There are also in
this city many philosophers and leeches, diligent students of nature.
And you must know that in this city there are 6,000 bridges, all of stone,
and so lofty that a galley, or even two galleys at once, could pass
underneath one of them.[NOTE 2]
In the mountains belonging to this city, rhubarb and ginger grow in great
abundance; insomuch that you may get some 40 pounds of excellent fresh
ginger for a Venice groat.[NOTE 3] And the city has sixteen other great
trading cities under its rule. The name of the city, Suju, signifies in
our tongue, "Earth," and that of another near it, of which we shall speak
presently, called Kinsay, signifies "Heaven;" and these names are given
because of the great splendour of the two cities.[NOTE 4]
Now let us quit Suju, and go on to another which is called VUJU, one day's
journey distant; it is a great and fine city, rife with trade and
manufactures. But as there is nothing more to say of it we shall go on and
I will tell you of another great and noble city called VUGHIN. The people
are Idolaters, &c., and possess much silk and other merchandize, and they
are expert traders and craftsmen. Let us now quit Vughin and tell you of
another city called CHANGAN, a great and rich place. The people are
Idolaters, &c., and they live by trade and manufactures. They make great
quantities of sendal of different kinds, and they have much game in the
neighbourhood. There is however nothing more to say about the place, so we
shall now proceed.[NOTE 5]
NOTE 1. - SUJU is of course the celebrated city of SU-CHAU in Kiang-nan -
before the rebellion brought ruin on it, the Paris of China. "Everything
remarkable was alleged to come from it; fine pictures, fine carved-work,
fine silks, and fine ladies!" (Fortune, I. 186.) When the Emperor
K'ang-hi visited Su-chau, the citizens laid the streets with carpets and
silk stuffs, but the Emperor dismounted and made his train do the like.
(Davis, I. 186.)
[Su-chau is situated 80 miles west of Shang-hai, 12 miles east of the
Great Lake, and 40 miles south of the Kiang, in the plain between this
river and Hang-chau Bay. It was the capital of the old kingdom of Wu which
was independent from the 12th to the 4th centuries (B.C.) inclusive; it
was founded by Wu Tzu-su, prime minister of King Hoh Lue (514-496 B.C.),
who removed the capital of Wu from Mei-li (near the modern Ch'ang-chau) to
the new site now occupied by the city of Su-chau.
