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I;46 ISLAND OF HAINAN. 185
The products of Hai-nan are also found in foreign lands; the difference
is in their quality. The isien and c¥6n (gharu-wood) from K'iung (i. e. Hai-
nan) far surpass those from foreign lands by the quality and strength of their
perfume; those from Chan-ch'ong and Chon-la are not to be compared with
5 them. On the other hand, the yellow wax of Hai-nan is not to be compared
with that of San-fo-ts'i, it is even inferior to that of San-sii. The other pro-
ducts are mostly like those of foreign lands, with the exception of betel-nuts
and cotton (^ ^), which are extraordinarily plentiful; the Ts'iian-chou
traders look principally to the latter as a profitable article *^
10 Notes.
1) In the two texts we possess of the Chu-fan-chi, the account of Hai-nan appears as an
appendix to Part II. Nan Yfie or Southern Yiie, was the southern portion of the kingdom of Yiie,
and corresponded approximately with the present province of Kuang-tung. Su-w6n, a note in the
text says, «is the present prefecture (Hien) of Su-w6n in the Lei-ch6u peninsula)). For fuller notes
15 on this chapter of our author, see Hirth, Die Insel Hainan nach Chao Ju-kua. Only such notes as
are necessary for a good understanding of the text have been added in the present work. See also
Ts'ien-Han-shu, 6,20''.
2) ((Province (Tau) of Ling-an». It corresponded roughly with the present Kuang-tung, a
portion of Kuang-si and of Tung-king. On Gh'ang-hua, in Cantonese Ch'oong-fa, see infra, p. 178.
20 Substantially all the information in this and the first paragraph is found in Ling-wai-tai-ta, 1,16.
3) B. C. Henry, Ling-nam, 332, speaking of Hainan straits, says that it (cis the most
dangerous point on the route; the rocks and the currents are so treacherous and the channel
so intricate, that no ship will go through in the night. These difficulties of the passage are
increased by the state of the tides, which ebb and flow through the straits but once in twenty
25 four hours)).
Ch6u ira-fel says of it: c(The Great Sea which is south-west of Hainan is called the Sea
of Kiau-chi (^ K|[; y|fe). In it is the San-ho-lin (((the Triple-joint-currents»). The waves
break here violently, dividing into three currents; one flows south and is the sea which forms the
highway to foreign lands; one flows northward and is the sea of Kuang-tung, Fu-kien and Gho-
80 kiang. One flows eastward and enters the Boundless Place (^E '^^^'^^ |3^ ^)' ^^ called the
Great Eastern Ocean Sea.
((Ships in the southern trade, both going and coming, must run through the San-ho-liu. If
they have the wind, in a moment they are through it. But if on getting into the dangerous
place, there is no wind, the ship cannot get out and is wrecked in the three currents)). Ling-wai-
35 tai-ta, 1,13''.
4) Ling-wai-tai-ta, I, 13^— 14* says; (dt is said that in the Great Eastern Ocean Sea there
is a long bank of sand and rocks some myriads of li in length, it marks the Wei-lO, the gulf
leading to Hades ( M ^ PJT ^ f^ 7^ ^tt ^^- ^^ °^^^^ *®^ ^^^^^ ^^^ ^^ °'^^^^
going junk which was driven by a great westerly wind to within hearing distance of the roar of
40 the waters (falling into) the Wei-lii of the Great Eastern Ocean. No land was to be seen. Suddenly
there arose a strong easterly wind and (the junk) escaped (its doom)».Gonf. supra, pp. 26, 75, 79, n. 2.
Groeneveldt, Notes, 25, translating the narrative of Shi Pi's
(J^ ^) expedition to
Java in 1292 (Yuan-shi, 162,i2^-is), refers to the fleet — which started from Ts'San-chou, sailing
through the Sea of the Seven Islands (-^ ^i|>| 7^ the Sea of the Paracels Islands) and the Long
45 Reef(J|
J3 ^ ;*i| Macclesfield Banks), and passing the land of Kiau-chii and Champa, etc.
This identification is, I think, correct. Our author's Wan-li-shi-ch'uang is certainly the same, and
ch'uang ( fi^) may well be an error for fang (^), the two characters are somewhat alike. The
along bank of sand and rocksa (-^ ^ ^ ^) of the Ling-wai-tai-ta can hardly be
the same.