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The celebrated Marco Polo, who travelled to the east 

 of Asia, near 700 years since, speaks of " the whole 

 country of China being filled with great, rich, and 

 crowded cities, thronged with manufactures of silk and 

 other merchandize." He has stated, in describing 

 Cambalu, the royal city of China, that " no fewter than 

 1000 carriages and packhorses, loaded with raw silk, 

 make their daily entry into the city ; and silk of various 

 textures are manufactured to an immense amount." 

 Du Halde, also, has stated, that although every year 

 the nations, both of Asia and of Europe, draw from the 

 superabundance of its produce, ships and caravans, laden 

 with vast quantities both of wrought and of unwrought 

 silk, yet still the quantity of plain silks, and those 

 wrought with gold and silver, which remain for con- 

 sumption throughout the empire are to an incredible 

 amount. To this, also, may be added all the wrought 

 and unwrought silks in immense quantities, which the 

 provinces of China pay as tribute to the emperor. 



In modern times, silk is produced in the neighborhood 

 of Nankin, lat. 32, 32', even in greater abundance than 

 in any other part of the empire ; but the most southern 

 parts are deemed unfavorable to its growth. That 

 country, in all its various latitudes, possesses a climate 

 very nearly resembling our own, it being, like ours, 

 bounded and controlled by an eastern ocean. 



One principal merit of China silk is its brilliant 

 whiteness. Some suppose that this is owing to some 

 particular process which it undergoes, which is known 

 only to the people of that country. 



American merchants are accustomed to sending 

 French patterns to China, which are there imitated to 

 perfection, except being one-fifth lighter, and far cheap- 

 er than the fabrics of the French. 



The quantities of raw silk which are produced in the 

 territories of the East India Company, are greatly in- 

 creased since 1766 ; and the Company now own eight 

 filatures or factories in Bengal each filature, according 



