The strain was more than many of the inhabitants could bear and they sought safety in flight. The result was almost to drain the city of its normal population, which was evident in its almost deserted canals and streets.
The soft, musical voices of the gondoliers were occasionally heard. A few gondolas were left, but very few, and there was no longer any singing. The beautiful hotels, where so many of us had lived in comfort and luxury, were either closed or converted into hospitals.
Most of the shops around St. Mark's Square closed. The famous glass and lace factories shut their doors. Picture postcards and photographs were taboo. The Government did not permit them to be mailed.
No damage has been done to the Basilica of St. Mark. A bomb dropped in front of it, but did not hit it. During the war this famous temple was, however, but a shadow of its former glory. It no longer glistened with Byzantine mosaic. Its golden covering was removed or covered with sandbags. Beside the Doges' Palace was a thing of brick supports, destroying its beauty. The ugliness of boarding and sandbags saddened the visitor who recalled the Venice of former days.
Motor and passenger boats plying along the Grand Canal were discontinued; there were no passengers. A few ferries remained for those who still lived in the city.
Venice has not been seriously marred. Much damage has been done to churches and hospitals, but most of this can be repaired. Only a careful search of the city would reveal the damage done by bombardment.
Within a few churches and buildings art objects have been destroyed that can never be replaced. It should comfort the lovers of Venice to know that the city gives no outward evidence of destruction. The inhabitants will soon return, the hotels will reopen, St. Mark's and the Doges' Palace will be restored to their former appearance, and Venice will once again reign in splendor as the Queen of the Adriatic.
PHOTOGRAPH BY E. M. NEWMAN
PIAZZA DEL POPOLO (PEOPLE'S SQUARE), ROME