Question

read the excerpt from chapter 8 of the travels of marco polo. kalhat is a large city lying inside the gulf which is also kalhat. it is a fine city on the sea - coast 600 miles north - west of dhofar. the people are saracens who worship mahomet. they are subject to hormuz; and whenever the malik of hormuz is at war with neighbors more powerful than himself, he comes to this city, because it is strongly built and situated, so that here he is afraid of no one. no corn is grown here, but it is imported by sea from other places. this city has a very good port, much frequented by merchant ships from india. they find a ready market here for their wares, since it is a centre from which spices and other goods are carried to various inland cities and towns. many fine war horses are exported from here to india, to the great gain of the merchants. the total number of horses shipped to india from this port and the others i have mentioned is past all. which detail best supports the author’s opinion that kalhat is a secure city? the malik of hormuz fears no one when he is in kalhat. ships from india frequent the port of kalhat. a large number of war horses are shipped from kalhat. spices and other goods are sold in kalhat.

Explanation:

To determine which detail supports Kalhat being secure, we analyze each option:

• Option 1: The malik of Hormuz comes to Kalhat during wars with stronger neighbors and "is afraid of no one" there. This implies Kalhat's strong build and location make it a safe refuge, directly supporting its security.
• Option 2: Ships from India frequenting the port relates to trade, not security.
• Option 3: War horses being shipped relates to trade/export, not security.
• Option 4: Spices and goods being sold relates to trade, not security.

Answer:

A. The malik of Hormuz fears no one when he is in Kalhat.