Free Daughters of the Doge by Edward Charles Page B

a horse’s hoof, with a drawstring to hold them in place. It was simple but ingenious.
    The boy counted our horses and began to count out the shoes. When the pile was sufficient, he put the remainder back in the sack. He counted our carts – five in total. ‘That’s twenty cart horses and seven riding horses, needing one hundred and eight chopines. Ten cartwheels, each requiring hire of one sled box, and you will need to hire ten oxen. That will come to . . .’ He counted on his fingers and looked at us carefully, ‘ . . .twenty-two grossi .’
    Just for an instant I saw the look of surprise on the other boy’s face and knew we were being cheated. Using my best Venetian accent I countered, ‘That’s robbery, we will pay fifteen.’
    The boy slapped my hand twice. ‘Done. And we will want two ducats’ deposit for damage.’
    I slapped his hand back. ‘One ducat deposit only, and I expect it back if there’s no damage.’ He shook my hand. ‘Agreed. Hand over the money, and I will fetch the oxen.’
    ‘How much does he want?’ shouted the earl.
    ‘Fifteen grossi’, I replied, irritated, since, right or wrong, I had already come to an agreement.
    ‘How much is that worth?’ asked the earl.
    Thomas came to the rescue. ‘It may have changed since I lived in Padua but in those days there were thirty-two piccolo to one grosso and twelve grossi to a soldo. After that there were twenty soldi to a lira. It’s effectively the same as at home; just think of grossi as pence, soldi as shillings and lire as pounds.’
    The earl remained confused and shook his head. ‘What about ducats?’ he responded, his irritation growing.
    ‘A ducat is two soldi or one-tenth of a lira. They use it for legal transactions such as wills and dowries.’
    ‘Like our florins?’ I suggested. Thomas winked at me and nodded.
    ‘What is it worth, though?’ Courtenay was still confused.
    ‘It’s hard to compare. Last time I was here, I seem to remember that wages and prices were four times those in England.’
    Courtenay called to the boy, waving at him rudely. ‘We will not pay. The amount you ask is exorbitant.’
    The boy shrugged his shoulders and stuck out his bottom lip. ‘Suit yourself. You have no alternative, unless you want to walk back to Padua, or wait three weeks for the thaw.’
    Courtenay mounted his horse as if to return to Padua, but the rest of us stood our ground. He glared, then dismounted again, annoyed that we had not automatically followed his example. ‘Very well, I agree, but only because you have already shaken hands on the bargain, Richard. I still believe you have been robbed, and so have I.’
    I nodded sagely, trying to hide my irritation. If he could come to a better arrangement, perhaps he should do the bargaining. The boy looked at me and I nodded. He grinned and went to fetch the oxen. We unhitched the horses from the carts and replaced them with the oxen which took it all very calmly; it was clear they knew the routine and were used to the winter ice. Our horses were much less happy and we had great difficulty in tying the chopines on to their hooves.
    It must have taken an hour before we were ready, by which time the local carts had ventured on to the ice and were almost across. We could see carts coming towards us from the other side, too, and our route across the ice was becoming much more clearly defined. The oxen drew the carts to the edge of the ice, where the half-boxes were placed in readiness. As the wheels rolled into them, the boxes acted as skids, spreading the weight of the wheels and sliding easily across the ice.
    We set off, as instructed, one by one, walking behind an ox-drawn cart and leading a string of horses. The earl followed the lead cart closely, holding on to its tailgate for balance. I followed behind the next cart, while Thomas hung back to act as rearguard and to ensure our whole party got across in one piece.
    We must have been two-thirds of the way over when the driver