The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1897-02-25
THE WORLDS BELLS.
Bells That are Famous for One Thing
or Another.

| Wouiu rtacn around the wofiu. Inc bells
hang In diffcrcnt countries and have each
separate history This, told chronologic.
ally, would give record OF the world, foi
the bells reach hack 10 the carly Egyptians
and the days Of bondage Taken separate
| ly they mari, historic cpochs
Our own Liberty bell IL one Of the
chime 1t cracked ringing for indepond.
ence-that blessed crack that is its proudcsi
| marking--but its sound H. still sweetest
music. Before the moment 1t cracked foi
| joy that hell cculd be heard FIR and wide
end its peal easily reached the outskirts oil
the young republic OF which IL was the
proud spokesman.
Spain has a he'll that is its prophet. II
Is its soothsayef, oracle and guide. This
hell, the famous Nilpla, has hung for cen,
turics in the historic castle keeping watc,
over tho nation.
IL Is the most celebrated bell In Europe,
though not rrcud or handsome It's fn,ne
rests not so much mon it's notes. though
these arc high pitched. soft anil clear. ror
upon its size, for there are other bells ir
Spain much larger, but upon its person.
ality.
1.-The Bells OF tho Tower have been
notcd for centuries as having power of
their own. ring ont, wild bells" means
that the bells have il within them TO tell
terror. And "Chiinc, ye bells" means
they can speak for Joy. The he'll ringer
does the best he can for them, hut IL Is
true tho bells add force Of their own.
The Villcla Is Spanish bell that for
years has forc5oll any impending trouble
To the nation. When the father Of little
Alphonso died. tho Villcla began tolline
In tho night and toled until morning
light In the ten years Cuban war the
bell struck awful tones on the nights OF
defeats, And when great fires have touch.
cd tho castle and sickness or insurrectiop
threatened the throne the Villela has lift.
cd up its voice In sudden, loud warning.
Russia has "a coronation bell. 1t is the
largest in the world and weighs SOC, O00
pounds. Its sound has never been bound
cd, and 1t is said, like the cmperor's voice,
To reach 20 heaven. 1t hangs in the Krcm.
lin. IL Is the cmpcror's bell and is rune
only In honor of him. At the coronation II
pealod forth rs the emperor entered the
church, and its voice announced the con.
clusion of the ceremony to the whole OF
Russia. The coronation bell il rung by
bell ringer blessed by the emperor, the head
of the church The bell ringer does no 9th
er work and is always on duty to tell tho
important events in the family OF the EN-
peror
He Is pensioned. He rings when his
majesty goes tt aisa In ease ef the
death Of a Russian monarch the Kremlin
bell tolls constantly between the death and
the time of the funeral.
Since Russia is the homo Of bells, il Is
not wonderful that il should hold the
largest unrung bell in the world This
bell now makes building in the Krem.
Lin. 1t was cast two centuries ago, but
was found too heavy to remove from the |
pit
The Russian monarcls, one after anoth. !
er, tried 10 have IL lifted, and hundreds OF |
lives were sacrificed in the shifting pit OF |
sand Finally fate intervencd A raging |
fire broke ont and heated the bell in the |
pit. A quantity of cold water flowed In |
around it, and great piece, the size of
door, was BROKEN ont Tho Russian king |
Immediately ordered il lifted to n pedestal
and set within tho KroInlin, where 10 Is
sometimes used az a temple. It's walls are
feet thick, and 10 is % feet high
The dearest bells in France are the
Angclus, made famous by Millet, and the
bellso Notrc Dame. Millct's son still lives
In the little home overlooking the stone
church where tho Angelus bell hangs, and
while the peasants bow their heads and
say prayers. The bells of Notre Dame are
the largest bclls of sweetness in the world
One of them weighs 35, 900 pounds. The
maker who cast 1t would never disclose
the secret Of its loud, sweet tone
The japanese lave the largest bells, but
the crudost 80 unskillcd are they that
many Of them viii not ring, and so they
are obliterGtol from tho list of bells The
best bells Gre u mixture of copper and tin,
with hammer one-twentieth the weight
of the bell. The japanese bells, even il
cast correctly, have too small hammers,
or they arc east To sound like tin, and the
hammer docs rot strike roundly. One of
these, tho Little Giant, has never been
weighed. IL Is said Co weigh comparative
ly little, being OF somc light japanese met.
nj, but 10 IL 80 feet across. 1t Is used to an.
ncurcc births ,t,tti ii HE royal fam
lily. It's clappcr is small, elongated affair
that strikes with u double sound, and the
Little Giant is easily recognized when
heard.
The bell of Notre Dame in Montreal Is
the largest bell in America, but not the
sweetest This attribute Is claimed by the
biggest boil of Trinity's chime In New
York, which Is so surprising In its delica-
cy and so penetrating in its purenoss that
rich and poor alike stand I'll night in all
weather t. hcar IL ring In tie new year
The most inclemcnt weather never keeps
them away, and 50 dcmonsiratiyc do they
sometimes become at It's sound that Trim.
lty's rector hns once or twice forbidden
the chime 10 ring at midnight IL is cast
In T. lat
The countries of Turkey, Greece. Italy
and Egypt have not many famous bells.
Bells arc not in g)ou rCputc there from
the fact that criminals wear them around
-hc neck ana lcpcrs are strung with thon. |
In the temples the high priests decorate
heir robes with small. jangling bells, and ,
his IL another reason why bells cannot
jecome common. IN Turkey they are con.
'picuously unpopElar, and that country Is
inc only one That positively forb.ds the
'inging In OF the now year with bells.
The first Now Years chimes were rarg
N England in 1900, and so quickly did the
news OF them travel that soon every capi.