Sorry, but Mavic Cosmos wheels are not suitable for touring. The front wheel has 24 spokes and the rear wheel has 28 spokes.
700c touring wheels need 36 spokes. On a 26" wheel you can get away with 32 spokes for touring.
I had a pair of Mavic Classics Pro. The rear hub body cracked and the wheel was useless.
The next pair of wheels were handbuilt with Mavic Open Pro rims and Dura Ace hubs.
That was six years ago and they're still going strong. They rarely need any attention.
My 700c touring wheels are handbuilt with Mavic T217 rims and Deore XT hubs with 36 spokes.
I've toured on these and raced cyclocross. I don't think they have ever needed to be trued.
They were built ten years ago.
My wheels were not built by a celebrity wheel builder. They were built by the guys who just happened to be working at the bike shop at the time. They ARE good, obviously.
Mavic does not list the Cosmos wheels on their website any longer. Maybe that's why you got them so cheaply.
I don't agree that handbuilt wheels cost more. Their retail price CAN be more than some machine built wheels but there are machine built wheels that can cost more than handbuilt wheels.
Also, the longevity of handbuilt wheels makes them cheaper to own over time.
Many of the machine built wheels use non-standard spokes. They are very sexy until you need a spoke.
Have you ever tried to hunt down a spoke for a Mavic Ksyrium on short notice?

The current generation cable actuated disk brakes work superbly. Avid even makes calipers that are compatable with road brake levers in three different rotor sizes. Cantilever brakes may be as strong initially but then they fade. Disk brakes work better in the rain. Disc brakes are not dependent on the trueness of the wheel and they do not wear out the sidewall of the rim. I like cantilever brakes but there's nothing wrong with disks.