Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-01-09
correspondence Of the Associate Press.

have an air of martial and naval
preparation rather than the usual car
nivaI aspect which marks this center.
The 'quays are lined with soldiers and
great loads of war supplies back and
forth and transporting troops and ma
from point to point. while the
from the w%arships dart IN
out among the gondolas.
Ordinarily there are $500 gondolas in
regular service-600 private and 1000
public-but only a very few of these
remain in use owing to the terror IN
spired by the bomb raids. Most OF the
residents have hurriedly left
for the south. and there are no tour
lists to make use of the public gondolas.
Only one f1rst-class hotel remains open,
half of it is given over to a hos
pital for the wounded brought in from
nearby fighting lines.
Red Cross Headquarters.
Entering the Grand Canal, the great
domes of Santa Maria della Salute
stand out on the left, but always with
their wal trappings. for here is located
the headquarters of the army Red
Cross, where most of the work Of the
field hospitals Is regulated. The
Palace Venier, mex to the church, is
similarly used for army hospital ad-
IIlIllSlTdllOH, dtlu luo ~ SLoSS hd6S
are flying everywhere as a warning
of immunity from bomb raids. Farther
up the canal on the right is the house
of Desdernona. Just what Desdemona
did in her day is a matter of tradition
and S~hakesperean Now the
old palace is owned by a rich merchant
family, but which has fed to the
south; the curtains are drawn. the
lower windows guarded by steel shut
tiers and the gardens neglected.
On the left of the canal is a row of
palaces often occupied by prominent
families. w of these, the
Palace Balbi-Valier and the Polignac.
are closed and closely shattered, while
most of the others in the quarter are
partially abandoned. Opposite this
D. Howells lived while he wrote his
scenes from Venetian life. 1t is one
of the few places still showing life and
activity, and the well kept gardens are
full of flowers. which hang into the
canals fanking it in front and along
is the Palace Rezzonico, where Robert
lived and died. Usually his
is a very a quarter, with crowds of
passing n the palaces alive
with brilliant entertainment. But now
all is silent and lugubrious and the
few gondolas creep along like In
dian canoes on a deserted river.
One touch of life has been given to
this quarter by some American artists,
who AVE pulled down an old palace
and built a very snowy front reach
ing down to the water. The bright vel
and red are in marked contrast
with the somber palaces all around.
The military escort accompanying the
party pointed out an bandone gar
den. with a fine old palace built only
to the first story.
Warning Against Gambling.
There is a story there" said the
escort. That palace was be-
gun by a son of one of the doges,
but the son got to gambling, lost all
his money and mortgaged the palace
yet unfinished. And sc the old doge
ordered that all work on the palace
be stopped. and never again
as an everlasting warning
against gambling. And there it stands
today, after 400 years, just as it stood
work was stopped. still giving it's
Farther along on the left is the gray
stone building used as the Austrian
consulate until Italy declared war
used to pear the Austrian colors,
over the canal, but the place
is deserted. Up a side canal is the
former German consulate, also desert
1uSy were Two OF the most active
of entertainment and official
exchange during peace times.
In front of the former German consul
dredgeS are now at work cleaning
out the side canals. This is a mammoth
work. done every 200 years in the
Grand canal, and every twenty years I'm
the side canals The present absence |
Of traffic has given opportunity for this
securing. Great masses of black mud
are brought up and carried out to sea.
All the sewage of Venice empties into
canals, but the tides of the Adri-
attic sweep out the sewage and keep ,
city in a reasonably healthy con-
iition.
In the market section of the city the
Grand canal shows its usual activity.
with the fish and vegetable markets
by boats and crowded with
customers. Venice has recently finish |
ed a veritable palace for its fish mar
and the military escort told how |
his had come about.
The queen came here sbout five |
ago" said he. "She was shown
beauties of the Grand canal and ad- |
nired them greatly-aIl except the old
1sh market. She declared that was a |
blot and a scandal. And so the CITY de-
cided to spend a million francs for a
new market. And yet, the queen has
lever since come here to see this build |
ng erected to meet her taste. and Ven
ce is beginning to ask whether it was
NNs ~ epcIu 80 Inucn l
money to meet a woman's within"
Weight Increases Strength.
The Rialto bridge is the very heart
If the busy merchant quarter. This
'amous bridge is the only one known
o have been mad stronger by increas-
ng it's weight. 1t began to crack at
he outset and the architect said, add
more weight"
Bazaars and stores were, therefore,
ldded all along the bridge, greatly in
it's weight. and his SO stead
ed it thai it lands secure today. One
If the bomb raids was in this vicinity,
nd the people crowded the bridge and
watching the aircraft as it
it's bombs One of them was
he bomb which destroyed the famous
Church. nearby.
The house of Shylock. not far from
he Rialto bridge, is a small two-story
ough-stone structure. The first floor
$ now a butcher shop. A price list of
neat hung back of the butchers stalls,
- m