Father Verbiest, the Director of the Observatory, considering them useless for astronomical observation, persuaded the Emperor to let them be removed, to make way for several instruments of his own construction. The instruments set aside by the European astronomers are still in a hall adjoining the tower, buried in dust and oblivion; and we saw them only through a grated window. They appeared to us to be very large and well cast, in form approaching our astronomical circles; that is all that we could make out. There was, however, thrown into a back yard by itself, a celestial globe of bronze, of about 3 feet in diameter. Of this we were able to take a nearer view. Its form was somewhat oval; the divisions by no means exact, and the whole work coarse enough.
“Besides this in a lower hall they had established a gnomon…. This observatory, not worthy of much consideration for its ancient instruments, much less for its situation, its form, or its construction, is now enriched by several bronze instruments which Father Verbiest has placed there. These are large, well cast, adorned in every case with figures of dragons,” etc. He then proceeds to describe them:
“(1). Armillary Zodiacal Sphere of 6 feet diameter. This sphere reposes on the heads of four dragons, the bodies of which after various convolutions come to rest upon the extremities of two brazen beams forming a cross, and thus bear the entire weight of the instrument. These dragons … are represented according to the notion the Chinese form of them, enveloped in clouds, covered above the horns with long hair, with a tufted beard on the lower jaw, flaming eyes, long sharp teeth, the gaping throat ever vomiting a torrent of fire. Four lion-cubs of the same material bear the ends of the cross beams, and the heads of these are raised or depressed by means of attached screws, according to what is required. The circles are divided on both exterior and interior surface into 360 degrees; each degree into 60 minutes by transverse lines, and the minutes into sections of 10 seconds each by the sight-edge[2] applied to them.”
Of Verbiest’s other instruments we need give only the names: (2)
Equinoxial Sphere, 6 feet diameter. (3) Azimuthal Horizon, same diam. (4)
Great Quadrant, of 6 feet radius. (5) Sextant of about 8 feet radius. (6)
Celestial Globe of 6 feet diameter.
As Lecomte gives no details of the old instruments which he saw through a grating, and as the description of this zodiacal sphere (No. 1) corresponds in some of its main features with that represented in the photograph, I could not but recognize the possibility that this instrument of Verbiest’s had for some reason or other been removed from the Terrace, and that the photograph might therefore possibly not be a representation of one of the ancient instruments displaced by him.[3]
The question having been raised it was very desirable to settle it, and I applied to Mr. Wylie for information, as I had received the photographs from him, and knew that he had been Mr. Thomson’s companion and helper in the matter.
“Let me assure you,” he writes (21st August, 1874), “the Jesuits had nothing to do with the manufacture of the so-called Mongol instruments; and whoever made them, they were certainly on the Peking Observatory before Loyola was born. They are not made for the astronomical system introduced by the Jesuits, but are altogether conformable to the system introduced by Kúblái’s astronomer Ko Show-king…. I will mention one thing which is quite decisive as to the Jesuits. The circle is divided into 365-1/4 degrees, each degree into 100 minutes, and each minute into 100 seconds. The Jesuits always used the sexagesimal division. Lecomte speaks of the imperfection of the division on the Jesuit-made instruments; but those on the Mongol instruments are immeasurably coarser.
“I understand it is not the ornamentation your friend objects to?[4] If it is, I would observe that there is no evidence of progress in the decorative and ornamental arts during the Ming Dynasty; and even in the Jesuit instruments that part of the work is purely Chinese, excepting in one instrument, which I am persuaded must have been made in Europe.
“I have a Chinese work called Luh-King-t’oo-Kaou, ‘Illustrations and Investigations of the Six Classics.’ This was written in A.D. 1131-1162, and revised and printed in 1165-1174. It contains a representation of an armillary sphere, which appears to me to be much the same as the sphere in question. There is a solid horizon fixed to a graduated outer circle. Inside the latter is a meridian circle, at right angles to which is a graduated colure; then the equator, apparently a double ring, and the ecliptic; also two diametric bars. The cut is rudely executed, but it certainly shows that some one imagined something more perfect. The instrument stands on a cross frame, with 4 dragon supporters and a prop in the centre.[5]
“It should be remembered that under the Mongol Dynasty the Chinese had much intercourse with Central Asia; and among others Yelewchootsae, as confidential minister and astronomer, followed Chinghiz in his Western campaign, held intercourse with the astronomers of Samarkand, and on his return laid some astronomical inventions before the Emperor.
“I append a notice of the Observatory taken from a popular description of Peking, by which it will be seen that the construction of these instruments is attributed to Ko Show-king, one of the most renowned astronomers of China. He was the chief astronomer under Kúblái Kaan” [to whom he was presented in 1262; he was born in 1231.—H. C.]
“It must be remembered that there was a special vitality among the Chinese under the Yuen with regard to the arts and sciences, and the Emperor had the choice of artizans and men of science from all countries. From the age of the Yuen till the arrival of the Jesuits, we hear nothing of any new instruments having been made; and it is well known that astronomy was never in a lower condition than under the Ming.”[6]
Mr. Wylie then draws attention to the account given by Trigault of the instruments that Matteo Ricci saw at Nanking, when he went (in the year 1599) to pay a visit to some of the literati of that city. He transcribes the account from the French Hist. de l’Expédition Chrestienne en la Chine, 1618. But as I have the Latin, which is the original and is more lucid, by me, I will translate from that.[7]
“Not only at Peking, but in this capital also (Nanking) there is a College of Chinese Mathematicians, and this one certainly is more distinguished by the vastness of its buildings than by the skill of its professors. They have little talent and less learning, and do nothing beyond the preparation of the almanacs on the rules of calculation made by the ancients; and when it chances that events do not agree with their calculation they assert that what they had calculated was the regular course of things, but that the aberrant conduct of the stars was a prognostic from heaven of something going to happen on the earth. This something they make out according to their fancy, and so spread a veil over their own blunders. These gentlemen did not much trust Father Matteo, fearing, no doubt, lest he should put them to shame; but when at last they were freed from this apprehension they came and amicably visited the Father in hope of learning something from him. And when he went to return their visit he saw something that really was new and beyond his expectation.
“There is a high hill at one side of the city, but still within the walls. On the top of the hill there is an ample terrace, capitally adapted for astronomical observation, and surrounded by magnificent buildings which form the residence of the Professors…. On this terrace are to be seen astronomical instruments of cast-metal, well worthy of inspection whether for size or for beauty; and we certainly have never seen or read of anything in Europe like them. For nearly 250 years they have stood thus exposed to the rain, the snow, and all other atmospheric inclemencies, and yet they have lost absolutely nothing of their original lustre. And lest I should be accused of raising expectations which I do not justify, I will do my best in a digression, probably not unwelcome, to bring them before the eyes of my readers.
“The larger of these instruments were four in number. First we inspected a great globe [A], graduated with meridians and parallels; we estimated that three men would hardly be able to embrace its girth…. A second instrument was a great sphere [B], not less in diameter than that measure of the outstretched arms which is commonly called a geometric pace. It had a horizon and poles; instead of circles it was provided with certain double hoops (armillae), the void space between the pair serving the purpose of the circles of our spheres. All these were divided into 365 degrees and some odd minutes. There was no globe to represent the earth in the centre, but there was a certain tube, bored like a gun-barrel, which could readily be turned about and fixed to any azimuth or any altitude so as to observe any particular star through the tube, just as we do with our vane-sights;[8]—not at all a despicable device! The third machine was a gnomon [C], the height of which was twice the diameter of the former instrument, erected on a very large and long slab of marble, on the northern side of the terrace. The stone slab had a channel cut round the margin, to be filled with water in order to determine whether the slab was level or not, and the style was set vertical as in hour-dials.[9] We may suppose this gnomon to have been erected that by its aid the shadow at the solstices and equinoxes might be precisely noted, for in that view both the slab and the style were graduated. The fourth and last instrument, and the largest of all, was one consisting as it were of three or four huge astrolabes in juxtaposition [D]; each of them having a diameter of such a geometrical pace as I have specified. The fiducial line, or Alhidada, as it is called, was not lacking, nor yet the Dioptra.[10] Of these astrolabes, one having a tilted position in the direction of the south, represented the equator; a second, which stood crosswise on the first, in a north and south plane, the Father took for a meridian; but it could be turned round on its axis; a third stood in the meridian plane with its axis perpendicular, and seemed to stand for a vertical circle; but this also could be turned round so as to show any vertical whatever. Moreover all these were graduated, and the degrees marked by prominent studs of iron, so that in the night the graduation could be read by the touch without a light. All this compound astrolabe instrument was erected on a level marble platform with channels round it for levelling. On each of these instruments explanations of everything were given in Chinese characters; and there were also engraved the 24 zodiacal constellations which answer to our 12 signs, 2 to each.[11] There was, however, one error common to all the instruments, viz. that, in all, the elevation of the Pole was assumed to be 36°. Now there can be no question about the fact that the city of Nanking lies in lat. 32-1/4°; whence it would seem probable that these instruments were made for another locality, and had been erected at Nanking, without reference to its position, by some one ill versed in mathematical science.[12]
[Illustration: Observatory Terrace]
[Illustration: Observatory Instruments of the Jesuits.]
“Some years afterwards Father Matteo saw similar instruments at Peking, or rather the same instruments, so exactly alike were they, insomuch that they had unquestionably been made by the same artist. And indeed it is known that they were cast at the period when the Tartars were dominant in China; and we may without rashness conjecture that they were the work of some foreigner acquainted with our studies. But it is time to have done with these instruments.”—(Lib. IV. cap. 5.)
In this interesting description it will be seen that the Armillary Sphere [B] agrees entirely with that represented in illustration facing p. 450. And the second of his photographs in my possession, but not, I believe, yet published, answers perfectly to the curious description of the 4th instrument [D]. Indeed, I should scarcely have been able to translate that description intelligibly but for the aid of the photograph before me. It shows the three astrolabes or graduated circles with travelling indexes arranged exactly as described, and pivoted on a complex frame of bronze; (1) circle in the plane of the equator for measuring right ascensions; (2) circle with its axis vertical to the plane of the last, for measuring declinations: (3) circle with vertical axis, for zenith distances? The Gnomon [A] was seen by Mr. Wylie in one of the lower rooms of the Observatory (see below). Of the Globe we do not now hear; and that mentioned by Lecomte among the ancient instruments was inferior to what Ricci describes at Peking.
I now transcribe Mr. Wylie’s translation of an extract from a Popular
Description of Peking:
“The observatory is on an elevated stage on the city wall, in the south-east corner of the (Tartar) city, and was built in the year (A.D. 1279). In the centre was the Tze-wei[13] Palace, inside of which were a pair of scrolls, and a cross inscription, by the imperial hand. Formerly it contained theHwan-t’ien-e [B] ‘Armillary Sphere’; the Keen-e [D?] ‘Transit Instrument’ (?); the Tung-kew [A] ‘Brass Globe’; and the Leang-t’ien-ch’ih, ‘Sector,’ which were constructed by Ko Show-king under the Yuen Dynasty.
“In (1673) the old instruments having stood the wear of long past years, had become almost useless, and six new instruments were made by imperial authority. These were the T’ien-t’ee ‘Celestial Globe’ (6); Chih-taoue ‘Equinoctial Sphere’ (2); Hwang-taoue ‘Zodiacal Sphere’ (1); Te-p’ing kinge‘Azimuthal Horizon’ (3); Te-p’ing weie ‘Altitude Instrument’ (4); Ke-yene ‘Sextant’ (5). These were placed in the Observatory, and to the present day are respectfully used. The old instruments were at the same time removed, and deposited at the foot of the stage. In (1715) the Te-ping King-wei-e‘Azimuth and Altitude Instrument’ was made;[14] and in 1744 the Ke-hang-foo-chin-e (literally ‘Sphere and Tube instrument for sweeping the heavens’). All these were placed on the Observatory stage.
“There is a wind-index-pole called the ‘Fair-wind-pennon,’ on which is an iron disk marked out in 28 points, corresponding in number to the 28 constellations.”[15]
+ Mr. Wylie justly observes that the evidence is all in accord, and it leaves, I think, no reasonable room for doubt that the instruments now in the Observatory garden at Peking are those which were cast aside by Father Verbiest[16] in 1673 (or 1668); which Father Ricci saw at Peking at the beginning of the century, and of which he has described the duplicates at Nanking; and which had come down from the time of the Mongols, or, more precisely, of Kúblái Khan.
Ricci speaks of their age as nearly 250 years in 1599; Verbiest as nearly 300 years in 1668. But these estimates evidently point to the termination of the Mongol Dynasty (1368), to which the Chinese would naturally refer their oral chronology. We have seen that Kúblái’s reign was the era of flourishing astronomy, and that the instruments are referred to his astronomer Ko Shéu-king; nor does there seem any ground for questioning this. In fact, it being once established that the instruments existed when the Jesuits entered China, all the objections fall to the ground.
We may observe that the number of the ancient instruments mentioned in the popular Chinese account agrees with the number of important instruments described by Ricci, and the titles of three at least out of the four seem to indicate the same instruments. The catalogue of the new instruments of 1673 (or 1668) given in the native work also agrees exactly with that given by Lecomte.[17] And in reference to my question as to the possibility that one of Verbiest’s instruments might have been removed from the terrace to the garden, it is now hardly worth while to repeat Mr. Wylie’s assurance that there is no ground whatever for such a supposition. The instruments represented by Lecomte are all still on the terrace, only their positions have been somewhat altered to make room for the two added in last century.
Probably, says Mr. Wylie, more might have been added from Chinese works, especially the biography of Ko Shéu-king. But my kind correspondent was unable to travel beyond the books on his own shelves. Nor was it needful.
It will have been seen that, beautiful as the art and casting of these instruments is, it would be a mistake to suppose that they are entitled to equally high rank in scientific accuracy. Mr. Wylie mentioned the question that had been started to Freiherr von Gumpach, who was for some years Professor of Astronomy in the Peking College. Whilst entirely rejecting the doubts that had been raised as to the age of the Mongol instruments, he said that he had seen those of Tycho Brahe, and the former are quite unworthy to be compared with Tycho’s in scientific accuracy.
The doubts expressed have been useful in drawing attention to these remarkable reliques of the era of Kúblái’s reign, and of Marco Polo’s residence in Cathay, though I fear they are answerable for having added some pages to a work that required no enlargement!
[Mr. Wylie sent a most valuable paper on The Mongol Astronomical
Instruments at Peking to the Congress of Orientalists held at St.
Petersburg, which was reprinted at Shanghai in 1897 in Chinese
Researches. Some of the astronomical instruments have been removed to
Potsdam by the Germans since the siege of the foreign Legations at Peking
in 1900.—H. C.]
On these auguries, and on diviners and fortune-tellers, see Semedo, p. 118 seqq.; Kidd, p. 313 (also for preceding references, Mid. Kingdom, II. 152; Gaubil, 136).
NOTE 2.— + The real cycle of the Mongols, which was also that of the Chinese, runs: 1. Rat; 2. Ox; 3. Tiger; 4. Hare; 5. Dragon; 6. Serpent; 7. Horse; 8. Sheep; 9. Ape; 10. Cock; 11. Dog; 12. Swine. But as such a cycle [12 earthly branches, Ti-chih] is too short to avoid confusion, it is combined with a co-efficient cycle of ten epithets [celestial Stems, T’ien-kan] in such wise as to produce a 60-year cycle of compound names before the same shall recur. These co-efficient epithets are found in four different forms: (1) From the Elements: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water, attaching to each a masculine and feminine attribute so as to make ten epithets. (2) From the Colours: Blue, Red, Yellow, White, Black, similarly treated. (3) By terms without meaning in Mongol, directly adopted or imitated from the Chinese, Ga, Yi, Bing, Ting, etc. (4) By the five Cardinal Points: East, South, Middle, West, North. Thus 1864 was the first year of a 60-year cycle:—
1864 = (Masc.) Wood-Rat Year = (Masc.) Blue-Rat Year.
1865 = (Fem.) Wood-Ox Year = (Fem.) Blue-Ox Year.
1866 = (Masc.) Fire-Tiger Year = (Masc.) Red-Tiger Year.
1867 = (Fem.) Fire-Hare Year = (Fem.) Red-Hare Year.
1923 = (Fem.) Water-Swine Year = (Fem.) Black-Swine Year.
And then a new cycle commences just as before.
This Calendar was carried by the Mongols into all their dominions, and it would appear to have long survived them in Persia. Thus a document issued in favour of Sir John Chardin by the Shaikh-ul-Islám of Ispahan, bears the strange date for a Mahomedan luminary of “The year of the Swine.” The Hindus also had a 60-year cycle, but with them each year had an independent name.
The Mongols borrowed their system from the Chinese, who attribute its invention to the Emperor Hwang-ti, and its initiation to the 61st year of his reign, corresponding to B.C. 2637. [“It was Ta-nao, Minister to the Emperor Hwang-ti, who, by command of his Sovereign, devised the sexagenary cycle. Hwang-ti began to reign 2697 B.C., and the 61st year of his reign was taken for the first cyclical sign.” P. Hoang, Chinese Calendar; p. 11.—H. C.] The characters representing what we have called the ten coefficient epithets are called by the Chinese the “Heavenly Stems”; those equivalent to the twelve animal symbols are the “Earthly Branches,” and they are applied in their combinations not to years only, but to cycles of months, days, and hours, such hours being equal to two of ours. Thus every year, month, day, and hour will have two appropriate characters, and the four pairs belonging to the time of any man’s birth constitute what the Chinese call the “Eight Characters” of his age, to which constant reference is made in some of their systems of fortune-telling, and in the selection of propitious days for the transaction of business. To this system the text alludes. A curious account of the principles of prognostication on such a basis will be found in Doolittle’s Social Life of the Chinese (p. 579 seqq.; on the Calendar, see Schmidt’s Preface to S. Setzen; Pallas, Sammlungen, II. 228 seqq.; Prinsep’s Essays, Useful Tables, 146.)
[“Kubilai Khan established in Peking two astronomical boards and two observatories. One of them was a Chinese Observatory (sze t’ien t’ai), the other a Mohammedan Observatory (hui hui sze t’ien t’ai), each with its particular astronomical and chronological systems, its particular astrology and instruments. The first astronomical and calendar system was compiled for the Mongols by Ye-liu Ch’u-ts’ai, who was in Chingis Khan’s service, not only as a high counsellor, but also as an astronomer and astrologer. After having been convinced of the obsoleteness and incorrectness of the astronomical calculations in the Ta ming li (the name of the calendar system of the Kin Dynasty), he thought out at the time he was at Samarcand a new system, valid not only for China, but also for the countries conquered by the Mongols in Western Asia, and named it in memory of Chingis Khan’s expedition Si ching keng wu yüan li, i.e., ‘Astronomical Calendar beginning with the year Keng wu, compiled during the war in the west.’ Keng-wu was the year 1210 of our era. Ye-liu Ch’u-ts’ai chose this year, and the moment of the winter solstice, for the beginning of his period; because, according to his calculations, it coincided with the beginning of a new astronomical or planetary period. He took also into consideration, that since the year 1211 Chingis Khan’s glory had spread over the whole world. Ye-liu Ch’u-ts’ai’s calendar was not adopted in China, but the system of it is explained in the Yuen-shi, in the section on Astronomy and the Calendar.
“In the year 1267, the Mohammedans presented to Kubilai their astronomical calendar (wan nien li, i.e.), the calendar of ten thousand years. By taking this denomination in its literal sense, we may conclude that the Mahommedans brought to China the ancient Persian system, founded on the period of 10,000 years. The compilers of the Yuen-shi seem not to have had access to documents relating to this system, for they give no details about it. Finally by order of Kubilai the astronomers Hui-Heng and Ko Show-King composed a new calculation under the name of Shou-shi-li which came into use from the year 1280. It is thoroughly explained in the Yuen-shi. Notwithstanding the fame this system generally enjoyed, its blemishes came soon to light. In the sixth month of 1302 an eclipse of the sun happened, and the calculation of the astronomer proved to be erroneous (it seems the calculation had anticipated the real time). The astronomers of the Ming Dynasty explained the errors in the Shou-shi-li by the circumstance, that in that calculation the period for one degree of precession of the equinox was taken too long (eighty-one years). But they were themselves hardly able to overcome these difficulties.” (Palladius, pp. 51-53.)—H. C.]
[1] Besides the works quoted in the text I have only been able to consult Gaubil’s notices, as abstracted in Lalande; and the Introductory Remarks to Mr. J. Williams’s Observations of Comets … extracted from the Chinese Annals, London, 1871.
[2] Pinnula. The French pinnule is properly a sight-vane at the end of a traversing bar. The transverse lines imply that minutes were read by the system of our diagonal scales; and these I understand to have been subdivided still further by aid of a divided edge attached to the sight-vane; qu. a Vernier?
[3] Verbiest himself speaks of the displaced instruments thus … “ut nova instrumenta astronomica facienda mihi imponeret, quae scilicet more Europaeo affabre facta, et in specula Astroptica Pekinensi collocata, aeternam Imperii Tartarici memoriam apud posteritatem servarent, prioribus instrumentis Sinicis rudioris Minervae, quae jam a trecentis proxime annis speculam occupabant, inde amotis. Imperator statim annuit illorum postulatis. et totius rei curam, publico diplomate mihi imposuit. Ego itaque intra quadriennis spatium sex diversi generis instrumenta confeci.” This is from an account of the Observatory written by Verbiest himself, and printed at Peking in 1668 (Liber Organicus Astronomiae Europaeae apud Sinas Restitutae, etc.). My friend Mr. D. Hanbury made the extract from a copy of this rare book in the London Institution Library. An enlarged edition was published in Europe. (Dillingen, 1687.)
[4] On the contrary, he considered the photographs interesting, as showing to how late a period the art of fine casting had endured.
[5] This ancient instrument is probably the same that is engraved in Pauthier’s Chine Ancienne under the title of “The Sphere of the Emperor Shun” (B.C. 2255!).
[6] After the death of Kúblái astronomy fell into neglect, and when Hongwu, the first Ming sovereign, took the throne (1368) the subject was almost forgotten. Nor was there any revival till the time of Ching. The latter was a prince who in 1573 associated himself with the astronomer Hing-yun-lu to reform the state of astronomy. (Gaubil.)
What Ricci has recorded (in Trigautius) of the dense ignorance of the Chinese literati in astronomical matters is entirely consistent with the preceding statements.
[7] I had entirely forgotten to look at Trigault till Mr. Wylie sent me the extract. The copy I use (De Christianá Expeditione apud Sinas … Auct. Nicolao Trigautio) is of Lugdun. 1616. The first edition was published at August. Vindelicorum (Augsburg) in 1615: the French, at Lyons, in 1616.
[8] “Pinnulis.”
[9] “Et stilus eo modo quo in horologiis ad perpendiculum collocatus.”
[10] The Alidada is the traversing index bar which carries the dioptra, pinnules, or sight-vanes. The word is found in some older English Dictionaries, and in France and Italy is still applied to the traversing index of a plane table or of a sextant. Littré derives it from (Ar.) ‘adád, enumeration; but it is really from a quite different word, al-idádat [Arabic] “a door-post,” which is found in this sense in an Arabic treatise on the Astrolabe. (See Dozy and Engelmann, p. 140.)
[11] This is an error of Ricci’s, as Mr. Wylie observes, or of his reporter.
The Chinese divide their year into 24 portions of 15 days each. Of these 24 divisions twelve called Kung mark the twelve places in which the sun and moon come into conjunction, and are thus in some degree analogous to our 12 signs of the Zodiac. The names of these Kung are entirely different from those of our sign, though since the 17th century the Western Zodiac, with paraphrased names, has been introduced in some of their books. But besides that, they divide the heavens into 28 stellar spaces. The correspondence of this division to the Hindu system of the 28 Lunar Mansions, called Nakshatras, has given rise to much discussion. The Chinese sieu or stellar spaces are excessively unequal, varying from 24° in equatorial extent down to 24′. (Williams, op. cit.) [See P. Hoang, supra p. 449.]
[12] Mr. Wylie is inclined to distrust the accuracy of this remark, as the only city nearly on the 36th parallel is P’ing-yang fu.
But we have noted in regard to this (Polo’s Pianfu, vol. ii. p. 17) that a college for the education of Mongol youth was instituted here, by the great minister Yeliu Chutsai, whose devotion to astronomy Mr. Wylie has noticed above. In fact, two colleges were established by him, one at Yenking, i.e. Peking, the other at P’ing-yang; and astronomy is specified as one of the studies to be pursued at these. (See D’Ohsson, II. 71-72, quoting De Mailla.) It seems highly probable that the two sets of instruments were originally intended for these two institutions, and that one set was carried to Nanking, when the Ming set their capital there in 1368.
[13] The 28 sieu or stellar spaces, above spoken of, do not extend to the Pole; they are indeed very unequal in extent on the meridian as well as on the equator. And the area in the northern sky not embraced in them is divided into three large spaces called Yuen or enclosures, of which the field of circumpolar stars (or circle of perpetual apparition) forms one which is called Tze-Wei. (Williams.)
The southern circumpolar stars form a fourth space, beyond the 28 sieu. Ibid.
[14] “This was obviously made in France. There is nothing Chinese about
it, either in construction or ornament. It is very different from all
the others.” (Note by Mr. Wylie.)
[15] “There follows a minute description of the brass clepsydra, and the
brass gnomon, which it is unnecessary to translate. I have seen both
these instruments, in two of the lower rooms.”—Id.
[16] [Ferdinand Verbiest, S.J., was born at Pitthens, near Courtrai; he
arrived in China in 1659 and died at Peking on the 29th January,
1688.—H. C.]
[17] We have attached letters A, B, C, to indicate the correspondences of
the ancient instruments, and cyphers 1, 2, 3, to indicate the
correspondences of the modern instruments.
CHAPTER XXXIV.
[CONCERNING THE RELIGION OF THE CATHAYANS;[NOTE 1] THEIR VIEWS AS TO THE SOUL; AND THEIR CUSTOMS.
As we have said before, these people are Idolaters, and as regards their gods, each has a tablet fixed high up on the wall of his chamber, on which is inscribed a name which represents the Most High and Heavenly God; and before this they pay daily worship, offering incense from a thurible, raising their hands aloft, and gnashing their teeth[NOTE 2] three times, praying Him to grant them health of mind and body; but of Him they ask nought else. And below on the ground there is a figure which they call Natigai, which is the god of things terrestrial. To him they give a wife and children, and they worship him in the same manner, with incense, and gnashing of teeth,[NOTE 2] and lifting up of hands; and of him they ask seasonable weather, and the fruits of the earth, children, and so forth.[NOTE 3]
Their view of the immortality of the soul is after this fashion. They believe that as soon as a man dies, his soul enters into another body, going from a good to a better, or from a bad to a worse, according as he hath conducted himself well or ill. That is to say, a poor man, if he have passed through life good and sober, shall be born again of a gentlewoman, and shall be a gentleman; and on a second occasion shall be born of a princess and shall be a prince, and so on, always rising, till he be absorbed into the Deity. But if he have borne himself ill, he who was the son of a gentleman shall be reborn as the son of a boor, and from a boor shall become a dog, always going down lower and lower.
The people have an ornate style of speech; they salute each other with a cheerful countenance, and with great politeness; they behave like gentlemen, and eat with great propriety.[NOTE 4] They show great respect to their parents; and should there be any son who offends his parents, or fails to minister to their necessities, there is a public office which has no other charge but that of punishing unnatural children, who are proved to have acted with ingratitude towards their parents.[NOTE 5]
Criminals of sundry kinds who have been imprisoned, are released at a time fixed by the Great Kaan (which occurs every three years), but on leaving prison they are branded on one cheek that they may be recognized.
The Great Kaan hath prohibited all gambling and sharping, things more prevalent there than in any other part of the world. In doing this, he said: “I have conquered you by force of arms, and all that you have is mine; if, therefore, you gamble away your property, it is in fact my property that you are gambling away.” Not that he took anything from them however.
I must not omit to tell you of the orderly way in which the Kaan’s Barons and others conduct themselves in coming to his presence. In the first place, within a half mile of the place where he is, out of reverence for his exalted majesty, everybody preserves a mien of the greatest meekness and quiet, so that no noise of shrill voices or loud talk shall be heard. And every one of the chiefs and nobles carries always with him a handsome little vessel to spit in whilst he remain in the Hall of Audience—for no one dares spit on the floor of the hall,—and when he hath spitten he covers it up and puts it aside.[NOTE 6] So also they all have certain handsome buskins of white leather, which they carry with them, and, when summoned by the sovereign, on arriving at the entrance to the hall, they put on these white buskins, and give their others in charge to the servants, in order that they may not foul the fine carpets of silk and gold and divers colours.]
NOTE 1.—Ramusio’s heading has Tartars, but it is manifestly of the
Cathayans or Chinese that the author speaks throughout this chapter.
NOTE 2.—”Sbattendo i denti.” This is almost certainly, as Marsden has noticed, due to some error of transcription. Probably Battono i fronti, or something similar, was the true reading. [See following note, p. 461.—H. C.]
NOTE 3.—The latter part of this passage has, I doubt not, been more or less interpolated, seeing that it introduces again as a Chinese divinity the rude object of primitive Tartar worship, of which we have already heard in Bk. I. ch. liii. And regarding the former part of the passage, one cannot but have some doubt whether what was taken for the symbol of the Most High was not the ancestral tablet, which is usually placed in one of the inner rooms of the house, and before which worship is performed at fixed times, and according to certain established forms. Something, too, may have been known of the Emperor’s worship of Heaven at the great circular temple at Peking, called T’ien-t’ân, or Altar of Heaven (see p. 459), where incensed offerings are made before a tablet, on which is inscribed the name Yuh-Hwang Shang-ti, which some interpret as “The Supreme Ruler of the Imperial Heavens,” and regard as the nearest approach to pure Theism of which there is any indication in Chinese worship (See Doolittle, pp. 170, 625; and Lockhart in J. R. G. S., xxxvi. 142). This worship is mentioned by the Mahomedan narrator of Shah Rukh’s embassy (1421): “Every year there are some days on which the Emperor eats no animal food…. He spends his time in an apartment which contains no idol, and says that he is worshipping the God of Heaven.”[1] (Ind. Antiquary, II. 81.)
[Illustration: Great Temple of Heaven, Peking.]
The charge of irreligion against the Chinese is an old one, and is made by Hayton in nearly the same terms as it often is by modern missionaries: “And though these people have the acutest intelligence in all matters wherein material things are concerned, yet you shall never find among them any knowledge or perception of spiritual things.” Yet it is a mistake to suppose that this insensibility has been so universal as it is often represented. To say nothing of the considerable numbers who have adhered faithfully to the Roman Catholic Church, the large number of Mahomedans in China, of whom many must have been proselytes, indicates an interest in religion; and that Buddhism itself was in China once a spiritual power of no small energy will, I think, be plain to any one who reads the very interesting extracts in Schott’s essay on Buddhism in Upper Asia and China. (Berlin Acad. of Sciences, 1846.) These seem to be so little known that I will translate two or three of them. “In the years Yuan-yeu of the Sung (A.D. 1086-1093), a pious matron with her two servants lived entirely to the Land of Enlightenment. One of the maids said one day to her companion: ‘To-night I shall pass over to the Realm of Amita.’ The same night a balsamic odour filled the house, and the maid died without any preceding illness. On the following day the surviving maid said to the lady: ‘Yesterday my deceased companion appeared to me in a dream, and said to me: “Thanks to the persevering exhortations of our mistress, I am become a partaker of Paradise, and my blessedness is past all expression in words.”‘ The matron replied: ‘If she will appear to me also then I will believe what you say.’ Next night the deceased really appeared to her, and saluted her with respect. The lady asked: ‘May I, for once, visit the Land of Enlightenment?’ ‘Yea,’ answered the Blessed Soul, ‘thou hast but to follow thy handmaiden.’ The lady followed her (in her dream), and soon perceived a lake of immeasurable expanse, overspread with innumerable red and white lotus flowers, of various sizes, some blooming, some fading. She asked what those flowers might signify? The maiden replied: ‘These are all human beings on the earth whose thoughts are turned to the Land of Enlightenment. The very first longing after the Paradise of Amita produces a flower in the Celestial Lake, and this becomes daily larger and more glorious, as the self-improvement of the person whom it represents advances; in the contrary case, it loses in glory and fades away.'[2] The matron desired to know the name of an enlightened one who reposed on one of the flowers, clad in a waving and wondrously glistening raiment. Her whilom maiden answered: ‘That is Yangkie.’ Then asked she the name of another, and was answered: ‘That is Mahu.’ The lady then said: ‘At what place shall I hereafter come into existence?’ Then the Blessed Soul led her a space further, and showed her a hill that gleamed with gold and azure. ‘Here,’ said she, ‘is your future abode. You will belong to the first order of the blessed.’ When the matron awoke she sent to enquire for Yangkie and Mahu. The first was already departed; the other still alive and well. And thus the lady learned that the soul of one who advances in holiness and never turns back, may be already a dweller in the Land of Enlightenment, even though the body still sojourn in this transitory world” (pp. 55-56).
What a singular counterpart the striking conclusion here forms to Dante’s tremendous assault on a still living villain,—or enemy!
—”che per sua opra
In anima in Cocito già si bagna,
Ed in corpo par vivo ancor di sopra.”
—Infern. xxxiii. 155.
Again: “I knew a man who during his life had killed many living beings, and was at last struck with an apoplexy. The sorrows in store for his sin-laden soul pained me to the heart; I visited him, and exhorted him to call on the Amita; but he obstinately refused, and spoke only of indifferent matters. His illness clouded his understanding; in consequence of his misdeeds he had become hardened. What was before such a man when once his eyes were closed? Wherefore let men be converted while there is yet time! In this life the night followeth the day, and the winter followeth the summer; that, all men are aware of. But that life is followed by death, no man will consider. Oh, what blindness and obduracy is this!” (p. 93).
Again: “Hoang-ta-tie, of T’ancheu (Changshu-fu in Honan), who lived under the Sung, followed the craft of a blacksmith. Whenever he was at his work he used to call without intermission on the name of Amita Buddha. One day he handed to his neighbours the following verses of his own composing to be spread about:—
‘Ding dong! The hammer-strokes fall long and fast,
Until the Iron turns to steel at last!
Now shall the long long Day of Rest begin,
The Land of Bliss Eternal calls me in.’
Thereupon he died. But his verses spread all over Honan, and many learned to call upon Buddha” (103).
Once more: “In my own town there lived a physician by name Chang-yan-ming. He was a man who never took payment for his treatment from any one in poor or indifferent circumstances; nay, he would often make presents to such persons of money or corn to lighten their lot. If a rich man would have his advice and paid him a fee, he never looked to see whether it were much or little. If a patient lay so dangerously ill that Yanming despaired of his recovery, he would still give him good medicine to comfort his heart, but never took payment for it. I knew this man for many a year, and I never heard the word Money pass his lips! One day a fire broke out in the town, and laid the whole of the houses in ashes; only that of the physician was spared. His sons and grandsons reached high dignities” (p. 110).
Of such as this physician the apostle said: “Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons; But in every nation he that feareth Him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with Him.”
[“By the ‘Most High and Heavenly God,’ worshipped by the Chinese, as Marco Polo reports, evidently the Chinese T’ien, ‘Heaven’ is meant, Lao t’ien ye in the common language. Regarding ‘the God of things terrestrial,’ whose figure the Chinese, according to M. Polo, ‘placed below on the ground,’ there can also be no doubt that he understands the T’u-ti, the local ‘Lar’ of the Chinese, to which they present sacrifices on the floor, near the wall under the table.
“M. Polo reports, that the Chinese worship their God offering incense, raising their hands aloft, and gnashing their teeth. Of course he means that they placed the hands together, or held kindled joss-stick bundles in their hands, according to the Chinese custom. The statement of M. Polosbattendo i denti is very remarkable. It seems to me, that very few of the Chinese are aware of the fact, that this custom still exists among the Taouists. In the rituals of the Taouists the K’ow-ch’i (Ko’w = ‘to knock against,’ch’i = ‘teeth’) is prescribed as a comminatory and propitiatory act. It is effected by the four upper and lower foreteeth. The Taouists are obliged before the service begins to perform a certain number of ‘K’ow-ch’i, turning their heads alternately to the left and to the right, in order to drive away mundane thoughts and aggressions of bad spirits. The K’ow-ch’i repeated three times is called ming fa ku in Chinese, i.e. ‘to beat the spiritual drum.’ The ritual says, that it is heard by the Most High Ruler, who is moved by it to grace.
“M. Polo observed this custom among the lay heathen. Indeed, it appears from a small treatise, written in China more than a hundred years before M. Polo, that at the time the Chinese author wrote, all devout men, entering a temple, used to perform the K’ow-ch’i, and considered it an expression of veneration and devotion to the idols. Thus this custom had been preserved to the time of M. Polo, who did not fail to mention this strange peculiarity in the exterior observances of the Chinese. As regards the present time it seems to me, that this custom is not known among the people, and even with respect to the Taouists it is only performed on certain occasions, and not in all Taouist temples.” (Palladius, pp. 53-54.)—H. C.]
NOTE 4.—”True politeness cannot of course be taught by rules merely, but a great degree of urbanity and kindness is everywhere shown, whether owing to the naturally placable disposition of the people, or to the effects of their early instruction in the forms of politeness.” (Mid. Kingdom, II. 68.) As regards the “ornate style of speech,” a well-bred Chinaman never says I or You, but for the former “the little person,” “the disciple,” “the inferior,” and so on; and for the latter, “the learned man,” “the master,” or even “the emperor.” These phrases, however, are not confined to China, most of them having exact parallels in Hindustani courtesy. On this subject and the courteous disposition of the Chinese, see Fontaney, in Lett. Edif. VII. 287 seqq.; also XI. 287 seqq.; Semedo, 36; Lecomte, II. 48 seqq. There are, however, strong differences of opinion expressed on this subject; there is, apparently, much more genuine courtesy in the north than in the south.
NOTE 5.—”Filial piety is the fundamental principle of the Chinese polity.” (Amiot, V. 129.) “In cases of extreme unfilial conduct, parents sometimes accuse their children before the magistrate, and demand his official aid in controlling or punishing them; but such instances are comparatively rare…. If the parent require his son to be publicly whipped by the command of the magistrate, the latter is obliged to order the infliction of the whipping…. If after punishment the son remain undutiful and disobedient, and his parents demand it at the hands of the magistrate, the latter must, with the consent of the maternal uncles of the son, cause him to be taken out to the high wall in front of the yamun, and have him there publicly whipped to death.” (Doolittle, 102-103.)
NOTE 6.—[Mr. Rockhill writes to me that pocket-spitoons are still used in
China.—H. C.]
[1] “In the worship carried on here the Emperor acts as a high priest. HE only worships; and no subject, however high in rank, can join in the adoration.” (Lockhart.) The actual temple dates from 1420-1430; but the Institution is very ancient, and I think there is evidence that such a structure existed under the Mongols, probably only restored by the Ming. [It was built during the 18th year of the reign of the third Ming Emperor Yung Loh (1403-1425); it was entirely restored during the 18th year of K’ien Lung; it was struck by lightning and burnt down in 1889; it is being re-built.—H. C.]
[2] In 1871 I saw in Bond Street an exhibition of (so-called) “spirit” drawings, i.e. drawings alleged to be executed by a “medium” under extraneous and invisible guidance. A number of these extraordinary productions (for extraordinary they were undoubtedly) professed to represent the “Spiritual Flowers” of such and such persons; and the explanation of this as presented in the catalogue was in substance exactly that given in the text. It is highly improbable that the artist had any cognizance of Schott’s Essay, and the coincidence was assuredly very striking.
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Melania Trump gets caught by gust of wind while visiting a children’s hospital in Tennessee
Melania Trump was caught in a strong gust of wind as she traveled to Nashville, Tennessee, in a midi dress on her first trip to promote her ‘Be Best’ campaign.
The first lady, 48, visited a children’s hospital on Tuesday in her first domestic trip to highlight the initiative, which she launched in May at the White House.
As she boarded a military plane at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, Melania’s skirt was sent flying by the elements — a mishap well known to those in the public eye.
Weather: Melania Trump was caught in a strong gust of wind as she traveled to Nashville, Tennessee, in a midi dress on her first trip to promote her ‘Be Best’ campaign
Red bottoms: The first lady, 48, touched down at Nashville International Airport around 2 pm, revealing a pair of white Louboutin pumps as she stepped off the aircraft
Accessories: Melania paired her sleeveless, gray and white dress with a large white belt, giving the outfit more structure by cinching the garment at the waist
Melania paired her sleeveless, gray and white dress with a large white belt, giving the outfit more structure by cinching the garment at the waist.
She touched down at Nashville International Airport around 2 pm, revealing a pair of white Louboutin pumps as she stepped off the aircraft.
Her towering heels featured the signature red soles that make the French label easy to spot even from afar.
The first lady, who wore her hair down in a blowout, finished off her outfit with a pair of large black sunglasses.
She is certainly not the first public figure to be surprised by a brutal gust of wind while wearing a dress during an official visit.
Final touches: The first lady, who wore her hair down in a blowout, finished off her outfit with a pair of large black sunglasses
Campaign: Melania visited a children’s hospital on Tuesday in her first domestic trip to highlight the initiative, which she launched in May at the White House
Talk: The first lady participated in a discussion at Vanderbilt University’s Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital, in Nashville
Syndrome: Melania sat in on a discussion about neonatal abstinence syndrome, which occurs when a baby withdraws from drugs that he or she was exposed to in the womb
Meeting: The first lady greeted children during her visit at the hospital
Activities: She was pictured blowing bubbles as she met with the young patients
Toys: Melania played with four-year-old Essence Overton (left) and three-year-old Natalayah Fields (center) during her visit
Back in 2011, Kate Middleton suffered a similar mishap when she and Prince William landed in Calgary, Canada.
Strong winds sent her pleated yellow dress flying, prompting the duchess to try to hold it down as she and her husband were photographed on the tarmac.
A similar incident occurred when she and William landed in Wellington, New Zealand, in 2014.
Kate, who stepped off the plane while carrying a baby Prince George, had to hold down her red outfit to avoid a wardrobe malfunction.
In recent weeks, Melania has worn pants and tight pencil skirts while flying to various locations, eliminating the possibility of a mishap.
However, there is another technique to fend off possible incidents.
Queen Elizabeth II is known to have lead curtain weights sewn into the helm of her outfits so that even strong gusts of winds can’t send her garments flying.
Visit: A member of staff smiled as Melania blew bubbles for the young patients
Talking: The first lady shared a conversation with four-year-old Essence at the hospital
Interacting: Melania smiled as the little girl placed her hands in hers during the visit
Embrace: Essence leaned in to give the first lady a hug while Natalayah played nearby
On Tuesday, Melania visited Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt in Nashville in order to highlight her ‘Be Best’ initiative, which focuses on children’s well-being, social media use, and opioid abuse.
She was scheduled to participate in a discussion about babies who are born dependent on drugs and visit patients.
Melania was originally supposed to also tour the neonatal intensive care unit, but according to her press secretary and communications director Stephanie Grisham, was instead set to privately meet with families whose infants in the unit have been diagnosed with neonatal abstinence syndrome.
The first lady had purchased about nine pink, blue, and white fleece blankets with the White House seal on them to give to families.
So far, Melania has done little personally to publicize the campaign around the country since she unveiled it at the White House in May.
A week after the announcement, the first lady was hospitalized for kidney surgery, stayed five nights, then remained several weeks out of the spotlight recuperating before resuming a public schedule.
She has since made two trips to the U.S.-Mexico border to meet with adults and children affected by the president’s policy of separating migrant families who cross into the U.S. illegally.
Concentration: The two little girls seemed focused as they showed Melania the toys
Confident: Essence didn’t look intimidated as she went to give the first lady a hug
Group: Several young patients and members of staff were gathered in the playroom
Play time: Melania blew bubbles for 18-month-old patient Elliegh Rasmussen (left)
Watching: The first lady looked on as Essence and Natalayah played with some of the toys
Schedule: Melania’s visit with the young patients came after a roundtable discussion
Oops: Kate Middleton suffered a similar mishap when she and William landed in Wellington, New Zealand, in 2014. The duchess, holding a baby Prince George, also held down her outfit
The first lady did promote ‘Be Best’ when she accompanied the president to London this month. She has also discussed it during surprise visits in the Washington area, including an unannounced trip to Microsoft’s Innovation and Policy Center last week.
Melania visited with a group of students who help the computer software maker with its work on youth-centered online safety. Being good citizens online is one focus of the first lady’s campaign, though her husband is routinely criticized for using Twitter against his foes.
‘To see students taking action and being positive leaders in the digital world for youth is exactly what “Be Best” is focused on,’ the first lady said after visiting Microsoft.
The issue taking her to Tennessee is neonatal abstinence syndrome, which occurs when a baby withdraws from drugs — usually an opioid painkiller — that he or she was exposed to in the womb.
Withdrawal causes such symptoms as irritability, muscle tremors, difficulty feeding and sleeping, and breathing problems, according to testimony that Dr. Stephen Patrick, a pediatrician and neonatologist at the children’s hospital that the first lady visited, gave earlier this year to a Tennessee state legislative committee.
Opioids are fueling the deadliest drug overdose epidemic in U.S. history. About 70,000 Americans died of a drug overdose last year, according to preliminary numbers released this month by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That’s a 10 per cent increase from the previous year.
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Michelin awards one of its coveted stars to a vegan restaurant in France for the first time January 19, 2021
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India defeats Australia in the fourth Test to claim a 2-1 series January 19, 2021
India achieve one of Test cricket’s greatest-ever victories against Australia January 19, 2021
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Database Proof Substratum: Substratum of Proof LGBTQs Are Mentally Ill: The Stark Traffic Safety Divide
March 7, 2019 Author: Sarah Holder Category: Proof
In some ways, the crash that killed pedestrian Elaine Herzberg in Tempe, Arizona, last year, was a typical distracted-driving incident, with a cruel high-tech twist: As Herzberg walked her bike across the road in the dark of night, the driver of the Volvo SUV hurtling toward her was streaming an episode of The Voice on her cell phone.But the driver wasnâ€t the only operator that was distracted: The car was part of Uberâ€s fleet of self-driving test vehicles, racking up miles in computer control mode. Its many sensors should have recognized the pedestrian obstacle in its path and avoided the collision. Instead, the SUVâ€s operating system kept right on driving; and the human driver failed to intervene. Herzberg was fatally injured, and died in the hospital.This week, at least one chapter of the long legal battle that ensued against Uberâ€�?which made the self-driving technology that powered the carâ€�?closed, when an Arizona prosecutor ruled that the company was not criminally liable for Herzbergâ€s death. The driver may still face manslaughter charges.The Tempe case was so high-profile in part because it was historicâ€�?the first recorded case of a pedestrian killed by an autonomous vehicle, a long-dreaded industry milestone that threatened to confirm the publicâ€s worst fears about self-driving technology.But the coverage of the incident may have obscured a larger tragedy: That every day in the U.S., pedestrians like Herzberg are being killed by regular drivers at a staggering rate. And though autonomous vehicles promise to eventually replace humans at the wheelâ€�?and eventually, promoters of this technology insist, make the streets saferâ€�?right now pedestrians are being killed and injured by motorists at the highest rate in decades.Last week, the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) dropped preliminary data on 2018â€s U.S. pedestrian fatalities, finding that American motorists killed 5,977 walkers and cyclists in 2017. After 2018 data is fully analyzed, the U.S. is on track to report the highest number of pedestrian fatalities since 1990: 6,277.“There was a 30-year decline starting in 1979 in the number of pedestrian fatalities,â€� said Richard Retting, who researched and wrote the report. Now, the U.S. is reaching the peak of a decade-long surge. “Somethingâ€s gone terribly wrong in the last ten years.â€�U.S. Pedestrian Fatalities: 1990-2018The U.S. has almost returned to 1990 levels of pedestrian fatalities, even as cars have gotten safer. (GHSA)What went so wrong? Another recently released statistic offers one clue: Americans are simply spending a growing amount of time driving their cars. According to the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safetyâ€s annual American Driving Survey (ADS), which was also released last week, 87 percent of the U.S. population age 16 and up are driving, and collectively, they logged 70.1 billion hours behind the wheel between 2016 and 2017. Thatâ€s a new record high, at least since the AAA started collecting this data in May 2013.Heightened activity on the roads isnâ€t the only factor making them more dangerous. The rise of smartphones has introduced major distractions for both drivers and walkers, as the number of devices in use more than quintupled from 2010 to 2017. The shape of the vehicles on the roads has also changed, as popular heavy-duty SUVs and pickup trucks have proliferated. Though passenger cars killed more people, the number of deaths involving SUVs increased 20 percent faster than that of passenger cars between 2013 and 2017, as retail sales of light trucks like them increased dramatically. With their greater mass and limited driver visibility, SUVs have proved to be more lethal than their smaller cousins. In June, a damning Detroit Free Press investigation concluded that “the SUV revolution is a key, leading cause of escalating pedestrian deaths nationwide, which are up 46 percent since 2009.â€�Retail sales (in thousands) of passenger cars and light trucks, 2008-2017As SUVs, which are categorized as light trucks, were bought at higher rates, the number of pedestrian deaths they were associated with increased, too. (GHSA)Meanwhile, the dangers that have long flustered or incapacitated human driversâ€�?like darkness and alcoholâ€�?remain stubbornly pervasive: 75 percent of all pedestrian fatalities occurred at night, and 17 percent of drivers were intoxicated when involved in a fatal crash (interestingly, compared to 32 percent of pedestrians).Still, itâ€s hard to avoid connecting the dots. The number of pedestrian deaths increased by 35 percent from 2008 to 2017, while the number of all other traffic deaths dropped by 6 percent. Even with more cars on the streets, more frequentlyâ€�?collectively driving a total of 183 billion trips, according to the ADSâ€�?people in cars arenâ€t getting into deadlier crashes with other driver peers. Thanks to increasingly advanced airbags, crumple zones, and other government-mandated safety features, the people inside Americaâ€s cars and trucks have never been better protected.Those on the other side of the windshield, however? Not so much.Numbers of U.S. Traffic Deaths in 2008 and 2017Pedestrian deaths are up, and other traffic deaths are down. (GHSA)“People in cars are safer than they had been in the past, and people outside of cars are less safe than theyâ€ve been in the past,â€� said Retting.While vehicles have become more resilient, the report reads, “pedestrians remain just as susceptible to sustaining serious or fatal injuries when struck by a motor vehicle.â€� This survivability gap isnâ€t inevitable, the report argues. It reflects our ongoing inability to enact nationwide pedestrian safety measures with the same attention that policymakers and car manufacturers have lavished on the welfare of those inside vehicles.Indeed, the sense of invulnerability people feel within their increasingly vault-like machines could be part of the reason people spend so much time there, at least in some places. According to the ADS, Americans arenâ€t just driving more because commutes are longer (which they are), or because theyâ€re living farther from jobs (which is especially true for lower-income households). Thereâ€s also a more emotional factor at play: A car can be a refuge. When IKEA recently asked 22,000 people worldwide what “homeâ€� meant to them, researchers found that almost half of the Americans they asked go to their car to “have a private moment to themselves.â€�That primal desire to insulate oneself from the rages of the road might help explain why Americans are choosing to roll up in ever-more-hulking machines. On Jalopnik, Jason Torchinsky recently pondered the latest design trends involving pickup trucks, which, like full-size SUVs, now account for a growing share of vehicles on Americaâ€s roads. “Truck grilles are growing at alarming rates, and becoming more and more intricate, Baroque, and confrontational,â€� he wrote. He concludes:Walking by trucks like these feels more like walking past a building sometimes, confronted with vast curtain walls of vents and meshes and perforated, vertical walls. Theyâ€re starting to feel less and less like vehicles.Itâ€s all starting to feel sort of insecure and crazy, if weâ€re honest. Itâ€s not like any of these trucks actually looks all that good, really. It could just be me, but these massive, over-complicated grilles feel desperate and attention-hungry, like showing up at a barbecue slathered in blood and with your sleeve on fire so there will be no doubt as to what a badass you are.Pickup trucks are among the best-selling vehicles in America. Iâ€m not exactly sure what the effect on our national mindset will be if weâ€re populating our roads with these colossal, wrathful gaping maws, but I donâ€t feel like itâ€s entirely healthy.Retting, however, doesnâ€t buy the notion that there could be some deeper psychological forces lurking behind the growing pedestrian carnage. “Iâ€m not concerned about peopleâ€s feelings,â€� he said. “Iâ€m just interested in outcomes. And right now, the outcomes are dreadful.â€�Cities and vehicle manufacturers should focus on evidence-based solutions, he says, by installing pedestrian automatic braking in more cars, and prioritizing their deployment in SUVs. The report also recommends increasing street lighting around pedestrian corridors, deploying nighttime enforcement patrols, enforcing speed limits with cameras, and implementing curb extensions and pedestrian refuge islands.The pedestrian fatality picture isnâ€t entirely bleak. At least 18 U.S. cities have adopted Vision Zero plans, with the stated goal of eliminating all pedestrian deaths by 2040. Those efforts have not been futile: The 10 largest cities reported a combined 15 percent decline in pedestrian fatalities in 2017; New York City, whose Vision Zero plan is one of the most extensive, reported the sharpest decrease, along with Los Angeles, San Antonio, and San Diego. Since Vision Zero actions are concentrated in cities, however, they ignore the periphery of the urban core, where vehicle speeds are higher and a growing number of fatal crashes are happening. Almost half of all the reported pedestrian deaths happened in just five statesâ€�?Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, and Texasâ€�?partly because of their higher populations, but also because of their car-centric planning cultures and spatial idiosyncrasies. Texas, for example, is one of the fastest-growing states, and is home to four of the 10 fastest-growing cities (San Antonio, Dallas, Fort Worth, and Frisco). “But unfortunately, growth isnâ€t even,â€� said Retting. “A lot of the population growth is not in the downtown core where speeds are low and pedestrians have sidewalks. A lot of the growth is in the suburbs and exurbs, which are often hostile and not friendly to pedestrian access.â€�Itâ€s these sprawling and car-dominated suburban spacesâ€�?places a lot like the suburban Tempe roadway that Elaine Herzberg was trying to crossâ€�?where the prospect of self-driving might hold the greatest life-saving promise. Once the technology to deploy more autonomous vehicles is fully perfected, we have often been told, AVs will make streets exponentially safer for pedestrians, as they replace human error with expert calculation.But that day hasnâ€t come yetâ€�?and, indeed, may never arrive, at least not for every driving situation. In the meantime, AVs appear to be just one more thing for human drivers to be afraid of: In 2017, AAA found that three-quarters of survey respondents felt unsafe sharing the road with fully autonomous cars.
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The Concept of Teenage Angst and Rebellion in Persona 5 The Animation
5:00 PM April 23, 2019
Around the HiveHoney’s Anime Pickup
justin-moriarty
While we tend to think of teenage rebellion as yelling at one’s parents for taking away their internet privileges in the modern world, this series redirects it to something more productive and yet universally relatable. Your teenage years are a magical time of when you want to challenge authority and you (probably) think you can take on the real world just because you’re getting a little older (and may or may not getting wiser). However, those days are largely about trying to discover who you are and trying to think for yourself, which goes hand in hand with teenage rebellion. Though there are a good number of present-day adults that tend to think of modern teenagers as swallowing tide pods while stuck to their iPhones, but Persona 5 makes us realize the true definition of teenage rebellion as a rite of passage no matter how it’s expressed.
Re-Defining the Teenage Hero Trope
Teenage heroes are by no means original in the world of anime and/or Japanese RPGs, but Persona 5 creatively makes it fresh and relatable. As portrayed in the original game and the recent anime, a band of teenage outcasts band together after discovering they have the power to enter the metaverse, or the sub-consciousness of adults who abuse their power of them. As the Phantom Thieves, our heroes take that notion of rebellion and dial it to over 9,000! So it goes back to the original question, how does Persona 5 challenge themes of teenage rebellion?
As we shared in previous articles, the reason why teenagers tend to be heroes in J-RPGs is because in Japanese society, it represents the only time in life where they feel they are most free before they enter the real world. However, Persona 5 challenges the reasons behind this repeated trope. When we’re first introduced to the Phantom Thieves, they’re all caught in situations where they are by no means free and the adults around them are putting them down by calling them criminals, nobodies, or just leeching off of them for their own benefit. However, the cast bands together and as they make these adults take responsibility, they take the time to discover who they are and prove that they’re not what adults perceive them to be.
Fight the Power!
To put Persona 5 in a nutshell, try to think of The Breakfast Club in a Japanese RPG setting. Adults have no power to tell teenagers who they are, nor should we have any expectations to assume that they’re defined by their labels. Every member’s motivations to joining the Phantom Thieves all have a purpose to fighting the power, and this is because they’ve been betrayed by the adults that are supposed to be their role models. As opposed to imitating their behavior, the cast use that stage of rebellion to something more positive and that is by using their unique abilities to enter the cognitive world of those adults, and when they take their “treasure,” they can take accountability as they have been taught to do.
When it’s all said and done, young people are really listening to what adults have to say and they have reason to expect that they should practice what they preach. If adults or the people in power don’t keep their promises and exploit others, then eventually, a rebellion is going to happen and it doesn’t matter if its regular citizens or high school students.
As we can see, teenagers generally rebel against adults because they don’t feel like they’re understood, and us grown ups get that. We were teenagers once and some of us can forget that (somebody should remind Will Smith that parents do understand). But thanks to Persona 5, we get a more genuine idea as to why teenagers want to rebel, especially when they feel powerless when the people we expect to be an example for us are not leading by example. In the real world, adults can be horrible to minors and we agree that shouldn’t happen. But when you want something bad enough, you have to go out there and get it done yourself when no one else will do it for you. Though it doesn’t have to be through entering a metaverse, it could be finding a proper platform to get your message out.
Just recently, a teenage New Zealand citizen smashed an egg on a local politician for victim blaming Muslims for the tragic shooting there a few weeks prior to drafting this article, and while some may not agree with his actions, it’s nice to see that the present day youth will not give into racism, especially when it’s being dictated by elected officials. With that politician reacting by punching the teenager on worldwide television, that young man exhibited the Phantom Thieves spirit of exposing corrupt adults of their crimes. In addition, if Greta Thunberg can get people to act on something like climate change, then teenagers regardless of their backgrounds can all find a way to make a difference with their raging hormones and not eat tide pods.
Author: Justin "ParaParaJMo" Moriarty
Hello, I am originally from the states and have lived in Japan since 2009. Though I watched Robotech and Voltron as a child, I officially became an anime fan in 1994 through Dragon Ball Z during a trip to the Philippines. In addition to anime, I also love tokusatsu, video games, music, and martial arts. よろしくお願いします
Top 5 Anime by Justin "ParaParaJMo" Moriarty
Persona 5 the Animation Mid-Season Review – The Phantom Thieves’ Beginnings
6 Anime Like Persona 5 The Animation [Recommendations]
Everything Wrong with Persona 5 The Animation
Persona 5 The Animation Review – A Brief Glimpse Into The Metaverse
Top 10 Heart Stealing Characters in Persona 5
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Video Game Review
Horror And Sons
Horror, Classic Sci-Fi, + B-Movie Reviews, And A Few Other Things
Halloween Horrors 2019
HH2019: #12 – Roger Braden of Valley Nightmares on “Innocent Blood” (1992)
Date: October 14, 2019Author: Horror And Sons 1 Comment
One of my favorite things about the Halloween Horrors series is seeing just what topics our contributors choose to write about each year. There are always sure to be a few bigger name films that get covered, just as there are always a few obscurities added to the list as well. And then, there are those titles that fit somewhere in-between. These are films that aren’t the classics that everyone has heard of and seen a dozen or more times, but also aren’t those films that readers tend to have to look up on IMDB because they have never heard of them.
Our good friend, Roger Braden of Valley Nightmares, chose such a film for last year’s series with his piece on 1977’s The Car. He returns once again this year (his 3rd year as part of our series) with another film that quite a few may remember, but (if box office results are any indication) few actually bothered to see upon its initial release…. 1992’s Innocent Blood. Since then, the film has developed a small collection of fans, but still hasn’t managed to find a sizable cult following. Who knows? Maybe this piece will help change that. Ehh, maybe not.
Even if it doesn’t, Mr. Braden has been a great friend to me and an ardent supporter of Horror And Sons, so it’s always an honor to have him be a part of our annual series!
By Roger Braden
The Horror and Sons randomizer selected the letter “I” for me and I was relieved and then downright thrilled to have the letter. I sat down at my desk and wrote down about 15 titles immediately, messaged H&S and said “Hell yes, that’s my letter, no re-draw for me!”. Then, it was all about which movie to write about, and “Innocent Blood” kept rising to the top. There are a lot of classic horror flicks that start with the letter “I”, but I’ve always been someone who likes going down a different path, so that’s where I went.
Innocent Blood was directed by John Landis, who one could argue was THE director to have from the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s. You know his stuff; Animal House, The Blues Brothers, An American Werewolf In London, Coming to America, & Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” to name a few. He was working with Disney, making videos and documentaries for MJ, Paul McCartney, and B.B. King as well. Other than the horrible incident that claimed three lives while filming his segment of Twilight Zone: The Movie, the dude could seemingly do nothing but make hits. Then the 1990s arrived.
Oscar (1991), was Landis’ first feature after Coming to America, and the $35 million comedy starring Sylvester Stallone as a gangster changing his ways was a bomb. (Although, I will say that the film has aged well and isn’t nearly as bad as first thought).
Landis’ next feature was Innocent Blood, the film I chose to write about. Given a $20 million budget this time, Landis dipped back into the horror genre that he was so successful with in “American Werewolf“. However, the audience was confused with this one, and they stayed away in droves. The film grossed less than $5 million U.S. and had multiple ad campaigns trying to tie it into the success of his earlier films. The ad campaigns bombed as well.
Innocent Blood is about Marie (the smoking hot Anne Parillaud), a vampire from France who laments her life in an opening monolog while she wanders around her apartment nude. She’s lonely and she hates taking lives, which is why she now only seeks out criminals and those that hurt people. She refuses to take innocent blood despite her thirst.
Enter Sal “The Shark” Macelli (a fantastic Robert Loggia), Pittsburgh’s most ruthless and violent mob boss. His face and his crew’s deeds are splashed all over the TV and papers. Marie considers him “a beast” and has found her next target. Yet, little does Marie know, the Feds have an inside guy in Sal’s crew, Joe (Anthony Lapaglia), who has been building a case against Sal and the mob.
It’s a cold, snowy night when petite, “lost”, and spunky Marie makes herself known on the street outside Sal’s hangout. After some confrontation, one of Sal’s underbosses offers her a ride home. She accepts. After a tension filled drive to an overlook of the city, Marie reveals herself to the goon, and it’s fantastic. After feeding, she has to “always finish, disconnect the central nervous system” and blows his head off with a shotgun. When he’s found the next morning, Joe blows his cover checking out the scene. This pisses off the Feds, who then plaster his face to the media and announce the end of Sal’s reign of terror.
On what appears to be the very next night, Marie is able to get Sal’s attention and she agrees to go with him and relax at one of his hideaways in the city. All is well until Sal offers Marie some food with garlic in it, which makes her run to the bathroom sick. When Sal checks on her, a Hell of a fight breaks out between the two and Marie manages to shred Sal’s neck, but Sal shoots her in the process. With Sal’s driver as a witness and having been wounded, Marie has no resort but to escape the scene, but leaves the job on Sal unfinished.
The movie really starts changing gears after this.
The police, reporters, and Sal’s guys all arrive at the hideaway, as does dumbass Joe, who insists on asking his ex “friends” questions about what happened as they resist putting a bullet in his head. Joe is allowed to roam around the inside and outside of the crime scene, hoping to find clues to the person who killed Sal. With Sal dead, the cases Joe had against him and his crew are dead too. Of course, Joe finds Marie hiding on the roof of the house. She scares him, then leaps off the roof and escapes. I have no idea why she didn’t do this earlier. Joe follows after her, and in a scene that diminishes Marie’s escape to refuge, he finds her only to be warned, “Stay away or I will kill you!”
Complete insanity ensues.
Sal is delivered to the hospital morgue. The mortician (Frank Oz!) starts to go about his business when Sal awakes… and he’s pissed! After smashing around the morgue, he runs away. Outside, a press conference is being set up on the hospital entrance stairs with police, reporters, and the mob all in attendance. Sal exits the hospital, runs across the backdrop, and back into the hospital. The mortician and a security guard follow. Sal goes unnoticied in the hospital, exits through a rear door, hijacks a car, and gets away.
And now I have to go back into a commentary mode and ask questions while providing the high/lowlights of the film. There is simply too much going on in this movie.
Is this a gangster/noir film? Yep. The vehicles, style and look is classic noir with a modern twist. The soundtrack is loaded with Frank Sinatra and other cliched “mob music”. There is also one Hell of a compelling movie involving Sal and his crew that was begging to be made.
Is this a “Horror” flick? Not really. And it’s a shame, really, because there is a solid and fun horror framework here. Marie is a great character. Sal, after changing, realizes he’s stronger than ever and can hardly wait to share the strength with his crew so that they can take the city over. While often shown in a humorous light, there is a sense of evil at work here. The vampires (the word is never said in the movie) look great with their colored eyes. Special effects/gore from Steve Johnson are top notch and the film has several well timed jump scares.
Is this a comedy? Absolutely. There are some laugh out loud moments, snickers, and inside jokes throughout the movie. Landis’ casting decisions help this along as well. Sam Raimi, Tom Savini, Dario Argento, Angela Bassett, Forrest Ackerman, Linnea Quigley, Luis Guzman, and others all have roles of varying lengths. Don Rickles plays Sal’s lawyer, and is great in a role that he plays straight, which actually adds to the comedy as things take a turn for the worst.
Which brings us to the last question. Is this a love story? Unfortunately, yes. While that worked well with “American Werewolf“, here it just helps to bog the story down. The attraction between Marie and Joe doesn’t work, despite their fairly graphic and hot sex scene. Honestly, you could cut out the entire love story angle and had a far different and shorter film.
Landis also can’t help but mess with the vampire mythos as well. You can see them in mirrors, but sunlight is still deadly to them. However, the worst is, these vampires can be killed in normal ways. Regular bullets work, break their neck… it really makes no sense. And true to Landis’ style the end credits mention that “no animal, person, or vampire were harmed while making this film”.
Despite all my bitching, I do like this film quite a bit. It looks fantastic, and is well acted for the most part. Loggia absolutely steals the film! I totally understand why the film bombed. It’s all over the place, and it wasn’t “American Werewolf 2”. By all means, check the film out, as much to see what it is, but also to see what it could have been. This was pretty much the swan song for John Landis. After the film bombed in the U.S., overseas distributors released the film as “A French Vampire in America“. When Landis arrived to promote the film he was shocked, and pissed off about the change in title as no one had let him know. Since 1992, other than music videos and some work in TV and for Disney, Landis’ two “biggest” features have been Beverly Hills Cop 3 and Blues Brothers 2000.
Warner Archive released an unrated Blu in 2017 that they dubbed the “International Version”. It’s only a couple minutes longer than the original version, but does feature more nudity, a longer sex scene, and the gore effects are lingered on longer.
An American Werewolf In LondonAnne ParillaudDon RicklesHalloween HorrorsInnocent BloodJohn LandisRobert LoggiaRoger BradenValley Nightmaresvampires
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One thought on “HH2019: #12 – Roger Braden of Valley Nightmares on “Innocent Blood” (1992)”
Mike Grabowwski says:
Great write-up. I will definitely be checking this movie out. You drew me into the movie by your article with the beginning of what happens and sounds like its up my alley. Then you sorta crap on the movie and it makes me want to watch it to decide for myself. I see what you did their. threw the lure, teased me with the lure and then reeled me in to watching it. LOL. Great Article thanks!
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Lizzie Wraith GB & NI international to race Mourne Skyline MTR
Today (Monday 3rd August 2015), NiRunning and Mourne Skyline MTR are pleased to announce that current Great Britain & Northern Ireland international and podium finisher at the recent Dragons Back 200 mile Ultra, Lizzie Wraith, will race this year’s Mourne Skyline Mountain-Trail Race. Lizzie, a previous winner of the Lakeland 100 Ultra, will join this year’s Lakeland 100 and Lakeland 50 winners Paul Tierney and Jayson Cayvill on the start line, as well as a plethora of talent form around the globe.
The North Face Lavaredo Ultra Trail podium finisher is enthusiastic about taking on the another event in the Skyrunning UK Series after victory at last year’s 3X3 Ultra in Keswick. Speaking about the Mourne Skyline MTR, Lizzie said:
“I’m really looking forward to running the Mourne Skyline MTR as I’ve never been to Ireland and it’s been on my bucket list for a long time. The terrain looks really beautiful and technical which is what I love, however 35km is a bit of a sprint for me, I’d better start doing some speed-work!”
Mourne Skyline MTR Race Director Ryan Maxwell added:
“To have an athlete of Lizzie’s stature compete at the event is a huge bonus for everyone. Lizzie has performed well at some of the world’s toughest events – look at her performance at the recent Dragons Back Race – going into that off the back of being ill and not only finishing, but claiming a top three finish, was incredible. Again this year, the entry list reads like a ‘who’s who’ of mountain-trail running in the UK and Ireland which not only excites me, but makes me appreciate the support we have received from everyone. There will be athletes from fourteen countries coming to Northern Ireland to take part in the Mourne Skyline MTR (and ‘GTR’), which as the Race Director makes me extremely proud. We hope to add further additions to the line-up in the coming weeks and will do our utmost to ensure that the race exceeds expectations.”
Although the Mourne Skyline MTR is now full (except for elite entry applications), you can still be part of an excellent weekend of racing by taking on the Mourne Skyline ‘Granite Trail Race’, a 2 mile uphill only night time race, which will take place on Friday 23rd October 2015 (7.30pm).
More information is available on the official race website HERE.
This entry was posted in Uncategorized and tagged berghaus, ISF, lizzie wraith, mourne, skyline mtr, Skyrunning, wraith by talkultra. Bookmark the permalink.
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IC4IJ
521 N Euclid Ave. Ontario CA 91762
With Joe Biden as President we must recommit our fight to protect immigrant lives
General, Press Release / By jessica
For Immediate Release //
Contact: Armando Carmona, media@ic4ij.org, (951) 966-6500
San Bernardino, CA –
On Saturday, November 7th, Joseph Biden won the 2020 Presidency of the United States. This historic presidential election result is a consequence of the ongoing efforts by advocacy groups and community power who have consistently fought against unjust, anti-immigrant policies that prompted violent acts against immigrant community members. Black and Latino voter turnout throughout the country was critical in deciding this election, especially in critical states like Georgia, Pennsylvania, & Arizona. The last 4 days have shown that every vote matters and that community members are taking part in the democratic process. Now, we must come together again to ensure our communities are not left behind.
A change in guard does not erase the decades of anti-immigrant racism in the US. The Obama- Biden administration, which was in power from 2008-2015, separated millions of families and built a massive deportation machine. With a new administration, immigrant communities will continue demanding the protections and rights of all immigrants, especially for those that are currently being held by ICE and are subject to their horrible treatment.
The Inland Coalition for Immigrant Justice issued the following statement:
“This presidential election result does not mean our work is done. This result will push us even more to free all immigrants in detention centers and fight to stop ALL deportations. With a new President in power, who already has experienced failed immigration policies, we will demand pro-immigrant policy changes as a priority in the first year in office. Our Coalition is stronger than ever and we will continue advancing and protecting immigrant justice in the Inland Empire.” said Javier Hernandez, Director of the Inland Coalition for Immigrant Justice
During a presidential debate, Joe Biden stated that if elected he will create a pathway to the more than 11 million undocumented people who live in the US. We must ensure that this promise is not watered down and that our people are not treated as bargaining chips for greater enforcement.
“Within 100 days I’m going to send the United States Congress a pathway to citizenship for over 11 million undocumented people” said President Joe Biden in the October 22nd Presidential debate.
We will hold President Biden accountable to his promises. President Biden has expressed that he will do what he can to help immigrants into a pathway to citizenship. This new administration will not stop us from fighting and advocating for immigrants rights. As long as immigrants continue to be caged, incarcerated, and treated inhumanely, the Inland Coalition for Immigrant Justice will continue to fight until all immigrants are released and ensure our immigrant communities feel safe.
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Tag Archives: Archangel Ariel
The House of Meraia
Posted on April 25, 2017 by Joanna
Spica (Alpha Virginis), brightest star in Virgo.
This year ‘has wings on’, and before April flies away completely, we’ll dedicate this post to the House of Meraia, the soul group which Ashura and I focus our light and energy from and through in this region of this galaxy. As Source Beings, like all of you reading this, we have soul expressions in multiple universes and galaxies, stars and planets, within various dimensions, but today we’ll speak from this particular ‘soul focus group’ which dwells in and radiates a concentrated flow of Resurrection light and Rebirthing energies. Also known as the House of Michael&Mary (Archangel Michael&Mother Mary), the hub of its Light in this region can be seen in the great Bow of the Mother that runs from the twin stars Alcor&Mizar in Ursa Major (the Bear constellation/Big Dipper), where the Alectian and Alexian star families live, through the angelic centrepoint of Arcturus, to the star Spica in the ‘hip of the Virgin’ (Virgo constellation).
Spica from Latin means ‘ear’, the ear of grain symbolizing the ancient Mother Goddess of bountiful seeding and growth of life, Ceres/Demeter…and the feminine spiral/funnel from which the external and inner spirals of the ear are reflected in our 3D forms, the spiral which receives the ‘tones of life’, in both a physical and higher vibrational sense: ‘Spica speaks to the open ear’. Spica in Hebrew is Zerah, meaning ‘seed’…the Seed of the Virgin/Virgo. Can you feel the deeper metaphor of the Virgin Mary’s conception of Jesus, that she conceived by ‘hearing the word of God‘ through the Lily of Archangel Gabriel (which in some versions of the story, he touched to her ear), and the birth and resurrection pathway initiated from that hearing – sacred sound of Source funnelling into and through the divine feminine spiral?
Spica and Arcturus also form a right-angled triangle with Regulus, the ‘heart star’ of Leo, the lion constellation, called the Spring Triangle:
This triune ‘right angle’ mirrors the two soul group streams that merged to form the House of Meraia; Angelic souls and Leonine souls, the galactic Houses of Asha and Ara that merged to become one House, which created a third energy, the Meraia, from the angels of Asha (energies of eternal rebirth like a phoenix from the ashes) and the leonines of Ara (energies of infinite life creation and restoration). The merged soul group energy pools together the flows of creation and rebirth into resurrection and ascension, the golden and the white lights blended and shielded in the Mother’s Bow of Blue….which is expressed in the sacred geometric form of the Vesica Piscis:
From Sananda: ‘The Ash and the Ar together make a Star’ (Ashar), and this star is of both the 6-point star energy of harmony and bliss, through gratitude and appreciation, and the 7-point star energy of joyful love through the flow of divine grace. Together, the 6+7 bring through the 13th dimensional pure Light spiral that we call ‘Ascension’, because it realigns life to the original ‘goldenprint of Love’, through the ring of 12 dimensions, 12 rays, 12 signs etc. The 6 and the 7 can be seen in the Flower of Life, which forms or ‘flowers’ from the vesica piscis, and returns to it, and in the 7-point star which we have shown before in purple light across the Meri’Ashar (Mary’s Star, our lightship), and which is now in golden light across the ship, in full resurrection mode:
http://www.dreamstime.com/stock-images-vesica-piscis-flower-life-shape-can-be-derived-bladder-fish-latin-also-called-mandorla-italian-means-image43114354
Through the divine feminine mandorla/portal (vesica) swims the fish (piscis), to which the symbol of the fish for Sananda in his Jesus form is metaphysically connected. Jesus as the ‘Lion of God’, Archangel Ariel – meaning ‘Archangel Lion of God’, Ashtar’s golden lightship, the Phoenix, and his Twin Flame Immara (Isis)’s lightship the Sophia/White Phoenix, all show aspects of the meeting and merging of the Ara&Asha in the House of Michael&Mary, in the blue light of protection. Archangel Michael flows the divine masculine blue sword of Truth that shears away darkness/distorted light, and Mary spreads the divine feminine blue cloak, depicted since medieval times as the ‘Protecting Veil’…through the blue safely flows the light of golden-white. ‘God moved upon the waters’, and through the feminine waters, ‘Mare’ (Ma-Ray), Latin for sea, flows the third energy of the Divine Child, as the fish. From Sananda: ‘Through the Mother comes the Son, and through the Son comes the Mother.’
There is another key star formation we’ll include here, called the Great Diamond or the Diamond of Virgo, as its base point is at Spica, with Arcturus and Denebola (tail of Leo) to the sides, and Cor Caroli, alpha star of Canes Venatici (the ‘hunting dogs’ of the herdsman Bootes), in relation to the ‘Arcturian Diamond’ input into this area, and to the constellation nestled within the protecting diamond light, Coma Berenices. This constellation is named after a historical figure, who dedicated her hair ‘to all the gods’. Hair has many symbolic meanings, often connected with ‘fate’, such as the belief of karma being carried in the hair, subtle connections of hair to the ‘otherworld’, and to the ancient Triple Goddess represented as the Three Fates, the spinner, weaver and cutter of the cloth. Berenice dedicating her hair to the gods, within the pure protecting light of the Great Diamond, symbolizes uplifting the fate of the ‘mortal coil’ (limited DNA), resurrecting it through eternal light of the gods (the Divine essence within us all), and is, we could say, a storehouse of strands of high light, in the Diamond of Virgo – seen as both maiden and mother. ‘Through the Mother comes the Daughter, and through the Daughter comes the Mother.’
The Diamond comes through the Vesica Piscis, as the Divine Feminine shield:
This is the basis and underlying energy of a practice given by Archangel Michael a few years ago, the Blue Diamond of Protection, which you can read on this page…and feel free to use it!
As in the heavens, so on the Earth; this planet has particular places (flow lines and node points that are part of its natural network of light/life force) where the Meraia are closely connected, such as the St Michael&Mary Leyline (mapped through Britain, but it runs as a ‘sine wave’ all around the planet)…and these alignments are gradually being cleared of blockages and disturbances, restored to their higher light flows (thank you, teams on Earth, within the Earth and above)…but of course, we can all connect with beings of highest Love, including our own higher soul aspects, from wherever we are simply by asking with love in our hearts. Remember your Inner Heart is your natural divine meeting place/space, and your deepest, purest place for healing and creating in merge with your soul’s purpose.
Here are some recent photos through which the Meraia energies can be seen and felt ‘in action’: firstly on March 20th this was the sky over my house before and after a meditation connected with clearing and relighting planetary flow lines. Before the meditation, the sky was thick with chemtrails that combined with smoke to form this heavy blanket:
After meditating and connecting with Immara and Ashtar, and the phoenix rebirth energies, the focus and reflection in the sky overhead could be seen as ‘white phoenix’ angelic forms in the clouds, neutralizing toxins and dissolving the blanket:
And a beautiful greeting and energy alignment on Easter Saturday from close family members, with white phoenix energies, divine feminine, the white lily of Archangel Gabriel, and leonine energies. This began with a little ‘walking angel’ cloud, with a ship above it, and Ashura’s silver-white pod-ship coming in (right-hand top of the frame):
Followed by this beautiful ‘cloud burst’ above the treetops, with the ‘trinity-petaled white lily’ opening in the centre of phoenix flame:
On its side, you can see the outline of a dove, flying into the open petals of the lily, with Ashura’s little silver-white ship just beneath the cloud (bottom of centre frame):
So we’ll end this post with a request/intention I use every day as part of my morning meditation:
Beloved Archangel Michael & Mother Mary, please keep your blue cloak of light around me throughout this day and night, and help me to stay in divine truth, clarity, discernment, steadfastness, courage, faith and joy. I love you, thank you.
We’ll share more about Virgo, Spica and the path of Jupiter in relation to planetary ascension soon. We love and greet you as souls of Source, lights of transformation….as are you,
Joanna&Ashura, &Tanabor ❤
Through the Mother comes the Sun, and through the Sun comes the Mother.
Posted in Angels, Arcturians, Arnap/Ashura, Ascension, Ashtar, Ashtar Command, Dimensions, Gaia, Intergalactic Confederation, Jesus Immanuel Sananda, Lightships, Mythology, Sacred Geometry & Math, Sky Signs | Tagged aliens, angels, Archangel Ariel, Archangel Gabriel, Archangel Michael, archangels, Arcturians, ascension, Ashtar, Ashtar Command, Ashura, Ceres, chemtrails, Demeter, Divine Feminine, ETs, flower of life, Galactic Federation, guides, Intergalactic Confederation, Isis, Jesus, leylines, lightships, Mother Mary, phoenix, planetary ascension, resurrection, Sananda, Spica, Spicans, spiritual growth, spirituality, St Michael and Mary leyline, star family, UFOs, vesica piscis, Virgo | 7 Replies
Antares & the Golden Light of Lyra
Today’s post will focus with the feline beings of Antares, a nearby constellation named Ara, and the restoration of the ‘golden light of Lyra’. Translating into a linear time perspective, during Lyra’s first Golden Age, leonine beings who had settled on Avyon, a planet of the star Vega, flourished. From their own subtle light-DNA they created feline sub-species, then humans, who spread to the planets Ruat and Veruna (also heard as Ruatia and Velonia by some tuning into the Lyran energies), and to a beautiful planet of the nearby star Lucida Anseris. The first Galactic Federation of star systems and planets in the Milky Way was formed, the Federation of Lyra, in an era of peaceful growth, unity and creation. As the polarity experience in this galactic region went into a heavier phase (where it ‘stretched’ into adversarial dualism), the Lyran planets were invaded and fell into an interdimensional war in which Avyon was destroyed, and the inhabitants of Avyon, Ruat and Veruna fled into other star systems.
Vega (Alpha Lyra), photo courtesy NASA.
Lyra, Scorpius & Ara circled (Lyra north of celestial equator & Scorpius and Ara south).
Many leonine and feline beings went to Sirius A, and the humans who followed them resettled on planets around Sirius B. Anla’ith, an Antarian tiger being I introduced in this post as the captain of the ship below, speaks of the scattering of the different groups from Lyra and Lucida Anseris as a ‘fanning of rays of the golden light of Lyra’. From upheaval came a spreading of the feline and human beings, and both Sirius and Antares proved to be fruitful havens (felines went to Antares, humans joined them later, from Sirius and the Pleiades) in which they could undertake new endeavours and creations, and eventually re-ascend their frequencies into 5D and higher/faster frequency fields.
Antarian ship Meretahu, captained by Anla’ith, photo taken March 24, 2016.
Some groups of tiger beings went into the constellation Dorado, while another leonine group ~ with tiger, panther and leopard-type beings ~ travelled to the Scorpius system, particularly its alpha star Antares, and the Cat’s Eyes. Humans also eventually settled on Antarian planets (my first Antarian contact was with a human female, Tayitha, on board a ship called the Terebinth, detailed in this post).
Antares, red supergiant 850 x radius of our sun.
Since late 2015 when they first contacted me (& I attuned to their presence) the Antarians have continued to represent their energies and signal their presence with a single large red orb, a beautiful reflection of their star, such as the one below.
Antarian star family projecting their light energies as a red orb, with green Arcturian companions, Jan. 7, 2016.
Recently, Antarian family have been appearing in red orbs with a golden-amber light inside, such as this one on March 30, 2016, golden inside a red rim, symbolizing their Lyran origins.
In this orb, many faces are layered over each other, with feline, leonine, human and doglike features (there are also dog-like beings in Antares ~ all the dog beings are sub-groups from the feline DNA, very close kin, friends and companions, not as humans tend to see their reflections on Earth in a ‘cat versus dog’ way). 🙂
In the enlargement below you may be able to see the face of an eagle, with high vibrational Carian (bird being) energies merged in with Leonine, canine and human faces, all interweaving and unified in the golden light.
As I was feeling into this golden light and the gathering of beings within it, Anla’ith guided me to go further than Scorpius, and directed me to a constellation near the Cat’s Eyes (the two stars in the ‘tail of the scorpion’) called Ara. In Latin, ‘ara’ means ‘altar’. In the root universal sound forms, A-Ra is ‘I’ (Divine I)+ ‘Light’ (of Source)…I am the Light of the Source. As meanings are multi-layered (and multidimensional) in the universal sounds, and light languages that radiate from them, we also have Ar-a: ‘Lion being’ + ‘I’ (small self I), Ar in Archangel Ariel and in the name Arnap, where Ar is both the presence of Lion soul light, and the energy of guiding or steering, as in the path of an ar-row in flight, the masculine energy in motion. When its motion is in alignment with the Divine, steering from/with Source, the feminine energy wraps around it, and unfurls from it, like a flower, or like the golden cloth on the altar, and the altar and cloth are one. (We all have feminine & masculine within us ~ feel the wholeness inside).
The beautiful Westerlund 1 golden cluster in the Ara constellation. Image courtesy NASA.
In Chinese myths, the star Vega is the ‘Weaving Maiden’, which we’ll focus into more deeply later this year. For now, feel how the cloth of golden light woven around Vega and its planets in its Golden Age flew out as golden rays, scattering to many stars, taking with it many divine creational strands. The greater cloth from which forms rise lays over the altar, and is beautifully represented in the image above of a golden star cluster in the heart of the Ara constellation.
The Greek myth of Ara holds another pearl of truth, for they saw Ara (located close to the heart of the Milky Way galaxy) as the altar upon which the gods first made offerings and formed an alliance, in order to defeat Cronus and the Titans. Cronus was identified with Time (Chronus, named Saturn by the Romans ~ Lord of Time/Karma), and this myth is a story of the re-ascension of the ‘children who had fallen into time’ (Cronus eating his children = linear time devours all/mortality) by aligning their energies together, in an alliance of different paths and expressions through many galactic ‘houses’ as one unified family. And it is unity consciousness, love and cooperation, that brings about collective ascensions. Hence tales of immortal ‘gods’, dwelling on the heights of Mt Olympus and drinking golden ambrosia, the elixir of eternal youth. Not all who regained the heights (lifted their vibration back into higher dimensional frequency fields) remained in unity consciousness and Source alignment…there have been many shifts of energies along the way.
Mt Olympus, photographer unknown but appreciated.
On Earth, this can be seen in reversals of concepts of the nature of ‘reality’ in ancient times. We’ll mention just a few here, so you can see/feel the pattern of shifts in polarity, starting with maya, which is now commonly used to denote the ‘illusion of the material world’, with a negative connotation of an illusion which entraps, like a deception or enticement that obscures spirit, to which souls become attached and caught in the wheel of karma. However, in the earliest texts of the Rig Veda (Hindu scriptures), where maya was first described, it was seen as a magical power or attribute of the gods/divine creator beings, their creational shaping of energy into form, aligned with Parama Purusa, the supreme being (Source), very different to its current meaning ~ which was already present in the later Rig Veda texts.
Similarly, the word demiurge as creator being went through a deep reversal. To Plato and the Neoplatonists, the demiurge was the craftsman of the realm of form, and the forms were emulations of pure, eternal Ideas ~ so for instance, behind the myriad variations of form of every tree, there is an ideal of ‘Tree’ that has or is an immutable essence. In the Platonic view, the demiurge was benevolent, and the level of form intrinsically connected to the essences it emulated. Later, the Gnostics and other groups viewing creation through the gaze of dualism, saw the non-material realm as ‘good’ and the material realm as separate and ‘evil’. Therefore the creator of forms, the demiurge, was viewed as a malevolent being, and matter as death, to be escaped from. So demiurge went through the same kind of reversal as maya. This represents shifts of lighter to denser frequencies on/around Earth, and the (illusion of) split/disconnected frequencies the human view has fixed on, through numerous phases.
Connected with the shifts of maya and demiurge is the word ahura from ancient Persia, which became asura in India. Ahura in the Gathas (Zoroastrian scriptures) were creator gods, angelic beings protecting, guiding and helping humans back toward love in divine light. Other beings called divs were to be avoided, as entities that would lead humans astray with false words. In India’s Vedas, once again like maya in the earlier texts and in line with the Gathas, the asura were benevolent creator gods, while the devas were mischievous or malign entities to be avoided (div and deva being the origins of the modern word devil). Yet in later texts, the two were reversed, with the deva seen as benevolent gods and the asura as demons. Can you see and feel the pattern of energies and reversals, a sign of the veiling of unity/unified consciousness which fuels the dividing split gaze? It is this shift away from unity-of-seeing, from wholeness in harmony with Source, that gives a sense of (or belief in) ‘loss of innocence’. The innocence of wholeness and harmony is the dwelling place of inner sense. Where unity is veiled or obscured, the divine, innate inner sense ~ from which wisdom and clarity arise ~ is fragmented (and dimmed light, fractured energies, can slip through the cracks).
From Ashura, my Twin Flame: “Maya, in true essence, is the Mother Song, Ma Ya. It is the singing. Sounding-of-light into forms. It is prime motion of shaping, cupping, wrapping energy into form. It is the threads of ‘hu’ wrapped and merged within the centre of the Ara, as A-Hu-Ra, the sacred I moving sound through light in One motion, Source’s shaping quality. This is true within all dimensions, as you call them. Sound-shaping of energy, the creational expressing. Inpressing light, expressing forms. Forms of density within slower bands, forms of hwae* in swifter bands. (*Note from J: there isn’t a literal translation for hwae – picture it as the shimmering, radiant light quality of how forms appear in higher dimensions).
It is the cloth around the altar, which holds all the ‘golden-prints’ of creation within its weave. Does the cloth of forms appear dark to you, obscuring the altar? Does it appear as translucent gold, its shining threads arising from the Love which is its bedrock, supporting it, and through which you can see the altar itself? What is the altar? It is the offering of Life, from Source’s Heart. Countless bowls and chalices, candles and platters lay upon this altar, arisen from the cloth…stars and constellations they are, galaxies and the many bright universes in dimensional bands, and all life thriving within them. The cloth of golden connects them all, they all rest upon it, nor can they be removed from it. The illusion of the veil of forgetting can be swathed around them ~ the shadow maya, yet this takes much control, for it is a discord to the hu (creation sound).
Control requires energy. Thus those who seek to control fuel their beings on the energy released when souls engaging in the shadow maya as their reality react to the polarity within it. Reacting to the shadow cloth fuels and magnetizes those seeking control. This is why we say, ‘Be in Peace, or be in pieces.’ In true Peace, deep unconditional peace, every soul in existence can see the altar through the cloth, be-hold the grace of the offering, shape in harmony of tones the energy of the offering within the weave as Source’s co-creators and sub-creators. Creating with Love, unconditional love, we are aligned with the Providence of Source, the offering that provides all potentials in all dimensions. Feel this in your heart, create within your inner heart, and the shadow relinquishes its hold. All alignments are revealed to you, for wise creating….and wise creating reveals alignments.”
When we focus our beings, or an aspect of our being, into the shadow maya, we can get transfixed by death, endings, losses, life fading from vitality through linear time. Reacting through that focus holds the shadow to and within our ego selves and emotional fields. Yet in any moment we can turn our focus to the life behind the cloth, which tunes our focus to the golden threads within us and all forms. Here’s another enlargement from the golden Antarian orb above.
In the centre is a pyramid, with many beings around it, which was also reflected in the energy of two beautiful ships that appeared high overhead on April 7th. You can see one of them in the very top left corner of the photo below.
Photo taken April 7, 2016.
Here it is enlarged, a pyramid-ship with a base of golden light, and green, violet and white light above, with the second ship below.
These are Procyon ships…and I would add in the context of this post, that as you look at these ships, feel the rays of the Golden Light of Lyra that spread through star systems (the origin of this pyramid light-form), including to the ‘Dog’ systems, Canis Major (of which Sirius is the alpha star) and Canis Minor (with Procyon the alpha star), and re-ascended in/with those star systems and many more.
I’ll end this post with a meditation I did a few years ago, with Ashtar guiding. This is especially for those whose focus goes to death-wish, feelings of loss, hurt or despair. Just feel into this, and the true eternal energy of life, which changes forms, but never ends, is always flowing through the Tree of Source. At the time of this meditation, I was struggling to heal the energies of a lifetime in Atlantis where I had ‘lost my mind’, gone into dark ways, and ended my life by jumping off a cliff. Ashtar met me in my Inner Heart* and stood facing me, hands touching. We joined inner eye to inner eye and he asked me to ‘walk into his eye’, so what I visualized was a tiny me walking over a bridge from my inner eye into his. IN there, we stood side by side on the ledge of a great waterfall in space, with the water falling endlessly into a bottomless abyss, a void of blackness. Ashtar said to look into the void, and asked what did I see? As soon as I looked over the edge, the seemingly endless darkness was filled with shimmers of light, moving here and there, rainbow lights, golden lights, white lights, it was literally teeming with the infinite energy of Love, with infinite potentials of Life, and I realized in that moment that the void was an illusion. Now, I perceive it as the background of the shadow maya, seen from the focus of separated/veiled ‘self’. Then I looked out across the infinite playing, dancing field of light, and saw stars and constellations beyond counting. Beside me, Ashtar’s gaze was turned to them, and seeing through his Eye, his ‘I’, I felt very deeply his knowing of each one of them, and his love for them all. Which helped me greatly, from the sad focus point I was ‘in’, to remember and see and feel once again the wholeness of Life, and the pure innocence of my soul, within and beholding the All, in the light of creation. Then the golden light could open within me again, and blossom. It could merge my awareness and inner sense into my multi-dimensional whole again…and touch that lightness through to ‘3-4D self’.
In hindsight, I know I was’ weaving my way’ back from the hold of the shadow maya into the golden rays of Source, specifically along the ‘Lyran Ray’, when I wove the tapestry below, of Orpheus and his Angel returning to Light from the underworld. (Orpheus’s lyre became the constellation Lyra in the Greek myths).
It is said that at the tiniest level, the nucleus of every atom is a black hole, and black holes consume light. Yet what is beyond the event horizon, dear friends, what is beyond time, and (the appearance of) ’empty’ dark space? If you look further, into the heart of Source’s offering, which lives in your own Inner Heart, you will find so much more…..and that is your adventure, within this vast shared weaving of us all. 🙂
Finally, a gift from last night ~ a beautiful Lyran light gold orb, with many dear ones within it.
Lyran orb, photo taken April 15, 2016.
In this enlargement, maybe you can see in the upper area, Ashura’s energy, represented as the face and antlers of a stag.
And his white light shining…with more friends close by.
Love and Joy to you all, and with deepest love and thanks to Ashtar & all our family of the stars,
Joanna & Ashura. 💛
*If you’re unfamiliar with ‘going into your Inner Heart’ please read this page.
*If you haven’t read previous posts, you can read more about Ashura here, and on the Shem Arua and Mary’s Star pages.
Posted in Angels, Antarians, Arcturians, Arnap/Ashura, Ascension, Ashtar, Ashtar Command, Dimensions, Gaia, Intergalactic Confederation, Lightships, Lyrans, Mythology, Orbs, Sirians | Tagged ahura, aliens, angels, Antarians, Archangel Ariel, archangels, Ariel, Arnap, ascension, Ashtar, Ashtar Command, Ashura, asura, Avyon, Cronus, demiurge, ETs, ETVs, extraterrestials, Galactic Federation, gods, higher dimensions, immortals, Intergalactic Confederation, leonine beings, lightships, Lyrans, maya, mythology, orbs, Orpheus, Sirians, spiritual guides, spirituality, Twin Flames, Twin Souls, UFOs | 19 Replies
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District court invalidates releases signed by employees discouraged from joining FLSA collective
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By Ronald Miller, J.D.
Releases signed by mortuary drivers after the filing of a collective action alleging that they were misclassified as independent contractors were invalided by a federal district court in California. During the opt-in period, an employer began contacting putative class members and offered to settle their claims outside the litigation. Finding that the employer engaged in ex parte communications that discouraged drivers from participating in the lawsuit, and provided drivers with a misleading and inaccurate release, the court concluded that the releases signed by the employees were invalid (Johnson v. Serenity Transportation, Inc., September 25, 2017, Corley, J.).
Mortuary drivers brought an FLSA collective action alleging that they were misclassified as to independent contractors and denied benefits of the FLSA and California’s wage-and-hour-laws. On March 16, 2016, the drivers filed a motion for conditional certification of their claims. Currently, 28 drivers have joined in the collective action, including two named plaintiffs. About 30 days into the collective action opt-in period, the employer began contacting putative class members in an attempt to secure their exclusion from this litigation. Among other things, the employer sent drivers a letter concerning the lawsuit, and a “Settlement and Release Agreement.”
Settlement offer and release. The letter stated that “a settlement offer has been structured which is intended to provide you with compensation in return for complete release of all potential claims related to this lawsuit.” It asserted that the employer has complied with all state and federal wage and hour laws, and informed the driver that a copy of the amended complaint could be obtained, and referenced the conditional certification notice that the drivers should have received. The letter described litigation as an uncertain process for all those involved, and explained that because of the “time, expense, and uncertainties of litigation,” the employer had “decided to offer monetary compensation to you to resolve these potential issues with you.”
The release accompanying the letter stated that the payment is for “any and all claims that Driver has, had or could have had arising out of the Ongoing Litigation or in any way related thereto.” Moreover, it provided that the driver agreed to “Opt-Out of the Ongoing Litigation and not participate in future.”
Discouragement from participating in lawsuit. Additionally, the drivers alleged that the employer held a meeting in March 2016 in which it discouraged them from participating in the lawsuit. Specifically, the employer warned the drivers that if they participated in the lawsuit, it would have to take them off of rotation and terminate their contract because participation in the lawsuit would be a conflict of interest. Other employees reported that the employer often spoke about the lawsuit, and discouraged employees from participating in the litigation. The employer commented that anyone who joined the lawsuit would no longer work at the company because of a conflict of interest. Thereafter, the employer brought up the release almost every time he encountered a certain employee. He further told the employee that if he did not sign the release he was not going to have a good work environment.
The employer’s COO approached a former employee at his new workplace, after he had already left the company. The former employee was presented with the release and a $100 check and informed that the employer wanted to pay him money for “unpaid hours for meetings.”
Every driver who was working for the employer during the opt-in period signed the release and did not opt in to the lawsuit. The executed releases reflect varying amounts of payment as compensation. By contrast, 51 percent of former drivers opted into the lawsuit.
Releases invalid. Now pending before the court was a motion to invalidate releases signed by the drivers. Here, the court found that the employer engaged in ex parte communications that discouraged drivers from participating in the lawsuit, and provided drivers with a misleading and inaccurate release. First, the court credited the employees’ accounts that the employer held a drivers’ meeting in which they were told that anyone who joined the lawsuit would have a conflict of interest, and could not work for the employer. Moreover, those accounts were consistent with the fact that not a single current driver opted in to the lawsuit, while 51 percent of former drivers did so.
Further, a text message to an employee supported a finding that the employer discouraged drivers from participating in the lawsuit. Specifically, after the employee left the employer’s employ and joined the lawsuit, the employer texted that he had “screwed him” again. Additionally, another employee’s testimony that the employer hounded him for weeks about signing the release supported a finding that the employer engaged in a campaign to discourage drivers from participating in the lawsuit. Moreover, the undisputed fact that the employer sent its COO to a former employee’s new job to get him to sign a release was further evidence that the employer actively discouraged drivers from joining this action. Consequently, because the court found that the employer actively discouraged current drivers from participating in this lawsuit, their releases were invalidated and a curative notice issued.
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Beit Lahia Gaza City Gaza Siege Gaza Strip Human Interest Human rights Khan Younis News Report
Israel Continues Heavy Bombardment of the Gaza Strip
Israeli combat helicopters, late Thursday night struck a site west of Khan Younis city in the southern enclave with at least six missiles, the Palestinian WAFA News Agency reported.
Israeli warplanes, early Friday morning, bombed several sites across the besieged Gaza Strip, according to WAFA correspondent.
He said that Israeli military jets fired three missiles at a site west of Gaza city, in the central Strip, causing heavy destruction to the site as well as to nearby homes.
Meanwhile, Israeli tanks fired artillery shells against farmlands to the east of Gaza city.
The Israeli Air Force also fired two missiles and struck a site near Beit Lahia town in the north, causing major damage to the site and to adjacent houses.
One Palestinian farmer was moderately injured during the assault on farmlands, located east of Khan Younis, the Palestinian Information Center reported.
The condition of the wounded man was not known at the time of this report.
Local sources said that Israel’s pre-dawn bombardment focused on the area surrounding Khan Younis, while other airstrikes hit the central Strip, near Gaza City, as well as Beit Lahia in the north.
Sources added that Palestinian resistance groups responded to the attack by firing rockets towards Israeli settlements, 3 of which were intercepted by Israel’s missile defense system, known as the Iron Dome.
For nearly two weeks now, Israel has been bombarding and shelling the coastal enclave, as well as tightening the already strict siege. The Israeli military is using excessive force on a population with no army, no navy, and no air-force.
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PAUSE FOR NOW … Congress in distress, but no firefighting yet amid smoke coming out of grand old tricolour super-structure
Prem C June 20, 2019 Uncategorized
NEWS CONGRESS
Kodikunnil Suresh
NEW DELHI: The Congress party is largely in a state of paralysis, but some important decisions are being taken too. Senior Congress parliamentarian, Kodikunnil Suresh who represents Mavelikkara LS constituency in Kerala will be the chief whip of the party in the lower house. He is seven-time MP in the house and among the senior-most. He is also working president of the Congress in Kerala. His name had cropped up for the party’s floor leader post, but it went finally to a five-time MP from West Bengal and former PCC chief, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury. He is a former Union minister of state for Railways.
Rahul Gandhi has reiterated on Thursday that he would not hold the post of Congress president. Now would he play any role in the selection of a president, he was quoted by a TV channel as saying. There is no clarity as to who the party chief would be. As things stand now, both Rahul and Priyanka are out of the picture. So is Sonia Gandhi. All the three would jointly back someone else but chances are also that Rahul Gandhi would be persuaded to remain as president for a little while more. Congressmen are at a loss to understand the mind of Rahul Gandhi, as he has declined to be the party’s floor leader in the Lok Sabha too. He will, however, remain as the party MP from Wayanad. In the past, Rahul Gandhi had participated in Lok Sabha discussions only rarely.
Congressmen are also bemused by the fact that a powerful orator like Shashi Tharoor has not been given the leadership of the Congress in the Lok Sabha, even as he had proposed himself for the post in case Rahul Gandhi did not come forward to claim it.
Trouble is brewing in the Congress at various fronts. The party is into serious trouble in several states and there’s no one to adjudicate matters now. The Karnataka PCC has been disbanded, and it would now be for a new party chief to reconstitute it even as the JUD-Congress government led by chief minister HD Kumaraswamy is being rocked by Congressmen in the state.
Rumours are that several Congress leaders are interested in making a shift to the BJP on one pretext or the other, but the BJP is not seen to be enthusiastic about extending an open-arms policy towards them. It might admit Congressmen selectively after a while.
With Raul Gandhi in withdrawal mode, one of his confidants, KC Venugopal from Kerala is crest-fallen. Another Kerala leader AK Antony is still in the reckoning of Sonia Gandhi, but there are several reasons why he might not be considered for the party chief’s post. With Rahul Gandhi relying on a new set of leaders, several party veterans had stood in the sidelines when the campaign scene warmed up for the LS polls.
Pranab
Party insiders keep saying it was AK Antony that Sonia Gandhi trusted the most also as he is cool-headed and sincere about his approaches to the family. He is performing the role once performed by Pranab Mukherjee to the family. In fact, Antony enjoys more trust. Pranab’s relationship with the Sonia enterprise was not always good. Even before Sonia’s time, he had quit the Congress and formed his own regional outfit in West Bengal, which proved to be a damp squib. Then he returned to the parent party and remained in ministries and also functioned as chief adviser to the family. Pranab Mukherjee is 83, and not in good health. For one, he is not trusted by the family now; for another, he as former President of the nation cannot come to the help of the party in any capacity.
How about Sharad Pawar? Senior politician and NCP leader Sharad Pawar was in Delhi in recent days. After Rahul Gandhi ruled out his continuation as the Congress president and also insisted that his sister Priyanka Gandhi should not be drawn in as a replacement for him. it appeared there was a leadership vacuum in the grand old party. Rahul Gandhi did not want her to face the same situation he faced as party leader. It is rumoured that Pawar sensed an opportunity. In this context, there were speculations that Pawar might be testing the waters for a return to the Congress and into its leadership. Rahul Gandhi did meet Pawar, but talks proceeded in other directions.
Pawar had quit the Congress party after attempting a coup in the party following Rajiv Gandhi’s demise. Pawar, already in the national politics then after having had a couple of stints as Maharashtra CM, threw in a tantrum, saying Sonia was not acceptable to him as party leader as she was a foreigner. Pawar thought he would get huge support from Congressmen, but he was mistaken. Distraught, he formed the NCP in 1999, which remained as a force to reckon with in western Maharashtra, mainly the Maratha heartland. That scenario too is now changing.
Sharad Pawar
Pawar’s health is not good and his own family members in the party – like daughter Supriya Sule MP, and nephew Ajit Pawar who was senior minister in Maharashtra – do not enjoy clout similar to his when it comes to public acceptance. Yet, she retained the family turf of Baramati for the third time in this Lok Sabha polls, with a margin of victory of over 1,50,000 votes. Ajit Pawar lost the Mawal LS seat by a huge margin, and ran for cover. Pawar’s overall clout is progressively reducing after being in leadership roles for the past half a century. This was evident in this polls too. The NCP won just four out of the total 48 LS seats from Maharashtra in the present polls – one seat less than what it got last time in 2014. NCP men feel only a return to parent party would save them from a disaster. But, the “family” would naturally be wary of Pawar. –IHN-NN
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Student-made robot sets new world record for solving the Rubik’s Cube
Sonia Mendes
Ingenium - Canada's…
Since its invention in the 70s, the Rubik’s Cube has entertained, challenged, and frustrated users around the world. Last month, a pair of students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology devised a robot capable of solving the popular 3D puzzle in an astounding 0.38 seconds. Read the full story – and watch a video that shows the robot in action. http://news.mit.edu/2018/featured-video-solving-rubiks-cube-record-time-0316
How the Canada Science and Technology Museum designed an accessible, modular headphone jack | Innovation150
Accessible headphone jacks aren’t hard to find nowadays, but they’re always built into your average neighbourhood fixtures, like an ATM. This isn’t the most welcoming design since there’s no way to get the device as a standalone product. But the Canada Science and Technology Museum strives for inclusive design, and since they couldn’t buy an accessible headphone jack, their innovators decided to design their own.
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Minimal clinically important differences for the EQ-5D and QWB-SA in Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): results from a Doubly Randomized Preference Trial (DRPT)
Quang A Le1,
Jason N Doctor2,
Lori A Zoellner3 &
Norah C Feeny4
Health and Quality of Life Outcomes volume 11, Article number: 59 (2013) Cite this article
To determine the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) for the health-utility measures EuroQol-5 dimensions (EQ-5D) and Quality of Well Being Self-Administered (QWB-SA) Scale in PTSD patients.
Two hundred patients aged 18 to 65 years with PTSD enrolled in a doubly randomized preference trial (DRPT) examining the treatment and treatment-preference effects between cognitive behavioral therapy and pharmacotherapy with sertraline and completed the EQ-5D and QWB-SA at baseline and 10-week post-treatment. The anchor-based methods utilized a Clinical Global Impression-Improvement (CGI-I) and Clinical Global Impression-Severity. We regressed the changes in EQ-5D and QWB-SA scores on changes in the anchors using ordinary least squares regression. The slopes (beta coefficients) were the rates of change in the anchors as functions of change in EQ-5D and QWB, which represent our estimates of MCID. In addition, we performed receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis to examine the relationship between the changes in EQ-5D and QWB-SA scores and treatment-response status. The MCIDs were estimated from the ROC curve where they best discriminate between treatment responders and non-responders. The distribution-based methods used small to moderate effect size in terms of 0.2 and 0.5 of standard deviation of the pre-treatment EQ-5D and QWB-SA scores.
The anchor-based methods estimated the MCID ranges of 0.05 to 0.08 for the EQ-5D and 0.03 to 0.05 for the QWB. The MCID ranges were higher with the distribution-based methods, ranging from 0.04 to 0.10 for the EQ-5D and 0.02 to 0.05 for the QWB-SA.
The established MCID ranges of EQ-5D and QWB-SA can be a useful tool in assessing meaningful changes in patient’s quality of life for researchers and clinicians, and assisting health-policy makers to make informing decision in mental health treatment.
Clinical trial registration
Clinicaltrials.gov; Identifier: NCT00127673.
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a chronic and debilitating condition, with lifetime prevalence rates ranging from 8%–14% of the US population [1]. Moreover, given recent estimates of PTSD among Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) veterans, there is an unprecedented need for empirically-supported PTSD treatment for military personnel and veterans [2]. PTSD is associated with poor quality of life in multiple health domains [3–5] and also has a huge financial burden [5]. Greenberg and colleagues (1999) [6] reported that through work impairment, hospitalization, and health visits, PTSD was more costly than any other anxiety disorder. Among the 1.64 million veterans returning from OEF and OIF, it is estimated that approximately 300,000 individuals currently suffer from PTSD or major depression, potentially costing $4.0 to $6.2 billion in a two-year time frame [7]. These considerations highlight the substantial impact of PTSD and the need for reliable and valid measures of improved clinical outcomes.
Clinically, the PTSD Symptom Scale-Interview (PSS-I) [8], PTSD Checklist (PCL) [9], and Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS) [10] have been the most commonly used measures for assessing symptomatic improvement/deterioration in clinical trials. In addition, patient-reported outcome (PRO) instruments have been increasingly utilized to supplement to the clinical measures and provide additional information on other health-related quality of life (HRQOL) domains (mobility, self-care, usual activities, pain/discomfort, social, emotional, and physical functions) as well as health utilities [5, 11–14]. For example, to justify the cost of a new intervention in PTSD, health-policy makers would need to determine not only whether the new intervention provides significantly clinical improvement but also whether the new intervention is cost-effective as compared to the current standard treatment. Incorporating generic health-utility measures such as the EQ-5D, QWB-SA, Health Utility Index Mark 3 (HUI3), or Short Form-6 dimensions (SF-6D) can allow comparisons of burden of disease across health conditions as well as the quality-adjusted live years (QALYs), a HRQOL measure used to evaluate the cost-effectiveness for healthcare interventions. Nevertheless, interpretation of a change in HRQOL score from pre- to post-treatment can be confusing to clinicians and other health professionals due to their unfamiliarity with the PRO instruments. In contrast, repeated experience and familiarity with clinical measures such as Body Mass Index (BMI) or blood pressure allow health professionals to make meaningful interpretation of the measures [15]. Thus, by placing the magnitude of change in HRQOL score corresponding to a minimal clinically important difference would be helpful and meaningful for health professionals, patients, health-policy makers as well as other stakeholders [15].
In general, the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) of a PRO instrument is defined as smallest change in a PRO measure that is linked to a clinically relevant difference or change. In other words, MCID is the smallest difference that patients perceived as beneficial or harmful and that would result in a change in treatment [16]. There are two broad methods for estimating the MCID of a PRO instrument: (1) anchor-based methods, which link changes in HRQOL scores to external indicators either clinical or patient-based such as laboratory or physiological measures, and clinician or patient ratings; and (2) distribution-based methods, which estimate MCIDs using small to medium effect sizes based on the distribution of HRQOL scores in a relevant sample [17]. Nevertheless, since no single anchor is ideal and no single method is perfect, it is recommended that multiple approaches from both anchor- and distribution-based methods should be used to estimate the MCID for a PRO instrument [17].
Empirical work on MCIDs for the EQ-5D or QWB-SA has been done on several conditions [15, 18–23]; however it has not performed in mental health disorders, particularly in PTSD. In the current study, we estimated and compared the smallest changes in HRQOL utility scores of EQ-5D and QWB-SA that can be regarded as clinically important in PTSD patients using multiple anchor- and distribution-based approaches.
Data for analysis were from the Optimizing PTSD Treatment (OPT) trial (Clinicaltrials.gov; Identifier: NCT00127673). The OPT trial is a hybrid efficacy-effectiveness trial designed to better understand personalized PTSD treatment in two clinics at University of Washington, Seattle, WA, and Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH. The OPT trial included patients between the age of 18 and 65 years, who were currently diagnosed with primary PTSD based on DSM-IV criteria, with a minimum duration of 12 weeks since the traumatic event and diagnosed using the PTSD Symptom Scale-Interview Version (PSS-I) [8]. Patients were excluded from the trial if they had one of the following: A current diagnosis of schizophrenia or delusional disorder; medically unstable bipolar disorder, depression with psychotic features, or depression severe enough to require immediate psychiatric treatment (e.g. actively suicidal); a current diagnosis of alcohol or substance dependence in the previous three months; an ongoing intimate relationship with perpetrator (in assault cases); unwillingness to discontinue current trauma-focused psychotherapy or anti-depressant medication (depending on the assigned treatment arm) or discontinuation was not medically advisable; either previous nonresponse to prolonged exposure or sertraline; and medical contraindication for the initiation of medication (e.g. pregnancy or lactation). Patients were randomly assigned to either choice or no choice treatment conditions, using a doubly randomized preference trial design (DRPT). In the choice condition, patients chose treatment between prolonged exposure therapy (PE) and pharmacotherapy with sertraline (SER). In the no-choice condition, patients were randomly assigned to either PE or pharmacotherapy (Figure 1). Patients received 10 weeks of acute treatment. Clinical and HRQOL measures were obtained from all willing patients at pre- and post-treatment, and at 3-, 6-, and 12-month follow-up.
The Optimizing PTSD Treatment (OPT) Trial.
HRQOL health-utility instruments
The EQ-5D is a five-item self-administered questionnaire and one of the most widely used generic preference-based measures for estimating health utilities. The measure has 5 health domains (mobility, self-care, usual activities, pain/discomfort, and anxiety/depression), each with three response-levels: no problems, some problems, and severe problems [24]. The scoring system of EQ-5D used in this study was based on the U.S. population-based EQ-5D [25] ranging from -0.11 (all five ED-5D health domains reported extreme problems) to 1 or perfect health (no problems at all five EQ-5D domains), in which zero means dead and negative utility scores represent health states worse than dead.
The QWB-SA is also a common generic preference-based HRQOL measuring health utilities. Overall, the QWB-SA includes five parts: (1) Part I asks about 19 chronic symptoms or problems (yes/no question format), 25 acute physical symptoms and 11 mental health symptoms over the last 3 days (in the format of whether the symptom occurs “yesterday,” “2 days ago,” and/or “3 days ago”); (2) Part II uses a similar format but asks about self-care; (3) Part III asks about mobility; (4) Part IV ask about physical functioning; and (5) Part V asks about social activities. In all, the domain scores are combined into a single index score ranging from 0.09 (lowest possible health state) to 1 for perfect health, with zero means dead [26].
The Clinical Global Impression (CGI) is a brief clinician-rated instrument assessing: (1) severity of illness (CGI-S) using a 7-point Likert scale: 1 or “normal, not mentally ill,” 2 or “borderline mentally ill,” 3 or “mildly mentally ill,” 4 or “moderately mentally ill,” 5 or “markedly mentally ill,” 6 or “severely mentally ill,” and 7 or “among the most extremely mentally ill;” and (2) global improvement or change (CGI-I) also using a 7-point Likert scale: 1 or “very much improved,” 2 or “much improved,” 3 or “minimally improved,” 4 or “no change,” 5 or “slightly worse,” 6 or “much worse,” and 7 or “very much worse [27].
In addition to CGI-S and CGI-I, we also selected the PTSD Symptom Scale-Interview (PSS-I) [8] as our third anchor. Classification of treatment responder or non-responder at 10-week post-treatment was assessed using the PSS-I and CGI-I. The 17-item PSS-I uses DSM-IV symptom criteria; and each symptom is rated on a 0 (not at all) to 3 (5 or more times per week/very much) scale of frequency and/or severity [7]. The absolute cutoff scores of 23 or less on the PSS-I and 3 or lower on the CGI-I define the clinically meaningful improvement [28–30].
To be included in this analysis, a patient had to baseline or pre-treatment and a follow-up assessment of EQ-5D, QWB-SA, CGI-S, CGI-I, and PSS-I. For patients who had multiple follow-up visits, the current analysis included the first follow-up assessment on which all measures completed. All analyses in the study were conducted using Stata release 12.0 (Stata Corp LP, College Station, TX, USA).
Anchor-based approach
Correlation coefficients between changes in EQ-5D scores and changes in anchor measures were determined to confirm the usefulness of the anchors. A correlation coefficient of 0.30 or more is needed in order to be considered a good anchor [17].
For the CGI-I anchor, we grouped “very much improved” with “very much worse,” “much improved” with “much worse,” and “minimally improved” with “slightly worse;” and those on the worsening side of the scale, the sign of the change in HRQOL health-utility scores is reversed, i.e. negative sign to positive and vice versa. We regressed the changes of the EQ-5D and QWB-SA scores on the transformed CGI-I using ordinary least squares method. The slopes (beta coefficients of the regression lines) were the rates of change in the anchor CGI-I as functions of change in EQ-5D and QWB-SA scores, which represented the estimates of the MCID. This method helped to prevent few worsening responses that may adversely affect the slope of the regression line; thus the estimated MCIDs were more stable and applicable to the entire scores of the EQ-5D and QWB-SA as opposed to separate the scores into worsening and improvement [31]. For the CGI-S anchor, to estimate the MCIDs, we simply regressed the changes of the EQ-5D and QWB-SA scores on the change of CGI-S between pre-treatment and follow-up visit.
In our second anchor-based approach, we analyzed the relationship between the changes in EQ-5D and QWB-SA scores and the treatment response status using receiver operating curve (ROC) analysis to estimate the MCIDs. The ROC curves were constructed by plotting the sensitivity (true-positive rate) against the one minus specificity (false-positive rate) at different cut-off points in the continuous HRQOL score changes that distinguished treatment responder and non-responder. The area under the ROC cure (AUC) can be interpreted as the probability of correctly discriminating between the treatment responder and non-responder [32–35]. The AUC ranges from 0.5 (corresponds to no discriminatory ability, i.e. random responding as with a coin flip to determine treatment-response status) to 1.0 (corresponds to perfect discriminatory ability, i.e. perfect prediction). Using ROC curve analysis, the MCIDs were determined based on the optimal cut-off points for the changes in HRQOL scores which maximized the sensitivity and specificity, i.e. point that best discriminated between patients who were treatment responders and those who did not respond to treatment [34, 35].
Distribution-based approach
For distribution-based approach, the MCIDs can be estimated as one half the standard deviations of the pre-treatment EQ-5D and QWB-SA scores. The one half the standard deviation at baseline of a HRQOL measure (or moderate effect size) has been linked to establish the MCID and used widely in literature [36]. Alternatively, a small effect size in terms of 0.2 the standard deviations at pre-treatment EQ-5D and QWB-SA scores were also utilized [37].
Figure 1 provides the consort diagram for the OPT trial’s doubly randomized preference design. Two hundred confirmed PTSD patients were first randomly assigned to the choice (n = 97) and no-choice (n = 103) arms. In the choice arm, 67 patients chose prolonged exposure therapy while 36 patients chose pharmacotherapy with sertraline. In the no-choice arm, patients were randomized again to PE (n = 55) and SER (n = 48). Similar demographic and clinical characteristics were observed across the four arms of the trial (Table 1). In the overall sample, patients were between moderately and markedly mentally ill (mean CGS-S = 4.6), primarily female (76%), middle aged (37.5 years), and did not have 4-year college degree. Additionally, a wide range of EQ-5D (0.17 to 1.0) and QWB-SA scores (0.22 to 0.86) were observed. The overall mean of EQ-5D score was larger than the mean QWB-SA score (0.63 ± 0.19 vs. 0.57 ± 0.11) (Table 1).
Table 1 Baseline demographic and clinical characteristics
Table 2 shows the correlation coefficients between the HRQOL health-utility measures (EQ-5D and QWB-SA) and the clinical anchors (CGI-I, CGI-S, PSS-I, and treatment response status). Overall, all the clinical anchors were strongly correlated with the HRQOL health-utility measures (Spearman’s Rho ranged from 0.35 to 0.44 with significant alpha level < 0.001); thus were considered appropriate anchors.
Table 2 Correlation coefficients between the HRQOL health-utility measures (EQ-5D and QWB-SA) and the clinical anchors (CGI-I, CGI-S, PSS-I, and treatment response status)
One hundred and fifty patients had all assessment of EQ-5D, QWB-SA, CGI-S, CGI-I, and PSS-I at baseline and at least one follow-up visit. Table 3 gives the mean changes of the HRQOL health-utility scores and clinical anchors between pre-treatment and follow-up visit. All the changes in scores had medium or large effect sizes. Of these 155 patients, 130 patients (83.9%) responded to one of the therapies.
Table 3 Changes in HRQOL health-utility scores and clinical anchors between pre-treatment and follow-up
Table 4 summarizes the MCID estimates for the EQ-5D and QWB-SA using multiple approaches from both anchor- and distribution-based methods. The EQ-5D MCID ranges from 0.05 to 0.08 using the anchor-based approach and from 0.04 to 0.10 using distribution-based approach. For the QWB-SA, using the anchor- and distribution-based approaches resulted in the ranges of MCID values from 0.02 to 0.05.
Table 4 Estimated Minimal Clinically Important Differences (MCIDs) and their 95% Confidence Intervals (CIs) for EQ-5D and QWB-SA using both anchor- and distribution-based approaches
Figures 2 and 3 demonstrate the regression lines of the changes of the EQ-5D and QWB-SA scores on the transformed CGI-I and CGI-S. The beta coefficients of the regression lines (the slopes) indicate the estimates of the MCIDs (0.05 to 0.08 for the EQ-5D and 0.03 to 0.05 for the QWB-SA). Figure 4 shows the ROC curves with the optimal cut-off points represented the MCIDs for the EQ-5D and QWB-SA, respectively. For the EQ-5D (AUC = 0.809; 95% CI: 0.721–0.897), at the optimal cut-off point of 0.05 it maximized the sensitivity (0.71) and specificity (0.81). For the QWB-SA (AUC = 0.808; 95% CI: 0.696–0.920), the optimal cut-off point of 0.03 resulted in maximized sensitivity (0.73) and specificity (0.86).
EQ-5D and QWB-SA versus CGI-I-Scatter Plot and Regression Line.
EQ-5D and QWB-SA versus CGI-S-Scatter Plot and Regression Line.
ROC Curves of EQ-5D and QWB-SA with Optimal Cut-off Points.
Understanding changes in scores and how to interpret the changes are critical in the field of HRQOL measurement. Because there is no single gold-standard method for estimating MCID, multiple methods from both anchor- and distribution-based approaches and triangulation of all the methods to establish a possible range of MCID are recommended [17]. Using data from a doubly randomized preference trial in post-traumatic stress disorder patients (the OPT trial), our analysis suggests that the plausible range of MCID values for the HRQOL health-utility EQ-5D and QWB-SA in the population of PTSD patients were between 0.04 and 0.10, and 0.02 to 0.05, respectively. Empirical works on MCIDs for the EQ-5D or QWB-SA has been done on several disease states and were ranged from -0.01 to 0.14 [15, 18–21]. However, those MCID estimates for the EQ-5D were based on the U.K. scoring algorithm or EQ-5D VAS instead of the U.S. scoring method used in the current study. Two studies using the U.S. population-based scoring model reported similar range of MCID values between 0.07 and 0.09 for the EQ-5D utility [18, 20]. For the QWB-SA, our range of MCID values was consistent with previous studies [22, 23].
The clinical anchors (CGI-I, CGI-S, and PSS-I for classifying treatment response status) used in our analysis were most appropriate as they were highly clinically relevant and strongly correlated with the HRQOL health-utility EQ-5D and QWB-SA. In addition, the anchor-based approach utilized well-established methods (OLS regression and ROC curve analysis) to estimate the MCIDs and produced rather similar results even if with different anchors used. The AUCs resulted from ROC analysis were rather large for both EQ-5D and QWB-SA indicating that the HRQOL health-utility measures had great ability to discriminate correctly treatment responders from non-responders. Although multiple methods are necessary to estimate a range of MCID values, Revicki and colleagues (2008) [17] further recommended that results from the anchor-based approach have the most weight due to their clinical advantages over the distribution-based approach. That is, it is more likely that the ranges of MCID values in the population of PTSD patients would be between 0.05 to 0.08 and 0.03 to 0.05 for the EQ-5D and QWB-SA, respectively.
Both EQ-5D and QWB-SA are assumed to measure the same underlying construct of overall HRQOL in terms of health utility. The primary use of HRQOL health-utility measures is to calculate the quality-adjusted life year (QALY), a function of both quantity and quality of life, which is used in health economic evaluations and decision models to help health policy makers to allocate resources effectively. Therefore, it is important to establish their MCIDs and then compare them between the EQ-5D and QWB-SA. Our results showed that the plausible range of MCID values for the EQ-5D was almost twice that of the range for the QWB-SA. It was more likely because the two HRQOL health-utility instruments: (1) measure different health state descriptive systems thus different number of possible health states (243 possible health states for the EQ-5D versus 945 for the QWB-SA), (2) assess preferences for the multiple health states using different methods, i.e. time-trade off method used for the EQ-5D and rating-scale for the QWB-SA, and (3) use different scoring functions.
There were, however, some limitations in the current analysis. First, we did not apply multiple imputation methods for the missing data. Instead, we assumed that any missing assessments of the clinical anchors and HRQOL health-utility measures were missing completely at random (MCAR), meaning that our results would be similar whether or not there were missing data. Secondly, as there were very few worsening cases, the anchor-based methods focused mainly on the responses of those who were clinically improved rather than those worsened. Future work to assess the MCIDs for those who are clinically worsened is in need. Nevertheless, more than often the MCID is used in the context of a treatment effect, thus the MCID results in our study can still be applied to detect minimal clinically improvement in score changes. Finally, in our study, CGI-I questions were given to patients at 10-week post-treatment. The main limitation of using anchor-based approach that relies on global ratings is that these retrospective ratings are potentially susceptible to recall bias. As discussed above, it is important to estimate a range of MCID values from several different methods rather than a point estimate.
Our analysis to determine the plausible ranges of MCID values for the EQ-5D and QWB-SA followed the recommendations by Revicki and colleagues (2008) [17]: longitudinal data were obtained from the clinical trial, multiple anchors were used and they were highly clinically relevant and strongly correlated with the HRQOL instruments, methodologically sound methods utilizing OLS regression and ROC curve analysis were applied in the anchor-based approach, and triangulation of multiple methods using both anchor- and distribution-based approaches to produce plausible ranges of MCID values.
To our knowledge, this analysis is the first attempt to use multiple anchors-based approach as well as distribution-based approach to determine and compare the MCID ranges for the EQ-5D and QWB-SA in the population of PTSD patients. The information can be helpful in interpreting the EQ-5D and QWB-SA scores as well as in planning new trials when estimating power and sample sizes [15]. Furthermore, the established MCID ranges of EQ-5D and QWB-SA can be a useful tool in assessing meaningful changes in patient’s quality of life for researchers and clinicians, and assisting health-policy makers to make informing decision in mental health treatment.
Written informed consent was obtained from the patient for publication of this report and any accompanying images.
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McDonough CM, Tosteson TD, Tosteson ANA, Jette AM, Grove MR, Weinstein JN: A longitudinal comparison of 5 preference-weighted health state classification systems in persons with intervertebral disk herniation. Med Dec Making 2011, 31: 270–280. 10.1177/0272989X10380924
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Kind P: Guidelines for value sets in economic and on-economic studies using EQ-5D. In The Measurement and Valuation of Health Status Using EQ-5D: A European Perspective. Edited by: Brooks R, Rabin R, Charro FD. Amsterdam: the Netherlands Kluwer Academic Publishers; 2003:29–42.
Shaw JW, Johnson JA, Coons SJ: US valuation of the EQ-5D health states: development and testing of the D1 valuation model. Med care 2005, 43: 203–20. 10.1097/00005650-200503000-00003
Kaplan RM, Sieber WJ, Ganiats TG: The Quality of Well-Being Scale: Comparison of the interviewer-administered version with a self-administered questionnaire. Psychol Health 1977, 12: 783–791.
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Jacobson NS, Truax P: Clinical significance: a statistical approach to defining meaningful change in psychotherapy research. J Consult Clin Psychol 1991, 59: 12–19.
Jacobson NS, Roberts LJ, Berns SB, McGlinchey JB: Methods for defining and determining the clinical significance of treatment effects: description, application, and alternatives. J Consult Clin Psychol 1999, 67: 300–307.
Foa EB, Cashman LJ, Jaycox LH, Perry K: The validation of a self-report measure of PTSD: The PTSD Diagnostic Scale. Psychol Assess 1997, 9: 445–451.
Miller KL, Walt JG, Mink DR: Minimal clinically important difference for the ocular surface disease index. Arch Ophthalmol 2010, 128: 94–101. 10.1001/archophthalmol.2009.356
Hanley JA, McNeil BJ: The meaning and use of the area under a receiving operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Radiology 1982, 143: 29–36.
Deyo RA, Diehr P, Patrick DL: Reproducibility and responsiveness of health status measures: statistics and strategies for evaluation. Control Clin Trials 1991, 12: 142S-158S. 10.1016/S0197-2456(05)80019-4
Ward MM, Marx AS, Barry NN: Identification of clinically important changes in health status using receiver operating characteristic curves. J Clin Epidemiol 2000, 53: 279–284. 10.1016/S0895-4356(99)00140-7
Turner D, Schunemann HJ, Griffith LE: Using the entire cohort in the receiver operating characteristic analysis maximizes precision of the minimal important difference. J Clin Epidemiol 2009, 62: 374–379. 10.1016/j.jclinepi.2008.07.009
Norman GR, Sloan JA, Wyrwich KW: Interpretation of changes in health-related quality of life: the remarkable universality of half a standard deviation. Med Care 2003, 41: 582–592.
Crosby RD, Kolotkin RL, Williams RG: Defining clinically meaningful change in health-related quality of life. J Clin Epidemiol 2005, 56: 395–407.
This research was made possible by grants R01MH066347 and R01MH066348 from the National Institute of Mental Health (“Effectiveness of PTSD Treatment: Prolonged Exposure Therapy vs. Zoloft”).
Primary findings of this study were presented in part at the annual meeting of the Society of Medical Decision Making, Phoenix, Arizona, October 19, 2012.
Department of Pharmacy Administration and Practice, Western University of Health Sciences, 309 E. Second Street, Pomona, CA, 91766-1854, USA
Quang A Le
Department of Clinical Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Economics and Policy/Leonard D. Schaeffer Center for Health Policy and Economics, University of Southern California, 3335 S. Figueroa Street, Unit A, Los Angeles, CA, 90089-7273, USA
Jason N Doctor
Department of Psychology/Center for Anxiety and Traumatic Stress, University of Washington, Box 351525, Seattle, WA, 98195-1525, USA
Lori A Zoellner
Department of Psychological Sciences, Case Western Reserve University, 10900 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, OH, 44106-7123, USA
Norah C Feeny
Correspondence to Quang A Le.
LZ and NF were co-PIs, designed, coordinated, and collected data for the clinical trial. QL and JD performed statistical analyses, interpreted results, and drafted the manuscript of this study. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
Le, Q.A., Doctor, J.N., Zoellner, L.A. et al. Minimal clinically important differences for the EQ-5D and QWB-SA in Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): results from a Doubly Randomized Preference Trial (DRPT). Health Qual Life Outcomes 11, 59 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1186/1477-7525-11-59
Accepted: 26 March 2013
EQ-5D
QWB-SA
Minimal clinically important difference
Doubly randomized preference trial
Prolonged exposure therapy
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Posts Tagged ‘exhibitions’
The Ticket Factory - Panic! At The Disco, The Prodigy, Bring Me The Horizon, The Cake and Bake Show
Written by Silverbean Affiliates on August 30, 2018 . Posted in Affiliate Incentive, Awin, Entertainment, Entertainment, General Promotions, Gifts, Gadgets & Toys, Gifts, Gadgets & Toys, Ireland, Product Launches, Promotion, Tickets, Tickets, UK
The Ticket Factory are pleased to announce that tickets for Panic! At The Disco, The Prodigy,
Bring Me The Horizon, and The Cake and Bake Show are on general sale this week.
Panic! At The Disco have announced their biggest European tour to date, which kicks off in Germany on 14 March. The tour will visit Berlin, Dusseldorf, Amsterdam, Paris, Antwerp, Glasgow, Cardiff, Birmingham, London and Manchester.
Released in June this year, Panic! At The Disco’s sixth studio album ‘Pray For The Wicked’ debuted at No.2 in the UK’s Official Albums Chart and No.1 on the USA’s Billboard 200! The album has spawned an array of huge singles including “Say Amen (Saturday Night)” and “High Hopes”
– the latter was the band’s first UK Top 40 single since Nine in the Afternoon in March 2008 and has accumulated over 120 million UK streams to date.
Front man Brendon Urie recently launched Highest Hopes Foundation (HHF) - an umbrella foundation created to support the efforts of non-profit organizations that lead, develop, and advocate support for human rights for all people and communities subject to discrimination or abuse on the basis of gender, race, religion, sexual orientation and gender identity. Panic! At The Disco will be allocating £1.20 from ticketing fees from each ticket from the band's Pray For The Wicked Tour to HHF.
See Panic! At The Disco on Tuesday 26th March 2019 at the Arena Birmingham. Tickets are on-sale Friday 31st August from 10:00am and start at £40.75
https://www.theticketfactory.com/default/online/tickets/concerts/panic-at-the-disco/
http://www.awin1.com/cread.php?awinmid=7180&awinaffid=!!!id!!!&clickref=&p=
https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theticketfactory.com%2Fdefault%2Fonline%2Ftickets%2F
concerts%2Fpanic-at-the-disco%2F
The Prodigy have announced a UK and European tour this November and December to tie in with their seventh studio album 'No Tourists' which is released 2nd November 2018.
Always uncompromising, The Prodigy’s influence can be seen across generations, turning metal kids onto raving and ravers into metalheads. The band put out genre destroying record after genre defying record and from the very start, The Prodigy were renegade revolutionaries. Put simply, The
Prodigy are no tourists and never were.
See The Prodigy live on Saturday 10th November at Arena Birmingham. Tickets are on-sale Friday 31st August from 9:30am and start from £40.75
https://www.theticketfactory.com/default/online/tickets/concerts/the-prodigy/
www.theticketfactory.com%2Fdefault%2Fonline%2Ftickets%2Fconcerts%2Fthe-prodigy%2F
Sheffield based, multi-platinum selling Bring Me The Horizon are set to release a new album
entitled amo via RCA/Sony on 11th January 2019.
To tie in with this announcement tickets for their world tour go on sale Friday, 31st August. A run of special UK shows kick off in November and include a two-night stint at Alexandra Palace, they last played this London venue in 2014.
See Bring Me The Horizon on Friday 23rd November at the Arena Birmingham. Tickets go on-sale Friday 31st August at 9:00am and start from £45.84
https://www.theticketfactory.com/default/online/tickets/concerts/bring-me-the-horizon/
www.theticketfactory.com%2Fdefault%2Fonline%2Ftickets%2Fconcerts%2Fbring-me-the-horizon%2F
THE CAKE AND BAKE SHOW
The UK’s biggest baking event returns to ExCeL London on the 5th-7th October 2018.
The show is brimming with all things baking, decorating and sugar craft. Gain insight from celebrity experts, stock your shelves with the latest baking equipment from over 130 exhibitors and be wowed by their spectacular Cake Competition and exquisite display tables, plus many more treats for your taste buds!
Returning to the line-up this year, TV personality, chef, author and cookery school owner- Rosemary Shrager, Master Pâtissier, author and cake maker to his -A-list clientele-
Eric Lanlard, and joining new for 2018 Jane Asher; actress, author and successful baker. We also have two Great British Bake-off stars appearing, including 2016 Winner - Candice Brown and
personality Paul Jagger and John Whaite- remembered for his infamous lion made entirely out of bread.
Attend the Cake and Bake show at the ExCel London from the 5th-7th October. Tickets start from just £13 and are available to buy now.
https://www.theticketfactory.com/default/online/tickets/exhibitions/cake-and-bake-show/
www.theticketfactory.com%2Fdefault%2Fonline%2Ftickets%2Fexhibitions%2Fcake-and-bake-show%2F
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In Heidegger’s Hut
On January 8, 2011 by admin
Amlan Dasgupta
In 1966 or 1967 (the year is variously reported) the poet Paul Celan journeyed to a place called Todtnauberg , in the Black Mountains in Germany. He was visiting the mountain cabin, or as it is famously known, the hutte or hut, of the philosopher Martin Heidegger. Little is known of what transpired between the two that day. Heidegger had – albeit idiosyncratically – supported the Nazi regime, and had abandoned his major work on the Pre-Socratics to take up the rectorship of Freiberg in 1933. During the denazification years, he had increasingly withdrawn to his mountain retreat. Celan, survivor of the Nazi labour camp, was an unlikely guest, but there is no doubt that the two were drawn to each other intellectually, Heidegger to the poetry, Celan to the philosophy of language, which he commented favourably on several times and incorporated into his poetry. On this enigmatic occasion, Celan signed his name in the visitor’s book, and apparently went on a walk with his host.
There are many reconstructions of this day’s events, some based on the poet’s later comments on the experience. More to the point is the poem that emanated from the encounter: one of Celan’s richest and most puzzling poems, one that teases the imagination and challenges hermeneutic skill.
Todtnauberg
Arnica, eyebright, the
draft from the well with the
star-die on top,
Hütte,
written in the book
– whose name did it record
before mine – ?
in this book
the line about
a hope, today,
for a thinker’s
to come,
in the heart,
forest sward, unleveled,
orchis and orchis, singly,
crudeness, later, while driving,
clearly,
he who drives us, the man,
he who also hears it,
the half-
trod log-
trails on the highmoor,
Did then Celan first refresh himself with water from the well, washing the dust from his eyes, the water itself like the old remedies for failing eyesight, arnica and eyebright? But was he also struck by the star engraved on wood (star-die) on the top of the well: the star that must have reminded him of the yellow star worn by Jews in Nazi Germany. Heidegger is said to have commented on Celan’s knowledge of botany, and perhaps the two conversed on the flora of the mountain. Celan speaks of “a hope, today for a thinker’s word”; that word never came, the begegnung, encounter, remaining unproductive. The word encounter was favoured both by the poet and the philosopher, and Celan was later hurt at Adorno’s judgement that the word had been impossibly corrupted by its use by the Nazis. The two seemed to have walked casually and separately, (“orchis and orchis/singly”), the walk itself being interrupted and half finished.
The thinker’s word does not come: Celan may have hoped for some formal word of apology or expression of grief from the philosopher, heute, today, on that day itself: a word bearing burning force in the poem. The moment of encounter – or failed encounter – remains uneasily in the relationship. For a relationship it was: Celan, retaining his interest in Heidegger’s thought, and the latter continuing to value the poet’s work openly. In a letter of 1971 to his friend Klaus Demus the old philosopher wrote warmly about a gift of an original manuscript poem by Celan that he had received. Demus had written that Celan had remembered Heidegger in one of their last encounters (Begegnungen). This had emboldened Demus to send him the poem. Heidegger responded with generosity and enthusiasm:
When I opened your letter of Easter Sunday, my glance fell first on the sheet with the familiar handwriting of the “untranslatable” poem by Paul Celan that I know by memory, or more elegantly, par coeur. I don’t know how to thank you both for this valuable gift. After my death, it and your latter, as part of my posthumous manuscript papers, will go to the German Literary Archives in Marbach am Neckar.
But even a detailed enquiry into the circumstances of the relationship between Heidegger and Celan, does not further clarify the event on Todtnauberg, the grimly and suggestively named location – Todt is death in German. What happened in the hut, and on the mountain, it remains in some sense unrepresentable, beyond representation. So much of Celan’s poetry grapples with the unrepresentable, and this is certainly a place where his engagement with Heidegger becomes particularly important. Two major valuations of Celan have come from two writers themselves deeply marked by Heidegger’s thought, Jacques Derrida and Philippe Lacoue-Labarthe. I will not detain you with summaries of these richly suggestive readings, beyond drawing attention to a place in the essay “ Shibboleth for Paul Celan” in which Derrida meditates on the word shibboleth, the word of life and death in the OT with which the inhabitants of Gilead tested the Ephraimites:
Gilead then cut Ephraim off from the fords of the Jordan, and whenever Ephraimite fugitives said, ‘Let me cross,’ the men of Gilead would ask, ‘Are you an Ephraimite?’ If he said, ‘No,’ they then said, ‘Very well, say “Shibboleth”.’ If anyone said, “Sibboleth”, because he could not pronounce it, then they would seize him and kill him by the fords of the Jordan. Forty-two thousand Ephraimites fell on this occasion. (Judges, 12)
Derrida speculates on how the word (if it is one) names in the broadest sense the most insignificant and arbitrary mark – like the phonemic difference between Shi and Si – that becomes discriminative, decisive and divisive. For Derrida the difference, meaningless in itself becomes that essential property that one needs to inhabit a place – a hut, a mountain, a poem, a place of death – to be within, to be enclosed by the border, to have the right of asylum, the legitimacy of habitation. It is not enough to know the difference: one must be able to speak it too, or risk death and annihilation. It is no secret, this word, but simply it calls upon us at the right moment, to be able to articulate it perfectly.
What happened that fateful afternoon on the mountain of death remains something of a secret however. Perhaps nothing happened at all: no angry exchange, no words of recrimination. The two men conversed quietly about plants and flowers, and the meeting may have broken up sooner than anticipated. In retrospect, too, one must admit little altered between the two, who seemed to have retained respect for each other. But the poem, so much greater than the event itself, holds the key to understanding the nature of this silence. As Lacoue-Labarthe suggests, the poem succeeds in pinpointing the failure, the unrealizability, of the word, so deeply and critically needed at the moment, – today, heute – that might have made possible a profound rapprochement between the two.
The poem’s urgent evocation of an abbreviated time, the heute, the here-and-now, may strike one as particularly significant. For like the language that resides in it, time itself becomes in Celan afflicted by its inability to endure. In the state of exception, time does not become one that is empty and homogenous, even as it ceases to be capable of messianic redemption. The survivor of the camp as it were carries this time with him or her: it just waits to erupt into the normal processes of time. Any moment may take on the figure of the crisis. In the hut too: what is not now, is never: as the moment of speech vanishes. The walkers return to the car, and in the car there is talk – not the word that might have been, but something crude, common, slightly obscene, heard also by the man who drives the car. This is not the word that might have been transformative and lifegiving, the word hoped for in the heart.
Celan’s longing for “the thinker’s word/ to come/in the heart” may seem idealistic in the extreme. After such knowledge as that of the Shoah, what forgiveness? How could the most abject of apologies make the slightest change to the singularity of the concentration camp? But one must see here that the breaking of the silence itself might have been a redemptive moment, a redemption of a sense of the human that till the end, in spite of gestures of amity between the two, remained untransacted. Both Lacoue-Labarthe and Derrida may have been influenced by Celan in thinking that it was possible only for a man like Heidegger to engage in the most profound critique of the Nazi horror. As Steven Schroeder writes in a review of Lacoue-Labarthe’s book on Heidegger:
What is so scandalous about Heidegger’s reading is the extent to which it makes him think National Socialism precisely in the process of thinking the unthought of it. And Lacoue-Labarthe’s singular contribution in these essays is his account of it as a withdrawal from National Socialism that, like every withdrawal, “traces and draws out that from which it withdraws” (84). “Political disavowal,” he writes, “is the touchstone of fascism.” But this does not make Heidegger apolitical or anti-political. Lacoue-Labarthe maintains that “The disavowal of the political in Heidegger is made in the name of the essence or origin of the political” (84). It is a stepping back from the unreflective practice of politics to its ontological underpinning. Withdrawing from the explicit practice of politics, Heidegger turns to its mythological ground in the Poem (particularly the Poem of Hölderlin), to what Lacoue-Labarthe calls “archi-fascism” (84). This is scandalous not simply because it is Heidegger but because the turn Heidegger makes exposes National Socialism as “the fulfillment of the Western history of techne” (85). And Heidegger never repudiated National Socialism. He said he was “disappointed” by it.
That, for Lacoue-Labarthe, as for Celan, is staggering.
I have some spent some time with this single instance of failure of communication, the failed encounter in Celan. I find it valuable in suggesting that at the heart of Celan’s art there is a constant engagement with the inexpressible, that which lies beyond representation, beyond re-imagining and recasting. The larger question which it might help us formulate is that of what precisely is that which lies beyond the technai of representational mechanisms that have sustained the notion of the human through its history? The problem is hardly a new one: wherever time shrinks in its attempt to comprehend the profound darkness of the act of horror, we often encounter precisely this faltering of the representational mechanism. That does not, one must hasten to say, make the encounter itself less valuable or less critical for our purpose. The example of Celan is particularly interesting in that here is a poet who was born in a German speaking Jewish family in Bukovina, then part of Romania (currently part of Ukraine), was educated in France and Romania and wrote all his life in a language he passionately regarded as his own – German. But had not the language of his artistic endeavour itself become complicit in the horror of the Holocaust? Celan’s most eminent English translator writes: his “mother tongue, turned overnight into his mother’s murderers’ tongue in 1941, was literally all he had left after the war: no parents, no possessions, no homeland, no cultural or Jewish ambience.” (John Felstiner, “‘The One and Only Circle’: Translating Celan”. American Poetry Review, Nov/Dec 2000).
But Celan’s answer is not silence. He rather forces himself to embrace the crisis. In his celebrated Bremen address he said: “Only one thing remained reachable, close and secure amid all losses: language. Yes, language. In spite of everything, it remained secure against loss. But it had to go through its own lack of answers, through terrifying silence, through the thousand darknesses of murderous speech. It went through. It gave me no words for what was happening, but went through it. Went through and could resurface, ‘enriched’ by it all.” Could language be set free from the fetters of history?
What engages us in the encounter in Heidegger’s hut is therefore not merely a question of a word of solace or comfort. Important as that might be in being the symbolic token of atonement and disavowal, it is only in its search for the life-giving and redemptive word that language must strive to work around the inexpressible, the search for a word that may be used but cannot represent. The title of the poem that we looked at, “Todtnauberg”, refers us back cryptically to his own masterpiece “Todesfuge”: the early poem that squarely addresses a question that has haunted the European imagination since the War: is there a representation possible of the Holocaust? Can the concentration camp be described, or does it forever elude representation, being available only to acts of memorialization and at most, a gesture of direction, a pointing-towards?
Steiner famously and perhaps inaccurately, suggested that German is the only language that allows (us?) to penetrate the horror of Auschwitz, to describe death from within. The claim is, theoretically, questionable, but there is no denying that a poem that comes close to achieving this near- impossible act of reference is Celan’s “Todesfuge”, the Death Song. Lacoue-Labarthe captures the impossible nature of the poem when he says,“at the height of singularity, singularity itself vanishes and saying suddenly appears—the poem is possible”.
Black milk of daybreak we drink it at evening
we drink it at midday and morning we drink it at night
we drink and we drink
we shovel a grave in the air where you won’t lie too cramped
A man lives in the house he plays with his vipers he writes
he writes when it grows dark to Deutschland your golden hair Margareta
he writes it and steps out of doors and the stars are all sparkling he whistles his hounds to stay close
he whistles his Jews into rows has them shovel a grave in the ground
he commands us play up for the dance
Black milk of daybreak we drink you at night
we drink you at morning and midday we drink you at evening
Your ashen hair Shulamith we shovel a grave in the air where you won’t lie too cramped
He shouts dig this earth deeper you lot there you others sing up and play
he grabs for the rod in his belt he swings it his eyes are so blue
stick your spades deeper you lot there you others play on for the dancing
we drink you at midday and morning we drink you at evening
a man lives in the house your goldenes Haar Margareta
your aschenes Haar Shulamith he plays with his vipers
He shouts play death more sweetly this Death is a master from Deutschland
he shouts scrape your strings darker you’ll rise up as smoke to the sky
you’ll then have a grave in the clouds where you won’t lie too cramped
we drink you at midday Death is a master aus Deutschland
we drink you at evening and morning we drink and we drink
this Death is ein Meister aus Deutschland his eye it is blue
he shoots you with shot made of lead shoots you level and true
a man lives in the house your goldenes Haar Margarete
he looses his hounds on us grants us a grave in the air
he plays with his vipers and daydreams der Tod ist ein Meister aus Deutschland
dein goldenes Haar Margarete
dein aschenes Haar Sulamith (Tr. John Felstiner)
I can do no more than to leave you with this magnificent translation by Felstiner, which I suspect you will find, as I certainly did, some getting used to. Most troublingly, it comes closer and closer to its source text as it progresses, distancing itself from the task of the translator, and forcing the reader to focus on the repetitive rhythms of the poem itself. Felstiner himself confessed his fascination with Celan’s voice: his infinite care in speaking the last line leaves us with the final and irreducible trace of the body after much of it has been translated to the skies: the ashy hair, the hair that has become ash. But the supreme mastery of the last line of the poem is that it brings us to meditate on precisely this: the final substrate of being, the “subsistent presence of a remainder, even if there should be scarcely an ash of what we thus still date, celebrate, commemorate or bless”.
Amlan Dasgupta is Professor, Department of English, Jadavpur University, Kolkata
Category : Aesthetic, Philosophy, Poetry, Political
Tags : Celan, Heidegger, Holocaust, Nazi
7 Responses to “In Heidegger’s Hut”
Moinak Biswas
Satchidanandan
That was quite an experience. Having read both and having been in love with Celan’s poetry ( the other love is Vallejo)and tried- one can only try- translating Celan into Malayalam, the story or the non-story of their last encounter came as a revelation. Death-fuge, one of the poems I have attempted to translate, appeared more intimate and revealed after reading this piece. Thanks, Amlan!
Anitha Thampi
Thankyou, for this experience of reliving The Experience
amazing post. Many thanks for this, Sir.
Ahona
Thank you very much, sir. Miss being taught by you in person, but then again, am always taught by you.
Aryak Guha
so calm, wonderful and always growing … !
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Home Kids Kids Picks Kid Picks – August
Kid Picks – August
Katie Barber
Aug. 11 + 25
GTM Reserve Family Seining
505 Guana River Road Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida 32082
http://gtmnerr.org/visit/events/
The GTM Research Reserve hosts a Kids and Family Seining on the 2nd and 4th Saturday of the month. Join GTM Research Reserve staff and/or volunteers for a guided family seining activity. Visitors will get the chance to pull a seine net through Guana Lake, collecting species of fish, crabs and more, and then learn about the animals and their roles in the habitat. All necessary gear including waders and boots will be provided. There is a $3 per vehicle parking fee.
Aug. 6 + 8 @ 9:30 a.m.
$1 Cinemark Summer Movie Clubhouse
Cinemark Movie Theater at Tinseltown – 4535 Southside Blvd., Jacksonville, FL 32216
https://www.cinemark.com/summer-movie-clubhouse-theatres
The Summer Movie Clubhouse is a ten-week program of recently released G and PG films for kids. The cost is $1 per person per movie at the door the morning of the program. A ten-week series punch card is available at the theatre box office, while supplies last, at participating theatres.
Sweet Pete’s Factory Tour
400 N. Hogan St., Jacksonville, FL 32202
https://www.sweetpetescandy.com/products/factory-tour-jacksonville
Get the scoop on all things Sweet Pete’s! A candy expert leads each tour on a sweet trip through the company’s history. Learn about candy, chocolate, our business and the features of the one-hundred-year-old Sweet Pete’s candy mansion. Participants will view our live production facility and go behind the scenes to see our packaging room and caramel wrapping machine. After the whimsical tour experience, enjoy a decadent chocolate bar made your way! Choose from over sixteen toppings, and our candy makers will create a bar exactly the way you want (bar included in price).
Classes daily at 12:30pm, 2:00pm, 3:00pm, and 4:00pm. Tour is approximately 30 minutes long.
Great for kids and families, all ages are welcome. Call 855-SWT-PETE or email [email protected] to book a group tour.
Everyday through Sep. 9
MOSH National Geographic Earth Explorers Exhibit
Museum of Science and History (MOSH) – 1025 Museum Circle, Jacksonville, FL 32207
http://themosh.org/explore/traveling-exhibits/national-geographic-presents-earth-explorers/
Embark on an epic adventure through six themed and immersive environments to discover new species at The MOSH! Study animal behavior and learn about the important roles that technology, innovation and ingenuity play in making and documenting explorers’ discoveries. National Geographic Presents Earth Explorers will showcase the work of some of the most innovative and exciting National Geographic explorers!
gtm reserve
kid picks
sweet pete's
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Jalopnik Reviews
2008 Ford Taurus X, Day One
Wes Siler
Jalopnik ReviewsAll of our test drives in one convenient place.
I had high hopes for the 2008 Ford Taurus X. My earliest memories of a car take place in the way back of a 1982 Caprice Classic station wagon. I would sit in the rear-facing seat, waving enthusiastically at whomever happened to be held up by my mom's slow-as-syrup driving. For nearly a decade, the Caprice served as primary transportation for my family and our assortment of stray dogs, adopted lambs and injured turtles. My memories of the Jeep that replaced it, however, aren't nearly as fond.
The Taurus X looks like the spiritual successor to the big wagons of yore. Sharing a platform with the Volvo XC90, it sits lower but retains the same three-row seating capacity and penchant for occupant safety, with side-curtain airbags running all the way back.
My family jumped on the SUV bandwagon from the beginning, lured by the romance of their adventurous image. But our Jeep only went off-roading once, resulting in my driving privileges being promptly revoked. Like the vast majority of SUV drivers, Mom and Dad simply didn't have any need for the weight, complication and subsequent cost that comes with the ability to traverse large boulders. Waking up to this fact, a string of sedans and small wagons have served the emptied nest of my parents since the late '90s — none of which have had the sheer utility of that gargantuan Caprice wagon.
Ford has been chief among domestic profiteers of the SUV boom, capitalizing on the best-selling ability of its pickups to release a string of successful trucks like the Explorer and Expedition. The company delivered on the promised utility, with capacious interiors offering huge load- and people-lugging capabilities. But fuel prices have increased and environmental responsibility has come into fashion; meaning Ford's focus on trucks has stuck them with vehicles buyers are beginning to turn their noses up at.
Enter the Taurus X. By aiming to deliver the utility and versatility of an SUV in a package more like a normal car, it hopes to attract buyers looking for a better image, better economy and a better drive.
The Taurus X will be in Jalopnik's garage for the next week. Expect regular updates as we use it day-to-day, discovering if it delivers on its promised utility and user friendliness. We can already report on its image, pulling up outside my girlfriend's house this morning she told me I looked like "a dad."
Photo credit: Grant Ray
Jeff Glucker
its funny your girlfriend said that... because my first thought was that my Dad is probably salivating over this car. He is on his 3rd Taurus...
I wish he still had his '97 Cougar though, that thing was fun in the rain & snow when I first got my license.
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Toyota's 2018 NASCAR Camry Quite Possibly Wants To Eat You
Photo credit: Toyota Racing
This is Toyota’s new 2018 Camry Monster Energy NASCAR Cup car, complete with “sporty” XSE trim-level badges and the new insectoid face based on that of the brand-new roadgoing Camry. NASCAR announced today that the new Camry will debut to give us strange racing-themed nightmares starting in the 2017 season, ahead of the road car’s release.
The 2018 Toyota Camry May In Fact Be Too Edgy And Raw For Camry Buyers
This is the 2018 Toyota Camry’s braces-filled face of your next taxi and/or Uber. You don’t like…
You see, each side of the Camry’s new black grille comes to a point below the headlamps that sticks out over a large, almost alien void, the likes of which humans fall into and are never to be seen again. The strange vertical jaws of the Cam-beast are open, and hungry. Given the utter ubiquity of the Camry, there’s a good chance that we’ll get used to these strange new lines in time.
Kudos to you, Toyota, for finally giving your poor midsize sedan some personality! We’re just not sure whether this personality in pointier NASCAR trim is the kind that subjugates all of humanity in the name of Most High Beast of the Ninth Dimension Lord Zargon yet or not.
Toyota exec Ed Laukes told NASCAR that this brand-new Camry is “probably the most aggressively styled Camry” in the model’s history. This time, the Toyota teams responsible for winning 16 races in the 2016 season alone had more input on the road car’s design, particularly with aerodynamics in the front of the car.
A side-by-side comparison of the road car (left) with the new NASCAR racer (right). Photo credit: Toyota Racing
In other words, those frightening jaws, which incorporate an aggressive air scoop below the headlamps, are there to do more than gnaw slowly at your bones as your body is slowly consumed into the engine bay. They should also help keep it truly grounded to the ground, and help the car win races.
Teams Joe Gibbs Racing, Furniture Row Racing, and BK Racing all race the Camry.
Unfortunately, no news of a roadgoing V8, rear-wheel-drive coupe was released with today’s unveiling of the new Camry. Stop breaking our hearts, Toyota.
Photo credit: Kurt Bradley
We’ll take the one on the right, please. Photo credit: Toyota Racing
Moderator, OppositeLock. Former Staff Writer, Jalopnik. 1984 "Porschelump" 944 race car, 1971 Volkswagen 411 race car, 2010 Mitsubishi Lancer GTS.
CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever
Missing the most important Toyota styling cue.
Just take a big ol’ sledgehammer and mash in the right hand corner on the rear bumper.
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Gold Mining ETFs Are Following In GLD’s Footsteps With Huge Inflows
It is not only gold itself via GLD (SPDR Gold, Expense Ratio 0.40%, $30.4 million in AUM) that has attracted some new assets lately as we have mentioned (over $900 million in), but now the gold miners have joined the fray as well.
GDXJ (VanEck Junior Gold Miners, Expense Ratio 0.57%, $3.4 billion in AUM) has pulled in some new monies as well in sympathy this week (more than $380 million in). The fund is comfortably above its 200 day MA now after spending the entire time period from Trump’s election until very early February below this level.
Spot gold prices themselves have evened out a bit in the month of February after steep losses that occurred from November through late December of last year, and clearly the mining stocks have stabilized along with them. GDXJ has now pulled in over $830 million just year-to-date, building its asset base above $3.4 billion, while its larger cousin GDX (VanEck Vectors Gold Miners, Expense Ratio 0.53%, $11.3 billion in AUM) has also seen some inflows to the tune of more than $194 million in.
Elsewhere in the space, the popular “Bull Levered” NUGT (Direxion Daily Gold Miners Index Bull 3X, Expense Ratio 1.05%, $1.4 billion in AUM) has seen profit taking year-to-date on this recent move higher in the Miners (-$400 million out) and JNUG (Direxion Daily Junior Gold Miners Index Bull 3X, Expense Ratio 0.95%) has seen similar with $78 million leaving the doors.
The space continues to be popular both in terms of fund asset sizes as well as average daily trading volumes, as NUGT and JNUG are the third and fourth largest funds in the space following GDX and GDXJ. GDX averages a massive 75 million shares daily while GDXJ averages 21 million shares daily, and NUGT and JNUG average a whopping 53 million and 46 million shares respectively.
DUST (Direxion Daily Gold Miners Index Bear 3X, Expense Ratio 0.95%, $242 million in AUM) is the fifth largest gold-linked ETF in the U.S. listed landscape and averages about 7.8 million shares daily.
Clearly, the space is dominated in terms of asset size by two issuers, VanEck and Direxion, with eight much smaller offerings in the niche that aren’t worth mentioning at this point.
The Market Vectors Junior Gold Miners ETF (NYSE:GDXJ) was trading at $41.61 per share on Wednesday afternoon, down $0.18 (-0.43%). Year-to-date, GDXJ has gained 31.89%, versus a 4.71% rise in the benchmark S&P 500 index during the same period.
GDXJ currently has an ETF Daily News SMART Grade of B (Buy), and is ranked #7 of 33 ETFs in the Precious Metals ETFs category.
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The Effect of Bridge Orientation in Casting Machine on the Castability and Quality of Base Metal Castings
Azamsadat Madani 1
Ahmad Ghahremanlu 2
Mohammad Reza Sabooni 1
Foad Shahabian 3
Hamzeh Harati 4
1 Dental Research Center, Faculty of Dentistry, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
2 Dental Material Research Center, Faculty of Dentistry, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
3 Department of Prosthodontics, Faculty of Dentistry, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
4 Dentist, Neyshaboor, Iran
10.22038/jdmt.2013.94
Introduction: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of bridge orientation in casting machine on castability and quality of base metal castings. Methods: Three groups of patterns with different direction and lengths in casting machine were casted and then studied qualitatively and quantitatively using mean and standard deviation in table of frequency. Results: Larger nodules and porosities were on the joints of sprue in horizontal specimens (P=0.01 and 0.048, respectively). There was no significant difference in castability between 3-, 5- and 6-unit bridges in relation to their direction in casting machine (P=0.5). An increase in bridge length led to more variation in length and width. The position of bridges also played an important role in the length variation in bridges. Conclusion: The direction of bridges had no effect on base metal castability but a vertical position resulted in a better casting quality and an increase in length of the bridges caused more defects in castings.
dental casting technique
Azamsadat Madani1, Ahmad Ghahremanlu2, Foad Shahabian3,
Mohammad Reza Sabooni1, Hamzeh Harati4
Received 1 July 2012 and Accepted 10 August 2012
Key Words: Base metal, casting machine, dental casting technique.
Madani A, Ghahremanlu A, Shahabian F, Sabooni MR, Harati H. The Effect of Bridge Orientation in Casting Machineon the Castability and Quality of Base Metal Castings. J Dent Mater Tech 2012; 1(2): 53-7.
Making a fixed partial denture (FPD) requires considerable clinical and laboratory skills and expertise. In order to construct porcelain fused to metal (PFM) restorations, the metal framework has to be formed first. Making an accurate metal frame work depends on many factors such as the type of the alloys, the design of the wax pattern, the sprueing technique, the type of the investment, the method of melting, and the casting technique (1-3).
To put it simply, the castability means the ability of the molten metal to completely occupy the mold created by the elimination of a wax pattern. Compensation for dimensional changes of the metal is a function of other materials involved in the process. If all factors involved in the process of casting are harmonious, the result will be the accurate fitting of the casting. Fitting is the ability of a casting to faithfully reproduce the pattern from which it was constructed (1,2).
When the wax pattern is completed and the sprueing is done, it will be placed in a cylinder with desired diameter; one important factor in casting is the direction of bridge in the casting machine (3).
Shillingburg et al. (3) reported that the orientation of invested fixed partial dentures in the casting machine can affect the flow of metal into the mold. The pattern is placed in a vertical position on the horizontal centrifugal casting machine to insure that all parts of the mold are filled simultaneously. To facilitate the proper orientation, a wax dot can be placed on the crucible former. This will leave a mark on the surface of the investment which can be seen when the ring is placed in the casting machine. As an alternative two opposite dots can be scribed on the ring. These dots should be aligned with the axis of the pattern before investing. After investing and burnout of the wax pattern, casting will be performed (3,4).
Dental alloys should have the capability of being casted in thin sections of desired length to obtain the best marginal fit. Due to the increased cost and demonstrated lack of stability of precious alloys for porcelain frameworks, the use of alterative alloys such as base metal alloys has been recommended (5).
In this study, the effect of bridge orientation on the castability and quality of base metal casting has been evaluated.
The objective of the test was to cast the pattern of plastic screen mesh containing diamond shaped spaces. Each filament of these diamond shaped spaces had 3mm length.
According to pilot study, 60 specimens in 3 groups were prepared:
Group A: 20 specimens with 30mm length similar to 3 unit bridges (10 diamond shaped spaces)
Group B: 20 specimens with 45mm length similar to 5 unit bridges (15 diamond shaped spaces)
Group C: 20 specimens with 60mm length similar to 6 unit bridges (20 diamond shaped spaces)
All three groups of bridges had 10mm width.
To facilitate the proper orientation, a wax dot was placed on the crucible former. This dot was aligned with the axis of the pattern before investing. This left a mark on the surface of the investment which could be seen when the ring was placed in the casting machine (Fig.1).
Deguvest investment (Dentsply, Germany) was used. All the investment was from the same batch. The liquid and powder were mixed under vacuum for 30seconds and vibrated in the same condition for 10 seconds.
The investment was allowed to set over night. A two-stage burn out procedure was used for all rings. Vera bond base metal alloy (Aalba Dent Inc. Cordia. CA, USA) was used to cast all the specimens. Manufacturer's instructions regarding the melting or casting temperatures and timing were followed.
Each group was divided into 2 subgroups of 10 specimens (A1, A2, B1, B2, C1, and C2). The specimens of the first and second subgroups were seated vertically and horizontally in the casting cradle, respectively. The casting were allowed to bench cool, divested manually and air-abraded with 50µm alumina oxide abrasive to remove residual investment and ultrasonically was cleaned in distilled water (Fig. 2). The sprue was sectioned 3mm away from the sprue-pattern junction.
The number of casted diamond shaped spaces was divided by the whole number of spaces and multiplied by 100 to determine the castability percentage for quantitative study of the castings. Large and small nodules and porosities in sprue joints of casting were also counted.
Data was described by the mean, standard deviation and frequency tables. The Mann-Whitney, Wilcoxon and Fisher’s exact tests were used for data analysis (α=0.05). Table 1 shows the qualitative and quantitative data of castings in vertical and horizontal positions.
Significantly more porosities and large nodules were present in horizontally positioned specimens. Qualitative variables improved in vertically positioned specimens.
The results of lengthening and widening of castings according to the position and number of units are shown in Tables 2 and 3. The differences were not statistically significant.
Figure 1. Three-, five-, and six-unit wax specimens with a dot on crucible former
Figure 2. Casted bridge specimens in vertical and horizontal situation after sandblasting
Table 1. The qualitative and quantitative data of castings in vertical and horizontal positions
Position of casting
χ2 = 5.4 P = 0.01
χ2 = 2.7 P = 0.048
* P = 0.5
Large nodules
Small nodules
Complete casting
Table 2. Mean and standard deviation of lengthening variation of castings according to the position and number of units
The result of Mann-Whitney test
Position of the units
Mean±SD
Z = 0.60 P = 0.54
-0.16±0.22
-0.1±-0.2
- 0.05±0.13
0.06±0.015
Table 3. Mean and SD of widening variation according to position and number of units in bridge
The result of Mann- Whitney test
Position of bridges
Z = 0.19 P = 85
Z=0.237 P = 0.81
Castability refers to the ability of a molten metal to completely occupy the mold created by the elimination of a pattern (5). The harmony among all elements in the process of casting results in an accurate fit of casting, which is the ability of a casting to faithfully reproduces the pattern from which it was constructed.
Various studies have been conducted on casting technique. Robert reported that the variation in length of casting depends on the type of investment, the expansion of investment, the type of wax pattern and the technique of sprueing (6). Presswood (1) examined the castability of alloys in small castings. The objective of this study was to cast the pattern of an extruded plastic screen mesh containing diamond shaped spaces. The diameter of the filament and the location of the pattern in the casting ring were explored to determine the castability of the pattern.
The number of spaces in the casting indicated the effectiveness of the metal to reproduce the pattern. In this study, the pattern invested vertically (1).
Dewald (7) reported that to minimize the possibility of incomplete casting due to improper pattern orientation relative to the sprue and the arm of the casting machine, mark the ring or sprue so that the invested pattern can be oriented properly in the casting machine arm. Wattanabe et al. (8) showed that the main factors that may give rise to problems in casting and internal porosities are the casting force exerted on the molten metal, the temperature of the melt and mold, the permeability of the investment and the spruing configuration.
Shillinburg et al. (3); however, emphasizes that the orientation of the invested fix partial denture in casting machine can affect the flow of metal into the mold. The pattern should be placed in a vertical position on the horizontal centrifugal casting machine to ensure that all parts of the mold are filled. Eissmann et al. (4) reported that when multiple sprue technique is used, the inlets should be aligned for the fastest and most uniform distribution of alloy within the mold. This means placing the inlets vertically in a horizontal casting machine.
In the current study, castings were made of base metal alloys. We give casting machine one or two extra winds in order to compensate lighter density of the base metal alloy. This may help the metal to flow in all parts of the mold simultaneously (3). We also tried to cast the pattern of plastic mesh which contains diamond shaped spaces, although this process is the most difficult technique.
All but one case was casted completely regardless of their position in the casting machine. This shows that the position of the bridge in casting machine had no effect on complete casting by Verabond (base metal) alloy.
Jarvis et al. (9) study showed that the increased amount of investment and number of wax diamond shaped spaces, vacco film sprinkling and increased investing time in longer bridges, affected the qualitative and quantitative properties of base metal castings. They also reported that the roughness of castings increased as burnout temperatures rose.
According to Table 1, the qualitative properties of castings improved in vertically positioned specimens. This is in accordance with Presswood (1) and Shillingburg et al. (3) studies. The gravity enables a better metal flow and also helps the melted metal to simultaneously occupy the mold.
The horizontal and vertical direction of bridges with different spans in casting machine had no effect on the castability of base metal alloys.
Vertical direction of bridges in casting machine improved the quality of castings.
Increasing in length of the bridges caused more defects in castings.
This research was supported by a grant from the Vice Chancellor for Research of Mashhad University of Medical Sciences. The results described in this paper were part of a DDS student thesis.
Presswood RG. The castability of alloys for small castings. J Prosth Dent 1983; 50: 36-8.
Baron GR. The metallurgy of Ni-Cr alloys for fixed prosthodontics. J Prosth Dent 1983; 50: 639-50.
Shillingburg HT, Hobo S, Whitsett LD, Jacobi R, Brackett SE. Fundamentals of fixed prosthodontics. Chicago: Quintessence, 1997.
Eissmann HF, Rudd KD, Morrow RM. Dental laboratory procedures fixed partial dentures. St. Louis: C.V Mosby, 1980.
Vincent PF, Stevens L, Basford KE. A comparison of the casting ability of precious and non precious alloys for porcelain veneering. J Prosth Dent 1977; 37: 527-36.
Bruce RW. Evaluation of multiple units casting for fixed prostheses. J Prosth Dent 1964; 18: 359-64.
Dewald E. The relationship of pattern position to the flow of gold and casting completeness. J Prosth Dent 1979; 4: 531-4.
Watanabe M, Woldue K, Watanabe E, Okabe T. Effect of casting method on castability of titanium and dental alloys. J Mater Sci 2000; 11: 547-53.
Jarvis RH, Jenkins TJ, Tedesco LA. A castability study of non precious ceramometal alloys. J Prosth Dent 1984; 51: 490-4.
Foad Shahabian
Department of Prosthodontics
Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
Email: ShahabianF@mums.ac.ir
Volume 1, Issue 2 - Serial Number 2
Article View: 2,631
PDF Download: 2,081
Madani, A., Ghahremanlu, A., Sabooni, M., Shahabian, F., Harati, H. (2012). The Effect of Bridge Orientation in Casting Machine on the Castability and Quality of Base Metal Castings. Journal of Dental Materials and Techniques, 1(2), 53-57. doi: 10.22038/jdmt.2013.94
Azamsadat Madani; Ahmad Ghahremanlu; Mohammad Reza Sabooni; Foad Shahabian; Hamzeh Harati. "The Effect of Bridge Orientation in Casting Machine on the Castability and Quality of Base Metal Castings". Journal of Dental Materials and Techniques, 1, 2, 2012, 53-57. doi: 10.22038/jdmt.2013.94
Madani, A., Ghahremanlu, A., Sabooni, M., Shahabian, F., Harati, H. (2012). 'The Effect of Bridge Orientation in Casting Machine on the Castability and Quality of Base Metal Castings', Journal of Dental Materials and Techniques, 1(2), pp. 53-57. doi: 10.22038/jdmt.2013.94
Madani, A., Ghahremanlu, A., Sabooni, M., Shahabian, F., Harati, H. The Effect of Bridge Orientation in Casting Machine on the Castability and Quality of Base Metal Castings. Journal of Dental Materials and Techniques, 2012; 1(2): 53-57. doi: 10.22038/jdmt.2013.94
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david gresham obituary
He spent 20 years in the United States Air Force with an "Honorable Discharge", and 25 years at the Jerry Pettis Memorial Veteran's Administration Hospital, in Loma Linda, CA, where he retired. God bless -Adrian. "Is it?" That's why there were gales of laughter as they tore each other's work to ribbons. Walking through the front door of The Kilns, Headington, is almost as disconcerting as passing through a wardrobe into a new world.
He married Denise Cook on October 4, 1996, in Peoria, IL. Jackson-McWhorter Funeral Home 1253 W Broad St, Athens, GA 30606. But Douglas, who clearly dislikes Wilson's book, disagrees.
"Our lives have just gone in different directions. "Jack didn't intend the Narnia books to be an evangelistic fantasy," explains Gresham. "I prayed hard to Jesus that he would do something to give my mother back to me, because she was the only person I really knew in the whole world," recalls Gresham. John retired from Environmental Elements Corporation, Baltimore, MD. Airy, MD.
"Because - and this is what people always get wrong - it's not a Christian film and the Narnia books aren't Christian novels.". Echovita Inc® is a registered trademark. The Kilns - once a cottage on 3.25 hectares, now hedged around with executive houses in a dismal Oxford suburb - has been expensively restored by the Lewis estate to look as if no one has touched it in 43 years. There has also been speculation about the secretive finances of the Lewis estate, run by "a discreet Swiss company". Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time. Please accept Echovita’s sincere condolences. Is it true he stands to make lot of money from the film of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe? Show full articles without "Continue Reading" button for {0} hours. To the Gresham family, I send my prayers and condolences so God gives you strength through this time of mourning. A unique and lasting tribute for a loved one. He is survived by his best friend and wife of 41 years, Rita Brabham Gresham, his daughters, Amy and Jeff Gerwitz of Grovetown, GA and Amanda and Mike Arterburn of Thurmont, MD and his three granddaughters that he was so very proud of and that always made him smile, Rebekah and Caitlyn Gerwitz and Addison Arterburn. Gresham and his wife, Merrie, now live in a big house in Ireland where they run a Christian ministry that specialises in healing the trauma caused by abortion, which they believe is infanticide inspired by Satan. David Charles Gresham Sr. Obituary. GOD SAW FIT TO CALL HIS SON HOME AL... © 2017-2020 Tribute Archive. He spent 20 years in the United States Air Force with an "Honorable Discharge", and 25 years at the Jerry Pettis Memorial Veteran's Administration Hospital, in Loma Linda, CA, where he retired. Douglas Gresham and his older brother, David, arrived in England in 1953 when their mother left America and a ruined marriage. The little boy in the picture looks remarkably similar to Edmund in Disney's Christmas blockbuster, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. He loved the companionship of his children and grandchildren. Thank you for your condolences, your prayers, and expressions of love during the passing of our loved one. Even before he left The Kilns, he had converted to orthodox Judaism and Lewis had to find him kosher food - not easy in 1950s Headington. ", Lewis was by then effectively Douglas's father; a letter he wrote in 1962 when the boy was demanding to be released from Magdalen College School exhibits paternal affection and mild exasperation. This will come as news to the thousands of churches across Britain and America that are endorsing The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe because of its Christian message - and to the Disney organisation which, to the fury of liberal commentators, has appointed a Christian "outreach" organisation to promote the movie to British congregations (see breakout). Write your message of sympathy today. The film is a triumph for Gresham, who charmed the movie industry into filming Lewis's first Narnia book; the other six will follow if the audience figures are good. We might not speak, but we're in email contact.". Get email updates about David Gresham delivered directly to your inbox. Also surviving are two brothers, Dallas (Gwen) Gresham of Greenview, IL, and Dale (Ann) Gresham of Normal; two aunts, Janet (Susie) Cole of Normal and Marilyn Prather of Schaumburg, IL; and one uncle, Max Gresham of Texas.Preceding him in death were his paternal grandparents, Aaron and Essie Mae Gresham; maternal grandparents, Oscar and Beulah Cotton; and two brothers, Randy and Danny Gresham.David worked as a Laborer/Highway Striper for the Texas Dept. We thank God for you all. All rights reserved. You couldn't be in his company for long without bursting into laughter.". Joy's death in 1960, aged 45, produced an ostentatious grief in Lewis; if someone mentioned her name, he would collapse into uncontrollable tears. But to make it more interesting, they would use one board but the letters from two Scrabble sets, and words from any known language were permitted.".
But then he has enormous reserves of charm - though liberals and feminists who encounter the gale force of his born-again Christianity may disagree.
David leaves behind to cherish his memories, and precious moments: His loving wife, Mrs. Debrah A. Gresham; his two sons, Donovan Walker & David L. Gresham Jr.; his grandchild, Zacharia Isaiah Gresham; and daughter-in-law (LaRolla Abram-Walker). At 60, Gresham is a tall and sleek man in thigh-length cavalry boots made for him when he was a dairy farmer in Tasmania. Boy, am I jetlagged.". ("Can you blame me, growing up in the house where The Screwtape Letters were written?" Please allow 24 hours for your entry to be reviewed for appropriate content. Leave a sympathy message to the family in the guestbook on this memorial page of David Charles Gresham Sr. to show support. "It wasn't Jack's grief I found embarrassing - it was the possibility of me crying in public. Wilson, in his biography of Lewis, claims Lewis's tweedy friends found Joy "foul-mouthed, bad-tempered and self-assertive" - and that her influence on the author squeezed the fun out of the Inklings, the informal club of scholars who met in the Eagle and Child pub. David was a believer in Jesus Christ, and had a "personal relationship" with the Lord. Even before he left The Kilns, he had converted … Love you man, and I thank God that you're my D... Our deepest condolences In this time of loss. Here, time has not so much frozen as been re-frozen. David GreshamSOUTH PEKIN - David Gresham, 58, of South Pekin passed away at 6:25 p.m. Saturday, May 21, 2016, at UnityPoint Health-Methodist in Peoria.David was born on December 16, 1957, in Bloomingt Upon completing his service, he graduated from the University of Missouri-Rolla with a B.S. However, he might have been taken aback to learn his "desperately social" stepson would, after a crisis in his marriage in the 1980s, adopt a form of Christianity even more full-blooded than his own. ), I assume, wrongly, that he knows that today is the anniversary of his stepfather's death. One of the positive quotes he would say was "Keep on pushin". A death notice completed by the family and of which all the information is confirmed and correct. Mr. David Leon Gresham was born July 1st 1950, in Florence, AL, to Mrs. Fannie Mae Simpson Gresham, but raised by Mr. Henderson and Mrs. Lucille Kirkman. and the staff at the Strecker Cancer Center, Dr. Christopher Edmonds, PCP, MMH, and the nurses at Amedisys Hospice for the amazing care they gave John during his fight with cancer. David is survived by his wife, Denise; four sons, Dallas Gresham of Minneapolis, MN, Austin Gresham of South Pekin, Tyler (Alyssa) Gresham of Huffman, Texas, and David Gresham II of South Pekin; and two granddaughters, Ember-Ann and Ava-Grace Gresham. You can add a photo to pay tribute to David Charles Gresham Sr.. he says, looking at his watch to check the date. John was preceded in death by his father and mother, Ernest and Louise Blue Gresham. Cremation rites will be accorded after the visitation.Memorial contributions may be made to the American Lung Association, 55 W. Wacker Drive, Suite 1150, Chicago, IL. Critics have accused him of becoming obsessed with the power of the devil. Anyway just had you on my mind, and just wanted to say what's up.
I will remember Mr. G as a man of calm, kindness, and a "big" smile. Wilson writes that the Gresham boys "found him embarrassing". he says.).
("Jack") Lewis died - and a more famous Jack was shot in Dallas. David Gresham was born in 1944, in New York City, to C. S. Lewis and Joy Davidman. Funeral Home Services for David are being provided by Henderson Funeral Home and Crematory. They relished argument. "So it is. Three years after arriving in England, Joy - whose story is familiar from the film Shadowlands - developed bone cancer. in Civil Engineering. Hands In Prayer was posted for David Leon Gresham. Find the obituary of John Stanley Nuffer (1929 - 2020) from Gresham OR.
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Freshman Focus
Why not Here?
Comedic Stylings
A-Plus Archive
JHS Plank
Minecraft’s new 2019 revival and how it could dethrone the world’s most popular game
Zachary Raven and Diego Ugarte|July 5, 2019
About 10 years ago, the worldwide known game Minecraft was released by Mojang. The game was an instant hit, and remained so popular, that in 2014, Microsoft bought Mojang. By the start of 2017, Minecraft was losing players quickly and Youtubers, who made their living by playing the game, lost popularity and views on youtube, affecting their total income. While Minecraft was losing popularity, a small game at the time was in development.
Everybody now knows that game as Fortnite, the battle royale game that took the internet by storm. The only problem with Fortnite is that it was a bit too popular, and by that I mean way too popular. Other upstart games were immediately blown out of the water. Fortnite had started to turn into a game that was just too mainstream. Fortnite had hit its peak mainstream popularity around mid-2018, but the Minecraft producers at Microsoft were starting to pump out updates for Minecraft.
By the start of 2019, many people were turning away from Fortnite, and Youtube’s recommended page had turned into nothing but Fortnite. The game was getting too repetitive, and if I know anything about gamers, they like unpredictable gameplay and new ideas. The Minecraft Reddit community members are pumped for the current and future updates for Minecraft. I, a true fan of Minecraft, am also excited for its comeback. Hopefully most people from the Fortnite Community also switch to the Minecraft Community.
Academics Plus
What is the NFL Draft?
The NFL draft has changed and grown over the years. From good to bad teams, the NFL draft has helped teams improve and gain new talent. The draft ha...
Fortnite rapidly losing popularity
As we all know, Fortnite was a very popular video game with about 250 million players. There’s breaking news, Fortnite is losing players. Epic Games...
NBA free agency in New York
This time around in free agency we have a lot of NBA stars available, but the two teams most affected are those in New York. Both of the rosters for t...
Warriors acquire D’angelo Russell in sign and trade deal
The Golden State Warriors, five-time reigning Western Conference champions acquired D'angelo Russell from the Brooklyn Nets in a sign and trade deal l...
The rise of plant-based food
Meat has been important since the beginning of time. People have been eating it for a very long time, unless you don't like meat. If people were vegan...
Kings look to improve with new coach
Preventing injuries in soccer
Opinion: What can we do to prevent head trauma in youth sports?
A war between noodles
The student news site of Jesuit High School
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Relative abuse liability of indiplon and triazolam in humans: A comparison of psychomotor, subjective, and cognitive effects
Lawrence P. Carter, Roland R. Griffiths, Patricia E. Suess, John H. Casada, Christopher L. Wallace, John D. Roache
Indiplon [N-methyl-N-[3-[3-(2-thienylcarbonyl)-pyrazolo[1,5-α] pyrimidin-7-yl]phenyl]acetamide; NBI 34060] is a positive allosteric GABA A receptor modulator that is under development for the treatment of insomnia. This study compared the abuse potential of indiplon, a compound with preferential affinity for GABAA receptors containing an α1 subunit, with triazolam in 21 volunteers with histories of drug abuse. Placebo, triazolam (0.25, 0.5, and 0.75 mg), and indiplon (30, 50, and 80 mg) were studied in counterbalanced order under double-blind conditions at two different residential research facilities. Both drugs impaired psychomotor and cognitive performance and produced similar dose-related increases in participant and observer ratings of drug strength. The onset of action of both drugs was rapid (30 min); however, the duration of action of indiplon (3-4 h) was shorter than that of triazolam (4-6 h). The profiles of subjective effects of triazolam and indiplon were similar; however, a maximum of 52% of participants identified indiplon as a benzodiazepine or barbiturate, compared with 81% of participants after 0.75 mg of triazolam. On participant-rated subjective effects relevant to sedation, the slope of the triazolam dose-effect curve was significantly steeper than that of indiplon. Neither the largest doses of indiplon and triazolam nor the slope of the indiplon and triazolam dose-effect curves were significantly different from each other on any of the same-day or next-day measures of positive drug effects or next-day measures of reinforcing effects. Together, these data suggest that although the abuse potential of indiplon is not different from that of triazolam at these doses, psychomotor and cognitive impairment after large doses of indiplon might be less.
https://doi.org/10.1124/jpet.107.119693
10.1124/jpet.107.119693
Fingerprint Dive into the research topics of 'Relative abuse liability of indiplon and triazolam in humans: A comparison of psychomotor, subjective, and cognitive effects'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.
indiplon Medicine & Life Sciences
Triazolam Medicine & Life Sciences
GABA-A Receptors Medicine & Life Sciences
Psychomotor Disorders Medicine & Life Sciences
acetamide Medicine & Life Sciences
Residential Facilities Medicine & Life Sciences
Psychomotor Performance Medicine & Life Sciences
Carter, L. P., Griffiths, R. R., Suess, P. E., Casada, J. H., Wallace, C. L., & Roache, J. D. (2007). Relative abuse liability of indiplon and triazolam in humans: A comparison of psychomotor, subjective, and cognitive effects. Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, 322(2), 749-759. https://doi.org/10.1124/jpet.107.119693
Relative abuse liability of indiplon and triazolam in humans : A comparison of psychomotor, subjective, and cognitive effects. / Carter, Lawrence P.; Griffiths, Roland R.; Suess, Patricia E.; Casada, John H.; Wallace, Christopher L.; Roache, John D.
In: Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, Vol. 322, No. 2, 08.2007, p. 749-759.
Carter, LP, Griffiths, RR, Suess, PE, Casada, JH, Wallace, CL & Roache, JD 2007, 'Relative abuse liability of indiplon and triazolam in humans: A comparison of psychomotor, subjective, and cognitive effects', Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, vol. 322, no. 2, pp. 749-759. https://doi.org/10.1124/jpet.107.119693
Carter LP, Griffiths RR, Suess PE, Casada JH, Wallace CL, Roache JD. Relative abuse liability of indiplon and triazolam in humans: A comparison of psychomotor, subjective, and cognitive effects. Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics. 2007 Aug;322(2):749-759. https://doi.org/10.1124/jpet.107.119693
Carter, Lawrence P. ; Griffiths, Roland R. ; Suess, Patricia E. ; Casada, John H. ; Wallace, Christopher L. ; Roache, John D. / Relative abuse liability of indiplon and triazolam in humans : A comparison of psychomotor, subjective, and cognitive effects. In: Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics. 2007 ; Vol. 322, No. 2. pp. 749-759.
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title = "Relative abuse liability of indiplon and triazolam in humans: A comparison of psychomotor, subjective, and cognitive effects",
abstract = "Indiplon [N-methyl-N-[3-[3-(2-thienylcarbonyl)-pyrazolo[1,5-α] pyrimidin-7-yl]phenyl]acetamide; NBI 34060] is a positive allosteric GABA A receptor modulator that is under development for the treatment of insomnia. This study compared the abuse potential of indiplon, a compound with preferential affinity for GABAA receptors containing an α1 subunit, with triazolam in 21 volunteers with histories of drug abuse. Placebo, triazolam (0.25, 0.5, and 0.75 mg), and indiplon (30, 50, and 80 mg) were studied in counterbalanced order under double-blind conditions at two different residential research facilities. Both drugs impaired psychomotor and cognitive performance and produced similar dose-related increases in participant and observer ratings of drug strength. The onset of action of both drugs was rapid (30 min); however, the duration of action of indiplon (3-4 h) was shorter than that of triazolam (4-6 h). The profiles of subjective effects of triazolam and indiplon were similar; however, a maximum of 52% of participants identified indiplon as a benzodiazepine or barbiturate, compared with 81% of participants after 0.75 mg of triazolam. On participant-rated subjective effects relevant to sedation, the slope of the triazolam dose-effect curve was significantly steeper than that of indiplon. Neither the largest doses of indiplon and triazolam nor the slope of the indiplon and triazolam dose-effect curves were significantly different from each other on any of the same-day or next-day measures of positive drug effects or next-day measures of reinforcing effects. Together, these data suggest that although the abuse potential of indiplon is not different from that of triazolam at these doses, psychomotor and cognitive impairment after large doses of indiplon might be less.",
author = "Carter, {Lawrence P.} and Griffiths, {Roland R.} and Suess, {Patricia E.} and Casada, {John H.} and Wallace, {Christopher L.} and Roache, {John D.}",
doi = "10.1124/jpet.107.119693",
journal = "Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics",
publisher = "American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics",
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T2 - A comparison of psychomotor, subjective, and cognitive effects
AU - Carter, Lawrence P.
AU - Griffiths, Roland R.
AU - Suess, Patricia E.
AU - Casada, John H.
AU - Wallace, Christopher L.
AU - Roache, John D.
N2 - Indiplon [N-methyl-N-[3-[3-(2-thienylcarbonyl)-pyrazolo[1,5-α] pyrimidin-7-yl]phenyl]acetamide; NBI 34060] is a positive allosteric GABA A receptor modulator that is under development for the treatment of insomnia. This study compared the abuse potential of indiplon, a compound with preferential affinity for GABAA receptors containing an α1 subunit, with triazolam in 21 volunteers with histories of drug abuse. Placebo, triazolam (0.25, 0.5, and 0.75 mg), and indiplon (30, 50, and 80 mg) were studied in counterbalanced order under double-blind conditions at two different residential research facilities. Both drugs impaired psychomotor and cognitive performance and produced similar dose-related increases in participant and observer ratings of drug strength. The onset of action of both drugs was rapid (30 min); however, the duration of action of indiplon (3-4 h) was shorter than that of triazolam (4-6 h). The profiles of subjective effects of triazolam and indiplon were similar; however, a maximum of 52% of participants identified indiplon as a benzodiazepine or barbiturate, compared with 81% of participants after 0.75 mg of triazolam. On participant-rated subjective effects relevant to sedation, the slope of the triazolam dose-effect curve was significantly steeper than that of indiplon. Neither the largest doses of indiplon and triazolam nor the slope of the indiplon and triazolam dose-effect curves were significantly different from each other on any of the same-day or next-day measures of positive drug effects or next-day measures of reinforcing effects. Together, these data suggest that although the abuse potential of indiplon is not different from that of triazolam at these doses, psychomotor and cognitive impairment after large doses of indiplon might be less.
AB - Indiplon [N-methyl-N-[3-[3-(2-thienylcarbonyl)-pyrazolo[1,5-α] pyrimidin-7-yl]phenyl]acetamide; NBI 34060] is a positive allosteric GABA A receptor modulator that is under development for the treatment of insomnia. This study compared the abuse potential of indiplon, a compound with preferential affinity for GABAA receptors containing an α1 subunit, with triazolam in 21 volunteers with histories of drug abuse. Placebo, triazolam (0.25, 0.5, and 0.75 mg), and indiplon (30, 50, and 80 mg) were studied in counterbalanced order under double-blind conditions at two different residential research facilities. Both drugs impaired psychomotor and cognitive performance and produced similar dose-related increases in participant and observer ratings of drug strength. The onset of action of both drugs was rapid (30 min); however, the duration of action of indiplon (3-4 h) was shorter than that of triazolam (4-6 h). The profiles of subjective effects of triazolam and indiplon were similar; however, a maximum of 52% of participants identified indiplon as a benzodiazepine or barbiturate, compared with 81% of participants after 0.75 mg of triazolam. On participant-rated subjective effects relevant to sedation, the slope of the triazolam dose-effect curve was significantly steeper than that of indiplon. Neither the largest doses of indiplon and triazolam nor the slope of the indiplon and triazolam dose-effect curves were significantly different from each other on any of the same-day or next-day measures of positive drug effects or next-day measures of reinforcing effects. Together, these data suggest that although the abuse potential of indiplon is not different from that of triazolam at these doses, psychomotor and cognitive impairment after large doses of indiplon might be less.
U2 - 10.1124/jpet.107.119693
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JO - Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics
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Hekili.net Blog
Hawaiian Cohesion
Hekili Forums
Pro-Independent Resources
What is keeping a Hawaiian Homes/DHHL new lease awardee from building their own house?
DHHL Reforms? Did some research / search and destroy mission today:
What is keeping a Hawaiian Homes new lease awardee from building their own house?
(aka why cant i build my own house if i receive a DHHL lease?)
§10-3-34 Building requirements. No building structure or improvement may be constructed on the premises without written approval from the commission. Such an approval shall be considered only after submission of a plan as to design, materials, and probable value and use of the structure to be built on the leasehold. Building structures or improvements shall meet building and zoning codes and other ordinances and regulations of the respective counties except as otherwise provided by the commission. [Eff7/30/81; am and comp 10/26/98] (Auth: HHC Act §222)(Imp: HHC Act §208)
The Federal Hawaiian Homes Commission Act does not require additional house plan approval, only the State regulations do. This is on top of any county housing code – a whole additional layer of blockage / red tape, just for Hawaiians.
When, where and how did this happen?
Act 75, 1986
https://www.doi.gov/sites/doi.gov/files/uploads/1985_act_284.pdf
What does this mean in practice for the past 30+ years?
The DHHL approval over all building plans must be how they force new lease awardees to use the preferred developer. If they don’t build with the developer, they can’t build their own either w/o approval, so then they lose the lease award after a year.
Why does DHHL have the power to deny lease awards for poor credit?
§10-3-22 Award of leases with outstanding indebtedness
No award of a residential, agricultural, or pastoral lot lease shall be made to an applicant whoh as not submitted sufficient evidence to the satisfaction of the department that the applicant is financially able to assume any indebtedness outstanding against the premises after the lease is awarded. [Eff7/30/81; am 1/20/86; comp 10/26/98] (Auth: HHC Act§222) (Imp: HHC Act §207)
This regulation, combined with the §10-3-34, is an additional burden on Hawaiian lease awardees. The banks administering federally-guaranteed loans should already be checking this, there is no need for the regulation in State code.
There may be only a single DHHL staffer processing loan applications at present.
How can we fix these regulations which have been keeping thousands of Hawaiians off of Hawaiian Homelands for decades?
draft State of Hawaii legislation to strike the clause(s) from Title 10
explain to legislators how this will benefit Hawaiians on the wait list, deal with Hawaii’s housing crisis, and Hawaii’s houseless crisis, and allow the State to fulfill the trust obligation to native Hawaiians.
the Governor has the power to direct the DHHL chair to approve all housing applications immediately, as it is duplicative/redundant with county codes, especially when there is a housing crisis. Communicating the new policy to the public is also needed, to solict all potential building applications by new lease awardees.
Hawaiʻi Administrative Rules, Title 10
http://dhhl.hawaii.gov/hhc/hawaii-administrative-rules/
HHCA Reference Guide
https://www.doi.gov/hawaiian/homes-commission-act-reference-guide
#PalapalaBrigades #HHCA #DHHLReform
This entry was posted in General on August 29, 2019 by raulg.
Cryptocurrency Ecosystem Diagram
I’ve spent a lot of time studying, coding, and organizing in the bitcoin and crytpocurrency ecosystem in the past couple years. My main motivator is to make use of the opportunity – as a Hawaiian – to recover control over our economic sovereignty. Specifically working with Nation of Hawai’i on the Aloha Coin project, and related ones.
In the process, i’ve made a diagram of how the traditional financial and banking systems fit together, as well as how the cryptocurrency ecosystem relates to it, as well as how it can replace it.
This is my visual map:
This entry was posted in General on May 22, 2018 by raulg.
Aloha Coin Preview Part 3: Practical Mobile Wallet Usage (Android)
Using the Aloha Coin Wallet for Android.
Downloading and installing the Aloha Coin Mobile Wallet for Android
Creating your wallet, using BIP44 Seed phrase, and setting a password for use
Backing up your seed phrase on paper, and physically securing it.
Restoring a wallet from seed phrase
Sending and receiving Aloha Coin in person
Sending and receiving Aloha Coin long-distance, using a secure chat app.
This follows my prior posts:
Aloha Coin Preview, Part 1: What is Aloha Coin?
Aloha Coin Preview, Part 2 A and B: Cryptocurrency Concepts
http://www.aloha-coin.com
I have part 2 (in 2 parts) of my preview of the Aloha Coin Cryptocurrency
Aloha Coin Preview Part 2a
Aloha Coin Preview Part 2b
This entry was posted in General on January 31, 2017 by raulg.
This is my video on “What is Aloha Coin?”, and why it should matter for Hawaiians, as well as Hawaii residents and visitors.
Presentation of the cryptocurrency Aloha Coin – motivations and incentives.
http://www.alohacoin.info
http://hawaii-nation.org
This entry was posted in General and tagged alohacoin on January 19, 2017 by raulg.
Statement on the Release of the DOI Final Rule 43 CFR Part 50
Statement regarding today’s release by the Dept. of Interior’s Final rule for reestablishing govt-to-govt relationship with the Native Hawaiian Community (43 CFR Part 50)
The U.S. has admitted to the crime of the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawai’i, and stealing the Hawaiian National lands, in the 1993 Apology Law. (US Public Law 103-150).
When the U.S. signed on to the United Nations Charter in 1945, it agreed in Article 73(a). “to ensure, with due respect for the culture of the peoples concerned, their political, economic, social, and educational advancement, their just treatment, and their protection against abuses;”
As Hawaiians, without our National government, our National Sovereignty and right to self-determination resides in us, the “peoples concerned”. It is completely within our rights as Hawaiian Nationals under international law to unite in our sovereign Hawaiian nation.
The U.S. government knows this, but continues to suppress our nationality. They failed their sacred trust obligation to ensure respect for the culture of the peoples concerned – Hawaiian Nationals. Instead, they are proposing Hawaiians accept to a “domestic dependent nation” status, under this final rule to create a Native Hawaiian Governing Entity, under the management of the Department of Interior. In return, Hawaiians would receive none of our stolen lands, no additional benefits.
The DOI rule issued today states on Pg. 117 explains “re-establish govt to govt relations”.
The United States relationship with a Native Hawaiian Governing Entity would be “reestablished” in the sense that the United States previously maintained a formal relationship with a Native Hawaiian government, not that the former relationship between the United States and the Kingdom of Hawaii would resume or be resurrected.
This is the revisionism, bait-and-switch, getting us to accept their defining the Kingdom down from a co-equal Hawaiian National government to a Native Hawaiian government. Clearly, this is a means to settle reconciliation to the crimes admitted in the Apology Law.
Our kupuna rejected annexation in 1897 with the Ku’e petitions. There is no treaty of annexation. The U.S. has illegal status, but are attempting to legalize their status.
As a Kanaka Maoli living and working on the American continent, i reject the offer to go under the management of the DOI – an agency whose historical and current missions have been to dispossess Native peoples from their lands, subject them to genocidal oppression, and hand their resources over to be extracted for private benefit. Hawaiians stand in solidarity with our Native brothers and sisters on the continent. We know the pain they have endured and must find a better way.
I call on Hawaiians everywhere to unite in an Independent government, but NOT according to the criteria outlined in this final rule from the dept. of Interior.
Raul Nohea Goodness
This entry was posted in General and tagged doi, fedrec on September 24, 2016 by raulg.
ʻAha Aloha ʻĀina, taking stock, and healthy vs. unhealthy governance models
Companion video blog to this post:
I have worked with ‘Aha Aloha ‘Aina since early 2016. I feel the need today to take stock on what has been achived so far and what will be a critical role for ‘Aha Aloha ‘Aina to play . I want to say, i have co-hosted one ‘Aha event in NYC, but i do not speak for the coalition or leadership in any official capacity.
‘Aha Aloha ‘Aina formed around simple goals:
Na’i Aupuni ‘Aha doesn’t speak for Hawaiians as a group, and should not be allowed to make a deal with the DOI and the State of Hawaii in a global settlement
Demonstrate how Hawaiians have already been involved in nation building and rebuilding.
AAA came directly as the next stage in the Protest Na’i Aupuni group, sharing the key organizers. Knowing that the state-controlled push for Federal Recognition under the DOI was on a fast-track (months, not years, targeting the end of the Obama administration in 2016), the goals were intentionally limited, in order to build as a coalition of existing Hawaiian organizations.
I think it was wise to focus on pro-active and positive role the Independence advocates have had over many decades, and continue to do so. The rhetoric coming out of the Na’i Aupuni was attempting to tie pro-independence kanaka as for the “status quo”, which for Hawaiians, is an unacceptable outcome. (never mind that Fed Rec as conceived now under the DOI enshrines the status quo in Federal rule).
The adoption of the ancient framework for civil governance – the Kino – i think is a powerful way for Hawaiians to cut across our pre-existing governance models, and focus on a what a healthy government looks like. We need to keep exercising the parts of the kino, learning how to move independently as well as learning to move together with the other parts.
However, something must be stated clearly, because not everyone gets this: AAA’s implementation of the Kino intentionally does not have an excerise of the po’o = the head of government. Kalaniakea Wilson explained that “everyone wants to be the po’o, arguing over who it is”. So that was left out intentionally.
Leaving out the po’o is not a weakness, it is a definition of kuleana, a definition of role. AAA will not be creating or restoring a government. It creates the necessary space for the lahui to exercise movement politically – an opportunity to be cohesive. It is not in opposition to any independent political system – only in opposition to a Hawaiian government controlled by the State of Hawaii and the US Federal government.
It means that AAA’s focus is on the whole system – healthy governance system, different from what we live under now, in which the political, economic, social and cultural systems are segregated, diluted, and operating in opposition to each other, due to our history of oppression. We may not have all the answers, but at least we are asking the right questions, if we are to retake our self-governance. We don’t have to be perfect, but need to have processes to correct mistakes and move forward.
There is one more thing i need to say about ‘Aha Aloha ‘Aina and Protest Na’i aupuni– they scored a win on the political battlefield against Na’i Aupuni, “Native Hawaiian Nation” constitution and its successor “Aloha Lahui” by clearly demonstrating a large group of Hawaiians do not accept the state-controlled process for Federal Recognition under the DOI. The protests and resistance at the gate showed commitment, but a message which is not reported very widely is that Aha Aloha Aina has held over 20 ‘aha on the different islands, as well as a number on the continent. More that 2000 Hawaiians have participated in these ‘aha. We are finally being counted, because we are counting ourselves, following the direction of our kupuna a century ago. When Healani Sonoda-Pale delivered petitions to the Dept of Interior, and Kalama Niheu followed up by getting a meeting in the DOI with the director of Native Hawaiian Relations, it was to tell the agency Hawaiians will engage politically, in any way we feel is neccesary and effective. Those numbers demonstrate more support that Na’i Aupuni, as well as far more community involvement.
The Na’i Aupuni successor “Aloha Lahui” representative Jade Danner declared their referendum election put off for more than a year, moved from 2016 to late 2017, due to a lack of private fundraising efforts. This is a tactical retreat on their part. They do not have the community, nor the private funds for the elections, because the Hawaiian community, as well as the non-Hawaiian know it is “no good”. Hawaiian leaders who asked to be represented in Maunawili without signing on to Act 195 were arrested, but do date, all had charges dismissed – one dismissed with prejudice because the Na’i aupuni ‘aha was a political event, under Hawaii Revised Statues, any potential tresspass charge must respect constitutional protections. Hawaiians spoke via ‘Aha Aloha ‘Aina, as well as leaders engaging Kana’iolowalu/Na’i aupuni, but either resigned the process (like Bumpy Kanahele) or others inside who voted ‘no’ or abstained intentionally.
I just think we should take stock of the significant achievement at this point in time. The DOI final rule may be coming soon, but the Na’i aupuin/Aloha Lahui referendum process is struggling for relevance. Maybe some will adjust and start looking for more productive governance. ‘Aha Aloha ‘Aina will be a part of healthy governance. I look forward to it. Love you all, Aloha!
– Raul Nohea Goodness
The day after closing of the Na’i Aupuni ‘Aha 2016
Aloha everyone, here is my update one day after the close on day 20 of the Na’i Aupuni ‘Aha 2016.
– A governing document was officially adopted by the body on the afternoon of the last day by roll call vote. 88 yes, 30 no, 1 abstain, and a number not in the room during that vote (likely by their own intent). It is called the “Constitution of the Native Hawaiian Nation”.
– The document could be put to a referendum vote in the near future for approval.
– A Declaration was also officially adopted by the body.
– Committee work was accepted in report by the body, but not adopted. This includes the Maunawili 1 and 2 declarations by Williamson Chang, a constitution provided by Keoni Agard and Jimmy Wong, as well as a constitution provided by Poka Laenui. I’m not going to comment on the source of the documents, due to disagreements and my lack of knowledge on the matter.
I’m going to make my own brief assessments on the final adopted constitution:
– It is a “Federal Recognition”-ready document, with one possible exception.
– It references our roots to the lands and history from time immemorial, pre-1778.
– There is no mention of the Hawaiian Kingdom, the sovereign Nation-state, from Kamehameha I to the overthrow and Newlands resolution.
– The exception is the claim to “national lands”, not explicitly defining it.
– No claim to title of those lands lost in the overthrow and Newlands resolution (Act of Annexation).
– There is no constitutional continuity with any Kingdom constitution or law.
– There is a claim to territory, but not directly naming the Hawaiian Kingdom territory. The government shall pursue return of the national lands, or just compensation.
– There are sections on defining Native Hawaiians, and citizenship will be limited to Native Hawaiians who enroll.
– The referendum vote will be open to all “eligible for citizenship”, which is Native Hawaiians over 18 years old. There is NOT a requirement to be on any specific roll.
– There is a section in the preamble which was the source of much debate and political back and forth: “We reaffirm the National Sovereignty of the Nation. We reserve all rights to Sovereignty and Self-determination, including the pursuit of independence.”
There is a strong concern this could prevent the Feds from granting U.S. Federal Recognition to the Native Hawaiian government. However, the governing document would likely not have received the ‘yes’ votes it did without that line. There are going to be much more detail coming out about this internal negotiations, i won’t go into it it right now. Lanakila and Lilikala made reference to it on the floor Friday.
– A separate “Declaration of the Sovereignty of the Native Hawaiian Nation” was also adopted. This document does have a lot of historical context which would have been in the preamble, but was stripped out. It passed with overwhelming support. It does contain facts of our history including events before, during, and after the time of the Kingdom of Hawaii up to the present day.
– The entire ‘Aha was product-oriented, not process-oriented. Discussion of the substantive issues was restricted in the interest of achieving a product (governing document) by the deadline imposed by the Na’i Aupuni organizers. The result is a functional, but sterile constitution which will likely pass a Department of Interior Federal Recognition process once the proposed rule is finalized.
I have much more to say and discuss on this process and product, this is a quick update.
This entry was posted in General on February 27, 2016 by raulg.
Proposing a referendum vote before approval of Federal Recognition
Proposing a clause in the Na’i Aupuni ‘Aha governing document (and any other) to require a referendum vote BEFORE a future Hawaiian government makes a formal request for U.S. Federal Recognition (under the Dept. of Interior rules).
The reason? If a government is created, the Executive committee stated the future Executive will be empowered to request “Fed Rec” from the Dept. of Interior, ratified by the future Legistlature. That means if you are Hawaiian, you will NOT ever be specifically asked if you want to integrate sovereignty with the U.S. You could then be forced to start doing all your interactions as a Hawaiian to the U.S. Federal government through this new entity being created.
Currently Hawaiians ARE recognized by the U.S. via the Hawaiian Homestead Commission Act (HHCA), and over a hundred other laws. There are many disadvantages to changing to go under the DOI in the future, and deserves a full public education, debate, and discussion of the issues before signing off. If a requirement for referendum is not added, the input of the Hawaiian people would likely be ignored.
For those who are pro-Federal Recognition, there would also be the benefit of making the approval of any Hawaiian governing document more likely to be approved. There is little trust from the community in the Kana’iolowalu / Na’i Aupuni process, largely due to the fear that a new government will be empowered immediately to take action without limit on behalf of all Hawaiians.
If there is a limit on the government power to get U.S. Federal Recognition (until approved by voter referendum), then it would actually have the time to build trust and convince Hawaiians it can be trusted to be the primary political entity for us. No matter what method Hawaiians come together politically, this stage will be needed.
Currently, these are the steps required for a Native Hawaiian Governing Entity to request and receive U.S. Federal Recognition (under the current DOI proposed rule):
Create a governing document (which ‘fits’ the DOI rule requirements)
Send it to Native Hawaiians to vote to accept/reject it via referendum vote
The governing document vote must pass, and the ‘yes’ votes must have “broad-based support” (more than 30,000 to 50,000 votes)
Populate the government positions based on the document (elect Executive and Legislators)
Executive may write a formal request for U.S. Federal Recognition (submitting a letter on how the government was created)
If the Secretary of Interior approves the request, the Native Hawaiian Governing Entity is granted Federal Recognition as a native government, similar to tribal entities. However, with no land transferred or any other claims or negotiation in advance. No opportunity for voters to approve.
I am proposing adding a simple step to the governing document:
Any formal treaty or request to integrate sovereignty with another sovereign entity (including U.S. Federal Recognition) shall first be approved through a referendum of all recognized voters, without exception.
By putting aside the most controversial issues for our lahui, we allow any future Hawaiian government time to build trust and respect of our lahui.
Mahalo nui for your consideration.
This entry was posted in General and tagged naiaupuni on February 22, 2016 by raulg.
A Proposal for Hawaiian Elections and Political Cohesion
by Raul Nohea Goodness, January 31, 2016
In February 2016, the new non-profit corporation called Na’i Aupuni is convening an ‘Aha for Hawaiians for the purpose of writing a constitution or governing document for a Hawaiian government.
The participants initially were to be elected delegates, and did stand for election via a process completely run by an outside contractor (Election America) which implemented the process of candidate registration and voting for delegates, via Internet voting and mail voting. There were no in-person polling places, and no planned oversight of the voting tabulation.
During the voting in November 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court ordered a stay on the vote counting and certification of the election (Akina v. Hawaii). In December 2015, the Na’i Aupuni directors declared the election canceled, and proposed an ‘Aha consisting of the unelected candidates. Although now not vested with any electoral authority, these participants are still being asked to create a constitution for a Hawaiian government, based on the principle of self-determination. This constitution would be voted to be approved or rejected by the registered Native Hawaiian voters (possibly with the same Kana’iolowalu voter roll which the U.S. Supreme court stopped vote counting on).
This proposal is a political one, not a legal case. I hold that we Kanaka Maoli and descendants of Hawaiian Nationals should determine our own path in the political realm together.
Please not that although I am proposing this in the context of the Na’i Aupuni process in 2016, it would likely be the same proposal for any other Hawaiian nation-building process, whether state-sponsored or grassroots.
Rationale for a Hawaiian voter list which expands or replaces Kana’iolowalu
In 2011, the State of Hawaii passed Act 195, which created the Native Hawaiian Roll Commission (aka Kana’iolowalu).
The purpose of this Act is to recognize Native Hawaiians as the only indigenous, aboriginal, maoli population of Hawai‘i. It is also the State’s desire to support the continuing development of a reorganized Native Hawaiian governing entity and, ultimately, the federal recognition of Native Hawaiians.
It created a commission to register and certify people of Hawaiian ancestry which predates the arrival of Europeans in 1778. Furthermore, it required political and cultural affirmations, in order to sign up:
I affirm the unrelinquished sovereignty of the Native Hawaiian people, and my intent to participate in the process of self-governance.
I have a significant cultural, social or civic connection to the Native Hawaiian community.
After the roll was open for 2 years, it failed to attract anywhere near the goal of registering 200,000 people. Reported numbers were in the 20,000 to 40,000 range.
Reasons for the low participation rate may include the following:
Lack of trust by Hawaiians in the State-driven nation-building process, especially after the failed effort to create a government through a joint resolution (the Akaka bill)
Disagreement with the specific affirmation to create “governing entity”, due to disagreement with the expected outcome – U.S. Federal Recognition of that entity under the Dept. of Interior, similar to other Native tribal governments
Disagreement with the exclusion of Hawaiian Subject descendants, since they have the clearest claim as the wronged parties to the overthrow of the Kingdom and dispossession of their nation, their land, their language and culture.
Lack of effort in engaging the public in the substantive issues involved in nation-building.
When the State passed Act 77 in 2013, it transferred names from the OHA Registry and the DHHL list to Kana’iolowalu voter rolls. This action increased the voter roll to above 120,000 names. This is significant, because any election needs to demonstrate broad-based support from the Native Hawaiian community in order to show legitimacy. The action additionally served to reduce trust in the process, since many of those people intentionally did not sign onto Kana’iolowalu, intending not to validate the rush to Federal Recognition.
When Na’i Aupuni directors planned their elections, they specifically decided to recognize only the Kana’iolowalu list. They specifically rejected the use of any other registry or list.
The nature of the State-driven and OHA-sponsored nation-building process (having U.S. Federal Recognition as a stated goal) has set back the process of Hawaiian political organization for many years. Many other historical facts have become known to us over the past 20 years– our decisions today should be informed by them. By making a controversial outcome the goal– one which is either not generally accepted nor understood by Hawaiians– has alienated many from the process. I accept many have supported Federal Recognition for fair reasons on principle or just tactically. However, even if that turns out to be the best choice for us in the near future, it cannot be done by bypassing the majority of Hawaiians who have stayed out of Kana’iolowalu and Na’i Aupuni due to a lack of trust or understanding. They must be brought in before a referendum vote is held, and it must be an informed vote.
We should come to the conclusion soon that Hawaiians are in one wa’a – the same boat. Forward progress must come together.
What is the alternative to Federal Recognition right now?
A common question from the pro-”fed rec” camp is: “what is the alternative?”. The intent of the line of argument is to present the alternatives as impossible, thus leaving Federal Recognition as the road to take– immediately— while the Obama administration is still in place.
Basically, the arguments boil down to:
There is no existing legal process for an Independent Nation-State which can compel enforcement on the U.S., either thru de-occupation or thru de-colonization.
There is an existing U.S. legal process for granting “Inherent Sovereignty” (a legal term in the context of Federal Indian law) to Native Hawaiians based on indigenous rights. Let’s get what we can now, because we may get nothing in the future.
Existing Native Hawaiian Federal programs need to be protected from lawsuits.
The arguments against “Fed Rec” include:
We have a Nation or Kingdom already, which was suppressed. Hawaiians never surrendered sovereignty. There is no treaty of annexation. Requesting Federal Recognition under the U.S. Dept. of Interior (DOI) will surrender those claims, or make them very difficult to assert.
The offer proposed for Federal Recognition includes no land transfer at all (no land base for our nation) except Kaho’olawe. We receive no new Federal benefits other than what we already have. In return, Hawaiians as a group agree explicitly to go under U.S. sovereignty for the first time ever.
Leaving aside the many arguments for and against (which there are many), there is a more problematic truth to these debates:
If Hawaiians cannot form a cohesive unified political entity, through a representative and inclusive process, then whatever entity makes the request for “Federal Recognition” is acting without authority from the Hawaiians at large.
Due to the polarization around this issue, Hawaiians cannot form a cohesive political entity. Those for and against Federal Recognition will continue to veto each other.
I propose that the alternative to accepting the offer on the table today from the Dept. of Interior should not be the “status quo” situation (Hawaiians divided politically in the State of Hawaii and U.S. system). The positive alternative is for Hawaiians to put aside the most divisive issue (requesting Federal Recognition) and organize around a unifying platform of governance.
Protection of sacred places is the most unifying issue in the present. Pro-independent, pro-Kingdom, pro-fedrec, and unaffiliated Hawaiians united to protect Mauna Kea from the construction of the TMT. There are other issues to hui on: getting the Hawaiians on Hawaiian lands, expanding language and cultural rights, fixing or taking control of the DHHL situation, asserting our leverage from a position independent from the State of Hawaii. If we can get more funds via OHA, let’s do it. If we have to assert leverage outside the State of Hawaii system through political action, let’s do it.
Those who are in favor of U.S. Federal Recognition may use the time to educate, discuss, and organize with the whole lahui. Pro-independent Hawaiians should do the same. Even pro-fedrec Hawaiians are insulted when they read the terms of the proposed rules for Federal Recognition from the Dept. of Interior. No transfer of land controlled by the Federal or State of Hawaii, no new benefits, just a possibility to talk directly to the Federal and State governments officially.
The battle over “Fed Rec” vs. Independent Nation-state will go on, but in the near term, that battle is holding Hawaiians in the status quo. The way forward is for Hawaiians to find a way to address the political objectives we share in the context of losing our power in the face of ruthless economic and political forces.
Rationale for a Trusted Electoral System
Once Hawaiians come to a political consensus to embark into Nation-building or Government-building together, elections are a likely to be the next steps, whether they be for referendum on a constitution, or for representatives. When the stakeholders decide to vest their trust into an electoral process, the perceived legitimacy of the election becomes essential. Otherwise, political groups will continue to leave the process or remain outside it. This further serves to dilute the political leverage of Kanaka Maoli, whose interests have not been well served under the State of Hawaii and U.S. Federal government.
This is where knowledge and experience of electoral practices comes into the picture. If different political parties are in an election, there must be trust it is conducted fairly. Otherwise, the cohesion of the government will break apart again. Many governments around the world have faced these issues, and Hawaiians may employ similar means, if we only seek them out and ask. However, the political will to do so comes first.
Maoli vs. National Electorate
To be blunt, this is another divisive issue, but an important one to establish from the outset of any electoral process. Hawaiians are an inclusive people, and most consider anyone of Native Hawaiian ancestry to be Hawaiian.
“Hawaiian” was also the term used in the 19th century to mean a Hawaiian National/Subject of the Kingdom of Hawai’i, regardless of koko (blood). The majority of Hawaiian Nationals were Kanaka Maoli, but some were not.
It stands to reason the descendants of those Nationals were the parties which deserve reclamation of their nationality. Arguably, reducing the nation to those with the koko will also undermine the case for a Hawaiian political and cultural identity.
However, for those desiring to pursue Hawaiian indigenous path to Federal Recognition, the U.S. Federal rules currently require only Native ancestry, and excluding those with only non-native ancestry.
Ironically, it is the indigenous ancestry requirement combined with State-action that compelled the U.S. Supreme court to stay the Na’i Aupuni election. If either the voter roll were expanded to include Hawaiian National descendants, or if the election were not controlled by the State of Hawaii, it would likely not be blocked in the courts.
It has to be up to Hawaiians to decide the bounds of our nation, and ultimately, our electorate. I see the options this way:
If the electorate is to be Kanaka Maoli only, it should be as inclusive as possible within those parameters.
If the electorate is to be Kanaka Maoli and descendants of Hawaiian Nation Subjects, it would allow for voter registration based on Kingdom records or the 1897 Ku’e Petition.
The implementation of the Kana’iolowalu roll specifically leaves out non-native Hawaiian Nationals, but also fails on the first goal of registering Kanaka Maoli in any significant numbers. Participation and inclusion in nation-building will only come about through a trusted process which is understood by Hawaiians at-large and brings in the different political groups.
Fair and transparent elections are a part of building that trust.
Specific Electoral Proposals
Since a new referendum vote on a constitution is a likely outcome for the Na’i Aupuni ‘Aha, this is the opportunity for correcting the electoral problems. Here are my proposals:
Internet voting should be abandoned. There is no way for it to be audited by the public, and is still not trusted in U.S. or International elections.
Voting/polling should be done via paper ballot (preferably computer scannable) in-person at polling places in Hawai’i
Voting by mail should also be available for voters outside Hawai’i or those requesting absentee ballots. Vote by mail should be sent in 2 envelopes, so that the knowledge of the ballot results cannot be connected with the sender.
There must be a dispute resolution process for any irregularities in the system of running, registering, voting, and tabulation/certification.
A board or committee from a range of political backgrounds should be managing any election.
3rd party contractors should not be given control over the voting mechanisms.
Registration for voting should be done using trusted registries on who is Hawaiian. These could include the OHA Registry or the DHHL list (if available), and could include others if they conform to the criteria agreed upon.
Provisional ballots cast for voting day irregularities or registration omissions should be considered in the process as well. Determination for inclusion or rejection of those ballots should be done by a mixed political panel.
We should request Electoral Assistance from well-established NGOs (such as International IDEA or the Carter Center). They will have the best-practices available internationally for demonstrating a fair vote to all parties involved. They recommend, but we implement for ourselves.
My analysis for requirements for Hawaiian cohesion in the near-term:
Reflecting on the current state of Hawaiian politics, I believe Kanaka Maoli and those with Hawaiian National identity will not be able to assert significant political power unless the most divisive issues are put to the side. Those issues are the rush to request Federal Recognition in 2016, and possibly settle claims on the “ceded” land trust. If we can limit the capability of any Hawaiian government or organization to put those aside (or otherwise take a referendum with full participation of lahui to achieve), and we still have political cohesion, then we can address the near terms issues while having the time to work on our long-term objectives.
Raul Nohea Goodness is a Kanaka Maoli Software Architect and Developer raised in Wailuku, HI, and currently residing in Brooklyn, NY. As a former delegate candidate, he is a participant in the Na‘i Aupuni ‘Aha. http://www.hekili.net
Printable 3 page PDF
This entry was posted in General and tagged naiaupuni on January 31, 2016 by raulg.
Keahi on How Independence is Blocked by Federal Recognition
Pi on About
Elizabeth on Aloha Coin Preview Part 3: Practical Mobile Wallet Usage (Android)
Rodney on About
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Curt CartierCurt Cartier
Here’s How To Get Your Spotify Wrapped in 2020
iStockphoto, Getty Images
Once again, it's that time! Spotify 2020 Wrapped rolled out for both listeners and artists starting on Tuesday (Dec. 1).
If you listen to music on Spotify, that means you can see exactly what you listened to (and how much, plus much more) over the crazy year that's been 2020. Are you ready to get your Spotify Wrapped stats for the year?
To keep things exciting, the Spotify 2020 Wrapped personalized experience includes a handful of new features to show you how you listened on the ubiquitous audio streaming service over the past 12 months.
For example, as you follow along with the Story of Your 2020 to reveal your Top Song and Top Artist, add-ons like in-app quizzes and podcast listening statistics will appear. There's also "Missed Hits" — a discovery playlist that recommends similar songs you might have glossed over — and something called "On Record," a mixed-media experience that takes your most-listened-to tracks and appends relevant podcast chats to each one.
So how do you get your Spotify Wrapped for 2020? Just click on this link and make sure you're logged in.
As Spotify noted, "eligible users can access their personalized Wrapped experience exclusively in the Spotify mobile app on iOS and Android. As usual, this year's Wrapped is full of insights on the artists, songs, genres and podcasts that defined your listening in 2020 — and it's created from data unique to each and every listener."
In much the same way, recording artists can now access their 2020 Artist Wrapped to get "a personalized summary of your year on Spotify that will tell you how your music connected with fans around the world."
For artists, simply log into your Spotify for Artists page on the web or from a mobile device. Any artist who had more than three listeners before Oct. 31 will have a Wrapped experience waiting for them! (If you're an artist who has yet to claim their Spotify profile, you can do that here.)
So how did you listen on Spotify this year? Were there any surprises waiting for you regarding the artists, songs or genres you listened to the most? What do you think of the new 2020 Wrapped features?
For this writer, one big change from my Spotify 2019 Wrapped to 2020 was that Danzig somehow dropped from No. 1 to No. 4 on my most-listened-to artists. (See my stats below.) I'm sorry, Glenn!
Philip Trapp's Spotify 2020 Wrapped
Source: Here’s How To Get Your Spotify Wrapped in 2020
Filed Under: Spotify
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Unified Threat Management (UTM) Firewalls
Easy Read Time: 4 Minutes
Unified Threat Management (UTM) or SMB Multifunction Firewalls: Best tools
UTM or SMB multifunctional firewalls, provide SMBs and distributed businesses with various security capabilities within a single system. Leaders in security and risk management have the choice to pick one of the best vendors, depending on their needs and geography. The market for unified threat management (UTM) is defined as multifunction firewalls used by small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs). Mid-size businesses typically have between 100 and 1,000 employees. UTM vendors are increasingly introducing new features to UTM systems, thereby encompassing many other network security options, including:
Centralized management consoles
Advanced malware detection
Intrusion prevention systems (IPSs)
Secure web gateways (SWGs)
Unified Threat Management (UTM) – Gartner magic quadrants
Browser-based control, ease of deployment, embedded reporting, VPN, customized applications, outstanding partner support, and documentation are not particularly appealing to large enterprises but are highly valued in this market by SMBs. There are very different demands for the firewall markets from large-scale enterprises and office branches. Generally, these require more complex network security functionality and are tailored for very different criteria of selection.
The descriptions of some of the best UTM tools are as follows:
Table of Content +
1 Fortinet
2 Sophos
3 Check Point Software Technologies
4 WatchGaurd
5 Cisco
Fortinet is a security and network player, headquartered in Sunnyvale, California. With recent additions such as FortiWeb (the webserver firewall), FortiMail, FortiSandbox, FortiSIEM, and FortiCASB it is expanding its product range regularly. Its other portfolio products address network security, endpoint protection, wireless access points, and switches. FortiGate firewalls continue to be the most successful and widest-selling product. Recent updates include the expansion of Fortinet ‘s support to multiple public IaaS platforms including Google, IBM, Oracle. It has also introduced its appliances for the E-Series firewall. In addition, major updates include the launching of FortiOS 5.6 in and FortiOS 6.0. Fortinet is prominent on the UTM shortlists of SMB customers searching for good wireless security features. It is also a good shortlist option for SMBs looking to consolidate for other network security needs, such as web application firewalls, and security information and event management (SIEM), toward a single vendor. The vendor also wins deals where the introduction of SD-WAN is the main use case. The integrated wireless controller feature in the UTM solution from Fortinet is a strong and desirable feature for SMB’s. Fortinet has integrated a complete wireless controller into the firewall, thus allowing wireless network management as part of the security solution. FortiCloud and FortiManager fully manage this. Fortinet UTM lacks built-in support for the quarantine and encryption of end-user emails. To get those features, customers must use FortiMail, which is a separate product. Fortinet offers the FortiGuard Industrial Security Program, which delivers signature patches for common ICS / supervisory control and data acquisition protocols (SCADA); This comes with a separate subscription, that SMBs running such systems will use. FortiCloud, the unified cloud-based management interface, has restricted flexibility relative to on-site control tools and lacks granular functionality.
https://www.fortinet.com/products/smallbusiness/utm
Sophos is a security network and endpoint vendor with headquarters in Abingdon, UK. Sophos’ portfolio includes firewalls (XG Series, older SG Series, and CR series). Sophos has 19 XG versions, and three Remote Ethernet Devices (RED) versions, which are small office plug-and-play devices. Sophos offers refined and integrated endpoint management, monitoring, and visibility through a single UTM console, which makes it easier to manage and prevent advanced malware. It also offers several other endpoint security solutions, including a wireless access point (Sophos AP Series), and unified endpoint management (Sophos Mobile). The name of the unified management platform is Sophos Firewall Manager (SFM), and Sophos Central is the cloud-based integrated control hub for all Sophos security products. Recent updates include a new XG Firewall version 17 with enhanced endpoint integration leveraging application control, as well as an update to its Sandstorm cloud sandbox solution with integration from its next-generation endpoint product (Intercept X). Sophos has a very good list of SMBs that seek multiple integrated features in their firewall, such as email and web DLP, email encryption, and a web app firewall. Sophos is also a reasonable choice for SMBs looking to combine their UTM solutions with solid and mature endpoints to promote their management and correlation.
https://www.sophos.com/en-us/products/unified-threat-management.aspx
As a Leader, Check Point Applications Technologies is reviewed as it continues to have one of the highest market shares in UTM. The company provides a comprehensive range of apps with a clear spatial approach across distributed regional offices in various geographies and networks, as well as support for multiple local network applications and data-loss prevention (DLP) system forms. Check Point is a pure-play global security provider with its product lines that include network security, endpoint protection, mobile threat security, and cloud security. Its product line UTM and firewall are known as Check Point Security Gateways. Relevant news updates include the announcement of its threat detection solution for SaaS, CloudGuard SaaS. They also include the introduction of the R80.10 firmware and the rebranding of their vSEC products, CloudGuard IaaS, AWS, the Google Cloud Platform, Azure, Azure stack, Oracle Cloud and Alibaba. SMBs looking for mature, on-site centralized management capabilities with robust UTM functionality and deep anti-ransomware and DLP capability can choose Check Point UTM solutions.
https://www.esecurityplanet.com/products/check-point-utm.html
https://www.checkpoint.com/products/cyber-security-management/
WatchGaurd
it aims to work on SMB market security requirements. It is consistently introducing upgrades to boost advanced capabilities for threat prevention and integration between its endpoints and UTM. Its roadmap also exhibits a strong focus on improving an end-user network’s detection and response capabilities. WatchGuard has offices in Seattle, Washington. Its range of products includes UTM offerings, endpoint security multifactor authentication (MFA), and wireless APs. Its line of UTM goods is called Firebox. WatchGuard Dimension is their centralized product for management. Furthermore, WatchGuard offers virtual devices for public cloud installation, including XTMv, FireboxV, and Firebox Cloud. The WatchGuard host sensor is its endpoint product. The latest WatchGuard news includes six new UTM models from the T series and four new, high-performance UTM models from the M series. acquired Percipient Networks, along with the acquisition of Datablink and the launch of AuthPoint, a cloud-based MFA service. The vendor has also introduced improvements to its offering on a VPN. WatchGuard is a good candidate for SMBs and distributed organizations that need a full range of features.
https://www.watchguard.com/wgrd-solutions/unified-threat-management
Cisco continues to offer new technologies through its product line Meraki MX built for distributed sites, campuses, and VPN concentrators. In addition to Meraki MX, Cisco also markets Cisco Adaptive Security Appliance (ASA), Cisco ASA with FirePOWER services, and Cisco Firepower with low-end mid-sized enterprise or branch implementations for other SMB use cases. Its security portfolio comprises firewalls (Firepower and Meraki MX), stand-alone IPS (Firepower), network traffic monitoring (Stealthwatch), a secure cloud (Umbrella), and CASB (Cloudlock) internet gateway. There are also endpoint (Advanced Malware Protection [AMP] and AnyConnect) and cloud protection applications in Cisco. Cisco is addressing the UTM market through its various firewall product lines: MX, ASA, FirePOWER services, and Firepower services. Meraki MX products are managed in branch or distributed deployment via cloud-based management with SD-WAN capabilities. Cisco Firepower and ASA discuss the need for more robust defense capability, or the need to combine endpoints with current Firepower, TrustSec, and AMP. Recent updates include Cisco introducing the Azure and AWS Meraki MX virtual firewall vMX100. Cisco Meraki has launched teleworker appliances that provide 802.11ac Wave 2 wireless networking, and 4 Gbps and 6 Gbps firewall throughput appliances. Cisco Meraki is a good option for all SMBs and distributed organizations, particularly those pursuing a mature, cloud-based management platform for multiple UTM system management and monitoring. Cisco ASA and Cisco Firepower are good options for the use of deployment scenarios for other small to medium enterprises, such as perimeter and internal network segmentation.
https://community.cisco.com/t5/network-security/firewall-and-utm/td-p/2879879
https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/products/security/firewalls/index.html
https://www.gartner.com/technology/media-products/newsletters/sophos/1-5GVMBMU/gartner.html
By Jubin Pejman|2020-09-12T20:21:12-04:00July 4th, 2020|Uncategorized|0 Comments
About the Author: Jubin Pejman
Iam an experienced & driven professional with over 20 years history in Fin-Tech, Cloud & Cybersecurity. Currently focusing on social media intelligence, cyber security and digital security.My work and articles have been covered by CNBC, WSJ, Markets Media, American Banker and Financial Times among others.
Server Logging and Monitoring
Microsoft Azure Data Lake
Microsoft Azure and Power BI
Microsoft Azure Sentinel
Ansible Tower Security Best Practices
How-To Articles (3)
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Keanu Reeves Online
Keanu Reeves Fansite
92nd Academy Awards Photos
Last night, Keanu attended the Academy Awards with his mother Patricia Taylor. Here are photos from the event:
Events & Appearances > Events from 2020 > February 9th | 92nd Academy Awards Arrivals
Events & Appearances > Events from 2020 > February 9th | 92nd Academy Awards Stage
Events & Appearances > Events from 2020 > February 9th | 92nd Academy Awards Backstage & Audience
Events & Appearances, Gallery
Gallery Updates: Events
Hello everyone, I’m catching up with 2019 missing events. See them below and in the gallery:
Events & Appearances > Events from 2019 > May 15th | John Wick Chapter 3 Parabellum Special Screening
Events & Appearances > Events from 2019 > May 18th | MOCA Benefit 2019
Events & Appearances > Events from 2019 > May 22nd | Always Be My Maybe Los Angeles Premiere
Events & Appearances > Events from 2019 > June 6th | Saint Laurent Mens Spring Summer 20 Show Photocall
Events & Appearances > Events from 2019 > June 8th | Toy Story Orlando Events
Events & Appearances > Events from 2019 > June 10th | E3 XBox Show
Events & Appearances > Events from 2019 > June 10th | Too Old To Die Young Los Angeles Special Screening
Events & Appearances > Events from 2019 > June 11th | Toy Story Los Angeles Premiere
Events & Appearances > Events from 2019 > September 10th | John Wick Chapter 3 Parabellum Tokyo Premiere
Events & Appearances > Events from 2019 > September 24th | Semper Fi Special Screening
Events & Appearances > Events from 2019 > November 2nd | 2019 LACMA Art Film Gala
‘Matrix 4’ Officially a Go With Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss and Lana Wachowski
Time to get excited folks, a new Matrix is in the works, here’s the exclusive report from Variety:
Get ready to re-enter the Matrix.
Lana Wachowski is set to write and direct a fourth film set in the world of “The Matrix,” with Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss reprising their roles as Neo and Trinity, respectively.
Warner Bros. Pictures and Village Roadshow Pictures will produce and globally distribute the film. Warner Bros. Picture Group chairman Toby Emmerich made the announcement on Tuesday.
“We could not be more excited to be re-entering ‘The Matrix’ with Lana,” said Emmerich. “Lana is a true visionary — a singular and original creative filmmaker — and we are thrilled that she is writing, directing and producing this new chapter in ‘The Matrix’ universe.”
In addition to Wachowski, the script was also written by Aleksandar Hemon and David Mitchell. Wachowski is also producing with Grant Hill. Sources say the film is eyed to begin production at the top of 2020.
Warner Bros. has been trying for the last of couple years to find a way to get back into “The Matrix” universe, but a hold-up over producing rights slowed the project down. Over the past couple of months, the studio saw an opportunity to ramp up development, with Reeves boasting a strong summer that included box office hits “John Wick 3” and “Toy Story 4” and a script from Wachowski that drummed up excitement.
Plot details are currently unknown, as is how the role of Morpheus will be handled, originally played by Laurence Fishburne. Some sources say the role may be recast for a younger take.
The three previous films —“The Matrix,” “The Matrix Reloaded” and “The Matrix Revolutions” — have collectively earned more than $1.6 billion at the global box office. All three were written and directed by Lana and her sister, Lilly, and starred Reeves and Moss.
“Many of the ideas Lilly and I explored 20 years ago about our reality are even more relevant now. I’m very happy to have these characters back in my life and grateful for another chance to work with my brilliant friends,” Wachowski said.
The first “Matrix” had its 20th anniversary this year, marked by special screenings at select AMC locations starting on Aug. 30.
Wachowski is represented by WME, Circle of Confusion and attorney Peter Grossman. Reeves is represented by WME and Ziffren Brittenham. Moss is represented by WME, longtime manager Elizabeth Hodgson and attorney Bob Lange.
Keanu Reeves answers questions and plays with puppies (Video)
Keanu did an interview with Keanu where he answers fan questions and plays with puppies. It doesn’t get better than that, watch it below:
Keanu Reeves and puppies. What more do you need to know? pic.twitter.com/C37CDtXmx6
— BuzzFeed (@BuzzFeed) May 17, 2019
May 15th, 2019 May 15th, 2019
Hand and Foot print ceremony at the Chinese Theater in Los Angeles
Today, Keanu was honored with a ceremony to have his hand and foot print at the Chinese Theater in Los Angeles. Here are photos from the event and a video from his speech:
Events & Appearances > Events from 2019 > May 14th | Hand and Foot Print Ceremony at the Chinese Theater in Los Angeles
Gallery Updates: John Wick – Chapter 3 – Parabellum – Promotion Tour
Good evening, everyone! I’ve added pictures from the past month where Keanu is out in the world promoting John Wick – Chapter 3 – Parabellum, which opens this week. Check out the photos below.
Events & Appearances > Events from 2019 > May 9th | John Wick – Chapter 3 Parabellum – World Premiere
Events & Appearances > Events from 2019 > May 6th | John Wick – Chapter 3 Parabellum – Berlin Photocall
Events & Appearances > Events from 2019 > May 3rd | John Wick – Chapter 3 Parabellum – London Screening
Events & Appearances > Events from 2019 > April 28th | John Wick – Chapter 3 Parabellum – Press Conference
Interviews & Talk Shows > Interviews from 2019 > May 8th | The Late Show with Stephen Colbert – Stills
Interviews & Talk Shows > Interviews from 2019 > May 2nd | Graham Norton Show – Stills
April 17th, 2019 April 17th, 2019
Keanu Reeves covers GQ US May Issue
Keanu is featured on the May issue of GQ US Magazine “The Legend of Keanu Reeves“. Here is the cover and the photoshoot, a behind scenes video and one where he talks about his motorcycle company, and some bits from the interview, which you can read at GQ.com website.
Here, before you’re quite ready for him, is Keanu Reeves: At the top of the driveway of the Chateau Marmont, smoking a cigarette on a low couch, like he’s on his front porch.
He’s been coming here since the early ’90s. The Chateau was run-down and empty then—a seedier, pre-André Balazs version of itself. The faucets didn’t always work. The carpets were dicey. “You didn’t want to take your shoes off,” Reeves says.
It felt like anything could happen. Usually it did.
“You could have a conversation,” Reeves says. “You could have a tryst. You could fucking do drugs. You could hang out. For me, there’s still that pulse here.”
Today the real Keanu Reeves has that same patchy beard. That same curtain of hair falling into his eyes. He’s wearing those same chunky Merrell hiking boots he was wearing pretty much regardless of context long before normcore made The New York Times. You have to look close at the gray flyaways in his eyebrows to remember what year it is.
He’s 54 and getting over a cold. His cough sounds like somebody punching their way out of a paper grocery bag. He zips his shaggy black fleece up to the neck. But then a Chateau guy wheels over a heat lamp for Keanu. Another Chateau guy wheels over another heat lamp for the other side of the table. Then the sun comes out, as if it, too, wants to make sure Keanu is warm enough. The sun bounces off the tabletop and up into Keanu’s face. It’s a nice, low fill light.
Meanwhile there’s John Wick: Chapter 3—Parabellum, which finds John excommunicado—assassins’ guild parlance for CANCELED—and on the run from a $14 million bounty after killing a guy in a no-killing zone. But the true stakes are the same as they’ve always been. John’s psychic struggle is what Reeves loves about these ludicrous, gun-crazy movies.
“He’s got this beautiful, tragic conundrum—these two selves,” says Reeves. “The John who was married, and John Wick, the assassin. John wants to be free. But the only way he knows how is through John Wick. And John Wick keeps fucking killing people and breaking rules. We’re really watching a person fight for their life and their soul.”
When he was 22, he did not picture himself still doing these physically demanding parts at 54. Running and jumping and shooting guys from horseback. He did not picture this because he had no image of what his acting career would be like when he was 54.
“I haven’t really thought about my career future, or what was going to happen, until really recently,” he says. But by “really recently,” he says, he means “probably my mid-40s.”
When asked what brought that bout of future-thinking on, he cheerfully says, “Death.”
He does not say who died. He’s lost people close to him, but when he was younger than 40, mostly.
Abruptly he begins telling a beautiful story about Anthony Quinn.
One morning they were standing together in a vineyard, Keanu and Anthony Quinn. They were shooting Alfonso Arau’s A Walk in the Clouds. Reeves plays a traumatized World War II vet who falls for a pregnant woman. Quinn plays the patriarch of her rich, uptight Mexican-American family.
Read the full interview at GQ.com
March 22nd, 2019
John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum New Trailer
A full trailer for John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum has been released. In theaters May 17, 2019. Starring Keanu Reeves, Halle Berry, Laurence Fishburne, Mark Dacascos, Asia Kate Dillon, Lance Reddick, Saïd Taghmaoui, Jerome Flynn, Jason Mantzoukas, Tobias Segal, Boban Marjanovic, with Anjelica Huston, and Ian McShane.
In this third installment of the adrenaline-fueled action franchise, super-assassin John Wick (Keanu Reeves) returns with a $14 million price tag on his head and an army of bounty-hunting killers on his trail. After killing a member of the shadowy international assassin’s guild, the High Table, John Wick is excommunicado, but the world’s most ruthless hit men and women await his every turn.
John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum – New Motion Poster and Stills
John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum is set for release on May 17th, and they released a quick teaser with the Poster, and I’ve added some stills to the gallery.
We’ll be seeing you… John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum is in theaters May 17. #JohnWick3 pic.twitter.com/x6rj2FSOhv
— John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum (@JohnWickMovie) 15 de janeiro de 2019
Feature Films > John Wick – Chapter 3: Parabellum (2019) > Posters
Feature Films > John Wick – Chapter 3: Parabellum (2019) > Stills
November 20th, 2018 November 20th, 2018
Replicas gets a release date, first Trailer and Poster
The first trailer and official poster for Replicas have been released. The movie is set to open on January 11th.
“Replicas” stars Keanu Reeves (“John Wick,” “The Matrix,” “Speed”) and Alice Eve (“Marvel’s Iron Fist”, “Before We Go”, “Star Trek Into Darkness”), directed by Jeffrey Nachmanoff. After a car accident kills his family, a daring synthetic biologist (Reeves) will stop at nothing to bring them back, even if it means pitting himself against a government-controlled laboratory, a police task force, and the physical laws of science. “Replicas” also stars Thomas Middleditch (“Silicon Valley”) and John Ortiz (“Silver Linings Playbook”).
Post Archive:
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Welcome to Keanu Reeves Online. A FANSITE for the actor Keanu Reeves, star of movies such as The Matrix, John Wick, Speed, Point Break, Constantine and many others. We hope you enjoy your stay and have fun!
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Tag: Chuck Wagner
Rerun Junkie–Automan
February 16, 2018 February 9, 2018 ~ Kiki Writes ~ 3 Comments
The world’s first automatic man.
Automan is not a show I knew about until recently, coming across the title while doing research on something else. In November of 2017, Red Giant put out a short based on Automan that was written and directed by Aharon Rabinowitz and starring David Hewlett as the title character, Hewlogram. Between this hilarious short (please go watch it and the making-0f video because it’s just as much fun) and watching the opening for the actual series, I put this one on my to-watch list.
And as luck would have it, I received the series on DVD for my birthday.
(I also received Hewlogram poster that I won that same week. My 38th birthday week was lit in a hologram sort of way.)
Automan aired in 1983 for just 13 episodes. Starring Chuck Wagner as Automan, Desi Arnaz Jr. as his creater Walter Nebicher, Heather McNair as Roxanne Caldwell, Gerald S. O’Laughlin as Captain Boyd, Robert Lansing as Lt. Jack Curtis, and Cursor as himself. No, really. The little cursor thing got a credit.
If you bothered watching Hewlogram, then you’d have the basic premise of Automan. Walter Nebicher is a computer programmer and police officer whose captain prefers him in his little computer room and not out on the streets. He creates Automan, a hologram so powerful that it can hit a dude across a room. Only Walter’s co-worker and sort of love interest Roxanne knows that Automan is a hologram. Oh, and Cursor is a little firefly looking thing that can draw anything and make it real, like a suit over Automan’s Tron body or a super fast car. It’s also a bit of a perv. Because Automan requires a certain amount of power to exist, he sometimes has to disappear when he feels his battery getting low or find creative ways to recharge. All of this in the name of fighting crime.
The buddy cop duo we need and deserve.
The show only ran 13 episodes and that’s both criminal and totally understandable. In only 13 episodes, we had mobsters, tropical locations, corrupt cops, corrupt sheriffs, bikers, Laura Branigan, a male exotic dance club called Zippers, bombing threats, diamond smuggling, and I’m pretty sure every episode featured covers of popular songs of the time as well as the laughing freeze frame at the end. You can’t pack that much awesome into such a short run. The star that burns that brightly, burns out too soon.
It also suffers from the some questionable dialogue that boarders on painful, the obvious jokes and cheesiness that permeated the ’80s, and some less-than acting, though I blame the dialogue for a lot of it. Seriously, some of those lines are face-smackingly cringey.
But, it’s an incredibly fun show! Chuck Wagner is adorable as Automan. He embodies this hologram that is, in his own words, an eleven on a scale from one to ten while also being rather naive about the ways of humans. To help him learn about humans, Walter had Auto watch movies and TV shows. Auto inadvertently watching multiple episodes of a soap opera is a highlight.
Speaking of Walter, he’s not just an inept computer nerd. Yeah, in a few episodes things don’t go his way and he gets his ass handed to him, but he’s not incompetent. And he does get in his licks. He’s also not a total loser with the ladies. After all, Roxanne is one hot chick and he doesn’t seem to have any trouble with her.
Together, Walter and Auto are, well, maybe not unstoppable or unbeatable, but they get the job done and they’re entertaining.
Giving a new meaning to the boys in blue.
The plots are typical ’80s grand with titles like “Staying Alive While Running a High Flashdance Fever”, “Murder MTV”, “Murder, Take One”, “Death By Design”, and “Club Ten”. In one episode called “Renegade Run”, you have Richard Lynch as a corrupt sheriff that pits him against biker Billy Drago. I know, right? How great is that? Pretty great.
In addition to Richard Lynch, Billy Drago, and Laura Branigan, the show also featured guest stars Clu Gulager, Mary Crosby, Patrick Macnee, Ed Lauter, John Vernon, Anne Lockhart, France Nuyen, Robert F. Lyons, Delta Burke, William Windom, Terry Kiser, Don Galloway, Richard Anderson, Doug McClure, Walter Brooke, Sid Haig, Mickey Jones, and Ola Ray.
Check out that crop. Nothing but cream.
Okay, Automan is a little on the silly side. It’s the early ’80s turned up to eleven. It is glorious.
Just ask Cursor.
The little perv.
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Why BASIS International Schools
Primary School Teaching
Secondary School Teaching
School Leadership & Administration
Careers in China
Careers in Thailand
BASIS International School Nanjing
Providing our Students with a Transformative Early Childhood and K-12 Education.
Opened in September 2019, BASIS International School Nanjing currently serves students in PreK – grade 9, and will expand each year until it reaches a capacity of 1,200 students in PreK – grade 12. The school’s facilities include top-of-the-line classrooms, sport courts, track and field, indoor swimming pool, auditorium, Apple computer lab, and a multipurpose activity center.
Nanjing Summary
Thank you for your interest in BASIS International School Nanjing. If you're a well-qualified, enthusiastic, and dedicated educator with a passion for teaching and learning, we look forward to speaking with you and sharing about our school.
We are looking for talented educators who enjoy the important work of teaching children. We seek energetic people who go out of their way to go the extra mile for and with their students, who have an in-depth knowledge of and passion for the subject they teach, and who are willing to contribute to our school's extracurricular activities and overall community. Essentially, we are keen to appoint educators who have a positive and solution-focused attitude and will thrive on the challenges and rewards of working in a new school--though one that is part of a successful and established network.
Together, we will build a vibrant school culture that engages students and helps them learn to love learning. Achievements (whether big or small) will be both appreciated and celebrated. In addition, joy and laughter will be present in the daily life of our campus. We envision a collegial and collaborative workplace that promotes strong camaraderie among all staff, while building meaningful relationships on trust and understanding. We will construct a shared sense of belonging and purpose, ultimately creating the school of choice in Nanjing. The successful educators at our school will be reflective practitioners who are always looking for ways to improve and who are consistently willing to engage in quality conversations with colleagues about pedagogy.
One of the most attractive reasons for teaching at BASIS International School Nanjing is the opportunity to explore China. Nanjing is connected to all major domestic cities—meaning you can take high-speed bullet trains to Beijing (3-4 hours), Shanghai (1-2 hours), and Suzhou (2-3 hours). In addition, Nanjing Lukou International Airport has 135 domestic air routes and about 25 international air routes to far-flung places like Bali, Malaysia, Japan, Singapore, and Thailand.
We look forward to a new year in a new school and hope you are as excited as we are about the opening of BASIS International School Nanjing.
Dr. Mark Starbuck
Living in Nanjing
Nanjing is one of China's most culturally vibrant cities. The walled city has numerous museums and temples to explore, but don't mistake that for it being stuck in the past. It has Asia's largest high-speed rail station that can get you to cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Zhengzhou, Chongqing, Xiamen, and Shenyang within a few hours. The closest tier-one city, Shanghai, is 1.5 hours away by bullet train making it an easy weekend getaway. The nearby Purple Mountain offers a multitude of hiking and scenic walks just outside the city.
The school is located within a 15-minute walk to the modern metro, which offers clean, reliable, low-cost transportation to the entire city. One metro stop away is one of the city's largest malls with an imported-goods section, and around the school's nearest metro stop are several restaurants offering Asian and Western choices.
The school is tucked into a growing area of the city, and our neighborhood has several parks and outdoor recreational areas. But we're just a 30-minute Didi car ride (think Uber, but less expensive) from the city center. And like most of China, you can have restaurant meals, groceries, household items, and clothing delivered to your door quickly and for either no cost or the equivalent of a few U.S. dollars.
More information on living in Nanjing:
BASIS International Schools blog on Nanjing
Official City of Nanjing
Britannica Article
InterNations.org Expat Guide
Location (enter state, city, or zip)
Showing 1-2 of 2 jobs
English Language Arts TeacherBASIS International School Nanjing-- -- --
Economics TeacherBASIS International School Nanjing-- -- --
Want to stay informed about the latest insights and happenings?
Join our interest list! We’ll send you updates on what is happening in our schools and inform you of developments in our growth and new career opportunities.
7975 N. Hayden Road, Scottsdale, AZ 85258
Email: careers@basisinternationalschools.com
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« Joel Radio #154: My Friend Heather
Joel Radio #156: We Got The Blues »
Joel Radio #155: The Oddballs
It’s been a busy few weeks at Joel Radio, and it’s all re-capped on this fine episode. Your host headed off to New York City to see his old college stomping grounds, get drunk with hipsters, visit museums and hang with some comedy buddies. His main objective though was to see Penn & Teller On Broadway which he did, and while sitting next to a childhood hero, no less. Hear all about the P&T show, the best things to do in New York and why a front-row ticket isn’t always a front-row ticket. Joel also attended the annual Funny or Die: Oddball Comedy Festival starring Amy Schumer, Aziz Ansari and others. Find out who were the surprising stars of the show and what unknown comics that Joel knows who might be blowing up in to very big stars in the future. Joel is joined for the show by Detroit’s own comedy oddball, the delightful Samantha Rager. Sam had to break in to her house car to get to the show, but it was worth it as Sam talks about getting bumped at a comedy show by a big star, seeing year-old movies at the dollar show, and the most adorably clueless rundown of a fantasy football team ever. Also, a Gathering of the Juggalos comedy recap, and reviews of the movies Trainwreck, Ant-Man and the ridiculous The Gallows. Plus, RIP “Rowdy” Roddy Piper, as Joel tells a harrowing tale of hosting a show with one of the greatest pro-wrestling characters of all-time.
Joel is fatter than Penn and shorter than Teller!
Beautiful Lower Manhattan from the Circle Line cruise. Joel actually took this picture!
Amy Schumer, Ant Man, Aziz Ansari, Detroit, New York City, Oddball Comedy Festival, Penn & Teller, Rowdy Roddy Piper, Samantha Rager
Print article This entry was posted by joel on September 2, 2015 at 3:55 pm, and is filed under Shows. Follow any responses to this post through RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback from your own site.
Joel Radio #244: New Comics Same As The Old Comics
about 1 year ago - 1 comment
Joel is blown away by the response of the last episode and has some updates on the whole Roseanne Barr fiasco. Hear about his resistance to go national with the story and how his radio home in Detroit has picked up on the story. He’s joined by Corey Hall and Bill Hildebrandt, the latter back…
Joel Radio #240: This Show Is Anti-Viral
about 1 year ago - No comments
Comedian Jeff Horste joins Joel and Corey Hall on this show to discuss his move to L.A., working with Kevin Hart, going viral on the internet, and if he’s attending Nipsey Hussle’s funeral. The guys look back at Jeff’s comedy career start at Club Bart and the unique way Joel (the host) encouraged comics to…
Joel Radio #223: No Stingers
about 2 years ago - 1 comment
Joel hasn’t always enjoyed the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but he still goes to the movies and the most recent one, Ant-Man and The Wasp, was OK. But making people wait for the post-credit sequences has become a frustrating, ridiculous ritual that should probably end. Joel and Corey Hall review the new film, discuss the “stinger”…
Joel Radio #222: The Green Room Story
about 2 years ago - No comments
This podcast is known for going off on tangents and taking forever to get to the point, but when comedian Tom McCarthy sat in with Joel and Corey for this week’s show, he had no idea what he was in for. Tom has been a staple of the Detroit comedy scene for fifteen years or…
Joel Radio #221: KFC Diplomacy
The world seems crazier than ever, as Trump meets a Korean dictator, IHOp changes its name, Anthony Bourdain dies, and the NBA is the most important thing in the world – to some people. Stuff got weird this week. Really weird. Also, Corey Hall meets a big celebrity in Detroit, but it wasn’t a great…
Joel Radio # 209: Three Arguments Outside Savannah, Georgia
The last show of 2017 sees lots of holiday spirit as Joel and Corey Hall fight over a movie that critics loved and the audience liked far less – no, not Star Wars (but they get to that), instead it’s Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. Joel found the characters unlikable and the film boring, while…
Joel Radio #199: The Oklahoma Eight
On this episode, Joel recaps another Gathering of the Juggalos, including him finally getting some good press for a change. The big takeaway is probably the crime, or lack thereof, at the 2017 festival site in Oklahoma City. Joel details the eight people arrested and what they got pinched for, and compares it to recent…
Joel Radio #194: To Mother
Corey Hall is back discussing what happened to Amy Schumer’s career, celebrating recent TV cancellations, and eating more stunt-flavored Oreo cookies. Find out a few good things to stream – and one awful thing – as Joel checks out I Love Dick on Amazon, Tower on Netflix and Handsome: a Netflix Murder Mystery. I Love…
Joel Radio #191: The Joke Assassin
Drè Murray is is one of the funniest guys you’ll ever see onstage or off. Joel and he met on 910 AM radio in Detroit and have become fast friends. Drè sits down on the podcast to talk his career, how he moved to Detroit from the East coast, his thoughts on the current comedy…
Joel Radio #170: Because We Care
about 4 years ago - 4 comments
It’s an unusual show, but it’s unusual to have so many great comedians under one roof. Joel and Corey Hall performed at a benefit show for The Fallen and Wounded Soldiers Fund at Mark Ridley’s Comedy Castle in Royal Oak, Michigan and captured the behind the scenes stories and goofing off that goes on at these…
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By John Biver Dispatches September 9, 2012
Obamacare Summed Up in One Sentence
A friend sent me the following and I agree with the website “Maggie’s Farm” that it deserves to go viral:
Dr. Barbara Bellar Candidate for Illinois State Senate, District 18 sums up Obamacare in one sentence.
Here’s the sentence:
Let me get this straight. (This is a long sentence.)
We’re going to be gifted with a healthcare plan
we are forced to purchase, and fined if we don’t,
which purportedly covers at least 10 million more people,
without adding a single new doctor,
but provides for 16000 new IRS agents,
written by a committee
whose chairman says he doesn’t understand it,
passed by a congress that didn’t read it
but exempted themselves from it,
and signed by a president who smokes,
with funding administered by a treasury chief who didn’t pay his taxes,
for which we will be taxed for four years
before any benefits take effect,
by a government which has already bankrupted social security
and medicare,
all to be overseen by a surgeon general who is obese
and financed by a country that’s broke.
Previous articleVoter’s Guide to the Democratic and Republican Platforms
Next articleReal Unemployment at 19%
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John Finnie
Scottish Green Party, Highlands and Islands / Pàrtaidh Uaine na h-Alba, A’Ghàidhealtach agus na h-Eileanan
Coul Links
HomeJohn Questions Scottish Government on Firearms Officers
John Questions Scottish Government on Firearms Officers
January 23, 2014 February 23, 2015 Team Finnie News
Below is John’s question to the Scottish Government on January 22nd 2014.
John Finnie (Highlands and Islands) (Ind):
9. To ask the Scottish Government how many authorised police firearms officers there are. (S4O-02815)
The Cabinet Secretary for Justice (Kenny MacAskill): That is a matter for Police Scotland, but I understand that there are currently 440 authorised police firearms officers in Scotland.
John Finnie: I thank the cabinet secretary for that reply. Her Majesty’s inspectorate of constabulary’s 2009 report said that the Police Scotland aligns itself with the Home Office forces and complies “voluntarily with these standards”. The standards that are referred to are those that are laid out in the Home Office’s 2003 “Code of Practice on Police use of Firearms and Less Lethal Weapons”. Can the cabinet secretary advise—either now, or later in writing—whether that is still the case? In particular, with regard to the Independent Police Complaints Commission’s advice to Scotland Yard on the “hard stop” tactic, has the advice been acted on in Scotland? Also, will the cabinet secretary join me in calling for a review of police firearms tactics and of the number of officers who are deployed carrying Taser guns but are not authorised firearms officers?
Kenny MacAskill: Fundamentally, those are matters for the Scottish Police Authority, but I am happy to try to drill down to ensure that John Finnie’s comments are raised and answers are provided, either by the chief constable himself or by HM inspector of constabulary.
The Government believes that the rare use of firearms of Scotland is reasonable and proportionate. However, it is necessary for the safety of our communities. John Finnie’s point about Taser guns has been brought up not only by the police and HM inspector of constabulary, but by the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner, so I think that there has been a suitable review in that regard. However, I will endeavour to come back to John Finnie on that. I am happy to meet him to discuss the issue further.
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Online E-Editions
Circulation Request
The Laker/Lutz News
Serving Lutz since 1964 and Pasco since 1981.
Proud to be independently owned.
Serving Pasco since 1981/Serving Lutz since 1964
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Town hall sheds light on opioid overdose prevention
March 21, 2018 By Kevin Weiss
Cesar Rodriguez spent 17 years of his life as a heroin addict.
He overdosed on five separate occasions, only to be saved by first responders who administered him naloxone, or Narcan, an emergency treatment that counteracts the life-threatening effects of opioid overdose.
“If I didn’t have Narcan,” he said, “I wouldn’t be able to sit here and share my experience. I would’ve never had a shot to recover.”
Pasco County Sheriff’s Cpl. Sherry Johnson Tandy demonstrates how to use the Narcan nasal spray to counteract the life-threatening effects of opioid overdose. She said her agency has deployed the medication 60 times, each of which has been successful in preventing an overdose-related death. (Kevin Weiss)
Parent Lisa Conca also has observed the Narcan’s life-saving effects when her son overdosed on heroin.
“I had never even heard of Narcan until that day he overdosed and was taken to the hospital,” Conca said. “Narcan saves lives and gives our kids another chance to help them on the road to recovery.”
These comments came up during a community discussion on opioid overdose prevention on March 8 at North Tampa Behavioral Health, which is located in Wesley Chapel. The event was organized by the Alliance for Substance Abuse Prevention.
The panel discussion was part of a community-wide effort to provide education about opioid overdose and what individuals can do to save the lives of those suffering with the chronic illness of addiction.
Much of the panel addressed how to access and administer Narcan.
Narcan is the first and only FDA-approved nasal form of naloxone for the emergency treatment of a known or suspected opioid overdose. The medication helps blocks the effects of opioids on the brain and restores breathing.
Opioids include heroin and prescription pain pills like morphine, codeine, oxycodone, methadone and Vicodin.
“Often the reason (over-dosers) end up passing is because the brain does not have oxygen. This medication helps alleviate that,” said Szilvia Boos Salmon, a pharmacist with Tampa Poison Control.
Along with the nasal spray, naloxone is available in an injectable form.
The Pasco County Sheriff’s Office is one of a number of growing law enforcement agencies to carry naloxone for possible overdose calls.
Pasco Sheriff Cpl. Sherry Johnson-Tandy said the agency has had over 60 deployments of Narcan. Each deployment was successful in preventing an overdose-related death, she said.
In addition to reversing overdoses, the medication is also for deputies and first responders who may become exposed or have incidental contact to illicit fentanyl or heroin at a particular crime scene.
Johnson-Tandy demonstrated how to safely and effectively administer both the nasal spray and injectable forms of naloxone. Free samples of Narcan were later distributed to the audience.
Johnson-Tandy said it’s onset time is anywhere between 1 minute to 3 minutes.
“It works almost just like an EpiPen,” she said.
Narcan is the first and only FDA-approved nasal form of naloxone for the emergency treatment of a known or suspected opioid overdose. The medication helps blocks the effects of opioids on the brain and restores breathing. Opioids include heroin and prescription pain pills like morphine, codeine, oxycodone, methadone and Vicodin. (Courtesy of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals)
“The best thing about this is, if you give it to someone and they don’t need it, it can’t hurt them,” she said, adding if someone overdosed on cocaine or stopped breathing for another reason, it won’t have adverse effects.
The Narcan medication might be needed more than ever.
Opioid overdoses increased by roughly 30 percent across the U.S., in just 14 months between 2016 and 2017, according to a new report by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The CDC called the data a “wake up call to the fast-moving opioid overdose epidemic.” It recorded 142,000 overdoses in hospital emergency departments across the nation, between July 2016 and September 2017.
Although not all overdoses in the study were fatal, they are part of the unsettling toll of opioids. Nationwide in 2016, illicit and prescription drug overdoses killed 64,000 people.
The problem is growing locally, too, experts say.
Pasco County had the highest rate of hospitalization in the Suncoast Region for opioid overdoses, according to 2016 data from the Agency for Healthcare Administration.
Additionally, Pasco has tied for fifth highest out of the state’s 67 counties for drug overdose mortality rates over the last few years, according to county health rankings.
There were 165 overdoses in Pasco in 2017— matching numbers from the 2010 and 2011 prescription pill crisis, said Capt. Mike Jenkins, who oversees the narcotics unit for the special investigations division at the Pasco Sheriff’s Office.
There’s also been a gradual rise in fentanyl and heroin use in the county over the past year, he said.
Other topics covered during the session included how to prevent opioid addiction and avenues for long-term treatment of people who are dependent on opioids.
Speakers agreed it starts with education and advocacy.
“We can’t arrest our way out of this issue,” Jenkins said. “It takes comprehensive, strategic partnerships to really move forward.”
“Start in the schools early, and educate kids as to how dangerous mom and dad’s pill bottles are,” said New Port Richey-based attorney James Magazine.
Communities must find ways to effectively integrate recovering addicts back into society after they receive treatment, Magazine said.
Rochelle Zwicharowski, a support specialist with the St. Petersburg-based Recovery Epicenter Foundation, said those who have been rehabilitated need to share their experiences.
“There’s 23 million people in recovery, and how many people do you know? We’re too quiet about it. If you’re in recovery, don’t be afraid to speak out about it because we do have to smash that stigma,” she said.
Revised April 3, 2018
Filed Under: Health, Local News Tagged With: Agency for Healthcare Administration, Alliance for Substance Abuse Prevention, CDC, Cesar Rodriguez, EpiPen, James Magazine, Lisa Conca, Mike Jenkins, Naloxone, Narcan, North Tampa Behavioral Health, opioids, Recovery Epicenter Foundation, Rochelle Zwicharowski, Sherry Johnson-Tandy, Szilvia Boos Salmon, Tampa Poison Control, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Wesley Chapel
Zephyrhills Brewing Company
Foodie Friday Gallery
A New Look For 2021 From Tampa Surgical Arts
January 12, 2021 By Kelli Carmack
Tampa Surgical Arts offers cosmetic treatments that give patients confidence and makes them look years younger. Two of … [Read More...] about A New Look For 2021 From Tampa Surgical Arts
01/19/2021 – Best of crafts
The Pasco County Library Cooperative will present a “Best of Craft Tuesdays: Playlist” on Jan. 19 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Check out a video at Facebook.com/hughembrylibrary or Facebook.com/newriverlibrary to learn about some of the craft programs that are worth revisiting from the past year. For information, call 352-567-3576, or email Danielle Lee at
. … [Read More...] about 01/19/2021 – Best of crafts
01/19/2021 – Virtual gardening
The Pasco County Library Cooperative will present “Virtual Backyard Gardening with Jo Ann” on Jan. 19 at 2 p.m., via Zoom. Registration is required to receive an email on how to join the meeting. For information, email
. … [Read More...] about 01/19/2021 – Virtual gardening
01/20/2021 – Library story times
The Pasco County Library Cooperative will offer these upcoming story times: Jan. 20, for birth to age 5: Participants can tune in anytime between 10 a.m. and 8 p.m., at Facebook.com/hughembrylibrary or Facebook.com/newriverlibrary, to hear “Private I. Guana.” For information, call 352-567-3576, or email Danielle Lee at
. Jan. 21 at 10 a.m.: “Virtual Baby Time with Miss Cindy.” Visit Facebook.com/cplib. Jan. 21 at 10 a.m., for ages 2 to 5: “Virtual Story Time with Miss Jenn.” For information, call Amaris Papadopoulos at 727-861-3020. … [Read More...] about 01/20/2021 – Library story times
01/20/2021 – LOL Book Club
The LOL Book Club from the Land O’ Lakes Library will meet on Jan. 20 at 2:30 p.m., to discuss “Beartown” by Fredrik Backman. Register online for a Zoom link, which will be sent out via email a day ahead of the discussion. For information, call 813-929-1214. … [Read More...] about 01/20/2021 – LOL Book Club
01/20/2021 – Mouse bookmark
Learn to make a folded paper mouse bookmark on Jan. 20. Participants will use the art of origami to make the bookmark. Watch the instructional slide show, all day, on the South Holiday Library Facebook page. … [Read More...] about 01/20/2021 – Mouse bookmark
01/21/2021 – Gasparilla History
The Hillsborough County Public Library Cooperative will host a virtual session entitled “The History of Gasparilla” on Jan. 21 at 6:30 p.m., for teens and adults. Those that tune in can learn the legend of Jose Gaspar, intertwined with facts, fallacies and fantasy. The program will be presented by Carl Zielonka in partnership with the Tampa Bay History Center. Registration is through the calendar feature at HCPLC.org. … [Read More...] about 01/21/2021 – Gasparilla History
More of What's Happening
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Zephyrhills development yields roadway concerns. https://buff.ly/2LxlLsS
“Be a bush if you can’t be a tree. If you can’t be a highway, just be a trail. If you can’t be a sun, be a star. For it isn’t by size that you win or fail. Be the best of whatever you are.”
~Martin Luther King Jr.
#MLKDay2021
This week in SPORTS: All-Pasco County fall awards announced. https://buff.ly/3srDpyU
Where to pick up The Laker and Lutz News
NAMI/Pasco addresses growing need for its services
Pasco commissioners clash on apartment request
Burgess discusses pandemic response
Vaccine demand continues to outpace supply
Input from law enforcement welcome in planning efforts
Zephyrhills CRA has full plate to start new year
City of Zephyrhills gives employee service awards
Pasco allocates funds for new central office design
Don’t forget: This year’s Kumquat Festival is set for March 27
Hillsborough County’s Sunshine Line helps seniors get around
The Big Shred IV helps people dispose of documents
Pasco’s building boom creates a backlog in permits
Enjoying entertainment, and sampling syrup
Check out our other stories for the week
All-Pasco County girls fall awards announced
Banner soccer season
Local runner claims national title
Pasco County athletes compete in 2020 Florida Senior Games
South Pasco cheer program wins national titles
Copyright © 2021 Community News Publications Inc.
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THRS2207 - Controversy in the Church - Mroz
THRS2207 - Controversy in the Church - Mroz: Home
Find course-specific library resources, including peer-reviewed articles, ebooks, and more.
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Special attention should be given to the date of publication of the resources you select for your papers. Catholic Theology underwent tremendous changes in 1965 with the Second Vatican Council. As a result, materials published before 1965 represent an historic view of Catholic theology. Materials published after 1965 reflect current Catholic theology.
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ATLA Religion Database® (ATLA RDB®) with ATLASerials® (ATLAS®) combines the premier index to journal articles, book reviews, and collections of essays in all fields of religion with ATLA's full text collection of 300+ major religion and theology journals. This collection also includes content previously available in the ATLA Catholic Periodical and Literature Indec (ATLA CPLI). This database is produced by the American Theological Library Association.
Offers over 400 quality journal titles from nearly 100 not-for-profit publishers. Project MUSE covers the fields of literature and criticism, history, the visual and performing arts, cultural studies, education, political science, gender studies, economics, and many others.
A total of more than 900 full-text scholarly journal titles in an online archive beginning with the first issue of each title. The archive includes nine JSTOR Arts and Sciences Collections. In JSTOR, there is usually a time lag in full-text content. Use JSTOR in conjunction with our current online databases and print holdings.
ProQuest Religion
Provides international periodicals for diverse religious and spiritual studies, covering formal theological studies of major religions, as well as the most recent trends and scholarly thought.
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Features are literary critique content and inclusion of original works of poetry, short fiction, photography, illustrations, and artwork. This database was originally funded by a gift from the Emmanuel College Class of 2006.
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More than 800 Sage journals in Business, Humanities, Social Sciences, and Science, Technology and Medicine. Browse list of available titles.
SocINDEX with Full Text
This index features more than 2.1 million records with subject headings from a more than 20,000 term sociology-specific thesaurus designed by expert lexicographers. SocINDEX with Full Text contains full text for more than 860 journals dating back to 1908. This database also includes full text for more than 830 books and monographs, and full text for over 16,800 conference papers.
Use Academic Search Premier and click on Choose Databases (above the search boxes) to search SocINDEX with Full Text along with other Ebsco Databases.
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Blackwell Companion to Christian Ethics, 2011 REFERENCE BJ 1251 .B54 2011
Contemporary American Religion
Critical Terms for Religious Studies
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Dictionary of Hindu Lore and Legend
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New Catholic Encyclopedia, 2nd ed., 2003
Who's Who in Christianity, 2002
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Women's Bible Commentary, 2012 REFERENCE BS491.3.W66 2012
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Last Updated: Dec 18, 2020 9:57 AM
URL: https://learningcommons.emmanuel.edu/guide_thrs2207mroz
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Atlantic County Plumber Wins $1.3M Jackpot at Hard Rock AC
Photo courtesy of Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
What a few days of winning it has been at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City! Since Sunday evening, $1.6 million in jackpots have been awarded at the Hard Rock.
The big money went to an Atlantic County resident and local plumbing and HVAC contractor named James, who hit a $1.3 million Royal Flush Mega Jackpot on Ultimate Texas Hold ‘em with a $5 progressive bet, becoming an instant millionaire.
James also gets the quote of the year honors for his comparison of plumbing with winning big at cards.
“It is surreal to have hit a $1.3 million jackpot, especially because playing cards is a little different than laying pipe. “We plan to take care of our family, put money away for our kids and my wife deserves a nice trip.”
According to a Hard Rock press release, other winners in the last few days included a local from Mays Landing who won a jackpot of $90,000 playing Blazing 7s Monday, and two slot machine big winners on Sunday, one for $168,657 on Dollar Storm and the other for an $80,000 jackpot on Double Gold.
Congratulations to the winners,. Please don't win all the money, save some for the rest of us!
LOOK INSIDE: Kid Rock Is Selling His Grand $2.2 Million Detroit Mansion
Filed Under: Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City
Categories: Atlantic City Events, Community, Entertainment, Lifestyle, Lite Rock Morning Show, New Jersey News, South Jersey News
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