The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1918-10-16
RIVALS CRUELTY
OF West FRONT
Teutonic Hordes Mistreated Italians,
Rivaling the Cruelty on the West.
ern Front, Says Evans "
VENICE HAS ROMANTIC PAST
Not Only the Beauty but the History
Of Venice Grips One-So Old
Records Don't Record Birth -sa
1y HARRY c. EVANS


BY HARRY c. EVANS
VENICE, ITALY, Sept. 15-Rising
straight out of the water Venice seem.
ed more the product of a visionary
world than my dreams had made It.
From the many spires and domes Of
the city CLEANS of gold shot forth at
the touch of the setting sun. But the
dominant note and color that cleaned
through the twilight was white-the
wonderful semi-transparent white OF
ancient marble with background of sea
and sky.
1t was a white city wrapped in It's
evening veil, her beauty tangible and
unreal si
Exquisite as she is at twilight, It la
at night that the most subtle OF her
many charms enrapture and eAvel.
ope the city like magic web. There
Is nothing in Europe to match the
literal, tangible mystery and romance
of Venice at night. The idle swish
Of water against thousand unseen
steps: the secret darkness Of war
times, revealed rather than dispersed
by lights from windows and open
doors; the shadows and black reflec-
tions Of trees and buildings in the wa
ter; the pure white of marble steps
and walls under the moving lights Of
gondolas; the swan like gondolas sill
emily and swiftly moving through the
streets of water; the soft night wind,
the odor OF magnolia trees, the throb
OF music woven into the picture-all
collectively and separately, holding
the observer in a trance of wonder and
Joy ~ iAs
r.: Venice Has Romantic Past
Not only the beauty but the his
tory of Venice. grips you. It is SO
old that the records do not note Its
birth. It was once the most brilliant
commercial city In the world. For
centuries it was nation powerful
and strong, mistress of the adjacent
seas, dominating the commerce Of
the Adriatic and Mediterranean from
Asia to Egypt, from the Holy Land
to Spain. It was renowned IN the
days OF Christ, and her sons partici-
pated in the crusades. Venice con-
qpested and conquered Constantine
pie, Genoa, Padna, Greece, Cyprus
and Asia Minor. In the fifteenth CEN
tury she was the focus of the COM
merce Of the world, and was then a
republic.
Venice lost her prestige at the
close Of the eighteenth century when
she was annexed by force to Austria.
The degradation of the fair city under
the rule of the House of Hapsburgs
is one of the black pages of Teutonic
oppression. -
The city is over two miles from the
mainland and Is built on piles on lit
small islands. There are $50 canals,
or streets of water, and stone bridges.
The art of Venice is the Renais-
sanCe style and also bears the orient
al style in its Mosaics, combining ex-
of imagination and pathOs
in religious themes.
Charms Without Limit
St. Marks church is in the form
Of Greek cross, crowned with five
domes. The bones of st. Mark were
brought from Alexandria to, Venice
in S29, and repose In the church.
The piazza Of the church is 800 by, 500
feet and is paved with trachyte and
marble. There are over 500 marble
columns and thousands of marble
statues. At every turn, one Is charm
ed with new effects It Is superb and
In it's fantastic charms. IL,
The fact that this part of Italy has
been made famous by the poetry of
Byron, Dante and Shakespeare gives
it added charm. Our Y. M. G.. A. head
quarters in Italy are at Verona, and
but a few minutes walk from the tomb
Of Juliet. = ' r.
Here also was the scene of 1.-TWO
of Verona" And from
where write the old Merchant Of
piled his trade on the Rialto
and exacted his pound OF flesh.
During the war Venice is to Italy
what Paris is to France. She has
been the objective of the Austrians,
as Paris has been the objective of the
Germans, and. for a few days last fall
the fall OF the city seemed imminent.
The Piave river divides its mouth just
before it enters the sea north of Ven-
ice, and the Austrians crossed the first
branch of the river and Venice lay be-
meath her guns for months. The city
was seriously 1damager by enemy guns
and airplanes. Last spring the Ital-
ians drove the enemy back across the
river and the city now enjoys compar-
ative safety. - ~'s FL ~
Atrocities In Italy fss :
The atrocities Of the Germans and
as they beat back the
armies Of Italy last fall, easily
matched those Of the Germans in
Belgium and northern France. Re-.
Gently many repatriated prisoners
have been returned to Italy. have
seen many of them and I have never
seen men in more pitiable conditions.
They were mere .specters of men,
bearing on their faces and persons
the marks of untold sufferings. Flesh
less, wan and wasted they were borne
on litters, PROSTATE, inert, dying. Their
garments were filthy, mere patchwork
Of rags. Shirts without sleeves,
sleeves without shirts, trousers with
but one leg, trousers with no legs,
rags wrapped about the bodies. Hun
ger, cold, hard labor and general bad
treatment brought these conditions
about! st ~
~ :, = y q a, = ~.