National Institute of Informatics - Digital Silk Road Project
Digital Archive of Toyo Bunko Rare Books

near Kabul; the second, Chanab, takes its origin in the province of Quesmir or Cassa-
mier; the third, Ravy, has its source in the neighbourhood of Lahor, while the fourth
and fifth, Via and Sind, »come from much farther away.»¹ Two pages further on
he says that Srinagar is on the river Bezat or Badt, which, after a great détour,
falls into the Ganges. Kashmir borders on Kabul, and is fairly cold on account of
the mountains; but considering that »the Kingdom of Thibet serves as its frontier
on the northern side», the climate of Kashmir is rather temperate.

Regarding the northern provinces he gives the same information that had been
given by Terry. The province of Siba with its capital of Hardware, is situated
between Naugrakut and Pitan: »There the river Ganges takes its source.» And then
follows the ordinary story about the divine rock with the Cow's Head, from which
the river issues. Even in the new edition of 1727 Mount Caucasus separates the
Empire of Mogol from Tartaria.

In Bergeron's edition of VINCENT LE BLANC'S voyages we meet again the
ordinary store of knowledge regarding the two famous rivers. India has derived its
name from the celebrated river Indus or Schind, which takes its origin from the high
mountains of Caucasus and Paropamisus, »which are said nowadays to be the Nau-
gracot & l'Vssonte.²

Some people believe, though without reason, that the river Ganges is one of
the four rivers of Paradise called Philon or Gihon. There is a great difference of
opinion amongst modern scholars, he says, whether this river is the real Ganges of
the ancients, or whether the ancient Ganges should not rather be the same as the
river of Canton in China, or any still farther eastern river. He, however, leaves this
question to be solved by others, and satisfies himself by saying, that all the Portu-
guese and many others regard the two rivers as identical, as the name is still the
same as in antiquity. The same opinion is confirmed by the Jesuit fathers in their
new reports on the great Kingdom of Tebet or Tibet and Cathay. The river has its
source on the mountains of High India not far from that of the Indus, and the na-
tives think it is unknown, as coming from Paradise.

A »certain dutchman» in Pegu gave him some information about Great Tar-
tary, amongst the nations of which are such as the Mongal, Tangor and Thebet or
Tibet. North of Pegu are desolated regions and sandy deserts, where wells are to
be found only by the help of guides; in High Asia one could march 22 days seeing