p68 A Geographical Defcription of Book Ilk 
« We Oiould alfo here add, that this City was within 
one Night of falling into the Hands of Coxin^u or 
“ Couefius ; but our Author having mentioned it in the 
“ Chapter, where he is treating of Fokien and the Ifland 
“ Formofa, I refer the Reader thither. And as for the 
“ third Circuit, (which our Author barely mentions 
“ without any Defcription) we gather from other Wri- 
“ ters, that it was the ancient Imperial Palace, where 
“ the Chinefe Emperors formerly refided in as great 
« Splendor, as at prefent at Peking •, it was on the South- 
“ fide of the City, and encompaffed by a Wall, which 
“ at prefent enclofes the principal Fart of the City. 
“ Each of its four Sides were an Italian Mile long, 
“ and confequently required above an Hour’s time to 
“ go round it, being by FHeuhoff to Haarlem 
“ in Hollands 
This moft charming City far furpaffes all the reft ; 
befides which it is adorned with a lofty Tower of the 
fineft Porcelain of various Colours, and fet off on the 
Outfide with very fine Imagery ; It is nine Stories 
high, and within is full of Stone Figures, richly 
guilt. 
“ The Difierence amongft all Authors in the Orthor 
“ graphy, in Writing concerning China^ is very furpri- 
fing, they not agreeing in Names, the Senfe of them, 
nor even in Things ; one writes China^ another Sina\ 
i)\hXanft^ Xienft^ x\\-2xChanfi^ Chknji, and alfo Chenfi: 
“ One calls the Emperor Canghi^ another Kamhi ; one 
“ writes Oufangouei^ whilft others have it Ufangejus^ or 
“ Viifcnguei ; and all mean the fame Thing or Perfon. 
“ So we find the like Difference concerning the Porce- 
“ lain Tower, in, or more properly without, Nanking. 
“ Our Author faith, the Porcelain on it is of the very 
fineft and beft Sort *, others fay,' that this Tower is 
“ but plaiftered with Porcecain ; and though the Rain 
“ and Dull hath decayed the Beauty of it, the Remains 
“ are yet fufficient to determine that it was Porcelain, 
“ and not the fineft, but a coarfe Sort. Nor do Wri- 
“ ters vary lefs about the making of Porcelain, which 
“ will be treated of in theCourfe of this Work. But before 
“ I take Leave of this Tower, I fhall add what Nieuhoff 
“ faith, viz. That Seven hundred Years paft this 1 ower 
“ was built, to the great Grief of the Chinefe., and as a 
“ pompous Monument of the Tartars being then Lords 
“ of China, of which they left this Memorial. Le 
“ Comte on the other Side faith, it is about three hundred 
“ Years fince this Tower and the Temple of Memory 
“ were built by the Emperor : And farther, fpeak- 
“ ing of Towers, faith. That the Spire, which is one 
“ of its fineft Ornaments, hath fixed on the Top of it 
“ a gilt Ball, or Pine-Apple, of an extraordinary 
“ Largenefs ; and Nieuhof tells us, that the Chinefe 
“ report this to be all mafty Gold. Thus {Le Comte 
“ goes on) you have a Defcription of the Porcelain 
Tower, which feme Europeans would call a Brick 
Turret : But indeed the Chinefe are wonderfully ex- 
pert in beautifying their Stones with all Manner of 
“ Ornaments: And as it is, it is undoubtedly the neateft, 
“ moft compaeft, and beft Piece of Work at prefent 
“ remaining in the Eaft. 
The Streets of Nanking are very fpacious and wide, 
as well as clean and neat, and there all Sorts of Rari- 
ties and fine Wares are expofed to Sale j but what is 
moft amazing is the almoft incredible Number, of 
Men which are obferved to be there. The Inhabitants 
are computed to be eight Millions, Houfekeepers or 
Matters of Families, fo that the Croud of People there 
feems juftly enough faid to be incredible to thofe who 
have not feen it. 
Clofe by, or about the City, runs a River of two 
French Miles over, which in the Chinefe L^tanguage is 
called Fangsku Kiam, that is, the Son of the Sea, and 
is navigable through all China. This River runs by and 
cuts through feveral Lakes and Rivulets, which all by 
its Afliftance are conveyed to, and by that Means dif- 
charge themfelves into the Sea : Wherefore this River 
is very richly laden with innumerable Ships, and leffer 
Craft, which are very fine within, and richly gilt 
without i befides this, 'they are adorned with extra- 
ordinary fine painted Flags, and above Deck provided 
with all Manner of convenient Seats, Tables, and 
Couches, for the Convenience of Travellers, and they 
are withal well victualled. 
“ It is reported to be fo deep that no Bottom is to 
be found •, whence proceeds that Chinefe Proverb, 
“ Fhat the Sea ls without Bounds, and the Kiam without 
‘‘ Bottom. And fome who have been there, affirm 
“ upon their own Experience, that no Ground was to 
“ be difeoveved by Sounding. Bu,c they alfo add, that 
“ their Line was but fifty or fixty Fathom, and that if 
“ they had made ufe of one of two or three hundred 
“ Fathom, they flaould have given another Account 
“ of it. 
The Jefuits, who have feen the- vaft Numbers there 
are of thefe Ships, fay that there are enough of them, 
(proverbially fpeaking) to make a Bridge from China 
to Europe. 
The Jurifdiflion of this Province extends to fourteen 
very large and magnificent Cities, all which are vaftly 
rich, and have feveral fmall, and they again feveral lef- 
fer fubordinate to them, as in the other Provinces. 
I'he fecond large City of this Province is Suchen, 
which is the moft illuftrious, largeft, and moft famous 
of all the reft, being a Place of the greateft Trade of 
any in the whole Empire ; and Ships, as well as Men, 
appear there as numerous as Sand on the Sea-fhore. 
The Emperor receives from hence five Millions of 
Laens, each of the Value of two Rixdollars, befides the 
Corn, Rice, and Fruit, which is tranfported from hence 
annually to Peking, in nine thoufand nine hundred and 
ninety nine Jonks or large Ships ; each of which is ca- 
pable of carrying three or four hundred Weight : Not 
to mention all Sorts of Silks and other Commodities 
yearly carried to the Emperor. 
The Ships are fix Months on the Way ; and as foon 
as they are come to the End of the great Water, they 
come into navigable Rivers, cut by human Labour, 
with a Sluice at the Diftance of every French Mile, to 
preferve the Water onOccafion. 
“ Travellers, in the Deferiptions of their Voyages, 
“ call them Sluices, but reprefent them widely different 
“ from ours ; for they are a Sort of Waterfalls, over 
“ which the Ships are forced by the Afliftance of 
“ a great many Hands and Windlefles. It is indeed 
“ ftrange, that the fubtle Chinefe have not yet invented 
“ fuch as ours are, which if they once faw, they would 
“ be forced to acknowledge, that we are not fuch 
“ clumfy dull Wretches as they and other Nations re- 
“ prefent us there ; and that they themfelves feem ra- 
“ therlike unthinking People, when they are forced to 
“ make ufe of fo many Hands, and are fo fatigued to 
“ force over their Ships, which we do with the greateft 
“ Eafe in the World.” 
The Names of the other Cities are, Ninehueu Fu, 
Thaiping Fu, Ganking Fu, Sun Kiang Fu, Chin Kiang Fu^ 
Geancheu Fu, Jungjan Fu, Chingan Fu, Lucheu Fuy 
Ffuongte Fu, Chancheu Fu, and Kingcheu Fu. Thefe 
fourteen, the two former being included, exercife Ju- 
rifdidlion over a hundred and thirteen other confidera- 
ble Cities. 
12. The Kingdom or Province of Chekiang borders 
on Nanking j and the Chinefe fay, that next to that, it 
is the Indian Paradife of Arts, and the Paradife of the 
Gods ; by reafon it plentifully flows with all good 
Things. Throughout this whole Country are deep-cut 
Channels, by Help of which all Parts of this Province 
may be eafily travelled over as well by Water as by 
Land. The Bridges have all of them very fine Stone 
Arches ; and the Number of Barks or Boats there is 
as vaft as that of Men in the great Streets of Peking, 
that is, innumerable ; which is the lefs to be wonared 
at, fince this Place is frequented by Merchants from all 
Parts of the World. 
It contains eleven large Cities, the chief of which Is 
Hancheu, and is the fineft of them all, being provided 
both within and without with deep and navigable Chan- 
nels, and almoft all the Corners of the Streets are adorn- 
ed with lofty triumphal Arches. Not far diftant Weft- 
ward from the City Wall, there is a very fine Lake, the 
Circumference of which takes in feveral Miles ; its Wa- 
ter 
