________________
JUNE, 1881.]
CHINGHIZ KHAN AND HIS ANCESTORS.
175
his purpose, attacked him, and plundered his tribe, whereupon he joined Chamukha.*It was after these events that, according to the Yuan-shi, Chamukha was elected Gurkhan, whereapon he meditated a fresh attack, of which Chinghiz was warned by one whose wife was a relative of his, named Chor or Chau-urh. Another fight took place—this time at Khaliartai Kbarog, in which he was again victorious. Whereupon the Kongorat definitely joined him." The Yuan-shi mentions a third struggle at Khoitan or Choitan in which Chamukha had the Merkis and Naimans for allies, and in which a magician, who was with the Naimans, made snow and rain, as above described." This struggle is also mentioned by Rashidu'd-din. On this occasion he calls the man who warned Chinghiz Khan of his danger Khuridai. He having overheard the plans of the confederates, reported them to his brother-in-law Merkita, of the tribe Kharula, who was there on his own business, and who persuaded him to go and report the matter to Chinghiz Khân. He also gave him his white horse with cropped ears, on which to ride. On the way he hit upon a Guran, which was moving in the form of a square, under the command of Khulan Bakhadur. A scout attached to this army, named Kara Mergitai, who was a Khurula, captured him. He recognised him and proved very friendly towards Chinghiz, supplying him with a beautiful stallion to continue his journey upon, and telling him that when mounted on it, if he was pursued, the enemy would not be able to overtake him, while if he wished to overtake any one, he could easily do so. He went on again, and presently came across a party who were escorting the white tent belonging to Chamu kha. They tried to capture him, but he gallopped on and reached his goal in safety. When Chinghiz had been warned of his danger, he marched against the confederates, and fought a battle with and defeated them in the place Ede Korgan or Yedi Kurgan. One result of the battle was the subjection of the Kongurut."
The Yuan-ch'ac-pi-shi tells us that after his defeat Chamukha, baving collected the people who bad elected him their ruler, set off on his
return down the river Argan Wang Khân went in pursuit of him, while Chinghiz Khân followed Anchubaatar, the chief of the Taijut, who, having reached his ulus, crossed the Onon, and drew up his army in expectation of an attack from Ching his. The latter at once joined issue and made several prisoners. Towards evening, both sides rested for the night close to one another and in the place where the battle had been fought. Chinghiz himself was wounded in the neck in the struggle, and from the loss of blood fell into a deep swoon. We are told that thereupon Jelmi sucked out the clotted blood from the wound, and when at midnight he felt thirsty, he went off naked into the enemy's camp, and searching about for kumiz found a bucket full of cream or curds, which he carried off. Having mixed some water with it, he gave it to Chinghiz to drink. After taking three draughts, the latter said "I begin to see again and feel in vigorated." Ho now asked his faithful friend various questions, inter alia how he could dare to trust himself naked in the enemy's camp, where, if he had been captured, he would have had to confess that he was wounded, when they would have gone and seized him. Jelmi said: "I should have told them that the reason for my strange appearance was that I meditated deserting to them, but had been caught and stripped of my clothes, and that while preparations were being made to kill me I had torn myself away and run to them. They would certainly have believed my words, would have clothed me and put me to work, and when once seated on one of their horses, I should easily have escaped." Chinghiz recalled Jelmi's other services to him in the Merkit campaign, and he promised not to forget him." De Mailla seems to refer to this adventure, but with other names. He tells us that being now master of several hordes, Chinghiz endeavoured also to subdue the Kieliei, by whom he means the Inkirasses, but he was defeated. Having lost his horse during the fight, he would have been captured had not Porchi, i.e. Boorchu, given him his own. It snowed very much, and our hero, who was a fagitive, found himself without provisions or a tent to cover him. Therenpon Muholi, i.e. Mukuli and
Douglas, p. 27. ** Hyacinthe, Pp. 20 and 21; Douglas, p. 28. + Hyacintbe, p. 22; Douglas, p. 30. c i.e. a division of the enemy's army. ** Berezine, vol. II, pp. 124 and 125; Erdmann, pp. 279.
and 280; D'Ohsson, tom. I, pp. 63 and 64. The Yedi Kurgan has been explained as meaning the place of the grave mounds.Wolff, Gesch. der Mong. od. Tataren, P. 41, note 54.
Yuan-ch'ao-pi-shi, pp. 71 and 72.
