Page 131

Lvii.

ches comme nesge. Mieulx portent dens comme
chiens que aultres et habitent bien en eaue. Une
aultre grant region ya en la quelle habitent . xliii
poeuples. La sont les oyseaulx qui sont plains de de
duitz. dont les pennes reluisent de nuit comme feu
Les papegaulx qui sont vers et reluisans comme
paons naissent celle part. et ne sont gaires plus
grans que ung gay. dont comme len dist ceulx qui
ont en chascun des pies . v . doiz sont gentilz. et les
vilains nen ont que trois. il a la queue plus lon
gue que ung pie et a ung becq courbe. et a sa lan
gue grande et fourtue. Qui e poeut avoir jone
len le poeut aprendre a parler aux gens en les
pace de deux ans. Ung aultre oysel ya en cel
le contree. lequel est nomme pellican et est aus
si comme tout chanu. Quant il laisse ses pou
chins et il revient a eulx pour les repaistre com
me mestier est. il a son adviz les treuve tous
mors. Adont il fiche son bec en sa poitrine tant
que le sang en sault dehors du quel il ressusci
te ses pouchins. En hermenie a ung maniere

57

snow. Their teeth are more like those of dogs
than anything else, and they live well in water.
There is another region in that place where eighteen different
kinds of people live. There are birds there that are
full of delights, whose feathers shine at night like flames.
Parrots, green and shining like
peacocks, are born there, hardly larger
than a bluejay. It is said of them that those
having five toes on each foot are kindly, while those
having three toes are mean. It has a tail more than
a foot long and a curved beak, and its tongue
is large and forked. The person who can get one when
it is young can teach it to speak to people within
two years. There is another bird in this country
called a pelican, which is all gray.
When it leaves its chicks and then returns to feed
them, as is necessary, it thinks that they
have all died, so it jabs its beak into its chest
so much that blood flows out, with which it
resuscitates its chicks. In Armenia there is a kind

Lvii.

ches comme nesge. Mieulx portent dens comme
chiens que aultres et habitent bien en eaue. Une
aultre grant region ya en la quelle habitent . xliii
poeuples. La sont les oyseaulx qui sont plains de de
duitz. dont les pennes reluisent de nuit comme feu
Les papegaulx qui sont vers et reluisans comme
paons naissent celle part. et ne sont gaires plus
grans que ung gay. dont comme len dist ceulx qui
ont en chascun des pies . v . doiz sont gentilz. et les
vilains nen ont que trois. il a la queue plus lon
gue que ung pie et a ung becq courbe. et a sa lan
gue grande et fourtue. Qui e poeut avoir jone
len le poeut aprendre a parler aux gens en les
pace de deux ans. Ung aultre oysel ya en cel
le contree. lequel est nomme pellican et est aus
si comme tout chanu. Quant il laisse ses pou
chins et il revient a eulx pour les repaistre com
me mestier est. il a son adviz les treuve tous
mors. Adont il fiche son bec en sa poitrine tant
que le sang en sault dehors du quel il ressusci
te ses pouchins. En hermenie a ung maniere

57

snow. Their teeth are more like those of dogs
than anything else, and they live well in water.
There is another region there in which eighteen different
kinds of people live. There are birds there which are
full of delights, whose feathers shine at night like flames.
Parrots, green and shining like
peacocks, are born here, and are hardly larger
than a bluejay. It's said of them that those which
have five toes on each foot are kindly, while those
that have three toes are mean. It has a tail more than
a foot long and a curved beak, and its tongue
is large and forked. Someone who can get one when
it is young can teach it to speak to people within
two years. There is another bird in this country
which is called the pelican, which is all gray.
When it leaves its chicks and then returns to feed
them, as is necessary, it thinks that they
have all died, so it jabs its beak into its chest
so much that blood flows out, with which it
resuscitates its chicks. In Armenia there is a kind