The Washington herald., 1911-03-18
SOCIAL GOSSIP OF
FOREIGN CAPITALS

When the day arrives that the boy,
Mussaffr- -ed-Din, who to-day reigns at
Teheran as king of Kings" will be post
ed fully in the history of his realm, old
Iran, he may have a surprise awaiting
him when he hears that it was Marco
Polo, the Venetian traveller, who enabled
one of his ancestors in the dim past to
wed the woman who continued the race
of Kublai Khan on the Persian throne.
The adventures of the Polos are well
known, but 1t is not well known that
the brothers, especially Marco, rose to
great power in the Chinese empire under
Kublai Khan, or Chi-Tsu. or Kubilay
Khayan (meaning Grand Khan of the
Mongols) a grandson of the historic
Genghis Khan. who, although the son Of
small nomadic chieftain, rose to be one
of the greatest conquerors of the East,
making his empire stretch from the
frozen ocean to Malacca and from Korea
to Asia Minor" an extent which China
(Cathay). had never reached before nor
since, and to which even the Russian
grand dukes were tributary.
That monarch became so fascinated by
the sagacity and quick wit of the famous
several provinces and showered honors
upon him. But the time drew nigh when
Kublai Khan would have to leave this
world, and the Adventures began to look
about for means to get safely away TO their
Western home. After many vcissitudes,
romance came to their aid. 1t so hap
pened that one of Kublai Khan's grand
sons who ruled in Persia, lost his best
beloved wife. and on her deathbed prom
fSed to wed another MongoI princess His
ENJOYS. sent for the purpose of selecting
a worthy mate for the Persian ruler,
were so impressed with the personality
of the Venetans that they pleaded with
the aged kublai Khan to permit es-
pecially Marco to accompany the Princess
Coachin. their choice for their royal
master to Persia. to which entreaties the
monarch finally aSsented, though very
reluctantly.
The cavalcade was fitted out in for
midably imperial style. Never was such
splendor seen. But the journey was s"
full Of disaster that when. at the end Of
two years. the princess was landed. few
of the original embassy were alive. The
prince too. to whom the fiancee was
pledged. had died a year before. She
was not much troubled by the substitu-
ton of his brother. but she shed bitter
tears when the gay Venetians bade fare
well to the Persian court, rejecting all
fattCring offers to remain.
When the Nenetians reached the city
Of the lagoons they FASTENED to what
had been their fathers house, only to
encounter an angry set, who declared
~
favored of the great Kublai had a Sc
rous lime in proving their identity. The
eXileS were hardly seated by their own
fireSidC when war broke out between
Nenice and Genoa, caused by trade jeal-
CuSy. Genoa brought the quarrel to an
issue in 129S, equipped a fleet, and sailed
to Chastise the Queen Of the AdriatiC."
SiXty-siX Venetian Ealleys were de-
stroyed and eighteen carried in triumph
to Genoa. together with 1900 prisoners.
among them the IuCkless Marco Polo
His bad luck, however, was the world
gain, or had he not been imprisoned
it is not likely that he would have trans
mitted the wonders he had seen in trav-
ersing the vast areas of the Chinese
Empire, well as other Asiatic states.
His nickname before his capture was
Marco Millioni," from an expression he
was constantly using in describing the
prodigiousness Of Kublai Khan. He told
countless stories of different adventures
and often described the marvellous city
of Pekin, built six miles square. with
streets as regular as a chess board, and
surrounded by a high wall. BY rare
good fortune Marco found as his prison.
mate Rusticiano of Pisa. a scribe, asking
nothing better than to indite the wonders
his companion had witnessed.
The Duchess of Rutland is a spring
hostess who may be counted uopn.
Her dances at her quantity charming old