the sayd kingdom, euen in these our dayes, haue bene afflicted with pestilence and contagious diseases, and with famine. [Sidenote: Chinian stories.] Howbeit, that the foresaid three benefits do mightily flourish and abound in China, it cannot be denied. For (that I may first speake of the salubritie of the aire) the fathers of the societie themselues are witnesses; that scarcely in any other realme there are so many found that liue vnto decrepite and extreme old age: so great a multitude is there of ancient and graue personages: neither doe they vse so many confections and medicines, nor so manifold and sundry wayes of curing diseases, as wee saw accustomed in Europe. For amongst them they haue no Phlebotomie or letting of blood: but all their cures, as ours also in Iapon, are atchieued by fasting, decoctions of herbes, and light or gentle potions. But in this behalfe let euery nation please themselues with their owne customes. Now, in fruitfulnes of soile this kingdom certes doth excel, far surpassing all other kingdoms of the East: yet it is nothing comparable vnto the plentie and abundance of Europe, as I haue declared at large in the former treatises. But the kingdom of China is, in this regard, so highly extolled, because there is not any region in the East partes that aboundeth so with marchandise, and from whence so much traffique is sent abroad. [Sidenote: The city of Coanchefu, _aliàs_ Cantam.] For whereas this kingdome is most large and full of nauigable riuers, so that commodities may easilie be conueyed out of one prouince into another: the Portugals doe find such abundance of wares within one and the same Citie, (which perhaps is the greatest Mart throughout the whole kingdome) that they are verily perswaded, that the same region, of all others, most aboundeth with marchandise: which notwithstanding is to be vnderstood of the Orientall regions: albeit there are some kindes of marchandise, wherewith the land of China is better stored then any other kingdom. [Sidenote: Great abundance of gold in China.] This region affordeth especially sundry kinds of mettals, of which the chiefe, both in excellencie and in abundance, is gold, whereof so many Pezoes are brought from China to India, and to our countrey of Iapon, that I heard say, that in one and the same ship, this present yeere, 2000 such pieces consisting of massie gold, as the Portugals commonly call golden loaues, were brought vnto vs for marchandise: and one of these loaues is worth almost 100 duckats. Hence it is that in the kingdom of China so many things are adorned with gold, as for example, beds, tables, pictures, images, litters wherein nice and daintie dames are caried vpon their seruants backes. Neither are these golden loaues onely bought by the Portugals, but also great plentie of gold-twine and leaues of gold: for the Chinians can very cunningly beate and extenuate gold into plates and leaues. [Sidenote: Great store of siluer.] There is also great