length appearing to understand the case, I put on a grave countenance and said: "I am not here now as a private person, I shall certainly show disrespect to him who shows disrespect to my master." Moreover, when the prince sent food to any of the younger people, and an observation was made upon my not rising, I answered: "Whoever honours my master, him also I will honour." When we began to eat the roast swans, they placed vinegar on the table with salt and pepper mixed in it, which they used instead of sauce or gravy. Sour milk was also placed on the table for the same purpose, with pickled cucumbers, and prunes cooked with the same object, which are not removed during dinner time. The same fashion is observed in bringing in the other dishes, unless they be again taken away to be cooked. Various kinds of drink are placed on the table, namely, malmsey, Greek wine, and different kinds of mead. The prince generally orders his goblet to be presented to him once or twice, and after drinking from it, he calls the ambassadors to him in rotation, and says, "Leonhard," or "Sigismund," as the case may be, "thou hast come from a great sovereign to a great sovereign, thou hast made a great journey; after thou hast experienced our favour it shall be well with thee; drink, and drink well, and eat well even to thy heart's content, and then take thy rest, that thou mayst at length return to thy master."
They say that each and every vessel which we looked upon, in which were placed meat, the drinks, the vinegar, the pepper, the salt, and all the other things which were set upon the table, were of pure gold; and from their weight this would seem to be true. Four persons stood on each side of the centre table, each holding his goblet, out of which the prince often drank, very frequently addressing the ambassadors, inviting them to eat. Sometimes he put questions to them, and showed great courtesy and kindness. He asked me among other things, whether I had shaved my beard,
