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Travels Of Marco Polo: Sixty Five

Tholoman is a third province towards the east.  All the people are idolators, have a language of their own under the great Khan.  They are rather handsome, of rather brown complexion, good men at arms, and have a number of cities, castles, and forts, on the top of very high moutains.  When they die, the bodies are burned, and the bones which cannot be consumed by fire, are placed in chests, and carried to the caverns of high moutains, where they are kept suspended, so that neither man not beast can touch them.  Gold is found here; but small money is of porcelain, which circulates in all these provinces.  The merchants are very rich; the people live on flesh and rice, and have good spices. __________________________________ 1.Tholoman is probably a part of Yun-nan inhabited by the Yi or Nuosu people whose habitat is the rural and mountainous areas like Sichuan, Yunnan, Guizhou and Guangxi.

Travels Of Marco Polo: Sixty Four: The Province of Amu

Amu[1] is also a province towards east, subject to the great Khan.  The people are idolators, live by cattle rearing and agriculture, and have a language of their own.  The ladies wear on their arms and legs bracelets of gold and silver and the men wear more finer and unique of these.  They have good horses in considerable numbers, many of which Indians purchase and sell at a profit.  They have also abundance of oxen and buffaloes, because they have extensive and good pastures; in short, they have the plenty of the means of subsistence.  From Amu to Kangigu are fifteen days, and from there to Bangla, which is the third province behind, are thirty days. Now let us come to another province, which is called Tholoman, and lies eight journeys from this to the east. ___________________________________ 1. Amu: It is Turkmenabat in Turkmenistan  End of the Section 

Travels Of Marco Polo: Sixty Three: The Province of Kangigu

Kangigu [1] is a province towards east, subject to a king; the people are all idolators; have a language of their own; they pay annual tribute to Khan. The king is so lucky to have three hundred wives, for as soon as he hears of a beautiful woman he takes her to himself.  The people have gold many precious spices; but being far from the sea their commodities do not bring attractive prices. They have many elephants and beasts of various other kinds.  All the men and women paint their bodies, the colours being worked in with the claws of lions, dragons, and eagles, and thus never effaced.  In this manner they stain their neck, breasts, hands, limbs, and indeed their whole persons.  This is considered extremely genteel, and the more anyone is painted, the higher is his rank considered.  Now let us tell you of another province named Amu. __________________________________ 1. The route here evidently lies accross Modern day Assam, and Kashgar or Kashi, a city in Tari...

Screwpines of Kerala

Screwpines are also called Pandanus.  It is used for making mats, wall hangings, baskets. The screwpines or Pandanus are called 'Kaitha' or 'ola kaitha' in Malayalam vernacular. It is commonly known as pandan or pandanus. it belongs to Pandanacea family. The leaves are sword like, thin and long, with a rough green surface.  The leaf blades are thorny. The screwpine is a monocot and flowering plant.  Monocots are grass or grass like flowering plants. It grows by the side of rivers, rivulets, springs, streams and canals.  It prevents soil erosion, and protect water bodies. The fleshy green plants are peeled into thin strips, dried in the sun and then diagonally pleated or thatched to make mats and holdings.   Screwpines are shrubs, trees, or vines belonging to the family of Pandanaceae in the order Pandanales. It is found in wet riverside, and coastal forests.  Some of the toponyms in Kerala are marked by its vernacular name like Kaithapoyil and Kaithava...

Travels Of Marco Polo: Sixty Two: Of the Province of Bangala.

This is a province south of Kublai Khan's empire. Bangla was not conquered till the year1290.  But the army was ready to march for that purpose.  It has its own languages.  The people are most wicked idolaters. They are on the confines of India [1]  The barons and lords of that country have oxen as tall as the elephants, but not so weighty and live on flesh and rice.  They have great abundance of silk, with which they carry on extensive manufactures.  They grow ginger, sugar, and many other costly spices. This place is visited by numerous merchants, who purchase slaves, make them eunuchs, and then either sell or convey them to other places. [2]  ____'________________________________1. Bengal is not considered here as a part of India. 2. Slavery was widely practiced in Indian subcontinent as well as in other places. End of the Section 

Sherlock Holmes: Five Orange Pips

Late September.  Gales had set in with exceptional violence.  All day the wind had screamed and the rain had beaten against the windows.  These are the moments we recognise the presence of eternal forces and forget about the routine life.  As evening drew in the storm grew higher and louder, and the wind cried and sobbed like a child in the chimney.  Sherlock Holmes sat at one side of the fireplace cross-indexing his records of crime, while I at the other was deep in Clark Russell's sea-stories. [1] My wife was away on a visit to her mother's, and for a few days I am a dweller at Baker Street. "Why?" said I glancing up at my companion, "that was surely the bell, who could come tonight? A friend of yours?" "Except yourself I have none," he answered.  "I do not encourage visitors." "A client, then?" "If so, it is a serious case.  Nothing less would bring a man out on such a day, and at such an hour.  Perhaps it may be some cr...

Travels Of Marco Polo: Sixty One

After the termination of these wild pathless tracts is a large and noble city called Mein, the capital of the province.  The people are all idolators, with a language peculiar to themselves and are subject to the great Khan. About this city I will tell you a very remarkable thing. Its rich and powerful king was about to die. As his last wish, he commanded that two towers - one gold and the other silver - to be erected on his tomb.  They must be of ten paces high, with suitable thickness.  The first must be built of stones, and covered with gold to the thickness of one finger, so that the persons seeing it should think that it is built of gold.  The summit must be of round and filled with little golden bells, which when the wind strikes begins to ring, the other tower to be built on same lines but with silver covering and silver bells.  By these towers the king wanted to display to the world of his greatness, dignity and aesthetic sense.  Between them he cau...

Travels Of Marco Polo: Sixty

When you have departed from the province of Caraian, there begins a great descent, which continues for two days and a half.  In all this journey nothing of worthy of notice, except that there is a vast market on certain days of the year.  Many merchants from diverse countries come to this market.  Some of these merchants bring gold and silver for exchange. An ounce of gold is worth four ounces of silver.  None of those who bring gold and silver never visited the country, which produces them.  Very difficult to access these countries because there are no roads to these places.  When a man has travelled these two days and a half, he comes to a district which is called Anniz, on the boarders of India, towards the south, and then he goes for a fifteen days through a region covered with woods filled with elephants, unicorns, and other savage beasts, but not containing human habitation.

Travels Of Marco Polo: Fifty Nine

Now, I must mention a very great battle which was fought in the kingdom of Vociam . In the year of our Lord 1272, the great Khan sent a mighty captain named Nescardin with 12000 men to defend the province of Caraian .  He was a prudent man, very strong in arms and skill in war.  The soldiers with him were good and brave.  Now the King of Mein and of Bangala were afraid that he would invade their country.  But they were confident that they could destroy the whole army of Khan, who then, would never venture such an attempt in future.  They assembled therefore 60000 horses and foot, 2000 elephants each of which had on its back a castle well fortified and defended by twelve, fourteen or sixteen men.  The king of Mein came with the above army to the city of Vociam, where was the array of Tartars, and took post in a plain at the distance of three days' journey.  Nescardin was alarmed at the sight of enemy forces, but he took courage, thinking his fighters w...

Travels Of Marco Polo: Fifty Eight: Kardandan

When a man departs from Karazan, and travels westward, he enters a province named Kardandan, inhabited by idolators, and subject to the great Khan.  The chief city is called Vociam.  All the people have their teeth, both upper and lower, covered with gold, thus the teeth appeared to be made of gold.  The men are soldiers, and regard nothing but war.  The women and slaves perform all the works.  When a lady has been delivered of a boy, the husband goes to bed taking the child with him, and remains there for forty days.  He thus allows rest to the mother who is only obliged to suckle the infant.  All his friends then come to make a festival.  When the wife rises, she manages the domestic affairs, and serves her husband, still lying in the bed.  They eat all kinds of flesh both raw and cooked, and rice dressed along with it.  They make very good wine of rice, added with spices. They have money of gold and porcelain, and give a bar of gold f...

Sailing Around Erythraean Sea: One

Updated on 29/11/2024 Periplus of Erythraean Sea was an ancient document written by an unknown merchant of first century CE.  It is not certain that it was written by a merchant, or a sailor, or the captain of a ship, because, perhaps all these roles were integrated into one individual. The uncertainty of their life because of voyages often held up in ports or market-towns, and also by the vagaries of winds did not have offered them opportunity to write a manual like the one we are going to see. The job of writing must have been assigned to a scribe or calligrapher; and the assignment must have been at the hands of a merchants' guild. That type of guild was known in Roman times as Collegium or Collegia or Corpus. One such example was CORPUS NAVICULARIORUM, a corpus of long-distance shippers based at Rome's port Ostia Antica. This guild failed to survive the fall of Roman Empire. The impersonal style of the document reflects that it was intended as a manual for long distance shi...

The Adelphi - Sixteen: Mr Peggotty In Search of Emily

That night, at the Adelphi on the Buckingham Street, Trotwood had a serious discussion with his aunt and Mr Dick.  His attempt to write a letter to Putney sisters, destroyed by the Mrs Heep in her secret mission, was resumed in their presence. Miss Betsey did not wait to finish the letter, said him good night, and left. Mr Dick hang on till he was tired, and then left. Next morning, Trotwood got it approved by his aunt, send it, and waited.  It was a heavy settled fall, in great flakes, and it lay thick.  The noise of the wheels and tread of people were hushed.  Trotwood was walking along the St Martin's lane, winding down to the Strand.  On the steps of the church there was the stooping figure of a man.  He had put some burden on the smooth snow, to adjust it. He rose and came down towards Trotwood.  It was Mr Peggotty! After a moment of surprise and silence, he said, 'Master Davy!' gripping Trotwood tight, 'it do my heart good to see you, sir. Well m...

The Adelphi: SEVENTEEN - Putney Sisters and Dora.

Putney sisters were sitting in the drawing room of their small house. Lavinia the younger sister had a letter in her hand.  Clarissa the elder had her arms crossed accross her breast. Both the sisters looked exactly like late Mr Spenlow. Both were dressed alike, but the younger had some embellishments and looked more lively and attractive.  There was not much division with their brother Mr Francis Spenlow.  Francis took his own ways and the sisters took their own. The sisters knew little about their brother's profession, but they knew that there was no savings, and his hereditary property was to sell to pay off his debts.  The sisters' initial instinct was to put a close to that chapter.  'Let us bury this with ourselves,' said Clarissa releasing her arms and raising herself from seat, 'not a good case.'  Lavinia, folding the letter and keeping it in her elbow pocket, said, 'we know nothing about this boy.  We know nothing about our niece.' 'Francis...

Blunderstone: Time And Space In David Copperfield

Blunderstone is the village where David Copperfield was born.  The real name of the village is Blundestone.  It is a civil Parish in English county of Suffolk.  Counties were established in the middle ages.  Some scholars believe that Dickens misspelt the name.  I think it was a deliberate name change to reflect the naivety of Mr Copperfield and his wife Clara, the latter had only half the age of the former when they were married. Though the marriage was in consonance with the customs and conventions of the time, it lacked reasoning and intellect, in reference to average age  of marriage for males and females in those times.  Mr Copperfield's was a late marriage while Clara's was an early one.  It is assumed that it was the first marriage of Mr Copperfield since there was nothing to show otherwise.  Neither Clara nor Miss Betsey Trotwood gave any indication of Mr Copperfield's trade or occupation.  So he might have subsisted on his hered...