Page:Adventures of Baron Wenceslas Wratislaw of Mitrowitz (1862).djvu/236

The next day, early in the morning, I and three others of knightly rank, and also the priest John, and our doctor, were released from our fetters, and sailed to Galata, where we negotiated with all the merchants, especially the Venetians, who were the most numerous, and endeavoured to prevail upon them to lend us 200 ducats. We were willing to subscribe with our blood that we would send them the money to Venice in half-a-year, and fifty ducats besides, by means of a bill-of-exchange, begging them, for God’s sake, and for the sake of the recompence they would obtain, to take a Christian compassion upon our long imprisonment, to collect that sum amongst them, and assist us poor tortured prisoners with a loan. But not a spark of Christian love was there in them. Not only did they refuse to lend us the 200 ducats, but they would not even speak friendly with us, take compassion on our misery and sympathize with us; nay more, they avoided us, and said that they dared not talk with us for fear of suspicion. Then we went to the Venetian ambassador himself, told him who we were, and in what station our friends in Christendom were, begged him for a loan, and promised that we would repay the money to the Venetian ambassador at Prague, if he wished, with interest, and would bind ourselves to do so in writing. But we effected nothing more with him than with the rest of the merchants; he strangely alleged his poverty in excuse, and said that he had no ready money by him, but daily expected a large sum from his lords. Not knowing whither to betake ourselves, we went, last of all, to the French and English ambassadors, and informed them what an impediment to our liberation had arisen from the aga, begging them,