Touching the question of foreign commerce, I do not see that Mr. Phillips’s negative evidence would be sufficient to establish his point. But, in fact, the words of the Geog. Text (_i.e._ the original dictation), which we have followed, do not (as I now see) necessarily involve any foreign trade at Fu-chau, the impression of which has been derived mainly from Ramusio’s text. They appear to imply no more than that, through the vicinity of Zayton, there was a great influx of Indian wares, which were brought on from the great port by vessels (it may be local junks) ascending the river Min.[4] [Illustration: Scene on the Min River, below Fu-chau. (From Fortune.) “=E sachiés che por le mi de ceste cité vait un grant flun qe bien est large un mil, et en ceste cité se font maintes nés lesquelz najent por cel flum.=”] [Mr. Phillips gives the following itinerary after Unguen: Kangiu = Chinchew = Chuan-chiu or Ts’wan-chiu. He writes (_T. Pao_, I. p. 227): “When you leave the city of Chinchew for Changchau, which lies in a south-westerly, not a south-easterly direction, you cross the river by a handsome bridge, and travelling for five days by way of Tung-an, locally Tang-oa, you arrive at Changchau. Along this route in many parts, more especially in that part lying between Tang-oa and Changchau, very large camphor-trees are met with. I have frequently travelled over this road. The road from Fuchau to Chinchew, which also takes five days to travel over, is bleak and barren, lying chiefly along the sea-coast, and in winter a most uncomfortable journey. But few trees are met with; a banyan here and there, but no camphor-trees along this route; but there is one extremely interesting feature on it that would strike the most unobservant traveller, viz.: the Loyang bridge, one of the wonders of China.” Had Polo travelled by this route, he would certainly have mentioned it. Pauthier remarks upon Polo’s silence in this matter: “It is surprising,” says he, “that Marco Polo makes no mention of it.”—H. C.] NOTE 2.—The G. T. reads _Caiton_, presumably for Çaiton or Zayton. In Pauthier’s text, in the following chapter, the name of Zayton is written _Çaiton_ and _Çayton_, and the name of that port appears in the same form in the Letter of its Bishop, Andrew of Perugia, quoted in note 2, ch. lxxxii. Pauthier, however, in _this_ place reads _Kayteu_, which he develops into a port at the mouth of the River Min.[5] NOTE 3.—The Min, the River of Fu-chau, “varies much in width and depth. Near its mouth, and at some other parts, it is not less than a mile in width, elsewhere deep and rapid.” It is navigable for ships of large size 20 miles from the mouth, and for good-sized junks thence to the great bridge. The scenery is very fine, and is compared to that of the Hudson. (_Fortune_, I. 281; _Chin. Repos._ XVI. 483.)