The Ordway new era., 1920-11-26
PISA: AN OLD CURIOSITY
SHOP OF HISTORY

A city of 10000 skyscrapers before
Peter Mlnuit bought Manhattan island
FOR the present price of n supper at
broadway cabaret.
city that warred and traded with
empires, yet plunged into "a disastrous
struggle with rival city over the
rights to lapdog.
city which was seized after n
Fforentine Hobson bottled up" its
harbor entrance with sunken boats
six centuries before the battle of San
tiago bay.
Such is Pisa, whose leaning tower
was endangered by recent earthquake
tremors In Italy.
Pisa's record abounds in incidents as
freakish as its famous tower; yet II
possesses history necessarily more
significant than any British or Amer
lean city.
Indicative of Plsa's importance in
the thirteenth century was her send
ing an ambassador to Rome. There
10y hangs the story of the lapdog. Dur
lug the coronation ceremonies of
Frederick II the Florentine emissary
admired the lapdog of n certain car
dinai, so that dignltary promised to
give the tiny animal to Its admirer.
Next day the Pisan ambassador said
few kind words about the same dog,
and the cardinal just as readily prom
ised 1t to him. The F1orentlne sent
for his gift, and got It the Pisan sent,
and received an apology. Florentines
began joking the Pisans about this in
cident, and fights ensued on the Ro-
man streets. When the Pisan home
folks heard this II Guve them an eN-
celient chance to pick quarrel that
had long been simmerlng. sort of
medieval Boston tea party was staged
by the Pisans. who seized all the en-
emy merchandise within their reach,
and thus precipitated the first of a
series of wars with Florence which
eliminated in the subsection of Pisa
10y her longtime rival.
The lapdog story seems trivial, yet
characteristic of certain childish
quality noticeable among the juvenile
civic natiOnalities that preceded ma
tional Italy. AS further proof one
might recall the occasion when the
victorious army of Lucca hung upon
a Pisan tower mirror with the in
scriptlon "Oh women of Pisa, use
these to look at yourselves" No 9TH
cr challenge was needed for the Pisans
to march to the gate of Luccn, and
there to plant poles, topped with mir
rors, bearing retaliatory comment.
Were super Rip Van Wrinkle of
medieval Pisa to come with his latter
day compatriots to Ellis island in 1920,
not only the national bird of his
adopted land, but the skyscraper line
of New York might make him feel at
home.
Towers they were called. these Pisa
skyscrapers, huddled together for all
the world like groups of tall apartment
houses. Two reasons are assigned for
this method Of building. common to
italian towns of the twelfth century.
One was that the wall permitted only
vertical expansion when population
pressure increased. Another, believ-
able In view of the constant factional
fights and family feuds, attributed
them to the necessity for protection.
Bridges that could be thrown, from
tower to tower further suggested the
skyscrapcr likeness. On these precur-
sors of the modern fire escape, many
community battle has ragged.
The Leaning Tower of Pisa served
humanity well. aside from becoming
the most effective bit of city adver-
Using yet devised. for it permitted
Calico, a native of Pisa, to carry on
his experiments with the laws govern
ing the pendulum.
-