I The Sun of Venice had set! Her bright gold was turned to tarnished brass, her jewels had lost their lustre, and her pearls were moribund! Yet she lingered on for many and many a year--well-nigh two hundred. The beacons of the lagunes and the shrines on the canals burnt dimly, and the incense in the churches seemed to have lost its aroma. Sighs and yawns from dispirited and indolent citizens indicated the dissolution of her industries. Brawls and disputes were exchanged for courtly greetings: gambling dens and bro…