But Still It
Must Have Been Far Below Amoy Harbour In Magnitude, Depth, And
Accessibility.
I have before recognised this, but saw no way to reconcile
the proposed deduction with the positive historical facts already stated,
which absolutely (to my mind) identify the Zayton of Polo and Rashiduddin
with the Chinese city and port of T'swan-chau.
Dr. Douglas, however,
points out that the whole northern shore of Amoy Harbour, with the Islands
of Amoy and Quemoy, are within the Fu or Department of T'swan-chau; and
the latter name would, in Chinese parlance, apply equally to the city and
to any part of the department. He cites among other analogous cases the
Treaty Port Neuchwang (in Liao-tong). That city really lies 20 miles up
the Liao River, but the name of Neuchwang is habitually applied by
foreigners to Ying-tzu, which is the actual port. Even now much of the
trade of T'swan-chau merchants is carried on through Amoy, either by junks
touching, or by using the shorter sea-passage to 'An-hai, which was once a
port of great trade, and is only 20 miles from T'swan-chau.[3] With such
a haven as Amoy Harbour close by, it is improbable that Kublai's vast
armaments would have made rendezvous in the comparatively inconvenient
port of T'swan-chau. Probably then the two were spoken of as one. In all
this I recognise strong likelihood, and nothing inconsistent with recorded
facts, or with Polo's concise statements. It is even possible that (as Dr.
Douglas thinks) Polo's words intimate a distinction between Zayton the
City and Zayton the Ocean Port; but for me Zayton the city, in Polo's
chapters, remains still T'swan-chau. Dr. Douglas, however, seems disposed
to regard it as Chang-chau.
The chief arguments urged for this last identity are: (1.) Ibn Batuta's
representation of his having embarked at Zayton "on the river," i.e. on
the internal navigation system of China, first for Sin-kalan (Canton), and
afterwards for Kinsay. This could not, it is urged, be T'swan-chau, the
river of which has no communication with the internal navigation, whereas
the river at Chang-chau has such communication, constantly made use of in
both directions (interrupted only by brief portages); (2.) Martini's
mention of the finding various Catholic remains, such as crosses and
images of the Virgin, at Chang-chau, in the early part of the 17th
century, indicating that city as the probable site of the Franciscan
establishments.
[Illustration: SKETCH MAP of the GREAT PORTS OF FOKIEN to illustrate the
Identity of Marco Polo's ZAYTON]
[I remember that the argument brought forward by Mr. Phillips in favour of
Changchow which most forcibly struck Sir H. Yule, was the finding of
various Christian remains at this place, and Mr. Phillips wrote (Jour.
China Br.R.A.Soc. 1888, 27-28): "We learn from the history of the
Franciscan missions that two churches were built in Zaitun, one in the
city and the other in a forest not far from the town.
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