Sketches of China (Google Books ⧉, Amazon ⧉, Bookshop ⧉)
by J. F. Davis
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The Travels of Marco Polo
According to Sir J. F. Davis, the situation of Hwai-ngan “is in every respect remarkable. A part of the town was so much below the level of the canal, that only the tops of the walls (at least 25 feet high) could be seen from our boats.... It proved to be, next to Tien-tsin, by far the largest and most populous place we had yet seen, the capital itself excepted.” (Sketches of China, I. pp. 277–278.)
The Travels of Marco Polo
Paukin is Pao-ying-Hien [a populous place, considerably below the level of the canal (Davis, Sketches, I. pp. 279–280)]; Cayu is Kao-yu-chau, both cities on the east side of the canal.
The Travels of Marco Polo
Sir J. F. Davis writes (Sketches of China, II. p. 6): “Two ... days ... were occupied in exploring the half-deserted town of Kwa-chow, whose name signifies ‘the island of gourds,’ being completely insulated by the river and canal. We took a long walk along the top of the walls, which were as usual of great thickness, and afforded a broad level platform behind the parapet: the parapet itself, about six feet high, did not in thickness exceed the length of a brick and a half, and the embrasures were evidently not constructed for cannon, being much too high. A very considerable portion of the area within the walls consisted of burial-grounds planted with cypress; and this alone was a sufficient proof of the decayed condition of the place, as in modern or fully inhabited cities no person can be buried within the walls. Almost every spot bore traces of ruin, and there appeared to be but one good street in the whole town; this, however, was full of shops, and as busy as Chinese streets always are.”
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