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Translation of Two Mongolian Letters.

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of idolatry by the different uses to which different parts of the same tree was put; one part served to give the man warmth and to cook his food, and "the residue thereof he maketh a god" (El); now of these two parts, one would be called a fire, the other a god, and I can not see why the latter should be a relative term and not the former; the fire gives heat, the god gives blessings, as supposed; if the man sits before the fire, he receives heat, and if he kneels before the god, he fancies he gets blessings; but I do not think that Dr. Legge will tell us that fire is a relative term, and yet I can not see any great differ- ence between the heat-giver and the blessing-giver.

Whether these views have been advanced by others or not, I do not know; if you think them worthy of insertion in the Repository, you will oblige, Sir,

Your most obedient servant,

19th September, 1850.

A LOOKER-ON.

ART. III.

Translations and Notice of two Mongolian Letters to Philip the Fair, king of France, 1305. BY MR. MEADOWS, Consular Interpreter, Canton.

ALL the readers of the Repository know something of the crusades, and all have heard of Genghis Khan, but many probably do not know that the great-great-grandson of this conqueror had "friendly rela- tions" with the kings of France and England, and that “official com- munications" were exchanged in order to concert an attack on the Mohammedan sultan of Egypt by a combined army of Christian cru- saders, subjects of England and France, and of heathen Tartars, vas- sals of the emperor of China! Such is a historical fact, one recorded by old chroniclers, ridiculed in later times by Voltaire, but proved to be true by the sinologue Rémusat, who found in the royal archives at Paris, about 500 years after they were written, two letters in pure Mongolian from Tartar viceroys of Persia, sealed with Chinese seals, one of which was undoubtedly bestowed on the holder at his investi- ture by his sovereign-lord, the emperor of China.

These letters, which substantiated much that had previously been. held for fabrication, were received and answered by Philip the Fair. Others sent at the same period to England were received and answer- ed by the first and second Edwards, and might possibly still be found in some of the English archives.