merchants, lying amidst the waters of the Volga, not far from the fortress of Kazan, — he was received with honour and liberality by the princes of the kingdom. For the chief priest in that district was one Seyd, who was held in such great authority and veneration amongst them, that even kings in meeting him would stand, and bowing the head, take his hand as he sat on horseback, an honour otherwise granted only to kings. Dukes did not salute even his hand, but his knees, simple nobles merely saluted his feet, while plebeians were content if they could only touch his garments or his horse with their hand. As this Seyd secretly favoured the cause of Vasiley, he took diligent measures to seize the youth, in order that he might send him bound to Moscow; but when the lad was at length captured, he was publicly put to death by the knife.
Meanwhile Michael, the commander-in-chief of the Russian forces, hastened with his army to Kazan, and for that purpose despatched so great a number of vessels to Lower Novogorod, for the purpose of transporting away his guns and provisions, that the river, otherwise large, seemed to be absolutely covered all over with the crowd upon it; and on arriving at Gostinovosero, the island of merchants, he pitched his camp on the 7th of July, and remained there twenty days awaiting the arrival of his cavalry. In the meanwhile the fortress of Kazan, which was built of wood, was set on fire by some of the Russians who had been bribed for that purpose, and was burnt to the ground under the eyes of the Russian army. Even this favourable opportunity of taking the fortress was so completely neglected through the cowardice and indolence of the Grand Duke, that not only did he not lead out his soldiers to attack the castle hill, but he took no measures to prevent the Tartars building it again. But on the 28th day of the same month he crossed the Volga, at that point where the fortress lay, and encamped with his army on the river Kazanca, and waited
