Fictitious Letter to Marco Polo

I believe you know how hard your father and I worked to procure space from Antonio Marcello on this ship. Marcello had the good fortune of winning the state auction for management of this voyage, and he does provide a worthy crew, assuring the safe return of the state's vessel at the end of the voyage. Please treat his representatives with the courtesy which they are due, as your father and I wish to build this relationship to insure the increased success of our trade. Marcello's emissary has negotiated many missions on his behalf; you would do well to study his actions and learn from his methods of trading in order to get the best prices for our damask and cloth of gold, woven so beautifully on the looms of Florence. These fabrics are every b

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vernment firsthand. Since the Council of Ten elected Doge Foscari more than a dozen years ago, our chief magistrate has shown mixed abilities to administer the affairs of state. I attribute this in part to his youth: he was just 49 years of age when elected, so young to devote the rest of his life to the office. Yet he has accomplished some events of note, and I am willing to accept that he may yet grow into the job. While skirmishes over borders continue all around us, I trust they will not affect your voyage. The condottieri remain an excellent solution where such fighting is necessary, providing us with hired leaders to take our armies into battle without requiring the sacrifice of noble Venetian blood. You shall represent the Contarini in the council hall, but we do not require that you risk what is to us a most precious and valuable life for the sake of an alteration on a map. Indeed, we should take to heart the words of our last doge, Tomaso Mocenigo, who urged us to "remember that commerce was the basis of Venetian prosperity, peace her greatest interest. Let [us] trade with Milan, not fight her." The fact that I send you with cloth woven in our rival city of Florence, and acknowledge its excellent weave ov
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Grand Canal, Tomaso Mocenigo, Andrea Barbarigo, Doge Foscari, Antonio Marcello, , Gentile Pisanello, Syria Cyprus, Venice Mercury, Andrea Contarini, father agreed, represent contarini, dozen ago, council hall,
Approximate Word count = 1292
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page)