I shall now speak of the cities in the kingdom of Mangi. Coiganzu is a very fair and rich city, situate towards the south-east and east, in the very entrance of the province of Mangi463. In this city, which is situated on the river Carama464, there are vast numbers of ships employed in trade, and great quantities of salt are made in that neighbourhood. Proceeding from Coigan-zu, we ride one days journey to the south-east, on a stone causeway, on both sides of which are great fences with deep waters, through which people may pass with proper vessels465, and there is no entrance into Mangi but by this causeway except by shipping. At the end of this days journey is a large and fair city called Paughin, of which the inhabitants are idolaters, and manufacturers of stuffs of silk and gold, in which they drive a considerable trade. It is plentifully supplied with all the necessaries of life, and the paper money of the khan is current in the whole province. One days journey farther south-east, is the large and famous city of Caim. The neighbouring country abounds in fish, beasts, and fowl of all kinds, especially with pheasants as large as peacocks, which are so plentiful, that three may be bought for a Venetian groat. Proceeding another days journey through a well cultivated, fertile, and well peopled country, we come to a moderate sized city called Tingui, which is much resorted to by ships and merchants, and abounds in all the necessaries of life. This place is in the south-east, on the left hand, three days journey from the ocean, and in the country, between it and the sea, there are many salt pits, in which great quantities of salt are made. After this is Cingui466, a great city, whence the whole country is furnished with salt, of which the khan makes immense profit, almost beyond belief. The inhabitants are idolaters, and use paper money. Riding farther to the south-east is the noble city of Jangui467, which has twenty-seven other cities dependent on its government. In this city, one of the twelve barons, who are governors of provinces, usually resides; but I, Marco, had the sole government of this place for three years, instead of one of these barons, by a special commission from the great khan. The inhabitants are idolaters, living chiefly by merchandize, and they manufacture arms and harness for war. Naughin468 is a province to the west469 of Tangui, one of the greatest and noblest in all Mangi, and a place of vast trade, having abundance of beasts and fowls, wild and tame, and plenty of corn. The inhabitants are idolaters, and manufacture, stuffs of silk and gold, using only paper money. This country produces large revenues to the khan, especially in the customs which he receives from trade.
Sian-Fu is a large and noble city in the province of Mangi, having twelve great and rich cities under its jurisdiction. This city is so strong that it was three years besieged by the army of the Tartars, and could not be vanquished at the time when the rest of the kingdom of Mangi was subdued. It was so environed with lakes and rivers, that ships came continually with plenty of provisions and it was only accessible from the north. The long resistance of this city gave much dissatisfaction to the khan; which coming to the knowledge of Nicolo and Maffei Polo, then at his court, they offered their services to construct certain engines, after the manner of those used in Europe, capable of throwing stones of three hundred weight, to kill the men, and ruin the houses in the besieged city. The khan assigned them carpenters, who were Nestorian Christians, to work under their direction, and they made three of these engines, which were tried before the khan and approved of. These were accordingly sent by shipping to the army before Sian-fu, and being planted against the city, cast great stones into it, by which some of the houses were beaten down and destroyed. The inhabitants were very much astonished and terrified by the effect of these machines, and surrendered themselves to the authority and dominion of the khan, on the same conditions with the rest of Mangi; and by this service, the Venetian brethren acquired great reputation and favour.
From this city of Sian-fu, to another called Sin-gui, it is accounted fifteen miles to the south-east. This city, though not very large, has a prodigious number of ships, as it is situate on the greatest river in the world, called Quiam470, being in some places ten, in others eight, and in others six miles broad. But its length extends to a distance of above an hundred days journey from its source to the sea, receiving numberless navigable rivers in its course, from various and distant regions, by which means incredible quantities of merchandize are transported upon this river. There are about two hundred cities which participate in the advantages of this river, which runs through, or past, the boundaries of sixteen provinces. The greatest commodity on this river is salt, with which all the provinces and cities which have communication with its water are supplied. I, Marco, once saw at Singui five thousand vessels, yet some other cities on the river have a greater number. All these ships are covered, having but one mast and one sail, and usually carry 4000 Venetian Canthari and upwards, some as far as 12,000. In these vessels they use no cordage of hemp; even their hawsers or towing ropes being made of canes, about fifteen paces long, which they split into thin pieces from end to end, and bind or wreath together into ropes, some of which are three hundred fathoms long, and serve for dragging their vessels up or down the river; each vessel having ten or twelve horses for that purpose. On that river there are rocky hillocks in many places, on which idol temples, with monasteries for the priests are built, and in all the course of the river we find cultivated vallies and habitations innumerable.
Cayn-gui is a small city on the same river to the south, eastwards of Sin-gui, where every year great quantities of corn and rice are brought, which is carried for the most part to Cambalu. For from the Quiam or Kian-ku river, they pass to that city by means of lakes and rivers, and by one large canal, which the great khan caused to be made for a passage from one river to another; so that vessels go all the way from Mangi or Southern China to Cambalu, without ever being obliged to put to sea. This great work is beautiful and wonderful for its size and vast extent, and is of infinite profit to the cities and provinces of the empire. The khan likewise caused great causeways to be constructed along the banks of this prodigious canal, for the conveniency of travelling by land, and for towing the vessels. In the middle of the great river there is a rocky island, with a great temple and monastery for the idolatrous priests.
Cin-ghian-fu471 is a city of the province of Mangi, which is rich in merchandize, and plentiful in game and provisions of all kinds. In 1274, the great khan sent Marsachis, a Nestorian Christian to govern this city, who built here two Christian churches. From the city of Cin-ghian-fu, in a journey of three days journey to the south-eastwards, we find many cities and castles, all inhabited by idolaters, and at length come to the great and handsome city of Tin-gui-gui, which abounds in all kinds of provisions. When Chinsan Baian conquered the kingdom of Mangi, he sent a large body of Christian Alani472 against this city, which had a double inclosure of walls. The inhabitants retired from the outer town, within the inner wall, and the Alanians finding great store of wine, indulged themselves too freely after a severe march. In the night time, the citizens sallied out upon them, while all were drunk and asleep, and put every man of them to the sword. But Baian sent afterwards a fresh army against them, which soon mastered the city, and in severe revenge massacred the whole inhabitants. The great and excellent city of Sin-gui473 is twenty miles in circumference, and contains a vast population, among whom are great numbers of physicians and magicians, and wise men or philosophers. It has sixteen other cities under its jurisdiction, in each of which there is much trade and many curious arts, and many sorts of silk are made in its territories. The neighbouring mountains produce rhubarb and ginger in great plenty. The name Sin-gui signifies the City of the Earth, and there is another city in the kingdom of Mangi called Quin-sai, which signifies the City of Heaven. From Singui it is one days journey to Vagiu, where also is abundance of silk, and able artisans, and many merchants, as is universally the case in all the cities of this kingdom.
463
This direction must be understood in reference to Kathay; as it is perfectly obvious, that the entrance here spoken of must be in the north-east of Mangi. Supposing the C aspirated, Coigan-zu and Hoaingan-fu, both certainly arbitrarily orthographized from the Chinese pronunciation, are not very dissimilar. –E.
464
Perhaps an error in transcription for Hara-moran, or Kara-moran, the Mongul or Tartar name of the Hoang-ho, or Whang river, near, and communicating with which, Hoaingan, or Whan-gan-fou is situated. –E.
465
This is an obscure indication of navigable canals on each side of the paved road of communication to the south. –E.
466
Cin-gui, or in the Italian pronunciation, Chin, or Tsin-gui, may possibly be Yen-tching. Tin-gui may be Sin-Yang, or Tsin-yang, to the north-east of Yen-tching. –E.
467
Obviously Yang-tcheou, the latter syllable being its title or designation of rank and precedency. Marco certainly mistakes, from distant recollection, the direction of his travels, which are very nearly south, with a very slight deviation towards the east. South-east would by this time have led him into the sea.-E
468
Though called a province, this obviously refers to the city of Nankin; the Nau-ghin of the text being probably a corruption for Nan-ghin.-E
470
Quiam, Kiang, Kian-ku, Kin-tchin-kian, or Yang-tsi-kiang. In modern maps, there is a town on the northern shore of this river, named Tsing-Kiang, which may possibly be the Singui of Marco, and we may perhaps look for the Sian-fu of the Polos at Yang-tcheou, at the southern extremity of a chain of lakes immediately to the north of the river Kian-ku. The subject is however full of perplexity, difficulty, and extreme uncertainty. –E.
471
This must be Tchin-kian-fou; the three separate syllables in both of these oral orthographies having almost precisely similar sounds; always remembering that the soft Italian
472
This evinces the great policy of the military government of the Tartars, in employing the subjugated nations in one corner of their empire to make conquests at such enormous distances from their native countries. The Alanians came from the country between the Euxine and Caspian, in Long. 60° E. and were here fighting Long. 135° E.; above 4000 miles from home. –E.
473
By the language in this place, either Sin-gui and Tin-gui-gui are the same place, or the transition is more than ordinarily abrupt; if the same, the situation of Sin-gui has been attempted to be explained in a former note. If different, Tin-gui-gui was probably obliterated on this occasion, as no name in the least similar appears in the map of China. –E.