ng the gate), to look at it on every
side, near and far off; I mean what was within my view: and the guide,
who had been extolling it for the wonder of the world, was mighty eager
to hear my opinion of it. I told him it was a most excellent thing to
keep out the Tartars; which he happened not to understand as I meant it
and so took it for a compliment; but the old pilot laughed! "Oh,
Seignior Inglese," says he, "you speak in colours."--"In colours!" said
I; "what do you mean by that?"--"Why, you speak what looks white this way
and black that way--gay one way and dull another. You tell him it is a
good wall to keep out Tartars; you tell me by that it is good for nothing
but to keep out Tartars. I understand you, Seignior Inglese, I
understand you; but Seignior Chinese understood you his own way."--"Well,"
says I, "do you think it would stand out an army of our country people,
with a good train of artillery; or our engineers, with two companies of
miners? Would not they batter it down in ten days, that an army might
enter in battalia; or blow it up in the air, foundation and all, that
there should be no sign of it left?"--"Ay, ay," says he, "I know that."
The Chinese wanted mightily to know what I said to the pilot, and I gave
him leave to tell him a few days after, for we were then almost out of
their country, and he was to leave us a little time after this; but when
he knew what I said, he was dumb all the rest of the way, and we heard no
more of his fine story of the Chinese power and greatness while he
stayed.

After we passed this mighty nothing, called a wall, something like the
Picts' walls so famous in Northumberland, built by the Romans, we began
to find the country thinly inhabited, and the people rather confined to
live in fortified towns, as being subject to the inroads and depredations
of the Tartars, who rob in great armies, and therefore are not to be
resisted by the naked inhabitants of an open country. And here I began
to find the necessity of keeping together in a caravan as we travelled,
for we saw several troops of Tartars roving about; but when I came to see
them distinctly, I wondered more that the Chinese empire could be
conquered by such contemptible fellows; for they are a mere horde of wild
fellows, keeping no order and understanding no discipline or manner of
it. Their horses are poor lean creatures, taught nothing, and fit for
nothing; and this we found the first day we saw them, which wa