5 1 6 The Difcovery, Settlement, and Commerce Book I. 
a in their Manners much altered by the Interruption of other 
Nations, yet were truly barbarous with refpedt to them ; 
that is to fay, differed widely from them in point of 
Laws and Cuftoms, and eftablilhing themfelves by Force 
of Arms, difturbed that Order they found, and were a 
long Time before they eftabliffied any regular Conftitution 
in its Place. 
3. We fhall apprehend this Matter better, if we confi- 
der the next Rout to China , which was by Samar cand, 
the Capital of the Country, called Tranfoxiania *, that is, the 
Country beyond the River Oxus. It was by this River, 
" which runs at no great Difcance from Samarcand, that a 
Trade was carried on to the North, by failing down that 
River into the Cafpian-Sea , and fo to the Mouth of the 
Volga. Bifhop Huet g hath very juftly obferved, that, 
by this Rout, there was no great Difficulty in paffing 
from China to Spain, without ever entering the Ocean. 
For, as he remarks, if after entering the Volga, and failing 
up that River as high as the Country of the Coffacks , the 
Merchants and Merchandife went by Land no greater 
Journey than fix German Leagues, they might then fail 
down the Tanais, and fo into the Black- Sea ; and pall- 
ing the Streights of Conftantinople , proceed by the Me- 
diterranean to Gibraltar. 
Strabo h has pointed us out another Rout by the Cafpian- 
Sea, frill fhorter than that of the Volga,, which is by turn- 
ing towards Albania, and fo entering the River Cyrus, and 
failing up as far as it is navigable ; and then proceeding by 
Land diredtly to the Black-Sea. But.tho’, as he obferves, 
this might be a fhorter Way, yet certainly it was not fo 
commodious, or at 'this Time lb practicable *, however the 
Account he has given of it, is a plain Indication, that all 
thefe Things had been very well confidered by the An- 
cients. 
But Pliny 1 carries the Matter much farther *, for he tells 
us on the Authority of Varro, that Pompey the Great, du- 
ring the War that he carried on againft Mithri dates , had 
actually a Defign of opening a Commerce this Way. He 
was, fays he, informed, that it was but feven Days Jour- 
ney from the Frontiers of India through the Country of the 
BaVrians to the River Icarus, which falls into the Oxus , 
fo that the Merchandife of India might be this Way tranf- 
ported into the Cafpian-Sea , and from thence carried up 
the River Cyrus , to within five Days Journey of Phafis in 
Pont us, which live Days Journey, might be very eafily 
performed over Land k . Solinus l , indeed, fpeaks of the 
Veffels paffing this Way, but that is a Miftake ; he mull 
have meant the Merchandife. It is impoffible to mention 
this Rout to and from the Indies, without obferving, that 
it was the neareft and moft convenient that could- be to Con- 
ftantinople ; and there feems to be no Reafon to doubt, that 
it was made ufe of, efpeciaily when the Inhabitants of the 
Pontus Euxmtis :, or Black-Sea, were Subjects to the Greek 
Emperors, or in times of Peace ; and by this- means it 
might probably happen, that the Commerce of the Indies 
was preferred, after the Eaftern Provinces of the Empire 
were loft, becaufe it was a long time after that before this 
Road was in any danger of being difturbed by the Excur- 
fions of the Arabs. 
This would have become frill an eafier and better Me- 
thod of carrying on this Trade ; perhaps we ihould not err 
much in faying the eafieft, and bell of all, if the Project, 
which Pliny tells us, on no lefs Authority than that of the 
Emperor Claudius™, was formed by Seleucus Nicator, had 
been carried into Execution, either by him, or by the Greek 
Emperors, who had a much better Opportunity of doing 
it, which was by cutting a Canal from the Cimmerian Boi- 
phprus to the Cafpian-Sea , which would have fhortened the 
Paffage extremely, and would befides have enabled the 
Merchants to have conveyed their Goods by Water all the 
Way. 
The Scheme Itfelf is truly great, and was originally that 
of Alexander, who, as we obferved in the Account we gave 
of that great Conqueror’s Defigns, ordered th t Cafpian-Sea 
to be per fed! y furveyed, with this very View of finding 
fome Communication with the Pontus Euxinus, that he 
might thereby open a Paffage from the Indies to his here- 
ditary Dominions of Macedon n . One would imaffine, that 
this, might have been more in' the Power of the Grand 
Signior ; but as the Turks have no great Genius for Trade, 
we need not wonder that it has been hitherto negleded * 
but if ever the Shah Nadir Ihould compafs his Defign of 
penetrating as far as the Black-Sea , there is good Reafon 
to believe that he would revive this Project, 7 as well on ac- 
count of his known Attention to whatever regards Com- 
merce, as becaufe he would then be intfrely Mailer of the 
Country through which this Trade muff be carried on. 
4- The City of Bogar ftands not far from Samarcand . , 
and is much nearer to the River Oxus ; . it was formerly a 
Place of very great Trade, and is frill reforted to by abun- 
dance of Merchants from Cathay, or Great Tartary, China, 
and the Indies , on this and on the other Side the Ganges % 
as alfo - by the Perfians and Mufcovites , who there firniih. 
themfelves with all the rich Commodities of the Eaft, fo 
that it ftill paffes for a very great Mart in that Part of the 
World °. 
Our Countryman Anthony Jenkinfon , who was adlually 
there in 1558, allures us, that in his Time the River Oxus 
did not fall into the Cafpian-Sea, as of old, but emptied 
itfelf into another River called Ardocke , which, he fays, 
runs towards the North ; and after running a thoufand 
Miles underground, rifes again, and falls into the Lake of 
Kithay. This is a Fa£l which he exprefsly affirms, in one 
Place ; but in another, he gives the following Account of 
the Matter. “ On the 26th of November we departed from 
“ the Town of Urgence , and having travelled by the River 
cc Oxus one hundred Miles, we paffed over another great 
“ River called Ardocke , where we paid a certain petty 
c< Cuftom. This River Ardocke is great, and very fwift ; 
“ and falling out of the aforefaid Oxus , it paffes about a 
“ thoufand Miles to the Northward, and then confumeth 
“ itfelf in the Ground j and paffing under the fame about 
“ five hundred Miles, iffueth out again, and falleth into 
<e the Lake of Kithay , as I have before declared p .” 
He had forgot, it feems, what he had before declared ; 
for there he fays in fo many Words, that it paffes under 
the Ground above one thoufand Miles •, but, as what ha 
relates in both Places, muft be from Hearfay, it is the lefs 
to be regarded. As to what he records of his own Know- 
ledge, it deferves' Notice, becaufe he has the Reputation of 
being an Author of great Fidelity. ‘ He affures us then, 
that all the Country thereabouts is watered by Canals drawn 
from the River Oxus, which, in his Judgment, is a greafc 
Detriment to that River ; and the Caufe that it does no£ 
fall into the Cafpian-Sea , as it did in Times paft. He adds, 
that in a fhort time all that Country is like to be deftroyed, 
and to become a Wildernefs for want of Water, when the 
River Oxus fhall fail He likewife gives us an Account of 
the City of Bogar , as it was in his Time. 
He fays, that it is feated in a low Country, not far from 
the River Oxus , which is there navigable, and is furrounded 
with a high Wall of Earth ; the City is divided into three 
Parts, two of which belong to the King, and the Inhabi- 
tants, and the third to the Foreign Merchants % all of the 
fame Trade living in the fame Place. This City is very 
large, and the Houfes, for the moft Part, of Earth j but 
there are alfo many of them, and all the Temples and pub*- 
iick Buildings of Stone, fumptuoufly built, and very richly 
gilt, efpeciaily their Bagnio’s, which, in the Opinion of 
this Writer, exceed any in the World. The King had a 
Tenth of all Wares that were fold ^ but what is more to 
our Purpofe, he gives us a very copious Account of thefe 
Wares, and of the Trade carried on there in his Time. 
There is, fays he, yearly, a great Refort of Merchants 
from Perfia , Balk, Ruftia, and in times paft from Cathay , 
when there was a Paffage •, the Indians bring white Cottons 
for Turbants *, but for Gold, Silver, Precious Stones, and 
Spices, they bring none ; but all that fort of Trade is car- 
Hijloire du Commerce » cjf de la. Navigation des Anciens, cap. 56. 
Geocr. 
o 
lib. xi. 
Hijl. Natural, lib. vi. cap. 17. Wherein. 
he difeourfes largely on this Subject, and acquaints us with abundance of curious Particulars that relate to it; and which demonftrate the 4ffiduity of 
the . Ancients, in contriving to fecure the Monopoly of this Commerce to the Indies. k Plin. ubi fupra. 1 De Mirab. Mund. cap. 19. 
m Hift. Nat. lib. vi. c. II. n See before, p. 409. 0 Hijioire de Commerce des Ancients, cap. 56. p Uadduyt ' s Voy 3 g es » Vol. H* 
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