The Osceola times., 1881-02-12
Bells.
Bishop clarE. of rhad, island.

Bishop Clark of Rhode Island.
Nobody knows when and where bells
first came into use. The old Egyptians
were summoned tu the feast of Osiris by
the sound Of q bell; much as our good
people are called Co church on sunday
morning. When Aaron went into the
holy place, his coming and going WAS
Sign3llud 10 the people 10y the tiukliug pt
the row Of golden bells which he wore
upon his cphui There is an ancient
picture OF David, PLAYING, with a hammer
in each hand, upon five bells, suspended
before him, but IL i- hardly % bc pre-
sumed that the painting was taken from
life. The early Christian missionaries in
Ireland were accustomed to carry bell
with them, in order 10 summon the in
habitants TO w0r-hip-that which be-
lougcd to st. Gall being still pre-eryed in
Switzerland, while st. Iatrirk's is eNhib-
tied to this day in Belfast. Church bells
were introduced into England in the
sixth century, where they nave coutin-
ucd 30 make much noise ever since.
Nearly q thousand years agp names were
given to bells, and The "Oll Tom of Ok
ford is historical We also have our
Liberty Bell, which, after having, in
l776, proclaimed to the land that these
United States were free and independent.
now rests. cracked and yoirclcss. in the
Hall of Independence i'm PHILADELPHIA.
The largest bell i'm this country is that
which giNs the alarm from the City Han
in New York; but this is far surpassed by
.hc enormous bells Of Russia. In one Of
the towers of old Moscow there were not
less than thirty.eCvcu-oUc of which was
SO large that it required tTcuty-flurmca
10 pull the cl1ppcr-'hC bell itself being
immovahlc. \ traveller SAYS THE largp
bell near the cathedral is only used upon
important occasions, and when IL sounds
a deep, hollow wUrmur vibratcs all over
Moscow, like the fullest tones OF vast
organ, or the rolling of distant thunder
II is forty feet nine inches i'm cir.umlcr-
ence, and weighs more than dity-seycn
tOns.' What is known as "Thp great
bell Of Moscow" the largest ever made,
still stand, where il was originally east.
1t has been consrcutcd as q chapel and
a door opened where q piece of the bell
was broken out hy throwing water uuou
il when heated by fire. The size Of The
room is twenty-five feet in diameter and
more than twenty-onc feet i'm height,
Our City Hall bell is about eight feet i'm
diameter.
The Chinese are also far ahead Of us in
the matter Of bells. There are seven in
the city Of Pekin, each of whirh.wcighs
10000 pounds, while our big bell weighs
only $4,000.
In former times, the hand bell that
stood upon the table, often made of sill
yer and beautifully chased, answered all
the purp, ses Of the household. The
hanging Of bells in private houses was
about a century ago, while
the door bell is Of moro recent d.tc. The
knocker was in use as long a.o a. the
time of Alexander Pope, as appears from
the lines
shut. shut the door good John fl,igucd. Tsgid.
Tie up the kuIckcr, ,ay I'm sick, I'm dead"
On the door Of some houses may still he |
seen the marks Of what was called the
rasp," piece of iron placed perpendicu- |
larly and fastened at both ends. with the !
inner side roughly serrated or notrhcd !
and two or three heavy rings attached. |
which were ratified up and down by one |