The Book of Ser Marco Polo : vol.2 / Page 338 (Color Image)

0338	The Book of Ser Marco Polo : vol.2

284 MARCO POLO 1300K III.

CHAPTER IX.

CONCERNING THE ISLAND OF JAVA THE LESS. THE KINGDONIS OF FERLEC AND BASMA,

WHEN you leave the Island of Pentam and sail about

I oo miles, you reach the Island of JAVA THE LESS.

For all its name 'tis none so small but that it has a

compass of two thousand miles or more. Now I will

tell you all about this island.'

You see there are upon it eight kingdoms and eight

crowned kings. The people are all Idolaters, and every

kingdom has a language of its own. The Island bath

great abundance of treasure, with costly spices, lign-aloes

and spikenard and many others that never come into our

parts.2

Now I am going to tell you all about these eight

kingdoms, or at least the greater part of them. But let

me premise one marvellous thing, and that is the fact

that this Island lies so far to the south that the North

Star, little or much, is never to be seen !

Now let us resume our subject, and first I will tell

you of the kingdom of FERLEC.

This kingdom, you must know, is so much frequented

by the Saracen merchants that they have converted the

natives to the Law of 1V7a ommet I mean the towns-

people only, for the hill-people live for all the world like

beasts, and eat human flesh, as well as all other kinds of

flesh, clean or unclean. And they worship this, that, and

the other thing ; for in fact the first thing that they see

on rising in the morning, that they do worship for the

rest of the day.3

Having told you of the kingdom of Ferlec, I will

now tell of another which is called BASMA.

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