This Lord Has Been Known To Forgive 200 Tomans Of
Arrears At One Time To His People, Or Three Millions Of Florins, Lest They
Should Be Reduced To Distress.
There is a strange fashion in this city,
when any one inclines to give a banquet to his friends:
He goes about to
certain taverns or cooks shops, informing each of the landlords, that such
and such of his friends are to come there for entertainment in his name,
and that he will allow a certain sum for the banquet. By this means his
friends are better entertained in divers places, than if all had been
collected into one. Ten miles from the city of Janzu, and at the mouth of
the river Thalay, there is another city named Montu, which has a greater
number of ships than I ever saw in any part of the world. All the ships are
white as snow, and have banquetting houses in them; and there are many
other rare and wonderful things, that no one would give credit to, unless
he were to see them with his own eyes.
SECTION XIII.
Of the city of Cambalu.
Travelling eight days farther, through divers provinces and cities, I came
by fresh water to a city called Lencyn, on the river Karamoran, which
pervades the middle of Cathay, and does much injury when it breaks its
banks and overflows the land. Passing from thence many days journey to the
eastwards, and within sight of many different cities, I came to the city of
Sumakoto, which abounds more in silk than any city of the earth; insomuch
that silk is reckoned scarce and dear, when the price of forty pounds
weight amounts to four groats. It likewise abounds in all kinds of
merchandize and provisions. Journeying still towards the east past many
cities, I arrived at length at the great and renowned city of Cambalu, or
Cambaleth, which is of great antiquity, and is the capital of Cathay. Being
taken by the Tartars, they built a new city at the distance of half a mile,
which they named Caido, which has twelve gates, each two miles distant from
the other. The space also between the two cities is thoroughly built upon,
and inhabited; so that the whole is as one city, and is forty miles in
circuit. In this city the great khan or emperor has his palace, the walls
of which are four miles in circuit; and near to the imperial palace there
are many other houses and palaces of the nobles who belong to the court.
Within the precincts of the imperial palace, there is a most beautiful
mount, all set over with trees, called the Green Mount, having a sumptuous
palace on the top, in which the khan mostly resides. On one side of the
mount is a great lake, abounding in geese and ducks, and all manner of
water fowl, and having a most magnificent bridge; and the wood upon the
mount is stored with all kinds of beasts and land birds.
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