ther. Unless anything
unexpected happens, your future appears assured. Polani tells me he
shall always regard you in the light of a son; and I have no fear of
your doing anything to cause him to forfeit his good opinion of you. Do
not be over adventurous, for even in a merchant ship there are many
perils to be met with. Pirates swarm in the Mediterranean, in spite of
the efforts of Venice to suppress them; and when war is going on, both
Venice and Genoa send out numbers of ships whose doings savour strongly
of piracy. Remember that the first duty of the captain of a merchant
ship is to save his vessel and cargo, and that he should not think of
fighting unless he sees no other method of escape open to him.

"It is possible that, after a time, I may send one of your brothers out
here, but that will depend upon what I find of their disposition when I
get home; for it will be worse than useless to send a lad of a
headstrong disposition out to the care of one but a few years older
than himself. But this we can talk about when you come over to England,
and we see what position you are occupying here.

"I fear that Venice is about to enter upon a period of great difficulty
and danger. There can be little doubt that Genoa, Padua, and Hungary
are leagued against her; and powerful as she is, and great as are her
resources, they will be taxed to the utmost to carry her through the
dangers that threaten her. However, I have faith in her future, and
believe that she will weather the storm, as she has done many that have
preceded it.

"Venice has the rare virtue of endurance--the greatest dangers, the
most disastrous defeats, fail to shake her courage, and only arouse her
to greater efforts. In this respect she is in the greatest contrast to
her rival, Genoa, who always loses heart the moment the tide turns
against her. No doubt this is due, in no slight extent, to her
oligarchic form of government. The people see the nobles, who rule
them, calm and self possessed, however great the danger, and remain
confident and tranquil; while in Genoa each misfortune is the signal
for a struggle between contending factions. The occasion is seized to
throw blame and contumely upon those in power, and the people give way
to alternate outbursts of rage and depression.

"I do not say there are no faults in the government of Venice, but
taking her altogether there is no government in Europe to compare with
it. During the last three hundred years,