I 
Chap. III. the 'Empire 
moft the whole Province, and feveral other Towns 
‘‘ and Villages were laid under Water ; So that above 
‘‘ three hundred thoufand Men, amongft which were 
feveral Miffionaries, who had then a numerous Chri- 
ftian Congregation in the faid City, were all drowned 
and deftroyed, lofing at once both their Church and 
« their Lives. 
“ Le Comte faith, I have failed on feveral Parts of 
this River, and found it every where broad and rapid, 
but fliallow, and fcarce Navigable.” 
This Country is very mountainous, and though lefs 
than other Provinces, yet it is very populous and fertile ; 
its Jurifdidion extends over fix Fu^ eleven Cheu^ and 
ninety five Hien. 
The metropolitan City of the firft large Difirift is cal- 
cd Thayenfu ; the fecond Pautefu j the third Pingiangfu ; 
•the fourth Zuganfu \ the fifth Funcheufu, and the fixth 
•5T itingfu. 
All thefe have feveral fmall fubordinate Cities, which not 
affording any thing very remarkable, to avoid Prolixity 
I fhall not enlarge on. But it is very obfervable, that in 
all Parts of this Province are found fiery Wells, which 
very conveniently ferve for the Boiling of their Viduals 
in the following Manner : They cover them clofe v/ith 
a Lid in which is left a Hole, to fet the Kettle or Pot on, 
by which Means whatever is contained in it is boiled, 
without any other Afliftance. 
The valiant Warriour and great General Fluanlnchang^ 
was born in this Province. This Hero had three bofom 
Friends all of them greatLords, who had fworn a mutual 
and inviolable Friendfliip, and to whom he proved very 
fincere and faithful. They were all three highly efteemed 
by the Emperor, but one of them was his peculiar Fa- 
vourite : And it happening that the Death of the Em- 
peror occafioned a Civil War, this Hero and the others 
endeavoured to fet their Friend on the Throne *, in 
Purfuit of this End he feveral Times proved vidtorious, 
and won feveral Battles ; but it happening once that the 
Enemy had carried off his Friends Wives and their At- 
tendants ; the News no fooner reached his Ears, than 
with utmofl Hafle and equal Bravery, he reduced his 
Men to Order, beat the Enemy, and delivered the Cap- 
tive Ladies, and retired before and in Sight of a vaft 
approaching Army, which purfued him clofe at the 
Heels for two Days and two Nights ; notwithflanding 
all which, he defended and preferved them from all 
Danger, and delivered them inviolate and untouched to 
his Friends. And for this glorious and gallant Adlion 
he is highly revered by his Countrymen *, in Remem- 
brance of fuch fublime Virtue they adore him as a God, 
and fet up Images in their Idol Temples in Honour to 
him. It is but feldom that they will fhew this Image, 
the Face of which is of a very deep Blood-Co- 
lour, like a Hero not debauch’d by Bacchus. And 
the military Men highly efteem that Sort of Counte- 
nance ; nay, the whole Chinefe Nation imagine him 
very propitious to them, and fancy that fuch a fiery 
flaming Face will infpire them with Valour, and enable 
them to acquit themfelves well. 
7. Xienji or Xenft., is the largefl of all the Chinefe 
Provinces, and had formerly three Viceroys, though at 
prefent it hath but two. Its Breadth from Eaft to Weft 
is three hundred and fifty, and its Length four hundred 
Miles. Its Plains as well as Hills are very fertile, and 
here are vaft Herds of Kine, and large Flocks of Sheep. 
“ This Province breeds as many Cattle of all Sorts as 
any Country in the World ; the Sheep and Goats 
“ come on fo kindly, and thrive fo well, that they are 
“ ftiorn thrice every Year, and their Wooll is wrought 
“ into very fine Cloths and Stuffs, fit for Cloathing or 
“ other Ufes. This Country alfo produces great Quan- 
“ tities of Musk, which is extraordinary good, and 
grows at the Navel of an Animal like a Hart without 
“ Horns ; their Navels fwell moft in their Rutting- 
“ time, when they are taken and killed, the Navel, 
“ and what is contained in it is cur, and that proves 
« the beft unadulterated Musk ; a more particular Ac- 
‘‘ count of which, illuftrated with a Print, is inferred 
in Mr Tshrants Idss*^ Travels to China, 
of China. 965 
This Province lies V/eftward of YWr/, the Great 
Wall terminates in it ; it alfo borders on Wejl Tartary^ 
from whence the LamXs come, which are Fartarian- 
Priefts that wear yellow or red Habits. 
“ The great or chief Lama.^ in their Language Dalai 
“ Lama, is the Head of their Religion, and him they 
honour as a Deity. V/hen the firft Embaffy, fent by 
“ the Dutch Eaji India Company to China, w^as at Pe~ 
“ king, there was alfo an Envoy from him ; and by 
“ Reafon, faith Nieuhoff, they had formerly Jived in 
“ China \ but before the Tartar had conquered that 
“ Empire, had been by the laft Chinefe dnvm 
“ out of it : Their Errand was then to requeft a Per- 
“ miffion for the Return of their banifh’d Ecclefiafticks 
“ on the old Foot, and a free Exercife of their Re- 
“ ligion. 
This Province alfo borders on the upper Principality of 
Tibet, which extends itfelf to the Territories of &itGreat 
Mogul, from whofe Dominions great Numbers of Mer- 
chants come to the vaft trading City of Zunning, in the 
Kingdom of Xienft : And the Door of Commerce being 
for fome Time opened here, and Liberty granted to 
them, as v/ell as Mufcovites and Tartars, to trade there, 
they have with their Wares and Trade introduced the 
Mahometan Religion, v/hich, as Weeds grow apace, is 
fpread over all China to that Degree, that there appears 
more of that accurfed Seed than of the true Doftrine of 
Jefus Chrift, which from Experience I fpeak with 
Sorrow. 
In this Province are eight large Cities, which have an 
hundred and fixteen under their Jurifdiflion. The 
principal City is Sigan Fu^ which is not only large in 
Size, but alfo very fine ; the reft are Hanchang Fu, Fun^ 
giang Fu, Pingliang Fu, Linxiu Fu, Vachang Fu, Flingang 
Fu, and Singang Fu ; thefe are the eight, fubordinate to 
which, as I above hinted, are all the others. 
Not far from Sigan Fu, fomewhat above feventy Years 
ago, a monumental Table was found, upon which a 
Crofs and feveral Letters were cut, whence the Eccle- 
fiafticks prove, that the Chriflian Religion was anciently 
known in China, and that St. Thomas the Apoftle, or 
fome of his Difciples, were there. 
“ The Jefuits Kircher, Ls Comte, Gohien, and others, 
“ fpeak largely of this Crofs and Table 5 but I ftiali 
“ only make a fhort Extradt of the principal Thino-g 
“ which they treat of at full. They fay then, that it is 
“ a long Marble Table, on the Top of which is enora- 
“ ven a Crofs j that in the Year 1625, fome AmL 
“ layers digging the Ground near Signanfou, in the Pro- 
“ vince of Chienft, found a long Piece of Marble, which 
“ had formerly been fet up as a Monument, but Time 
“ had funk it under the Earth. This Stone was ten 
“ Feet long and five broad, and was the more narrowly 
“ examined, by Reafon a well engraven large Crofs ap- 
“ peared at the Top of it ; and lomewhat below it a 
“ long Infcription in Chinefe Charadlers, with fome 
“ ftrange unknown ' Letters^ which were found to be 
“ Syriac. The Emperor being informed of it, caufed 
“ a Copy of it to be given out, and afterwards com- 
“ manded the Monument to be kept in a Pagode, 
“ where it is at prefent about a quarter of a Mile from 
“ Signanfou. The Infcription, which is too long to be 
“ tranfcribed here, mentions the Meffas, and imparts 
“ that an Angel brought the Tidings of his comino- 
“ and that Olopouen departed from Judea in the Year 
“ 636, and came to China ; that he being examined 
‘‘ his Teftimony was found good, and that the Empe- 
“ ror publifhed a Proclamation and Command in his 
“ Favour, in order to the building of a Church, Cfc.’* 
8. Honan is fituated in the Middle of China, borders 
Southwards on the Provinces Fluquang and Kianfi ; North- 
wards on Peking and Xanxi, Eaftwards on Zantung and 
Nanking, and Weft wards on Suchuen and Xienfi, An- 
ciently, before all China was fubjefted to one Monarch 
and each Province or Kingdom was governed by its own 
Prince, this was accounted the middle Kingdom, and di- 
ftinguiflied by that Name, which is at prefent given to 
China, by reafon it is fituated in the Middle of feveral 
Kingdoms: And accordingly the frequently fay, 
South- 
J 
