I stood still an hour, or thereabouts, without trespassing on our orders, for so long the caravan was in passing the gate; I say, I stood still an hour to look at it, on every side, near and far off; I mean, what was within my view; and the guide of our caravan, 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 off the Tartars, which he happened not to understand as I meant it, and so took it for a compliment; but the old pilot laughed:  “O, Seignior Inglese,” said 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 way:  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; or, will keep out none but Tartars.  I understand you, Seignior Inglese, I understand you,” said he, joking; “but Seignior Chinese understand you his own way.”

“Well,” said I, “Seignior, 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 they not 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,” said he, “I know that.”  The Chinese wanted mightily to know what I said, 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 in a little time afterwards; but when he knew what I had 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 staid.

After we had passed this mighty nothing, called a wall, something like the Picts wall, so famous in Northumberland, and built by the Romans, we began to find the country thinly inhabited, and the people rather confined to live in fortified towns and cities, 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 how that the Chinese empire could be conquered by such contemptible fellows; for they are a mere herd or crowd of wild fellows, keeping no order, and understanding no discipline, or manner of fight.

Their horses are poor, lean, starved creatures, taught nothing, and are fit for nothing; and this we found the first day we saw them, which was after we entered the wilder part of the country.  Our leader for the day gave leave for about sixteen of us to go a hunting, as they call it; and what was this but hunting of sheep!  However, it may be called hunting too; for the creatures are the wildest, and swiftest of foot, that ever I saw of their kind; only they will not run a great way, and you are sure of sport when you begin the chase; for they appear generally by thirty or forty in a flock, and, like true sheep, always keep together when they fly.