In Lovely Venice.

Auckland Star, Volume XXII, Issue 247, 17 October 1891, Page 4 (Supplement)

In Lovely Venice.

The streets of Venice are very animated,' In them one sees true Venetian life. They are shady because they are so narrow, and mosb picturesque because they are nob a lways clean. Ib is a curious facb thab dirt in Italy is generally picturesque, whereas the same dirt in any obher country would not be so inviting. Shops of many kinds open into these streets, and one can see the natives quietly making a living at their respective trades without exerting themselves too much. The fronts of these shops are all open, so it seems as if one were walking through a long corridor in some industrial exposition rather than in the streets of a modern city. Tho workmen expose their wares in the streets to the passers-by, and hammer away at their imitation old brass work, undisturbed by the comments of the idle throng. At every place where a gondola is stationed, or could effect a landing, a forlorn and lazy native loafs all' day, and makes a great flourish of exerting himself, when a gondola sbops bo assisb ibs occupants to alight. He expects ab leasb one cenb for his brouble. They call bhese individuals here ' crab catchers,' and they manage to live on whab few « crabs ' of this kind thab bhey cabch. The bay in front of Venice is full of ships now, for the summer "fetes" have commenced, and a number of men-of-war have come here in honour of bhe King and Queen, and to assisb ab the launching of bhe new ironclad Sicilia. The Ibalian warships ab presenb in the Venetian bay are the Ancona, Maria Pia, Tripoli, the tor-pedo-boat Folgore and; the new first-clasa ironclad Etna, which ia 270 feeb long, of 5,000 bons, and which cosb $1,150,000. These are all splendid-looking vessels, fully armed and manned. Anchored near fco bhem is the English man-of-war Scout, commanded by Prince Louis of Babtenberg. The Princess Beatrice, daughter of Queen Victoria, is staying at the Grand Hotel with her husband.