Almost Every Spot Bore Traces Of Ruin, And
There Appeared To Be But One Good Street In The Whole Town; This, However,
Was Full Of Shops, And As Busy As Chinese Streets Always Are." - H.C.]
NOTE 2.
- Rashiduddin gives the following account of the Grand Canal spoken
of in this passage. "The river of Khanbaligh had," he says, "in the course
of time, become so shallow as not to admit the entrance of shipping, so
that they had to discharge their cargoes and send them up to Khanbaligh on
pack-cattle. And the Chinese engineers and men of science having reported
that the vessels from the provinces of Cathay, from Machin, and from the
cities of Khingsai and Zaitun, could no longer reach the court, the Kaan
gave them orders to dig a great canal into which the waters of the said
river, and of several others, should be introduced. This canal extends for
a distance of 40 days' navigation from Khanbaligh to Khingsai and Zaitun,
the ports frequented by the ships that come from India, and from the city
of Machin (Canton). The canal is provided with many sluices ... and when
vessels arrive at these sluices they are hoisted up by means of machinery,
whatever be their size, and let down on the other side into the water. The
canal has a width of more than 30 ells. Kublai caused the sides of the
embankments to be revetted with stone, in order to prevent the earth
giving way.
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