territory lay north-east of the Caspian. An embassy from this Kaunchi is
mentioned as having come to the court of Kaikhatu at Siah-Kuh (north of
Tabriz) with congratulations, in the summer of 1293. Polo may very
possibly have seen the members of this embassy, and got some of his
information from them. (See _Gold. Horde_, 149, 249; _Ilkhans_, I. 354,
403; II. 193, where Hammer writes the name of _Kandschi_.)

It is perhaps a trace of the lineage of the old rulers of Siberia that the
old town of Tyuman in Western Siberia is still known to the Tartars as
_Chinghiz Tora_, or the Fort of Chinghiz. (_Erman_, I. 310.)

NOTE 2.--We see that Polo's information in this chapter extends over the
whole latitude of Siberia; for the great White Bears and the Black Foxes
belong to the shores of the Frozen Ocean; the Wild Asses only to the
southern parts of Siberia. As to the Pharaoh's Rat, see vol. i. p. 254.

[Illustration: The Siberian Dog-sledge.

"E sus ceste treies hi se mete sus un cuir d'ors, e puis hi monte sus un
mesaje; e ceste treies moinent six chiens de celz grant qe je vos ai
contes; et cesti chienz ne les moine nulz, mes il vont tout droit jusque a
l'autre poste, et trainent la treies mout bien."]

NOTE 3.--No dog-sledges are now known, I believe, on this side of the
course of the Obi, and there not south of about 61 deg. 30'. But in the
11th century they were in general use between the Dwina and Petchora. And
Ibn Batuta's account seems to imply that in the 14th they were in use far
to the south of the present limit: "It had been my wish to visit the Land
of Darkness, which can only be done from Bolghar. There is a distance of
40 days' journey between these two places. I had to give up the intention
however on account of the great difficulty attending the journey and the
little fruit that it promised. In that country they travel only with small
vehicles drawn by great dogs. For the steppe is covered with ice, and the
feet of men or the shoes of horses would slip, whereas the dogs having
claws their paws don't slip upon the ice. The only travellers across this
wilderness are rich merchants, each of whom owns about 100 of these
vehicles, which are loaded with meat, drink, and firewood. In fact, on
this route there are neither trees nor stones, nor human dwellings. The
guide of the travellers is a dog who has often made the journey before!
The price of such a beast is sometimes as high as 1000 dinars or
thereabouts. He i