Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1866-08-28
..EREE VENICE"

kLAI1N NSANaSH
King of Italy," Whatever else may re-
suit from the European war, in the way
of changes in the map of Europe, it is
that the dominion over Venice and
the adjacent Italian territory exercised by
Austria since 1914, and in part since the
treaty Of Campo Bello in 1897, will
and that they will henceforth form
part of the Italian Kingdom. Although
this is but a change from one monarchy
TO another, and for that reason may not
strike the American reader as important,
still it brings about a more natural politi-
cal relation. The ~sympathies Of the peo-
pie of venetia are with Italy. As a part
Of that kingdom, which is a constitutional
monarchy, they will have a voice both in
their own local affairs and in those Of the
kingdom generally, the same as all others
have. Although this does not carry
Venice back to her old condition as a re-
public, still il is a political advance OF
great importance to her and to the terri:
tory to which she gives a name. She
rises from the h~umiliating condition OF a
province held by conquest to that OF a
comparatively free State, and this change
in her political relations will lead many a
student of history to recall some OF the
circumstances and events Of her past
career. =
For nearly a thousand years Venice &C.
cupied a conspicuous place in war, in lit
erature, in commerce, in art, and in all
that makes up the history Of an illustrious
State. A single small city. two miles
long by a mile and a half broad, built
upon piles driven into the mud of a shsal
spot in the Adriatic, miles away from the
hard, firm land, she made herself a power,
and for several centuries she led European
enterprise in commerce, art and manufac-
lures. Her sails whitened the Mediterra-
mean and all its a~tluents in peace, and her
armies and navies were dreaded by great
kingdoms in war. On many occasions
she carried on successful war with the
foremost military powers OF the world.
This prosperity and influence was the
growth of a little colony of fugitiyes that
fed before the invasion Of Attila in l52
from the Italian cities Of Verona, Treviso,
Padua, Vicenza and others, either
within or guarded by the now IA
nous "!Quadrilateral." They found
a refuge on the numerous islands
in the northwestern part Of the
Adriati c. Each Of these settle
ments subsequently became a republic,
and upon the dissolution Of the "western
Empire" received large additions to their
inhabitants. In the year 500 they made
choice of the island or islands, called Ri
alto. and there they founded the present
city of Venice, which looks from all sides
as if it had grown up out Of the sea. By
the middle of the fifteenth century her
merchants had TO- 00, 900 golden ducats in
circulation, upon which they made an an
nual profit of 1000, 900 ducats! She had
a navy Of 345 vessels Of war, and had
5000 vessels in her mercantile marine
manned by $1,000 sailors:
But, like most other republics Of the
Old World, she ran her career ; first,
freedom and then glory /; when that failed.
wealth, vice and corruption followed.
She passed through oil the stages, from a
pure democracy to aristocracy, irresponsi-
BILE oligarchy and absolute despotism, IN
til she fell a helpless prey to the treaties
that followed Napoleon's wars.
She still has her manufacturers, but they
are paltry compared with those in which
she led the world in the Middle Ages. In
the production Of glass she was the teacher
of all Europe, and her wares maintained
their supremacy for elegance and excel
lence to the close of the last century. She
was early distinguished for her printing,
the editions Of books issued by the Aldus
family being printed everywhere through
out Europe. 1t was in Venice that the
first book published in Italy was printed,
and we " the familiar name gazette
for newspaper, to the same city, for there
was issued, in the seventeenth century,
the first newspaper published in the world,
which took its name from the coin ga
zetta," for which it was sold. Bills Of
exchange owe their origin to the same
city, and the merchants of Venice were
the first to establish banks of discount
and deposit. The brief catalogue might
easily be augmented, but will be sufficient
to revive in the minds Of our readers some
of the "Reminiscences that cluster about the
history of Free Venice" and, we hope,
induce many to refer once more to their
histories Of the old republic now so con-
spicuously before the world in the pend
ing negotiations in Europe.