DAVIS. — CERTAIN OLD CHINESE NOTES. 251 



other writers, it may be that it will have some weight. He simply 

 says that the emperor did not depend upon money but on "Lether 

 emprented" or on "Papyre." 



An Arabian traveller named Ibn Batuta covered a part of the ground 

 of Polo's travels about fifty years after Polo, and left behind him an 

 account of the Chinese paper currency. This was written in Arabic 

 and was not so full as that of Polo, but it contained much that might 

 have stimulated financiers in the use of credit, if they could have read 

 it. Nothing was known in Europe of this manuscript, unless the 

 Moors in Spain knew about it, until the early part of the nineteenth 

 century, and so far as European financiers are concerned, it cannot 

 be said, that they were so situated as to have been subject to its 

 influence. Nevertheless his story is well worthy of examination. 



Like Marco Polo, Batuta was astonished to see pieces of paper 

 used in place of coins and quaintly expressed himself in the following 

 language: 5 



"Their transactions are carried on with paper:.... As to the 

 paper every piece of it is in extent about the measure of the palm of 

 the hand, and is stamped with the King's stamp. Five and twenty of 

 such notes are termed a "shat," which means the same thing as the 

 dinar with us. But when the papers happen to be torn, or worn out 

 by use, they are carried to their house, which is just like a mint with 

 us, and new ones are given by the King. This is done without in- 

 terest, the profit arising from the circulation accruing to the King. 

 When any one goes to the market with a dinar or a dirhem in his hand, 

 no one will take it until it has been changed for their notes." 



It will be remembered that Marco Polo in speaking of these notes 

 had described the manner in which the fabric upon which they were 

 printed was manufactured; had stated that the color of the paper 

 was black, an error probably of the translator, since the actual color 

 was dark gray ; had compared the office from which they were issued 

 to a mint; had spoken of the official seal which was placed upon them; 

 had described the method of securing new notes in place of those 

 which were worn and unfit for use, stating in this connection that a 

 charge of three per cent was made by the government ; had given the 

 values of the different denominations of the notes; had alleged that 

 they were of different sizes, the smaller the denominational value of 

 the note the smaller the size; had stated that there was a law against 



5 The Travels of Ibn Batuta by The Rev. Samuel Lee. B. D. London, 

 p. 209 (1829). 



