Rensselaer Republican, Volume 15, Number 13, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 December 1882 — The Sounds of Venice. [ARTICLE]

The Sounds of Venice.

I should go even further than I went just now, and say that the voice of the gondolier is, in fact, the sound of Venice. There is scarcely any other, and that, indeed, is part of the interest of the place. There is no noise there save distinctly human noise; no rumbling, no vague uproar, nor rattle of wheels and hoofs. It is all articulate, personal sound. One may say, indeed, that Venice is, emphatically, the city of conversation; people talk all over the place, because there is nothing to interfere with their being heard. Among the populace it is a kind of family party. The still water carries' the voice, and good Venetians exchange confidence at a distance of half a mile. It saves a world of trouble. Their delightful garrulous language helps them to make Venetian life a long conversazione. — Henry James, Jr., in the Century. Only one-third of the farmers of the United States use reapers or mowers.