The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1892-06-17

Like Rome, there seems to be place
ingeographyor history foranother such
city. Let me tell you something as to
why and how it all happened. Back in
one OF my letters observed that every
city, including even unpretending and
unromantic Wheeling, had ration d
.arc" for its existence reason why, in
plain English. for its particular location.
In the case Of this wonderful city the
explanation Is, first, the insecurity OF
the Venitians on the main land from
whence they came over to these islands
that Is, the sense Of fear hegotten by
the hostile raids that were made upon
them next, the existence here OF a
lagoon in the sea, in which there were
a series Of islands land especially one
big islandl, that were only barely cover
ed with water at food tide: and, third,
the presentiment OF possible maratime
greatness instead OF precarious agricul-
tural existence. -.9
WONDERFUL PERSEVERANCE,.
Persecution and repatriation made
New England; made Baltimore in Mary
land; made Belfaat ana the linen in
dustry in ireland; made many places;
and go il was the prime. impulse in tho
case Of Venice. The islands were here
to give effect to the sentiment, and the
spirit OF adventure and acquisitiveness
were also here TO second the impulse.
These necessities, impulses and instincts
are the ever recurring ingredients in
settlement and civilization everyw here,
in all ages; in America as well as in
Europe. stEss
Just when the movement began 10 q
matter Of tradition; it goes very far
back; perhaps as far back az the Seventh
century. Nothing much in history is
reliable back OF that date. At all
events it would seem that just about
the time the Middle Ages were
making their appearance-just about
the time in the year 500 that
Pope Leo Ill was browning Charlie
magne lord Of all and Emperor OF the
west-the pioneer Venitians were
driving piles here on which to lay the
stones Of q great city. They were build
ing far wiser, perhaps. than they knew
at the time, as IN the case OF Romulus
and Remus at Rome, and the Cartha2en-
ians on the African coast. They had to
do something and so they did this.
Year by year they drove down thou
sands Of these piles and year by year
they laid thousands Of tons of rock on
them. In the Ninth century they had
a city and. began to do business az the
new stand. We admire Chicago for
what she has done in the way OF pile
driving and building, but how much
more should we admire these original
Chicagoese who led the way over thou
sand years ago, in the days when there
was no steam and no steam drop ma
chinery for dispatching business. They
did it all by main strength and genius
the genius OF fortitude and patience.
The patent that the Pope gave
Charlemagne over these people and the
rest OF Europe was OF no account, be-
cause he couldn't make it good for any
thing for any length OF time, but these
people issued their own patient and
they made it good and enduring for
hundreds of years, long after that OF
Charlemagne had turned to waste paper.
And thus it happened that when the
day came in which a successor Of Leo
was putting his foot on the neck OF u
successor OF Charlemagne at Canossa,
and undoing all that had been done at
st. Peters, Venice was rising rich and
stately, dominant and commanding,
ike Neptune out of the sea. learning to
make herself respected and feared
throughout the world.
A GREAT COMMERCIAL CITY.
But I must not spend SO much time
on the inctpiency Of Venice. Suffice it
that she became great city, she Won
der and the admiration of; the world ;
greater and richer in money and in
ships by lar than London or Amster-
dam; 80 great that her galleYs did the
carrying trade tbetween the Orient aud
Europe and so rich, that her Rialto be-
came the bourse Of the world The
"Merchant OF Venice as Shakespeare
wrote him may or may not have ever
existed; there is no. reason to suppose
that he ever did; but the merchants OF
Venice as history knows them were the
middlemen through whose hands passed
everything that was fine and luxurious
and costly in its transit from the far
East to the consumers OF Europe. They
domesticated in their midst the al.
enemies and the occult processes OF
handicraft from Indie, Persia, Arabia,
SYRIA and Egypt, and the remnants OF
them are here to-day, especially in the
matter OF glass, pearls, gold and silver
etching, embroideries, laces, perfumes,
medicinal compounds, silks, yelyets,
iauuer work and all sorts Of rare and
costly textile, stone and bronze work.
There was nothing deft and delicate
that they could not do, 1 have some
specimens of their glass, as l obtained
ii from the hands OF the artisans, IN
which their skill in ingraining rare
colors, and gold itself, are well shown,
and that lknow will be admired when
/ spread them out on the counters OF
the INTELLlaEScER.
They fill orders to all parts OF tho
world. They showed me in their order
book number OF invoices that had
been filed for Pittsburgh tourists who
had been here, among them b. +.
Jones, and ono OF the Carnegies, and
they thought that they had sold bill
to a Wheeling party, but could not pro-
duce the name. They keep all their
processes close secret and their work.
men, as among the diamond workers Of
Amsterdam, are hereditary people. l
saw father and three sons in charge
OF one furnace, and was told that they
made S. and Sc per day apiece, which
is, OF cou rse, immense wages over here.
There never was anything more ex-
ouisite than some Of their wine sets,
and their tntterns seem to be endless.
pEcUIIARIrIEs OF VENICE.
But all this has rather to do with the
fIyi. 49, ,,,;.L a. .L,,,-