Chapter LXIX: Concerning the City of Nanghin

Nanghin is a very noble Province towards the west. The people are Idolaters (and so forth) and live by trade and manufactures. They have silk in great abundance, and they weave many fine tissues of silk and gold. They have all sorts of corn and victuals very cheap, for the province is a most productive one. Game also is abundant, and lions too are found there. The merchants are great and opulent, and the Emperor draws a large revenue from them, in the shape of duties on the goods which they buy and sell.{1}

And now I will tell you of the very noble city of Saianfu, which well deserves a place in our book, for there is a matter of great moment to tell about it.

NOTE 1.—The name and direction from Yang-chau are probably
sufficient to indicate (as Pauthier has said) that this is
NGAN-KING on the Kiang, capital of the modern province of
Ngan-hwei. The more celebrated city of _Nan-king_ did not bear that
name in our traveller’s time.

Ngan-king, when recovered from the T’aï-P’ing in 1861, was the
scene of a frightful massacre by the Imperialists. They are said to
have left neither man, woman, nor child alive in the unfortunate
city. (_Blakiston_, p. 55.)