CHAPTER XVI.

HOW MARK RETURNED FROM THE MISSION WHEREON HE HAD

BEEN SENT.

When Mark returned from his ambassage he presented himself before the

Emperor, and after making his report of the business with which he

was charged, and its successful accomplishment, he went on to give an

account in a pleasant and intelligent manner of all the novelties and

strange things that he had seen and heard; insomuch that the Emperor

and all such as heard his story were surprised, and said: “If this

young man live, he will assuredly come to be a person of great worth

and ability.” And so from that time forward he was always entitled

MESSER MARCO POLO, and thus we shall style him henceforth in this Book

of ours, as is but right.

Thereafter Messer Marco abode in the Kaan’s employment some seventeen

years, continually going and coming, hither and thither, on the

missions that were entrusted to him by the Lord [and sometimes, with

the permission and authority of the Great Kaan, on his own private

affairs.] And, as he knew all the sovereign’s ways, like a sensible

man he always took much pains to gather knowledge of anything that

would be likely to interest him, and then on his return to Court he

would relate everything in regular order, and thus the Emperor came

to hold him in great love and favour. And for this reason also he

would employ him the oftener on the most weighty and most distant of

his missions. These Messer Marco ever carried out with discretion and

success, God be thanked. So the Emperor became ever more partial to

him, and treated him with the greater distinction, and kept him so

close to his person that some of the Barons waxed very envious thereat.

And thus it came about that Messer Marco Polo had knowledge of, or had

actually visited, a greater number of the different countries of the

World than any other man; the more that he was always giving his mind

to get knowledge, and to spy out and enquire into everything in order

to have matter to relate to the Lord.