"No fairer prospect could well open to a young man, and if you show
yourself as keen in business, as you have been energetic in the
pursuits you have adopted, assuredly a great future is open to you, and
you may look to be one of the greatest merchants in the city of London.
I know not yet what offers Polani may make you here, but I hope that
you will not settle in Venice permanently, but will always remember
that you are an Englishman, and the son of a London citizen, and that
you will never lose your love for your native land.
"And yet, do not hurry home for my sake. Your two brothers will soon
have finished their schooling, and will, of course, be apprenticed to
me as soon as I return; and if, as I hope, they turn out steady and
industrious; they will, by the time they come to man's estate, be of
great assistance to me in the business.
"And now, you will be wanting to say goodbye to your friends. Be
careful this last evening, for it is just when you are thinking most of
other matters, that sudden misfortune is likely to come upon you."
Delighted with his good fortune--rather because it opened up a life of
activity, instead of the confinement to business that he had dreaded,
than for the pecuniary advantages it offered--Francis ran downstairs
and, leaping into his father's gondola, told Beppo to take him to the
Palazzo Giustiniani.
Pages:
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156