THE LIFE OF A GREAT TRAVELLER

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLV, Issue 21090, 16 July 1938, Page 8 (Supplement)

THE LIFE OF A GREAT TRAVELLER

In the days when but little of the world was known, merchant ships sailed no farther west than Ireland, and no farther east than Constantinople, In Turkey. It was from Constantinople that precious manuscripts and other rare treasures were brought back by the mercantile fleets of the Venetians and Genoese, which, with those of the Hollanders, reigned supreme for many centuries as carriers to the rest of civilised Europe of goods obtained in strange cities. Travels were encouraged by the authorities in the two Italian towns of Venice and Genoa, for new lands meant new treasures to bring back and new wealth and glory for the town whose ships made the discovery. Even so. when a man who had travelled far brought back news of strange new lands, where there was untold riches, people were not disposed to believe his stories. They could hardly be blamed for their disbeliefin the first place, it was firmly believed then that the world was flat, and that if one went too far in any direction one would eventually fall over the edge of it; for another, they could not believe that people, such as were described by the traveller could really exist. Yet, eventually, from the land he described they were to obtain fabulous wealth. This man was Niccolo, the father of a lad named Marco. Marco's mother had died when he was a baby, and Niccolo had left his son in Venice while he went to Constantinople. But Marco really led the life of an orphan during his boyhood, for it was not until after his fifteenth birthday that his father returned. When Niccolo did come back to his native city he surprised everyone who had known him, for he was richly dressed and brought with him bags of gold and jewels, bales or richest silks, and a golden tablet covered with strange, meaningless signs. When asked how he had become so wealthy, he replied that he had travelled many miles beyond Constantinople, since leaving Venice, and had come to a strange land of stranger people, who were quite dif-

ferent in every way from the Venetians. The golden tablet he carried was a passport from the Emperor of the land, Kubla Khan. Marco listened eagerly to all the stories his lather told, and when Niccolo said he was anxious to return to the wonderful land he had visited, the boy begged to come too. Niccolo was pleased with his enthusiasm, and agreed to take him along. But before they left on their adventure, Niccolo went on a visit to the Pope, to tell of his experiences. The Pope gave him a present for Kubla Khan, and bade two friars accompany the Venetian. The first stage of the journey was to the Holy Land, but once there the friars would go no farther, for there

was great danger from the Saracens. Niccolo, however, was not deterred, and led his little band of followers on toward the Euphrates River. Beyond this river the danger increased, ! for here the Tartars had settled. | They went on through Persia, and I across wide deserts, then went • climbing northward, up into the mountains we now know' as the , Himalayas. By this time almost two . years had passed since they had left Italy, but they still had many months’ journey before them. At last they came to a village in Kubla’s kingdom—the land that we call China. Actually Kubla Khan was a Tartar, whose forces had conquered the gentler Chinese people. His palace was in the royal city of Kanbalu, which exists to this day, though its name has long since been changed to Peking. The beautiful building of gleaming coloured tiles stood on a platform of white marble. Inside there were magnificent hangings and furnishings, arid the people wore rich apparel. Kubla Khan sat on a golden throne, set upon a dais, his robes sparkling with gold thread and precious gems, and the dishes upon the table before him all of gold. Niccolo led his son before the Emperor, and they both bowed low be-

fore him: “Who is this?’’ asked the Khan. "Your servant and my son,” replied Niccolo. His reply pleased the Khan, and when he saw how eager and intelligent the boy was, he decided that Marco should assist him. Marco’s surname was Polo, and the name of Marco Polo was to remain on the tongues of people for many centuries to come. He learned to speak and write Chinese, and was sent on long journeys into lands unknown by other Europeans until a few hundred years ago, though this was but the thirteenth century. The records of his journeys have been read and re-read, in his own Vlme more often disbelieved than bel’/ved. but the fact remains that h/ still is the greatest explorer of al/ time. About this time wise men began to realise that the world was round, and those who believed this considered that he must have gone nearly completely round the world. Their calculations were faulty, but their mistake was directly responsible for the discovery of America by Columbus. That, however, is another story. During the intervals in his travels, Marco joined his father at the .court of Kubla Khan. And though the name of Marco Polo has lived through the years it is strange to think that that of Niccolo. his father, is practically unknown. Strange, because Niccolo had been the first to journey far into strange lands, and,was directly responsible lor his son’s appointment as emissary of Kubla Khan. He did not travel as far afield as his son, who, were it not for him, might never have set foot outside Italy. But his courage in facing the untold terrors of a journey in those 1 days, and his enterprise in obtaining for his son the position he held I at Kubla Khan’s court make him an adventurer worthy of note in the history of the discovery of the new ; worlds in the east —America, India, ■ and finally, much later, Australia.