On Thursday the 4th of September, a noble who was related to the lord, came to the garden, and told the ambassadors that the lord was occupied with the business of some ambassadors from the emperor Toktamish, and that, therefore, he could not see them yet: but, that they might not be impatient, he had sent some refreshments to them, and to the ambassador of the Sultan, that they might make merry for that day. They brought many sheep, cooked and dressed, and a roasted horse, with rice served up in various ways, and much fruit. When they had eaten, they were presented with two horses, a robe, and a hat. The ambassadors were in this garden from Sunday, the 31st of August, to Monday the 8th of September, when the lord sent for them; for it is the custom not to see any ambassador until five or six days are passed, and the more important the ambassador may be, the longer he has to wait. On Monday, the 8th of September, the ambassadors departed from the garden where they had been lodged, and went to the city of Samarkand. The road went over a plain covered with gardens, and houses, and markets where they sold many things; and at three in the afternoon they came to a large garden and palace, outside the city, where the lord then was. When they arrived, they dismounted, and entered a building outside; where two knights came to them, and said that they were to give up those presents, which they brought for the lord, to certain men who would lay them before him, for such were the orders of the private Meerzas of the lord; so the ambassadors gave the presents to the two knights. They placed the presents in the arms of men who were to carry them respectfully before the lord, and the ambassador from the Sultan did the same with the presents which he brought.
