Latest / The Travels of Marco Polo, Volume 1 / 027 - Book First Chapters 33 to 39 Of the kingdom of Cascar Of the great city of Samarcan Of the province

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027 - Book First Chapters 33 to 39 Of the kingdom of Cascar Of the great city of Samarcan Of the province · The Travels of Marco Polo, Volume 1

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  Speaker 1: Section twenty seven of the Book of Sir Marco Polo,
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  Speaker 1: the Venetian concerning the Kingdoms and Marvels of the East,
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  Speaker 1: Volume IE. This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings
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  Speaker 1: are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer,
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  Speaker 1: please visit LibriVox dot org. The Book of Sir Marco Polo,
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  Speaker 1: the Venetian concerning the Kingdoms and Marvels of the East,
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  Speaker 1: Volume I by Rusticello da Pisa, translated by Henry Yule,
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  Speaker 1: Book first chapter thirty three of the Kingdom of Cascar.
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  Speaker 1: Cascar is a region lying between northeast and east, and
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  Speaker 1: constituted a kingdom in former days, but now it is
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  Speaker 1: subject to the Great Khan. The people worship Mahammet. There
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  Speaker 1: are a good number of towns and villages, but the
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  Speaker 1: greatest and finest is Cascar itself. The inhabitants live by
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  Speaker 1: trade and handicrafts. They have beautiful gardens in vineyards and
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  Speaker 1: fine estates, and grow a great deal of cotton. From
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  Speaker 1: this country. Many merchants go forth about the world on
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  Speaker 1: trading journeys. The natives are a wretched, niggardly set of people.
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  Speaker 1: They eat and drink in miserable fashion. There are in
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  Speaker 1: the country many Nestorian Christians who have churches of their own.
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  Speaker 1: The people of the country have a peculiar language, and
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  Speaker 1: the territory extends for five days Journey, Chapter thirty four
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  Speaker 1: of the Great City of Samarkan. Samarkan is a great
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  Speaker 1: and noble city towards the northwest, inhabited by both with
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  Speaker 1: Christians and Saracens, who are subject to the Great Khan's
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  Speaker 1: nephew Kaidu by name. He is, however, at bitter enmity
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  Speaker 1: with the Khan. I will tell you of a great
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  Speaker 1: marvel that happened at this city. It is not a
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  Speaker 1: great while ago that Cigarate, own brother to the Great Khan,
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  Speaker 1: who was lord of this country and of many an
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  Speaker 1: one besides, became a Christian. The Christians rejoiced greatly at this,
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  Speaker 1: and they built a great church in the city in
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  Speaker 1: honor of John the Baptist, and by his name the
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  Speaker 1: church was called. And they took a very fine stone
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  Speaker 1: which belonged to the Saracens, and placed it as the
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  Speaker 1: pedestal of a column in the middle of the church,
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  Speaker 1: supporting the roof. It came to pass, however, that Cigate died.
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  Speaker 1: Now the Saracens were full of rancor about that stone
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  Speaker 1: which had been theirs, and which had been set up
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  Speaker 1: in the church of the Christianstians. And when they saw
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  Speaker 1: that the prince was dead, they said one to another
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  Speaker 1: that now was the time to get back their stone,
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  Speaker 1: by fair means or by foul, and that they might
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  Speaker 1: well do, for they were ten times as many as
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  Speaker 1: the Christians. So they got together and went to the
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  Speaker 1: church and said that the stone they must and would have.
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  Speaker 1: The Christians acknowledged that it was theirs indeed, but offered
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  Speaker 1: to pay a large sum of money and so be quit.
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  Speaker 1: Howbeit the others replied that they never would give up
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  Speaker 1: the stone for anything in the world. And words ran
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  Speaker 1: so high that the Prince heard thereof, and ordered the
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  Speaker 1: Christians either to arrange to satisfy the Saracens, if it
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  Speaker 1: might be with money, or to give up the stone,
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  Speaker 1: and he allowed them three days to do either one
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  Speaker 1: thing or the other. What shall I tell you, well,
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  Speaker 1: Garisons would on no account agree to leave the stone
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  Speaker 1: where it was, And this out of pure despite to
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  Speaker 1: the Christians, for they knew well enough that if the
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  Speaker 1: stone were stirred the church would come down by the run.
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  Speaker 1: So the Christians were in great trouble and wist not
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  Speaker 1: what to do, But they did the best thing possible.
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  Speaker 1: They besought Jesus Christ that he would consider their case,
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  Speaker 1: so that the Holy Church did not come to destruction,
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  Speaker 1: nor the name of its patron, Saint John the Baptist,
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  Speaker 1: be tarnished by its ruin. And so when the day
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  Speaker 1: fixed by the Prince came round, they went to the
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  Speaker 1: church betimes in the morning. And though they found the
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  Speaker 1: stone removed from under the column, the foot of the
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  Speaker 1: column was without support, and yet it bore the load
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  Speaker 1: as stoutly as before. Between the foot of the column
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  Speaker 1: and the ground there was a space of three palms.
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  Speaker 1: So the Saracens had away their stone and mighty little
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  Speaker 1: joy withal. And it was a glorious miracle. Nay, it
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  Speaker 1: is so, for the column still so standeth, and will
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  Speaker 1: stand as long as God pleaseth. Now let us quit
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  Speaker 1: this and continue our journey. Chapter thirty five of the
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  Speaker 1: Province of Yar Khan. Yar Khan is a province five
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  Speaker 1: days journey. In extent, the people follow the law of Mahomet,
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  Speaker 1: but there are also Nestorian and Jacobite Christians. They are
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  Speaker 1: subject to the same prince as I mentioned, the Great
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  Speaker 1: Khan's nephew. They have plenty of everything, particularly cotton. The
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  Speaker 1: inhabitants are also great craftsmen, but a large proportion of
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  Speaker 1: them have swollen legs and great crops at the throat,
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  Speaker 1: which arises from some quality in the drinking water. As
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  Speaker 1: there is nothing else worth telling, we may pass on
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  Speaker 1: chapter thirty six of a province called Kotan. Kotan is
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  Speaker 1: a province lying between northeast and east, and is eight
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  Speaker 1: days journey in length. The people are subject to the
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  Speaker 1: Great Khan and are all worshipers of Mohammet. There are
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  Speaker 1: numerous towns and villages in the country, but Kotan, the capital,
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  Speaker 1: is the most noble of all, and it gives its
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  Speaker 1: name to the kingdom. Everything is to be had there
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  Speaker 1: in plenty, including abundance of cotton, with flax, hemp, wheat, wine,
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  Speaker 1: and the like. The people have vineyards and gardens and estates.
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  Speaker 1: They live by commerce and manufacturers, and are no soldiers
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  Speaker 1: of the Province of Pain. Pain is a province five
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  Speaker 1: days in length, lying between east and northeast. The people
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  Speaker 1: are worshipers of Mahammet and subjects of the Great Khan.
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  Speaker 1: There are a good number of towns and villages, but
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  Speaker 1: the most noble is Pain, the capital of the kingdom.
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  Speaker 1: There are rivers in this country in which quantities of
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  Speaker 1: jasper and chalcedoni are found. The people have plenty of
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  Speaker 1: all products, including cotton. They live by manufactures and trade,
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  Speaker 1: but they have accustomed. I must relate. If the husband
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  Speaker 1: of any woman go away upon a journey and remain
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  Speaker 1: away for more than twenty days, as soon as that
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  Speaker 1: term is passed, the woman may marry another man, and
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  Speaker 1: the husband also may then marry whom he pleases. I
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  Speaker 1: should tell you that all the provinces that are I
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  Speaker 1: have been speaking of from Kascar forward, and those I
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  Speaker 1: am going to mention as far as the city of
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  Speaker 1: Lop belong to Great Turkey. Chapter thirty eight of the
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  Speaker 1: Province of Karchan. Karchan is a province of Great Turkey,
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  Speaker 1: lying between northeast and east. The people worship Mahammet. There
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  Speaker 1: are numerous towns and villages, and the chief city of
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  Speaker 1: the kingdom bears its name Karchan. The province contains rivers
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  Speaker 1: which bring down jasper and chalcedoni, and these are carried
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  Speaker 1: for sale into Cathay, where they fetch great prices. The
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  Speaker 1: whole of the province is sandy, and so is the
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  Speaker 1: road all the way from Paine, and much of the
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  Speaker 1: water that you find is bitter and bad. However, at
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  Speaker 1: some places you do find fresh and sweet water. When
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  Speaker 1: an army passes through the land, the people escape with
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  Speaker 1: their wives, children and cattle. A distance of two or
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  Speaker 1: three days journey into the sandy waste, and knowing the
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  Speaker 1: spots where water is to be had, they are able
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  Speaker 1: to live there and to keep their cattle alive, whilst
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  Speaker 1: it is impossible to discover them, for the wind immediately
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  Speaker 1: blows the sand over their track. Quitting Khrchan, you ride
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  Speaker 1: some five days through the sands, finding none but bad
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  Speaker 1: and bitter water. And then you come to a place
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  Speaker 1: where the water is sweet. And now I will tell
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  Speaker 1: you of a province called Lop, in which there is
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  Speaker 1: a great city also called Lop, which you come to
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  Speaker 1: at the end of those five days. It is at
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  Speaker 1: the entrance of the great desert, and it is here
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  Speaker 1: that travelers repose before entering on the desert. Nine of
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  Speaker 1: the city of Lop and the great Desert. Lop is
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  Speaker 1: a large town at the edge of the desert, which
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  Speaker 1: is called the Desert of Lop, and is situated between
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  Speaker 1: east and northeast. It belongs to the Great Khan and
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  Speaker 1: the people worship Mohammet. Now, such persons as proposed to
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  Speaker 1: cross the desert take a week's rest in this town
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  Speaker 1: to refresh themselves and their cattle, and then they make
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  Speaker 1: ready for the journey, taking with them a month's supply
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  Speaker 1: for man and beast. On quitting this city they enter
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  Speaker 1: the desert. The length of this desert is so great
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  Speaker 1: that tis said it would take a year and more
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  Speaker 1: to ride from one end of it to the other.
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  Speaker 1: And here, where its breadth is leased, it takes a
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  Speaker 1: month to cross. It. Tis all composed of hills and
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  Speaker 1: valleys of sand, and not a thing to eat is
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  Speaker 1: to be found on it. But after riding for a
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  Speaker 1: day and a night, you find fresh water, enough mayhap
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  Speaker 1: for some fifty or one hundred persons with their beasts,
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  Speaker 1: but not for more. And all across the desert you
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  Speaker 1: will find water in like manner, that is to say,
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  Speaker 1: in some twenty eight places. Altogether you will find good water,
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  Speaker 1: but no great quantity. And in four places also you
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  Speaker 1: find brackish water beasts. There are none, for there is
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  Speaker 1: naught for them to eat. But there is a marvelous
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  Speaker 1: thing related of this desert, which is that when travelers
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  Speaker 1: are on the move by night, and one of them
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  Speaker 1: chances to lag behind, or to fall asleep, or the like,
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  Speaker 1: when he tries to gain his company again, he will
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  Speaker 1: hear spirits talking, and will suppose them to be his comrades.
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  Speaker 1: Sometimes the spirits will call him name, and thus shall
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  Speaker 1: a traveler ofttimes be led astray, so that he never
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  Speaker 1: finds his party, And in this way many have perished.
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  Speaker 1: Sometimes the stray travelers will hear, as it were, the
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  Speaker 1: tramp and hum of a great cavalcade of people away
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  Speaker 1: from the real line of road, and taking this to
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  Speaker 1: be their own company, they will follow the sound, and
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  Speaker 1: when daybreaks, they find that a cheat has been put
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  Speaker 1: on them, and that they are in an ill plight.
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  Speaker 1: Even in the daytime when hears those spirits talking, and
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  Speaker 1: sometimes you shall hear the sound of a variety of
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  Speaker 1: musical instruments, and still more commonly the sound of drums. Hence,
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  Speaker 1: in making this journey tis customary for travelers to keep
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  Speaker 1: close together. All the animals too have bells at their necks,
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  Speaker 1: so that they cannot easily get astray. And that sleepy
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  Speaker 1: time a signal is put up to show the direction
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  Speaker 1: of the next march. So thus it is that the
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  Speaker 1: desert is crossed. End of Section twenty seven, reading by
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  Speaker 1: Allan Mapstone in Oxford, England,