The Objections Raised Against Them

There have been abundance of objections raised against the credit and authority of this writer, many of which, as they were founded on the errors of transcribers and translators, are taken away by restoring our author’s genuine sense, and therefore we need not mention them particularly; but there are others which deserve more regard. It is said, that our author mentioned some countries and many places that were never heard of before or since. A shrewd objection this, inasmuch as it seems to represent all the pains that have been taken about his writings as entirely thrown away. In answer to this we must observe, that he wrote according to the lights he received, and those lights were chiefly from the Tartars; whence it might very well happen that the names of places mentioned by him should appear strange and uncouth in this part of the world. But it so happens, that we have since received such helps as enable us to get pretty well clear of this difficulty; for though we have retained in the text the names used by our author, yet we have afforded, from the assistance given us by oriental writers, such explanations as remove, in every respect, these geographical obscurities, so as to leave no sort of doubt either as to the capacity, or the veracity, of Marco Polo.

Another charge against him is, that he does not agree with other writers, or rather other writers do not agree with him: but when examined to the bottom, this charge will not be found to have any great weight, as having chiefly arisen from the mistakes made as to the true sense of what this writer delivered; so that very often, what was imputed as ignorance to him, was, in fact, no more than temerity in those who pretended to find fault with them. The last, and, indeed, the greatest objection is, that he has related many things that are absurd, some that are incredible, and not a few that are impossible. Against this charge we cannot pretend to vindicate him, though much may be said to excuse him. The facts he tells us of his own knowledge are surprisingly verified by authentic and indisputable evidence; and grant that he might be imposed upon in what he gives us on the authority of others, we must be content, the rather because it is our happiness to live in an age when men are less liable to be cheated and misled; therefore, this ought to make us the more ready to bear with failings in one who wanted this advantage, who lived in a time of darkness and obscurity, when credulity passeth for faith, and when consequently errors of this sort were rather a man’s misfortune than his fault.