Volume I Part 99 (1/2)

NOTE 5.--The French writer cited under note 3 says of the city as it stands: ”La ville est de la sorte coupee en echiquier a peu pres regulier dont les quadres circonscrits par des larges avenues sont perces eux-memes d'une mult.i.tude de rues et ruelles ... qui toutes a peu pres sont orientees N. et S., E. et O. Une seule volonte a evidemment preside a ce plan, et jamais edilite n'a eu a executer d'un seul coup aussi vaste entreprise.”

NOTE 6.--Martini speaks of the public clock-towers in the Chinese cities, which in his time were furnished with water-clocks. A watchman struck the hour on a great gong, at the same time exhibiting the hour in large characters. The same person watched for fires, and summoned the public with his gong to aid in extinguis.h.i.+ng them.

[The Rev. G. B. Farthing mentions (_North-China Herald_, 7th September, 1884) at T'ai-yuen fu the remains of an object in the bell-tower, which was, and is still known, as one of the eight wonders of this city; it is a vessel of bra.s.s, a part of a water-clock from which water formerly used to flow down upon a drum beneath and mark off time into equal divisions.--H.

C.]

The tower indicated by Marco appears still to exist. It occupies the place which I have marked as Alarm Tower in the plan of Taidu. It was erected in 1272, but probably rebuilt on the Ming occupation of the city. [”The _Yuen yi t'ung chi_, or 'Geography of the Mongol Empire' records: 'In the year 1272, the bell-tower and the drum-tower were built in the _middle_ of the capital.' A bell-tower (_chung-lou_) and a drum-tower (_ku-lou_) exist still in Peking, in the northern part of the Tartar City. The _ku-lou_ is the same as that built in the thirteenth century, but the bell-tower dates only from the last century. The bell-tower of the Yuen was a little to the east of the drum-tower, where now the temple _Wan-ning sse_ stands. This temple is nearly in the middle of the position I (Bretschneider) a.s.sign to Khanbaligh.” (_Bretschneider, Peking_, 20.)--H. C.] In the Court of the Old Observatory at Peking there is preserved, with a few other ancient instruments, which date from the Mongol era, a very elaborate water-clock, provided with four copper basins embedded in brickwork, and rising in steps one above the other. A cut of this courtyard, with its instruments and aged trees, also ascribed to the Mongol time, will be found in ch.

x.x.xiii. (_Atlas Sinensis_, p. 10; _Magaillans_, 149-151; _Chine Moderne_, p. 26; _Tour du Monde_ for 1864, vol. ii. p. 34.)

NOTE 7.--”Nevertheless,” adds the Ramusian, ”there does exist I know not what uneasiness about the people of Cathay.”

[1] Mr. Wylie confirms my a.s.sumption: ”Whilst in Peking I traced the old mud wall,... and found it quite in accordance with the outline in your map. Mr. Gilmour (a missionary to the Mongols) and I rode round it, he taking the outside and I the inside.... Neither of us observed the arch that Dr. Lockhart speaks of.... _There_ are _gate-openings about the middle of the east and west sides_, but no barbicans.” (4th December 1873.)

CHAPTER XII.

HOW THE GREAT KAAN MAINTAINS A GUARD OF TWELVE THOUSAND HORSE, WHICH ARE CALLED KEs.h.i.+CAN.

You must know that the Great Kaan, to maintain his state, hath a guard of twelve thousand hors.e.m.e.n, who are styled KEs.h.i.+CAN, which is as much as to say ”Knights devoted to their Lord.” Not that he keeps these for fear of any man whatever, but merely because of his own exalted dignity. These 12,000 men have four captains, each of whom is in command of 3000; and each body of 3000 takes a turn of three days and nights to guard the palace, where they also take their meals. After the expiration of three days and nights they are relieved by another 3000, who mount guard for the same s.p.a.ce of time, and then another body takes its turn, so that there are always 3000 on guard. Thus it goes until the whole 12,000, who are styled (as I said) Kes.h.i.+can, have been on duty; and then the tour begins again, and so runs on from year's end to year's end.[NOTE 1]

NOTE 1.--I have _deduced_ a reading for the word _Quescican_ (Kes.h.i.+can), which is not found precisely in any text. Pauthier reads _Questiau_ and _Quesitau_; the G. Text has _Quesitam_ and _Quecitain_; the Crusca _Questi Tan_; Ramusio, _Casitan_; the Riccardiana, _Quescitam_. Recollecting the constant clerical confusion between _c_ and _t_, what follows will leave no doubt I think that the true reading to which all these variations point is _Quescican_.[1]

In the Inst.i.tutes of Ghazan Khan, we find established among other formalities for the authentication of the royal orders, that they should be stamped on the back, in black ink, with the seals of the _Four Commanders_ of the _Four Kiziks_, or _Corps of the Life Guard_.

Wa.s.saf also, in detailing the different cla.s.ses of the great dignitaries of the Mongol monarchy, names (1) the _Noyans_ of the Ulus, or princes of the blood; (2) the great chiefs of the tribes; (3) the _Amirs of the four Kes.h.i.+k_, or _Corps of the Body Guard_; (4) the officers of the army, commanding ten thousands, thousands, and so on.

Moreover, in Ras.h.i.+duddin, we find the identical plural form used by our author. He says that, after the sack of Baghdad, Hulaku, who had escaped from the polluted atmosphere of the city, sent ”Ilka Noyan and Karabuga, with 3000 Moghul horse into Baghdad, in order to have the buildings repaired, and to put things generally in order. These chiefs posted sentries from the KIs.h.i.+KaN ([Arabic]), and from their own followings in the different quarters of the town, had the carcases of beasts removed from the streets, and caused the bazaars to be rebuilt.”

We find _Kis.h.i.+k_ still used at the court of Hindustan, under the great kings of Timur's House, for the corps on tour of duty at the palace; and even for the sets of matchlocks and sabres, which were changed weekly from Akbar's armoury for the royal use. The royal guards in Persia, who watch the king's person at night, are termed _Kes.h.i.+kchi_, and their captain _Kes.h.i.+kchi Bas.h.i.+_. [”On the night of the 11th of Jemady ul Sany, A.H. 1160 (or 8th June, 1747), near the city of Khojoon, three days' journey from Meshed, Mohammed Kuly Khan Ardemee, who was of the same tribe with Nadir Shah, his relation, and Kushukchee Bashee, with seventy of the _Kukshek_ or guard,... bound themselves by an oath to a.s.sa.s.sinate Nadir Shah.”

(_Memoirs of Khojeh Abdulkurreem ... transl. by F. Gladwin_, Calcutta, 1788, pp. 166-167).]

Friar Odoric speaks of the four barons who kept watch by the Great Kaan's side as the _Cuthe_, which probably represents the Chinese form _Kiesie_ (as in De Mailla), or _Kuesie_ (as in Gaubil). The latter applies the term to four devoted champions of Chinghiz, and their descendants, who were always attached to the Kaan's body-guard, and he identifies them with the _Quesitan_ of Polo, or rather with the captains of the latter; adding expressly that the word _Kuesie_ is Mongol.

I see _Kis.h.i.+k_ is a proper name among the Kalmak chiefs; and _Kes.h.i.+kten_ also is the name of a Mongol tribe, whose territory lies due north of Peking, near the old site of Shangtu. (Bk. I. ch. lxi.) [_Kes.h.i.+khteng_, a tribe (_pu_; mong. _aimak_) of the Chao Uda League (_meng_; mong.

_chogolgan_) among the twenty-four tribes of the _Nei Mung-ku_ (Inner Mongols). (See _Mayers' Chinese Government_, p. 81.)--H. C.] In Kovalevsky, I find the following:--

(No. 2459) ”_Kes.h.i.+k_, grace, favour, bounty, benefit, good fortune, charity.”

(No. 2461) ”_Kes.h.i.+kten_, fortunate, happy, blessed.”

(No. 2541) ”_Kichyeku_, to be zealous, a.s.siduous, devoted.”

(No. 2588) ”_Kus.h.i.+ku_, to hinder, to bar the way to,” etc.

The third of these corresponds closely with Polo's etymology of ”knights devoted to their lord,” but perhaps either the first or the last may afford the real derivation.