FRIAR BEATUS ODORICUS 



travelled i8. dayes journey further, and came unto a 

 certaine great river, and entered also into a city, where- 

 unto belongeth a mighty bridge to passe the said river. 

 And mine hoste with whom I sojourned, being desirous 

 to shew me some sport, said unto me : Sir, if you will 

 see any fish taken, goe with me. Then hee led me unto 

 the foresaid bridge, carying in his armes with him cer- 

 taine dive-doppers or water-foules, bound unto a company 

 of poles, and about every one of their necks he tied a 

 threed, least they should eat the fish as fast as they tooke 

 them : and he caried 3. great baskets with him also : 

 then loosed he the dive-doppers from the poles, which 

 presently went into the water, & within lesse then the 

 space of one houre, caught as many fishes as filled the 3. 

 baskets : which being full, mine hoste untyed the threeds 

 from about their neckes, and entering the second time 

 into the river they fed themselves with fish, and being 

 satisfied they returned and suffered themselves to be 

 bound unto the saide poles as they were before. And 

 when I did eate of those fishes, me thought they were 

 exceeding good. Travailing thence many dayes journeys, 

 at length I arrived at another city called * Canasia, which 

 signifieth in our language, the city of heaven. Never in 

 all my life did 1 see so great a citie ; for it conteineth in 

 circuit an hundreth miles : neither sawe I any plot 

 thereof, which was not throughly inhabited : yea, I 

 sawe many houses of tenne or twelve stories high, one 

 above another. It hath mightie large suburbs con- 

 taining more people then the citie it selfe. Also it hath 

 twelve principall gates : and about the distance of eight 

 miles, in the high way unto every one of the saide 

 gates standeth a city as big by estimation as Venice, 

 and Padua. The foresaid city of Canasia is situated in 

 waters or marshes, which alwayes stand still neither ebb- 

 ing nor flowing : howbeit it hath a defence for the winde 

 like unto Venice. In this citie there are mo then 10002. 

 bridges, many whereof I numbred and passed over them : 

 and upon every of those bridges stand certaine watch- 



425 



A.D. 



1330- 



A great 

 river. 



Foules catch- 

 ing fish. 



[II. i. 60.] 



Or Cansaiy or 

 Quinzai. 



The Italian 

 copy in Ramu- 

 sius, hath 

 1 1000. 

 bridges. 



