Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1882-08-12
LETTER FROM VENICE.
Inc Fete OF Queen Marguerite-Bright Dc.
scripti0n of the Scene.

liz Is known that quite a party OF the pupils q
! Mrs. Somers' Mt Vernon Seminary are travelling
/ IN Europe this summer In charge OF Prof Somers
and Miss Banks They have been sending home
Charming letters or their tour experiences ana tina
following bright description by one OF the party. OF
the fete OF the Queen OF Italy at Venice is worth
! producing In THE STAR:
"We could not possibly have timed our visit An
Venice more opportunely, for the 10th was tbe
birthday OF Queen Marguerite, and the venet1ans
made fete day OF IL after their magnificent
| fashion. The queen herself was In the city a nj
lent her presence 10 the scene We owe her rovel
mshhess vote OF thanks for arranging 10 have
| ner natal anniversary occur Just when We humble
young Americans were there TO enjoy ali the cav
festivities, and then browning IL ali by lending her
| presence 10 grace the occasion; ft was Kind ana
thoughtful OF her 10 show Us this delicate ftIe ar
tention. Early I'm the morning the cannon com
mencei booming from the gaiy decorated ships IN
The harbor, but IL Was not until night that the fun
glory or the fete WIS displayed
As soon as the daylight had died out all the
ships In front OF the river were brilliantly illumt.
mated with colored lights and the houses frontins
the Grand canal were all ablaZe with CAV Iamns
and Chinese lanterns of oldest designs But ID
was In That place which Is always tie center Of
venetian life and movement, St Marks square.
mat the festivities were at their highest The
score or more OF magnificent bronze r ndelah
each with It's hundred lights, Were OF themselves
enough 10 illuminate the great SQUARE with al.
most MONDAY brightness Added 10 this were
every archway and window or that huge row
OF buildings, the Procuratie, which with their
uOuDle COlOnnaueS bound the piazza all save
eastern side There, In the strange glory OF al
that colored light CLEANED the facade OF St Marks
cathedrai With all It's oriental beauty marvelousiy
enhanced It's great cupOlaS and porches its mar
bic minarets and mythtc figures It's saints and an
gels ana seraphim, even the faces and forms n the
moSatcs cleaning out from their settings of ruld
and precious stones were boldly outlined and r.
Marks, always the wonder or Venice stood reyeaIed
In strange unearthly beauty.
From every pillar and balcony OF the Procuratte
gay HagS ana streanerS were lying while TIL win
dows OF all those jewelers. shops In the open ar
cades were brilliant with gas lets and Respondent
Win gems with gold, With cunnlngly wrought
lnoSalcs, with exquisitely tinted Shells and with
"0nderiul devices OF glass In richest colors
The great PiazZl itself was a dense mass OF mov.
ing humanity There We're the n0bili, with their
wives, those pale, dainty Venetian ladies' Jostled
and officers in bright unlforms The noise ana
passion which always and everywhere run throurh
Ihe puplclty OF Italian life seemed TO be intens-
ned hun1redfold. All We're laughing, gesticu-
lating, singing, shouting, screaming rockets WeFs
flzzlng, guns firing, and bands playing It was
such gay, Wild, eXuberant scene as only yenice
O'Clock our little party, headed by our two indomf.
Iaole escorts, elbowed our way through this surg
Ing, eager, volatile mass OF humanity until we
reached favorable position at the northeastern
corner OF the square. We had been there but a
lew minutes when Queen Marguerite herself I'm
whose honor all this splendor was devised male
her appearance upon the balcony lust above us
injected with the fntoxication or the scene we all
10 unison with the thrOng waved our handker-
cnlelS and clapped our hands and cheered and
shouted as vociferously as the most loyal OF her
charmed with her graceful form and lovely face.
and more still by her charming manner as she
smiled down upon our party, returning our enthu-
slasuc saIutations as II we had pleased her a
much as she pleased us While we stood there
along came most brilliant procession seeming n
perfect moving mass OF lighted Chinese lanterns,
escortlng huge white Marguerite made or spun
glass, It's center composed OF tiny Jets OF golden
IghI Win this came also more bands and more
music ana more shouting and more wild
enthusiasm. IL was too noisy even for m
and we made our escape out through the DOgoe'
palace into the broad quay, the Riva- Out on the
water thousands OF gOndolas were darling back
and forth-ft was too dark TO see anything except
their family outlined forms, and the colored ghfs
pendant from the PROV OF each seemed like brilliant
colored meteOrs The gaiy decorated ships were
sending up rockets and letting on the grandest IRE
house was throwing out coIored lights. illuminaf.
Ing the entire building with rapidly changing col
ors, which cleaned far out across the bay, even
lighting St Salute and the adjacent houses
Directly in front OF our hotel, which you know N
on the Riya, near the Doges' palace, was aDChoro1
ag great snip Illuminated from stem TO stern, mon
deck 70 lying Jack, on yard-arms and boom q
nave made wild guess at those nautical termA
trust tney are pretty near correcp with three rows
next green-ft was perfect ship OF colored nre-
the whole scene seemed a bit out OF the Arabian
Nights Nights -, soon, the queen, and her party passsa
and green lights A' and wh niss ana 9oosss
OF Julys, Inauguration days and French gus,
receptions condensed into one
we SoDcr Americans could never have anything
half so gay; for even IL all the external condition.
were given, where would be the gay abandon with
which these pleasure-oving Italians enter fneo
the spirit OF the festiyity?
After we returned TO our hotel we all sat at the
front windows for hours looking down int IL
gay Riva and the Illuminated Grand Canal enjoy
ing the strange Kaleidoscope panorama We
could not bear TO lose any OF IT, for we well knew
we should never see Its like again; but at last
when our tired eyes would not stay open any
longer, the gay carnival was still at IL height
Next morning while all Venice, except the beg.
CARS and the vendors OF shell necklaces, was s10
asleep latter the revel was done" we were on 70
Florence, where We now are at the hotel Chap
man.