granted me as much pre-eminence and as many honours as can be conferred upon one of her citizens, and although I have always been devoted to my country with my life and with such poor means as fortune gave me, yet I know that by this I have not repaid even a small part of all the good which I have received; and being brought to a limit where I can do no more for my country, it is for my own satisfaction that I desired to assemble all of you here, that I might commend to you this Christian city and exhort you to love your neighbours, and to do justice, and to choose peace and preserve it, as I have endeavoured to do. In my time four millions of debts have been paid off, and there are other six millions owing, which debt was incurred for the wars of Padua, Vicenza, and Verona; we have paid every six months two instalments of the debts, and have paid all my officers and regiments. This our city now sends out in the way of business to different parts of the world ten millions of ducats’ worth yearly by ships and galleys, and the profit is not less than two million ducats a year. In this city there are three thousand vessels of one to two hundred ‘anfore’ (Venetian register of capacity) with seventeen thousand seamen; there are three hundred larger ships with eight thousand sailors. Every year there go to sea forty-five galleys with eleven thousand sailors, and there are three thousand ship’s carpenters and three thousand caulkers. There are three thousand weavers of silk and sixteen thousand weavers of cotton cloth; the houses are estimated to be worth seven millions and fifty thousand ducats. The rents are five hundred thousand ducats. There are one thousand noblemen whose income is from seven hundred to four thousand ducats. If you go on in this manner, you will increase from good to better, and you will be the masters of wealth and Christendom; every one will fear you. But beware, as you would be of fire, of taking what belongs to others and of waging unjust war, for God cannot endure those errors in princes. Every one knows that the war with the Turks has made you brave, and experienced of the sea; you have six generals fit to fight any great army, and for each of these you have sea-captains, slingers, officers, boatswains, mates, and rowers enough to man one hundred galleys; and in these years you have shown distinctly that the world considers you the leaders of Christianity. You have many men experienced in embassies and in the government of cities, who are accomplished orators. You have many doctors of divers sciences, and especially many lawyers, wherefore numerous foreigners come here for judgment of their differences, and abide by your verdicts. Your mint coins every year a million ducats of gold and two hundred thousand of silver; it also coins