78, p. 284 et seq.; _A travers le royaume de Tamerlan
(Asie Centrale)_ ... par Guillaume Capus ... Paris, 1892, 8vo.--H. C.]

Marco evidently never was at Samarkand, though doubtless it was visited by
his Father and Uncle on their first journey, when we know they were long
at Bokhara. Having, therefore, little to say descriptive of a city he had
not seen, he tells us a story:--

"So geographers, in Afric maps,
With savage pictures fill their gaps,
And o'er unhabitable downs
Place elephants for want of towns."

As regards the Christians of Samarkand who figure in the preceding story,
we may note that the city had been one of the Metropolitan Sees of the
Nestorian Church since the beginning of the 8th century, and had been a
bishopric perhaps two centuries earlier. Prince Sempad, High Constable of
Armenia, in a letter written from Samarkand in 1246 or 1247, mentions
several circumstances illustrative of the state of things indicated in
this story: "I tell you that we have found many Christians scattered all
over the East, and many fine churches, lofty, ancient, and of good
architecture, which have been spoiled by the Turks. Hence, the Christians
of this country came to the presence of the reigning Kaan's grandfather
(i.e. Chinghiz); he received them most honourably, and granted them
liberty of worship, and issued orders to prevent their having any just
cause of complaint by word or deed. _And so the Saracens, who used to
treat them with contempt, have now the like treatment in double measure._"

Shortly after Marco's time, viz. in 1328, Thomas of Mancasola, a
Dominican, who had come from Samarkand with a Mission to the Pope (John
XXII.) from Ilchigadai, Khan of Chagatai, was appointed Latin Bishop of
that city. (_Mosheim_, p. 110, etc.; _Cathay_, p. 192.)

NOTE 2.--CHAGATAI, here called Sigatay, was Uncle, not Brother, to the
Great Kaan (Kublai). Nor was Kaidu either Chagatai's son or Kublai's
nephew, as Marco here and elsewhere represents him to be. (See Bk. IV. ch.
i.) The term used to describe Chagatai's relationship is _frere charnel_,
which excludes ambiguity, cousinship, or the like (such as is expressed by
the Italian _fratello cugino_), and corresponds, I believe, to the
_brother german_ of Scotch law documents.

NOTE 3.--One might say, These things be an allegory! We take the fine
stone that belongs to the Saracens (or Papists) to build our church on,
but the day of reckoning comes at last, and our