Your points have nothing to do with ugliness.

> Why `pub fn'? Why is public not the default and why do you have to specify that it's a function?

If public were the default, you'd end up having to make other functions `priv fn` instead.

> Why `: type' and `-> type', why can't type go before the identifier?

It's easier to parse, and most major typed languages other than C/C++/C#/Java put the type after the identifier.

> Why do you need `File::' and `Bytes::'?

Seriously?

> What is that question mark?

The final version doesn't use a question mark.

> Why does the last statement not need a semicolon?

This is a legitimate question. In Rust, the last statement without a semicolon becomes the return value.