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 http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924028137606 
 
GOSSIP FROM PARIS 
 DURING THE SECOND EMPIRE 
 
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 
 
ANTHONY B. NORTH PEAT 
 
GOSSIP FROM PARIS 
 
 DURING THE SECOND EMPIRE 
 
 CORRESPONDENCE (i 864-1 869) OF 
 ANTHONY B. NORTH PEAT 
 
 Attache au Cabinet du Ministre 
 de rinterieur and, later. 
 Attache au Conseil d'Etat 
 
 SELECTED AND ARRANGED BY 
 A. R. WALLER 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 D. APPLETON AND COMPANY 
 
 1903 
 
PREFACE 
 
 THE letters from which the following selections 
 have been made were sent daily from Paris 
 during the years 1864 to 1870, by Mr. Anthony B. 
 North Peat, Attach^ au Cabinet du Ministre de 
 rintdrieur, who died from the effects of an accident 
 during the early days of the siege of Paris. They 
 were addressed mainly to the readers of the Morning 
 Star, a daily London paper, the organ of the Man- 
 chester school of politics, but several appeared else- 
 where, notably in The Yorkshire Post. Thanks are 
 due to the proprietors of the latter paper, and to the 
 proprietors of the Daily News, with which the Morning 
 Star was incorporated when it ceased to exist as a 
 separate paper in 1870, for their kind permission to 
 reprint. 
 
 As Attach^ Mr. North Peat saw every morning the 
 telegrams which passed through the Home Office, 
 and thus was enabled to test the accuracy of current 
 reports. The natural objection to a Government 
 Attach^ being the correspondent of a foreign paper 
 was waived shortly after the correspondence began, 
 and, the sanction of His Excellency, the Marquis 
 
vi PREFACE 
 
 de Lavalette, having been obtained, the letters were 
 continued with the approbation of the Government. 
 
 The letters thus contributed were handed to the 
 publishers of the present volume for publication in 
 the spring of 1902. They form nine bulky volumes, 
 and range over the political and social life of Paris 
 during those few years. They are essentially the 
 letters of a journalist, and, in selecting about one- 
 twelfth of the material to form the present volume, 
 I have sought to give that which might interest 
 readers of to-day. In the form in which they were 
 preserved the letters were naturally full of misprints ; 
 I have tried to eliminate these as far as may be, but 
 I cannot hope entirely to have succeeded. 
 
 A. R. W. 
 
NORTH PEAT LETTERS 
 
 ETRETAT 
 
 " A CHEAP bathing-place on the French coast" — such 
 JTx. is the desideratum inquired for in a letter bearing 
 the London postmark, signed " The Father of Six Children," 
 which thefacteur handed me this morning. I reply to pater- 
 familias. Take the steamer from Southampton to Havre, and 
 thence proceed by omnibus to Etretat. 
 
 Twenty years ago the very name of Etretat was unknown. 
 Even now it is marked on few maps. Alphonse Karr, that 
 most fascinating of French modern writers, was ill. He had 
 overworked his brain. Rest and seclusion were ordered. His 
 friends advised him to try Fecamp, but Fecamp is a mere 
 port, and the scenery around is bare and ruggec^ — therefore 
 utterly uncongenial to the future amateur gardener of Nice. 
 He wandered on, and a few miles farther east found himself 
 in a green valley lying between wooded hills. The scene 
 became more picturesque at every turn of the road. Broad 
 fields of golden corn, quaint homesteads, luxuriant orchards, 
 rich pastures dotted over by the splendid animals so peculiar 
 to Normandy met his eye on every side. Suddenly a lovelier 
 picture still burst on his sight. A broad expanse of liquid 
 sapphire, fishing-boats and their sepia-tinted sails, a quiet bay 
 half encircled by a tiny village and guarded, as it were, by 
 gigantic rocks, standing out at sea like monster sentinels. 
 On the extreme right these rocks form a magnificent arch, 
 
2 RESIDENTS 
 
 beneath which the tide gurgles in rolling masses of white 
 foam ; while on the left a needle-shaped peak stands out 
 in the sea : on either side a line of white cliffs and a wide 
 extent of green downs. Alphonse Karr stood amazed, and 
 inquired the name of the village. 
 
 Brought into notice by the magic of his brilliant pen, 
 Etretat has become the favourite resort of the literary and 
 artistic world. The valley leading to it is now studded by 
 villas belonging to many of the celebrated men of the day, 
 who seem to take delight in fixing their abode as near heaven 
 as possible. The edifice, however, which, seen against the 
 sky-line as you arrive from Beuzeville, attracts most attention, 
 is the residence of a retired grocer, who, having accumulated 
 a considerable sum of money in the brown sugar and yellow 
 soap line, bethought himself of turning into a Norman baron 
 of the feudal times, and accordingly he built himself a castle, 
 with moat and keep, and dungeon dark and drear, and strong 
 portcullis, putting, as he fondly flattered himself, the finishing 
 touch to his faithful imitation of the habits and customs 
 of Norman barons by seducing the village sexton into dig- 
 ging up a skeleton out of the churchyard, which the man 
 of sugar and spice hung in chains over the tower-flanked 
 entrance of his castle. The consternation of the simple- 
 minded fishermen, and more especially the terror of their 
 wives, at this spectacle can be easier imagined than described. 
 M. le Maire " transported himself," as the French express it, 
 to the spot, a proces verbal was made out, but the baron 
 grocer refused to return his skeleton to its mother earth in 
 the churchyard. The affair came to the ears of M. le Prdfet, 
 whereupon not only was the order issued for the instant 
 restoration of the skeleton to its rightful place, but the 
 instigator of the deed was heavily fined for having induced 
 the sexton thus to violate the sanctity of the churchyard, 
 the poor man himself dismissed with the malediction of the 
 Church, and furthermore sentenced to three months' im- 
 prisonment. I must do the would-be feudal baron the justice 
 to say that on his release he promoted him to the post of 
 
AT ETRETAT 3 
 
 warder, or, in common parlance, concierge, in which sinecure 
 he now flourishes. 
 
 Beneath this formidable castle stands the residence of 
 Offenbach, with whose musical compositions Europe is so 
 well acquainted. Less ambitious than his neighbour, M. 
 r spicier, the author of La Belle Hilene built a comfortable 
 house, where he dispenses hospitality with no sparing hand. 
 Paul Courrier's castellated mansion, by its size and solid 
 masonry, proves that journalism is not utterly unremunera- 
 tive. The house of M. Pr6vost-Paradol has a less imposing 
 aspect; but instead of discussing the architectural fancies 
 of literary celebrities. We quitted Paris by the first train, 
 having booked ourselves for Beuzeville. From Beuzeville 
 we proceeded to Etretat by omnibus. Unfortunately, it was 
 market-day, and the said vehicle — an abominable cross be- 
 tween the diligence of olden days and a third-class railway 
 carriage, was therefore filled by stout Norman dames, each in 
 charge of heavily-laden baskets of squeaking fowls, odor- 
 iferous onions and every variety of strong-smelling herb. 
 
 The road was at first profoundly uninteresting. However, 
 after enduring martyrdom for two long hours, the view of the 
 lovely valley and distant sea somewhat restored our equa- 
 nimity ; and by the time we entered the Grande Rue, where 
 the arrival of the omnibus was evidently the event of the 
 day, a benignant smile illumined our hitherto irate coun- 
 tenances. 
 
 La Grande Rue! You naturally picture rows of gas- 
 lighted restaurants and plate-glass-windowed shops. These 
 illusions must be dismissed. Etretat is innocent of gas. 
 The word "restaurant" to its inhabitants would be as in- 
 telligible as a passage from the Koran. 'Tis true La Grande 
 Rue boasts of a library, where, after minute investigation, 
 I discovered some of Paul de Kock's worst novels enfeuilleton, 
 of which I was offered the perusal for the moderate sum 
 of thirty sous. La Grande Rue likewise has its jeweller, 
 whose stock consists of a few silver-worked clasps, and I did 
 once see an ancient watch in the window ; but I suspect that 
 
4 THE SEA 
 
 respectable timepiece belonged to the proprietor, and was 
 expected to act the part of a decoy duck. There is likewise a 
 modiste, who, I was informed, constructed the wonderful 
 flannel headgear, hood-shaped, in which the fair portion of 
 the visitors, for some inconceivable reason, delight to disfigure 
 themselves. And, lastly, La Grande Rue has a butcher, 
 whose stall is occasionally decorated by one or two headless 
 sheep. 
 
 The plage is the grand rendezvous for the world in general. 
 The exclusives take refuge in the Casino — a gay little edifice 
 erected on the beach, possessing a terrace-walk. From this 
 height the rank and fashion of Etretat look down with pity 
 not unmingled with scorn on the vulgar crowd below. 
 
 The plage! How can I convey an idea of its picturesque 
 and comical singularity ? The said plage, or beach, stretches 
 in a crescent form around the bay. Rows of bathing-boxes 
 separate it from the village, behind which stretches the green 
 expanse of downs and the receding valley, while as you 
 lounge on its sunny banks the lovely bay, walled in by white 
 cliffs, terminating on the right by the arch of rock and on the 
 left by the needle peak, lies at your feet, and every now and 
 then its rippling waters compel you to shift your position to a 
 higher ledge of shingle. Beneath an awning formed by a 
 tattered sail stuck on four poles are to be found those who 
 have bathed, and who therefore criticise those who are 
 bathing, and not a little unmercifully, oblivious of the fact that 
 they themselves presented quite as grotesque an appearance 
 as their victims a few hours earlier in the day. It is im- 
 possible not to be struck by the imperturbable coolness with 
 which bathers of both sexes emerge from their boxes and 
 brave the gaze of the loungers, each attired in a tight garment 
 of dark serge, to which ladies add a sort of kilt, the object 
 of which has ever been a mystery to me. With a laudable 
 desire to conceal this frightful costume from the public, each 
 bather shrouds his person as best he may in a sort of chlamy- 
 de of white flannel, which he deposits on the beach as he 
 enters the sea. Ladies adopt hats of oil-silk, and perhaps 
 
AT ETRETAT 5 
 
 imagine this head-dress becoming ; others adorn round caps 
 with red trimmings, but vain are these efforts. The whole 
 get-up is conspicuous for ugliness, and neither the genius 
 of Poole nor the art of Worth himself could mitigate its 
 hideous character. The best swimmers go out in canoes, and 
 paddle far out to sea, whence they take headers, and, pushing 
 the canoe before them, return to shore; but the majority, 
 especially the ladies, are satisfied with jumping off a boat 
 moored for their advantage about fifty yards out to sea, 
 thence swimming home. It is a fact that almost every 
 French woman swims with remarkable ease, whilst few 
 amongst the English can accomplish above a few strokes. 
 I saw better swimming by the fair sex than by the male 
 bipeds. A good swimmer is quickly known, and becomes 
 the hero of the beach. As he appears on the plage he is 
 pointed out to new-comers, and from the instant he emerges 
 in the flannel chlamyde he is a personage of interest. As he 
 takes his first header every lorgnon is directed to his move- 
 ments. He feels this, and, inspired by the ambition of an 
 acrobat, does his best to amuse his audience. Marvellous 
 are the costumes in which the male portion of the visitors 
 attract the attention and, for aught I know to the contrary, 
 the admiration of the fair sex. For what reason I know 
 not, Hessian boots extending high above the knee are 
 extensively patronised even by such men as Offenbach, 
 Prdvost-Paradol, etc. Now, as — unless you deliberately walk 
 into the sea — you have no more chance of wetting your 
 lower extremities at Etretat than in Oxford Street, the object 
 of this precautionary measure I never could fathom. Some 
 men — evidently the " swells " — break out in entire knicker- 
 bocker suits of white flannel ; others in bright blue ; and a few 
 in black velvet. The ordinary " tile " is naturally discarded, 
 and the brilliant scarlet berret of the fishermen universally 
 adopted. These patches of bright colour scattered on the 
 beach have an admirable effect. 
 
 A sudden movement among the knickerbockers aroused 
 our attention, and a rush to the water's edge " motive" as we 
 
6 WASHING AND CROQUET 
 
 perceived, by the approach of fishing-smacks, returning after 
 twelve hours' absence. Roughly as these boats are built, 
 they are especially picturesque and graceful in their shape. 
 The dark brown sails, patched and discoloured, tell of many 
 a storm-tossed night and many a day of hardship. On a 
 boat coming in, the women of the village swarm down to the 
 beach, their first motive being to hear the news, and the next 
 to wind up the windlass by which each smack is hauled 
 up on the beach high above the water-mark. Men take no 
 part in this arduous undertaking. I have seen as many as 
 twelve women engaged for half an hour in pushing round the 
 spokes of the huge wheel by which the rope to which the 
 boat is attached is wound up on shore, whilst crowds of men 
 and boys looked on without the slightest offer of putting their 
 own shoulders to the wheel. I am not an advocate for women's 
 right of voting as a general principle, but I maintain these 
 women have as good a right as their ungallant other halves to 
 have a voice in the councils of the nation. Mr. Stuart Mill 
 ought to come to Etretat. 
 
 The washing establishment of the village is a most primi- 
 tive institution. On washing-day you may see some dozens 
 of women kneeling on the beach, delving amongst the shingle 
 till they each make a circular basin-shaped hole amongst the 
 stones. If you watch for a few minutes, this hole is speedily 
 filled by fresh water, in which your shirts and collars are sub- 
 merged and acquire a far better colour than under the eau de 
 javelle process, so extensively practised by your Parisian 
 blanchisseuse. The most curious fact is that when the tide is 
 in, the sea covers this part of the beach, and completely 
 washes over the holes recently made by the blanchisseuses. 
 Nevertheless, the supply of soft water never fails, and is, the 
 women assured me, of the best quality. I can assert that my 
 shirts were remarkably well washed. 
 
 Croquet flourishes amongst the English colony. A member 
 of that respected portion of the community informed me, in 
 a tone Lord Dundreary himself would have envied, " Etretat 
 is looking up, I have played three games to-day." The 
 
AT ETRETAT 7 
 
 ground is reached along a perfect labyrinth of green lanes, 
 overshadowed by beeches and oaks ; on either side are 
 charming residences of every possible style of architecture, 
 each surrounded by brilliant flower gardens and masses of 
 wood. That of Madame Dorus Gras is most picturesque — 
 the house being on the side of the valley, with the pleasure 
 grounds sloping down to the road. M. de Villemessant's is 
 perched on a rock, defying the elements, after a most un- 
 comfortable manner. 
 
 But, alas for France ! Croquet will never be acclimatised 
 beneath her sunny skies, any more than cricket, in spite of 
 the efforts of the club and its spirited president The French 
 look on while we play, but they " do not see it." Meanwhile 
 let me recommend La Pass^e, where this popular game is 
 celebrated, to the serious attention of all persons engaged 
 in love-making or flirting of any kind. The romantic wood 
 which clothes the hillside is eminently designed for the re- 
 search after botanical or entomological specimens, or for the 
 pursuit of sylvian studies in general. It is rich in spots 
 peculiarly appropriate to those tite-d-tites wherein brown hats 
 are to be seen in close propinquity to scarlet berrets. And 
 when these shady groves have been duly explored, you have 
 but to cross the hillside to find yourself on the downs, from 
 the edge of which the white cliffs shelve in a perpendicular 
 line to the sea. 
 
 A charming expedition is that to the Chambre des Demoi- 
 selles. Once upon a time the castle of a Norman count 
 crowned this peak. A Saxon chief loved his daughter. But 
 the Norman scorned the Saxon alliance. The fair Clothilde 
 pined in her bower, and looked out towards the sea. One 
 moonlight night a man's form appeared at her turret window. 
 It was the Saxon with a rope of silken scarves. She allowed 
 him to lower her into the boat which had conveyed him 
 across the Channel. This done, he prepared to follow ; but, 
 lo! he stumbled, and fell into the boiling surf, never to rise. 
 The young lady expiated her attempted escape by perpetual 
 imprisonment in the Chambre des Demoiselles. The spot 
 
8 VICTIMS OF THE SEA 
 
 where her lover sank to rise no more is called Le Trou k 
 r Homme. It's a lovely story merely ; I beg leave to doubt 
 that a castle ever existed on the cliff. The fragments re- 
 presenting the said chambre, to my eye, bear a strong family 
 resemblance to the rocks that lie scattered around. Un- 
 romantic this, but, nevertheless, true. 
 
 Another expedition, but one which involves almost goat- 
 like activity, is that to the Chaudron on the opposite cliff. 
 On the way thither you pass the little chapel de N6tre Dame 
 du Bon Secour, where the wives of fishermen out on distant 
 expeditions pray, day and night, for their husbands' safe 
 return, and, confident in the Virgin's power to save, deposit 
 their little offerings at her shrine. Passing this rudely-sculp- 
 tured chapel, you proceed along the falaise till you perceive 
 steps cut in the rock, by which, supposing you to be endowed 
 with peculiar tenacity of purpose, you descend to the level of 
 the sea, and find yourself at the entrance of a gallery bored in 
 the solid stone by the action of the tide. Having crept 
 through this narrow passage, you reach a fissure in the cliff 
 called the Chaudron. In rough weather, or at high tide, the 
 sea rushes up this fissure in clouds of steaming foam. This 
 spot invariably recalls to my memory one very similar on the 
 south-western coast of Ireland, where, not many summers 
 since, I joined a party of friends. One stormy afternoon we 
 set forth from their house to observe the effect of the gathering 
 tempest from a projecting rock, called the Puffing Hole, there 
 being in its centre a large hole through which, in rough 
 weather, the sea rises in columns of spray, producing the 
 effect of a monster jet d'eau. Our party consisted of my 
 friend and his wife, and two daughters, the youngest of whom 
 on this fatal afternoon leant on the arm of an officer in the 
 army, to whom she was engaged. The walk was rendered 
 most unpleasant in consequence of the rising wind ; but we 
 considered ourselves amply repaid by the magnificence of the 
 scene. The Atlantic was literally lashed to fury. Never had 
 the waves risen to such amazing height. The lovers stood 
 together on the brink of the slippery rock. The columns of 
 water forced by the violence of the waves through the hole 
 
ETRETAT'S ROMANCE , 9 
 
 rose to some sixty or seventy feet high. Well-nigh blinded 
 by the clouds of spray, we turned to leave the spot when a 
 wild shriek, louder than the storm, pierced the air, and we saw 
 a whirling, struggling mass disappear from the rock. Twenty- 
 four hours later the corpses of Emily C and Colonel 
 
 S were washed on shore — fast locked in each other's arms. 
 
 The young girl's mother died a few months afterwards of the 
 effects of the shock. 
 
 Etretat has also its romance. Amongst many English 
 visitors there arrived in the autumn of 1 86- the daughter of 
 an English peer. The lady lived alone. She was a fervent 
 Catholic, and, although somewhat eccentric in her habits, she 
 was evidently a person of cultivated mind and artistic tastes. 
 Months elapsed. Winter, in all its bleak desolation, made of 
 Etretat the most lonely spot on the coast. Still the lady 
 dwelt with her little Norman maid in the cottage on the cliff. 
 Another summer and autumn brought the usual influx of 
 visitors, but the lady mixed not with them. She lived apart, 
 and for all amusement went out boating, attended by her 
 little maid. The boat the lady preferred belonged to Cyrille, 
 a fisherman, whose daring exploits at sea had won for him the 
 sobriquet of " Le Hardi." His fiancie had died on the eve of 
 their marriage. This sudden grief imparted a sadness to his 
 manner which subdued its native roughness. Moreover, he 
 was marvellously well-looking. At the close of the second 
 winter, the marriage of Le Hardi and the English lady of the 
 cottage on the cliff was celebrated at the ancient Norman 
 church by the old cure of the village. The world of Etretat 
 greatly marvelled. " Que voulez vous ? — the lady has money," 
 said the world. Five weeks elapsed. A white sea-gull flew 
 past the cottage window and perched on a distant cliff. The 
 lady wished for its wing to place in her hat. Cyrille took his 
 gun — her gift to him — and, promising to return in a few hours, 
 kissed his bride — his last kiss — for the gun burst, and he was 
 carried home a lifeless corpse. 
 
 A window of peculiar beauty and splendid colouring in the 
 ancient Norman church bears the following inscription : — "A 
 la Memoire de Cyrille." 
 
THE FLOWERS OF PARIS 
 
 FLOWERS have the rare privilege of being loved by 
 all — by the rich as well as by the poor, by the civilised 
 as well as by the savage. It is not only in the midst of 
 plenty that people conceive the idea of emjDellishing their 
 dwellings with flowers. Their cultivation on a large scale 
 among the French peasantry and by the poorer classes of 
 great cities, has, perhaps, contributed more to the civilising of 
 the coarser organs than all the treatises of philosophy ever 
 penned. Those who have studied French life in its different 
 phases can testify that a honeysuckle around the door of a 
 cottage, or a jessamine on a window-sill, are always good 
 omens to a tired traveller. For my part I know of a pro- 
 fessional beggar in Paris who only tunes his harp and sings 
 before those houses on whose balconies ivy, nasturtium, or 
 sweet pea are struggling for existence, well aware that the 
 hand which cultivates plants can never be closed against the 
 supplications of the poor. At one of the windows of the 
 house in which I live are a few geraniums, a fuchsia, and a 
 rose. I always notice that it is before this window that those 
 who have obtained a licence to beg congregate, very certain 
 that from the flower-pots will fall something to their 
 advantage. 
 
 Fortunately, however, flowers do not attract the attention 
 of beggars alone. Many are the great men and women of 
 France who have held these floral apostles in reverence ; 
 many have been the consolations derived by kings and 
 queens from their twined petals and perfumed breath. 
 Louis XIV. specially loved the scent of the orange blossom, 
 and had one huge tree in every room of his palace. Mdlle. 
 
MARIE ANTOINETTE ii 
 
 de la Valliere, wishing to conceal her state, surrounded her- 
 self with tuberoses, the scent of which, although peculiarly- 
 agreeable to the Grand Roi, was considered as fatal to 
 women in her situation. Marie Antoinette was passionately- 
 fond of flowers, and constantly wore natural ones on her 
 Court dresses. On the morning of the day on which she was 
 to receive for the first time the Emperor and Empress of 
 Russia, travelling under the name of the Comte and 
 Comtesse du Nord, the Queen desired her tirewoman to 
 bring the dress she was to wear into her boudoir, and wreathe 
 it with fresh flowers according to her own directions. The 
 woman was thus employed when Louis XVI. and one of his 
 ministers entered ; the King looked surprised, as his visit had 
 been announced. " You will pardon this breach of etiquette," 
 explained the Queen, " but the flowers are natural, and would 
 fade if not arranged at once." The flowers she loved so well 
 conveyed to her the last pleasurable sensation she experienced 
 in life. When immured in the dark and damp dungeon still 
 to be seen at the Conciergerie, Madame Richard, the wife of 
 the concierge of the prison, brought her daily a bouquet of the 
 flowers she had always preferred — pinks, tuberoses, and 
 above all, her favourite Juliennes. For this innocent act was 
 Madame Richard denounced to the revolutionary tribunal 
 and imprisoned. In later years another, who likewise 
 occupied a throne, and was also hurled from her high estate to 
 reap the bitter fruits of humiliation, devoted her latter days of 
 solitude to the cultivation of flowers. The Empress Josephine's 
 gardens at Malmaison were the wonder of her time. With 
 the aid of her gardener, Dupont, she collected every variety 
 of rose then known in Belgium, Holland and England, and 
 even succeeded in raising many new varieties still in high 
 repute in the horticultural world. 
 
 The lily and violet have played an important role in the 
 history of France. Under the Bourbon dynasty, the great 
 actress, Mdlle. Mars, was hissed and insulted because she 
 appeared on the stage with a bouquet of violets, that flower 
 having been selected by the first Emperor as his emblem. 
 
12 ROSES AND LILACS 
 
 The circumstance was the cause of several duels being fought. 
 In France at present the rose is the favourite flower. I 
 believe but one woman ever lived who hated the very sight of 
 that blossom, and still more its perfume, and that woman was 
 Anne of Austria. At the present moment roses are the 
 fashion, and specially sought for by lovers and fiances. In 
 winter, as well as in summer, four hundred pounds' worth of 
 roses are sold in Paris alone, which makes 4,320,000 roses in 
 the year. As it is the custom in France only to give white 
 roses to young girls, even throughout the winter, the 
 gardeners of the environs have invented a special system of 
 forcing by which this flower can be produced at any time of 
 the year. Rose trees are placed under frames at a heat of 
 20 Reaumur for thirty to forty days, during which time the 
 plant, whatever be the original colour of its blossoms, pro- 
 duces white roses. To alter the colour of the plant this heat 
 is gradually increased and every ray of light excluded from 
 the frame during the last days previous to the opening of the 
 flowers. The white lilac plants and bouquets, sold at so 
 high a price in the streets of Paris during winter, are pro- 
 duced in this manner. Many are the purchasers of white 
 lilac plants who, having carefully preserved them during the 
 winter, have planted them out in their gardens in the spring 
 and been amazed to see their delicate white blossoms repro- 
 duced in the coaser kind of the common tree lilac. This fact 
 very nearly caused the rupture of a long engagement between 
 two young friends of mine, which engagement had, however, 
 stood the test of time and much opposition. A few years ago 
 the young j^^wc/^ received from her lover a beautiful plant of 
 white lilac, covered with delicate blossoms and pale sea-green 
 leaves. I am not learned in the language of flowers, but I 
 am instructed by one less ignorant than myself that white 
 lilac signifies constancy, and I know not how many other 
 equally valuable attributes. It was a parting gift. Victor 
 
 de M was to start the following morning for Algeria, to 
 
 join his regiment of Spahis quartered at Blidah. Lucille 
 well-nigh killed the plant with care, for the fiance was to 
 
THE LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS 13 
 
 return in spring and claim her for his bride ; her whole heart 
 was set, therefore, on its reflowering then. Truly the poor 
 lilac recovered marvellously (when planted out in the open 
 ground) from the evil effects of spending a winter in the heated 
 atmosphere of a drawing-room, and grew and put forth leaves, 
 but lo 1 they were a horrid dark green, and blossoms came of 
 a vulgar lilac such as one gathers in the hedgerows. The 
 
 very next day after this discovery Victor de M returned, 
 
 and horror ! his first inquiry was for the white lilac, for he had 
 attached a superstitious interest to its reflowering. Lucille 
 vainly tried to turn his thoughts to another subject, biit he 
 persisted, and, at last, with a beating heart, she led him to the 
 sunny spot in the garden where it was flourishing, and at that 
 moment a mass of lilac flowers. 
 
 " But that's not the plant I gave you." 
 
 "Mais si, I have taken such care of it." 
 
 " That is not my plant ; that has been given to you 
 by someone else — by your cousin perhaps in the Garde 
 Imperiale, that Alphonse, as you call him, who was always 
 hanging about, and, now I think of it, bringing you flowers 
 besides." 
 
 In vain his betrothed assured him that it was the very 
 plant he had given her on that last day when she had shed 
 such bitter tears. She admitted the transformation was 
 strange — inexplicable ; but she had prayed so much to the 
 Blessed Virgin, maybe it was a special mark of her favour — 
 a miracle, in fact. 
 
 "Sapristi! Miracle, indeed! Cousin Alphonse, in the 
 Garde Imperiale, was the miracle, and it was for his sake, 
 or for the sake of his uniform, she had watered it, and wept 
 over it, and prayed to the Virgin over it, and — and " 
 
 A thought struck poor Lucille at this crisis. "You re- 
 member where you purchased the plant?" Certainly he 
 remembered — at Montreuil, and it had taken him half a day 
 to get there ; and he might have saved himself that journey 
 and another beside it. 
 
 " Will you return there," sobbingly asked his fiancee, " and 
 relate what has occurred, for my sake ? " 
 
14 THE STORY OF 
 
 Not he. He wouldn't go to Montreuil with such a coq 
 d-l'dne story. The case was plain. He would return to his 
 regiment, and never think of woman again. They were all 
 alike for that matter, as his father had often told him, and his 
 colonel and all his comrades — only he had thought Lucille 
 was different. 
 
 It is easy to get into a rage and storm away, but it is not 
 always quite so easy to act up to what one has said in the 
 white heat of jealousy. The ride from Ville d'Avray to 
 Paris was long, and M. le Lieutenant had scarcely cantered 
 down the avenue of my friend's chateau before he repented 
 his hasty words. The thought occurred to him he might 
 as well turn his horse's head towards Versailles and dine 
 at Duboux, and perhaps in the evening he would take 
 Montreuil on his way home. True, it would be fourteen 
 miles ! What cared he for fatigue ? Life was all one to him 
 now. He had come from Algeria — and, by-the-by, given 
 up the chance of a lion hunt with Pertuiset — all for the sake 
 of the veriest coquette that ever breathed ; but he ought 
 to have thought of it before. That Alphonse was always 
 at Ville d'Avray, and, besides, his regiment of La Garde had 
 been quartered at Versailles that winter. So convenient 
 a lounge too — ^just ten minutes by rail. However, for the 
 curiosity of the thing, and just to clear his conscience, he 
 would go to Montreuil, and never mind the dinner at 
 Duboux. And to Montreuil he rode, and at a slapping 
 pace too, very much as if he cared to get there. 
 
 On reaching the gate of the nursery garden his heart beat 
 somewhat quickly. " Was Monsieur Bertin in the gardens ? " 
 Monsieur was engaged — he was making up a bouquet de 
 manage, for which he was selecting the flowers. " Monsieur 
 le Lieutenant would find him at the white-lilac frames." 
 
 " Ravi de revoir, monsieur," exclaimed old Bertin, on again 
 seeing his excellent customer. " I am making up the wedding 
 bouquet of the great heiress who is to marry Capitaine " 
 
 " Hang the bouquet ! " thought Victor de M , as he 
 
 ruthlessly interrupted his loquacious friend by a succinct 
 
LUCILLE AND VICTOR 15 
 
 narrative of what was said to have occurred to his last 
 purchase, adding that naturally he did not believe in any 
 such transformation. 
 
 " Pardon, M. le Lieutenant, rien de plus simple. This is my 
 forcing-house. There are three hundred lilacs ; their blossoms, 
 as you see, are white, their leaves pale green. Next spring I 
 plant them out ; they become common lilacs, or rather return 
 to what they originally were. Here is my system." 
 
 " Merci ! " cried Victor de M , " I am rather in a hurry, 
 
 as I have to get back to Ville d'Avray before dusk " ; and so 
 saying he dashed out of the garden, much to the amazement 
 of my quiet old friend Bertin and to the discomfiture of an 
 officer in the uniform of La Garde, against whom he knocked 
 as he tried to rush out of the narrow gate. 
 
 As he raised his k^pi and attempted to apologise, he recog- 
 nised the identical cousin Alphonse he had so much belied. 
 
 " So you have returned from Algeria. I invite you to 
 ray wedding to-morrow. I marry Mdlle. Bonnefonds, the 
 millionaire," said the latter, after a hurried recognition. 
 
 " Ah, I congratulate you," responded Victor, as he jumped 
 on his horse. 
 
 One month later I received my billet de faire part for the 
 
 marriage of M. le Lieutenant Victor de M— and the fair 
 
 Lucille ; and as the bride swept past me in the aisle of the 
 cathedral church of St. Louis, at Versailles, a delicious frag- 
 rance of white lilac perfumed the air, and I remarked that her 
 bridal robes were profusely adorned with that graceful flower. 
 
 The nursery gardens of Paris are well worthy the attention 
 of the visitor. The most interesting, however, is that belong- 
 ing to the city, known by the name of the Fleuriste de la 
 Muette, situated at the Passy gate, in the Bois de Boulogne. 
 This vast horticultural laboratory contains about forty hot- 
 houses, some of which are of colossal proportions. There 
 are few roses cultivated here, for the simple reason that their 
 flowers are invariably robbed during the night by lovers 
 anxious to win a smile from their various lady-loves by the 
 offering of a rose. It required at least three sergents de ville 
 
1 6 HORTICULTUBAL 
 
 in each square, and several more in such open gardens as the 
 Champs Elys^es and the Pare Monceaux, to defend the 
 roses. This being considered a somewhat superfluous duty 
 by M. le Prdfet de Police, who required his men for different 
 work, roses are but sparingly bestowed on the inhabitants of 
 Paris. In the establishment in question, which is one of the 
 most extensive in Europe, and the largest in France, fuchsias, 
 cannas, pelargoniums, verbenas, calceolarias, ageretums,] and 
 chrysanthemums are chiefly cultivated. Three thousand 
 frames shelter the young plants from the changes and chances 
 of this variable climate, and immense subterranean chambers, 
 lighted and heated by gas, preserve the bulbous plants during 
 the winter. One immense hothouse is devoted to the rear- 
 ing of the palm trees so successfully planted out during the 
 summer months, four to camellia trees, and several to 
 solanums, caladiums, begonias, hibiscus, musa gigantea, 
 wigandea, etc. Qne hundred gardeners alone are occupied 
 in the task of multiplying these plants, whose number this 
 year amounted to 3,000,000. The City Nursery Gardens 
 possess 350 varieties of fuchsias, represented by 100,000 
 plants. Of pelargoniums there are 200,000 plants, of which 
 15,000 are of the kind so popular in England called Mrs. 
 Pollock. I saw but one specimen of the Lucy Greve, which 
 single specimen is taken as much care of as though it were a 
 delicate young duchess. Of the palm tribe, these gardens 
 possess 400 different species, and have 20,000 trees at this 
 moment scattered over the various public gardens of the 
 capital, where, thanks to the immense care bestowed on them, 
 they thrive, as will be remembered by those who visited the 
 Pare Monceaux this summer. Several thousand are likewise 
 employed to decorate the Imperial residences, and more 
 especially the apartments of the Empress, who much admires 
 their graceful form. The amorphi, with which the Tuileries 
 Palace is decorated on f^te nights, are here cultivated on a 
 large scale ; and I was informed by the Chef Multiplicateur, 
 who accompanied me through the gardens, that for a ball no 
 less than 60,000 of these flowers were forwarded to the 
 
LABORATORIES 17 
 
 palace. Of camellias I was shown 1,400 varieties. One 
 greenhouse is filled with plants in a state of convales- 
 cence, struggling back to life and health after a season of 
 dissipation, sufferers from their many appearances at Court 
 balls, State dinners to sovereigns at the H6tel de Ville, 
 soiries at Princess Mathilde's, and all public entertainments ; 
 and, poor camellias ! they had a hard life of it this year, what 
 with the Emperor of Russia, the Sultan, and all the rest of 
 the Royalties — they had scarcely a night of fresh air, and 
 indeed their appearance tells of gas-lighted corridors and 
 stifling saloons. Another greenhouse is occupied by camellia 
 trees kept in reserve, from which blossoms are cut and 
 fastened on any bare branch of the trees intended for the 
 decoration of one of these Court or Ministerial f^tes. Of these, 
 four have historic interest. Each measures from twenty to 
 twenty-five feet in height. These, with two others, were sent 
 to France in the year 18 14, as gifts from Emperor Francis to 
 his daughter Empress Marie Louise, and were then con- 
 sidered as Imperial gifts of no slight value, each plant then 
 valuing one hundred and twenty pounds. Two alone have 
 died. The four that remain are in splendid health, and are 
 at this moment covered with buds. The Empress Eugenie's 
 apartments, at whatever palace she may occupy, are supplied 
 with fresh plants to the number of eighty or a hundred twice 
 every week. When Her Majesty is in Paris it is the duty of 
 the chief city gardener to see to this. He personally superin- 
 tends the selection of the plants, which are conveyed to the 
 Tuileries in a covered spring cart. Her bouquets are sent 
 daily. 
 
 On entering the fern houses I was struck by the subdued 
 light which was produced without the aid of blinds. I 
 remarked that all these houses had a white appearance on 
 the glass as of a substance smeared over it. On inquiry I 
 learnt that this shade was favourable to the growth of weak 
 plants, and was obtained by a composition of blanc d'Espagne 
 and colle de poisson — whiting and isinglass — which, once 
 applied with a brush, cannot be washed off by rain or snow. 
 Ferns and plants whose chief beauty consists in their foliage 
 
i8 FRENCH GAHDENERS 
 
 are now more the fashion in Paris than mere flowering 
 shrubs, as they are considered more decorative. Ferns are 
 therefore specially cultivated, and being the tenderest foster- 
 lings of nature, it is no wonder they are tended with so much 
 care and attention. The grand object of every French 
 gardener is not only to shelter them from the direct rays of 
 the burning sun, but to produce for their benefit that moist 
 and still atmosphere which prevails in tropical climes. Some 
 of these festooning the branches and trunks of trees sent 
 from Australia on account of the rare ferns attached to their 
 bark are of extreme delicacy of structure, and I could not help 
 admiring the wiry drapery of their verdant fronds. Much 
 struck was I also with the specimens of the lycopodium, 
 sending out their runners or creeping stems in all directions, 
 to the length of many yards, which strike deep in the turf 
 below, taking root there and thus multiplying the plant ad 
 infinitum, and without the intervention of the talented Chef 
 Multiplicateur, to whose intelligence and kind consideration 
 I owe these details. 
 
 What strikes one most in the treatment adopted by French 
 gardeners is that their shrubs and fruit trees seem to be 
 cut and shaped, and follow a fashion, as do our coats and 
 waistcoats. Of this, for instance, you have a proof in the 
 laying out of some of the Paris squares, and more especially 
 in the fantastic forms given to the yew trees and hedges 
 which skirt the alleys and terraces of the Pare of Versailles, 
 the stiff formality of which is eminently suggestive of the 
 stately and dignified manners of the Court of the Grand 
 Monarque. Even the twining, graceful ivy, trained screen-wise 
 against the railings of the palaces in Paris, is trained to grow 
 in even undulations. The artificial and somewhat stiff regu- 
 larity with which the geraniums, fuchsias, etc., are planted, in 
 admirable contrast as to colour, it is true, leads one to fancy 
 that the system of training adopted for the schoolboys of 
 France is now being applied to French flowers. The latter, 
 it must be allowed, appear to prosper marvellously well 
 under this system of Imperial discipline. 
 
LETTERS 
 
 August 2Zth, 1864. 
 
 IN the Figaro there appears a most amusing letter soi- 
 disant from the " spirite " of Madame de S^vign^, remon- 
 strating in most pathetic language against the statue which 
 is proposed to be erected to her memory at Vichy. She 
 complains of the unfair harshness of the decree which con- 
 demns her, merely because her letters to her daughter were 
 agreeably written, either to stand upright in the middle of a 
 public square, or, like Moliere, to sit eternally on a fountain 
 at the corner of a street. She implores posterity to spare 
 her being thus held up to ridicule, and suggests that the 
 money voted for the purpose be distributed among distressed 
 authors, or devoted to the erection of an institution for their 
 support in old age or sickness. 
 
 Of the late fetes at Versailles, an amusing episode has 
 come to my knowledge. After the opera, it had been the 
 Empress's intention to amuse her royal guest by a promenade 
 in the gardens of the palace, which were illuminated by 
 myriads of coloured lights, and whence the fireworks could 
 be better seen than from the windows of the palace. The 
 gods, however, were not propitious, and the Emperor decided 
 against needlessly running the chance of being thoroughly 
 drenched. Her Imperial Majesty had no idea of sacrificing 
 any part of her programme, and, turning to the King of 
 Spain, said : " II ne pleut pas ; Sire, votre bras," and sallied 
 forth, the Emperor being thus compelled to follow. The 
 result was that the crowd, surprised at seeing the Court 
 party in evening costume and blazing with diamonds on the 
 terrace, burst through the lines of soldiers who ought to have 
 
 19 
 
20 VICTOR HUGO'S BUST 
 
 kept a clear space as far as the Fontaine de Latone for them, 
 and literally mobbed the Imperial party. With his usual 
 tact, however, the Emperor, addressing the people, said : 
 " Mes amis, je vous ai c6d6 la fdte ; amusez vous bien, mais 
 de grfice laissez nous circuler," which words had a magical 
 effect. 
 
 August 2gth. 
 
 Orders have been sent to the naval authorities to hasten 
 the departure of the various transports under orders for Vera 
 Cruz to bring home the French troops from Mexico. The 
 first regiments are expected to arrive here about the middle 
 of October ; their entrance into Paris will of course be the 
 excuse for a grand military fdte, at which the National Guard 
 will probably display the same laudable zeal for self-preserva- 
 tion which they evinced after the last review, returning as 
 they did either sheltered under umbrellas or comfortably 
 ensconed in cabs, carts, or nondescript vehicles, to the infinite 
 amusement of the lookers-on. 
 
 M. Delangle, Vice-President of the Senate, in a speech to 
 the Agricultural Committee of Cosne, was most eloquent on 
 the subject of liberty, stating that the year 1789 had been 
 the era of the emancipation of French intellect, and pro- 
 claiming, amidst the enthusiastic cheers of his audience, that 
 the spirit of civilisation had transformed every part of the 
 world where the flag of liberty floated. These fine sentiments 
 fall harmlessly on the ears of Nivernois peasants, but I 
 venture to counsel Monsieur Delangle to alter his tone when 
 next he apostrophises the Senate, otherwise he will have to 
 endure the mortification of seeing his photograph disappear* 
 from the prominent position it occupies at Nadar's : at least, 
 if I may judge by the curious document which emanated 
 yesterday from the Ministere de I'lntdrieur, bearing the 
 signature of one of the heads of the Home Office, M. 
 Juilleret, who, poet though he be, and of mean merit, is 
 evidently not an admirer of Victor Hugo. This document 
 is a reply to a demand made by M. Leboeuf, a sculptor, for 
 
POACHING 21 
 
 permission to sell copies of a bust which he has just executed 
 at Jersey of Victor Hugo, of a striking likeness and remark- 
 able execution. After some legal preliminaries the minister, 
 through M. Juilleret, consents to the sale on the following 
 peculiar and express condition, namely, that copies of the 
 bust intended for sale should on no pretence whatever be 
 exhibited either in the windows or in any exposed part of a 
 shop — d la condition expresse de ne mettre ce buste ni aux 
 vitrines ni i I'italage. Is this meant as a ministerial joke ? 
 
 Poaching has become a standard evil in France, and the 
 most stringent measures are about to be adopted for its 
 prevention. Although shooting is only to commence on the 
 3rd of next month, which is somewhat later than usual, game 
 has already been sold in Paris, every imaginable expedient 
 being resorted to in order to elude the vigilance of the 
 custom-house officers stationed at the barriers. Their atten- 
 tion was last week attracted by the unusual number of 
 pigeons and fowls brought into the market. On investigating 
 these innocent-looking birds, they proved to be partridges 
 and pheasants in disguise — "wolves in sheep's clothing." 
 Last Friday, at the St. Lazare Station, the unusual dimen- 
 sions of a crinoline having created some surprise, the fair 
 wearer was politely requested to step into the waiting-room, 
 when, with the aid of some of the female employees, no less 
 than forty partridges were detached from the above-mentioned 
 "cage," as in this instance the lady's garment might with 
 every truth be denominated. 
 
 August list. 
 
 A most singular trial has taken place at Madrid. A soldier 
 was cited last week before the police-court for having stolen 
 a gold cup of considerable value, which had been placed as 
 a votive offering on one of the numerous altars dedicated 
 in that city to the Virgin. The soldier at once explained 
 that he and his family being in great distress, he had appealed 
 to the Holy Mother for assistance, and that while engaged 
 in prayer and contemplation of the four millions' worth of 
 
22 THE RULE OF THE JOCE.EY CLUB 
 
 jewels displayed on her brocaded petticoat, she stooped, and, 
 with a charming smile, handed him the golden Cup. This 
 explanation was received by the court in profound silence, 
 and the case handed over to the ecclesiastical commission, 
 to whom it at once occurred that, however inconvenient the 
 admission of the miracle might be, it would be highly im- 
 politic to dispute its possibility. They therefore gave the 
 cup to the soldier, at the same time solemnly warning him 
 for the future against similar favours from images of any 
 kind, and impressing him with the conviction that the 
 Virgin required profound silence from him as a proof of his 
 gratitude. 
 
 September /\.th. 
 
 A curious autograph of Tasso was sold to-day, which gives 
 an insight into the poet's early struggles : " I, the under- 
 signed, acknowledge to have received from Abraham Levy 
 25 livres, for which sum I have pledged a sword of my 
 father's, six shirts, and two silver spoons." The document 
 bears the date of March 2nd, 1 570, at which time Tasso was 
 twenty-six. 
 
 The Jockey Club, before whose decrees the fashionable 
 world bend, have decided that the English custom of shaking 
 hands is henceforth to be considered the correct thing ; and 
 furthermore, in order to protect ladies from the annoyance 
 of having to return the bows of any man who may choose 
 to take off his hat to them in public, the English fashion 
 is to be adopted of ladies bowing first. The lions of this 
 very exclusive and aristocratic club, in their anxiety to 
 imitate rivals on your side of the water, not only employ 
 English tailors, but cultivate beards i I'Anglaise, which genre 
 being copied by the less privileged loungers of the boule- 
 vards, the outward appearance of the male portion of the 
 Parisian public is undergoing a process of transformation. 
 
 In the absence of all political news, the French papers are. 
 entirely occupied by the ascent of the Geant from Brussels. 
 
THE LIFE OF JULIUS CAESAR 23 
 
 The interest King Leopold showed in its success has flattered 
 the vanity of M. Nadar's concitoyens, and every detail is 
 minutely given of his interview with the King. The differ- 
 ence of weight between the French and Belgic gas, the latter 
 being so much heavier, caused a considerable delay in the 
 first start. The King inquired if all was going on well. 
 " Not yet," replied Nadar ; " but now that your Majesty has 
 arrived, I have no fear as to the result." "Above all," said 
 the King, "be sure to throw out your ballast in Belgium. 
 I have sworn to preserve intact I'intigriti du territoire." 
 
 The evening previous to their departure from Chalons, the 
 Emperor, Prince Humbert, and General Roon escorted the 
 Prince Imperial to see Punch and Judy performed at the 
 soldiers' theatre. The Emperor and the Prince Imperial 
 laughed immoderately at the well-known conjugal squabbles 
 with which we are so familiar. Towards the conclusion, one 
 of the colonels present went up to the Emperor and reminded 
 him that he had not paid for his place. The Emperor, look- 
 ing rather puzzled, asked what he was to give. " A cross of 
 the Legion d'Honneur to one of my captains, sire ; he is 
 the bravest officer in your Majesty's service," which was, of 
 course, instantly and very graciously bestowed. 
 
 The price at which Henri Plon is about to publish the 
 Emperor's Life of Caesar, viz. 6 f per volume, has caused 
 severe animadversion. Henri Plon has already published 
 the four volumes Louis Napoleon wrote when a prisoner at 
 Ham, and must have made a good thing of it ; but their 
 price being 40 f (;^i i6j.), there has never been the slightest 
 fear that the Republican ideas they contain should be 
 disseminated among the people, by whose suffrage, however, 
 their author was called to the throne. It is admitted as 
 natural that this Life of Caesar, emanating as it does from an 
 Imperial pen, should be got up with a certain expense, 
 printed on good paper, etc., but at least, it is said, let there 
 be a cheap edition for the people. As they chose the man, 
 it is only fair to allow them to read his thoughts and inspire 
 themselves with his ideas. 
 
24 AUSTRIA AND ITALY 
 
 September gtk. 
 
 Madame de Sevignd, in one of her wittiest letters, previous 
 to announcing to Madame de Grignan the startling intelli- 
 gence that La Grande Mademoiselle, to whom four thrones 
 had been successively offered, was actually going to marry 
 an ordinary mortal — a mere duke — puzzled her daughter by 
 stating that the fact she had to write was the most wonderful, 
 the most surprising, the most astonishing, etc., of events, and 
 proceeded to say she would give her ten, nay twenty, even a 
 hundred guesses, and yet she defied her to hit on the truth. 
 Had I not more regard for your precious time before reveal- 
 ing to you the news which has been to-day the gossip of 
 political salons, I might string together a chapter of adjectives 
 no less marvellous than those of Madame de S^vignd. It 
 appears — what shall we hear of next? — that Italy — I mean 
 the kingdom of Italy — is on the point of being recognised 
 by — I am really tempted to let you guess — by no less 
 illustrious personages than all the Hapsburgs collectively and 
 individually ! It certainly sounds more than improbable, and 
 the Ind^pendance Beige doubts the possibility of those august 
 Imperial Highnesses and Majesties being sufficiently up to 
 the time of day to show so much common sense. It is 
 thought, however, to be a clever dodge of the Cabinet of 
 Vienna, who, by thus flattering Victor Emmanuel, hope to 
 induce the Unitarian party of Italy to renounce their 
 cherished hope of liberating Venetia. Even this argument 
 would not, I think, stand good. Austria well knows that to 
 free Venice from her hated and hateful yoke is the dream of 
 every true Italian, and that Victor Emmanuel is not the man 
 to be cajoled by any amount of Court ceremonial into so 
 disgraceful a compromise. 
 
 Last Sunday the f^te Les Loges, at St. Germain, took place. 
 During the Restoration this fete was patronised by the world 
 of fashion. The amount of wine drunk in one single day 
 came to 19,200 bottles, besides beer, etc. In those palmy 
 
TAN AS MANURE 25 
 
 days the clowns who came down from Paris were often most 
 amusing and witty. I remember having been present with 
 several of the beau monde when a mountebank, enumerating 
 the treasures contained in his anatomical collection, men- 
 tioned the skull of the Duke of Wellington. " The Duke's 
 skull ! " cried out someone present. " Why, he is alive and 
 perfectly well ! " " Of course," said the showman, " I am aware 
 of that ; but this is his skull when he was a child ! Walk in, 
 ladies and gentleman, and you wrll never spend money more 
 profitably." 
 
 September 12th. 
 
 The Debats of Saturday received a communication from the 
 Minist^re because it ventured to comment on the changes in 
 the names of the streets — a harmless subject, I should have 
 thought. 
 
 September \'^th. 
 
 A farmer of Troyes having remarked that while the cholera 
 was raging in that town some years ago the inhabitants of 
 every house in the neighbourhood of tan-yards escaped the 
 disease, has turned his observation to profit as to the cultiva- 
 tion of the potato. Previous to planting his potatoes he takes 
 a shovelful of tan, which he throws into the hole. The whole 
 of a field thus manured with tan has produced a magnificent 
 crop, whilst an adjoining tract of land, which had not under- 
 gone this preparation, has only yielded diseased roots. It 
 appears that potatoes, after being gathered, and placed in a 
 cellar containing tan, are equally preserved from disease. 
 
 The mystery of the Iron Mask again occupies the attention 
 of bibliophiles, and a new and rather amusing story is 
 circulated in literary papers this week on the subject. It 
 states that the Iron Mask induced the governor of the 
 Bastille to admit a lady, who, for a very large sum settled on 
 her, consented to share his prison life. A son was born, who 
 was transported to Corsica, in the charge of a person who was 
 
26 THE EXECUTION OF 
 
 told that he came di buona parte ; or, in other words, that he 
 was well born. The idea started is that this child was the 
 ancestor of Napoleon I. 
 
 September i^th. 
 
 At the agricultural show of the Vaucluse a young girl of 
 twenty won the first prize at the ploughing match, although 
 there were several male competitors and she had to manage 
 four horses. 
 
 A private letter from Foix contains the most curious details 
 regarding Jacques Latour, who was guillotined the day before 
 yesterday for his share in the murder of the four inhabitants 
 of Chateau Baillard. It appears that on Sunday Latour re- 
 ceived the gaol chaplain with respect, and listened to his 
 prayers and exhortations with apparent attention, even accept- 
 ing a crucifix and some books he had previously refused. 
 This improved state of mind lasted till the gaoler entered his 
 cell at five o'clock to handcuff him. Latour seemed surprised ; 
 but the gaoler, who has shown the utmost forbearance towards 
 him, explained with great caution that his last hour was 
 approaching, as the execution was to take place at seven the 
 following morning. For a moment Latour seemed to be 
 stunned, then, becoming perfectly furious, he broke out in the 
 most fearful language, cursing the judges, jury, and society in 
 general — " The demons, the anthropophagi, and that chaplain, 
 an aide-de-camp of Satan, perhaps Lucifer incarnate." His 
 howls and shouts of rage seemed to excite him the more, and, 
 catching the crucifix with his manacled hands, he broke it 
 into bits with his teeth, spitting out the fragments with a con- 
 centrated rage that was awful to witness. Suddenly he made 
 a dash at the books, and, throwing them on the ground, 
 sneeringly said, " Ah, the old chaplain will be delighted when 
 he comes, but he need not show himself — gare!" Then, 
 hearing a ring at the door of his cell, " Ha, here is the fellow, 
 Satan — Lucifer ! I will inform him that to-morrow I shall 
 sing, ' De le Gargouille ' " (a most obscene song). " That will 
 
JACQUES LATOUR 27 
 
 be fun ! " The aged chaplain, whose patience and devotion 
 to the miserable wretch had been beyond praise, then asked 
 for a final interview. " See him ? Not I ! I only want 
 to see the executioners." At six on Monday morning the 
 chaplain was, however, in attendance, determined to do his 
 duty to the last. "Old sinner, what do you want?" was 
 Latour's greeting. " Lucifer, avaunt ! Go and see your friend 
 Satan. Ah, how glad I shall be to see him ! Jacques Latour 
 is not the man to fear him. It will be the other way — Satan 
 will be afraid of him ! " His breakfast was brought to him, 
 which he had ordered the night before. "This is first-rate 
 beef," said he ; " but I should have preferred a slice of my own 
 leg, and if anyone had fried a bit for me I should have been 
 obliged ! " At a quarter to seven the gendarmes came to 
 convey him to the carriage. As he walked along the corri- 
 dors he heard one of the horses neigh. "Ah, I hear Rosinante, 
 Don Quixote de la Mancha's steed." Then, seeing the young 
 daughter of the gaoler, he called out, " Ah, there is Dulcinea 
 Toboso, the lady of my thoughts. Good morning, Dulcinea." 
 He wished to walk to the place of execution, but as it rained, 
 he got into the carriage, the aged chaplain following on foot 
 evidently absorbed in prayer, looking deeply distressed. A 
 picquet of soldiers and several brigades of gendarmes sur- 
 rounded the scaffold. The crowd was tremendous, but 
 perfectly silent, even when the carriage was in sight, Latour 
 standing in it and singing in a loud voice, " La Mere Gaspard," 
 a song very popular among the people. He smashed one of 
 the glasses with his head before getting out of the carriage. 
 , As he reached the foot of the scaffold, the chaplain again 
 attempted to speak to him, but Latour turned to the execu- 
 tioner and ascended the steps of the scaffold, singing, in so 
 stentorian a voice that every word was heard over the place, 
 the parody he himself composed of the " Marseillaise " — 
 
 " AUons, pauvre victim e. 
 Ton jour de mort est arrivd ; 
 Centre toi de la tyrannie 
 Le couteau sanglant est levd ! " 
 
28 ILLUSTRATED EGGS 
 
 He continued to sing on the platform and while he was 
 being tied to the bascule, and, literally, the sound of his voice 
 only ceased when his head fell into the basket beneath the 
 guillotine. There was not the slightest expression of sym- 
 pathy among the crowd, who seemed utterly disgusted. 
 
 September lytk. 
 
 Last Saturday the town of Saumur was thrown into a state 
 of the utmost excitement, yet neither Vermout, Fille de I'Air, 
 nor the Emperor had made their appearance. Neither less 
 nor more than a miracle had taken place ; not, indeed, that a 
 dying person had been restored, or a beatific vision rejoiced 
 the soul of some true daughter of the Church : it was simply a 
 hen that had suddenly acquired the power of laying illus- 
 trated eggs. Her last performance in this line, triumphantly 
 exhibited to one thousand persons who congregated in the 
 Rue de la Visitation, was an egg bearing a raised sphere on 
 which a cross, a sun and a Latin inscription were clearly 
 visible. The attention of the police was at last attracted, and 
 the miraculous hen was put in charge of one of that respected 
 body, who received strict orders to mount guard on the 
 marvellous bird till eggs should be laid. This second egg 
 proved even more rich in clerical designs than the first, an 
 "Ecce Homo," a weeping Magdalen, and an inscription, 
 this time in French, appearing to the puzzled policeman's 
 astonished gaze. A prods-verbal was made out, and the 
 aiifair tried at the petty sessions ; it was explained by the 
 well-known process of drawing in wax on the egg and plung- 
 ing it for two minutes in a bath of hydrochloric acid. 
 
 September v^th. 
 
 If we are to believe the Correspondance Fhdale of Berlin, 
 the King of Prussia had good reason to be pleased with his 
 interview with Empress Eugenie, as the Emperor had com- 
 missioned her to assure him of the very cordial feelings he 
 
PUMPKIN FETE 29 
 
 entertains at this moment for Prussia. The Correspondance 
 states that the Empress, who takes the deepest interest in 
 the political destiny of France, has been seriously offended 
 by the supercilious and overbearing spirit in which England 
 has thrown over her alliance with France. The enthusiasm 
 with which Garibaldi was received in England offended the 
 Empress much more than the Emperor, and suggested to her 
 the propriety of seeking among Continental Powers for an 
 ally less uncertain and more to be relied on than England. 
 The reception given in France to General von Roon, the 
 Minister of War of Prussia, confirms the Correspondance 
 F^odale in the opinion that the Court of the Tuileries wishes 
 to prove its friendly disposition towards that of Berlin. I 
 am firmly convinced that the tone adopted by Earl Russell 
 in his diplomatic communications with the Tuileries has dis- 
 pleased the Emperor, whose policy towards England has 
 ever been dictated by a spirit of conciliation ; but that he 
 should seek for a point d'appui at a Court which invokes 
 divine right as its political aegis appears utterly incredible. 
 
 The pumpkin, which, as you know, is very much cultivated 
 in France for soup, had its annual f^te the other day. It has 
 been for several years the custom of the Agricultural Society 
 of Paris to offer a prize to the gardeners of the suburbs for 
 the largest pumpkin they can send to the Halles Centrales. 
 Its coronation takes place, and a procession in its honour. 
 This year the king of potirons weighed 276 lbs., and his waist 
 measured more than three yards in circumference. His 
 majesty cost 108 f, or £\ 6s. Another phenomenon of the 
 botanical world is a mushroom twelve inches in diameter and 
 thirty-two in circumference, which was found in the woods at 
 Viroflay, belonging to the Due de Morny. It is a real fact — 
 and not a newspaper story — that five amateurs of these fungi 
 dined off this marvellous mushroom. 
 
30 THE FRANCO-ITALIAN 
 
 I September 2\st. 
 
 The Moniteur of this morning is mute on the all-absorbing 
 topic of the day. The Constitutionnel alludes to it in 
 guarded terms. However, La Patrie, which, notwithstanding 
 its professions of independence, I have good reason to know 
 receives its instructions from high quarters, announces the 
 Franco- Italian Convention as the great event which occupies 
 public attention. The Opinion Nationale writes on no other 
 subject, yet in every instance the details are quoted from 
 Italian papers. The Opinione of Turin states that on the 
 1 5th the Convention was signed at St. Cloud by M. Drouyn 
 de Lhuys, M. Nigra, and the Marquis Pepoli, who started 
 instantly for Turin, where he arrived at midnight. The King 
 summoned a Privy Council, when it was decided that Parlia- 
 ment should meet on the 4th of October. The first clause of 
 the Convention stipulates the evacuation of Rome by French 
 troops within two years ; the second, that Rome be garrisoned 
 and the Pontifical territory defended by Italian troops, and 
 that the Pope may enlist foreigners in his service on con- 
 dition that their number does not endanger the safety of the 
 Italian kingdom ; the third, non-intervention of all Catholic 
 Powers ; the fourth, that Italy be responsible for that portion 
 of the Pontifical public debt which has been incurred by the 
 provinces annexed to her territory in the late war ; fifth, that 
 Florence be within six months the capital of Italy. This 
 last stipulation has, of course, excited much regret at Turin. 
 L'ltalie hints at a secret clause wherein France undertakes 
 to supply troops to Italy in case of an Austrian invasion. As 
 the Opinion Nationale exclaims, it is not Roma capitate 
 dltalia, but it is a good step towards it. At the end of 
 fifteen years of useless attempts at conciliation France leaves 
 the Pope tite-ci-tete with his people. Two years are given 
 him, however, and the Opinion is glad of it, as otherwise the 
 ultramontane party would accuse France of mauvais valoir ; 
 but, as is justly remarked, if Pius IX. does not use the next 
 
CONVENTION 31 
 
 two years to more profit than he has the last fifteen, it is 
 mere waste of time. After all, France was by no means 
 compelled to protect a Government which has invariably 
 thrown overboard every advice it has given. Italy compro- 
 mises nothing, and gives up nothing. She merely under- 
 takes neither to disturb nor permit to be disturbed the terri- 
 tories which, thanks to the French bayonets, are still under 
 Papal sway ; and in the matter of foreign enlistment dis- 
 tinctly stipulates that on no pretence, or under no disguise, 
 are foreign troops to garrison Rome ; otherwise the French 
 evacuation would be a mere farce ; and, be it remarked, that 
 in case the maintenance of temporal power is, after a fair 
 trial, acknowledged to be an impossibility, Italy does not 
 undertake to decline any inheritance to which she may be 
 called by the voice of the people. 
 
 September 22nd. 
 
 A despatch from Schwabach announces that the Emperor 
 of Russia was expected to arrive there yesterday on his way 
 to Berlin. He will, of course, visit the Empress Eugenie, 
 whose return to Paris is daily expected. The cause of her 
 quitting France so suddenly is now pretty clear. She, a 
 fervent Catholic, to say nothing more, could not of course 
 sanction by her presence at St. Cloud, a Convention which will 
 deprive the Holy Father of the French sentinels who for so 
 many years have mounted guard at the Vatican. 
 
 The opening of the Yacht Club at Cannes is the great 
 event of the day in the nautical world. Three years ago 
 Lord Brougham and half a dozen English families were 
 monarchs of all they surveyed in that very lovely spot. 
 The French hatred for travelling is proverbial. When health 
 did compel a family to quit its beloved Paris, Naples, 
 Florence, or Nice were the only places thought of. However, 
 the opening of a railroad between Toulon and Cannes has 
 suggested the idea that within twenty hours of Paris a climate 
 in which even tropical plants blow in the open air, combined 
 
32 THE YACHT CLUB, CANNES 
 
 with charming scenery, can be attained with very little 
 fatigue. Several names of distinction in the Paris world are 
 inscribed in the visitors' book, among them Mdme. du 
 Chaponay, M6rimee, the novelist, and Victor Cousin. It is 
 reported that the latter is to be one of the new Senators. 
 The rage of La Gazette de France is really amusing at the 
 mere supposition that the old philosopher and historian could 
 be seduced even to be useful to his country under a tricolour 
 flag. The Emperor has rechristened one of the streets 
 leading to the H6tel de Cluny " Rue Victor Cousin." But to 
 return to Cannes. On the first of October a magnificent 
 hotel, which has cost ;^70,ooo, is to be opened, and next to 
 this palace the members of the Yacht Club have built their 
 club-house. This has been done by subscription, the inhabit- 
 ants of Cannes having put their names down for £?>,ooo. 
 The situation has been admirably selected. The view from 
 the windows is a perfect oceanorama. The members have 
 got up their club-house with perfect taste, and have secured 
 the services of a first-rate chef. The forty members who 
 started the idea are to have their inaugural dinner on the 
 1st October. 
 
 Baron Rothschild has sent two magnificent female Wapiti, 
 born at La Ferrieres, to the Jardin d'Acclimatation, on their 
 way to the King of Italy. The garden is a sort of grand 
 hotel for travelling beasts, which, having landed at Marseilles, 
 are delighted to find capital beds and excellent food — I can 
 hardly write cuisine — at the jardin, on their way to the 
 various Zoological Gardens in Europe. It is extensively 
 used for this purpose, which was an idea of M. Geoffroy de 
 St. Hilaire, the grandson of the great naturalist, and who is 
 now the directeur en chef. Victor Emmanuel is one of the 
 most successful acclimatisers of the day. His ambition is to 
 introduce the larger species of game into Italy ; he has 
 already every known variety of the deer and the nucleus of 
 a herd of kangaroos. Prince Napoleon is gradually turning 
 his park at Meudon into a miniature _;«r^?« d'acclimatation, 
 and takes great interest in the subject. 
 
LA GRIPPE 33 
 
 September 2ird. 
 
 At last, after having kept us for six days in suspense, 
 Government condescends to allow the Moniteur, in its own 
 special columns, not, indeed, to announce the Franco-Italian 
 Convention, but to quote from the Constitutionnel the few 
 guarded observations it has permitted that paper to com- 
 municate to its readers. Therefore, even now, the well- 
 ascertained news is not officially stated. The passage quoted 
 merely gives the first of the three clauses of the treaty, namely, 
 the evacuation of Rome within two years, the permission 
 granted to the Pope to enlist for his personal security foreign 
 Catholic volunteers, and the clause by which Italy is made 
 responsible for the debt incurred by the newly annexed 
 States, which had belonged to the Pope. The next three 
 columns of the Moniteur contain, in large type, a letter 
 written by the Emperor in May, 1862, to M. Thouvenel on 
 the state of Italian affairs, evidently now reproduced to 
 prove that the present Convention was not a Napoleonic 
 coup d'itat, but the result of a preconceived plan. This is all 
 the Government thinks good for us to-day; perhaps to- 
 morrow we may be told a little more. Verily the care taken 
 lest our nerves should be injured by too sudden a shock is 
 really touching. 
 
 For the last two days it has hardly ceased raining ; the 
 result is that Paris coughs and sneezes from morning to 
 night — anything but pleasant to witness or listen to ; for 
 when a Frenchman has a grippe he sneezes and coughs in 
 good earnest, and sets to work as if he were paid to do so. 
 If you enter an omnibus, walk on the boulevards, or go into 
 a cafe you are now so much bored and persecuted by the 
 Dieu vous benisse, which invariably accompanies each convul- 
 sive sneeze, as one was a few weeks ago by that most senseless 
 and stupid exclamation, " H6, Lambert ! " I could not gather 
 any political news to-day in consequence of this epidemic. The 
 friends from whom I generally get information I found either 
 
34 CRINOLINES AT MASS 
 
 in bed or taking foot-baths a lafarine de inoutarde — a capital 
 remedy, by-the-by, and one which is particularly adapted to 
 this hot-headed people, inasmuch as by drawing the blood to 
 the feet it instantly relieves the brain. It would be well 
 if the ultramontane and clerical party had speedy recourse 
 to this calming process, for they are at present in a state 
 of rage, the alarming symptoms of which are not far removed 
 from delirium tremens. They can by no means digest the 
 political pill which the Emperor has thought fit to administer 
 to Italy. The very idea that French bayonets will no longer 
 be employed to keep up the temporal as well as spiritual 
 power of his Holiness is driving them mad. 
 
 An ecclesiastical commission sat this week to decide on 
 the increased tariff for the chairs hired to ladies in the 
 churches and chapels of Paris, it having been proved to 
 demonstration that in a space which ten years ago accommo- 
 dated a hundred persons, but thirty-seven can now find 
 sitting room. Naturally an enormous deficit in the church 
 revenue has been the result. The conclusion of the board 
 of inquiry has been that as one crinoline takes the place 
 of three individuals, the rent of chairs ought to be raised 
 in proportion. In a church of Alsace it has been already 
 decreed that wearers of crinolines should pay i f for low 
 mass and i^ f for high mass. 
 
 September 2^th. 
 
 At the Bourse yesterday I heard nothing spoken of but 
 the Franco-Italian treaty. In a financial point of view the 
 prevailing opinion decidedly is that the Convention will be so 
 far favourable to Italy as to allow a loan to be contracted for 
 on very favourable terms ; but en revanche it will in no wise 
 facilitate the Pope's acquisition of the one hundred million 
 francs he is in so much need of just now. Florence, I am 
 told, is already in the hands of speculators, who are rapidly 
 purchasing as much ground as they can get hold of, knowing 
 that as the city is to be the capital of Italy, they will make 
 
SCANTY COSTUME 35 
 
 fabulous sums, and in a very short time. It is even whispered 
 that certain intimes of the Tuileries, who were fortunate 
 enough to have had an inkHng of what was in contemplation 
 some weeks before the news of the Convention reached us 
 from Italy, went themselves to Florence ; or in cases where 
 that was not possible sent trustworthy agents, who purchased 
 large tracts of land, with a view of selling them at an 
 enormous profit as soon as the Court takes up its residence 
 in the fair City of Flowers. 
 
 Last Friday afternoon the frequenters of the Tuileries 
 Gardens were startled by the apparition of three fair ladies 
 in costumes of the First Empire, evidently meant to typify 
 the drapeau tricolore, one being in red, the second in blue, 
 and the third in white. There was an utter absence of 
 crinoline, and belts were the only articles above the waist. 
 Certainly ceintures are now worn very wide, and the afternoon 
 was warm. Still the gardiens did not appear to appreciate 
 these toilettes, and they were speedily invited, as the French 
 say, to retire, and with the honours of war. The scene re- 
 called to mind the well-known story of the beautiful Madame 
 Tallien (Prince de Chimay's widow), who in the time of the 
 Directory appeared in the gardens of the Palais Royal in 
 a somewhat similar costume, and early the following morning 
 received a magnificent box, to which a gold key was attached. 
 It contained one solitary vine leaf It is not so very long 
 since the Archbishop of Paris, having the private entrie to 
 a concert given by an illustrious personage, entered by a doot 
 behind a crowd of ladies. In their efforts to make way for 
 him, one said in an apologetic tone, " Your Grace must excuse 
 us ; really our dressmakers put so much material in our 
 
 skirts " " That none remains for the corsage," interrupted 
 
 the Archbishop. 
 
 I mentioned to you some weeks ago that the Mexican 
 ladies replaced diamonds in their coiffures and on their ball 
 dresses by the luminous cucujo, captured by Indians for their 
 special adornment. The Presse of this morning gives a most 
 interesting account of these jewelled insects, six of which 
 
36 INSECTES-BIJOUX 
 
 arrived by the last Mexican steamer, and were consigned 
 to the eminent naturalist, M. Pasteur. At the last meeting 
 of the Academy of Sciences experiments were made as to 
 the light emitted, and an analysis made of its quality. As 
 I stated, it is proved to be sufficiently strong to admit 
 of reading by the light of one cucujo, which, although of the 
 nature of that of the glow-worm, exceeds it in intensity 
 and steadiness, casts no shadow, and has a slightly yellow 
 tinge. Serious efforts are to be made to acclimatise and 
 propagate these insectes-bijoux, which, however expensive a 
 process, would be economy itself to the husbands of the 
 queens of fashion, whose incomes are so seriously encroached 
 upon and often utterly ruined by the sums lavished upon 
 a Paris season. One of the heaviest expenses in which 
 caprice involves them is the resetting of jewels, which the 
 number of bals costumis given during the winter makes 
 a matter of necessity. One instance last season came under 
 my own knowledge of a parure of diamonds having been 
 remounted thirteen times. The amount of the bill I leave 
 you to guess ; but indeed jewellers' bills are not the only 
 heavy item in the household ledger, as Madame Rattazzi, 
 nie Bonaparte Wyse, and widow of the Prince de Solms, 
 wore a muslin dress at Dieppe last week, the laundress's bill 
 for the washing of which amounted to 250 f. {£\o\ 
 
 A novelty has just been started for the amusement of that 
 section of the curious who delight in sensational horrors — 
 a visit to the Morgue, for instance. The new excitement 
 is a Monsieur Christophe Deland, who departed this life 
 A.D. 1 72 1, and who, having been buried between strata of 
 guano, is now — A.D. 1864 — not only in a state of perfect 
 preservation, but rather good-looking to boot, giving one the 
 impression that he probably made conquests in his day. He 
 may be seen any day, from twelve to four, in his glass coffin, 
 at the shop of his fortunate proprietors, opposite the Porte 
 St. Denis, for the moderate sum of 50 centimes. 
 
SOLDIER-GARDENERS 37 
 
 September 2'jth. 
 
 The spot has been decided upon for the erection of the 
 Hotel Dieu, and voted for unanimously. No less than nine 
 of the most ancient and narrowest streets in Paris will be 
 knocked down, to the regret of no one, as even M. Cuvillier- 
 Fleury could produce no historic association which their 
 destruction will efface, save that at the corner of the Rue des 
 deux Ermites stood the shops of the barber and pastry- 
 cook who sold the far-famed pdtes, so renowned for the 
 peculiar delicacy of their flavour, which were discovered 
 to be made of human flesh, the barber naturally supplying 
 fresh corpses. This being ascertained, the worthy associates 
 were broken on the wheel, their houses knocked down, and 
 an edict passed forbidding any persons building on the spot, 
 which decree was reversed in 1536 by Francis I. 
 
 You are aware that privates in the French army are each 
 in turn taught and obliged to work at every trade necessary 
 for the clothing and feeding of the regiment. For instance, 
 every man takes it in turn to cook ; and if the soup be not 
 properly seasoned or the vegetables sufficiently boiled, woe 
 to the unlucky cooks on duty ! Now a novel experiment 
 has proved most successful at the camp at Chalons, where 
 the privates were made to turn gardeners, the practical result 
 to each regiment being 40,000 cabbages, with potatoes, 
 carrots, turnips, and parsnips in proportion. It has been 
 decided that kitchen gardens are to be attached to every 
 barrack, the work of which is to be done by the regiment, an 
 immense saving being thus effected for the State, and much 
 of the men's time employed which would otherwise be spent 
 in public-houses or other mischief. 
 
 September 2gth. 
 
 Garibaldi has written one of his charming and characteristic 
 letters to the author of La Grande Epopee de Van II., in which 
 the great man defines that period (1793-4) as "the grand 
 
38 FRENCHMEN AND LIBERTY 
 
 epoch of heroism and virtue," which for him has — I quote 
 the hero's words — " un attrait invincible^ 
 
 Admiral van Dackum's order at Copenhagen to the Danish 
 squadron has excited as much hilarity in France as in its 
 native land. The Admiral liberally grants leave of absence 
 to the men of the fleet on condition that but one goes ashore 
 per day, by which economical arrangement the last sailor 
 will spend a day on land in the year A.D. 1 868. 
 
 October ^ik. 
 
 I have noticed that several of the newspapers, com- 
 menting upon M. de Persigny's last speech, have said that 
 the noble duke was right in stating that the French did not 
 deserve more liberty than is now granted to them. Though 
 I am myself a fervent apostle of liberty, still I cannot help 
 partly agreeing in this statement. No one is less desirous 
 than I am to speak ill of France, or sneer at everything 
 French ; still I do believe this country is governed pretty 
 much as it deserves to be. A Frenchman is not fit to be 
 trusted with liberty, a strong proof of which was given in '48, 
 when, during the first few months, after the flight of Louis 
 Philippe, the nation took advantage of the perfect freedom 
 it possessed to commit every kind of excess. The fact is 
 that when Louis Napoleon seized the reins the country was 
 on the verge of ruin. A Frenchman is, more or less, born to 
 be rode roughshod over, and he himself is positively happier 
 when ruled with a rod of iron. Of course, I am not alluding 
 to the poor and down-trodden who, cursing the inequality of 
 human condition, now and then break out in occasional riots 
 and are shot down by canons rayes. I refer to the middle 
 and upper classes, who are the deadliest enemies of Re- 
 publican principles, and especially the nouveau enrichi or 
 parvenu class, who in France are more ostentatious and self- 
 important than any aristocracy in Europe. The prominent 
 features in a Frenchman's character are pride and vanity, 
 and these are the only points on which you can speak. The 
 
OFFICIAL TYRANNY 39 
 
 First Emperor understood this perfectly when he instituted 
 the "Ldgion d'Honneur" and decreed that for any service 
 rendered to Government a Frenchman v/ould be rewarded 
 by the i-uban rouge ; and by this same ribbon the nation has 
 been enslaved. There is not a man in France, no matter 
 what his station, who will not sneak and cringe to any party 
 to obtain the right to adorn his buttonhole with it. It was 
 a clever idea of the First Empire, inasmuch as every Govern- 
 ment since its creation has obtained immense gratuitous 
 services therewith. But to return to my subject — liberty. 
 I maintain that a Frenchman likes to feel that everything 
 around him is so organised that he has not the trouble of 
 thinking for himself Twelve hours after he is born on this 
 soil of liberty he is taken to the Mairie, and there ticketed, as 
 it were, through life. The paternal government watches over 
 his education, and, at twenty-one, unless he buys a man to 
 replace him, incorporates him into some regiment, and takes 
 care that while there his ideas do not become too inde- 
 pendent. If he proves a good and obedient boy, he will be 
 rewarded by the " Croix." Ruled by despotism, the French 
 become despots in their .turn. Witness the tyranny of your 
 landlord on every possible occasion, the wearisome forms 
 railway officials compel you to submit to ; and this spirit 
 pervades every French administration, private as well as 
 public. An amusing illustration of this was mentioned to 
 me lately. M. Bagier, the manager of the Italian Opera, 
 whenever he engages an actor or actress, makes them sign 
 an agreement in which there is the following clause : — " A. B. 
 undertakes to live within fifteen minutes of the theatre." 
 Mario, the celebrated tenor, having been requested to sign 
 this, telegraphed to the manager the following inquiry : — 
 " What do you mean ? Am I to understand fifteen minutes' 
 walk, ride, drive, or railway?" M. Bagier's reply was, 
 " Balloon travelling ! " 
 
40 A HUSBAND-BEATER 
 
 December Z2nd. 
 
 The report of an attempt on the life of King Victor 
 Emmanuel has caused an immense amount of gossip. The 
 first details of the affair were given by the special cor- 
 respondent of L' Europe, who stated that the King had 
 received a wound in the shoulder. The truth, however, is 
 that his Majesty did receive a wound, not however in the 
 shoulder, but a little lower down in the arm, and not from the 
 dagger of an assassin but from the lancet of his surgeon in 
 ordinary. He is not quite well, and was bled. Voildi, tout ! 
 
 December z^th. 
 
 A case of separation is to occupy the forensic talent of 
 Lyons, arising from a most original cause. A husband of 
 colossal strength complains of having been beaten by his wife. 
 It appears that for several months the neighbours of this 
 ill-assorted pair have been disturbed by the cries and moans 
 of the wife, caused by the blows inflicted from the herculean 
 arm of her lord and master. The lady vowed vengeance in 
 words not loud, but strong ; and thus she fulfilled her 
 purpose : the husband returned one evening unusually weary, 
 from hunting, dined and drank copiously, immediately 
 retiring to his bed, when he was soon in the arms of 
 Morpheus — dreaming, perhaps, but not of the long packing- 
 needle and strong twine which, by the fair hands of his wife, 
 were fast enclosing him, a helpless mass, in his sheets. This 
 preliminary measure taken, the lady, armed with a powerful 
 stick, returned with interest the accumulated blows of past 
 years, till, exhausted by the exertion, she was compelled to 
 pause. After an instant's rest she made a deep curtsey to 
 her belaboured husband, and announced to him her intention 
 of eloping to her parents' residence. 
 
 In one of my late rambles in the neighbourhood of Paris I 
 was much struck by some labourers who were hard at work 
 digging up a large tract of ground, and mixing up cartloads 
 
ST. HUBERT'S DAY 41 
 
 of tattered cloth with the earth. Having inquired as to the 
 utility of such a proceeding, I was told that rags possess 
 great fertilising powers, and that they are now very gener- 
 ally adopted as manure, especially to counteract the bad 
 effects of the siliceous soil. The quantity necessary to enrich 
 four acres of ground amounts to about 3,000 kilogrammes, 
 which is equivalent to 45,000 kilogrammes of stable manure, 
 ajid costs only 180 f The results produced by this mixture 
 of old rags and earth are slow, but lasting ; their beneficial 
 effect can be traced six years after they have been put into 
 the ground. The more torn and the more their texture is 
 worn away, the more are they suited for manuring purposes. 
 
 December 26ik. 
 
 On St. Hubert's Day Comte de la Ferriere, Master of 
 the Hounds, opened the season by a grand mass at four 
 o'clock in the morning, in the ancient church, which was 
 brilliantly illuminated for the peculiar occasion. Twenty 
 whippers-in and his whole hunting establishment, wearing the 
 livery of his house, were arranged down the nave. At the 
 elevation of the Host the men sounded their horns. The 
 church even at that early hour was crowded by people 
 attracted to witness this curious revival of an ancient 
 custom. 
 
 The scientific world of Paris is much occupied by the 
 experiment which M. Graof intends making of flying from 
 the towers of Notre Dame by his new machine. He under- 
 takes to remain suspended in the air with as much ease as a 
 bird. I only hope he may not have borrowed the wings of a 
 canard. 
 
 December 2Zth. 
 
 The cold is fearful and the Seine is partly frozen over — 
 a hint the rats have taken to inhabit the sewers of the 
 metropolis, where the temperature is always eight or ten 
 degrees above zero. At ten o'clock this morning the sewer- 
 
42 GOLD BUTTONS 
 
 men of the Boulevard Sebastopol, who had entered by the 
 opening near the Church of Saint Laurent, hunted before 
 them a whole army of rats, who rushed by hundreds out 
 of the gate of the sewer which issues on the Seine in front 
 of the Theatre du Chdtelet. There was nothing for them 
 but to swim for the sheets of ice floating past, and the effect 
 of swarms of rats of every imaginable size thus navigating 
 on the Seine was inexpressibly absurd. The flotilla arrived 
 safely at the Pont Neuf, but the ice-blocks coming in contact 
 with the piers of the bridge caused numerous shipwrecks. 
 However, a considerable number went on all right till they 
 came to the Pont des Arts, and some of the lucky adven- 
 turers even reached the Pont Royal. A crowd assembled to 
 watch their progress, and seemed infinitely amused by the 
 sight. 
 
 December lOth. 
 
 You are aware that the general character given to the 
 English in Paris society is that of humour or eccentricity. 
 These characteristics were undoubtedly exemplified by the 
 appearance of a soi-disant English gentleman (?) at a ball 
 last week, whose dress-coat was adorned by buttons of 
 a novel kind, manufactured by no less a personage than 
 France herself, issuing from a workshop on the quays 
 , called the Mint. These buttons were 20 f. pieces. The 
 price of the coat I leave you to guess. The idea, however, 
 is not as absurd as it might seem; for instance, if a button 
 be missing, you have only to open your purse to replace 
 it, and if you have forgotten your purse, as is the habit of 
 some people, you have but to snatch off a button and pay 
 for your wants, by which means your coat serves to pay your 
 debts and your purse to adorn your coat. Then if this 
 fashion of wearing coins for buttons takes, a glance will 
 enable one to judge of a man's position. Coppers would 
 indicate a workman, a franc button a lawyer or clerk, 
 the broad 5 f. piece a retired butcher or grocer, and so 
 
BONBONS AND NEWSPAPERS 43 
 
 on. Bonbons and their boxes are the events of the week. 
 A crowd collects daily opposite the shop of a celebrated 
 and very amusing vaudevilliste, who unfortunately failed in 
 changing his pieces into gold, and turned sugar-baker 
 in despair. One window is occupied by a gigantic box 
 of sky-blue velvet, extensively got up with roses and point 
 d'Alen^on, the price of which is 1,500 f (;^6o), while in the 
 opposite window stand Monsieur et Madame Polichinelle, 
 whose glittering persons can be acquired for the moderate sum 
 of 2,500 f (;£"ioo), their humps, as I was instructed, being 
 filled by bonbons. I had gazed with wonder at a huge white 
 velvet case embroidered in pearls, but I confess its beauty 
 paled before these gorgeous sugar-boxes. 
 
 January 2nd, 1865. 
 
 The Vienna papers publish the will of a half-pay Austrian 
 officer, which has created considerable amusement. He leaves 
 his fortune to his nephew, who has a situation in the Post 
 Office, on condition that he shall never on any occasion 
 indulge in his favourite occupation of reading newspapers. 
 The old gentleman institutes three persons his trustees, 
 whose duty it will be to watch his luckless heir, and, in case 
 of a single infringement of the clause, dispose of his property 
 to other members of his family. The said property consists 
 of two houses, money in the funds, and a landed estate. 
 
 January 6th. 
 
 A few years ago a vast tract of country, called " Les 
 Landes," situate to the south-west of Bordeaux, and extend- 
 ing to about twenty leagues in length and twelve in breadth 
 along the Bay of Biscay, was inhabited by a few miserable 
 shepherds, whose families lived in a state of semi-barbarism, 
 and who were annually decimated by marsh fever and ague. 
 The whole of this desolate region, parched in summer and 
 submerged in winter, was valued in 1846 at 900,000 f., 
 the precise sum for which a single hectare of ground at 
 
44 THE LANDES 
 
 Montmartre may be purchased. To M. Chambrelent it first 
 occurred that it would be possible to transform this vast 
 waste into a habitable country at the cost of one sou per 
 square yard, or 20 f per hectare. In 1849 he purchased the 
 bog of Saint Alban, and commenced operations, the result 
 of which is that a thriving farm and village have replaced 
 a swampy marsh, a hectare of potatoes producing 145 
 hectolitres, or a net profit of 435 f. ; a hectare of tobacco 
 giving a gross return of 1,045 f- and a net profit of 330 f, 
 or six times the value of the soil. The purchase money 
 of the estate was 30,000 f. ; 100,000 f. has been laid out on 
 it, and in twenty years its woods alone will bring up the 
 value to one million. M, Chambrelent in vain urged his 
 neighbours to follow his system, when in 1857 ^^ Imperial 
 decree took the municipal councillors of the district by 
 surprise, giving them twelve years wherein to drain and sow 
 ^ 1 50,000 hectares. There was nothing for it but to sell, and 
 that quickly. At first purchasers came in slowly, but prices 
 rose, and 85,000 hectares were bought by the Imperial 
 Government, which accepted a contract by which this tract 
 was to be thoroughly drained and cultivated by 1869: now, it 
 will be completed by 1865. The result already obtained in 
 one part of the country, where asparagus has been especially 
 cultivated, is that the first bundle sent up to the Paris market 
 last spring fetched the enormous sum of 30 f. This is 
 scarcely to be credited of a country, where, five years ago, 
 the inhabitants stalked about on stilts four or five feet high. 
 The result is that 3,000 square kilometres — a space six times 
 the extent of the department of the Seine — has been re- 
 claimed, and 150 square kilometres annexed to the French 
 territory without a shot fired or a protocol signed. Thus the 
 Landes, from having been a mere waste of shallow pools, 
 sodden morasses, and glaring heaps of sand, now bids fair 
 to be one of the most productive districts of France. 
 
THE COMTE5SE DE CI\ RY 45 
 
 January Zth. 
 
 Another trial which has aheady come before the courts is 
 shortly to amuse the public. The Comtesse de Civry claims 
 from her father. His Serene Highness Charles, Duke of 
 Brunswick, a pension of 30,000 francs a year in consideration 
 of her husband having lost his hereditary property during the 
 revolution of 1848, and of her finding it impossible, with seven 
 children, to live on air. The Duke's mania for wigs of various 
 hues is weU known, as well as the precautions he took to secure 
 the safety of his diamonds in his strawberry-cream-tinted 
 palace. Rue Balzac Every spike of the gilt railing which 
 siuTOunded it was movable, on the slightest touch setting 
 hundreds of bells in motion. The diamonds were encased in 
 a chest under his own bed, on opening which, unless provided 
 with His Serene Highness's own key, a dozen revolvers fired 
 in the intruder's face. Notwithstanding these prudential 
 measures, his own footman, a man named Smith, quietly 
 walked off one summer's evening of last year with some few 
 millions' worth of the said diamonds. These accumulated 
 trials, in every sense of the word, induced the Duke to quit 
 his rose-coloured palace, and transport himself, his diamonds 
 (for it will be remembered that Smith was captured), his wigs, 
 and walking-sticks to Holland, and this will considerably retard 
 the proceedings in the case of his daughter, the " Comtesse de 
 Civry versus Charles of Brunswick." 
 
 The Opinion Nationale has a very clever feuilleton from the 
 witty pen of Edmond About on the subject of la culture des 
 eaux. M. Abouf s idea is that nothing could contribute so 
 much to the comfort of the poorer class than the proper 
 working of the rich mine of food which the ocean contains. 
 Amongst the striking facts which M. About brings forward 
 to prove the superiority of fish versus flesh, in point of 
 economy and nutrition qualities, he makes the following 
 calculations as to what a tureen of soup, or, as the French 
 term it, a pot-au-feu, has cost. The animal from which the 
 
46 LA CULTURE DES EAUX 
 
 meat has been taken, admitting that he weighed 400 kilos., 
 must have consumed 60,000 kilos, of grass during his life. 
 When killed he yields 300 kilos, of meat, the hundredth part 
 of which is required to make the above-mentioned pot-au-feu. 
 Substitute for this piece of beef a young salmon of 3 kilos., 
 of two years and a half old — he was born in a stream, he 
 spent eighteen months in a river, he swam to the sea, and in 
 twelve months made his 3 kilos., or 7 lbs. weight of good food. 
 To convey an idea of the marvellous fecundity with which the 
 inhabitants of the ocean are gifted, M. E. About states that 
 one herring lays 35,000 eggs, a mackerel 845,000, a sturgeon 
 7,500,000, a turbot 9,000,000, a cod 9,344,000. Then, adds M. 
 About, suppose the 845,000 mackerel eggs all became fish, and 
 the 422,000 spawners produce an equal number, you will have 
 360 billions of fish — that is sufficient to support all His 
 Holiness's faithful children in the French Empire during the 
 whole of Lent ; but, setting Lent aside, M. About trium- 
 phantly points to the hardy and healthy populations of the 
 coast, whose numerous families are a strong contrast to the 
 pale and sickly population of the Faubourgs. 
 
 January gtk. 
 
 La Patrie of this morning contains very curious details of 
 nursery gardens at Epluchard, near Angers, belonging to M. 
 Andrd L6ray, whose Gothic house was the ancient maison de 
 plaisance of old King Ren6, father of our Henry VI.'s Queen 
 Margaret. The gardens contain six hundred varieties of ever- 
 greens, four hundred of coniferous trees, a most remarkable 
 collection of Sophora willows, and every imaginable novelty 
 in the way of forest trees and new kinds of underwood ; but 
 the most signal triumph won by this monster cultivator is the 
 acclimatisation of the camellia, specimens of which tree cover 
 one hectare of land, and in many instances have attained the 
 height of six yards, or rather metres — their magnificent con- 
 dition and glorious flowers proving a perfection rarely attained 
 in conservatories. Some of these camellia trees have outlived 
 thirty winters, and endured twenty degrees centigrades of cold. 
 
X. B. SAINTINE 47 
 
 January 2ird. 
 
 Proudhon's death has been quickly followed by that of 
 X. B. Saintine, who died last Saturday. His funeral took 
 place this morning from his house, Rue des Marais, at the 
 Church of Saint Martin ; and all the literary celebrities of the 
 day attended. Saintine was born in Paris, 1 798 ; he was 
 Honorary President of the Soci^t^ des Gens de Lettres, and 
 last August was given the cross of Officer of the Legion 
 d'Honneur. To the world he was best known as author of 
 Picciola, which has been translated into almost every 
 European language ; but in Paris his name is imperish- 
 ably connected with the stage by his L'Ours et le Pacha 
 and the Riche d' Amour. He was fellow- labourer with 
 Scribe, Amelot, Varin, and Duvert in all their best works. 
 Picciola won for him renown and the ribbon of the L6gion 
 d'Honneur as early as 1837. Saintine was one of the few 
 romance writers of France who, scrupulously avoiding an 
 immoral allusion or a sensational effect, won a world-wide 
 reputation as one of the most fascinating writers of the day. 
 There is an exquisite purity of diction and a chaste tone of 
 thought throughout his most poetic conceptions. 
 
 A most strange incident, which took place at the moment 
 when Proudhon's funeral was about to leave his humble 
 residence for the cemetery, well-nigh caused a popular de- 
 monstration. He died, as you are aware, true to the 
 principles he had so energetically advocated, declined the 
 attendance of a priest, and on being asked to confess to the 
 cur6 of the parish, turning to his wife, said, " I shall confess 
 to you." Thousands of the working classes, as well as 
 immense numbers of his admirers, had assembled in the 
 narrow street Rue de Passy, and were about to follow his 
 bier, when the 92nd Regiment, with its Colonel at its head, 
 and the drums beating a quick march, suddenly turned into 
 the street. The crowd shouted, " Silence ! Respect the 
 dead ! " The regiment came to a dead stop. The crowd 
 
48 SLUGS AND SNAILS 
 
 shouted, " Battez aux champs ! " calling for the peculiar roll 
 of the drums always executed at military funerals. The 
 drummers obeyed. The Colonel then interfered, some of the 
 friends of the family came forward, and some inaudible con- 
 versation took place. The Colonel gave the word to proceed, 
 saluting the coffin with his sword. The mob, satisiied with 
 this extorted homage, shouted, " Vive la Ligne ! " A second 
 regiment, the First Grenadiers, followed, but, warned in time 
 of the temper of the crowd, they marched past, their drums 
 having ceased beating. The strange part of this history 
 is that a letter has appeared from Lieutenant - Colonel 
 Pietri denying the whole transaction — refuting the affair as 
 if it were a disgrace to the Service. Two letters have 
 already been published in the Opinion Nationale from people 
 present, who assert the facts above stated, adding their 
 amazement that Colonel Pietri should venture to deny a 
 transaction witnessed by so many thousands. 
 
 Horticulturists make fierce complaints of the ravages 
 committed this year by slugs and snails, the destruction of 
 which has become a serious subject of consideration. It is 
 calculated that loo slugs eat 2.\ lbs. of grass per day ; there- 
 fore 5,000 consume the food of a cow, and as they chiefly 
 select the youngest shoots after sowing time, they are more 
 mischievous. General Higouet has established on his farm a 
 systematic war against these invaders by means of an iron 
 cutting instrument attached to a stick, with which he arms 
 his farm-servants, and sends them forth immediately after 
 the harvest has been reaped. A single man has destroyed 
 4,000 in one day ; thus on the farm of Veyrac 100,000 are 
 killed annually. From August to October these 100,000 
 would have devoured 2,000 lbs. weight of grass daily, which is 
 equivalent to 250 kilos, of hay, the value of which is I2f. 50 c. 
 Multiplying this by ninety days, the result gives 20,250 kilos, 
 of hay (value 1,125 f., or ;^45), which would have been de- 
 stroyed had not the war been waged, whereas the pay of the 
 labourers employed in eradicating this plague of slugs and 
 snails only amounted to 50 f , or £2. 
 
A CURE FOR NERVES 49 
 
 The unpublished works of Proudhon are in course of 
 revision with a view to their being published. It appears 
 that at the period when Proudhon was a typographic printer 
 he was employed in the editing of a very beautiful copy of 
 the Bible. He kept one copy for himself, which he had 
 bound with two blank leaves between each page. This Bible 
 he read daily, writing his reflections on the intervening 
 leaves, and their number proved how constantly he made the 
 Scriptures his study. Le Bulletin de Paris states that the 
 Minister of Public Instruction (M. Duruy) has, in obedience 
 to the Emperor's commands, notiiied to Madame Proudhon 
 that an annuity will be paid to her from the Civil List. It 
 is certain that the family are left with very small means of 
 living. 
 
 A new system of cure for nervous sufifering has been the 
 subject of conversation for some weeks past, but the first 
 experiment triumphantly cited in proof of its success having 
 been the cure of a frightful attack of neuralgia in the head, 
 by means of a copper saucepan worn helmet-wise, I declined 
 mentioning the subject. However, a serious article appears 
 to-day, which I cannot leave unnoticed, reminding the world 
 in general of the theory started by Paracelsus that every 
 organ of the human frame has a certain afifinity for a special 
 metal or vegetable. The Zurich doctor argued thence that 
 as the heart is known to be influenced by the sun, and as 
 gold is the symbol of the sun, therefore most diseases can be 
 cured by certain solutions of that metal ; that as the liver 
 is influenced by the planet Saturn, of which Mercury is the 
 symbol, liver disease could be cured by preparations of mer- 
 cury, and so on. Doctor Burcq, starting from totally opposite 
 premises, has, however, invented a system of metallotherapia, 
 which engages the serious attention of the scientific world at 
 the present moment. The writer of the article states that he 
 was present last Monday at the following experiment. A 
 person had been for two days suffering intense agony from 
 intercostal pain, which had all the characteristics of neuralgia. 
 Doctor Burcq was sent for. He applied an iron disc to the 
 
so STRAUSS AND ROSSINI 
 
 part affected, with no result. He wished to try the influence 
 of copper. A brass candlestick being near at hand, he 
 applied it, on which the pain instantly vanished. 
 
 January 26th. 
 
 I have been told — but I cannot vouch for the authenticity 
 of the fact — that Colonel Pietri, whose most singular conduct 
 at the funeral of Proudhon I informed you of, has been put 
 under arrest for a fortnight. The adventure of Colonel Pietri 
 reminds one of the story of another French officer, who, 
 happening to pass one day at the head of his regiment before 
 the Clos-Vougeot's celebrated vineyards, ordered his soldiers 
 to stop and carry arms, thereby rendering military honours 
 to the best of wines. 
 
 January 2'jth. 
 
 A new element of success is to attract the habituis of the 
 balls in the Opera House to the next fete. Strauss, the well- 
 known musical composer (not the apostle of Rationalism), 
 has decided that Rossini's fanfare shall be introduced into 
 a hunting quadrille, which he has composed for the occasion, 
 to accomplish which he applied to all the masters of hounds 
 residing in or near Paris for permission to employ their 
 huntsmen to sound their horns at the right moment in the 
 said quadrille. Permission granted, the next thing to do was 
 to have a rehearsal. The place of meeting was naturally a 
 wineshop, and the one selected was one well known in the 
 Rue St. Honor6, near the Halles, the hour fixed being ten 
 o'clock at night. Strauss was punctnal, gave his name to 
 the dame du comptoir, who received him with the utmost 
 politeness, and handed him a small wax taper, requesting 
 him to descend a ladder, at the bottom of which he would 
 find a staircase, then a trap-door, on opening which another 
 ladder would bring him to the desired place of meeting. 
 By no means liking this subterranean excursion, the great 
 man, however, was ashamed to show the white feather, and. 
 
LE NOTRE'S ARMS 51 
 
 dimly lighted by the flicker of the rat de cave, which only 
 made the darkness the more visible, he obeyed, and, greatly 
 to his own astonishment, at the third floor underground 
 found himself in a vast hall, where a jolly party of huntsmen 
 received him by a blast that would have aroused the Seven 
 Sleepers. The mystery is explained by the fact that M. le 
 Pr^fet de Police has issued a decree forbidding horns to be 
 sounded in Paris. 
 
 The Rue St. Honor6 is almost impassable opposite the 
 Church of St. Roch in consequence of the reparations of the 
 old portico now going on. It was built in 1738. Corneille, 
 Maupertuis, Mignard, and Le Notre, the designer of the 
 Gardens of Versailles, the Tuileries, etc., are all buried within 
 its walls. In 1675 the Grand Monarque, in acknowledgment 
 of Le Notre'S genius and his great services, granted him 
 letters patent of nobility, to which the King wished to add 
 a coat-of-arms. " Sire," said the artist, " my family arms are 
 three snails charged on a head of cabbage. I shall quarter 
 a spade on my shield, if your Majesty will permit me to 
 do so, as I owe to that instrument all the marks of royal 
 favour with which I am overwhelmed." 
 
 February 2nd. 
 
 A new mode of robbery is recorded in this morning's papers 
 as having taken place at one of the last performances of 
 Linda di Chamouni at the Italian Opera, and the ingenuity as 
 well as originality with which it has been carried out strikes 
 one as worthy of Cartouche himself. Her Majesty was present 
 on the night in question. A box within three or four of the 
 one occupied by the Empress attracted the attention of the 
 house, from the peculiar magnificence of the costume worn 
 by a foreign lady, who, accompanied by her husband, had 
 entered it at the commencement of the first act. The lady's 
 dress bespoke an Eastern origin, but the peculiar form and 
 exquisite workmanship of her diamond earrings excited great 
 admiration. Her husband quitted her for a few moments 
 
52 A PAIR OF EARRINGS 
 
 between one of the acts. A low knock at the door of the 
 box attracted the lady's notice. A most gentlemanlike 
 person presented himself, bearing a message from Her 
 Majesty, expressive of her great admiration of the earrings 
 worn by the lady, and her extreme curiosity to be allowed to 
 look at one for a few seconds. The lady, somewhat astonished, 
 complied instantly with the soi-disant equerry's request, and a 
 few seconds afterwards, on her husband's return, related the 
 circumstances. To him the story seemed improbable, and on 
 inquiry from one of Her Majesty's suite he ascertained it to 
 be the device of a robber — but too late. The next morning 
 the husband started early to give all the details to the Prefect 
 of Police, when, about half an hour after he had left his hotel, 
 a person from the Prefecture asked to see the lady, and, 
 producing a letter from M. le Pr6fet, explained the necessity 
 of at once depositing the remaining earring in the hands of 
 the police, in order to facilitate the search for the one abstracted 
 on the previous night. The lady acceded to the demand of 
 the detective with less hesitation than to the polite request of 
 the equerry, and Cartouche's rival possessed a pair of rare 
 diamond pendeloques instead of one — a close-fitting dark dress, 
 tightly buttoned to the throat, and a huge beard having trans- 
 formed the quondam equerry, got up in an evening dress of 
 faultless perfection, into an active police agent. 
 
 February $tk. 
 
 Invitations have been issued for a grand soir/e at Rossini's 
 house for Friday, the loth instant. The great maestro has 
 allowed the secret of a new opera to transpire, of which, it is 
 said in the musical world, he intends to allow, his friends to 
 judge on the evening in question. Rossini said the other day 
 to Marmontel, professor of instrumental music at the Conser- 
 vatoire, " I am told that my compositions for the piano are 
 difficult to execute from defective fingering. This is more 
 than probable ; I am but a fourth-rate performer, and ought 
 to apply for admittance to the cours at the Conservatoire to 
 
EUGENE DELACROIX 53 
 
 improve myself," at which joke Marmontel laughed. To his 
 surprise, next morning Rossini made his appearance at the 
 Conservatoire, and asked for a ticket for M. Marmontel's 
 cours. M. Auber, before handing it to him, wrote on it, 
 " Regular attendance will not be required from this pupil." 
 
 The following anecdote of Count' Pourtal^s, whose gallery 
 occupies so much attention at this moment, gives one a 
 charming idea of the man himself, therefore I repeat it. The 
 Count's attention was attracted to the works of a young artist, 
 exhibited for the first time at the Salon ; the name was then 
 unknown, and it was with some difficulty the Count procured 
 his address. He wrote to request the young aspirant to bring 
 one of the pictures exhibited to his house, which request was 
 at once acceded to. " I should like to add your picture to my 
 collection, sir," said the Count. " May I venture to inquire its 
 price ? " " Two thousand francs," replied the young man, 
 debating within himself whether he had not ventured on too 
 large a sum. " Ten thousand francs ! " replied the great man, 
 feigning temporary deafness. " Very well, then, consider the 
 transaction as settled." The artist, unwilling to benefit by a 
 mistake, at once explained the error he fancied the Count had 
 committed. " Pardon," interrupted M. de Pourtal^s, " je ne 
 marchande jamais." The young artist died lately in the 
 zenith of his world-wide reputation, and at the coming sale 
 two of his pictures will be competed for by more than one 
 crowned head. 
 
 February Zth. 
 
 Yesterday a party of Eugene Delacroix' friends met at 
 M. F. Villot's house to see his great work, " The Assassina- 
 tion of the Bishop of Li^ge," lit up by a reflector precisely 
 as Delacroix himself had directed. The evening previous to 
 the sale, which is to take place next Friday, it will be ex- 
 hibited thus lighted. The catalogue contains the following 
 interesting details as to this chef-d'ceuvre of the great artist. 
 The rough sketch was made in 1827, Horace Vernet had 
 
54 NEWSPAPER BAITS 
 
 just been named Director of the Ecole de Rome, and his 
 father, Carle Vernet, accompanied him to Italy. Delacroix 
 took his studio, No. 15, Quai Voltaire. There he set to work 
 on this picture, but found so much difficulty in its composition 
 that he recommenced it eight times. " The white tablecloth," 
 he said to M. Villot, " will be my Austerlitz or my Waterloo. 
 I begin it to-morrow, come and see me in the evening." His 
 friend was punctual. Delacroix, in a short, red, flannel blouse, 
 pallet in hand, opened his door. " All right," he exclaimed, 
 " it is my Austerlitz," showing the picture. The cloth, thrown 
 into strong relief by the bloody scene, lighted up the whole 
 canvas with marvellous effect. The Duke of Orleans gave 
 1,500 francs for the picture, a mere fraction of its worth, but 
 Delacroix was then unknown. M. Villot purchased it at the 
 late Duchess's sale. It has been exhibited twice in Paris 
 and once in London, in 1862. 
 
 You are aware that it is the practice for all French papers 
 to offer subscribers a premium varying in value according to 
 the length of the abonnement. Thus La France offered George 
 Sand's Histoire de Ma Vie, sixteen volumes, for a year's 
 subscription ; the Constitutionnel, Lamartine's Confidences, 
 two volumes, for six months ; and in a journal de modes I 
 saw twelve photographs of the subscriber, to be taken by 
 Pranck, offered as an inducement for a three months' abonne- 
 ment. To all this we are accustomed, but quite a novel idea 
 has been struck out by a paper started at Rome last week. 
 This journal has been fortunate enough to secure no less a 
 boon than the blessing of His Holiness the Pope, and its 
 editor offers to spread the papal benediction over all who 
 subscribe within a specified time to his paper. The Opinion 
 Nationale inquires whether three-months' subscribers will be 
 equally blessed with more pious souls who write down their 
 names for a year's benediction as well as for the paper. 
 
 The hippophagic, otherwise horseflesh, banquet came off 
 yesterday, so I understand, at the Grand Hotel, one 
 hundred and thirty odd persons having taken tickets. 
 The dinner took place in the great Salle Hemicycle. 
 
THE HORSEFLESH BANQUET 55 
 
 Horse soup, horse-boiled aux choux, horse en bosuf d la mode, 
 horse roast, horse pAti defoie with trufifles, were successively 
 eaten and discussed. At dessert M. de Quatrefages, the 
 Chairman of the Horseflesh Committee, drank to the memory 
 of the illustrious Geoifroy de Saint Hilaire, who first suggested 
 the idea of turning that noble animal to the vile use of feed- 
 ing mankind. M. Gustave Geoffroy Saint Hilaire, the Director 
 of the Jardin d'Acclimatation, returned thanks for the honour 
 done to his father. M. Jules Delbruck next addressed the 
 company, putting the thing in a moral point of view which 
 struck me as original. He said that, whereas now horses 
 were abused and made to work while breath was in them, 
 once accepted as an article of food pains would be taken by 
 their possessors to preserve them from injury, and a speedier 
 end would be put to their life of toil by the necessity of kill- 
 ing them before they had attained a great age. This, however, 
 was victoriously refuted by the next speaker, the Director of 
 the Veterinary School of Alfort, who pleasantly assured the 
 guests that in order to prove that a horse was good for food 
 to the last, he himself had supplied the chef of the Grand 
 H6tel for the dinner they had just eaten with pieces of used- 
 up old animals, with scarcely any flesh on their bones, the 
 youngest of the lot having attained fourteen years and the 
 others twenty, and even two-and-twenty years of age. The 
 effect of this speech on the assembly reminded me of a story 
 told of Alexandre Dumas, who while travelling in Russia 
 and being offered a bear steak for his dinner accepted the 
 novelty, and, after eating the whole, remarked on its excel- 
 lence to the master of the hotel. The latter replied, " Ah, he 
 was an awful beast, and hard to catch ; but our best shot killed 
 him last night. He had eaten the young man's father, whole, 
 in the morning." 
 
S6 THE VERNETS 
 
 February it,th. 
 
 A dynasty of artists, who for one hundred and fifty years 
 held their undisputed sway in France, became extinct on the 
 17th January, 1863, in the person of that king of historical 
 painters, Horace Vernet. Their history has appeared this 
 week, written by Amddee Durande, entitled Joseph, Carle, 
 et Horace Vernet. The book is charmingly written, and, I 
 should say, would be very popular in England. After tracing 
 the brilliant career of Joseph and Carle, we come to the more 
 recent life of Horace, telling of his birth in the Louvre, which 
 had been the home of three generations of the family, where 
 the child drew soldiers and horses before he could write 
 his name. Carle had been a fierce Royalist ; Horace, the 
 future master-painter of battle-pieces, was enthusiastically 
 attached to the Empire. Horace Vernet's pictures, Bdranger's 
 songs, and Queen Hortense's airs were the events of the day 
 even before Horace went to Rome. Louis Philippe's acces- 
 sion recalled him to France, and the formation of the historic 
 galleries of Versailles supplied him with abundant work. 
 The King sent him to Algeria to study the scenes of his son's 
 victories. On his return Horace quarrelled with the King 
 about the price of a picture and started for Russia, but 
 returned home to paint with more genius and rapidity than 
 any of his contemporaries. Horace Vernet differed widely 
 from his son-in-law, Delaroche, on the principles of art, but 
 was deeply attached to him. For many years I lived in a 
 house close to his atelier ^.t Versailles, Impasse des Gendarmes; 
 I was a child at the time. I used to see Louis Philippe pay- 
 ing him visits whilst he was painting, at the Jeu de Paume, 
 his gigantic picture of the "Due d'Aumale taking the Smilah." 
 He was a spare, short man, full of nerve and activity. In 
 1848 he was colonel of the National Guard of Seine-et-Oise, 
 and the uniform became him extremely. No one ever 
 painted the French soldier as he did. I have often, in the 
 galleries at Versailles, observed privates staring at Horace 
 
HIPPOLYTE FLANDRIN 57 
 
 Vernet's battle-pieces, recognising with the greatest delight 
 the likeness of one of their comrades, for he always sent to 
 the barracks for his models. He and I were neighbours for 
 many years, and I have only one complaint to make of him, 
 namely, that to the infinite detriment of my breakfasts and 
 dinners Horace Vernet enticed a splendid woman cook out of 
 my house to sit as model for an Algerian slave in his great 
 picture of the "Smilah." But revenons d nos moutons. 
 Amed^e Durande's book is well worth reading. 
 
 February lyth.. 
 
 The exhibition at the Ecole des Beaux Arts of the works 
 of Hippolyte Flandrin opened yesterday. The proceeds are 
 to be given to the Association for Poor Artists. Eleven 
 pictures, forty-three portraits, and a most interesting collection 
 of cartoons and sketches of the frescoes which Flandrin 
 executed for the Churches of Saint Germain-des Prds, St. 
 S6verin, and St. Paul de Nimes are exhibited. Flandrin 
 excelled in his portraits, which are perfect photographs in 
 accuracy of likeness and detail. His portrait of" Napoleon HI." 
 and of the " Jeune Fille a I'CEillet," well known as Madame 
 de Mackau, are types of opposite style : selon mot, the 
 former is an unrivalled portrait, conveying the character of 
 the Emperor with startling accuracy to the spectator, and the 
 latter a very ordinary picture. His portrait of Prince 
 Napoleon is another success ; Flandrin preserved the like- 
 ness, while strongly marking the Napoleonic cast of features 
 so peculiar to the Prince. Count Walewski's portrait is 
 admirable, whereas neither the Countess Sieyes nor the 
 Countess Maison have sufficient softness of colouring to 
 please me. His own portrait conveys to one the idea of an 
 ill-tempered ascetic, whereas poor Flandrin was one of the 
 gentlest and most timid of human beings, his mild nature 
 being deeply tinged with melancholy. As a work of art the 
 portrait has immense value, but it does not do the great man 
 justice as a likeness. A lady in the crowd, contemplating 
 
S8 COLOURS AT THE INVALIDES 
 
 the portrait of a young girl simply attired in white, the 
 sleeves and petticoat of whose dress are of the narrow pro- 
 portions worn a few years ago, exclaimed, looking at her 
 own flowing skirt, the ample dimensions of which certainly 
 measured some six or seven yards in circumference, " Est-il 
 possible que de cela nous sommes arriv^es a ceci ? " 
 
 March ^rd. 
 
 A most interesting ceremony has taken place at the 
 Invalides, which recalls the visit of the Allies to Paris in 
 1 8 14, who in the papers which give an account of it are 
 designated as nos ennemis. It appears that when these said 
 ennemis were on the point of entering Paris, Marshal S^rurier, 
 then Governor of the Invalides, determined to burn no less 
 than 1,417 stand of colours taken at different periods by the 
 armies of France from foreign nations ; this holocaust was 
 hurriedly accomplished in the dead of night, and so imper- 
 fectly that several old soldiers were able to abstract some of 
 the flags : these, a devoted adherent of the Empire, Baron 
 d'Autist, has with indefatigable energy collected and presented 
 to the Emperor. Among them the Scotch standard of the 66th 
 Regiment, two Egyptian flags taken from the Mamelukes, 
 two Prussian, one Austrian, two Spanish, and one Portuguese 
 standards. To these General d'Autist has added two pur- 
 chased by him in Switzerland, one of which was presented by 
 Richelieu under the regency of Marie de Medicis to the 
 Grisons. It is in perfect preservation, and bears the device, 
 " If God be for us, who can be against us ? 1619." A second 
 is in a ragged condition, and has the date 1476 embroidered 
 on it. The Grisons rallied round this flag at the Battle of 
 Morat, where the Swiss beat the Burgundian Duke, Charles 
 le Tem^raire. These relics were transferred on Sunday last 
 to the Invalides, escorted by a squadron of Chasseurs, and 
 were received by Comte de Brancion, surrounded by his 
 staff", and the old soldiers drawn up in line within the gates. 
 The Comte, as he took each standard from the cavalry officer 
 
HAT FEATHERS 59 
 
 who had the charge of it, handed it to an invalide decorated 
 with the Legion d'Honneur. A procession was then formed, 
 at the head of which were the twelve invalides carrying the 
 twelve ancient trophies of their country's victories. These led 
 the way to the chapel, where, to the solemn peal of the 
 organ and shrill note of the bugle, the old banners were 
 replaced in the niches from which they had been hurriedly 
 torn forty-one years since. 
 
 Avts aux dames, the feathers of the sophophore are the last 
 caprice of fashion. One of its queens having worn a plume 
 of this bird in her hat, the rest of the fair Parisian world 
 must naturally be adorned by the same brilliant plumage. 
 One pair was imported last year by the Socidtd du Jardin 
 d'Acclimatation, and it is a fact that the officials attached to 
 the gardens have been persecuted by the importunities of 
 every class of the fair sex, from that of the duchess to the 
 anonyma of the day, for even one feather of this rara avis. 
 The petitioners, however, have been heartlessly refused, as 
 even the Gardens possessed but the male bird, the hen 
 having died. En revanche, however, they sell the wings of 
 Chinese ducks, of golden pheasants, and of an American 
 bird almost for their weight in gold, and find this new 
 traffic quite as remunerative as the more serious sale of 
 acclimatised animals. 
 
 The prison of the Madelonnettes, opposite the temple, is 
 occupied by condemned criminals of both sexes as well as 
 by persons awaiting their trial. The juvenile vagrants and 
 young thieves are organised on a military plan, the well- 
 behaved being raised to the rank of corporals and sergeants. 
 Besides being taught to read and write, they are instructed 
 in some trade, such as shoemaking, tailoring, weaving, etc. 
 Lately they have also received lessons in music, and the 
 results obtained are surprising. On Shrove Tuesday a vocal 
 concert was given by sixty of these unfortunate lads, who 
 had been trained by Aime Paris according to the Chevd 
 method. They sang the chorus in Don Juan, to which 
 M. Aimd Paris set French words ; the " Tirelire a Jacquot," 
 
6o REFORMATORIES 
 
 by Clapisson ; " Les Forgerons," by Ascoli ; " Des Deux 
 Avares," by Gr^try, and several other well-known airs. The 
 young musicians seemed quite surprised at their own per- 
 formance, which was most creditable. They also went 
 through the exercises M. Paris wrote out on a blackboard 
 with a precision of rhythm and intonation which is often 
 wanting in professional chorus singers. The applause of the 
 audience, which consisted of five hundred poor prisoners, 
 was pleasant to hear. They encored several of the pieces, 
 and these the governor of the prison immediately directed 
 the singers to repeat, the genuine delight depicted on their 
 rough countenances seeming to give him the utmost gratifi- 
 cation. He was heard to state that sirice the mass sung by 
 these young Orph^onistes at Christmas he had not been 
 required to inflict a single punishment. This is a grand 
 result obtained by music, and, be it remembered, among some 
 of the most corrupt and debased of the human race. 
 
 March c,ik. 
 
 The ceremony of replacing the standards recovered by 
 Baron d'Autist at the Invalides last Sunday has raised the 
 question as to what has been the fate of Frederick the Great's 
 sword, which Napoleon I. took from Potsdam after the Battle 
 of Jena, and sent to the Invalides as a trophy of his great 
 victory. It appears that on the night during which the con- 
 flagration of the standards took place by order of Marshal 
 Serurier, this sword was sawn in four parts, and each portion 
 built into the four inner walls of the Hotel des Invalides. 
 
 March gth. 
 
 As it is likely that the debtors' prison of Clichy will be 
 done away with during the course of this session, the follow- 
 ing details on its organisation may prove interesting. The 
 average number of prisoners for debt sent there is from 450 
 to 500. When the prisoner has passed the three great entrance 
 
AND PRISONS 6 1 
 
 gates he is paid 45 f. per month — a sum totally inadequate to 
 his support, as Government neither supplies him with firing 
 nor any kind of provision, and many of the unfortunate in- 
 mates have to support their families out of this pittance of 
 IS. id. per day. Necessity is the mother of invention. In 
 1848 the prisoners formed an association for their mutual 
 support, and, strange to tell, Government did not attempt to 
 interfere with their plan. A committee, chosen by ballot 
 among the prisoners, drew up the following regulations : 
 Each member was bound to subscribe 10 c. {id.) per day, 
 which would give him the privilege of using the close oven 
 purchased by the association, likewise baths at a reduced 
 price, and to mess with the association at the rate of S</. per 
 day, which, by purchasing their provisions wholesale, enabled 
 the members of the association to live on soldiers' rations. 
 The society not only fulfils these conditions, but realises 
 profits. These, to the credit of the poor subscribers, they 
 devote to the release of the poorest among them, and often 
 when the debt the committee have voted to be defrayed has 
 been beyond the funds at their disposal, they have sent 
 weekly supplies to the family of the debtor, who, in many 
 instances, have been thus rescued from starvation by the 
 generous self-denial of the prisoners — an example that more 
 aristocratic clubs might do well to take a hint from. Clichy 
 possesses a billiard-room as well as chess and draught boards. 
 In the gardens there are games of ninepins and balls. A 
 prisoner by subscribing to the association has the right to 
 enjoy these recreations. M. de Villemessant, editor of the 
 Figaro, the Grand Journal, etc., established a reading-room, 
 which he liberally supplies with papers and periodicals as well 
 as books, a subscription of one sou {^d.) entitling a prisoner 
 to the use of this library, and a supply of fresh works being 
 sent in daily. 
 
62 THE DEATH OF 
 
 March loth. 
 
 De Morny is dead ! At eight this morning there was 
 an end to the intense sufferings of the last few days — 
 an end to his brilliant career, an end to the very small 
 hope which Rayer's last bulletin allowed us still to cling 
 to. At a quarter past eight last evening the noble Duke 
 was given up by his physicians. The Marquis de la Valette, 
 his intimate friend, immediately rushed to the Tuileries 
 to inform the Emperor of the impending crisis. A con- 
 cert was to have taken place at the Court. Counter orders 
 were instantly sent out. The Emperor, accompanied by the 
 Empress, started at once to the Palais de la Pr^sidence. They 
 arrived in time to kneel down by the bedside, whilst Mon- 
 seigneur Darboy was praying and giving the last sacraments 
 to the Duke. The parting scene which then took place was 
 most touching. In the Duke de Morny the Emperor loses 
 more than a devoted friend — a fond and affectionate heart. 
 In him the country loses a most talented leader. The power 
 with which he swayed the Corps Legislatif was mainly owing 
 to the calm intrepidity with which he ever accepted the gravest 
 responsibilities, and stood ready to meet, with the inward con- 
 sciousness of impartiality, the consequences of his decisions, 
 whatever these might be. His speeches, whenever he made 
 any, were invariably listened to by men of all parties with 
 pleasure and approbation. The eloquence of De Morny, 
 distinguished as it was by intellectual subtleties and brilliant 
 flights of fancy, brought out with consummate skill weighty 
 arguments which never failed to elucidate the most intricate 
 questions. The moral intrepidity of his nature, of which he 
 gave so many proofs, strangely contrasted with the urbanity 
 of his manners and the kind and courteous expression of his 
 countenance. In conversation his wit and sarcasm were 
 always genial and well applied, and even in his gayest 
 moments there was a spirit of good directed to some useful 
 or philanthropic object. No man was ever more courted in 
 
DE MORNY 63 
 
 society by individuals either distinguished for rank, literature, 
 or public service. Deeply, most deeply, will he be regretted, 
 and that not only by the Imperialists of the day, by the rich 
 and aristocratic members of the Jockey Club, but also by the 
 poet, the novelist, the dramatic author, the poor artist, and 
 even the humble clerk, who ever found in him a helping hand, 
 a sympathising heart, as well as a faithful and devoted pro- 
 tector. The salons of Paris will miss his noble presence, his 
 wit, his rich and playful fancy; the gentler sex will always 
 remember him as being a true representative of a chevalier 
 des anciens temps. 
 
 March 12th. 
 
 In the midst of deathlike silence the Vice-President of the 
 Corps Legislatif opened the proceedings of Saturday by the 
 announcement that the State funeral of their President would 
 take place at twelve on Monday at the church of the Made- 
 leine, adding the simple words, "The Corps Legislatif, without 
 one exception, would wish to attend." Cries of " Yes, yes," 
 burst simultaneously from every deputy, whether Legitimist, 
 Orleanist, or Republican, and with a depth of feeling that 
 proved the heartfelt sorrow experienced by men of every 
 shade of political feeling for their deceased leader. It appears 
 that when the Emperor was summoned, with the Empress, on 
 Thursday night to the closing scene at the Palace of the 
 Corps Legislatif, the Emperor was suffering from severe 
 rheumatism : this has increased, and, added to the severe 
 mental suffering caused by the sudden shock, has prevented 
 his leaving his private apartments to-day or yesterday. 
 The Empress, overcome by the scene of sorrow around her, 
 knelt at the bedside of the dying man and burst into an 
 agony of tears. The Emperor grasped the hand of his loved 
 friend and fainted on the bed. It was some time before he 
 recovered. The Duke, whose senses were as clear as in his 
 brightest days, thanked the Emperor with the warmest ex- 
 pressions of affection. They remained till an early hour of 
 
64 THE DUCHESS DE MORNY 
 
 the morning, when the Emperor's place at the bedside was 
 taken by Comte Flahaut, who remained till the last sigh was 
 breathed, and was present while the Duke, with wonderful 
 lucidity, dictated his last wishes to M. Rouher, Minister of 
 State. At his own request his four little children, the youngest 
 of whom has not yet attained her first year, were brought to 
 him at eight o'clock, and he had taken leave of them when 
 the Emperor and Empress arrived. The state of the Duchess 
 de Morny has called forth the deepest sympathy from the 
 Empress, who not only remained till an early hour on Friday 
 morning at the President's Palace, but returned at three 
 o'clock, at which hour I happened to go there, to write down 
 my name in the long list of inquirers. While thus engaged 
 I saw the Imperial carriage drive up, and the Empress, attired 
 in the deepest mourning, attended by the Comtesse de Poege 
 and Mademoiselle Bouvet, quietly crossed the hall and as- 
 cended the staircase leading to the Duchess's apartments. It 
 is quite an error to state that when the Duke won the hand of 
 the fair Princess Troubetskoi he likewise secured a large 
 dower. It is well known that her father, the head of one of 
 the oldest of the Russian houses, had the audacity to differ 
 on a point of honour with the late autocrat of all the Russias, 
 and, as a natural consequence, was transferred to Siberia when 
 the widowed Duchess de Morny was a mere child. She was 
 therefore dowerless. Although deeply engaged in speculation 
 of all kinds, the state of the Duke's affairs proves that cupidity 
 was the last fault that could be attributed to one of the most 
 generous-minded men that ever breathed. Of his perfect 
 disinterestedness Emile de Girardin gives a signal proof by 
 the conversation he quotes as having held with him but a 
 few days before the fatal illness set in, in which the Duke 
 said : " So convinced am I that the time has come when 
 liberty is imperatively required by the country that I am per- 
 fectly ready to give up the presidency of the Chambers and 
 resume the direction of the Ministere de I'lnt^rieur should 
 my presence there be imperiously required." But a few weeks 
 have elapsed since I was received by the Duke in his private 
 
THE DUKE AND HIS CHILDREN 6$ 
 
 library. The audience terminated, with his accustomed cour- 
 tesy he accompanied me along the magnificent gallery, 
 where he had collected with such consummate discrimination 
 the gems of art he always contemplated with so much 
 evident pleasure. Suddenly a door burst open — three lovely 
 children, fair, almost as though born on English soil, joyously 
 claimed his presence at some newly invented game. The 
 Greuzes, the Meissoniers, the grave preoccupations of the 
 hour were each and all at once forgotten, and the children 
 evidently won the day. As the gilded doors closed on the 
 merry group, it would have been difficult to have believed 
 that Death had set his seal on the affectionate father, the 
 refined art patron, the gifted statesman, and the kind and 
 never-failing friend, around whose princely home so unusual 
 a portion of earthly happiness appeared to have centred. The 
 grief of the Duchess is the more poignant, as she refused to 
 admit the possibility of any danger existing till late on 
 Thursday; and so utterly unaware was she of the real state 
 of things that it was at her request the preparations were 
 commenced for the i>al costumi at Mi-Carime, to which the 
 Duke gave an unwilling consent. It is to be feared that owing 
 to the Duke's constant acts of generosity a very small pro- 
 vision has been made for his children. 
 
 The dull sound of cannon booming across the hushed city 
 announced, at an early hour, that all that remains of De Morny 
 was this day [March 1 3] to be laid in the grave. Summoned in 
 the name of " La Duchesse de Morny et ses enfants " to the 
 Palace of the Presidency at eleven o'clock, the immediate 
 friends of the family, the great officers of State, forty of the 
 senators, the Corps L^gislatif, the Cour de Cassation, the 
 Tribunal de Premiere Instance, diplomatists, and courtiers, 
 thronged the corridors and the magnificent salle which had 
 been converted into a " chapelle ardente," where lay the plain, 
 black velvet coffin covered by a silver-edged pall. The whole 
 of the outside of the building was draped with black, and the 
 motto in silver, " Pro Patrii et Imperatore," was inscribed on 
 the columns. In the Cour d'Honneur waited the silver-and- 
 
66 THE FUNERAL OF 
 
 black hearse, surmounted by the coronet of the late Duke, 
 over which black crape was thrown. At half-past eleven the 
 coffin, followed by General Comte Flahaut, Marquis de la 
 Valette, atid the attendant crowd, was carried out, and the 
 hearse, surrounded by an escort of the Cent Gardes, pro- 
 ceeded towards the Madeleine. Immediately following came 
 the late Duke's state carriage draped with sables, two Court 
 carriages magnificently turned out, the servants wearing 
 state liveries, the splendid horses caparisoned with scarlet- 
 and-gold harness ; the state carriages of Prince Napoleon and 
 Princess Mathilde ; the Duchess's private carriage ; next to 
 which came a plain English brougham, bearing the foreign 
 coronet of a count and that of an English peeress. Next 
 followed the state equipage of the Austrian Embassy, 
 occupied by Her Excellency Princess de Metternich, the 
 state carriages of the senators, the private carriages of the 
 deputies, ambassadors, etc. The streets were lined with 
 troops from an early hour. The procession was escorted by 
 squadrons of every cavalry regiment quartered in Paris. 
 The shops were closed, and every window, balcony, and even 
 the roofs of the houses crowded by persons of every class 
 and grade. I must not omit that a deputation of the Polish 
 Committee, wearing their tattered uniforms, formed part of 
 the procession. Within the immense church of the Madeleine 
 the densest gloom prevailed, the floors, walls, and ceiling 
 being covered with black cloth, relieved at wide intervals by 
 small escutcheons, emblazoned by the ducal arms and coronet, 
 and by shields bearing the initial " M " in silver. Every ray 
 of outward daylight was excluded, and an unearthly shade 
 produced by green fire burnt in gigantic silver sconces, which, 
 mingled with the subdued light of thousands of wax tapers, 
 added to the sepulchral scene in the interior of the vast 
 church. The sound of muffled drums informed us of the 
 approach of the coffin. Two lines of white-robed priests, 
 preceding the Archbishop of Paris wearing his full canonicals 
 and mitre, moved slowly down the aisle to the great entrance, 
 the choir singing the Miserere, occasionally interrupted by 
 
DE MORNY 67 
 
 the deep peal of the organ. Borne by eight men, the coffin 
 was carried up the centre of the church, followed by the 
 representatives of the Emperor, General Fleury, Marshal 
 Vaillant, and the Duke de Bassano, and was placed under 
 the catafalque prepared for its reception, over which a 
 baldequin, lined with ermine, was suspended, surrounded by 
 several hundred tapers. On swept the brilliant crowd — the 
 white uniforms of the Austrian, the scarlet coats of the 
 English, representatives of the Embassy, the dark green 
 dress of the Italian envoy and his attaches, the crimson 
 robes of the presidents of the law courts, the bright yellow 
 costume of the great officers of justice, contrasting with the 
 dark uniforms of the French marshals and the black-and- 
 gold embroidered state dress of the senators and deputies. 
 The effect of this mass of brilliant colour, thrown into the 
 strongest relief by the sable hue of the gloomy background, 
 was very striking. The Duke de Persigny, the Ministre 
 d'Etat, the Chancellier of the Ldgion d'Honneur, and the 
 Ministre de I'lnterieur, wearing their grand cordons, took 
 their places in black velvet fauteuils at each corner of the 
 catafalque ; while the representatives of the Emperor and 
 ambassadors were placed near the grand altar. The Arch- 
 bishop intoned the service, standing at the head of the coffin, 
 his mitre and train borne by attendant bishops. In the 
 tribune reserved over the grand altar for the family of the 
 Duke I remarked several ladies, whose grief seemed almost 
 uncontrollable. The ceremonies of the church concluded in 
 half an hour. As the coffin issued from under the broad 
 person of La Madeleine, a bright flash of sunlight burst from 
 the lowering clouds and lit up the scene with marvellous 
 effect. The dense crowd was kept in line by the Garde 
 Imp^riale. At a slow pace the immense procession moved 
 towards Pere la Chaise, where the body will lie till prepara- 
 tions for its reception are completed on the Duke's estate in 
 Auvergne. 
 
 As I left the cemetery the Ministre d'Etat, M. Rouher, 
 was speaking, and M. Schneider, the Vice-President, was to 
 
68 THE PELISSIER 
 
 deliver the second oration over the grave. None of the 
 evening papers can reproduce these speeches, as the hour is 
 so late, and the line of carriages alone took one hour and 
 a quarter to pass. 
 
 A great country has paid its last homage to its favourite 
 statesman with all the pomp and circumstance that could 
 surround the funeral ceremony ; but if long lines of ministers 
 in their state uniforms, of diplomatists from every Court in 
 Europe, and of deputies in embroidered uniforms, marked 
 that, although crdpe covered their swords, their attendance 
 was officially required, there are breaking hearts and bitter 
 tears for De Morny, and deep, unfeigned sorrow is widely felt 
 for him. 
 
 March \t,th. 
 
 A most extraordinary case of parricide has been brought 
 before the assizes of the Puy de D6me, and occupies public 
 attention. An old couple named P^lissier Grimardias were 
 living at the beginning of i860 in the town of Maringues, 
 the husband being then seventy years of age and the wife 
 sixty. P,^lissier had been an old soldier of the First Empire, 
 but had turned baker. He had a son Jean, who was married, 
 but had no children, and a daughter Fran5oise, married to one 
 Morand. From his youth Jean Pdlissier had been remarked 
 in the neighbourhood for the brutality of his character. He 
 had of latter years constantly been heard to say that when 
 people's parents became old and useless, they ought to be 
 got rid of. In December, 1857, Jean P^lissier was im- 
 prisoned for having thrown a wooden shoe at a girl's head. 
 He had often struck his wife with an iron instrument used 
 in the process of baking. His only companion was a 
 returned convict. In the beginning of i860 quarrels as to 
 money matters between him and his parents arose, and Jean 
 succeeded in inducing the whole family to set out for Riom, 
 a town nineteen kilometres from Maringues, to consult a 
 lawyer. He, however, managed to send home his wife and 
 sister. They were much surprised next day at the non-appear- 
 
MURDERS 69 
 
 ance of the old couple or of Jean, who did not return till 
 midnight, when he stated that his father had met an old 
 comrade, a man named S6n6, who had a very profitable wine 
 business at Marseilles, whither he had induced his parents to 
 accompany him. In a few days Jean read aloud a letter 
 from his father to his wife and sister, in which the old man 
 begged he would join him at Marseilles, and bring with him 
 a supply of clothes for himself and his mother. Jean left 
 home immediately, and returned in the course of a few days, 
 reporting most favourably of his father's new business, stat- 
 ing that his mother assisted in Sene's shop, and that both 
 were making considerable sums of money. It must be 
 remembered that neither his wife nor sister could read. 
 During the years 1860-3 Jean from time to time read 
 out similar letters and absented himself from home, in- 
 variably returning with money, which, he stated, his parents 
 had given him. Meanwhile his sister repeatedly expressed 
 a wish to accompany him on a visit to her parents, and at 
 last insisted on doing so last May. In spite of all the 
 difficulties Jean raised to her journey, she commenced her 
 preparations, when on the nth Jean received a letter from 
 Sen6, announcing the death of old Madame Pdissier, and 
 stating that just as the old man was starting for Maringues 
 to inform his family of her death he himself died of 
 apoplexy. Jean set off instantly in a state of most demon- 
 strative affliction. A sudden doubt flashed across the mind 
 of his sister. She inquired at the post office, and on ascer- 
 taining that no letter from Marseilles had been delivered 
 to her brother she felt convinced that he had murdered her 
 parents. Jean made his appearance at the end of two days. 
 A frightful scene ensued. To the appeals of his family as 
 to what he had done with his parents he replied, " That is 
 my secret. What has been done will benefit you all, and 
 I abide the consequences." His sister, frantic with grief and 
 horror, and perfectly convinced of his guilt, took him apart, 
 implored him to save the honour of the family, and begged 
 him to commit suicide rather than ascend the scaffold. A few 
 
70 JEAN PELISSIER 
 
 hours later the poor creature, struck with remorse for having 
 suggested a fresh crime to her brother and maddened by des- 
 pair, cut her own throat. The police having got scent of the 
 suicide and of its motive, succeeded in capturing Jean, who had 
 left Maringues the night of his sister's death. The investiga- 
 tions which followed showed that no trace could be found 
 of the prisoner's father and mother after their arrival at Riom, 
 but it was ascertained that on the following night the 
 prisoner had employed a carrier to convey a large box, weigh- 
 ing at least 300 lbs., from that town to his own residence 
 at Maringues, that the prisoner himself accompanied the 
 cart, and took the box into his house without disturbing his 
 wife or anyone else. There is reason to believe that this 
 box contained the bodies of the missing couple, and that the 
 prisoner had succeeded in concealing or destroying them 
 during the long interval between the crime and his apprehen- 
 sion. When the carrier gave his evidence in court, the 
 prisoner asserted that it was all false. After the Procureur- 
 Gdndral had addressed the Court for the prosecution, the 
 prisoner requested permission to make a statement to the 
 Court in the Council Chamber, which was granted, and when 
 the public audience was resumed the prisoner repeated the 
 declarations already made in private, to the effect that his 
 father and mother had both thrown themselves into the 
 Rhone at Lyons. The counsel for the defence then proposed 
 to postpone the further hearing of the case, but the Court 
 decided that the trial should continue, a decision which was 
 loudly applauded by the public. The President accordingly 
 summed up the evidence, and the jury having brought in a 
 verdict of guilty, with extenuating circumstances, the Court 
 sentenced the prisoner to hard labour for life. 
 
 March 26ih. 
 
 The great event of the day is the judgment delivered in 
 the case of M. Rogeard, author of Les Propos de Labienus, 
 and his printer, Riquier Laind, which was not known when I 
 
THE DEATH OF COBDEN 71 
 
 closed my letter of Friday. It runs thus : " Seeing that 
 Rogeard published during the first days of this month a 
 pamphlet of twenty pages, entitled Les Propos de Labienus ; 
 that the first edition of 1,200 copies was seized at the office 
 of the printer, Riquier Laine ; that this pamphlet, professing 
 to be a picture of the Roman Empire during the reign of 
 Augustus, under the pretext of a conversation between two 
 Romans, Gallien and Labienus, on recently published memoirs 
 of the Emperor Augustus, discusses the affairs of France and 
 of its Sovereign, casts the most outrageous and infamous 
 libels on the person of the Emperor ; that furthermore these 
 cleverly devised calumnies rise in virulence to the delirium of 
 evil passions — therefore in publishing and selling this pamphlet 
 Rogeard, its author, has been guilty of a public attack on the 
 person of the Emperor, which makes him amenable to Article 
 86 of the Penal Code." The incrimination of the printer, 
 Riquier Laind, precedes the sentence, and reads thus : 
 " Rogeard is sentenced to five years' imprisonment and 
 Riquier Laine to one month's imprisonment." Fortunately 
 for him, Rogeard is in Belgium, and, I should say, not likely 
 to return to Paris just at present. I happen to know 
 that Riquier gave the pamphlet to his men to print without 
 having the slightest idea of its contents. His attention was 
 only attracted to it by the crowds of persons who suddenly 
 came to his office to purchase copies. He then read it from 
 mere curiosity. 
 
 April ird. 
 
 The death of Mr. Cobden has created a great sensation 
 in Paris. All this evening's papers contain leading articles 
 of considerable length, giving a biographical sketch of the 
 life of the great economist, and passing a high eulogium on 
 his untiring efforts and persevering labours in the interest of 
 free trade. The Temps considers that France will regret Mr. 
 Cobden as much as in England. He was an unflinching 
 supporter and advocate of the Franco-English alliance, and, 
 though he waged an unceasing war against English prejudices, 
 
72 FRENCH PAPERS ON COBDEN 
 
 England ought to feel more proud of having produced him 
 than any other modern statesman. Mr. Cobden was well 
 known in Paris society, having often resided here, and 
 attracted to his salon a large circle of the politicians and 
 literary men of the day. The Temps concludes its article in 
 the following words : " Mr. Cobden was le fils des ceuvres" a 
 characteristic expression, meaning that he owed his great 
 name to his own exertions. " But," continues the Temps, 
 " we are quite correct ; he was also the son of English liberty, 
 and of that admirable Constitution which represses no indi- 
 vidual exertion. It was by the mere power of liberty, fully 
 granted as it is in England, that the unknown village boy 
 rose to fame and influence, and compelled Government to 
 adopt his ideas, and in the teeth of the aristocratic party 
 accomplished a tremendous revolution in the political 
 economy of the world. In spite of the Revolution of '89, 
 France has never brought forth a man of his caste." La 
 France says that Mr. Cobden was a living example of what 
 ideas, while they are true and just, can produce when they 
 act under the impulse of genius, patriotism, and faith. His 
 doctrines, in which every superior mind of the present day 
 participates, are surely and rapidly advancing towards con- 
 summation. The Presse has put its pages into mourning, 
 and Emile de Girardin declares that but for Cobden Sir 
 Robert Peel would have little chance of being remembered 
 by posterity. He describes Cobden, who had declined to 
 become a member of the Government, as "the minister of 
 enlightened public opinion in England," and remarks that 
 Cobden was in truth more powerful than the whole Cabinet, 
 for he had succeeded in changing the entire course of the 
 foreign policy of his country. Europe, says M. de Girardin, 
 ought to appoint a day of general mourning for the deceased 
 statesman. M. Paulin Limayrac, chief editor of the Consti- 
 tutionnel, says in that journal that " in the death of Mr. 
 Cobden England loses one of her most illustrious citizens, 
 and economic science one of its loftiest and purest lights. 
 The last time we had the honour of seeing Mr, Cobden he 
 
THE MULE RIGOLO 73 
 
 spoke about France and her Sovereign in terms which are 
 engraved on our memory, and still more deeply on our 
 heart." 
 
 The debates on the address have, I admit, absorbed a con- 
 siderable portion of public interest, but the mule Rigolo has 
 been the event of the week, and if I have not mentioned him 
 before, mea culpa, I humbly crave your pardon, and proceed 
 at once to put you au courant of all that concerns this 
 marvellous beast. Rigolo was sent by the proprietor of the 
 Vienna circus to M. Degeau, the manager of the Cirque de 
 lTmp6ratrice, as well as of the Cirque Napol6on. Rigolo 
 belongs to the Opposition, which probably accounts for his 
 popularity, and distinctly refuses to listen to gentle remon- 
 strances or angry invectives, were they even backed by the 
 strong arms of the Government whippers-in themselves. 
 Rigolo arrived in Paris, and appeared in the arena of the 
 Cirque Napoleon with the prestige of his reputation. He had 
 thrown every rough-rider in Germany, and for the last few 
 days he kept up his character. However, Rigolo was con- 
 quered — first by a common gamin, to whom, when on the 
 mule's back, the bright thought occurred to blind him by put- 
 ting his hands over the beast's eyes. Rigolo stood motionless. 
 T\\e gamin was paid the prize of 100 f, and was tremendously 
 cheered, and Rigolo, crestfallen and humble, was led back to 
 his stable amidst shouts of derision. But Rigolo's hour was 
 not yet come. Saturday evening a man, to all appearance a 
 groom, entered the arena. Rigolo had successively thrown 
 dozens of rough-riders. This unassuming individual walked 
 up to him, and in less time than I can write completely 
 mastered him ; whereupon a scene ensued which defies 
 description, and even surpassed the memorable field-day of 
 last Thursday in another arena, in the vehemence of the 
 excitement manifested by the actors as well as the audience. 
 On the victory of the strange groom being evident the men 
 of the circus, conscious of their defeat, interfered to prevent 
 the man carrying out the programme and winning his 100 f 
 by riding three times round the circus. On perceiving this 
 
74 THE DEATH OF COBDEN 
 
 the audience rose simultaneously. A storm of hisses and 
 groans was speedily accompanied by a volley of projectiles, 
 chiefly consisting of the small stools so liberally supplied in 
 all places of public entertainment in France. Rigolo escaped 
 to his stables, and Leotard endeavoured to put an end to the 
 disturbance by attempting to commence his usual gymnastic 
 feats. Notwithstanding several remonstrances on the im- 
 prudence of attempting to perform in the midst of such a 
 scene, he began his feats, and met with a severe fall. This 
 excited the audience to such a pitch that they rushed into 
 the arena, charged the circus grooms, who had to fly, refused 
 to allow Leotard to recommence, and for at least three- 
 quarters of an hour the hisses, groans, and shouts of " Rigolo ! 
 Rigolo ! " continued, when a division of Gardes Municipaux 
 and a strong body of sergents de ville, under the orders of 
 several police agents, appeared and very speedily cleared the 
 house. I must say the police were wrong — the groom ought 
 to have been allowed to gain his loof, which he had every 
 chance of winning fairly. 
 
 April 4tk. 
 
 " We regret to announce the death of Mr. Richard Cobden. 
 France unites with England in paying the tribute of regret 
 to this great economist." Such are the first words of the 
 first paragraph of the Moniteur of this morning, which 
 devotes one of its columns to an able sketch of the great 
 man's career. It commences thus : " The nineteenth century 
 has lost one of the men who have shed the most lustre on 
 the age, and whose life characterises the r61e which it will 
 take in the history of humanity." The article is unsigned ; 
 its style singularly resembles that of an illustrious author, 
 whose friendship for Mr. Cobden is a matter of history. I 
 do not translate it, because Renter has conveyed it to you. 
 It concludes by the following remarkable words : — 
 
 "Richard Cobden, on his death-bed, had the satisfaction of 
 seeing his great work, so fully appreciated {si grandement 
 comprise) by Napoleon III., radiate over the whole of 
 
M. PREVOST-PARADOL 75 
 
 Europe from the impulse of a French statesman. In that 
 respect France has been faithful to her initiatory mission. 
 Richard Cobden understood this ; he loved France. France 
 will not forget him." With the exception of Emile de 
 Girardin's leading article in La Presse, which paper, by-the- 
 by, appeared last night with a mourning border, this notice 
 in the Moniteur is the best, though not the longest, which 
 has as yet been published on the great man of the day. 
 Last night I happened to be at a soirie in a fashionable 
 salon. The only topic of conversation was the immense loss 
 even this country has sustained in the death of Mr. Cobden, 
 which, from its suddenness, startled the Parisian world, and 
 has created a painful sensation, as well as a deep feeling of 
 regret, only equalled by that experienced on the death of the 
 Duke de Morny. In France Mr. Cobden's genius was appre- 
 ciated and admired, while the kindness of his heart and the 
 unswerving honesty of his principles won for him universal 
 esteem and affection. 
 
 April ph. 
 
 The nomination of M. Prdvost-Paradol to the vacant chair 
 at the Academy has taken Paris by surprise, and gives 
 sincere pleasure to all men of independent views. The new 
 Academician is one of the staunchest supporters of the 
 Orleanist party, and has steadily declined all the tempting 
 offers which have been made to entice him over to the ranks 
 of the Government party, his talented pen being a weapon 
 they would gladly see wielded in their cause. His pointed 
 and clever articles in the D^bats and the Courrier du Dimanche 
 always attract attention, and the latter paper undoubtedly 
 owes much of its popularity to the fact that M. Pr^vost- 
 Paradol is one of its contributors. Yet, although I am of 
 the new Academician's most steady admirers, and appreciate 
 his talent and independence, I cannot help admitting that the 
 veteran writer, Jules Janin, had a prior claim to M. Ampere's 
 vacant chair. M. Paradol had sixteen votes, M. Jules Janin 
 fourteen. At the dinner given yesterday by the Societe des 
 
^6 A LITERARY DINNER 
 
 Gens de Lettres, under the presidency of Baron Taylor, this 
 feeling was strongly manifested by the literary men of France. 
 One hundred and fifty were present. As soon as the news 
 of the result of the elections reached us, M. Leo Lesp^s, 
 whose nom-de-plume is " Timothee Trimm," a daily writer 
 in the Petit Journal, rose and proposed a toast to the "father 
 of the feuilletonistes of France — Jules Janin," which was 
 received with the greatest enthusiasm, and the Academy 
 was hissed. Camille Doucet has been returned to fill Alfred 
 de Vigny's vacant chair. The true importance of M. Pr^vost- 
 Paradol's election is that it is a political protest, organised, of 
 course, by M. Guizot. To return to the dinner : the only 
 remarkable speech made was that of Paul F6val, our Presi- 
 dent for this year, pointing out the necessity of union if we 
 are really sincere in our scheme of reorganisation and reform. 
 I cannot say much for the speech of M. le Baron Taylor, 
 although he is a noted personage. He made a most unfortu- 
 nate allusion to his own liberality in having telegraphed to 
 Epernay for some dozens of champagne for our benefit, 
 expressing a pious hope that, like good little boys, we would 
 not take too much. Of course, that paragraph of his speech 
 was anything but applauded. For the last few years Baron 
 Taylor's whole occupation in life has been presiding over 
 dinners on every possible occasion, and this habit has become 
 a second nature to such an extent that he gives directions to 
 his household in the usual accepted forms of speech adopted 
 on public occasions, calling his cook to order as though she 
 were a troublesome speaker, and announcing to his servants 
 that they were requested to vote for the dinner. The salient 
 fact at yesterday's dinner was the presence ol femmes de 
 lettres. However learned and witty these blue-stockings 
 may have been, I cannot in truth say much for their 
 beauty. 
 
M. PARADOrS ELECTION ^^ 
 
 April \oth. 
 
 M. Sainte-Beuve is to present the prods-verbal of the 
 ballot, which took place on the 6th to replace Count Alfred 
 de Vigny and M. Ampere at the Acad^mie Frangaise, to 
 the Emperor at the Tuileries. This duty devolves on 
 M. Sainte-Beuve, he being director of the Academy. M. 
 Sandeau is to reply to the speech of M. Camille Doucet, 
 and M. Guizot to that of M. Pr^vost-Paradol. The latter is 
 to allude to M. Ampere's Histoire Romaine d Rome, a sub- 
 ject which excites peculiar interest just at present ; the 
 young Academician's speech will, therefore, be listened to 
 with deep attention. M. Paradol will certainly appear 
 singularly youthful among the grey-headed forty, and his 
 election has excited the bitterest animadversion on account 
 of his extreme youth. I do not know his age, but his slight 
 figure and delicately-chiselled features combine to increase 
 the defect which undoubtedly time will remedy. A good 
 story is told, or has been invented, of his concierge. Since 
 Thursday, on which day he was elected, the old lady has 
 been well-nigh driven out of her wits by the accumulation of 
 letters, notes, cards, and messages of congratulation which 
 she has been commissioned to deliver, and naively asked 
 M. Paradol, " Sir, are you once more going to prison that all 
 these visits arrive ? " — alluding to the imprisonment inflicted 
 on him for one of his satirical attacks on Government. As 
 I have not seen M. Paradol since his election I cannot vouch 
 for the story. 
 
 April lyik. 
 
 There exists perhaps in France but one power which has 
 kept its ground, in spite of revolution, and exerts as great 
 an influence at the present day on society as it did when 
 Moliere wrote and Rabelais laughed, and that power is 
 Ridicule. Not only has Ridicule outlived monarchs of every 
 political creed, but in many instances Ridicule has been the 
 
78 DAUMIER'S CARICATURES 
 
 hammer by which the thrones of these kings have been 
 smashed to pieces. " Le Ridicule tue," says the French, and 
 never was there a truer saying as applied to this country. 
 Were I to be asked who contributed most to the fall of Louis 
 Philippe, Guizot or Daumier, I should unhesitatingly reply, 
 Daumier. His transforming the head of Louis Philippe 
 into a pear, which caricature covered the walls of Paris for 
 years, was undoubtedly the first blow to the July monarchy. 
 A French writer, who certainly possessed to a high degree 
 the power and bitterness of satire of Thackeray combined 
 with the humour of Dickens, M. Champfleury, has for many 
 years made it his special study to ascertain whether the 
 sense of the ridiculous and of satire was ever expressed by 
 means of caricature among the ancients. He now puts 
 before the public the result of his long and laborious research 
 in the form of a charming volume, Histoire de la Caricature 
 Antique, illustrated by the most curious engravings. Champ- 
 fleury does not, however, inform us to which nation it first 
 occurred to hold public men up to ridicule by means of 
 caricatures, and thus expose their hollowness and put their 
 weak points before the world in strong relief, but he clearly 
 proves that the Assyrians and Egyptians practised the art of 
 caricaturing. In fact, he has no hesitation in classing as 
 caricatures some of the peculiar drawings those nations 
 indulged in, which have been discovered on the stupendous 
 monuments they have left of their skill in architecture. I 
 cannot help agreeing with Champfleury, and I do believe 
 that the art of caricature — traces of which have been found 
 in the wilds of Siberia, as well as in the more recently dis- 
 covered regions of the globe — must have existed from the 
 first day that it struck a man's mind to trace upon the 
 ground a sketch of a human face. I regret to say that 
 among the curious satirical prints contained in Champfleury's 
 book is one of so blasphemous a nature that I cannot 
 venture to describe it. It is, moreover, one of the most im- 
 portant graffites that exists, and was discovered in a garden 
 near Mount Palatin. This only tends to prove that all is 
 
CHAMPFLEURY ON CARICATURES 79 
 
 not ludicrous in caricature, and that comicality among the 
 ancients was of a more serious nature, and not so jocose as 
 it has since become. Champfleury's Histoire de la Caricature 
 Antique is sure to be a great success here, and with a few 
 alterations and the suppression of one or two of the illustra- 
 tions would certainly be welcomed by the intellectual classes 
 in England : a translation of the work might prove re- 
 munerative to a publisher. It is exquisitely got up, and 
 written with his usual talent ; du reste no one is more fit to 
 treat the subject of ridicule than Champfleury, he himself 
 being a literary caricaturist of no mean order. He delights 
 in caricature, not only because it laughs down many of the 
 major and minor humbugs of society and wages war against 
 all sham, cant, and conventionalism, but because it tends to 
 improve the moral tone of society by exciting mirth, which 
 is decidedly serviceable to our bodily health. Champfleury 
 agrees with Professor Hufeland, of Berlin, that the royal 
 practice of having buffoons and jesters at table during meals 
 was founded on true medical principles. Such being the 
 case, I strongly recommend you to get the book, and thus 
 save your constitution many a blue pill and your pocket 
 many a doctor's fee. 
 
 April \%th. 
 
 From three to seven o'clock yesterday the Champs Elysees 
 presented a scene essentially typical of Parisian life. To say 
 that the vast space from the Place de la Concorde to the Arc 
 de I'Etoile was a moving mass of life is no exaggeration, for 
 the broad avenue was not only densely thronged by car- 
 riages and riders going to the races at Longchamps, but the 
 side walks were so closely packed by fauteuils and chairs, 
 from which the fashionable world, who from accident or 
 caprice did not go the races, passed in review the toilettes 
 of their friends as they drove by, that the humbler idlers of 
 the day with difficulty were able to thread their way along 
 the wide footpaths, and indeed were mostly compelled to 
 walk in the side gardens, where troops of children — some in 
 
8o THE CHAMPS ELYSEES 
 
 goat-carriages, others shouting with glee at the time-honoured 
 quarrels of " Polichinelle " and "La M^re Gigogne," or gazing 
 with wonder at tinsel marionettes — were as thoroughly en- 
 joying Easter Monday as their parents in the Longchamps 
 grand stand. Amidst the gay and brilliant throng were types 
 of every class. It was curious to see an ambassador and his 
 lovely daughter seated next to a group of holiday folks 
 evidently come up from the country to stare at the Paris 
 world ; young clerks enjoying their only day's rest from the 
 thankless labour of the pen ; bourgeoises displaying for the 
 first time the glories of bran new silk dresses, elbowing a 
 courtly group of Tascher de la Pageries and the Chamber- 
 lain's daughter, the belle of the season — the fair Mademoiselle 
 de Bassano. It was a gay and pleasant sight, and we of the 
 plebeian race felt delighted to find our chairs actually touching 
 those of personages of no less mark than His Excellency 
 Lord Cowley, Viscountess Royston, etc. The carriages ! 
 how can I convey to you the faintest idea of their number or 
 variety? Conspicuous among those to which the word 
 equipage can apply was the perfectly turned-out victoria of 
 their Excellencies of Metternich, whose splendid bays, capi- 
 tally matched, and stepping out at the right pace, were ridden 
 by a postillion, his jacket and the body of the carriage being 
 of that intense yellow which makes the equipages of the 
 Austrian Embassy so peculiar. The Prince and Princess 
 were its occupiers. The Princess's costume, a lady told me, 
 was of ecru silk ; I can testify only to a bouquet of white 
 moss roses which was placed before her. A carriage and 
 four bearing a ducal coronet attracted attention from the 
 postillions' turquoise satin jackets, bearing escutcheons with 
 the family arms embroidered on the left sleeve. A landau 
 excited no little merriment laden with carriage builder's 
 workmen. It was unpainted, and the head opened and closed 
 every three minutes, evidently as an advertisement for the 
 inventor of this convenient mode of securing its occupants 
 from rain, which allowed them to enjoy sunshine as they 
 might find it agreeable. The Prince Imperial drove past 
 
THE RACES AT LONGCHAMPS 8i 
 
 with his escort, two little boys occupying the back seat. 
 When he bows he has the most good-humoured and amused 
 smile, which conveys to me the idea that the child himself 
 wonders why the people make a fuss about him. Several low, 
 open carriages were drawn in the style of the old Empire — 
 the harness of rope, grelots attached to the horse-collars, 
 postillions with powdered queues and round hats, bright 
 yellow tights and short green coats, not jackets, faced with 
 red. Count Frederic de Lagrange, as usual, won La Bourse; 
 M. Daru, the Prix de la Grotte; M. Teisseire, the Prix de 
 Guiche ; and Count de Lagrange, twice conqueror, the Prix 
 du Cadran. The event of the day was the race for the 
 Lut^ce prize, 8,000 f, for three -year -olds and upwards, 
 entrance 200 f. ; thirteen horses were entered, eight started. 
 Tourmalet came in first, the property of M. Lupin. And as 
 I walked home from this gay scene, passing up one of the 
 side streets leading to the Rue Fortin, I was attracted to a 
 group of little children chattering in English, their own deep 
 mourning and that of their attendants betokening their 
 orphanage. A likeness in the features of the baby child 
 caught my attention : they were the fatherless children of 
 him who had been almost the founder of the races which had 
 occupied all Paris on that day ; and I asked myself, " Who 
 among that gay and brilliant crowd has thought of De Morny 
 lying dead among the graves of Pere Lachaise ?" 
 
 April igth. 
 
 At the last meeting of the Academy of Sciences the 
 Emperor's physician, Dr. Rayer, presented the report, drawn 
 up by M. Chenu, medecin principal, on the results of the 
 medico -chirurgical service of the French hospitals in the 
 Crimea and Turkey during the campaigns of 1854-1856. 
 The following are the frightful statistics contained in page 
 579 of the report of the number of casualties from ist April, 
 1854, to 6th July, 1856, and of the deaths resulting either 
 from the effects of wounds or maladies caught in the East 
 up to 31st December, 1857: — 
 
 G 
 
82 THE MURDER OF PRESIDENT LINCOLN 
 
 Killed or lost on the field of battle . . 10,240 
 
 The loss of the Simillante . . . 702 
 Died of various diseases, specially cholera, 
 
 previous to the Battle of Alma . . 8,084 
 
 Died of cold and illness before Sebastopol 4,312 
 
 Died in hospital up to 31st December, 1857 72,247 
 
 Total . 95,585 
 
 The French sent 309,268 men to the East ; one-fifteenth 
 were either killed or died of wounds and 74,000 of disease — 
 that is to say, one-fourth of the troops. 
 
 April 26th. 
 
 The evening papers are unanimous in their expressions of 
 grief and indignation as to the murder of President Lincoln. 
 The Temps says : — 
 
 " It is an odious crime and a useless one. Lincoln has 
 died surrounded by the purest of glories and bearing a 
 crown such as no statesman ever wore before him. 'Tis not 
 in vain that he has fought the battle of liberty, and his work 
 will survive him. The providential mission of the United 
 States cannot depend on the mere life of one man, and the 
 liberty which gave birth to Lincoln, and to which Lincoln 
 sacrificed his life, will certainly give birth to other worthy 
 defenders." 
 
 April 2'jth. 
 
 The long-impending case of Elizabeth Wilhelmina {nie 
 Countess de Colmar) Brunswick, married, 1847, to the 
 Viscount de Civry, has at last come on. The case for the 
 plaintiff has been undertaken by no less a personage than 
 the veteran leader of the Opposition, M. Marie, whose 
 brilliant eloquence and forensic talent are as well known at 
 the bar as within the precincts of the Corps L^gislatif. M. 
 Allou will reply for the defendant. His Royal Highness 
 Charles Duke of Brunswick. M. Marie recapitulated the 
 history of the case from the year 1825, when the young 
 
THE CIVRY-BRUNSWICK CASE 83 
 
 Duke, at the age of twenty-two, strikingly handsome and 
 very captivating, arrived in London with all the prestige of 
 his rank, the son of " Brunswick's fated chieftain," " who 
 knew that peal too well which stretched his father on a 
 bloody bier" on the battlefield of Jena. The Duke had, 
 moreover, the singular advantage of being nephew to "the 
 first gentleman in Europe," and, as the tale M. Marie un- 
 folds will prove, appears to have benefited by the example 
 and precepts of his royal uncle, our gracious Sovereign 
 George IV. In London Society His Royal Highness met, 
 at the house of her aunt. Countess Pipper, the beautiful Miss 
 Colville, then seventeen, with whom it was his royal pleasure 
 to fall in love and to whom he proposed a left-handed marriage, 
 asserting that he had talked the matter over with his uncle, 
 the Duke of Sussex, who, having himself done likewise, very 
 probably did consent thereto. The unfortunate girl believed 
 his royal word, and, attended by Miss Matthews and her 
 servants, escorted by the Duke's aide-de-camp, sailed for 
 Calais, where she was met by the Duke and his brother, the 
 present reigning Prince. On reaching the ducal territory she 
 found the chateau of Wendessen prepared for her service. 
 Her daughter, born in 1826, was baptised with all the cere- 
 monial used on the birth of the children of royal princes. 
 The golden font of the Brunswick family was used on the 
 occasion ; the godfather (the present Duke) was represented 
 by his chamberlain ; the child was named after its grand- 
 mother, the Grand Duchess of Baden, and created by letters 
 patent Countess of Colmar. The ducal arms adorned the 
 child's carriage, and her numerous attendants received orders 
 from the Duke in person to watch over the child with the 
 utmost assiduity. Two years later her mother, outraged by 
 His Royal Highness's conduct with a danseuse, fled during 
 his absence from her splendid home, carrying her child with 
 her, but leaving her jewels and even clothes at Wendessen. 
 On the Duke's return he traced her to London, despatched 
 Baron de Girsewold, his first aide-de-camp, with written 
 orders to claim the Countess Colmar, then aged two years, 
 
84 THE CIVRY-BRUNSWICK CASE 
 
 supplying Miss Mathews with letters of credit on Hammer- 
 sly 's bank for the child's expenses, and desiring her to take 
 charge of the child till further orders. The Duke arrived 
 some months later, and, attended by his chamberlain, Baron 
 d'Andlau, inspected a school at Notting Hill, where he 
 subsequently placed the little Countess, stating her to be his 
 daughter, and desiring that she should be instructed in music 
 by Diilcken, then music-master to the present King of Han- 
 over, and in dancing by Madame Bourdin, who gave lessons 
 at the time to Her Royal Highness Princess Victoria. In 
 1835 the Duke informed Miss Mathews in person of his 
 wish that she should go to the school at Notting Hill, and, 
 in accordance with orders already communicated to the 
 heads of that establishment, take charge of his daughter to 
 his residence, 52, Chaitnps Elysees, where Miss Mathews 
 was to transfer her to the charge of the Baron and Baroness 
 d'Andlau. The Countess was supplied with a magnificent 
 wardrobe, jewels, etc., and resided in Paris under the care of 
 the Baroness, having the command of her father's establish- 
 ment, carriages, etc., till she was, by the Duke's orders, placed 
 at a school in Nancy, where, at the age of sixteen, she heard 
 the celebrated Pere Lacordaire preach, and under his influence 
 turned Catholic, on which His Royal Highness announced 
 that his religious feelings were so profoundly shocked that 
 he refused to pay for her support, and gave her up totally. 
 The case exciting the interest of the Civry family, whose 
 chateau is close to Nancy, the Count and Countess adopted 
 the young girl, and consented to her marriage with their 
 eldest son, the Viscount de Civry. The consent of the Duke 
 was asked and granted. The marriage took place in London 
 in 1847, and the faire parts were issued in the name of 
 " Baron d'Andlau, Chamberlain to His Royal Highness Prince 
 Charles of Brunswick, Sovereign Duke, etc., who has the 
 honour to announce the marriage of his august daughter, 
 Elizabeth Wilhelmina d'Este Brunswick, Countess de Colmar, 
 with M. Eugene, etc.. Viscount de Civry." She is now 
 Viscountess de Civry; her husband was ruined in 1848, and. 
 
THEOPHILE GAUTIER 85 
 
 the family estates sold ; she is the mother of eight children, 
 and claims a maintenance from her rouged, bewigged, and 
 diamond-buttoned father, the worthy disciple and nephew of 
 Europe's first gentleman, the exiled Royal Highness Charles, 
 Duke of Brunswick, who fled from his pink palace. Rue 
 Balzac, because his footman stole his diamonds, and because 
 his starving daughter and grandchildren asked for a few 
 thousand francs. 
 
 The great event of the artistic world of France came off 
 to-day. At twelve o'clock the great exhibition opened. 
 Among the most characteristic figures in the Salon was 
 Theophile Gautier, a "shocking bad hat" attached to the 
 back of his huge head by some process of adhesion known 
 to himself alone, masses of dishevelled hair hanging in heavy 
 locks anywhere but in the right place, and catalogue in hand, 
 making and destroying reputations by the glance of his eye 
 or the stroke of his pen. 
 
 May yth. 
 
 The exhibition of paintings is free on Sundays. The 
 physiognomy, if I may use the expression, of the crowd on 
 that day differs essentially from that to be remarked on week- 
 days, when artists come to listen to the criticisms of the 
 world of fashion that fill the Salon and crowd around the ac- 
 knowledged success of the day. On Sunday the rooms are 
 filled by the population of Versailles, Bougival, St. Cloud, 
 and all the environs of Paris, who instinctively select their 
 favourite pictures, regardless of the fiat of feuilletonistes, 
 even of the great Thdophile Gautier himself Yesterday I 
 could scarcely pass from Salle D to Salle G, so dense was 
 the crowd around a picture I had not previously remarked, 
 the subject of attraction being the lovely Princess de Lam- 
 balle in the midst of the Septembrists ; a ruffian, armed 
 with a huge billet of wood, is in the act of aiming at her 
 head ; while another hired assassin with a pike (Tissot, prob- 
 ably, whom I have had the advantage of seeing) and a 
 furious mob, excited and drunk with blood, are about to 
 
86 A DOG SHOW 
 
 tear the Princess to pieces. I passed on to Corot's lovely- 
 landscape of the Lake Nemi. No notice whatever was 
 paid to it, and yet it is lovely— the distance so exquisitely 
 given, and the receding background marvellous in truth and 
 drawing. The colouring I think less pleasing than that 
 of Fromentin's, but I dare not venture to utter this idea 
 here. 
 
 I have just left the dog show. I have always had a love 
 of dogs from the day when I was trusted with the important 
 office of throwing a sou to the organ-grinder who used 
 regularly to station himself under the nursery windows, 
 attended by a great white dog, on which rode a red-frocked 
 monkey, and a good dog he was. His race is extinct; so 
 patient, so intelligent and active, and, above all, never bark- 
 ing. The dogs at the exhibition make a frightful row, and 
 no wonder, chained as they are day and night, and separated 
 from their beloved masters. The nights of Musard's con- 
 certs are nights of agony to them. Last Saturday selections 
 from the Favorita were performed, of which the canine race 
 did not approve, and they simultaneously joined in a dis- 
 approbatory chorus, which drove the habitues of that most 
 enjoyable concert half wild. Among the poodle dogs ex- 
 hibited — which breed, by-the-by, is remarkably well repre- 
 sented — is one which beats poor Monito, who, it will be 
 remembered, played at dominoes, and always won at whist. 
 The dog exhibited now is a good Catholic, never eats meat 
 on a Friday, and knows beforehand the changes of the 
 weather as well as the late Mathieu de la Drome. The chief 
 objects of attraction are the thirty -nine Vendean dogs, 
 direct descendants of the celebrated white hounds with 
 which the gay and gallant Henri IV. hunted, as also the 
 Breton pack of M. de Madre. The packs of Count d'Osmond 
 and M. de Caillard, lodged under an iron shed ornamented 
 with thirty boars' feet, trophies of a single hunting season, 
 attract great admiration. There are a great number of 
 splendid pointers. There are King Charleses in abundance ; 
 the hairless dogs of China, Turkey, and Mexico; lots of Scotch 
 
THERESA OF THE ALCAZAR 87 
 
 terriers, and some few valuable shepherds' dogs, as well as 
 several fine Newfoundlands ; but the most singular part of 
 this exhibition is the pet lap-dog department. Some are really- 
 beautiful little things — snow-white seems to be the fashionable 
 colour this year ; but the mise en scene reminds one of " my 
 lady's boudoir." Each has a little room to itself, the sides 
 lined with rose or blue satin, trimmed with lace and ruches 
 of ribbon, and the gardien gravely informed me that several 
 declined their food unless served on a silver plate. I hope 
 they are not insulted by being offered a plated dish. One of 
 these kennels is a regular dressing-room, worthy of a de- 
 scendant of Ninon de I'Enclos: brushes, combs, sponges, 
 puffs, and perfumes being scattered about. The proprietor 
 of this elegant apartment is a white Havanna dog. The 
 catalogue was not published this morning ; therefore I know 
 not to whom this happy quadruped appertains. The general 
 arrangements are perfect. The fine trees of Cours-la-Reine 
 form an agreeable shade from the burning rays of the sun. 
 Each animal is placed according to its class, and a ticket 
 indicates its race and name. 
 
 A characteristic story reached me of Theresa, who is 
 constantly invited to sing in the salons of the aristocratic 
 Faubourg St. Germain. After the celebrated songstress had 
 
 entranced her audience at the Duchess of S 's party last 
 
 Thursday some of the jeunesse dorh asked her if the songs 
 she had just acted as well as sung were the same as she was 
 in the habit of performing at the Alcazar. "Oh, no," was 
 her reply. " What I have sung here would not be tolerated 
 by the police." 
 
 The greatest success which has been known for a long 
 time in the theatrical world is Le Supplice dune Femme, 
 which has been mentioned as the joint composition of Emile 
 de Girardin and Alexandre Dumas fils. This statement is 
 hardly correct. Emile de Girardin some months ago wrote a 
 very clever play, which he asked his friend A. Dumas fils to 
 read over and arrange for the stage, as his political occupa- 
 tions prevented his devoting sufficient time to the necessary 
 
88 M. DUMAS AND M. DE GIRARDIN 
 
 details of the work. M. Dumas accepted the task, willingly 
 made all the arrangements for the performance of the piece, 
 superintended the rehearsals, and finally announced to M. de 
 Girardin that his drama would be performed last Monday. 
 The polhniste was punctual, and was seen by the crowded 
 audience to take his seat and listen with attention for a few 
 moments ; presently he seemed puzzled, then excited. He 
 stood up, sat down, left the box, returned, again listened, 
 read the printed play, and finally, notwithstanding the evi- 
 dent efforts of his friends, left the theatre in disgust. The fact 
 is M. Dumas had rewritten the play, scarcely preserving the 
 original idea of M. de Girardin, and rewritten it with such 
 undeniable talent that the enthusiasm of the audience can 
 only be conveyed by the French expression, " La salle a ^te 
 enlev^e." Had M. Dumas's Supplice d'une Femme proved a 
 failure it might have consoled the politician for the non- 
 appearance of his drama, but that it should have been so 
 radically altered as to be unrecognisable even by himself, 
 and yet be an undoubted success, was a trial even the veteran 
 politician could not stand with common patience. 
 
 The piece continues to be the great event of the theatrical 
 world. It is beyond any doubt the best-written and most 
 touching piece which has appeared on the French stage for 
 many years. M. de Girardin cannot take this quietly. He 
 has sent his original play to Michel L^vy, with a preface 
 written by himself. The publisher gave him 5,000 f, for the 
 preface, which, en grand seigneur, he at once sent off to Mdlle 
 Favart. 
 
 May 2Sth. 
 
 A charming anecdote of the Empress has reached me 
 from Boston. A lady in very reduced circumstances, but 
 who had once occupied a superior station, formed a collec- 
 tion of the varied leaves of the magnificent trees for which 
 the forests of America are so celebrated, whose brilliant 
 tints are well known to exceed in vivid colouring even the 
 foliage of tropical plants. Part of this curious collection was 
 
HIDDEN TREASURES 89 
 
 placed in an album and sent to one of the crowned heads of 
 Europe, a precisely similar album being sent by the same 
 steamer to the Empress of the French. But the reception 
 of the poor lady's offering at the Courts in question was very 
 different. From the first arrived an acknowledgment penned 
 by an official, stating that "for once" the Sovereign "had 
 condescended to accept the offering, which, however, it was 
 hoped would not be considered as a precedent or encourage- 
 ment for any future similar gifts." From the second the donor 
 had the infinite gratification of receiving a few lines from the 
 pen of Her Imperial Majesty, expressing her surprise at the 
 extreme beauty of the specimens contained in the album, 
 " qu'elle trouvait ravissante," and requesting the lady to accept 
 the ring which she enclosed as a token of her " reconnaissance" 
 the value of the ring being ;^20. Red-tapeism versus genuine 
 kindness of heart. 
 
 June Stk. 
 
 Paris hardly knows the unexplored mines of wealth it 
 contains in the private collections of curiosities amassed by 
 connoisseurs. How often do we not wish to travel in order 
 to visit distant galleries or museums, and yet it frequently 
 happens that at our very door we have treasures far more 
 precious than those which amateurs go hundreds of miles to 
 see. For instance, I have just visited a private gallery which 
 very few English have even heard of It is situated in a 
 small avenue which runs into the Faubourg St. Honord, and 
 is the property of M. Aristide le Carpentier. I can only 
 compare this gallery to the Mus6e de Cluny. You enter by a 
 sculptured door, the bronze knocker of which is wrought with 
 such rare skill that Baron Rothschild offered M. le Carpentier 
 eighty pounds for it, but the latter refused to sell it, You ascend 
 a staircase, and are struck by the design of the open gilt iron- 
 work of the balustrade. It was once that of the pulpit in 
 St. Germain des Pres. You seize a chased steel ball attached 
 to a chain of marvellous work, and are presently all but 
 deafened by a tam ! tam ! loud enough to arouse the Seven 
 
90 M. LE CARPENTIER'S 
 
 Sleepers. The door has flown open, and you are admitted 
 within the sanctum sanctorum. A series of quaintly shaped 
 rooms meet your eye, the walls of which are closely covered 
 by weapons of every shape and age, inlaid with gold, silver, 
 or ivory ; while bahuts of sculptured ebony, chairs of ancient 
 oak, tables of Pompeian bronze well-nigh fill every spot. 
 These rare treasures are flecked by patches of purple and 
 crimson light, which stream in through ancient stained-glass 
 windows. The contents of the glass cases which cover the 
 tables would require the pen of a catalogue writer to detail. 
 Relics from Etruria, vases from Greece, jades from China, 
 armour worn by the old Capetian kings, instruments of tor- 
 ture occupy the larger ones against the walls ; but in the 
 smaller cases is a collection of cinquecento jewellery and 
 onyx, chalcedony, sardonyx, and cornelian cameos, unrivalled 
 for beauty of workmanship and intrinsic value in any public 
 museum. The cameos are mounted in gold boxes, and many 
 of them have been the property of crowned heads. One, 
 the sight of which would make an amateur of cameos break 
 the tenth commandment, is marvellous, consisting of a scene 
 from Greek mythology, carved under a trellis -work, both 
 layers of work being cut in the same stone. Among the 
 relics of the middle ages is the poire d'angoisse (choke 
 pear or gag), which, once inserted into the mouth, distended 
 by means of a secret spring till the victim was strangled in 
 excruciating but mute agony. Among the Indian curiosities 
 is a single grain of rice, which, seen through a powerful mag- 
 nifying-glass, you perceive to be the carved image of an 
 Indian god seated in a pagoda ; next to this lies a cherry 
 stone, on which a whole Indian battle, warriors, horses, etc., 
 are carved ; a coloured alto-relievo of Judith and Holo- 
 fernes, a foot and a half in height, carved on a single 
 hippopotamus's bone ; Marie Antoinette's bagpipes, on which 
 she and her ladies used to play at Trianon, disguised as 
 shepherdesses — it is still covered with faded green silk and 
 trimmed with rose-coloured knots ; a hurdy-gurdy bearing 
 the lilies of France, once the property of Catherine de 
 
COLLECTION 91 
 
 Medicis ; a game of goose with the cypher and crown of 
 Louis XV. ; a cabinet of medals, exquisitely inlaid with ivory, 
 brought from Italy by Cardinal Mazarin, and given by him 
 to Anne of Austria, her initials and crown inlaid over each 
 lock in its numerous drawers. There still exist ninety gold 
 and silver Roman medals ; a few of the original collection 
 are missing. I specially admired a dagger and powder pouch 
 in carved ivory lying in a splendid velvet box. M. le Car- 
 pen tier then told me that during the revolution of 1830 he 
 had felt somewhat nervous lest the value of his collection 
 should attract the cupidity of the lawless mob which roamed 
 about the streets for so many days. One night, at a very 
 late hour, he heard loud and sudden knocking. With infinite 
 precaution he opened the street door. An old man, evidently 
 much agitated, entered, and showing the case of splendid 
 ivory carvings I had remarked, told him they had belonged 
 to the great Emperor, and asked him to purchase them at 
 once. On M. le Carpentier requesting him to leave the box 
 till the next day, he said, " I am a duke ; I have lost every- 
 thing. I want money to-night, but I shall return and buy 
 them back if affairs settle." The generous collectionneur 
 at once gave him the sum he had asked, and has never heard 
 of him since. Another touching anecdote is attached to a 
 nugget of gold, the first ever brought from California to 
 Europe. Twenty-eight years ago a poor invalid presented 
 himself, and, taking out of his tattered coat an enormous 
 block of quartz, asked M. le Carpentier if he would purchase 
 it, assuring him it was full of gold. The first thought that 
 struck the antiquary was that the man was insane. " I am 
 not mad," he said ; " I have come to ask you to apply to 
 Government to give me a vessel and crew of a hundred men, 
 and I promise to return with a cargo of gold." M. le Car- 
 pentier, confirmed in his original impression, insisted on the 
 poor man eating, and in exchange for a small piece of the 
 quartz he gave him a napoleon, telling him he might return 
 whenever he pleased. The poor man never reappeared. 
 Meanwhile M. le Carpentier had the fragment analysed, and 
 
92 CALIFORNIAN GOLD 
 
 to his amazement it proved to contain pure gold. Fifteen 
 years elapsed ; a parcel and a letter were left at his door ; 
 the parcel, wrapped in an old handkerchief, was heavy. The 
 letter was worn and almost illegible. On deciphering it it 
 proved to be the dying statement of the poor traveller, and, 
 through the neglect of the lodging-house keeper at which 
 house he had died a few days after his interview with M. le 
 Carpentier, had never been delivered. The packet, I need 
 not say, contained the block of quartz. The letter was thus 
 worded, " You alone listened to me ; you alone stretched out 
 a helping hand to me. Alas, it was too late ! I am dying. 
 I bequeath my secret to you. The country whence I brought 
 this gold is called California ! " To describe the effect of re- 
 ceiving this by a mere act of neglect fifteen years too late 
 is impossible. The magic of that name was utterly un- 
 known at the time of the incident, and the poor sailor who 
 brought the first specimen of Californian gold actually died 
 of want. 
 
 The- Comtesse de Civry has lost her trial, her marriage 
 with a French subject having made her amenable to French 
 law, by which her father, the Duke of Brunswick, is not 
 compelled to support a child not born in wedlock. The fact 
 of the Duke having taken up his residence in Holland will 
 prevent her pursuing her claim at Brunswick. 
 
 June igth. 
 
 English visitors to this city, whilst smoking a cigar or 
 sipping cafi on the boulevards, must have remarked a poorly 
 dressed man hanging about, watching the smokers with 
 anxiety — but his object may not have struck them. These 
 men have invented a new trade, and manage thereby to eke 
 out a livelihood. They carefully gather all the cigar-ends 
 they can collect, and take them to an estaminet behind the 
 Porte Saint-Martin, which has the following curious motto on 
 its ensign, " Au tabac gratis k discretion," underneath which is 
 the information, addressed to the public in general, that any 
 person taking a glass of wine in this establishment has the 
 
LA ROQUETTE 93 
 
 privilege of smoking any amount of tobacco gratis, the 
 tobacco being the chopped cigar-ends of the Paris population 
 carefully ground and sifted. 
 
 June 20th. 
 
 The Empress spent four hours yesterday at La Roquette, 
 the prison for juvenile offenders. Her Majesty arrived at 
 half-past nine, attended by the Minister of the Interior, 
 M. de Lavalette, and the Comtesse de Labddoyere, Lady-in- 
 Waiting. No previous intimation of the visit having reached 
 the establishment, it took the governors completely by sur- 
 prise. The Empress insisted not only on seeing the infirm- 
 ary and chapel, but inspected five hundred cells, interrogating 
 many of the prisoners separately, drawing from them the 
 history of their past lives and the details of the crimes for 
 which they were incarcerated with such touching kindness 
 that when she arose to quit the salle, where the young 
 prisoners had been allowed to assemble at her request, 
 several of them burst into tears, and literally sobbed with 
 emotion as she took leave of them. Those who were present 
 say that the Empress herself was so much affected that she 
 could not address them as she intended, but her private con- 
 versation with each must necessarily have left a deeper 
 impression than any speech would have done. The carriage 
 drove out of the yard at half-past one. The prison itself 
 has the appearance of a feudal castle, consisting of a 
 hexagonal pile with circular turrets at the angles, from each 
 of which wings converge to a circular one in the centre. 
 The offenders, all under the age of sixteen, are detained 
 here for the purpose of correctional education, which is 
 carried on till their twentieth year. Nothing can exceed 
 the monotony of the system to which they are subjected, 
 each young convict being perpetually confined to his cell, 
 except when taken to the chapel or granted one hour's exer- 
 cise in one of the six interior courts. Twelve trades are 
 taught to the inmates. Each cell is the boy's workshop as 
 well as his bedroom, and while he is at work a grated window 
 
94 HORSES AND CARRIAGES 
 
 in his door is left open in order that he may listen to a 
 monitor who stands in the passage and dictates in a loud 
 voice. The names of the boys are not even known to the 
 overseers, who call them by the number of the cell they 
 occupy. The prison contains five hundred offenders at this 
 moment ; their cost is 38,000 f. per year. The result of this 
 cellular education is very inferior to that of the farm- 
 house system at Mettray. This colony is lodged in twelve 
 separate houses, each of which accommodates twenty-five 
 individuals, under the care of a chef, and the three hundred 
 offenders are employed in agricultural pursuits, being also 
 instructed in the rudiments of chemistry and natural science, 
 so that, on the term of their sentence expiring, they are 
 returned to their families with a practical knowledge of 
 farming, which renders them valuable members of society. 
 The best proof of the advantage of the Mettray system is 
 the fact that, although the farms are not enclosed by walls 
 or watched by sentinels, during the year 1864 not a single 
 inmate attempted to escape. 
 
 June 2'jth. 
 
 The upper ten thousand have left Paris for their chateaux, 
 or Trouville, Dieppe, Arcachon, Etretat, or some of the in- 
 numerable bathing-places so rapidly springing into notice. 
 The few who are still in town are detained in consequence of 
 the prorogation of both the Senate and Corps L^gislatif. 
 These are no longer to be met on the Champs Elys6es 
 between five and six ; they drive to the Bois after dinner, 
 and, notwithstanding the brilliant illuminations on the lake, 
 even Mr. Chadwick's black horses, which created so great a 
 sensation at Longchamps, are difficult to distinguish. Some 
 of the equipages which crowd the drive having been in 
 Paris all the season, one recognises them at once : for 
 instance, M. Bejot's four-in-hand, from the great height of 
 his horses, seventeen hands at least, and their peculiar high 
 action. M. Bejot's hunting stables are worth seeing ; he has 
 a chestnut mare which was the envy of all the meet at 
 
IN THE BOIS 95 
 
 Chantilly last season. The Duke de Mouchy, chevalier des 
 dames par excellence, drives a victoria. His coachman is 
 English ; his horses a pair of dark bays, so perfect in shape 
 and slight in their limbs they are mistaken for thoroughbreds. 
 The harness is London make, the " M " surmounted by a 
 ducal coronet and encircled by the motto in exquisitely 
 chased silver. The whole turn-out is perfect. Madame 
 Davillier, daughter of gallant old Marshal de Saint Jean, 
 is one of the few ladies who drives herself, and right well 
 she handles the ribbons. Her little basket carriage and pair 
 are as well turned out even as those of her formidable rivals 
 in the science of driving, whose splendid turns-out lead the 
 ignorant to imagine their owners to be Grand Duchesses, or at 
 least Queens retired from business. 
 
 M. Talleyrand P6rigord, as the Faubourg St. Germain 
 persists in calling the Duke de Montmorency, has a trotting 
 pony, which he drives in his victoria at a pace that is 
 amazing. Naturally, riding in the dark is not possible, there- 
 fore the ladies have started a new fashion since the hot weather 
 set in, and go early in the morning. Princess de Bauffre- 
 mont on a dark bay mare, the Duchess of Fitzjames and her 
 two sons, Baronness Lejeune, Countess de Baulaincourt 
 Baroness de Pierre and Baroness Saint Didier may be seen 
 almost every morning enjoying a canter in the shady alleys 
 of the Bois, riding better than any women in France, capitally 
 mounted, and dressed as ladies ought to dress on horseback. 
 Du reste, each and all I have mentioned ride to hounds, and 
 manage their hunters as well and as gracefully as they do 
 their park hacks, as anyone who hunted last season the 
 Touraine and Anjou country can testify. Balls and soirees 
 are things of the past. The few of the great world who are 
 yet in town have even given up their weekly receptions. Her 
 Majesty remarked on the cricket-ground, as an apology 
 for not taking some strawberries offered to her, it is 
 really too hot to eat, uttered, by the way, with a perfect 
 English accent ; it is really too hot either to receive or to 
 go to your friends' receptions. Meanwhile the great world 
 
96 GLADIATOR 
 
 must do something, therefore the lion of the season receives, 
 and very select company too. In fact, I only wish he had 
 sent me an invitation. No less a personage than Gladiator 
 has been at home at five o'clock every afternoon at his 
 stables. Avenue de la Faisanderie, to those whom his master, 
 Count Frederic de Lagrange, distinguished by an invitation. 
 His first levie was attended by the whole Corps L^gislatif, 
 who were admitted to his box in rotation. Gladiator being 
 a staunch supporter of the Government, since His Majesty's 
 friendly visit to him, is said to have kicked at the Opposition. 
 He is now, as you are aware, at Newmarket. A well-known 
 sporting character has offered two hundred napol6ons to any- 
 one who would procure for him as many hairs of Gladiator's 
 tail as would make him a ring. 
 
 July lyth. 
 
 The publisher J. Rothschild publishes this day the biography 
 of no less illustrious a personage than Gladiator, accom- 
 panied by the history of Count de Lagrange's breeding 
 stables at his Chateau Dangu, in the Vexin. The author of 
 this work, M. Louis Dumagy, is one of the best authorities 
 on all matters connected with the Turf, and writes better 
 than many of the literary gentlemen whose names are sent 
 up by our Soci6t6 des Gens de Lettres for the Legion 
 d'Honneur. The book is excessively amusing, and I trans- 
 late the following curious details as to the origin of Glad- 
 iator : — 
 
 " The birth of Gladiator was by no means trusted to 
 chance. The Count de Lagrange had remarked that the 
 blood of Miss Gladiator and that of Monarch had already 
 produced admirable results, and wished to increase the 
 specimens he possessed of this breed. The illustrious 
 Monarch, however, was capricious, and showed an indiffer- 
 ence to the attractions of Miss Gladiator which it was 
 necessary to deceive. His imperious Majesty's eyes were 
 bandaged, and the celebrated stallion became as blind as 
 love itself — and thus was the great Gladiator created." 
 
FEMALE ATTIRE 97 
 
 July igth. 
 
 Dentu sells two thousand copies per day of M. Dupin's 
 pamphlet on the extravagances of female attire. Notwith- 
 standing which I doubt that next winter we shall see the 
 queens of fashion less sumptuously attired than when they 
 last floated by in their luxurious barouches d la Daumont, half 
 sunk beneath clouds of lace, worth the purchase money of 
 an estate. Who can say, however? The tiny pamphlet 
 may work a revolution, and our fair duchesses return from 
 their chateaux arrayed as simply as the shepherdesses of 
 Trianon, who managed all the same to look bewitchingly 
 lovely, in spite of their chintz costumes and muslin fichus. 
 But they were high-born ladies, who needed no lavish ex- 
 penditure to advertise their rank, whereas M. Dupin truly 
 remarks, the wearers of toilettes which ruin honest, hard- 
 working husbands and compromise the morality of wives 
 are, in nine cases out of ten, nouveaux enrichis, who lower 
 themselves, and show a base spirit of servility in aping the 
 dissolute manners and the squandering habits of the worst 
 days of the Regency. 
 
 Prince Esterhazy, writes a correspondent from Vienna, has 
 managed to ruin himself. In his case this proves talent. His 
 Highness's income amounts to ;£^200,ooo per annum. There 
 is an execution of the estates, the debts amounting to the 
 trifling sum of two million sterling, plus ;^50,ooo. The odd 
 ;^SO,ooo come in at the end as a mere item, or, as the French 
 more expressively say, un ditail. Prince Esterhazy is one of 
 the five great landlords of Europe. Prince de Piombino is 
 his rival in Italy, the Due d'Ossuna in Spain, the Marquis 
 d'Aligre in France, who, by-the-by, has done his best to dis- 
 inherit his daughter. That lady's estates, however, extend 
 over some twenty thousand hectares, to say nothing of her 
 chiteaux, hotels, and houses in Paris and elsewhere. 
 
 H 
 
98 STRANGERS IN THE BOIS 
 
 July 2,},rd. 
 
 Between seven and eight the Bois de Boulogne is almost 
 deserted, as at that moment Paris is at dinner. Few at that 
 time are the wanderers by the edge of that loveliest of all 
 artificial lakes, which, with its island, rustic bridge, and 
 headlands, mimics nature with provoking accuracy. Some, 
 however, there always are, and the curiosity of these has 
 been latterly excited by the appearance of a huge landau, 
 drawn by a pair of respectable old steeds, whose pace does 
 not precisely rival that of Gladiator. The coachman has 
 likewise a superannuated aspect, and suggests the idea that 
 he and his equipage flourished half a century ago. By the 
 side of the venerable Jehu, a negro, in true oriental costume, 
 may be seen. But the peculiarity of the carriage is the 
 absence of windows, their place being filled by boards 
 decorated with coloured arabesques, which do not quite 
 join, so that if you are sharp, as the unwieldy vehicle turns 
 a corner, you may catch a glance at its inmates. A mass of 
 cream-tinted bournous is all that you will distinguish, and 
 two pairs of exquisite eyes, almond-shaped, enshrined by 
 lashes which rest on the cheeks of their fair possessors, and 
 surmounted by eyebrows such as Leonardo da Vinci has 
 given his Jaconde, and such as a due manipulation of the 
 pinceau sepia gives our Paris beauties. The elder lady, aetat 
 fourteen, occupies the back seat ; her younger rival reclines 
 on velvet cushions in the front of the carriage. All this is 
 not easy to see, for the Emir Abd-el-Kader's wives utter a 
 shrill cry if they perceive you, and the carriage instantly dis- 
 appears with a rapidity one could scarcely believe possible, 
 seeing its cumbrous and antiquated form. 
 
 July 2^l/i. 
 
 Several of the newspapers have commented severely on 
 the very primitive costume adopted by English bathers 
 at Margate and Brighton, Their revelations on the subject 
 
BATHING-DRESSES 99 
 
 were, of course, eagerly read in Paris. I must say that any 
 person attempting to bathe either on the French coast or in 
 any French river after this fashion runs the risk of being 
 taken up by two gendarmes, an instance of which happened 
 to come under my knowledge lately in the case of an 
 English gentleman. To the writers of the articles I allude 
 to I recommend the perusal of an arrite issued last week 
 by the Mayor of Croissy, a bathing-place on the coast, 
 whereby no man or boy is allowed to enter the sea without a 
 complete suit. Hitherto a set of nether garments is all that 
 the law, by Act of Louis Philippe, has insisted on. M. 
 Sosth^ne de la Rochefoucauld, who, as Director of the Opera 
 under Charles X., enforced the necessity of ballet dancers 
 wearing inexpressibles, and the King of Prussia who issued 
 a decree that every statue in his garden was to be attired in a 
 uniform, cannot compete with the delicate susceptibility of 
 the Mayor of Croissy. Imagination cannot picture what the 
 feelings of his worship would be were he transported to the 
 beach of Margate. 
 
 August 6th. 
 
 A curious discovery, which excites immense curiosity in 
 the literary world, has been made by the proprietor of a 
 curiosity shop in the Rue de Grenelle. It is nothing less 
 than seventeen autograph letters of Cardinal Richelieu, six 
 of which are addressed to the notorious Marion Delorme. 
 This historic treasure has been found in a piece of furniture 
 of the time of Louis XIII., which contained a secret drawer. 
 
 I have just had the pleasure of pursuing the lecture " Mrs. 
 Grundy," an inhabitant of New York, has thought fit to 
 administer to me for having dared to describe the equipages 
 and horses which were to be seen during the season in the 
 Bois de Boulogne. If the good lady could only pay a visit 
 to Paris at this moment, it would rejoice her heart to witness 
 the present aspect of the Champs Elys^es. Her feelings 
 would not be hurt by the sight of any splendid carriages, 
 thoroughbred horses, or by any princes " tooling " their own 
 
lOO PLEBEIANS AND PATRICIANS 
 
 drags ; neither by the Emperor driving his own Amdricaine, 
 or the Emir reclining in one of the Court barouches. Mrs. 
 Grundy would find, on the contrary, crowds of light-hearted 
 loungers, ouvrieres en blouses, grisettes, and soldiers. She might, 
 a son aise, indulge in a drive through the Bois in a cab, or, if 
 that were too aristocratic a conveyance, the lady might fear- 
 lessly enter an omnibus or even a washerwoman's cart if it 
 better pleased her so to do, and thus exhibit her shawl and 
 coal-scuttle bonnet. She will even find me, in spite of the 
 aristocratic sympathies of which she accuses me, happy to 
 show her the mountebanks at the barriers, and even treat her 
 to a glass of Biere de Strasbourg. Having proved to Mrs. 
 Grundy that I am a mere plebeian, and more so than even 
 herself, inasmuch as she turns her back to her readers, I shall 
 once more risk her anger by giving a curious detail of one 
 of the upper ten thousand, who boasts of being descended 
 in direct line from Adam's third son Seth. I refer to the 
 family of Crony Chanel, who claims the title of Marquis 
 d'Este, usurped for the last few centuries by the Dukes of 
 Modena. They state that at the time of the deluge Noah 
 took their family title-deeds into the ark. At their chateau 
 may be seen a picture of that event, wherein one of the 
 drowning men waves a scroll above his head, on which is 
 inscribed, " Dieu tout Puissant, sauvez les titres de la maison 
 de Crony." 
 
 August "jth. 
 
 Let me mention, for the benefit of lovers of the marvellous 
 on the stage, a piece called Le Diluge, which fills the theatre 
 with a dense throng of enthusiastic spectators. Palaces of 
 Babylonish magnificence are burnt by roseate fire, Chaldean 
 plains covered by tents and flocks of sheep are submerged 
 beneath the avenging floods. The ark in the course of con- 
 struction is, however, in imminent peril of being altogether 
 abandoned in consequence of a strike among Noah's work- 
 men, who demand an increase of wages, and threaten to 
 desert to the heathen priest Cleophas. Noah holds out, 
 
EPIDEMICS loi 
 
 and will not yield to the clamorous call for more gold. He 
 and his three sons have but five days before them to com- 
 plete the ark, yet fearlessly set about the gigantic task, 
 relying on the proverb, "Aide-toi et le ciel t'aidera" (Help 
 yourself, and heaven will assist you), which is realised in this 
 instance by a host of angels who obligingly descend and 
 finish the job. This idea has, of course, been suggested 
 by Murillo's picture, which we have all admired at the 
 Louvre, called " La Cuisine des Anges," representing the 
 unexpected arrival at a Spanish monastery of two of the 
 king's inspectors of convents, and the despair of the good 
 monks in consequence of the denuded state of their larder, 
 from which they are miraculously relieved by a flight of the 
 loveliest of angels, who set about peeling carrots and roasting 
 mutton with as much agility as if they had graduated under 
 Soyer or Brillat-Savarin. 
 
 August 2^ih. 
 
 One of the characteristic traits of the age is the periodical 
 occurrence of a mania of one kind or another. A book, and 
 a very interesting one too, could be written on these peculiar 
 epidemics, which exhibit themselves again and again at longer 
 and shorter intervals. A few years ago grey-haired people 
 as well as little children were seized with the stampomania, 
 and then our most secret drawers, our most private papers, 
 our most loving letters of bygone years were ransacked by 
 our best friends in search of queens', emperors', and presi- 
 dents' heads, all the more valuable if those whose name they 
 bore had departed this life. Then came the crestomania, 
 then the potichomania, which consisted in converting plain 
 glass jars into magnificent specimens of porcelain and pottery 
 ware. This last mania assumed a still more virulent craze 
 when decalcomania was ushered into the world. The fair 
 sex was more especially affected by this mental epidemic, 
 and so entirely did it get possession of them that, for a while, 
 nothing took so amazingly at shops, fancy fairs, and bazaars 
 as did the samples of this home-made mimicry of the costly 
 
I02 DUBRONIMANIA 
 
 wares of Sevres and Dresden. But decalcomania, like other 
 manias that have gone before it, speedily ran its course, and 
 has in Paris, at least, given way to the stronger attractions of 
 a more scientific and important novelty — termed the Dubroni- 
 mania. You will naturally ask what I mean by this outlandish 
 expression. Dubroni is the name of a young and most 
 promising engineer, a pupil of the Ecole Polytechnique. Laid 
 up for several years with bad health, his mind remained as 
 active as ever. Amidst the most intense bodily sufferings, 
 he applied himself, night and day, to the study and perfection 
 of photography, hoping to initiate the masses into its mys- 
 teries by simplifying the manipulations and turning photo- 
 graphy into a drawing-room amusement within the reach, of 
 every purse. In this Dubroni appears to have been quite 
 successful, inasmuch as his ingenious apparatus entirely does 
 away with the necessity of an operating chamber. You have 
 no longer to dread any stains or spots on your dress or hands, 
 as the chemical operations are all accomplished with the 
 pipette, a small instrument by means of which you can intro- 
 duce into the camera obscura, through a little orifice, the 
 different chemical baths which the plate must undergo 
 previous to its bearing a picture. Dubroni, after having 
 pursued his experiments with unabated ardour, is certainly 
 entitled to the honour of attaching his name to the science 
 of photography. Another distinguishing feature of his 
 liliputian apparatus is the readiness with which it can be set 
 up for use and repacked in a box which does not exceed in 
 size that of a lady's writing-desk. Among the notabilities 
 who are amusing themselves during their summer vacations 
 with the appareil Dubroni are the well-known diplomatists 
 Marquis de la Valette, M. de Persigny, and no less a person- 
 age than Prince Napoleon himself. 
 
 August lofh. 
 
 Last Sunday the little village of Villers-Bocage, near 
 Caen, was early astir, bedecked with streamers, flags, and 
 garlands, in honour of the inauguration of the statue of their 
 
RICHARD LENOIR 103 
 
 great compatriot, Richard Lenoir. Born in 1765, of humble 
 parents, he graduated in the school of privation and hard- 
 ship. As early as twelve years of age young Lenoir evinced 
 a marked disposition for trade, and succeeded in rearing 
 pigeons and dogs, which he sold on market-days at Villers- 
 Bocage. At seventeen he left his home, with twelve francs 
 in his purse, and walked to Rouen, where he made enough 
 to pay his way to Paris. The first year he amassed forty 
 pounds by the sale of common delft ; by the end of the 
 second he found himself the possessor of a thousand pounds. 
 He then hired a large shop and started in business ; but the 
 Reign of Terror had commenced, therefore he returned to 
 his family and liberally contributed to the support of his old 
 parents. In two months, however, he went back to Paris, 
 and, associating himself with a partner, made one loan of 
 ;£'i20, on which they realised a clear profit of ;£'4,40O 
 (i 12,000 f.) At this period it first occurred to Lenoir to enter 
 on the manufacture of cotton goods, which had never been 
 done in France. He started his first loom in a back street. 
 Rue Bellefond, which proved so remunerative that he induced 
 the First Consul to grant him possession of a deserted con- 
 vent. Rue de Charonne, which he converted into a cotton 
 factory. From that epoch his prosperity steadily increased ; 
 Lenoir cleared ;^i,700 per month. He then established 
 cotton factories at Alen9on, Caen, L'Aigle, and Chantilly, 
 which gave employment to above 20,000 hands, and by 
 which he realised no less than ;£'48,ooo a year (12,000,000 f). 
 The duties on cotton introduced in 1810 ruined him. 
 In vain the Emperor lent him ;^6o,ooo. Lenoir never re- 
 covered his former wealth, and died in the year 1840 in com- 
 parative poverty. 
 
 September \st. 
 
 The last literary gossip is that M. Thiers has just sold his 
 History of Florence to his publisher for ;^20,ooo. M. Ernest 
 Renan has completed his Vie de Saint Paul. He breakfasts 
 (in English read " lunches ") once a week at the well-known 
 
I04 A WAR OFFICE ENTOMOLOGIST 
 
 Restaurateur Magny, with a somewhat mixed company of 
 his friends, M. Edmond About, Messieurs de Goncourt, etc. 
 The other day their host, while relating his late voyage to 
 the East, remarked that he had been unable to land at 
 Patmos, in consequence of a frightful hurricane. " Well," 
 exclaimed Barbey d'Aurdvilly, " he could not land at Patmos ! 
 No wonder ; it was the storm of the Apocalypse and Saint 
 John himself I'a repoussi'.' 
 
 On entering the hall at the exhibition of useful and 
 noxious insects, held in the Palais de I'lndustrie, my atten- 
 tion was attracted by a landscape which I thought must be 
 due to the brush of Corot or Isabey. On a closer investiga- 
 tion, however, I perceived to my amazement that it had 
 been entirely worked out by the application of myriads of 
 insects, the various lights and shades of the scene being 
 given by the variegated hues of insects selected from every 
 tribe on account of their appropriate colouring. 
 
 The details of this picture have just been published. Ento- 
 mology appears to have been for years past the favourite 
 
 study of M. M , clerk at the War Office. As the 
 
 classification of his insects proceeded their varied tints 
 struck him, and the idea occurred to him of utilising their 
 different hues for the reproduction of a favourite view of his 
 native village. He possessed 45,000 of the Coleoptera ; with 
 these he painted his foreground. He had almost as great 
 a number as 4,000 varieties of the insect tribe, which 
 supplied every tone requisite for his landscape, and certainly 
 his four years of patient labour has been rewarded by 
 wonderful success, considering the peculiar nature of the 
 materials. 
 
 September yd. 
 
 From the south we have a most interesting report of the 
 inauguration of Frangois Arago's statue in his native town 
 of Estagel. To honour the ceremony there arrived savants 
 from Germany, England, Italy, and Spain. The pr^fet 
 of the department. General Renault, President of the Council, 
 
ARAGO'S STATUE 105 
 
 the General of the district, and a formidable array of func- 
 tionaries, mayors, and county notabilities came at an early 
 hour to witness the ceremony of unveiling the statue and to 
 listen to the speeches pronounced on the occasion by the 
 French railway king, M. P^reire ; by the President of the 
 Academy of Science, M. Bertrand ; and, as representative 
 of the Ecole Polytechnique, by M. Michel Chevalier. 
 
 M, Pdreire, before entering on the life of the great Arago, 
 passed a splendid encomium on Michel Chevalier, whom he 
 designated as one of the masters of economic science, 
 whose life had been devoted to commercial liberty and to 
 the benefit of the working classes. M. Pdreire reminded 
 his audience that as early as 1831 young M. Chevalier had 
 traced the network of railroads which now covers the 
 face of Europe, and he decided all should have a common 
 terminus — the coast of the Mediterranean. This plan, carried 
 into execution by M. P6reire and his brother, is now realised 
 and in active operation. He then spoke of Arago, and told 
 of his early start on the road to scientific distinction. A 
 pupil of the Ecole Polytechnique, Arago at once entered 
 the Bureau des Longitudes, and at twenty-three was named 
 member of the institute. An enthusiastic student of pure 
 science, he early devoted himself to its practical applica- 
 tion. Thus it was he who first demonstrated the utility of 
 paratonnerres, and first discovered magnetism by electric 
 currents, which is nothing less than the first principle of the 
 telegraph. Arago and his friend Fresnel took a leading 
 part in establishing the system of concave reflectors and 
 convex lenses, which have proved so invaluable for light- 
 houses, and so great a blessing to sailors. Arago perfected 
 the compass and many other equally useful inventions. The 
 special object of his life, however, was to popularise science, 
 which, in his estimation, rose in importance far above litera- 
 ture. Well I remember in my college days the celebrated 
 debate on the draft of a Bill for secondary instruction which 
 M. Guizot laid before the Chambers in February, 1836. The 
 debate lasted fifteen days, the subject of discussion being 
 
io6 EULER'S PRESCRIPTION 
 
 whether the programme of public education was to be 
 altered, and, if so, was science or literature to be the pre- 
 dominant study of future generations? M. de Sade and 
 M. de Lamartine spoke in favour of literary studies, while 
 MM. de Tracy and Arago pleaded the superior value of 
 scientific acquirements. The magnificent oration of M. Arago 
 was read to us in college by our professors, and well I re- 
 member the following anecdote making a lasting impression 
 on our memories. M. Arago craved the permission of the 
 Chambers to refer to an incident in the life of the great 
 Euler. " Euler," he said, " was eminently pious. One Sunday 
 afternoon a celebrated preacher of one of the Berlin churches 
 said to him : ' Alas ! the cause of religious truth is lost. 
 Faith no longer exists. Would you believe it ? ' said the 
 preacher — ' I pictured creation in all its poetry, in all its 
 marvellous beauty. I quoted the Bible itself Half my 
 audience slept ; the others left the church.' ' Try the follow- 
 ing experiment,' said Euler. ' Instead of quoting Greek 
 philosophers to convey an idea of the vastness of creation, 
 tell your audience of the facts science reveals to us. Tell 
 them that the sun is one million two hundred thousand 
 times greater than our earth. Tell them that the planets 
 are worlds ; that Jupiter is fourteen hundred times larger 
 than our earth ; describe the wonders of Saturn's ring. Tell 
 them of the stars, and convey an idea of their distance by 
 the scale of light. Tell them it traverses eighty thousand 
 leagues per second. Tell them that there exists not a star 
 whose light reaches us in less than three years ; that from 
 several the light only attains our hemisphere in thirty years : 
 and from positive facts pass on to the great probabilities 
 of scientific discovery. Say, for instance, that certain stars 
 might be visible millions of years after their annihilation, 
 because the light they emit requires several millions of years 
 to reach our earth, etc' Next Sunday the great Euler 
 awaited his friend's arrival with impatience. He came, but 
 depressed and profoundly afflicted. 'What,' exclaimed 
 Euler — ' what has happened ? ' 'Ah,' replied his friend, ' I am 
 
THE DAVENPORT BROTHERS 107 
 
 most unfortunate. My congregation forgot the respect due 
 to God's holy temple — they cheered me ! ' " Arago only 
 entered the political arena at the age of forty-four. His 
 speeches on electoral reform, the precursor of universal 
 suffrage ; on public instruction, in which he dwells on the 
 superior utility of the knowledge of living languages over 
 mere classic studies, have never been forgotten. In 1848, 
 as Minister of Marine, he marked his brief possession of 
 power by the abolition of slavery in all the French colonies. 
 M. Pdreire concluded his speech by recalling the remark of 
 Arago himself in his speech on universal suffrage — that 
 the title-deeds by which the French people had acquired 
 a right to a voice in the government of the nation were the 
 names of Rousseau, Fourier, Moliere, Mass^na, Kleber, 
 Marceau, each and all sons of artisans or labourers. 
 
 September "jth. 
 
 A fortnight has scarcely elapsed since the two Davenport 
 Brothers, having recourse to a most efficacious medium by 
 the press, announced their intention of edifying the Parisian 
 public by an evocation of spirits. This announcement ex- 
 cited considerable curiosity, and people of notoriety in the 
 world of letters and of science rushed to investigate the 
 phenomena produced by these charlatans. Many besides 
 were the good, simple souls who exulted at the very idea of 
 hearing the sound of guitars, violins, and harps without the 
 intervention of earthly fingers ; and no doubt the lessee of 
 the Grand Opera must have rejoiced at the prospect thus 
 held out to him of being able, in case of a new strike among 
 his present band, to form an orchestra of spirits. I have 
 seen people who have left the Davenport soirees in the 
 highest glee at having been favoured with blinks and winks, 
 squeezes of hands and slaps on the back, vouchsafed to them 
 from the trans-mortuary world. I must add that some of 
 the best papers of the day, of established reputation and of 
 extensive influence and circulation, instead of " showing up " 
 
io8 M. ROBIN'S CHALLENGE 
 
 this flagrant charlatanism, have given their adhesion to these 
 mysterious apparitions, and have thus contributed to their 
 scandalous trickeries. Their reign here has, however, not 
 been of very long duration. It only required the acute 
 intelligence of one man to lay bare the fraud. Robin, whose 
 interesting scientific soirees were so much resorted to last 
 winter and spring, at once detected the imposition, and 
 revealed the tricks in a very clever letter published in the 
 Union of this morning. I need not describe the trick. 
 M. Robin acknowledges that it is performed with matchless 
 skill. He concludes by saying, " I defy the brothers to repeat 
 their tricks in my own theatre, which I place at their dis- 
 posal, and the product of their seance I shall hand over to the 
 governors of the Charenton Asylum (for lunatics). I lay down 
 three conditions. The first is that I bind the brothers my- 
 self. I stipulate that I be tied with them in their own press, 
 and I further undertake to supply the place of their five 
 attendants." If the Davenport Brothers are wise they will 
 accept this challenge. Yet, in spite of M. Robin's revela- 
 tions, the taste for spiritual manifestations is so great in this ■ 
 country that, however grossly material, however disgustingly 
 human, however mixed with fanatical ignorance, arrogance, 
 and presumption, they are not likely as yet to be hissed 
 down, and we may expect to hear of scores of people turn- 
 ing crazy about the Davenport exhibition, as they have on 
 table-turning and spirit-rapping. I happened myself last 
 season to be present at a party given by English residents in 
 Paris, where a nobleman who for many years wrote " M.P." 
 after his name gravely discussed a pencilled message he had 
 received the previous evening through a medium from the 
 departed soul of the late Duke de Morny, with whom the 
 
 late M.P. for had been on terms of intimacy. 
 
 The Petit Journal gives us some curious details of an inci- 
 dent which took place at the recent execution of a man 
 named Picot at Marseilles. The unfortunate criminal ascended 
 the scaffold, followed by four men enveloped in long robes of 
 coarse, tan-coloured canvas, their features concealed by hoods 
 
THE MISERICORDIA 109 
 
 of the same material, in which two small apertures were 
 made to enable them to see their way. The Marseilles 
 population made way for them in respectful silence, recog- 
 nising at once these men as members of a brotherhood who 
 are bound by oath to perform the most menial services for 
 the poor, and specially devote themselves to attend on the 
 condemned and bury their remains. The evening before an 
 execution the members of this brotherhood, sprung from 
 every class of society, meet in conclave and draw lots as to 
 which among them are on the following morning to take 
 possession of the scaffold — for when the executioner and his 
 assistants have accomplished their bloody work they retire 
 immediately. The prior of the community first recites the 
 words, "There is no longer a criminal here, but the mortal 
 remains of a man, created in the image of God, whom 
 we are about to inter." The four brothers respond " Amen," 
 ascend the scaffold, undo the straps by which the body has 
 been bound to the bascule, place it on a white cloth, join the 
 head to the trunk, and, having made a deep bed of bran and 
 straw, proceed to sew up the corners of the winding sheet 
 and place the body in the bier they have brought for the 
 purpose. They then carry it to the cemetery, where the 
 almoner, whose office it has been to attend the criminal in 
 his last moments, reads the service of the dead. General de 
 Damas, peer of France and Minister of War during the 
 Restoration, was one of the confraternity, and his stall in 
 their chapel happened to be next to that of Father Jerome, 
 a poor street crossing-sweeper. The vow is often made 
 during a time of peculiar affliction, or at a moment of 
 imminent danger. Once made, however, it is religiously 
 kept. 
 
 September ?>tk. 
 
 M. Robin published last night the reply of the Brothers 
 Davenport to his challenge. They accept it, making their 
 own terms, however, which are as follows : They require 
 M. Robin to deposit a sum of ;^400 (10,000 f,), and under- 
 
no JEAN ALTHEN 
 
 take on their part to do likewise. The experiments are to 
 take place in the presence of twenty witnesses. They require 
 M. Robin to perform precisely the same manoeuvres that 
 they will go through in the presence of the above number of 
 persons, to make use of their cords, press, and instruments, 
 and to accomplish the same feats in the same space of time 
 that they have taken. In case of M. Robin producing similar 
 results the ;^400 deposited by the brothers will be handed 
 over to him ; in the case of his failure, however, the Daven- 
 port Brothers will claim the ;£'40O paid by M. Robin. 
 
 Towards the end of the last century a poor man returned 
 from Persia to his native village, bringing with him some 
 seed, which he craved the permission of a farmer to plant in 
 a corner of his farm. His work accomplished, misery and 
 starvation drove him to seek for shelter in the hospital, 
 where he died. His name was Jean Althen, but who he was 
 and what had taken him to Persia none knew or cared to 
 inquire. After his death, however, the cultivation of madder 
 transformed vast marshes and waste lands into valuable 
 property, and in a few years the whole of the south of 
 France discovered that a new source of wealth had been 
 suddenly opened up. Avignon has not forgotten the humble 
 peasant to whom France owes the introduction of this 
 valuable dye, and has decreed a statue to the memory of 
 Jean Althen. 
 
 September lotk. 
 
 That most graceful and imaginative of artists, Gustave 
 Dord, is on a visit to the great bibliophile, M. Mame, whose 
 magnificent edition of the Bible is to be illustrated by the 
 creative fancy of his guest at the rate of no less a sum than 
 200,000 f. (;£'8,ooo). 
 
 September 14th. 
 
 The scene of last night at the Salle Herz during the stance 
 of the Davenport Brothers defies description. M. le Due 
 de and another gentleman were accepted by the crowd 
 
THE DAVENPORT FIASCO in 
 
 of spectators as umpires. However, their interference was 
 not required, as a civil engineer who happened to be present, 
 following the lead of M. Robin, the conjurer, who had on 
 Monday night so successfully imitated their mysteries, 
 discovered that the iron bar to which the brothers were so 
 firmly bound was movable by means of a spring which at 
 once set them free. Upon this being revealed the row that 
 ensued was frightful. The crowd rushed towards the press, 
 from which the brothers had evaporated with the agility 
 which no doubt is the attribute of spirit agents. Hisses, 
 shouts, and cries of vengeance rent the air ; police poured 
 into the salle, and only succeeded in restoring order by 
 assuring those present that their money would be returned 
 to them. Thanks, therefore, to M. Robin, the scientific 
 conjurer, so remarkable for the acuteness of his intelligence 
 and the accuracy of his judgment, this huge sham has been 
 unmasked. The bubble of the hour has burst, and not even 
 M. Delamarre in the columns of the Patrie will succeed in 
 making the Parisian public believers in the manifestations of 
 disembodied intelligences as revealed in the persons of the 
 Messrs. Davenport. No rational person present at this 
 humiliating exposure could suppress the feelings of pity and 
 contempt that alternately rose in his mind. What has 
 become of the wretched impostors does not appear. 
 
 September lyth. 
 
 AW gourmets know Chevet's windows in the Palais Royal, 
 and remember the display of birds' nests from China, 
 ortolans from Italy, truffles from Perigord, and pdt^s de foie 
 gras from Strasbourg, which have fascinated their gaze each 
 time they passed its savoury precincts. Yesterday a mush- 
 room weighing no less than 14 lbs. occupied the centre of 
 the ^talage. It belongs to the species called by the lugu- 
 brious epithet of " TSte de Mort." " Death's Head" is certainly 
 not an encouraging name to append to an edible, but the 
 resemblance this monster specimen bears to a human skull 
 explains its selection. The woods of Vincennes produced 
 this king of all the mushrooms. 
 
112 SPIRITUALISTS' SEANCES 
 
 September \%th. 
 
 In spite of the signal failure of the Davenport tricks, 
 public attention in Paris appears to be once more attracted 
 towards spiritism. The Journal de Rouen, a most sensible 
 paper to my idea, strongly urges the medical men of France 
 to interfere and point out the dangers attending the evoca- 
 tion of spirits. I have already informed you of the existence 
 in this city of more than fifty thousand believers in spiritual- 
 ism, of whom the high priest is Alan Karder, whose sundry 
 publications and weekly paper have a wide circulation. It 
 is a known fact, and one which has lately been demonstrated 
 before the Academie de Medicine, that cases of mental 
 alienation have increased twenty-one per cent, since the 
 importation from America of this new belief. In one small 
 country town it has been proved that no less than fifty-five 
 women have become so perfectly mad after attending one 
 seance held by a celebrated spirit evoker that they were 
 transferred within a few days of its taking place to a lunatic 
 asylum. Secret meetings are still going on, to which the 
 initiated and believing are alone invited by special favour of 
 the spiritual high priests ; not gratis, however. It is curious 
 to remark how the love of filthy lucre extends even to the 
 unseen world of the departed. Their souls only consent to 
 reply to the summons of their brethren at the rate of thirty 
 francs per ticket. I am further instructed that these dis- 
 embodied intelligences require the protection of no less 
 than fourteen sergents-de-ville, who mount guard over their 
 manifestations in the adjoining department. That the Pr6fet 
 de Police should adopt this preventive measure is but natural 
 considering the row of last Tuesday. Yet the sanction 
 thus granted by Government is a tacit encouragement to 
 charlatanism in its most dangerous form and a most humili- 
 ating one for rational minds. At a moment when neither 
 Thiers nor Pelletan, Berryer nor Jules Favre would be allowed 
 to address twenty-five persons on any subject, whether 
 
BISMARCK AS DAVENPORT 113 
 
 political or literary, we see Government extending its pro- 
 tecting aegis over a pair of quacks, and allowing full liberty 
 to the emancipation of coats, guitars, tambourines, flutes, etc. 
 As most justly, writes the Temps, M. le Prdfet de Police 
 would only send his emissaries to a republican meeting to 
 close the doors of the building in which it was held and 
 arrest its orators. True it is that the fooleries of the Messieurs 
 Davenport do not endanger the State, still, they do the 
 human intellect. They can only lead to the mental aberra- 
 tion of weak intellects. That Government should ignore 
 their existence one can understand and approve, but that 
 it should actually protect, or even appear to protect them, is 
 rather too much of a good joke. If we were floating on a 
 sea of liberty we should make no remark. But when we 
 have witnessed the fruitless efforts of eminent men, of 
 members of the Institute even, to obtain permission to give 
 lectures on subjects utterly disconnected with politics, when 
 we know by bitter experience what our liberty of the press 
 amounts to, we do maintain it to be monstrous that this 
 grotesque superstition should flourish under the protection of 
 armed authority. 
 
 September igtk. 
 
 By-the-by, the Charivari of this morning publishes a most 
 amusing article, in which it compares the Davenport Brothers 
 to M. de Bismarck, the latter boasting of being able to 
 perform quite as clever tricks provided he be left in the dark. 
 He invites France, England, and the other European nations 
 to be present at his performance, and then blows the candles 
 out ; whereupon England complains of having received a 
 slap on the cheek and a kick. France can't make out where 
 they come from, the other nations think it very clever, and 
 all join in recognising that the tricks are admirably per- 
 formed. Poor Denmark is entirely stripped of its garments, 
 which are found on the back of Prussia. England exclaims 
 " Shocking ! " at the sight of the perfect nudity of Denmark. 
 The only difference between Bismarck and the brethren is 
 
114 DUMAS V. PREFONTAINE 
 
 that the former has not been made to refund money, as the 
 Davenports were forced to do last week. 
 
 There are epochs in the world's story which are constantly 
 revived in our memories, and of which the episodes are, as it 
 were, re-enacted in the discussions to which they seem 
 destined eternally to give rise. Who has not fought over 
 the conflicting evidences as to the innocence or guilt of the 
 fair Scottish Queen, in whose defence Why te- Melville so 
 lately shivered a lance ? Centuries have elapsed, and yet we 
 eagerly pursue every freshly discovered fragment that tells 
 for or against that most fascinating mother of our luckless 
 Stuarts. It was but the other day I read an angry polemic 
 in an English literary paper as to the exact spot of 
 Hampden's burial, and we have been fighting over Voltaire's 
 empty coffin, and vainly asking what has become of his 
 bones. The lawsuit between the representatives of the 
 jewellers Boehmer and Bossange and the de Montmorency, 
 heiress of the Cardinal de Rohan, as to the arrears due for 
 the necklace which Marie Antoinette was supposed to have 
 ordered, is fresh in the memory, it having come on last year, 
 and final judgment having been delivered after an interval of 
 seventy years. Once more the decapitated Royal Family of 
 France are literally summoned to the bar, arid their slightest 
 acts made the subject of a trial which occupies several 
 columns of the morning papers. " La Route de Varennes — 
 M. Alexandre Dumas versus the Heir of the Pr^fontaine 
 Family," is the heading of this strange affair, which originates 
 in the account given by the celebrated romance writer of 
 the part taken by M. de Prdfontaine during the attempted 
 flight of the Royal Family. The question is, Did the Queen 
 descend from the carriage and enter M de Pr^fontaine's house, 
 and there inquire the cause of delay in the relays of post- 
 horses, or is Alexandre Dumas' statement correct that on 
 the Queen's alighting M. de Prdfontaine closed the doors of 
 his house, which called forth from Louis XVI. a reproach in 
 which he reminded him of his double oath of fidelity to him 
 taken as officer and as Knight of St. Louis? It will be 
 
LA ROUTE DE VARENNES 115 
 
 remembered that the berline in which the family travelled 
 was driven by M. de Maiden disguised as coachman, and 
 attended by M. de Valory in the dress of a courier. An 
 escort of hussars and a relay of horses were expected at 
 Varennes, but by one of those inexplicable fatalities which 
 are destined to destroy accurate combinations neither the 
 one nor the other awaited them. M. de S^ze pleads the 
 Prdfontaine cause, and states that the grandfather of his 
 client was a quiet country gentleman, whose family had 
 always been attached to the Cond6s, he himself being the 
 agent of their estates in the Clermontais ; that on the night 
 of the 23rd June, 1791, he went in his dressing-gown and 
 slippers to see that his hall door was securely fastened, when 
 he heard a carriage stop, from which several persons alighted, 
 who asked him to admit them, one of whom he recognised as 
 the Queen. She entered a room, where she rested for a few 
 moments, and this room has been preserved since that night 
 in precisely the state it was in" on the night of this memorable 
 occurrence. The court ruled that Dumas and Michel Levy 
 publish within one month an edition of La Route de Varennes, 
 with an extract from the pamphlet of M. de Valory, which 
 asserts M. de Prdfontaine to have been a respectable person, 
 whose house was a place of safety for the Royal Family, 
 although he had not been a party to their flight, and that 
 had it been in his power he would undoubtedly have pointed 
 out the ford and lent horses required to cross the river 
 of Varennes ; that, furthermore, the Queen alighted at his 
 house, to which she was conducted by M. de Maiden, and 
 that she rested there a few moments. Dumas and Levy will 
 have to pay the costs, and are forbidden to sell any copies of 
 La Route de Varennes without this explanatory note. This 
 is by no means the first time Alexandre Dumas has been 
 summoned to the bar by the descendants of families who 
 consider themselves aggrieved by the part he has made 
 their ancestors play in his novels. The Marquis d'Epinay 
 Saint-Luc instituted a lawsuit against him in consequence of 
 his having stated, in his romance La Dame de Monsoreau, that 
 
ii6 M. PREVOST-PARADOL'S PARROT 
 
 his ancestor, Frangois d'Epinay de Saint-Luc, Grand Mattre 
 de I'Artillerie under Henry IV., and a distinguished general, 
 had been one of the mignons of Henry HI. The court 
 ruled, however, that as two hundred and fifty years had 
 elapsed since the said Frangois d'Epinay de Saint-Luc's 
 demise, it could not undertake to protect his memory from 
 M. Dumas' fertile pen. 
 
 The youngest and latest enrolled of our academic forty 
 is not precisely distinguished by his devotion to the actual 
 order of things. M. Pr^vost-Paradol possesses a charming 
 residence at Etretat, which most enjoyable of all the sea- 
 bathing places on the coast has become a rendezvous for 
 the literary and artistic world. His many avocations prevent 
 his residing there constantly, but he runs down to his family 
 whenever he can find a few days' leisure. The fetes of the 
 15th of August, to use a slang term, Pembitent, and to escape 
 from their demonstrative loyalty he started by the night 
 train of the 14th, and speedily fell asleep, to awake at the 
 early dawn in old Normandy, and rejoice in the conviction 
 that he was safe from mercenary cheers and paid Imperialism. 
 Suddenly in his very ear the cry rang sharp and clear, " Vive 
 I'Emp'r-reur!" pronounced with the peculiar rolling sound 
 of the " r " and suppression of the second syllable, so familiar 
 to those who have listened to the claque of a Paris mob. 
 Our young Orleanist started. He was alone in the carriage, 
 and the few peasants loitering about the station at which 
 the train had stopped were evidently absorbed by their 
 baskets of fowl or butter, intended for the up train to Paris. 
 Was it an hallucination — a sort of nightmare, the result of 
 the cramped position in which he had slept ? " Vive I'Emp'r- 
 reur ! " again was shrieked. This time it was past a joke. 
 In starting from his seat he touched a cage. The horrible 
 fact became apparent ; his own parrot had turned Imperialist 
 — a phenomenon subsequently explained by the confession 
 of an intimate friend whom he had kept waiting an uncon- 
 scionable time the previous day in his library, and who had 
 maliciously relieved his tedium by teaching M. Paradol's 
 parrot loyalty to his Sovereign. 
 
LES GAMMES D'OSCAR 117 
 
 September 20th. 
 
 I heard of the death of Prince Joseph Bonaparte at Rome 
 a few days ago. At the conclusion of the funeral ceremonies 
 — that is, after the coffin of the Prince had been deposited in 
 its appointed place in the family vault — the mattre d'hotel of 
 the defunct walked up to the coffin and said in a grave tone, 
 "Vostra altezza non commanda viente?" (What are Your 
 Highness's orders?). No reply issuing from the coffin, the 
 mattre d'kdtel backed out, and, on reaching the portico of 
 the church, shouted to the coronetted carriages without : 
 " Tornate a casa, sua altezza non commanda niente ! " 
 (Home, His Highness has given no orders). The custom 
 dates from the fifteenth century. 
 
 September 21st. 
 
 " La Revue " — that is, the annual review of the events of 
 the year — at the Folies Marigny will bear the title, On dit 
 que c'est drdle. I shall not say so, however, till I have seen 
 the piece. The theatre itself is a charming little bonbonniere, 
 coquettishly hidden among the bosquets of the Champs 
 Elysdes, got up in very good taste, and altogether more 
 attractive in its decorations than is the tone of the pieces 
 usually performed there, which are selected for the special 
 delectation of the shopboys and bonnes of the neighbourhood. 
 Les Gammes d' Oscar has had an unusual run. Its utter 
 absurdity attracts crowds every night. Oscar, the hero, is a 
 cheese-seller desperately in love with a fair widow, who is 
 landlady of a cafi, and whose charms fascinate her customers. 
 The enamoured cheesemonger disguises himself as a waiter, 
 and thus enters the service with the determination of devising 
 a plan for sending away her admiring clients, in each of 
 whom he sees a rival. The scheme he hits upon is ingenious. 
 No sooner has flaneur taken his seat, called for a paper, and 
 asked for his inevitable glass of absinthe, than Oscar, attired 
 in the traditional snow-white apron, and brandishing his 
 
ii8 FEUILLETONS 
 
 baton of office in the form of a particularly well-polished 
 coffee-pot, approaches and sings the solfige in a cracked voice 
 and completely out of tune. A second repetition of this 
 scale infallibly sends the most ardent lover as far from the 
 cafe as even Oscar can desire. Oscar honestly puts the money 
 he concludes would have been spent by the vanishing cus- 
 tomers out of his own purse into the till, as well as three 
 sous that would have been handed to himself in the character 
 of waiter into the urn destined to receive these contributions. 
 The amazement of the fair widow when she appears equipped 
 for conquest to take possession of her throne as the presiding 
 divinity of the cafi, to find it utterly untenanted, and Oscar's 
 explanatory dialogue, excites shouts of merriment among 
 the laughter-loving soubrettes who frequent Les Folies 
 Marigny. 
 
 September 2%th. 
 
 Notwithstanding the tropical heat we are enduring, les 
 feuiHes cFautomne are beginning to fall ; and, if we are to 
 judge by the following authentic anecdote of the literary 
 feuilletons, they are rapidly following a like fate. M. Pessard, 
 collaborateur of the Temps, tells us that a popular novelist 
 offered his last romance to the editor of a paper which is 
 to appear in a few days, to be entitled Le Soleil. The 
 editor accepted the offer on the following conditions : the 
 writer in question was to supply four feuilletons per week, 
 and to receive in payment £ip (i,0CX)f.) a month. The 
 editor of the Soleil, however, reserved to himself the right at 
 the expiration of two months of requiring that the plot 
 should either terminate within eight days of the notice he 
 would issue to the author or last several weeks ! M. Pessard 
 considers this anecdote as a curious illustration of the habits 
 and customs of the present day. However, as he truly re- 
 marks, the editor of the Soleil has not the honour of being 
 the original inventor of caoutchouc novels. Give honour di. 
 qui le droit, and if M. Delamarre, of the Patrie, has no other 
 
LES DRAMES DE PARIS 119 
 
 merit, it is only fair to acknowledge he has every right to 
 take out a patent for the idea. The popular romance writer, 
 Viscount Touson de Jerrail, wrote the first part of his 
 "Drames de Paris" for the Patrie. He received an un- 
 expected summons from M. Delamarre, and, on presenting 
 himself, was thus accosted by his literary chief : " You must 
 be good enough to clear out my lower story within a week " 
 (II faut que vous me nettoyez mon rez de chaussee d'ici ^ la 
 fin de la semaine). M. Delamarre meant by the term " rez 
 de chaussee" the lower portion of his paper devoted to 
 feuilletons. " But," replied Touson, " I have fifteen living 
 personages." " That is your affair ; by the end of the week 
 my rez de chaussie must be vacant. Invent an epidemic — do 
 what you please ; but I must have my rez de chauss^e^" 
 Touson vanished. During the four ensuing days he killed 
 off fourteen personages by fire, sword, poison, drowning, etc. 
 Meanwhile a reaction had taken place in the calculating 
 mind of the wary editor. It was evident that " Les Drames 
 de Paris " helped to sell his paper, and it was by no means 
 so clear that the romance of the author to whom he had 
 promised the space Touson occupied so remuneratively would 
 attract so many subscribers. A second time Touson received 
 a summons to M. Delamarre's study, but this time it was to 
 implore him to continue " Les Drames de Paris " for one 
 hundred more feuilletons. "But," objected Touson, " I have 
 but a single personage left — Rocambole. You desired me to 
 kill off all my characters within a week. How can I go 
 on ? " " Rocambole, Rocambole," replied M. Delamarre ; 
 " it's a good name. Write a second part." Viscount Touson 
 de Jerrail acquiesced, and La Patrie acquired four thousand 
 fresh subscribers. An intimate friend of mine translated 
 some years ago Mrs. Wood's clever work, East Lynne, under 
 the name of Lady Isabel, and published it in the said rez de 
 chaussee of La Patrie. He likewise, when he had proceeded 
 half-way in his work, was summoned to M. Delamarre's 
 study. " I sent for you," said the autocrat, " to ask you to 
 complete Lady Isabel within ten days." My friend, perfectly 
 
I20 EAST LYNNE 
 
 aghast at this imperative mandate, replied that he was 
 merely the translator of the work, and that even had he the 
 permission of the authoress, the story was so far advanced 
 that to curtail it was impossible. " Quite possible," retorted 
 M. Delamarre ; " Lady Isabel is dying of consumption ; let 
 her hang herself ; dest dans les mceurs Anglaises." My friend 
 regretted his inability to conform to his chiefs ideas of 
 British customs, whereupon the latter clapped his hat on his 
 head, which you are aware is the greatest insult a Frenchman 
 can oiiTer you, and my friend, following his example, vanished. 
 Lady Isabel appeared in its full length, and was one of the 
 most popular romances La Patrie ever published, the un- 
 deniable proof of which was that newsvendors sold the 
 paper by crying, " La Patrie — Lady Isabel!' But the hatred 
 of the autocrat of La Patrie for my friend is bitter and un- 
 dying. 
 
 By-the-by, I happened to spend yesterday evening in one 
 of the Legitimist salons of Versailles, where I was assailed 
 by a torrent of reproaches in consequence of having 
 erroneously stated that the Duke de Gramont Caderousse, 
 whose early death has created so painful a sensation at the 
 Jockey Club, was nephew of the celebrated Count d'Orsay, 
 and therefore son of the Gramont Duchess, before whose 
 beauty and wit half Europe went down some forty years 
 ago. It appears that the deceased Duke belonged to a very 
 distant branch of the Gramonts, second son of Charles de 
 Gramont, Duke de Caderousse His eldest brother. Attach^ 
 d'Ambassade, was lost at sea, and thus the Jockey Club 
 lion became Duke ; whereas the head of the Gramonts — 
 who, till, the Revolution swept away feudal fiefs and petty 
 sovereignties, were princes of Bidache, in the Pyrenees, and 
 lords of the country — is the Duke of Gramont, who was 
 ambassador to Rome in 1863, and whose Duchess was n^e 
 Mackinnon. Having acknowledged my ignorance, I trust I 
 shall be forgiven, although I have not the slightest chance of 
 pardon from the Quartier St. Louis of Versailles, the old 
 Legitimists of that last stronghold of French aristocracyj 
 
FRENCH LAW OF SUCCESSION 121 
 
 deeming an error in pedigree a sin which no amount of peni- 
 tential contrition can obliterate. A curious insight into 
 French law was revealed to me by the death of the late 
 Duke. It appears that when he succeeded to the title he 
 found himself master of seven millions, over which he had 
 uncontrolled sway. A few years of Paris life, however, made 
 sensible inroads on this fortune. His heirs became alarmed. 
 A conseil de famille was summoned, and the late Duke was 
 what is technically called interdit — that is, his estates and 
 funded property were put in charge of an agent selected by 
 the family council, who is made responsible that no portion 
 of it be sold or made away with, and that the actual 
 possessor shall only receive the interest thereof. An instance 
 of a case in point came under my own knowledge last 
 season. A member of the Jockey Club lost 60,000 f. one 
 night, and had not wherewith to pay. His estates were held 
 in trust for him in consequence of his extravagance, although 
 he was a man of thirty. He rushed next morning to his 
 
 man of business (Monsieur C ), told him of his loss, and 
 
 added his determination to blow out his brains if Monsieur 
 
 C did not enable him to clear his honour by giving him 
 
 the means of paying the debt. Monsieur C , reckoning 
 
 on his client's youth and appearance of health, and seriously 
 believing in his threat of suicide in case of the debt being un- 
 paid, took on himself the responsibility of giving the 60,000 f. 
 
 His client has died, and Monsieur C must refund the 
 
 sum to his heirs. The Duke de Gramont Caderousse will 
 give the lawyers work, even after his death, in consequence of 
 his having left his fortune to his doctor, which is contrary to 
 French law. We have of latter years seen so many instances 
 of the influence medical men exercise on their patients that 
 the law appears to be a very wise one. 
 
122 LES CHANSONS 
 
 October ^rd. 
 
 " Tout en France finit par des chansons " — that is, " Every- 
 thing, whether political or social, ends in a song " ; at least, so 
 says the old Gallic adage. The cholera, which continues its 
 ravages in spite of sanitary measures, of the prescriptions of 
 doctors, and processions to holy places, seems to have fled 
 before the merry songs and witty effusions of the working 
 population of Marseilles. It cannot be denied that mirthful 
 songs have a beneficial influence on a terror-struck people. 
 I know of medical men in Paris who, having failed to cure 
 patients suffering from blue devils or spleen by ordinary 
 means, have succeeded by sending them to the Bouffes 
 Parisiens, or the Palais Royal Theatre. Songs have the 
 privilege of diverting the careworn and inspiring the de- 
 sponding. In the workshops and manufactories of France it 
 has been noticed that artisans get through double the amount 
 of work as soon as they strike up a convivial song. I 
 remember in 1848 having been present when a few hundred 
 gamins, of fourteen or fifteen, enrolled in the Garde Mobile, 
 successfully fought against experienced and determined barri- 
 cadeurs, merely because they were excited by their own 
 heroic songs, such as the " Chant du Depart " or the " Mar- 
 seillaise." The effect of national and warlike tunes must, 
 indeed, be terrific, inasmuch as the present Government does 
 not allow them to be sung or played in Paris or the country. 
 Alas ! under the present rigime, the literature of songs has 
 indeed fallen low. No longer do we hear those mystic 
 utterances sweeping the heartstrings with irresistible power, 
 and giving voice to the emotions of a whole people. We are 
 now compelled to waste our enthusiasm on vile trash, such as 
 " II a des battes ! Bastien ! " " Ohd Lambert ! " or the " Nau- 
 frage Davenport." This last production, with which the 
 organ-grinders and strolling singers of Paris bore us, is mild 
 and innocuous when compared with many of the so-called 
 comic songs now afloat, abounding as they do in indelicate 
 
NAUFRAGE DAVENPORT 123 
 
 allusions and profane jests. This " Davenport " shipwreck 
 begins thus : — 
 
 " Du fin fond de I'Amdrique, 
 
 Partent deux spirits jumeaux, 
 
 Qui, franchissant I'Atlantique, 
 
 Ddbarquent en trois bateaux. 
 
 Leur addresse fait merveille ; 
 
 John Bull croit, c'dtait pr^vu, 
 
 Qu'avant de voir la pareille, (Bis) 
 
 II n'avait jamais rien vu. 
 
 " Les deux fr^r's se regard'nt sans rire 
 Et se dis'nt : AUons a Paris . . . 
 C'est le d^mon qui nous inspire. 
 lA nous serons sacrds . . . spirits ! 
 Si la curiositd les tente, 
 Ces Pariseins, qui n'sont pas forts, 
 Nous gagn'ront vingt mill' livr's de rente 
 Avec une calfeche k huit r'ssorts. 
 Trololoido." 
 
 Eight verses follow, although they do not precisely shine 
 by their wit. They nevertheless will contribute to finish off the 
 Brothers Davenport, seeing that, in France, /e ridicule tue. 
 The song is stamped with the blue stamp of the Home Office, 
 which proves that M. le Ministre is not a convert to spirit- 
 ualism as represented by these American brothers. 
 
 October a^th. 
 
 A good story has come to us from Ischl, where M. de 
 Bismarck was spending a few days previous to his start for 
 Biarritz. So was also Mdlle. L — ■ — , a most charming actress, 
 celebrated alike for her genius and the rigid correctness of 
 her conduct. The minister and actress met on the public 
 walk ; the former recognised the favourite of last season, 
 joined her, and a conversation ensued which continued till he 
 found himself at the door of a photographer's chalet. M. de 
 Bismarck did not quit his agreeable companion, but chatted 
 on, till suddenly the photographer, from under his black veil, 
 rushed out and requested the Prussian minister to stand 
 
124 A STORY OF BISMARCK 
 
 somewhat on one side, "as otherwise," he explained, "the 
 person of your Excellency will appear in the picture nigh to 
 that of the prima donna." " Mademoiselle," exclaimed the 
 terrified diplomatist," retreating precipitately. " Oh, pray, re- 
 main where you are ; the photograph is intended for the 
 fianci, and he will be so much flattered by the honour," etc, 
 etc. M. de Bismarck could not refuse, and thus it happened 
 that the Prime Minister and the Italian cantatrice appeared 
 in the same carte de visite. The absurd part of the story is, 
 that the Prussian police, imagining that the result had been 
 obtained by cutting out the separate portraits of the person- 
 ages with a malicious intent, have seized the copies sold at 
 Berlin, notwithstanding which the photograph has reached 
 Paris and is to be purchased on the boulevards. 
 
 October i6tk. 
 
 The first number of Le Soleil has appeared this evening, 
 and inaugurates its advent by the following story, which is 
 not bad : " ' Ah ! ' exclaimed a tender nurse, ' I have made a 
 mistake — I have given you a spoonful of ink instead of the 
 medicine.' The doctor, arriving in the midst of the scene of 
 despair which ensued, instantly prescribed that the patient 
 should swallow a sheet of blotting-paper." 
 
 October \%tk. 
 
 It appears that Italy's hero, Garibaldi, actually wants 
 money, and sent his favourite charger Marsala to be sold by 
 auction at Genoa. The splendid animal had been presented 
 to him by the inhabitants of Sicily, and it must therefore 
 have gone hard with the hero of a hundred fights to part 
 with his favourite charger. The auction took place ; one bid 
 was made of £^o, another of £60, and a third of £?>o. No 
 one seemed inclined to give a better price, when someone 
 suddenly offered ;£'200, which was naturally accepted. The 
 purchaser was Victor Emmanuel, and thus it happens that 
 Marsala is now the show horse of the royal stables. 
 
THE EMPRESS AND THE SICK 125 
 
 October 2'^rd. 
 
 At a quarter before ten this morning, as I was walking 
 past the Hopital Beaujon, a dark coach and pair drove up 
 to the entrance in the Faubourg St. Honor^, and the 
 Empress, accompanied by a lady-in-waiting and by her 
 chamberlain, M. de La Grange, descended and entered the 
 hospital, where I can assert she remained until past eleven. 
 Her Majesty was attired in black silk and wore a grey 
 bonnet. From the best authority I learn that she requested 
 to be taken to the cholera wards, where she approached the 
 bed of each patient, and in the case of the dying the Empress 
 knelt by their side and endeavoured to hear their last earthly 
 wish. Having gone slowly through every ward. Her Majesty 
 visited the kitchens of the hospitals, and requested to see the 
 food prepared for the sick of ordinary maladies. The 
 enthusiasm excited by this visit among so impressionable a 
 people as the French can hardly be imagined. The Empress 
 has been represented in England as distinguished only by 
 her personal beauty, dignity, and graceful demeanour ; but 
 Her Majesty has won the heart of the country by her mental 
 gifts, which are of no mean order. Her mind is large and 
 comprehensive, and she has, especially within the last few 
 years, regarded power but as the means of enabling her to do 
 the greatest amount of good to her fellow-creatures. Her 
 heart is cast in the mould of charity. She derives more 
 pleasure from the exercise of domestic virtue than from the 
 routine of State etiquette or the glare of adulation which 
 necessarily surrounds her throne. The hours she spent last 
 spring in the cells of La Roquette Penitentiary, drawing from 
 each of the juvenile delinquents the history of his life, and 
 the days she has since devoted to the remodelling of the 
 prison system, which has led to such beneficial results to the 
 young delinquents of France, have made a deep impression. 
 Her conduct at Biarritz, when in the dead of the night she 
 quitted her brilliant salons to take her place by the cot of 
 
126 M. GUSTAVE GIRARD'S COURAGE 
 
 Emile de Girardin's child, then dying of the worst form of 
 diphtheria, for the sole purpose of inducing the child to swallow 
 medicine that had been refused, will never be forgotten. Her 
 visit to-day to the crowded wards of the Beaujon — the words 
 of womanly tenderness with which she strove to comfort the 
 dying and give courage to the convalescent — this act of 
 fearless courage and devotion has proved more than any 
 public ceremonial could do that the Empress Eugenie is 
 worthy of her exalted station. As the plain, dark carriage, 
 drawn by a pair of post-horses and attended by a single 
 servant, drove her away from the hospital, I heard a workman 
 en blouse, cry out with " unpaid " enthusiasm, " Bravo ! nous 
 vous sommes -^devouds a la mort ! " Froni the H6pital 
 Beaujon she drove to the H6pital Lariboisiere, where the 
 first cholera patients were taken. This hospital was built by 
 Countess de Lariboisiere, who, during Louis Philippe's reign, 
 left 3,000,000 f. by will for its erection. I see by the evening 
 papers that to-morrow Her Majesty will visit I'Hopital 
 Saint Antoine. 
 
 Very different is the example set by some of the aristo- 
 crats of the Faubourg St. Germain, who have fled en masse to 
 Versailles, or returned to their chateaux. The shade of the 
 grand monarque must rejoice to see his stately terraces and 
 majestic avenues once more crowded by duchesses and 
 marquises, and the exclusive Quartier St. Louis congratulates 
 itself on the acquisition of so many recruits of its own order. 
 It is true, the plebeian crowd fling the epithet colonie depoltrons 
 at these coronetted cowards, whose sole occupation is to pre- 
 serve their own frivolous existence. Not one of these is 
 M. Gustave Girard, whose acquaintance I have not the 
 honour to have, but to whom I fervently wish the Legion 
 d'Honneur, since he undoubtedly deserves it. M. Girard was 
 one of the young students of Montpellier who volunteered 
 to respond to the appeal from Toulon for medical help. 
 M. Girard, perceiving that the usefulness of many of the 
 hospital aids and other subordinates was neutralised by their 
 fear of the disease, had the immense courage to collect a 
 
PALE ALE AND CHOLERA 127 
 
 number of them round the bed of a dying man, and, taking 
 the perspiration off his brow, placed it on his tongue ; and, to 
 further convince them that cholera was not infectious, he 
 approached the corpse of another who had expired two hours 
 previously, and, removing the black fur which was encrusted 
 on the dead man's tongue, he put it on his own. M. Girard 
 risked his life ; may he reap the full benefit of his philan- 
 thropic devotion. 
 
 There is but a step from the sublime to the ridiculous. 
 The brewers of Paris complain of the cholera, not that it 
 rages at this moment, or that it has carried off such a number 
 of useful members of society. Not in the least ; but because 
 its presence among us prevents their selling their beer. 
 Therefore the Worshipful Company of Brewers, like the King 
 of Beasts in La Fontaine's fable, cry out, " Haro, sur ce 
 baudet d'ou nous vient tout le mal ! " The brewers raise a 
 hue-and-cry against the medical men who have dared to say 
 that beer is the worst beverage for us during these cholera 
 times, and the said company, in a letter to the Temps, 
 endeavoured to prove that pale ale and half-and-half are the 
 only true panacea against the fell disease. Their arguments 
 are, that as in every beer there is from five to ten per cent, of 
 alcohol, it must be anti-choleraic ; furthermore, that beer 
 contains carbonic acid gas, which, in the form of eau de seltz, 
 is strongly recommended ; and that the rest of its component 
 parts are strongly albuminous. That gallant veteran. 
 Marshal Regnaud de St. Jean d'Angely, has given order 
 that flannel belts should be distributed to every soldier in his 
 division, besides the supplementary ration of hot coffee which 
 I mentioned yesterday. The Pr^fet of Police has followed 
 the old Marshal's example by giving one of these preventive 
 belts to every policeman ; he has, moreover, established in 
 every quarter of the town a canteen supplied with rum and 
 every medicine that could be required in the case of the 
 sudden illness of any of these men. 
 
128 VICTOR HUGO 
 
 October 2i^th. 
 
 However widely opinions may differ as regards Victor 
 Hugo as a politician (he has been, it will be remembered, by 
 turns a Legitimist, an Orleanist, and a republican), there is 
 one point upon which all are agreed, viz. that he is gifted 
 with genius. His works contain some of the sublimest 
 creations of French poetry. There is in Victor Hugo a 
 singular mixture of Horace and Anacreon, of Corneille and 
 Ronsard, of Shakespeare and Byron, of Goethe and Schiller. 
 In most of his writing there is a wild grandeur of conception 
 at once awing and fascinating. His new volume. Chansons 
 des Rues et des Bats, which appeared to-day, is, as far at least 
 as I can judge by a rapid perusal, destined to a great success. 
 It so far resembles the Excursion that in it are to be met 
 separate pieces or passages which stand out with more 
 majesty, more profound thought, and more beauty than the 
 others. A poem may be read — as, for instance, " Le Nid," 
 "Les Etoiles Filantes,""Hilaritas,""Al'Oreille du Lecteur," 
 " Le Baiser," etc. — with exquisite and unimpaired enjoyment 
 as an independent fragment. Some of these scenes are of 
 consummate power, and, what strikes one even on the most 
 careless glance at the book, open it where you will, is the 
 inconceivable prodigality of new imagery. Speaking of 
 Victor Hugo recalls to my mind an incident in his life which 
 is not sufficiently known, and which certainly tells much for 
 the goodness of his heart. Barb^s, the celebrated re- 
 publican and disciple of Robespierre, had been condemned 
 to death during the reign of Louis Philippe. On the eve of 
 the execution the sister of Barbes went to the poet and 
 implored him to ask the King to grant her brother's reprieve. 
 He tried and failed. The Court were at that time mourning 
 for the idolised Princess Marie of Wurtemberg, so early 
 snatched by consumption, and the Count of Paris was just 
 born. It was midnight of the I2th of July. His Majesty 
 had retired. The poet wrote on a slip of paper the following 
 
A HAIRDRESSER'S WEDDING 129 
 
 stanza, placing it on a table opposite the door of the King's 
 chamber : — 
 
 " Par votre ange envol^e ainsi qu'une colorabe, 
 Par ce royal enfant, doux et frgle roseau ! 
 Grice encore una fois — grice au nom de la tombe, 
 Grice au nom du berceau ! " 
 
 Louis Philippe, on awaking, read the lines, and Barbes was 
 saved. 
 
 November ^th. 
 
 A marriage in high life occupies no less than two columns 
 of the Gazette des Etrangers ; the details are chronicled by 
 no less literary a pen than that of Henri de P^ne. The church, 
 we are informed, was crowded by the foule par^e — a crowd 
 attired in full dress. M. I'Abbd Reyneval pronounced a 
 touching discourse. At the wedding dinner a telegram con- 
 veyed the congratulations of Her Majesty the Queen of 
 Prussia to the bridal couple, while two poets composed 
 verses in honour of the important event. You probably 
 expect to hear of a Bismarck, a Metternich, or probably 
 even a Bonaparte, having entered the holy 'state of matri- 
 mony. The regal felicitations were tout simplentent addressed 
 to the hairdresser, M. Leroy, whose daughter espoused his 
 apprentice, M. Albert, the paternal domicile being 422, Rue 
 Saint Honor6. Writing of coiffeurs reminds one of coiffures, 
 and certainly the most singular freak of fashion in this item 
 of female attire which has startled us vieux garqons is the 
 tricoque, which, perched partly on one ear and partly on 
 the huge chignon of the coquettes (or shall I write cocottes ?) 
 who are beginning to make their appearance on the Champs 
 Elysees, strikingly recall Van Blarenberghe's admirable de- 
 lineations of the Gardes Frangaises. 
 
 November 6th. 
 
 Corresponding for a Paris paper is as much as one's life is 
 worth. The celebrated duel of 1862, where Henri de Pene 
 was compelled to fight successively with two officers, will not 
 
I30 VICTIMS OF DUELS 
 
 have been forgotten. The staff of the Figaro has fought 
 twelve duels in the last ten years — the thirteenth occurred 
 on Friday. Count de Rochefort, in an article on the panic- 
 stricken monarchs who have fled from their dominions on 
 account of cholera, made a remark which awoke the sus- 
 ceptibilities of a youthful Don Quixote, the Duke of A . 
 
 He sent a challenge to M. de Rochefort, who accepted it. 
 Meudon was appointed rendezvous for this choleraic-mon- 
 archical duel. Thirty paces was the appointed distance chosen. 
 Although each fired three times, neither was hit. The 
 Spanish Duke shook hands with the Count, and both drew 
 back to their respective pdnates. It is all very well to laugh 
 in England, where civilisation has effaced that remnant of 
 barbarism from its customs ; but here, how many a noble 
 spirit can I recall whose life has thus paid for a harmless 
 squib or for a mere slip of the pen ! Poor Dillon, of the 
 Sport, among the latest, Armand Carrel, and how many 
 others in the past! 
 
 November 12th. 
 
 The Evinement assures us that it is by no means patronised 
 by the De Rothschild family, with one member of which 
 it is not even acquainted. This statement is necessitated 
 by the fact that five of its columns are devoted to a 
 laudatory leader of the various members of that financial 
 dynasty. Among othet anecdotes, one charming story is 
 related of Baron Gustav de Rothschild, who lately married 
 Mdlle. Anspach, eldest daughter of the Conseiller of the 
 Cour de Cassation. The fair bride's dowry was ;^20,ooo. 
 The evening of the wedding-day the Baron brought his 
 young wife to his residence, and on taking her to a fairy 
 boudoir he had arranged for her reception he handed a small 
 parcel to her. " Will you refuse to grant your husband's 
 first request ? " " Of course not," replied the youthful 
 Baroness. "Then add the ;^20,ooo which this envelope 
 contains to your little sister's portion." The Ev^nement 
 further informs us that Baron James Rothschild rises at 
 
ANECDOTES OF M. DUPIN 131 
 
 seven, and, whilst he is being shaved and dressed by his 
 valet Felix, M. Boudeville, professor of elocution, reads the 
 moping papers to him. It is to be hoped he gives the 
 correct intonation to the market reports, etc. At eight 
 o'clock the Baron proceeds to his office, where he works till 
 six, whence he goes to play his rubber of whist at the club. 
 The family dine at eight, after which they meet in the salons 
 Baroness James, who receives Thiers, and all the nobilities of 
 the day, whence, however, the Baron sometimes escapes to 
 criticise the actions of the pupils of his teacher, M. Boude- 
 ville, at the Theatre de la Tour de Auvergne. 
 
 The papers of the day are filled by anecdotes of the late 
 M. Dupin, whose sudden death, the other day, has been 
 the event of the week. It appears that when President 
 of the Chambers he acquired somewhat the tone of a 
 schoolmaster. He more than once blew up Berryer for 
 a habit he had of cutting with his penknife at the desk 
 opposite which he sat in the Chambers ; but nothing excited 
 his indignation so much as members of the House who, 
 although apparently replying to speeches on the impulse of 
 the moment, had, in fact, arrived with notes of what they 
 intended to say. One especially attracted his attention, 
 and, seeing this gentleman on one occasion working himself 
 into a state of frightful excitement from not being able to 
 put his notes in proper order, M. Dupin called out, " Monsieur, 
 Jinissez-en, you may shuffle your cards as you will, you will 
 never find the ace." He knew by heart those who made 
 a practice of suddenly interrupting a speaker. On one 
 occasion, when Lamartine was in the midst of one of his 
 brilliant speeches, forewarned by the President, he suddenly 
 stopped, crossed his arms, and looked straight at the pro- 
 fessional interrupter, who did not see the trap laid for him. 
 "I am waiting, sir, for your interruption," M. Lamartine coolly 
 said to him. Of course, a shout of laughter from all sides 
 of the House greeted this saillie. M. Dupin's remarks on the 
 various modes in which the deputies drank the glass of 
 water which, in his time, was always ready for a speaker in 
 
132 MEN AND DRINKS 
 
 the tribune were most amusing. M. de Lamartine scarcely- 
 touched the glass with his lips. Jules Favre, on the contrary, 
 impetuously gulped down the oflScial beverage, while Thiers 
 imbibed it slowly. Puritan Guizot drank the fluid in its 
 pristine purity, without admixture of sugar, and courtly 
 De Montalembert swallowed it slowly, a perfect syrup of 
 eau sucree. M. Dupin's dexterity in ringing the presidential 
 bell was sometimes marvellous, a practice he used un- 
 mercifully during any parliamentary tempest, especially 
 whenever the storm blew from an unfavourable quarter for 
 the ministerial bench. 
 
 November igtk. 
 
 In contradiction of the rumours afloat as to the disposal 
 of M. Dupin's property, it is stated on apparently good 
 authority that he has bequeathed the ;£" 12,000 a year 
 (300,000 f.) which he had accumulated to his fourteen 
 nephews. Eleven wills have already been found duly 
 signed and sealed, almost rivalling in number the political 
 creeds professed by the late Procureur-General. Speaking 
 of him it occurs to me to mention that one of the most 
 strange documents he published was his revision of the trial 
 of our Saviour, which he did from a mere legal point of view, 
 and proved by reference to the Roman as well as the Jewish 
 law that the sentence passed on our Lord was perfectly 
 illegal. In this pamphlet M. Dupin does not allude to the 
 religious phase of the question ; he merely criticises the 
 proceedings of the Jewish Sanhedrin. 
 
 November 22nd. 
 
 Handbooks on all imaginable subjects abound, and to the 
 long list in circulation the Count de Montigny has added 
 one bearing the singular title : Handbook for Outriders, 
 Coachmen, Grooms and Stable Boys. A great subject, un- 
 doubtedly. We only hope the Count's genius was enabled 
 to grasp his subject. 
 
LAMARTINE ON MEXICO 133 
 
 November 2ird. 
 
 M. de Lamartine is pretty severely criticised in the Dibats 
 of this morning, owing to an article which he has written 
 in the last number of the Entretiens Littiraires, and bearing 
 on the Mexican question. M. de Lamartine seems suddenly 
 to have become a convert to the present Government, in- 
 asmuch as he entirely approves of the French expedition 
 to Mexico, which he considers "a grand idea, just as is 
 necessity, vast as the ocean, novel as the d. propos, the con- 
 ception of a statesman, pregnant as is the future, a thought 
 which will result in the salvation of America and of the 
 whole world ! " The common sense of the public, justly 
 remarks the Dibats, which cannot boast of being as vast 
 as the ocean, views the expedition as being in opposition 
 to the spirit of American institutions, one of the funda- 
 mental principles of which leads the people to resent with 
 bitter intensity the slightest attempt at European inter- 
 ference in its affairs. The masses of the French nation 
 by no means seize either the utility or the i propos of this 
 aggression, which the poet, on the contrary, considers as 
 not having been carried out with sufficient energy. Accord- 
 ing to him, the hour having arrived to preach a general 
 crusade of all the European populations against Americans, 
 whom he considers as the Saracens of modern times. Of 
 what crimes does this chantre des harmonies poetiques accuse 
 the American nation ? Simply of possessing cotton and 
 gold mines, of which Europe would gladly profit. The 
 desire to seize these he considers as both natural and just. 
 What, however, would the author of Miditations Poetiques 
 say if the Americans attempted to appropriate the vine- 
 yards of Burgundy and Bordeaux on the pretext that they 
 have nothing of the kind at home, and that these vineyards 
 are worth their weight in gold ? Another reproach which 
 M. de Lamartine makes to that nation is that it has not 
 acquired the polished manners or the correct tone of good 
 
134 LAMARTINE AND THE DEMOCRACY 
 
 society. Whatever amount of importance he attaches to 
 questions of politeness or personal amiability, one must 
 confess that it is rather difficult to declare war against a 
 people because they are not well up in etiquette ; but let 
 us put aside these puerilities and come to their real crime 
 in the eyes of M. de Lamartine. The population of the 
 United States are the representatives of democracy, and are 
 jealous of all that are superior to themselves. "Americans," 
 writes the poet, "cut down the aristocratic giants of the 
 forests, and delight in knocking them down, jealous as they 
 are even of great works of nature. They treat the mighty 
 superiorities of intelligence in like manner ; they annihilate 
 their great men as they cut down their trees." The D^bats 
 attributes the violence of this attack to the feelings of 
 rancour which Lamartine bears towards democracy ever 
 since 1848, when, as you are aware, the poet canvassed for 
 the presidency of the French Republic, and could only 
 secure a few thousand votes. The D^bats may be right, still 
 I am not inclined to be as severe on the poet as is this 
 Orleanist organ. It appears to me that it would have been 
 better taste had the Dibats left this souvenir unevoked, for 
 let it be said to the eternal honour of the author of the 
 Girondins that though he did not succeed in grasping 
 sovereign power he met his fate with the cool heroism 
 of a man who had done his duty. In 1848 he defied the 
 wrath and refused to yield to the imperious demands of 
 Red Republicans, and, though he failed to associate order 
 with freedom, when he withdrew from the political arena 
 he carried with him the admiration of his friends and the 
 respect of his opponents. 
 
 November 2i^h. 
 
 MM. Alfred Tramhaut and Jules Ladimir have almost com- 
 pleted a work which will attract attention. Its title, Les 
 Femmes Militaires, of itself excites curiosity. The following 
 sketch of the Countess de Saint Borlemont will convey an 
 idea of its contents. Alberte Barbe, daughter of the Seigneur 
 
LES FEMMES MILITAIRES 135 
 
 of the Chateau de la Neuville, was born in 1607, and at 
 the age of twenty-seven married the Count de Saint Borle- 
 mont, a colonel in the service of Charles, Duke of Lorraine. 
 The lady, wholly given up to masculine exercise, appears to 
 have quarrelled with her husband at the outset of her 
 married life, and yet her conduct was in all other respects 
 strictly correct. The Count, however, followed the banner 
 of his master, and fought with the Imperialists, who, in 
 1636, had coalesced with Austria against Louis XIII., while 
 she remained steadfast to her attachment to France. Her 
 chateau being attacked by Spanish troops, the heroic 
 Countess, at the head of her tenants, not only defended it, 
 but in a sortie completely routed and put to flight the 
 attacking party. During the seven following years Alberte 
 successfully repulsed the foreign regiments who attempted 
 to harass her dependants. On one occasion, while her 
 husband was absent with the Duke of Lorraine on a distant 
 expedition, the Countess gave a temporary asylum to a 
 French officer in command of a detachment of cavalry 
 sent to her support. The young man thought he might 
 spend his time agreeably in the intervals of military occupa- 
 tions by making love to his chatelaine. He received a 
 challenge signed Chevalier de Borlemont, purporting to 
 have been sent by the lady's brother-in-law. The officer 
 accepted the cartel, and went to the place of meeting. The 
 Countess, disguised as a man, awaited him. The duel took 
 place, and the lady succeeded in disarming her foe, to whom 
 she restored his sword, saying, " Sir, you thought you were 
 fighting with a cavalier; learn in future that wives can 
 defend their honour during the absence of their husbands." 
 With her own hands the Countess killed, during her various 
 military exploits, four hundred individuals. When General 
 Erlach passed through Champagne she attacked three German 
 soldiers whom she caught in the act of taking the horses 
 from her plough, and kept them at bay till her own men 
 came to her rescue. On one occasion, while leading the 
 attack on a German castle, she mounted the breach, and. 
 
136 GOUNOD'S MASS 
 
 effecting an entrance, found herself alone in a room with 
 seventeen men, armed to the teeth, whom she managed 
 to disarm. On the death of the Count this femme militaire 
 entered the convent of Bar le Due, but the life of seclusion 
 was too severe for her, and she was obliged to return to the 
 Chateau de la Neuville, where she died 1660, leaving one 
 daughter, who married Louis des Arnoises, Seigneur de 
 Commercy. 
 
 November 2%th. 
 
 So great was the anxiety of the public to hear Gounod's 
 Mass that as early as ten o'clock this morning every avail- 
 able spot in the magnificent church of St. Eustache was 
 filled by a dense crowd, who patiently waited fully two hours 
 before the first notes of the organ were heard. The church is 
 cruciform ; the centre of the nave was reserved for the 
 accommodation of the artists who were taking part in the 
 ceremony, while the rest was occupied by reserved seats, the 
 two aisles being equally crowded. We had ample time to 
 admire the stained glass of the clerestory windows, the 
 elaborate tracery which adorns the triforium gallery, the side 
 chapels lately restored in the Byzantine style, but oyer one 
 of which the arms and cardinal's hat of the mighty 
 Richelieu still remain. A movement in the crowd attracted 
 our attention to the fact that way was to be made for 
 mesdames les quiteuses, who, preceded by stately beadles 
 in all the pomp of white-feathered cocked hats, were led by 
 attendant squires to their seats. Would I could borrow the 
 pen of some fair chroniqueuse to record the gorgeous attire of 
 these pious women. Deeply engraved on my memory is the 
 bewitching smile which beamed on my bewildered senses 
 from beneath a thing of pink crape, called, I believe, a bon- 
 net, while a mass of mauve velvet gracefully swept by, the 
 attendant squire meanwhile calling out in stentorian voice, 
 "L'oeuvre de Sainte Cecile," the fair quSteuse offering her 
 scarlet velvet and gold bag to all around. Heavens ! when I 
 felt the mauve velvet approach my chair ! To offer her less 
 
A FETE AT COMPIEGNE 137 
 
 than gold would have been simply an insult. Was there no 
 escape? I looked despairingly around. It was a hopeless 
 case ; for, in the distance, lo, I beheld four of her sisterhood 
 sumptuously arrayed kneeling at each side of the door 
 armed with these terrible scarlet bags, wherewith they en- 
 trapped the passers-out — and note, we had paid for our chairs, 
 so this flank movement came rather hard on the unwary. 
 Certainly Gounod's Mass, meanwhile, was well worth hearing. 
 The Kyrie Eleison, sung by four hundred artists of the 
 Conservatoire, with an accompaniment of eight bassos, six 
 harps, and the full opera orchestra, can better be imagined 
 than described. Madame Sax's voice rang out clear and full, 
 and great as was the space she had to fill, her voice proved 
 equal to the task. The solo on the violin by Allard sur- 
 passed our expectations ; in execution it could not have 
 been equalled by any living artist, and perhaps the simple 
 character of the composition gave greater scope to the ex- 
 treme delicacy of his performance than the more complicated 
 pieces we usually hear him execute. There was a movement 
 as the last note died away which told of the thrilling effect 
 this exquisite interlude had upon the vast audience. The 
 Benedictus was one of the finest parts of the day's services. 
 
 November 2gth. 
 
 Les Commentaires de Char, or Review of 1865, appears to 
 have been a complete success at Compiegne, chiefly owing to 
 the brilliant comic talent of the Princess de Metternich, on 
 whom the difficult task devolved of performing three differ- 
 ent parts, in each of which she acquitted herself with a 
 perfect mastery of her subject, and an dfropos which ex- 
 perienced actresses would have envied. The company present 
 included the Imperial family, the sixty-seven guests of the 
 second series, General von Wimpfen, the keeper of the 
 Imperial forests, and Viscountess de la Panouge, M. and 
 Madame Jules Lecoq, and the Procureur Imperial. Precisely 
 at nine the curtain of crimson velvet, splendidly embroidered 
 
138 INCIDENTS OF THE FETE 
 
 in gold, rose and displayed the Champs de Mars, in the fore- 
 ground of which somewhat arid space stood a saucy-looking 
 marchande de plaisirs, personified by Jamy Louis Conneau, 
 who, in payment for that popular biscuit, receives a kiss from 
 Count de Solms, a marchand of that detestable beverage 
 called coco, upon which she remarks, " C'est pour avoir du 
 plaisir." M. de Lambert, as mayor of a country village, M. 
 Prudhomme by name, appears admirably got up in a brown 
 coat, broad-brimmed hat, silver spectacles, and nankin inex- 
 pressibles, and complains that he had prepared a clever 
 speech, but that " La Censure " had cut it short. A cantinikre 
 (Princess de Metternich) informs the prosy mayor that 
 C6sar is to review the troops. " What ! the C6sar of Roman 
 history ? Impossible. He is at Compi^gne." " May be," 
 replies the Vivandi^re, " I shall be sure to make him out." 
 She looks round the house, and perceiving the Emperor re- 
 quests him to passer la revue. " Ah, sire, you will not. Very 
 well; whether you like it or not, 1865 shall be reviewed by 
 you, as you sit in your armchair." The Marquise de Gallifett, 
 as Trade, leads the way in a costume of white and gold 
 crowned by rays of light ; she attends upon France 
 (Countess Pourtales) whose fair complexion and chevelure 
 dorie is admirably set off by her helmet and cuirass of gold 
 and silver scales, over which a green velvet mantle, emblazoned 
 by the Imperial Arms and symbolic bees, is most becomingly 
 draped. The strike of the cabmen next appears, represented 
 by the Princess, attired in a coachman's top coat, long 
 gaiters, and round hat, with the black cockade and silver 
 band peculiar to her house. She requests M. Prudhomme to 
 engage her by the month, seeing that her husband has struck 
 work, and she has several children to support. The Princess 
 truly asserts that, like Mary Draper, " she'd ride a wall or 
 drive a team, for nothing could escape her." All these 
 merits she details with perfect imitation of a cabby's tone 
 and gait. She was, however, more applauded when she re- 
 appeared as the impersonation of Song, wearing a white 
 petticoat on which in black lines were musical keys, over 
 
AT COMPIEGNE 139 
 
 which floated a tulle skirt spangled with silver, her black 
 velvet bodice a mass of diamonds, and her headdress two 
 roses and aigrette of brilliants. She sings a clever risum^ of 
 the musical art from the time of Mazarin, during the reign of 
 the Grand Monarque, the Regency, and the Empire, with a 
 tact and wit for which the ambassadress is so remarkable. 
 " L'Africaine " was represented by Baroness de Poilly and 
 Viscount d'Aguado, the latter as Vasco da Gama, who sang 
 one of Offenbach's bouffe duo to the air of " Litzchen and 
 Fritzchen." The interchange of the visits of the French and 
 English fleets was given by Viscount d'Espenilles, as a 
 volunteeer, and Viscount de Fitzjames, as a French sailor, 
 who recommends his brave ally 
 
 " Ayez toujours un canon k la poche, 
 On ne sait pas ce qui peut arriver." 
 
 Mr. Blount personated La Diva Patti, not an enviable task, 
 and the Marquis de Caux Cocodette, a term, as you are 
 aware, applied to a woman of the world, who copies in dress 
 and tone the anonymas of the demi-monde. The soirie 
 terminated by a trio sung by the Past, General de Mellinet, 
 as an invalid soldier ; the Present, the Marquis de Gallifett, 
 in the uniform of his regiment ; and the Future, the Prince 
 Imperial, a young grenadier, which trio is described as having 
 been a chef d'ceuvre of tact, wit, and d propos. 
 
 December a^th. 
 
 On Saturday took place the opening of the new theatre 
 Les Fantaisies Parisiennes before a select public, as well as 
 all the literary notabilities of this capital. The bill of fare 
 consisted of a prologue in verse, a farce. La Derniere Nuit 
 d'une Veuve, La Pajttomime de VAvocat, and a charming 
 operette of Donizetti called II Campanello. The pantomime 
 was the great success of the evening, the comic combinations 
 of which do great credit to the imagination of Champfleury. 
 The celebrated clown Deburau was received with great 
 
I40 CENSORSHIP OF THE PRESS 
 
 applause. He is a first-rate mimic, and has the talent of 
 setting the whole room in a roar. His imitation of the 
 gestures and manner of a baritone was admirable. Mademoi- 
 selle Bonheur made a charming columbine, and fascinated all 
 by her grace and beauty, not a little set off by tasteful cos- 
 tume. The first evening was quite a success, and augurs 
 well for the popularity of the Fantaisies Parisiennes, whose 
 three attractions are fun, frolic, and gaiety. The theatre 
 itself is a perfect little bonbonniere, arranged with exquisite 
 taste in the rez de chaussde of 26, Boulevard des Italiens, which 
 house is the property of the Marquis of Hertford. It appears 
 that the censorship of the Press objected to one line in the 
 prologue, and the verse in question was altered twelve times 
 before Messieurs les Censeurs would allow it to pass, the 
 point at issue being the expression, " Les dpoux sortent de 
 leurs bains." " Their baths ! " exclaimed the austere Cato of 
 the Board of Censure ; " the plural is not marked by the 
 sound, and it might imply that husband and wife bathed 
 together. C'est tres indecent." 
 
 December Jth. 
 
 I mentioned the celebration of the Empress's f^te at Com- 
 piegne on the 15th of last month, and the numerous bouquets 
 of exotic flowers with which Her Majesty's guests presented 
 her. M. de Nieuwerkque, it appears, was fortunate enough 
 to have been able to offer a treasure of no slight artistic 
 value, it being one of the few water-coloured drawings extant 
 by Prudhon, not only bearing his signature, but being a por- 
 trait of himself in the costume he wore at .a ball given by the 
 First Consul. The story of the discovery of this trouvaille 
 is curious. M. Luquet, a well-known connoisseur, was wan- 
 dering a few weeks ago along the remote Rue Mouffetard, 
 when suddenly his attention was arrested by a drawing lying 
 among some old fashions in the window of a barber's shop, 
 the name Prudhon being daubed in red letters at a corner of 
 the sketch. We all know how scarce an authentic Prudhon 
 has become of late years. Assuming a tone of indifference, 
 
A DRAWING BY PRUDHON 141 
 
 M. Luquet inquired whether cette image (a tel-m for a child's 
 penny print) was for sale. " No," replied he of the razor, in 
 the act at the moment of imprisoning a grizzled gendarme 
 in the shroud-like shaving cloth ; " that is, it belongs to my 
 father ; he will be at home about six." Punctual as the clock 
 of N6tre Dame was our amateur. " Papa," said the barber, 
 "it's the gentleman for your bon homme." The old man could 
 hardly totter along. " You want to buy my Prudhon, sir ; 
 for it is a Prudhon, I can answer for that. He himself gave 
 it to me one evening I had curled his hair d Titus for a ball 
 at the Tuileries. You see, sir, I was his hairdresser, and like- 
 wise the great M. David's." This long preamble sounded 
 ominous to the anxious ears of M. Luquet. "Sell my 
 Prudhon ! Well, I never thought of such a thing. You see, 
 I am half-blind and cannot see, so I gave it to my grandson, 
 Adolphe, to amuse himself with, and it is a miracle he has 
 not snipped it with his scissors." " But," replied M. Luquet, 
 " one might give Adolphe something he would like better." 
 A splendid Zouave balancing on an elastic in the window of 
 a toy-shop opposite suggested the idea, which he mentally 
 prayed might prove a tempting bait to M. Adolphe. " Cer- 
 tainly, and as you are a connoisseur I would prefer you to 
 have my Prudhon ; my grandson will only tear it." " How 
 much will you sell it for ? " " Oh, it is an original, and signed, 
 and that is something. Would you think it too much if I 
 asked fifteen sous?" 
 
 December 11 tk. 
 
 I recorded the opening of the Fantaisies Parisiennes, where 
 pantomime, for the first time since the Funambules were 
 demolished, attracts French curiosity under the auspices of 
 M. Champfleury. The success of the evening is the perfor- 
 mance of Deburau, whose life has had many singular phases. 
 His father, the celebrated comedian, determined on making 
 him a painter of porcelain, and entered him as an artist at 
 the Sevres manufactory. But the theatre was his vocation, 
 and the vases entrusted to him were decorated by groups of 
 
142 DEBURAU 
 
 columbines and harlequins. On his father's death he threw 
 away his brushes and studied with so much earnest purpose 
 that in ten years he had made a name. He suddenly dis- 
 appeared from Paris. He had started on a tour over Europe. 
 On his return he was in a small hotel at Nevers with his wife, 
 intending to remain forty-eight hours ; but to sleep during 
 the first night was impossible, seeing that the occupant of 
 the room overhead spent his in pacing his room with creaking 
 boots. Deburau summoned the waiter at early dawn and 
 despatched him with a message to his enemy imploring him 
 to adopt list shoes as his chaussure. " Who has sent you ? " 
 inquired he of the noisy boots. " The actor, M. Deburau." 
 " Deburau ! " exclaimed M. Bravay ; " why, I have scoured 
 Europe in search of him ! " " Well, sir," replied the gargon, 
 " he begs you will change your boots." But M. Bravay had 
 already dashed downstairs, and was in the actor's presence. 
 He had had for fifteen months in his portfolio an engagement 
 from the Egyptian Viceroy, Said Pacha. Deburau signed 
 it, and started for the kingdom of the Pharaohs, escorted by 
 Harlequin, Cassandra, and Columbine. Safd Pacha had a 
 movable theatre. His Highness was constantly travelling ; 
 the performance therefore took place in an ancient temple of 
 Sesostris one night, perhaps the next in a palace of the 
 Pacha ; the third in the identical hall where the priests of 
 Isis taught Pythagoras, and so on. And as varied as the 
 mise-en-scine were the modes of transport. At times the 
 troupe traversed the desert on camels ; as often Columbine, 
 Cassandra, and Pierrot found themselves sailing up the Nile 
 in a dahabieh. At the end of ten months of this nomadic 
 existence Deburau returned to Paris. 
 
 Last Tuesday, about one o'clock, two gentlemen called at 
 Rossini's residence, and asked if he was at home. The 
 servant showed them into the dining-room, and presently 
 informed them that his master (who happened to have a bad 
 cold) was out walking on the boulevards. The visitors, aware 
 that nothing could be more unlikely than that a man whose 
 chief occupation was coughing and sneezing would start out 
 
THE KING OF PORTUGAL AND ROSSINI 143 
 
 with the barometer at freezing-point, particularly insisted upon 
 seeing Signor Rossini. The servant unwillingly conveyed 
 the message. Rossini came out of his room and asked what 
 they wanted. One of the gentlemen said that he had been 
 sent by Don Ferdinand (at this moment Regent of Portugal) 
 to present his compliments, and to be kindly remembered to 
 him. Rossini made a suitable reply, and said that he had 
 heard by the papers that his son, the present King, was in 
 Paris. " He is," said the youngest of the intruders. " C'est 
 moi, cher maitre ! " " And how could I recognise the King 
 in a great-coat and grey hat ? " The young monarch, after 
 a long chat with the great maestro, asked if he had not a 
 piano. " Yes, two." The King sat down and played from 
 memory passages from Guillaume Tell, from the Trovatore, 
 etc., accompanied by M. de Paiva, his ambassador, who is as 
 good a musician as himself. On taking leave of Rossini the 
 King begged of him to accept the insignia of a new order he 
 has lately created, called the Order of Merit. 
 
 December lyth. 
 
 The following anecdote may amuse you. Jules Janin, the 
 illustrious critic of the D^bats, and the brilliant feuilletoniste, 
 who has so often been unsuccessfully proposed for the vacant 
 chair at the Academy, was crossing the muddiest part of the 
 Boulevard des Italiens, which is in course of being macada- 
 mised, when the friend with whom he was walking expressed 
 the hope that justice would at length be done, and that he 
 would soon be numbered among the forty immortals. " Why 
 not?" replied Jules Janin; "everything being macadamised 
 in our days, I do not see why I should not be macadamised 
 also." 
 
 December 20th. 
 
 Last week a young foreigner, dressed with perfect sim- 
 plicity, went into Devisme the gun -smith's shop on the 
 Boulevard des Italiens, and asked for a double-barrelled gun 
 
144 A GENUINE NIMROD 
 
 to shoot wild boars, and expressed his anxiety to try 
 Devisme's new explosive balls. M. Devisme happened to be 
 in the shop, entered into conversation with the young man, 
 and, at once recognising a genuine Nimrod, remarked that as 
 it was absurd to try either guns or balls in a mere shooting- 
 gallery, he invited him to his country place at Argenteuil, 
 where he was going to shoot the following day, and would be 
 very happy to be accompanied by his new acquaintance. 
 The young man asked how long it would take to reach his 
 house. " Two hours," replied Devisme ; " I start by the ten 
 train. In half an hour we shall reach our destination, and it 
 will take us about three-quarters of an hour to try the guns, 
 and half an hour to return ; but it occurs to me that eleven 
 is breakfast hour. I can offer you a cutlet and an omelette, 
 hunter's fare." " Bravo ! " said the young foreigner, " I 
 accept." After selecting his gun, Devisme inquired his name 
 and address. The young man took the pen and wrote in the 
 book of addresses, " Roi de Portugal, Grand Hotel." 
 
 December 2\st. 
 
 A most curious trial has just taken place in consequence 
 of the death of an old lady, Mdlle. de Serilly, who died last 
 February at Theil. You are aware that on the death of 
 public functionaries the State has a right to take possession 
 of their papers, manuscripts, and documents of all kinds, 
 and abstract therefrom whatever may refer to public affairs. 
 Mdlle. de Serilly had carefully preserved an immense number 
 of official papers which had been handed down in her family 
 from one generation to another. She possessed 630 docu- 
 ments referring to the administration of one of her ancestors, 
 M. d'Etigny, who was prefect of Auch during the last 
 century; 429 official papers bearing on the official life of 
 another d'Etigny, who was governor of Beam during the 
 reign of Louis XIV. ; furthermore several papers signed by 
 Louis XV., and countersigned by Choiseul ; letters from the 
 Count de Toulouse, from Marshal d'Etr^es, etc., etc. M. le 
 
THE DE SERILLY CASE 145 
 
 Prdfet d'Yonne, in the name of Government, claimed one 
 and all of these family papers. Last year the tribunal of 
 Sens tried thS case, and delivered a verdict for the De Serilly 
 family. The prefect appealed to the Paris courts and, to the 
 infinite satisfaction of all those who possess family archives 
 of any historic interest, the prefect has lost his cause. Six 
 hundred papers, however, referring to the administration of a 
 sub-prefect actually living, are to be given up to the Govern- 
 ment. To this the family never objected. M. Oscar de 
 Vallons made an able speech, which is worthy of study for 
 those curious in French law. He clearly explained that the 
 only motive that actuated the Government in such a case 
 was its anxiety to preserve historic records for the use of the 
 public in general ; but as he justly remarked, if in this 
 instance a verdict were given against the heirs of Mdlle. de 
 Serilly, every family would be exposed to the chances of 
 having its muniment chest rifled by Government at any 
 moment and the most private documents taken. The 
 publicity to which death exposes a family in France is very 
 singular to our English ideas. The moment your relative 
 expires it becomes your duty to send for the inMecin Ugiste 
 who inspects the dead body, and notifies to the prefect the 
 fact of his decease. In a few hours the police commissary 
 arrives and seals up every drawer, secretaire, and possession 
 of your late relative. These seals can only be removed after 
 the family council, as it is called, has met, and read the will 
 of the deceased in the presence of a public functionary. An 
 instance of the extreme inconvenience to which this practice 
 leads came under my own notice in the case of an English 
 lady whose husband had been pasteur of a church in the 
 neighbourhood of Paris. From the fact of her brother being 
 absent from the house and travelling at the time of the 
 demise of the pasteur, the family council could not meet for 
 six weeks, during which interval the lady had not even access 
 to her own writing-drawer, or the power of withdrawing 
 certain moneys belonging to herself independently of her 
 late husband. 
 
146 JOUR DE L'AN 
 
 January ^rd, 1866. 
 
 Long lines of wooden booths are annually erected along 
 the boulevards during the first week of the year, belonging 
 to the wives of poor artisans and workmen, who stack their 
 fragile tenements with gingerbread and sugarsticks for 
 the supply of the poor of their own class. On Saturday 
 evening iat a late hour, two ladies, closely veiled, walked 
 along the whole line of these stalls, which extend from 
 the Rue de la Paix to the Porte Saint-Martin. It was re- 
 marked that these ladies selected the poorest of the booths 
 to make their purchases, and that when asked 50 c. (s</.) 
 for the most expensive article, they paid by mistake in 
 pieces of 10 f., leaving their purchases to be called for on 
 their return. They scrupulously avoided any booth near 
 which there was a crowd. The ladies never returned, and 
 the squeaking trumpets and chocolate pipes, paid for in gold, 
 still lie on the counters unclaimed. The poor vendors who 
 benefited by this unexpected shower of gold, remember that 
 one of "ces bonnes dames" was very tall and slight, and 
 evidently gave directions to her companion who paid for her, 
 A propos ol jour de Van presents, fifteen ladies of high rank 
 left their cards at the Princess de Metternich's on New 
 Year's Day, each card accompanied by a roll of gold pieces to 
 the value of £\2, and bearing a pencil message which ran 
 thus : " For the poor, madame ; this is the orily dtrenne 
 we make this year." So rational an example it is to be 
 hoped will not be forgotten next year, and thus a custom 
 at present senseless and useless in the extreme might be 
 the means of bringing endless blessings and unknown com- 
 fort to many a cheerless and fireless home. We cannot, 
 whether ourselves rich or comparatively poor, too often recall 
 Victor Hugo's charming line — 
 
 " L'aumdne est soeur de la prifere." 
 
POPULAR LECTURES 147 
 
 January "jth. 
 
 But a few years have elapsed since the custom brought 
 over from England of lecturing in public has been introduced 
 into Paris, and this custom has spread with tremendous 
 rapidity over every part of the Empire. The multitudes 
 of salles de conference which have been opened in France 
 for the purpose of disseminating useful knowledge and en- 
 nobling ideas is to the philanthropist one of the most en- 
 couraging features of the present state of society. In all 
 the principal towns, and even in the smaller villages, men 
 distinguished either by great scientific or literary attainments 
 have come forward to lend an earnest aid to the cause of 
 social progress by the diffusion of knowledge. Scholars, 
 philosophers, and even successful writers have all busied 
 themselves in organising these conferences, which have 
 proved so great a success that thousands of people now 
 prefer attending a lecture to going to a theatre. It occurred 
 to one of the best contributors to the D^bats, M. Eugene 
 Yung, who is not only a sharp and clever writer, but an 
 admirable lecturer, that further good might be accomplished 
 by collecting and publishing some of the most remarkable 
 of the lectures which are daily delivered by influential men 
 at these popular meetings. This idea was the origin of the 
 Revue des Cours Scientifiques et LitUraires, both of which 
 are weekly papers compiled under the editorship of M. 
 Yung. The last number contains the translation of the 
 speech which Mr. Gladstone delivered lately before the 
 University of Edinburgh. A rapid glance over the whole 
 collection of the Revue des Cours Litt^raires, which has now 
 existed three years, suffices to give one a high opinion of the 
 manner in which this work of reproduction is accomplished. 
 The lectures are replete — some with suggestions on political 
 economy, some on the last scientific discoveries, others are 
 remarkable for philosophic argument and high-toned elo- 
 querice, and many are on historic and literary topics. You 
 
148 M. LABOULAYE ON BOOKS 
 
 will understand how desirable it was that these conferences 
 should not be allowed to be scattered abroad like sybil's 
 leaves, when I tell you that the risumis published in the 
 Revue are signed by some of the master minds of our day, 
 such as Guizot, Franck, Taine, Jules Simon, Ferdinand 
 de Lesseps, Athanase Coquerel, Rossieu St. Hilaire, La- 
 boulaye, etc. The latter, as you are aware, is a fervent 
 admirer of the American Republic, upon which he lately 
 published a work, Paris en AwJrique, which has had immense 
 success. The committee of the Biblioth^que Populaire de 
 Versailles requested M. Laboulaye to lecture on the occasion 
 of the anniversary of the foundation of this library for the 
 working classes. He chose as his subject the comprehensive 
 theme " Books," which was certainly peculiarly d, propos of 
 the subject of the meeting. 
 
 " Books," exclaimed M. Laboulaye, " I consider as spirits 
 walking abroad on the face of the earth. A book is a voice 
 to which one listens ; a voice which addresses itself to you. 
 It is the living thought of a person separated from you by 
 space or time ; it is an intellect. Books collected in a 
 library, viewed with the eyes of the mind, represent to us 
 the master spirits of every country and of every age, who 
 are there present with us to speak, to instruct, and to console 
 us. Note that books alone endure ; men pass away, monu- 
 ments crumble into dust ; but what remains, what survives 
 is human thought. I am told that Moliere is dead ; I deny 
 it. Is he not present? When I entertain myself with him, 
 is he not there ? Madame de Sevign6, they say, was buried 
 in 1696. I maintain that yesterday I was in communion 
 with her. I know her as I know Coulanges, Madame de 
 Grignon, La Rochefoucauld, and all her friends. For me all 
 that world lives, and I live with them. The book, or rather 
 the intelligence preserved in the book, is a society which one 
 can enjoy either in prosperous or adverse days. Do we wish 
 for amusement ? Let us take up Don Quixote, we shall laugh 
 as we never laughed before. Are we in sorrow ? Read the 
 Imitation of Christ. In whatever state we may be, books 
 
AMERICANS AS READERS 149 
 
 are ever welcome. On the eve of departure, is it not to a 
 book that we turn for consolation ? Is it not to the evangelists 
 we turn who teach us how to endure suffering by telling us of 
 words of Him who endured long misery and every suffering? 
 Everywhere and at all times a book is of use, and he who 
 can read has more enjoyment at his command than any 
 monarch, for he has a court of faithful friends who ever 
 surround and minister to him. Our friends often weary us ; 
 but if a book fatigues us we put it aside without any fear of 
 its being offended, and we take up another." 
 
 I regret not being able to give the whole of this remark- 
 able lecture, which is one of the most captivating I have 
 ever read or heard. I cannot resist giving one last quota- 
 tion : — 
 
 " You will always find that the most civilised nations are 
 those that read the most. Thus in America, where education 
 is the most complete, and where it is considered as a great 
 political institution, what do you observe? Twenty-nine 
 million Americans consume more paper than France and 
 England united. An American reads as much as four 
 Frenchmen." 
 
 This I can readily believe. The very fact that circulating 
 libraries may be said scarcely to exist even in Paris proves 
 that Frenchmen, and more especially the women of their 
 families, do not read. 
 
 January gtk. 
 
 The following curious case has come before the Fontaine- 
 bleau tribunal. Last October a poor woman was taken up 
 by one of the foresters for having carried quantities of ants' 
 eggs from a formicary. Ants abound in the Fontainebleau 
 forest, and instead of wishing to get rid of them, the 
 administration of the woods and forests preserve them 
 carefully on account of their value as food for all species 
 of game, but more especially for young partridges, as well 
 as their utility as manure. Many varieties of seeds, etc., 
 have been tried as a substitute, but nothing has proved so 
 
ISO PATTI LA DIVA 
 
 nutritious to the 5,000 or 6,000 pheasants preserved in 
 the Imperial shooting grounds as the ant. A proof of the 
 value of ants' eggs is the frequent attempts made by all the 
 poor residing in the neighbourhood to carry off supplies of 
 this strange edible, in order to sell them to the proprietors 
 of private pheasantries. The forest laws, therefore, have 
 constituted into a crime the act of rifling an ant-hill of its 
 store of eggs. The poor woman cited before the tribunal 
 as guilty of this act has been fined two francs, a penny- 
 halfpenny restitution, and a further sum of two francs 
 costs. 
 
 January 11 tk. 
 
 Patti la Diva arrived in Paris last night. At Marseilles 
 her reception can only be compared to that which Jenny 
 Lind met with in America. She sang first in Lucia and 
 then in Barbikre, and learnt her part in French in twenty-four 
 hours, as the rest of the artists could not. pronounce Italian. 
 The last evening a perfect ovation was prepared for her on 
 quitting the theatre. Ten thousand individuals were crowded 
 in the very small space which separates the theatre from the 
 H6tel de Luxemburg. Her carriage and horses proceeded 
 at a foot pace ; people threw themselves almost under the 
 wheels, the glasses were smashed, her bonnet fell in the 
 confusion and was instantly torn to atoms, the smallest shred 
 thereof being seized as a relic. On reaching her hotel she 
 was compelled to appear on the balcony, where the crowd 
 obliged her to remain one hour and a half, clamorously 
 beseeching her to throw down some of the flowers under 
 which she had been almost smothered on the stage. Each 
 leaf as it fell was caught and treasured as though it had 
 been the love token of la diva to each separate individual 
 of the dense mass of human beings over which her genius 
 swayed with almost supernatural power. 
 
VICTOR HUGO AND GEORGE SAND 151 
 
 January 26th. 
 
 A charming letter is published from Victor Hugo to 
 Madame George Sand. The popular novelist wrote to the 
 poet to announce the birth of her little granddaughter 
 Aurora, to which she received the following reply, which 
 I dare not attempt to put into English : — 
 
 " Cette douce Aurore qui luit 
 
 Vient k point dans notre del sombre ; 
 A nous deux nous sommes la nuit, 
 Vous 6tes I'astre et je suis I'ombre." 
 
 Madame Sand's name is Aurora. It will be remembered 
 that she is granddaughter of the famous Marshal de Saxe, 
 whose mother was Aurora of Konisgsmark. Madame Sand 
 is therefore a direct descendant of Augustus, King of 
 Saxony — de main gauche, however. 
 
 January 2%th. 
 
 From Brussels we hear that the new Minister of Justice, 
 M. Bary, is about to bring in a Bill for the abolition of 
 capital punishment. Belgium is about to try the experiment 
 of whether society will be the worse for the absence of 
 gibbets and guillotines. It is obvious that the advance of 
 civilisation will sooner or later efface the penalty of death 
 from the judicial code ; yet there will ever exist monomaniacs 
 who will prefer taking leave of this world by turning their 
 own executioners, as the following fact proves. 
 
 M. Couvreux, a French gentleman, aged fifty-four, took 
 up his residence some years ago at an hotel on the delicious 
 hill of Quisiniana, near Castellamare. Although evidently a 
 lunatic, he was perfectly inoffensive, and passed his time in 
 composing songs and in music. His two fixed ideas were 
 of living a life of unsullied chastity and dying without pain. 
 It appears that he collected every medical treatise on death 
 by the guillotine, and made up. his mind that death by this 
 
152 A SUICIDE 
 
 instrument was painless. Accordingly he constructed in 
 the space which separated his sleeping-apartment from his 
 dining-room a guillotine on an improved principle, the axe 
 of which weighed above a hundredweight. Several fowl and 
 cats from the neighbourhood were missed, whose lives had 
 evidently been victims to the preparatory experiments. Once 
 convinced of the excellence of his machine, M. Couvreux 
 set about adorning it. Two magnificent crimson curtains 
 formed a background, against which he erected a sort of altar 
 table, the steps of which he covered with black velvet — on the 
 table he placed a white cushion of eiderdown. At half-past 
 nine at night, having assumed a dress of white flannel, he 
 performed the hymn to the Virgin on his organ ; after which 
 he mounted his scaffold, lay on his back, his head resting on 
 the pillow, let go the pulley to which the axe was attached, 
 on which it fell, and cut off its constructor's head, which 
 remained on the pillow separated by a few hair-breadths from 
 the body. Next morning the waiter of the hotel found 
 M. Couvreux in the position I describe, a will lying on a 
 centre table by which his property was to be divided among 
 the hotel servants. In France this will would not stand 
 good. It remains to be seen whether the tribunal of Castella- 
 mare will consider it as valid. 
 
 February /^tk. 
 
 Alexandre Dumas has returned to Paris after his peregri- 
 nations in Austria, of which one of the last episodes was his 
 visit to the tomb of the second Napoleon, whose career 
 began as King of Rome and terminated as an Austrian 
 colonel. As you are aware, the last resting-place of the 
 family of the Hapsburg is the Capucin Convent at Closter 
 Gasse, where the coffins of that Imperial family are laid' in a 
 vault. Alexandre Dumas remarked on the strange fact that 
 although in presence of the remains of sovereigns whose 
 fiat shook the world — such as Maximilian, Francis, Maria 
 Theresa, etc. — the only object within this mausoleum which 
 excites the slightest interest is the plain bronze coffin which 
 
M. MERY'S TELEGRAM 153 
 
 contains the dust of one who, although born a king, lived 
 and died a captive. A. Dumas remarks on his immense 
 height. He grew during his last illness to six feet ; his 
 coffin measures above seven feet in length. Strange co- 
 incidence — on it alone falls the solitary gleam of light which 
 penetrates the sepulchral chambers of his mighty ancestors. 
 Among M. Dumas' many talents it appears that cooking 
 may be included, in proof of which he gave a dinner at his 
 new apartment, Boulevard Malesherbes, to a party of twelve, 
 among whom Mrs. Milner Gibson was included, which dinner 
 the brilliant novelist cooked wholly himself, and it is re- 
 ported to have been worthy of Soyer, or even of Brillat- 
 Savarin himself in his very best days. 
 
 February t,th. 
 
 A good story is told of a telegraph clerk to whom a com- 
 missionnaire delivered a written message he had been desired 
 to despatch. On reading it the clerk stared and inquired by 
 whom the message was sent, to which the messenger replied, 
 " A gentleman living in the Rue la Fontaine." The clerk 
 requested the man to step into his office and take a seat. 
 Meanwhile a policeman was summoned and the message 
 shown to him. It ran thus : " I have thought of a better 
 and more expeditious mode of killing Faure," signed Mery. 
 The agent started for M. Mary's residence ; he was in bed, 
 but was in the act of announcing to his collaborator, M. 
 Duville, with whom he is writing Don Carlos, for which 
 Verdi is composing the music, that he had thought of 
 another mode of despatching the Marquis of Rosa (which 
 part was to be acted by Faure) than by a pistol-shot, as in 
 Schiller's tragedy, and had telegraphed to that effect to him. 
 
 February Stk. 
 
 The fortunate possessors of the yellow or blue cards, 
 endorsed by the magic name Bassano, had the privilege of 
 arriving at the private entree of the palace, which is not 
 
154 THE EMPRESS'S 
 
 permitted on ordinary ball nights. Having delivered up 
 these credentials, we are received at the foot of the stair- 
 case leading to the Empress's suite of apartments by Count 
 Walsh, and while we ascend we remark the exceeding 
 beauty of the oxidised silver balustrade, a perfect chef 
 d'cBuvre of artistic design and delicate chiselling. Through 
 the boudoir we pass to the green salon and thence to the 
 salle des marichaux, and endeavour to make the best of our 
 way towards the dais. The scene was brilliant in the 
 extreme ; it would scarcely be possible to exaggerate its 
 splendour. On the throne stood the graceful Empress, as 
 Marie Antoinette, and no unworthy type of Maria Theresa's 
 lovely and ill-fated daughter. More beautiful the Queen 
 could scarcely have been, and certainly not more aristocratic 
 or dignified in her carriage and demeanour. The costume 
 was an accurate copy of Madame Vigee Lebrun's well- 
 known picture representing the Queen seated on a.fauteuil, 
 and surrounded by her children ; the future Duchess of 
 Angoul^me, then a slight child of about ten, leans on her 
 mother's right arm ; the Dauphin is standing by his little 
 brother's cradle. The doomed victim of Simon's barbarity, 
 who is depicted in all the chubby beauty of infancy, rests on 
 his mother's knee, whose countenance, as yet unclouded by 
 the dark future, bears the true expression of maternal pride 
 and joy. The costume worn by the Empress was accurately 
 copied from this picture ; the robe of crimson velvet furred 
 with sable, the lace handkerchief crossed over the neck and 
 shoulders, the hair raised to a surprising height and sur- 
 mounted by a small crimson toque edged with sable, in 
 which is placed a plume of red ostrich feathers and the 
 Magyar aigrette of white, marking the Queen as the 
 daughter of her for whose sake Magyars flashed their curved 
 sabres high in the air, shouting, " Pro rege nostro, Maria 
 Theresa ! " Most imperial, most lovely in her rare beauty of 
 face and form, looked the Queen's prototype. Her choice of 
 this costume corroborates the strange predilection I men- 
 tioned lately which the Empress has for all that bears on the 
 
BAL TRAVESTI 155 
 
 story of the prisoners of the Temple. The Prince Imperial, 
 as his mother's page, wore a tight hose of white silk, a short 
 velvet cloak thrown over his left shoulder ; two little boys, I 
 presume young Conneau and Espinasse, in the same dress, 
 were with him most of the evening. The Emperor, in the 
 conventional black-and-gold cloak (lined with scarlet) of a 
 Venetian gentleman, worn over his ordinary dress, took little 
 part in the evening's amusement, and, truth to tell, looked 
 awfully bored. Her Imperial Highness Princess Mathilde 
 wore a blue Greek costume of white and gold over blue. 
 Princess Metternich's, I need hardly say, was one of the best 
 and most correct costumes of the evening. As an incroyable 
 she wore a hat — a straw-coloured satin — wreathed with 
 flowers and diamonds ; her petticoat, of yellow satin, was 
 looped over an under garment apparently composed of 
 nothing but flowers. Vainly one attempted to seek for the 
 material on which the yellow roses and feuilles mortes were 
 densely massed. 
 
 " Her feet beneath her petticoat 
 Like little mice stole in and out. 
 As if they feared the light." 
 
 The Marchioness de Gallifett as the Archangel Gabriel 
 attracted all eyes ; her short petticoat of white cashmere 
 broidered in gold, the glittering scale armour of gold fitting 
 tightly to her figure, her golden hair floating on her shoulder, 
 starlighted by an ^toile of diamonds invisibly suspended over 
 her forehead, her wings of white feathers, which, in arching 
 above her head, only terminated below her knee, and, above 
 all, the golden sword grasped tightly in her fairy hand and 
 brandished even while dancing (query : do archangels perform 
 quadrilles?), formed a most bewitching tout ensemble, and I 
 doubt whether Michael himself ever attracted so much admira- 
 tion. Radiant in loveliness was Amphitrite (Mrs. Mills) : 
 sea-green gauze, shot with silver, floats over a robe of silver 
 tissue, shells of all hues, coral, sea-foam, sparkling and silvery, 
 catches the light and dazzles for a moment. Her hair is wet 
 
I $6 THE EMPRESS'S 
 
 with jewelled drops of water, and is bound by a wreath of 
 sea-shells. Mr. Mills was a Venetian gentleman in the con- 
 ventional short cloak, adopted by most of the married men 
 present — among others by Lord Ernest Bruce, Lord Edward 
 Thynne, etc. The rival in costume of the lovely Empress was 
 the Princess Korsakow, a copy, if you will, of the Queen's 
 picture, but less correct because the velvet robe was looped by 
 immense diamond bouquets ; anything more gorgeous can 
 scarcely be conceived, or convey a more extensive idea of 
 the ressources of the lady's jewel-case ; but no such ornaments 
 exist in the Lebrun picture, which anyone who has visited the 
 Versailles gallery is familiar with. The young beauty, Mdlle. 
 de Bassano (the Duke's daughter), as a Basque peasant of 
 olden times, looked very well. The long, flowing white veil, 
 supported on a high comb, and plain black petticoat, set off 
 her dark colouring. Two American beauties claimed our 
 admiration. Miss Slidell as storm and rain — on one side of 
 her dress clouds and red forked lightning, and, on the other, 
 rain. The word " Pluie " was embroidered on the dress. She 
 held an umbrella dripping with silver rain ; while Miss 
 Torrens as Diana, in tiger skins, excited much attention. 
 Among the men, the most peculiar figure undoubtedly was 
 the Count de Choiseul, whose ill-fated Duchess mother was 
 murdered by her husband — the late Duke. For a moment 
 we fancied old Time and his scythe had stepped from an 
 ancient picture, and come to remind us of the evanescence of 
 this world and its gauds. From beneath his classic casque 
 fell grisly locks, the robe of cloudy grey and white looked 
 unreal, he stood in the attitude with which one is so familiar 
 in prints and pictures, and one began to doubt whether he 
 were not a mere statue, till the celebrated Countess de 
 Castiglione, in black velvet pearls and lace, swept past. Old 
 Time cannot resist the temptation of posing at her with scythe, 
 but the syren beauty escapes him — for this time. Her violet 
 eyes cast a glamour even over the old enemy. She is un- 
 doubtedly bewitching, but her teeth mar her beauty. Duchess 
 Tascher de la Pagerie, although a grandmother, looked 
 
BAL TRAVESTI 157 
 
 younger than her own fair daughter, and well revived one's 
 recollection of the Marquises du temps de Louis XV. : 
 powder, diamonds, and brocade are undoubtedly a good com- 
 bination ; her dress was of black velvet, white-and-blue 
 brocade, and a profusion of pearls. Four sphynxes attracted 
 all curiosity. Madame Fleury, Duchess d'Estrdes, and two 
 other ladies personated these mysteries of the dark ages ; the 
 dress was of black-and-gold Egyptian material, the sphynx- 
 head being copied blue and white, the ladies' eyes alone being 
 visible. The head ornaments were in solid gold. Two 
 o'clock struck. We proceeded to the supper-room, passing 
 by the third saloon, making way as we went for the fair 
 Princess Hohenzollern, who looked very lovely in her domino 
 of white lace and pink, leaning on General Rollin, on whom — 
 unlucky mortal — the whole responsibility of the arrangements 
 devolved, and admirably he executed his difficult task. The 
 supper-room was magnificent. Thirty round tables, each 
 accommodating ten persons, and attended by three servants 
 in blue and silver, were prepared for the first three hundred 
 guests who entered, on whom the doors ' of the splendid 
 apartments closed until they had partaken of the good things 
 set before them. Our fare, on the whole, was not to be de- 
 spised. Bouillon — but what bullion ! — clear, golden, and of a 
 flavour of which the secret must belong to the chef of the 
 Imperial cuisine alone, as it certainly is not to be met 
 with at any other table ; pdte de foies gras, salade de legumes 
 trufKs, galantine de gibier truffd, poulet a la glace, grapes, 
 fresh peaches, champagne decanted and a bottle for each 
 guest, claret in half-bottles undecanted, and I know not what 
 more besides. The Imperial party must have had a private 
 supper-room, as they certainly were not in this one, although 
 Princess Hohenzollern was among the first series who en- 
 gaged its attractions. 
 
1 58 B(EUF GRAS 
 
 February 12th. 
 
 The annual fSte of the people was ushered in at an early 
 hour on Sunday by the usual braying of the vilest trumpets, 
 with which unearthly sound our ears are doomed to be 
 continually assailed until the dawn of Ash Wednesday. 
 A cattle show takes place at Poissy a fortnight previous 
 to the carnival, for the purpose of giving the butchers of 
 Paris an opportunity of purchasing animals of a size and 
 merit which will entitle them to the privilege of forming the 
 procession of the Boeuf Gras. Whichever among the 
 butchers purchases the animal on whom the jury have 
 bestowed the first and second prizes has the right to parade 
 the streets during the three days, paying a visit to the Em- 
 peror at the head of his procession, and in company with the 
 breeder of these prize animals. This year the oxen of the 
 Charolais breed carried off the honours of the show. They 
 were bred by M. Desjardins, a Nievre breeder of considerable 
 wealth ; he purchased the beasts eighteen months since, and 
 gave 1,400 f. {£s^) for Beau Nivernais, and 1,350 f. (;^54) for 
 Gladiateur. Their food on the average costs about 2 f per 
 day. In eighteen months it therefore amounted to 1,094 f. 
 (^43 1 5-f-) ; ^dd this sum to their original price, and each 
 ox cost M. Desjardins 2,400 f (;£^96). Their average weight 
 is 1,300 kilos (a kilo being 2 J lbs.). If we reckon at the 
 rate of 60 per cent., each animal will give 750 kilos of 
 meat. The well-known butcher, M. Fldchelle, purchased 
 M. Desjardins' lot of eighteen fat beasts at 1,640 f. per head 
 i.£7&)- M. Fl^chelle therefore paid 2 f. 20 c. per kilo for 
 meat which cost M. Desjardins 3f. 20c. to produce; the 
 latter is therefore a loser by a franc per kilo. The eighteen 
 animals were sold in a lot for 29,700f. (;^i, 188), which, as 
 I have already said, brings the price of each to £y6. This 
 is the tenth year that M. F16chelle has been the purchaser 
 of the Boeuf Gras. Beau Nivernais measures 2 metres 
 45 cms. in length by i metre 70 cms. in height. Gladiateur, 
 
BEAU NIVERNAIS AND GLADIATEUR 159 
 
 2 metres 35 cms. by i metre 70 cms. The cortege this 
 year has been got up regardless of expense, and is a very 
 magnificent affair. Besides a goodly host of drummers in 
 the traditional costumes of pierrots and folichons there is 
 a perfect squadron of trumpeters, attired as caricatures 
 of the present Parisian fashions ; but the success of the 
 show is decidedly Gargantua and his car. Rabelais's was 
 a joke to him of the year of grace 1866. He measures 
 no less than thirty-three feet in height, his huge eyes roll, 
 and his swollen tongue licks his fat lips after swallowing legs 
 of mutton, whole bottles of wine, and every now and then 
 the small boys who constantly supply his craving appetite. 
 Round his car are groups of cooks carrying succulent stews, 
 monster roasts, and cakes such as a race of Titans alone could 
 digest. Each cook brandishes knives and forks of gigantic 
 proportions. Gargantua's chariot precedes that of the hero 
 of the day, Beau Nivernais, drawn by eight of his own 
 breed — fine animals, each, but nothing to him. His special 
 attendant wears a Breton costume. The third car bears 
 in triumph all the divinities of Olympus, who appear more 
 or less to have indulged in copious draughts of nectar, 
 and whose songs partake somewhat of the Bacchanalian 
 character. The fourth car bears the good city of Paris 
 itself, typified, as usual, by a frigate, manned, however, by 
 Cupids, having on board a mixed crew of savages and 
 sailors, besides a band performing all the popular airs of 
 the day. The sixth car is freighted with a fat sow, wreathed 
 and ribboned, and attended by servitors in blood-coloured 
 garments. A private carriage, occupied by M. Flechelle 
 and M. Desjardins, closes the cortege, which is escorted by 
 a squadron of mounted police and by a detachment of the 
 Garde Municipale. Yesterday the first persons honoured 
 by a visit from Beau Nivernais and Gladiateur were their 
 Imperial Majesties. The Emperor, Empress, Prince Imperial, 
 Prince and Princess Hohenzollern appeared on the central 
 balcony of the Pavilion de I'Horloge. The side gate was 
 as usual opened, and the crowd ys^hich rushed in was so 
 
i6o THE MEAL OF GARGANTUA 
 
 tremendous that the Emperor gave orders for the gates 
 of the marble arch on the Place du Carrousel to be thrown 
 open, as well as that on the quays. So dense a mob as 
 that which swarmed in from these three outlets has never 
 been remembered by the oldest inhabitant to have filled the 
 reserve court of the Tuileries on a similar occasion. They 
 cheered, shouted-^or rather shrieked — " Vive I'Empereur ! " 
 "Vive rimp^ratrice !" "Vive le Prince Imperial!" with an 
 enthusiasm which, for the hour at least, was genuine. We 
 all know the worth of the cheers of a nation whose goddess 
 well-nigh for a century has been Caprice, but while they last 
 the joyous sound is inspiriting. Thousands of bouquets of 
 freshly gathered violets were flung at the balcony, and, 
 of course, missed. Again and again were the flowery 
 projectiles picked up and thrown up, till the balcony was 
 transformed into a perfect parterre of bouquets. Never were 
 sovereigns pelted with less offensive weapons. The Empress 
 was evidently delighted. The young Princess laughed in 
 a most unregal fashion at Gargantua's appetite. Roast beef, 
 legs of mutton, turkeys, and fowl were severally presented 
 to him by a chubby little gate sauce, whose stock of provisions 
 having come to an end, Gargantua seized the little fellow and 
 chucked him down his capacious throat with as much ease 
 as if he had been a snipe. I need not remind you that this 
 continental fSte derives its origin from the triumphal pro- 
 cession of the Egyptian ox god Apis. The celebration 
 in France was suppressed from the year 1790 to the 
 23rd February, 1805. As the record of official f^tes has 
 shown, the carnival is celebrated not by butchers and 
 butchers' boys alone, but from the Empress, who on 
 Wednesday presided at her bal travesti, to the Minister of 
 Foreign Affairs, whose bal costumi took place last Saturday, 
 from the First Lord of the Admiralty, whose fSte of this 
 evening I hope to write about to-morrow, to the children 
 of Paris, who as fairy marquises and Lilliputian Gardes 
 Frangaises, etc., are, while I write, enjoying their share 
 of the excitement of the carnival at Madame Errazu's 
 
THE ADMIRALTY FETE i6i 
 
 magnificent mansion. Every class in Paris, and, I believe, 
 every city in Paris, enters into the spirit of the hour. The 
 poor ouvri^re composes with the unerring taste intuitive in 
 every French woman a costume for her child of bright 
 chintzes and cheap muslin, and proudly takes her to pay 
 visits among her friends ; the prosperous tradesman employs 
 expensive silks and rich laces ; while the poor gentlewoman 
 ransacks her wardrobe, and from stores of bygone days 
 transforms the materials worn by herself in all the pride 
 of youth and beauty into a costume for her young daughter, 
 on whom a rich relation has condescended to bestow the 
 rare pleasure of an invitation. 
 
 February i^tk. 
 
 The closing fSte of the season has been by far the most 
 magnificent of the official entertainments, splendid and 
 gorgeous as each has been. The Admiralty occupies the 
 first of the immense piles of buildings on the right of the 
 Place de la Concorde as you quit the Rue de Rivoli, the 
 colonnades and pillared galleries of which attract at once 
 the tourist's attention. It is needless to say that the line 
 was kept by a squadron of the Garde Municipale, and had 
 I been the fortunate possessor of a ticket which permitted 
 my carriage to break the string I should probably have 
 arrived before the fSte was over. On each side of the moss- 
 covered staircase were deep masses of flowers and foliage 
 arranged with consummate taste. Ten sa/les of gigantic 
 proportions, and eight smaller rooms were thrown open to 
 receive the three thousand guests whom the Marquis and 
 Marchioness de Chasseloup-Laubat had invited to partake 
 of their hospitality. The fair young Marchioness appeared 
 as an /(oi/e, but her delicate state of health prevented her 
 from taking much part in the proceedings of the evening. 
 It was well known that their Majesties were present in black 
 dominoes, accompanied by the Duchess Colonna, better 
 known in the artistic world as the sculptress of Bianca 
 Capello, and the Gorgon's head signed Marcella, and by 
 
i62 THE BAL COSTUME 
 
 Princess Dusseldorf. For the Imperial party a special 
 supper-room was set apart, and entrance to this apartment 
 was only granted to twenty privileged dominoes, who each 
 presented a card entitling them to this distinction. The 
 event of the evening was the opening procession formed 
 by the representatives of the four quarters of the world — 
 Asia, by Princess Rimsky Korsakow; Europe, Madame 
 Barthelemy ; America, by Miss Carter ; Africa, Madame de 
 Montant. The Asiatic procession consisted of fifty-six 
 personages, and was opened by players on gongs, followed 
 by dragoons, an elephant conducted on one side by Madame 
 de Pappendorf as an Asiatic Jewess, her costume being a 
 white-and-gold dress, embroidered vest, and crimson cap, the 
 whole blazing with brilliants and rubies, while on the other 
 side the fortunate beast was led by Mrs. Mills, as the wife of an 
 Arab sheik, her white bournous artistically draped, her features 
 almost concealed by the capuchin, which was festooned by 
 oriental pear-shaped pearls, her face tattooed after the manner 
 of Eastern women, and a large crescent over her forehead. 
 This group was followed by ten Asiatic ladies, and immedi- 
 ately preceded the triumphal car, in which was seated Prin- 
 cess Korsakow en sauvage. The fair diplomate gratified us 
 by the sight of one of the best-shaped legs it has been my 
 good fortune to see for many a day ; we could judge of its 
 proportions above the knee, as the flesh-tinted maillot which 
 covered while it did not conceal the limb, was of the most 
 zephyr-like texture. The car was carried by negroes. Africa 
 (Madame Montant) was mounted on a camel admirably con- 
 structed ; the animal skin was the genuine article — buff- 
 coloured and shaggy. He walked with the peculiar gait of 
 the true son of the desert. How it was managed I vainly 
 endeavoured to discover. Africa was followed by a group of 
 tattooed savages. America (Miss Carter), a lovely blonde, 
 reclined in a hammock swung between banana trees, each 
 carried by negroes, and escorted by Red Indians and their 
 squaws. The costumes were perfect, and, strange to say, 
 were mostly worn by American ladies. Europe (Madame 
 
AT THE ADMIRALTY 163 
 
 Barth^lemy), in a litter, carried by porters, and surrounded 
 by Roman peasants, Russian serfs, Spanish dons, etc. The 
 most exquisite and refined taste was displayed in every iota 
 that could contribute to the comfort and gratification of the 
 guests, and certainly a more gorgeous fSte has seldom closed 
 the Paris season than this bal costumi of the Minist^re de la 
 Marine. 
 
 We have had a splendid afternoon, and I am glad of it 
 for the sake of that unfortunate beast, the Bceuf Gras, which 
 must have been wet through yesterday. The promenade of 
 the animal attracted crowds of people on the boulevards. 
 At one o'clock the circulation of omnibuses, cabs, etc., had 
 become quite impossible. In the streets, on the avenues, 
 everywhere, in fact, masses of people were standing await- 
 ing the triumphal passage of that mass of flesh and fat. 
 The Emperor in his phaeton drove through the principal 
 streets of Paris, and everywhere he was received with cheers 
 and cries of " Vive I'Empereur ! " This evening his Grand 
 Ecuyer, General Fleury, gives a grand dinner to the Mite 
 of the Court, and Theresa, the vulgar songstress of the 
 Alcazar, is to sing at dessert, that is, entre la poire et le 
 frontage I 
 
 February i6th. 
 
 A contemporary gives us some curious details on the 
 manufacture of false eyes in Paris. The average sale per 
 week of eyes intended for the human head amounts to four 
 hundred. Paris appears to have the monopoly of this 
 strange trade, which does not lead one to conclude that the 
 population of this gay city is very clear-sighted. Twelve 
 eye manufactories flourish within the barriers, each of which 
 gives employment to twenty workmen ; English and 
 American enamellers have vainly endeavoured to compete 
 with the French artists. " Do you see, sir," remarked one of 
 the first of these, not oculists, but ocularists, " Englishmen 
 have not sufficient taste for this trade ; their eyes are only 
 good enough for stuffed animals." The trade, du resie, is 
 
i64 FALSE EYES 
 
 very remunerative. The said ocularist receives in a mag- 
 nificent saloon, resplendent with gilding and mirrors. His 
 servant has but one eye, and if you want to see the effect 
 of one of the eyes, he rings the bell and tries the eye in 
 the wretched servant's head, so that you may judge of the 
 effect it will produce in your own or that of your friend. 
 
 He charges 40 f. or 50 f. per eye. For the poor there are 
 second-hand visual organs, which have been worn for a year 
 by some eyeless duke or nabob, and exchanged for a new 
 one after twelve months' service. These are then sold to the 
 poorer classes at a reduced price, or sent off to America, 
 India, or the Sandwich Islands, where the coloured races are 
 not quite so fastidious as regards the match. One of the 
 Emperor Soulauque's generals heard of these artificial eyes, 
 and wrote to Paris to order one. The ocularist, flattering 
 himself that a successful eye would secure for him one of the 
 Haytian crosses, devoted his utmost intelligence to the 
 production of a chef d'oeuvre. Six months elapsed ; a small 
 box reached him from Hayti. A cross glittered in his 
 imagination, but, lo ! to his horror, within folds of cotton, 
 was his original eye, accompanied by the following note : — 
 " Sir, the eye you forwarded to me is of a tint that resembles 
 that of the Spanish flag, and I am too patriotic to wear any 
 but the colour of my country." The ocularist proceeded at 
 once to the Admiralty, there ascertained the colours of the 
 Haytian flag, and at once manufactured a scarlet and green 
 eye, which he forwarded by the earliest opportunity. 
 
 February 2^tk. 
 
 The France wrathfully refutes the story I heard of a 
 bracelet having been sent by His Majesty to Theresa as an 
 acknowledgment of the talent displayed by this songstress 
 during the vocal performance at General Fleury's party. 
 This burst of virtuous indignation reads well, and will doubt- 
 less impress the country with an exalted opinion of the 
 severe moral tone of present society. I am penetrated by a 
 
A STORY OF THE EMPRESS 165 
 
 deep feeling of contrition at having, however innocently, 
 contributed to propagate such a report. En revanche, I give 
 you the following charming story. A poor artist died the 
 other day. A few sketches, some water-colour drawings, an 
 unfinished picture, were the sole provision left for his widow 
 and children. Susse's, the well-known artists' shop on the 
 Place de la Bourse, had often been the resort for the sale 
 of his pictures. Thither the widow repaired. She showed 
 the contents of a portfolio. Susse suggested a private sale as 
 likely to be more remunerative than the chance his windows 
 offered of attracting attention, and advised application to be 
 made to the families in which the deceased artist had given 
 lessons. " I possess several letters," replied the widow, 
 "from those my late husband instructed, among others a 
 note from a Spanish countess on her quitting Paris, in which 
 the youthful writer promises at any time to do all for him 
 that was in her power." " Where is the young countess ? " 
 " In Paris, but she is now married. If I dared," added she, 
 as she handed Susse a note, the folds of which were almost 
 worn through, and which bore unmistakable traces of having 
 been often read. Susse glanced at the few lines it contained, 
 and asked the widow to entrust it to him for a few days. 
 The Empress, on recognising her own writing, instantly gave 
 orders that a liberal pension should be granted to the widow 
 and children of the teacher under whom she had studied as 
 the Countess de Teba. 
 
 February 2'jth. 
 
 Although the Corps L^gislatif has now held its sittings 
 for more than one month, nothing has occurred, till now, 
 worth recording. For the last few weeks French politicians 
 were merely occupied in pluming their hopes and furbishing 
 their armour. In truth, the campaign only opened yesterday 
 afternoon, and it promises to create a considerable stir in 
 diplomatic circles as well as among all classes of the nation. 
 I have reason to believe that the debates will this year be of 
 vital importance, inasmuch as the Liberals appear to have 
 
1 66 PICARD AND FAVRE 
 
 come to an understanding, and, judiciously adopting a new 
 line of conduct, they will transfer the battle to another field, 
 and make the struggle not one of opinions or of party feeling, 
 but one of national interest. A few details as to the peculiar 
 idiosyncrasies of the most prominent members of the 
 Opposition may prove agreeable to your readers. M. Thiers 
 is too. well known to the English public for me to dwell upon 
 him. I shall, therefore, confine my remarks to Ernest 
 Picard, Favre, Glais-Bizoin, Emile Ollivier, Darimon, Havin, 
 and Gueroult. 
 
 Picard's grand characteristic is his power of satire. As a 
 master of retort he is unrivalled. He is, in point of wit and 
 humour, the true personification of the gamin de Paris, 
 independent, pitiless in his irony, showing no mercy to those 
 whom he despises, or for whatever strikes him as hypocrisy, 
 humbug, or Jesuitism. Seated on the extreme left, Ernest 
 Picard is remarkable for a Falstaff-like corpulence. His eye 
 is bright and piercing, and his thin lips have a sardonic ex- 
 pression. The extraordinary mobility of his features imparts 
 expression to what he utters. In 1848, then quite a young 
 man, he fervently espoused the revolutionary cause, to which 
 he has ever since adhered. The fact of his being a barrister 
 and docieur en droit makes him one of the most formidable 
 adversaries of the present Government. His favourite topic 
 in the Corps Ldgislatif is the finances of the town of Paris. 
 He steadily opposes all loans. Government secrets, public 
 works, and the lavish outlay of M. Haussman are as familiar 
 to him as if he himself dipped in these spendthrift speculations. 
 
 Jules Favre, born in 1809, is one of the most learned mem- 
 bers of the French bar. The revolution in 1830 gave him an 
 opportunity of displaying his Republican tendency, and in 
 July of that year he demanded the abolition of the monarchy. 
 After the revolution of February, 1 848, he was returned as a 
 member for the department of Rhone. His oratorical talents 
 soon marked him out as the leader of the democratic party. 
 His magnificent speech in defence of Orsini, after the con- 
 spiracy of the Rue Le Pelletier, considerably increased his 
 
OLLIVIER, DARIMON, AND GLAIS-BIZOIN 167 
 
 reputation as a barrister. For quickness and dexterity in 
 seizing an adversary's weak point he is equal to Picard ; but 
 there is in him too evident an effort to strain at effect. The 
 extent of his information enables him to speak on all subjects 
 with surprising versatility and power of illustration. His 
 large and comprehensive mind commands and obtains respect 
 from all parties. 
 
 Emile Ollivier has proved a political turncoat. After 
 having been one of the celebrated six of the Opposition, and 
 having subsequently rallied to the present regime, it is re- 
 ported that he intends this season to fulfil the same part at 
 the Corps Legislatif that Emile de Girardin has lately acted 
 in the journal La Presse — that is, that while he accepts the 
 Imperial institutions, he yet purposes demanding the de- 
 velopment of liberty, on the ground of its necessity. Nous 
 verrons. His speeches are generally distinguished for their 
 caustic ridicule and withering sarcasm. No one, when he 
 chooses, can handle so efficaciously or with so much merciless 
 effect the weapons of parliamentary warfare. 
 
 His friend, Alfred Darimon, is a man of undoubted talent, 
 but having been returned by the Opposition in 1857, he has 
 lowered himself in the opinion of Liberals for having accepted 
 an invitation at a Court ball at the Tuileries, whither he went 
 in an irreproachable culotte courte. The result is that he has 
 ever since been nicknamed " Culotte Darimon ! " Confining 
 himself to the discussion of political economy and financial 
 questions, M. Darimon is eminently qualified for these special 
 subjects. It has been said that he resembles M. Thiers in 
 figure, and in features Alfred de Musset — too flattering a 
 comparison for me to risk incurring M. Darimon's displeasure 
 by contradicting it. 
 
 M. Glais-Bizoin may justly be entitled the Marquis de 
 Boissy of the Corps Legislatif Not only is he an amateur 
 of that Attic salt which characterises Athenian writers, but of 
 the more material salt we consume daily. This he has 
 proved by seizing every possible opportunity of urging the 
 expediency of reducing the salt tax. He likewise ceases not 
 
1 68 HAVIN AND GUEROULT 
 
 to demand a reduction of postage on letters and newspapers. 
 It was M. Glais-Bizoin who signed the act of accusation 
 drawn up by Odilon-Barrot against the Guizot Ministry. 
 Since then he has steadily voted for the extreme left. 
 
 M. Havin, editor of the Sikle and member for the Manche, 
 was born in 1799. He seems to have imbibed the atheistical 
 and Voltairean doctrines of that period, and is therefore 
 detested by the Catholic party. His hobby-horse, or dada, 
 has ever been reduction, liberty of the press, and electoral 
 reform. M. Havin was among the deputies who, on the 24th 
 February, 1848, went to the King at half-past six in the 
 morning to urge on Louis Philippe to annul the decree which 
 nominated Marshal Burgeaud commander-in-chief of the 
 troops in Paris. He had the honour of offering his arm to 
 the Duchess of Orleans, and escorted her as she traversed on 
 foot the space which separates the Chambers from the 
 Tuileries while Louis Philippe was flying from Paris. During 
 the fatal days of June, M. Havin gallantly exposed himself 
 under fire, and although not wounded himself, a military sur- 
 geon was shot almost in his arms. He had the honour of 
 being simultaneously returned by two departments, that of 
 the Seine and that of the Manche. He has been offered the 
 red ribbon of the Legion of Honour by successive Govern- 
 ments, but has never accepted it. 
 
 I conclude by a few words as to the undaunted advocate 
 of Polish independence, M. Gu^roult, the recent editor of the 
 Opinion Nationale, who, on quitting college, started in life as 
 a fervent St. Simonian. In 1836 he went to Spain as 
 correspondent for the Dibats. In 1842 he was appointed 
 consul at Mexico, but he hurried back in 1848, and ever 
 since his pen has been enlisted in the cause of liberty. He is 
 now sixty-six, middle-sized, rather stout, with a massive and 
 sagacious head, somewhat inclined to heaviness. He always 
 begins his addresses with great awkwardness and with evident 
 effort ; but the attentive auditor is speedily convinced this 
 apparent difificulty of expression merely arises from a super- 
 abundance of ideas. As he warms to his subject, M. Gudroult 
 
PATTFS YOUTH 169 
 
 proceeds with increasing fluency, and profusely scatters 
 thoughts of great weight throughout his speech, which always 
 commands an attentive house. 
 
 February 2Zth. 
 
 Patti has signed her engagement of three months with 
 St. Petersburg Opera. She is to have ;^400 per night — that 
 is, ;^io,ooo for her three months' stay in that capital. La 
 Diva makes on an average ;^25,ooo sterling per annum ; du 
 reste, hers is a hereditary talent. Her mother, Mdlle. 
 Barilli, was a celebrated cantatrice ; for her Donizetti wrote 
 his Assidio di Calais. She married' at a very early age the 
 tenor Salvatore Patti, with whom she had sung in several 
 lyric dramas. Four children were the result of the marriage, 
 the eldest of whom is married to Maurice Strakosh, director 
 of the Italian theatre at New York ; Carlotta, who prefers 
 concerts to operas ; Carlo, who is in the Italian army ; and 
 Adelina, born February 19th, 1843. At five years of age 
 her mother found the child rehearsing the part of Norma, 
 after having seen her mother act in it on a stage at New 
 York. Alboni heard of the child and went to see her. She 
 asked her to sing. Adelina hid herself under a bed. Alboni 
 told her she should not emerge from her retreat till she had 
 sung an air of the Sonnambula. Adelina executed it lying 
 flat on the floor. Alboni released her tiny prisoner, and 
 kissing the child, said, " Tu nous feras toutes oublier." 
 Prophetic words ! The first time Adelina sang in public 
 was at New York at eight years old. She stood on a table 
 in order to be seen. At the Havannah her success was 
 immense. At Port-au-Prince she was bitten by a scorpion, 
 and rescued by a negress from death ; she was shipwrecked 
 on her passage to Santiago de Cuba, and when landed was 
 all but killed by an earthquake. From thirteen to sixteen 
 she gave up all regular study, and merely learnt operas by 
 listening to her brother-in-law's performance. At seventeen 
 she had thus acquired a perfect knowledge of nineteen 
 operas, and made her ddbut in November, 1859, at New 
 
I70 PARIS AS AN OGRE 
 
 York, in Lucia ; on the r4th May, 1861, in London, in the 
 Sonnambula ; and on the 17th November, 1862, in Paris, 
 in the Sonnambula. She made ;^3,ooo out of a single 
 concert in London, whereas Grisi never gained a higher sum 
 than £2,\OQ) by any single performance. Taglioni once at 
 St. Petersburg made ;£'8,ooo, and Baron Rothschild, for two 
 songs executed at his house, sent her £jspo last spring. She 
 realised from the Italian Opera alone, in a single season, 
 ;£'24,ooo. La Diva has found the philosopher's stone. 
 
 March 6th. 
 
 The regular victualling of this great metropolis is one of 
 its most wonderful, yet least remarked upon, features. The 
 following statistics- will help to form an idea as to the 
 eating and drinking capabilities of our 1,700,000 Parisians. 
 During the past year (1865) not less than 2,882,629 hectolitres 
 of wine were absorbed by the thirsty population of the 
 capital (a hectolitre is equivalent to 107 pints). During the 
 same period 112,602 hectolitres of brandy and 76,000 of cider 
 were imbibed, as well as 340,308 hectolitres of beer ; of grapes 
 7,549,262 kilogrammes were eaten(a kilogramme = 2.2046 lbs.); 
 of meat coming from slaughter-houses, 111,546,262 kilos.; 
 of dead meat sent up from the country or from abroad, 
 18,556,223 kilos.; and of various other /kinds of meat, such 
 as venison, kid, etc., 7,062,489 kilos. ; of pork, hams, and 
 tongues, 1,800,000 kilos.; of cheese, 13,291,231 f. worth; of 
 oysters, 2,409,910 f.; of fish, 1 5,000,000 f. ; of game, 
 23,000,000 f. ; of salt, 10,000,000 f. worth; of ice for cooling 
 purposes, 8,000,000 f. worth ; of charcoal, 4,000,000 kilos. ; 
 and of coals, 695,000,000 kilos. Paris is truly a mighty ogre 
 which swallows up the produce of the whole empire. 
 
 Having given you the risum^ of what is eaten and drunk, 
 I proceed to give you the statistics of matrimonial life in 
 Paris. In the present month of March 2,344 wives have fled 
 the conjugal roof without leaving their future address ; of 
 husbands who have done likewise there are 4,427 ; of married 
 
MI-CAREME 171 
 
 couples legally separated (not divorced) there are 7,115; of 
 ditto who have agreed to live apart, 5,340 ; of husbands and 
 wives living at daggers drawn, 31,912 ; of happy couples, 54 ; 
 of mutually indifferent, 61,430. You naturally inquire, " Is 
 this a joke ? How could such precise details of households 
 come to the knowledge of statisticians?" You forget the 
 system of police under which we live, and that every house 
 has a concierge, whose duty is to reply to every question 
 officially put. A friend of mine, a pasteur, had some doubts 
 of an English family lately settled in his parish, who had 
 borrowed £dp from him. The pasteur being on intimate 
 terms with a chef de division at the Prefecture de Police, 
 stated the case. The chef inquired the name and address, 
 rang a bell, desired his clerk to bring him Register C, and 
 under that letter the proceedings of the family during a two 
 years' residence in the country parts of France were accur- 
 ately recorded. Naught was set down to malice, but every 
 fact connected with them carefully inserted in the register. 
 Many other similar instances have come under my know- 
 ledge attesting that we are each and all closely looked after. 
 To those who have nothing to conceal, and who pay their 
 debts and go to bed at respectable hours, it is a matter of 
 indifference. 
 
 March ith. 
 
 This is the Mi-Careme, of which fact we are made cog- 
 nisant by the hideous groups of masquers, who persist in 
 producing unearthly sounds from vile penny trumpets and in 
 thrusting their disfigured persons betwixt "the wind and 
 your nobility " ! To increase our bad temper, it is raining 
 and damp. Yet the boulevards are crowded by a gaping 
 crowd awaiting the procession of the washerwomen, who on 
 this day disguise themselves in every variety of costume, and 
 parade through the principal streets of the metropolis in 
 carts and vehicles of all kinds, decorated in honour of the 
 day with flags, wreaths, and evergreens, artificial flowers, etc. 
 
172 PREVOST-PARADOL'S RECEPTION 
 
 'Tis a poor show at best. I happened to come across it this 
 afternoon at the very moment when a hearse, whose covering 
 of white and silver marked it as bearing the remains of a 
 young person, emerged from a side street, followed by a 
 small group of mourners. It was striking to see the rollick- 
 ing, shouting crowd instantly sobered by the sight of death, 
 and every hat taken off with unmistakable respect for the 
 dead. Not the wildest gamin, in his pointed pierrot's 
 costume, but uncovered his head, and stood silently until the 
 humble bier had passed. This respect for the dead is one of 
 the strange, yet strongly marked features of this light-hearted 
 population. The oft-renewed crowns to be seen on the 
 tombs of the poorest, the care bestowed on the little gardens 
 which have been planted by loving hands over the remains 
 of the departed, the periodical visits so regularly paid to the 
 place of their sepulture, attest how strongly this characteristic 
 is developed even in the lowest class of the Parisian world. 
 
 March ^th. 
 
 The reception of Prdvost-Paradol afforded this young and 
 gifted writer a fresh opportunity of displaying his wit, the 
 brilliancy of which he contrived to exhibit most artistically 
 in his speech, the main subject of which was an eulogium of 
 his predecessor, Ampere. Prevost-Paradol, as justly remarked 
 M. Guizot in his reply, is a rising man, and one who, under 
 another Government, may be called to fill some very high 
 post for the benefit of the country. Both as an author and 
 a lecturer he is unrivalled for his delicate and urbane satire. 
 He is essentially a philosophic writer, and much dependent 
 on the results of prolonged observation and reflection. The 
 Libert^ publishes some outspoken opinions upon the acade- 
 mician, which, were they to call forth an avertissement from 
 the Minister of the Interior, would not surprise me, as you 
 will believe by the following extract : " Prevost-Paradol has 
 advocated liberty of speech and of the press with admirable 
 talent. He has even done more ; he has himself set the 
 
LES FORMATS DE LA FOI 173 
 
 example. He was the first to shake that moral torpor which 
 seems to paralyse all intelligence ; he has held up to public 
 scorn and odium that cowardly doctrine of fatalism which 
 would make intellect subservient to matter and justice to 
 brute force." In his eulogium of Ampere he could not resist 
 to make a side hit at the Imperial author of the Life of Caesar. 
 M. Paradol, with immense tact, sheltered himself under Mon- 
 taigne's outspread wings, and quoted this writer's opinion of 
 Dion Cassius. When speaking of the latter Montaigne wrote 
 thus : " He had such perverted ideas of Roman history that 
 he has ventured to espouse the cause of Julius Caesar against 
 Pompey, and that of Antony against Cicero." 
 
 March gth. 
 
 Les Formats de la Foi is the somewhat startling title of one 
 of the most delightful books it has been my good luck to 
 meet with for many a long day. I confess I do not coincide 
 with the views of its gifted author, Athanase Coquerel_/f/j, on 
 matters of doctrine ; but this history of the Huguenot galley- 
 slaves is written with the most severe impartiality, and is, in 
 fact, a valuable addition to the history of the reigns of 
 Louis XIV., Louis XV., and Louis XVI., and by no means 
 a religious work. The chapter detailing life on board the 
 galleys, as proved by secret State papers still existing in the 
 archives, would alone suffice to ensure the success of the 
 work. When one reads the story of Marteilhe, at sixteen 
 aforgat de la foi; that of Jean Fabre, who at nineteen, seeing 
 his father captured by Louis XV.'s emissaries at a meeting 
 of Huguenots, succeeded in taking the place of his parent, 
 and served in his stead as a galley-slave ; that of Navis and 
 of the many thousands who endured the scorching sun, the 
 pitiless winter blast, the whip of the overseer, the revolting 
 food so scantily supplied, for twenty, thirty, nay, even forty 
 years, without flinching from their faith, although each man 
 or boy thus hopelessly toiling at the oar had freedom, many 
 even protection, within his grasp at any hour if he would 
 
174 KINGS AND SOUP 
 
 retract — one cannot but feel struck with veneration for these 
 men. Sprung in the great majority of instances from the 
 working-classes, no hope of this world's applause, or even of 
 the approbation of their own home-circle, supported them. 
 Humble men, most of them carders of wool, weavers, black- 
 smiths, etc., they victoriously proved that the noblest virtue, 
 the highest constancy, the most unflinching courage beat in 
 the breast of the Christian mechanic and artisan with as un- 
 swerving fidelity to faith and honour as in the heart of the 
 high-born Coligny, or in that of any of our own noble 
 martyrs. As one closes M. Coquerel's fascinating work one 
 cannot but feel that these peasant galley-slaves who wore 
 out their whole lives in vindication of their faith, unknown, 
 unhonoured, and probably forgotten as years rolled on, and 
 they returned not to their humble homesteads, are even more 
 deserving of the crown of martyrdom than the noble Latimer, 
 Ridley, Cranmer, Hooper, etc., on whom the eyes of the nation 
 were fixed, and who must have felt that their blood cemented 
 the foundations of their Church. 
 
 March i^th. 
 
 In Alexandre Dumas' last Causeries Culinaires the author 
 of Monte Crista tells us that the Bourbon kings were 
 specially fond of soup. The family from Louis XIV. to 
 the last of their race who reigned in France have been 
 great eaters. The Grand Monarque commenced his dinner 
 by two, and sometimes three, different kinds of soup ; 
 Louis Philippe by four plates of various species of this 
 material ; in a fifth plate His Majesty usually mixed 
 portions of the four varieties he had eaten, and appeared to 
 enjoy this singular culinary combination. During the latter 
 portion of his reign his physicians were alarmed at the 
 prodigious amount of food the monarch contrived to con- 
 sume, and to distract his attention from the actual occupation 
 of eating prescribed a system of spreading marrow, caviare, 
 and such-like condiments on thin slices of toast, which the 
 King then distributed to his favourite guests : thus a portion 
 
"LES TRAVAILLEURS DE LA MER" 175 
 
 of the time he spent at table was occupied, and the King 
 rescued from the danger of repletion. 
 
 Les Travailleurs de la Mer is the literary event of the day. 
 Perhaps the highest tribute that Victor Hugo receives is the 
 anxiety manifested by the poorer classes — by mechanics and 
 artisans — for a cheap edition that will enable them to possess 
 the three volumes, which are too high-priced for their humble 
 means. To them his name has long been a household word 
 endeared to their class, inasmuch as Victo Hugo has ever 
 used his mighty genius in the cause of the poor and of the 
 downtrodden. He has told the rich and the prosperous some 
 unpleasant truths. Though far from a revolutionist, he has 
 ever been the unflinching advocate of a free press and free 
 institutions. Consistent in private as well as in public, he 
 has preferred exile to servile compromise, and therefore while 
 the unrivalled productions of his great mind are acknowledged 
 to be the master works of the age, all classes have for the 
 personal character of Victor Hugo as great respect as they 
 have admiration for his great genius. 
 
 In less than forty-eight hours 5,000 copies of the Travail- 
 leurs de la Mer have been disposed of in Paris alone. Each 
 copy costing 18 francs, the result is that 90,000 francs have 
 already been realised by this work, which is to be translated 
 into ten different languages. 
 
 March 22nd. 
 
 It appears that the memory of kings is as treacherous as 
 that of ordinary mortals. Dom Louis of Portugal promised 
 to send Rossini a pipe of port, of a vintage of which 
 specimens have only been preserved in the royal cellars. 
 The wine has not arrived, but the great maestro is not a man 
 to allow a promise to be forgotten. Accordingly he took up 
 his pen and indited to his Portuguese Majesty the following 
 reminder : — " You promised me some port wine, Sire, and it 
 has not arrived. Your Majesty has certainly not forgotten 
 your promise, for Sovereigns never forget ; but allow me to 
 remind you that I am old, and that at my age there is no 
 time to be lost." 
 
176 PLAYING-CARDS 
 
 March 26th. 
 
 To those who indulge in card-playing the following details 
 will have some interest : — French card manufacturers inhabit 
 the Quartiers Bonne Nouvelle, St. M6ry, and St. Victor. 
 There are seventeen of these head men, of whom nine 
 employ eleven other workmen. Employing 260 persons in 
 all, card manufacturers make on an average 2,000,000 in the 
 year. Of these 260 persons 167 are men, 78 women, and 15 
 either boy or girl apprentices under sixteen years of age. 
 The men are overseers, painters, pasteboard makers, gum- 
 mers, cutters, moulders, polishers, bellows-blowers, and 
 porters. The women are sorters, scrapers, pressers. The 
 men work either by contract or the day, and earn from 
 4 f to 7 f The women earn from i f 50 c. to 3 f Ap- 
 prentices from 75 c. (that is 7\d.) to i f 50 c. They have two 
 hours for meals in their twelve hours' work. Of 67 who can 
 read and write, 1 5 are noted for bad conduct, and 1 5 seldom 
 come to work on Mondays. The 78 women are all well 
 conducted. All the apprentices are the children of the work- 
 men, and have been placed there by their parents. Card 
 manufacturers pay 30 per cent. (3^.) for the paper band 
 which is round every pack of 32 or 52 cards. They purchase 
 the paper from the Administration of Indirect Contributions, 
 on which are the faces and ace of clubs, and also the paper 
 on which they themselves print the points. The paper costs, 
 in the first instance, 30 f., and in the second, 22 f. for 1,000 
 sheets, which suffice to manufacture 24,000 cards. In i860 
 the duties paid on cards used in France alone amounted to 
 1,395,155 f, which was an increase of 200,000 f, or ;£'8oo, on 
 the sum thus paid to the Government in 1856. 
 
 April 2nd. 
 
 This is Easter Monday, and even the newspapers in France 
 have observed the feast and taken a holiday. Not a single 
 paper was published this morning, and the evening journals 
 
IRISH HAIR 177 
 
 of this day have appeared so late that it is self-evident that 
 editors, contributors, and printers have enjoyed their Easter 
 Monday right well. It has been a magnificent day, and the 
 crowd which has flocked in carriages as well as on foot to the 
 Bois de Boulogne for the iirst day's races was something 
 wonderful. The Champs Elys^es was thronged with vehicles 
 of every description, a vast proportion of which were 
 splendidly turned out and occupied by gorgeously attired 
 anonymas, whose genre it is to recline at full length in their 
 luxurious open carriages ; a style I am sorry to see imitated 
 by women of fashion, who thus run the risk of being 
 mistaken for their frail rivals. The headgear most in favour 
 to-day was the chapeau Lamballe. A veracious description 
 of those I saw patronised has been admirably given in the 
 Tintamarre — a sort of penny tart, or a saucer reversed, to the 
 rim of which a row of flowers has been fastened. No 
 economy, however, for husbands is the diminutive size of 
 this said penny tart, because the smaller the bonnet the 
 more hair is required, and accordingly the price of that 
 article costs, says L'Epoque, "les yeux de la tSte." This 
 same paper of M. Ernest Feydeau, who, judging by his 
 writings, must be well versed in the expenses of the fair sex, 
 informs us that " Ireland furnishes the chief portion of the 
 false plaits worn nowadays by Parisian ladies, and if the 
 Corps L^gislatif would only bring in a bill for putting a tax 
 on the importation of Irish hair into the empire, France 
 might, without damaging her budget, abolish the stamp duty 
 on newspapers." 
 
 April 2nd. 
 
 You remember a few years ago the sensation Rigolboche 
 excited ; print shops were crowded by beardless boys and 
 moustachioed men in search of her photographs, some of 
 which, by-the-by, were taken in the most impossible (I use 
 the word in a French sense) of attitudes. To secure a 
 fauteuil for the night she danced one had to go down in the 
 morning and pay a frightful sum. Cravats d la Rigolboche, 
 
 N 
 
178 PHOTOGRAPH COLLECl'ORS 
 
 Rigolboche valses, Rigolboche everything was the order of 
 the day. But Theresa appeared at one of the cafis chantants, 
 and the queen of the Jockey and every other club was de- 
 throned—the coarse licence of Theresa's gestures had 
 eclipsed Rigolboche's attitudes. She died last week in the 
 ward of a public hospital, and was buried in the fosse 
 commune. Her fate reads like the last chapter of a novel, 
 but it is nevertheless true. 
 
 April d,th. 
 
 A new mania has taken possession of the inhabitants of 
 Paris — that of collecting the portraits of great political 
 criminals, murderers, etc. The photograph of Booth, the 
 assassin of Lincoln, is, I am sorry to say, obtaining a very 
 large sale, especially among the fair sex, who think him a 
 very fine-looking man (" un tres joli gar5on "). The carte de 
 visite of a strangler is also a very great success. Another 
 photograph much sought after is that of Philippe, the 
 murderer of the Rue de la Ville I'Eveque. This criminal, 
 whose trial will probably take place in May, is accused of 
 having committed seventeen murders similar to the one 
 he perpetrated in the Rue de la Ville I'Eveque, which 
 led to his arrest. The documents connected with this case 
 already form a large volume of 4CX) pages. The prisoner 
 seems to be so well aware of his fate that he has already 
 attempted twice to commit suicide in his cell at the prison 
 La Force. 
 
 I have to record the death of one of those philanthropists 
 whose energies, bodily and mental, are constantly put forth 
 in endeavours to benefit their fellow-creatures. M. Gustave 
 de Beaumont, member of the Institute, has departed this life 
 at the age of sixty-five. In 1831 he went over to America 
 with M. de Tocqueville to study there the penitentiary 
 system. In 1839 he was elected member of the House of 
 Deputies, and distinguished himself by the manner in which 
 he treated all questions bearing on political economy. In 
 
A PLAY ON LINCOLN'S DEATH 179 
 
 1848 he was appointed ambassador at Vienna, but soon 
 resigned those functions. M. de Beaumont, who did not 
 approve of the coup d'Stat, retired from political life on the 
 2nd December, 1852. He published many books — one on 
 the social, religious, and political state of Ireland ; another 
 on Slavery in the United States. His most important 
 work, however, is the Traits de Systeme P^nitentiaire aux 
 Etats Unis et de son application d la France. M. de Beau- 
 mont was honoured by all ranks and every political party in 
 France. Such was the modest and kindly way in which he 
 always gave utterance to his views, that even those with 
 whose opinions it has been his lot to come into collision 
 cannot now find it in their hearts to say one word against 
 him. 
 
 April I ith. 
 
 The frightful tragedy which startled the whole universe on 
 the 14th of last April at the Washington Theatre has been 
 dramatised, and for the first time performed at Mulhausen. 
 The piece is entitled La Vie et la Mort d' Abraham 
 Lincoln, and is divided into seven tableaux. The author, 
 M. Reuben, has sketched the early days of the President's 
 humble life in the first act, and as a barrister in the second. 
 In the third he has attained the rank of President, and 
 Booth appears as a suitor for the hand of his niece, which 
 proposal being rejected rankles in the breast of the lover, 
 who becomes his mortal enemy. In the fourth act Surratt- 
 ville is depicted, and Mr. and Mrs. Surratt appear on the 
 scene, as well as Jefferson Davis, who gives it as his opinion 
 that as long as Lincoln is permitted to live the cause of the 
 South is lost, and exclaims, " Who will get rid of this man for 
 us ? " " I," replies his future murderer. The fatal 14th of 
 April furnishes the material of the fifth and sixth acts. 
 Abraham Lincoln, aged and worn by the tremendous 
 responsibilities of the war, grants an audience to a mother, 
 who frantically calls on him in the name of her dead sons, 
 killed in the war, to make peace on any terms. Lincoln, 
 
i8o THE PRINCE IMPERIAL 
 
 exhausted by this scene, has, however, sufficient command of 
 his feelings to promise his wife that he will accompany her 
 to see King Lear. The whole of the death scene is then 
 represented. The President, his wife, and Miss Harris take 
 their places in a front box in the midst of the theatre. On 
 the stage the actors perform a portion of King Lear. A 
 pistol-shot, the screams of women, and the death groan of 
 the dying President are admirably given ; and, while the 
 audience are absorbed in the horror of the moment, Wilkes 
 Booth jumps from a box on to the stage, brandishing a 
 poniard, and utters the well-known words, " Sic semper 
 tyrannis." The question arises whether the author of this 
 startling drama is justified in thus bringing Jefferson Davis 
 on the stage. Davis is and has been for months a solitary 
 captive incarcerated in a State prison awaiting his trial. It 
 strikes one as monstrous thus to drag a living man before 
 the public and put into his mouth a suggestion worthy of a 
 demon. 
 
 April i^tk. 
 
 The last number of the Ev^nement is most interesting ; it 
 contains the facsimile of a very spirited sketch by the young 
 Prince Imperial, as well as a description of his suite of rooms 
 at the Tuileries and an account of the manner in which his 
 time is spent. His tiny library is described as containing a 
 pair of globes and a collection of classic books, well thumbed, 
 the bindings considerably the worse for wear, and not alto- 
 gether innocent of ink stains. The Prince's schoolroom 
 table bears unmistakable marks of a penknife, and is 
 scratched over aftei- the most orthodox schoolboy fashion. 
 His inkstand is of the commonest delft. A paper-weight, 
 surmounted by an equestrian figure of the first Emperor, of 
 a single block of ivory, and busts of the present Emperor 
 and Empress, likewise in ivory, are the only ornaments of 
 this very plebeian study. Two chairs are all it contains ; 
 that of the tutor is in good condition ; the second, which is 
 raised, has its straw bottom considerably damaged, the bars 
 
AND HIS SCHOOLROOM i8i 
 
 worn, and is altogether anything but Imperial in appearance. 
 Some shelves of the library are filled by English books, 
 which the Prince reads in preference to any others. The 
 bedroom has been lately refurnished ; the walls are capiton^e 
 with blue satin, and the ceiling painted in oils. The bed is 
 a curious specimen of modern marqueterie. A picture given 
 by the late Duke of Morny, of which the subject is " Rehgion 
 protecting Childhood," occupies the alcove. A large branch 
 of box is pinned against the satin, and seven small crosses 
 and medals are suspended beneath this relic. A very beauti- 
 ful copy of a Byzantine chapel, containing a crucifix, stands 
 on a chest of drawers, and a picture of General Fleury's 
 children is hung opposite the bed. Miss Shaw, the English 
 nurse who has had the care of the Prince Imperial since his 
 birth, still occupies a dressing-room next his sleeping-apart- 
 ment, and has the charge of his wardrobe, superintends 
 his dressing, and watches over his health. She is devotedly 
 attached to " Monseigneur," of whom she has just reason to 
 be proud, and her young charge warmly returns her devotion 
 to him. In the playroom is an extensive collection of 
 drums, guns, theatres, whole regiments, a magic lantern, two 
 cannon brought from China, a hobby-horse, and every variety 
 of ball, top, etc. The Prince is extremely intelligent ; his- 
 tory and cosmography are his favourite studies. M. Monnier 
 related an instance of his quickness of comprehension which 
 is worth recording. M. Monnier had read to him the legend 
 of Cadmus, the Phoenician founder of the city in Boeotia, 
 who destroyed the dragon guardian of a fountain and raised 
 an army of warriors by sowing the monster's teeth, which 
 army destroyed itself The Prince listened to the legend, 
 and at once said, " Cadmus is civilisation. The dragon is 
 barbarism, impeding all access to the fountain^that is, en- 
 lightenment. The triumph of Cadmus is that of civilisation. 
 The army of soldiers destroying each other in civil war is the 
 agitation of factious spirits whom no government can banish 
 from a country." 
 
 The following amusing incident occurred at the ball given 
 
1 82 STAMP COLLECTING 
 
 at the Turkish Embassy last Friday. Princess Metternich 
 was present, unaccompanied by the Austrian ambassador. 
 Being asked the cause of Prince Metternich's absence, she 
 glanced at the Prussian Minister, Comte de Goltz, and re- 
 plied, " II a — la Prusse ! " as she might have said, " The 
 Prince has got the measles." 
 
 April i6tk. 
 
 About two years ago I met in a railroad carriage coming 
 from the south a young boy whom I had often seen behind 
 the counter of a library, and had as often remarked for his 
 intelKgence. He told me he had just returned from making 
 a most agreeable tour in Italy. Somewhat surprised at his 
 having had the necessary amount of spare cash, I made some 
 remarks on the expense of travelling. " Well, sir, my six 
 weeks cost me £2^,, which I made by old stamps." When 
 the mania for stamp collecting was at its height this young 
 fellow had the intelligence to obtain from his employers, 
 whose immense business put them in communication with 
 the four quarters of the globe, leave to appropriate the 
 stamps off their correspondence, and one day hearing a 
 gentleman inquiring where a special stamp could be pro- 
 cured in Paris, showed him his collection, which the latter, 
 luckily for him, took a fancy to, and gave him £2^1 for it. 
 Stamp collecting is now gone by ; but it appears that seal 
 collecting has taken its place, as is proved by the fact that 
 on Saturday 9,000 wax impressions of the seals of various 
 royal and celebrated personages sold for 10,000 f. {£^06), 
 which makes the average value per seal amount to i f. 25 c, 
 or IS. The impression of one of Victor Hugo's bore the 
 motto, " Faire et refaire " ; one of Alexandre Dumas, " Tout 
 passe — tout lasse — tout casse " ; and one of Lamartine, 
 " Spiro spero." 
 
RENAN 183 
 
 April 2ird. 
 
 In literary circles nothing is talked of but the new work 
 of M. Renan, Les Apdtres. The Faubourg St. Germain, that 
 stronghold of the ancient Catholic faith, is outrageous at 
 this fresh onslaught from the infidel Legitimist. Duchesses 
 and marchionesses, in whose heads devotion to the Church 
 and fidelity to Henry V. are strangely intermixed, meet for 
 the express purpose of denouncing Renan. I do not say 
 they are wrong, but I doubt that these fair casuists know 
 much about what they discuss with so much vehemence. How- 
 ever, the other evening, in the most aristocratic sabn of the 
 Faubourg, an amusing incident is related to have occurred. 
 The Bourbon was being imbibed, while La Vie de Jhus and 
 Les Apdtres were discussed, and volleys of abuse, not only 
 of the said works, were being fired off from all the assembly, 
 but the author himself was brought on the tapis, and 
 described by an enthusiastic countess as hardly fit to live, 
 when the folding-doors opened and the groom of the 
 chambers announced, " M. Renan." The duchess, the 
 marchioness, the countess, the baroness, etc., etc., looked 
 at each other, and whispered that it was infamous of their 
 hostess, it was "a disgraceful snare," it was "the abomination 
 of desolation." The lady of the house, recovered from her 
 first moment of surprise at her servant's blunder, quietly 
 introduced her nephew, M. Eldazar de St. Renan. The 
 supposed infidel proved to be a young Breton gentleman, 
 who speedily assured his aunt's guests that he was as 
 good a Catholic as any one of these worthy dames. 
 This anecdote reminds me of one which, though oft 
 repeated at the time, is well-nigh forgotten. The Count 
 
 de B held a high situation in the Court of Charles X., 
 
 which did not, however, prevent him from bowing before 
 the rising sun after his master's expulsion. His salon 
 was, a few evenings after the revolution of 1830, crowded 
 by dvskes, princes, and marquises, all of whom, as base 
 
1 84 LISZT AND THE CZAR 
 
 as himself, were as loud in the praises of the new order 
 of things as they had been a few days before in their 
 protestations of attachment to their legitimate, but now 
 exiled, Sovereign. The groom of the chambers, trained 
 to the old habits of the order, did not comprehend anyone 
 presuming to appear as his master's guest who had not some 
 claim to nobility. A new deputy rang. " Who may I have 
 the honour of announcing?" inquired this Jeames of the 
 
 aristocratic hotel. " Monsieur le Due." " M. le Due de ^ 
 
 (the Duke of ) ? " inquired the flunkey. " What do you 
 
 mean ? " said the deputy. " M. le Due de ? Where 
 
 I come from ? Why, I come from Bordeaux, but what the 
 
 does that matter to you ? " Flunkey did not wait for 
 
 the end of the sentence, but, throwing the folding-doors 
 open, announced in a stentorian voice, " Monsieur le Due de 
 Bordeaux." The host fainted. I need not remind you that 
 this improvised title is that actually borne by Charles X.'s 
 exiled grandson, and, child though he was then, before that 
 name these recreant nobles had many a time bowed low 
 and deep. 
 
 April 26th. 
 
 The Evinement relates the following anecdote of our 
 musical "lion," when several years ago he was at St. Peters- 
 burg. The Emperor Nicholas invited Liszt to perform at 
 a Court entertainment given specially in his honour. The 
 great pianist commenced, but in the middle of the piece 
 unfortunately his eyes fell on the Emperor, who, instead of 
 listening to his wondrous execution, was engaged in eon- 
 versing with one of his aides-de-camp. The artist went on 
 playing, but in a somewhat exasperated state of mind ; the 
 Emperor went on talking. Liszt could endure it no longer, 
 and suddenly stopped. The Court circle looked at each other 
 in astonishment ; the Czar sent to ask what had happened. 
 " When the Emperor speaks," replied Liszt, "everyone should 
 be silent." Next morning the Czar, who perfectly under- 
 stood the hint, sent the great pianist a magnificent diamond 
 pin. 
 
WONDROUS PIES 185 
 
 May \ifth. 
 
 The haunted house in the Rue des Marmousets is to be 
 demolished this week. You know the story. In the days 
 of Francis I. flourished a barber and a pastrycook, and 
 they were good neighbours. The pies sold by the latter 
 were admirable — Soyer would not have disowned them. 
 Their flavour had a delicacy that was peculiar but delicious. 
 The barber, too, was a master in his art — the twist he gave 
 to the silky moustaches of the Court gallants was pro- 
 nounced perfect. A strange rumour spread through the 
 cite meanwhile. A pedlar had been seen to enter the 
 barber's shop, and had not left it. Early one morning a 
 cobbler from a distant part of Paris had gone in to be 
 shaved. His family had missed him and traced him so far. 
 A like mysterious end had befallen several of the poor 
 among the barber's customers. Meanwhile the pies sold 
 by his neighbour attracted half Paris — the meat was so 
 white and tender. What could it be? At length a young 
 girl was missed. The pies next day were wondrous eating. 
 A dish was ordered for the Court supper. The girl had 
 neither father nor mother to make a fuss about her, but she 
 had an uncle, and he was servitor in the household of M. le 
 Lieutenant de Police, and his son loved his fair cousin, so 
 had no idea of her disappearing thus. She had simply been 
 sent on an errand to the shop, and the young cousin raved 
 and swore he would find her. The tale reached the ears of 
 M. le Lieutenant. The strange rumours afloat of these 
 successive disappearances had already come to him. Twenty 
 archers were forthwith despatched to search the premises. 
 Lo ! a thigh of marvellous whiteness was seething in a pot ; 
 and, horror of horrors ! a heart was roasting on the spit. 
 Teeth, masses of golden hair, lay with piles of human heads 
 behind a heap of tibias and femurs. It appeared that the 
 brains of our race are unserviceable for pies. Well, it came 
 out that the barber supplied the meat, while the pastryman 
 
1 86 PIEUVRES 
 
 cooked the pies. I forget the fate of these worthies — some- 
 thing about burning pincers tearing flesh off their living 
 bodies and boiling oil. Justice was not scrupulous in those 
 days, as anyone will believe who has turned over, as I have 
 been permitted to do, the livres eTdcrous for the last three 
 hundred years, preserved in the library of the Conciergerie. 
 
 May 2lrd. 
 
 You have all read Les Travailleurs de la Mer. Yesterday 
 Abd-el-Kader's two sons, Sidi Mahommed and Sidi Mahi 
 Eddin, breakfasted with Baron de Lesseps. The new dish 
 was labelled^for fear of mistake — "Fried Pieuvres." It 
 appears that the said sea-monster — however repulsive when 
 alive and deserving of Victor Hugo's description — when 
 cooked by a cordon bleu makes a most delicious entremets, 
 and is in fact a real prize for gourmets. Alexandre Dumas 
 has issued invitations to a select party of real amateurs de la 
 bouche for the purpose of seriously considering the best mode 
 of treating the culinary delicacy. The question is — pieuvre 
 frite versus pieuvre au gratin. 
 
 May 2 5 /A. 
 
 You will remember the cherrystone which belonged to the 
 late M. le Carpentier, on which is carved the incidents of an 
 Indian battle. M. le Carpentier delighted to relate the story 
 of this purchase, and boasted of its having cost him 30 f , 
 adding somewhat satirically, "Yet my cherrystone attracts 
 a greater crowd at the exhibition than my rare cameos or M. 
 de Rothschild's priceless faience'' It was sold yesterday at 
 the Hotel Drouot for 920 f., that is, £16 16s. ; more pounds 
 than it cost its late owner francs ! Noriac may well have 
 written a volume on " La B^tise Humaine." 
 
 May 2gth. 
 
 The Cosmos relates an interesting experiment, which proves 
 the service rendered to agriculturists by moles and the im- 
 policy of destroying these little quadrupeds. In a commune 
 
MOLES 187 
 
 of the canton of Zurich the municipal council were lately 
 about to proceed to the selection of a molecatcher, when M. 
 Weber, a distinguished naturalist, laid before the board the 
 following facts. M. Weber had carefully examined the 
 stomachs of fifteen moles caught in different localities, but 
 failed to discover therein the slightest vestige of plants or of 
 roots ; whereas they were filled by the remains of ascaris, or 
 earthworms. M. Weber, not satisfied by this fact, shut up 
 several moles in a box containing sods of earth on which 
 fresh grass was growing, and a smaller case of grubs and 
 earthworms. In nine days two moles devoured 341 white 
 worms, 193 earthworms, 25 caterpillars, and a mouse — skin 
 and bones — which had been enclosed, while alive, in the box. 
 M. Weber next gave them raw meat cut up in small pieces 
 mixed with vegetables ; the moles ate the meat and left the 
 plants. He next gave them nothing but vegetables ; in 
 twenty-four hours two moles died of starvation. Another 
 naturalist calculated that two moles destroy 20,000 white 
 worms in a single year. Evidently farmers ought to en- 
 deavour to multiply moles rather than kill them. 
 
 May lOth. 
 
 A death under singular circumstances has just occurred. 
 Abbd Paradis, head chaplain to the Bicetre Asylum, was 
 walking in the Rue Vandamme when he was accosted by a 
 gentleman, who inquired the hour. The Abbd replied, " It is 
 half-past eleven, the hour of my death ; never mind, I am 
 prepared ; support me." Before this request could be com- 
 plied with the poor chaplain, who was sixty-three years of 
 age, tottered, and fell to the ground. He had ceased to 
 breathe, the cause of his sudden death being the rupture of 
 an aneurism. 
 
 /une Zth. 
 
 An interesting and chatty little paper, the Soleil, initiates 
 us into the life which Rossini leads in his villa at Passy. In 
 the splendid kitchen-garden appertaining to this villa the 
 
1 88 ROSSINI 
 
 great maestro cultivates vegetables hitherto unknown in this 
 climate, the seeds of which he receives from Italy. The most 
 delicate and highly flavoured of these are the zucchetta, a 
 diminutive species of pumpkin, which, when cut in long and 
 thin slices and carefully fried, have a peculiar aroma, which is 
 considered delicious by all true gourmets. Rossini works 
 quite as much at Passy, notwithstanding the numerous 
 visitors who daily break in upon his retirement, as he 
 does in Paris. During the summer of 1863 he there com- 
 posed his admirable Petite Messe Solennelle, which has been 
 twice performed already ; and it is reported that the 
 result of this year's villegiatura will be a rare treat to the 
 musical world. The mighty composer has attained his 
 seventy-fourth year, yet the only recreation he allows him- 
 self is a walk of two hours up and down the boulevard in 
 front of his house. His appearance is daily watched for by 
 numbers of persons whom a sincere admiration for his genius 
 incites thus to annoy him by their indiscreet curiosity. Last 
 year a Russian lady outstripped the limits even of Rossini's 
 patience, and, having watched his daily promenade during 
 several days, sent a message to his house expressive of her 
 desire to be received by him. The reply to this strange 
 communication was, " I do nothing for nothing. If the lady 
 brings me a very fine bunch of asparagus, she will be welcome, 
 and she can take a view of me at her leisure." Then, point- 
 ing to his waist, which has attained a somewhat aldermanic 
 rotundity, he added, " The lady may even walk round me if 
 she pleases, but I must have my asparagus." The fair 
 Russian was gifted with sufficient sense of decorum to per- 
 ceive by the nature of the reply that there is some difference 
 between a great artist and a giraffe or a strange fish, to see 
 which one visits a menagerie or an aquarium. 
 
 June I2,th. 
 
 In Paris is many a curious sight unknown to foreigners, 
 and yet well worth their attention. To those. who are now 
 contemplatinga J^b«;'in this metropolis I should recommend 
 
LA CALIFORNIE 189 
 
 a visit to " La Californie," a monster restaurant near the 
 Barriere du Maine, which is the rendezvous of hundreds 
 of workmen and ruined young men of various classes. No 
 less than 18,000 persons can be accommodated there. The 
 Soleil gives us some curious details as to this immense estab- 
 lishment. From four o'clock in the morning the servants of 
 " La Californie " are at work. Sixteen cooks are in constant 
 employment. The waiters have no other occupation but that 
 of pouring out wine and supplying the customers with glasses 
 and plates, and there are thirty-five of them hard at work 
 from morning till night. The proprietor was originally a 
 butcher, and usually reserved for the use of this restaurant 
 500 calves per month and 1,500 rabbits. Thirty butchers 
 scarcely suffice to supply the amount of meat now required 
 by " La Californie " since he has put himself at the head of 
 the concern. Precisely as the clock strikes seven M. Cadet, 
 the said proprietor, presides over the distribution of soup and 
 meat to the poor of the neighbourhood. Between half-past 
 seven and eight the customers begin to arrive. Nothing can 
 be more promiscuous than the crowd which frequents "La 
 Californie." There may be seen the poor and industrious 
 workman, who buys a piece of bread and a morsel of cheese, 
 which he eats as he goes to his work ; the noceur, who has 
 spent his night in dissipation and comes in to drink a glass 
 of wine and eat a crust ; the tramp, who has slept in the 
 open air, and the felon who adroitly contrives to evade even 
 the Argus eyes of the waiters, and steals a plate of meat 
 and a piece of bread deposited for an instant on a table, 
 while its bearer answers a sudden call from an impatient 
 customer. Every customer of " La Californie " is expected 
 to go in person to the kitchen and carry away to the eating- 
 room the dish he prefers, for which he pays on the spot, being 
 there supplied with a spoon and iron fork. M. Cadet has 
 been at the head of this establishment since the 26th of May, 
 1850, and has purchased 800,000 glasses, 100,000 forks, and 
 1 50,000 knives since that date to the present hour. The dish 
 in constant demand from seven in the morning to eleven at 
 
190 BAUDELAIRE 
 
 night is soups and beef, for which the customer pays six 
 sous, or ^d. Add to this two sous of bread and three sous 
 of wine, and the poor workman will have had his meal for 
 eleven sous — that is, $^d. The daily bill of fare of this mon- 
 ster restaurant shows a consumption of 2,000 (French) pounds' 
 weight of meat. The prices are thus quoted : a plate of meat, 
 either beef or mutton, 2d ; ditto of veal, ^d. ; a half-pint of 
 wine, 2d. Two casks of wine are drunk per day and 800 
 pounds' weight of bread eaten. 
 
 June i4iA. 
 
 You will, no doubt, remember that about a month ago the 
 whole press mourned the death of the poet and humourist, 
 Charles Baudelaire. He is not only alive, but has returned 
 to Paris ; but, alas ! his mind is gone, and, strange to relate, 
 since the bright intellect whose productions we have all 
 delighted in pursuing has become extinct, his body, which 
 was formerly thin and emaciated, is now thriving, and poor 
 Baudelaire has actually grown fat and looks healthy. He 
 was, as you are aware, a fervent admirer of Edgar Poe and 
 De Quincey, with both of whose lives his offers more than 
 one analogy. In all his writings there is a certain barbaric 
 splendour, a chaotic wildness, and a bewildering accumulation 
 of fearful imagery. The terrific colouring of most of Baude- 
 laire's works is due to the effects of opium. Baudelaire used 
 to swallow sufficient laudanum to poison five persons. One 
 hundred and twenty drops, however, of that narcotic sufficed 
 to make him talkative and gay, and to inspire him with the 
 power of writing. The result, however, is that he is now a 
 raving lunatic, and for those who knew him in his best days 
 a sadder spectacle can scarcely be conceived. He was at one 
 time the lion of every literary circle in Paris. His Byronic 
 collars, pink-tinted gloves, and varnished boots made him 
 noticeable on the boulevards and in swell ca//s. He inherited 
 a large fortune from his father, but spent it in a marvellously 
 short time when he inhabited the Hotel Pimodan, in the He 
 St. Louis, and lived with Sainte-Beuve, Champfleury, Murger, 
 
DUKE ALEXANDER OF HESSE 191 
 
 Nadar, etc. In spite of his refinement of manner and fas- 
 tidious dress, Baudelaire was possessed of the instinct of 
 cruelty. He loved cats' because he sympathised with their 
 nature. He well-nigh lost his hand once at the Jardin des 
 Plantes by touching the nose of a lion with the burning end 
 of a cigar. He very seldom went to bed, which caused his 
 friend Asselineau to remark, "Baudelaire once returned home 
 at night and slept under his bed to astonish the mattresses." 
 
 June 22nd. 
 
 Nothing is talked of this evening but the report which was 
 spread last night of the death of Duke Alexander of Hesse, 
 whom we hear has been killed under the walls of Frankfort 
 in a battle fought against the Prussians. Whether this in- 
 telligence be true or not, he had certainly accepted the 
 command of the eight corps of federal army, consisting of 
 60,000 men, which corps is concentrated in the neighbourhood 
 of that city. It is probable that the Austro-Federals merely 
 awaited the decision of the Prince to march his corps against 
 the Prussian force actually in occupation of the two Hesses, 
 in order to open up a communication between the coalesced 
 states of the south-west and those of the centre and east. 
 The Duke, who is uncle of Prince Louis of Hesse, spent last 
 winter at Nice with his sister, the Empress of Austria. Duty 
 at the Czarina's villa was done by a battalion of riflemen 
 belonging to the Imperial Guard. One morning the Duke 
 was out on the promenade when a company of these Chas- 
 seurs a Pied marched past. A sergeant wearing four stripes 
 stepped out of the ranks and saluted the Duke. " You know 
 me ? " said the Duke. " Yes, though you are in plain clothes ; 
 you were at Solferino, and commanded a division of Austrians," 
 " True." " You were very nearly taken prisoner." " True." 
 " Well, general, the man who well-nigh captured you was my- 
 self" The Prince heartily shook hands with the old soldier and 
 asked his name. A few days afterwards the non-commissioned 
 officers of the Chasseurs were at breakfast. A message was 
 
192 PSEUDONYMS 
 
 brought to the old sergeant that he was wanted. He was in 
 the middle of his breakfast, and by no means liked to be dis- 
 turbed. On recognising the Austrian general he was so 
 astonished that he asked him to breakfast. The Prince was 
 delighted, sat down among the petty officers, fought over the 
 various episodes of the Italian campaign, discussed manoeuvres, 
 and came out strongly in the matter of the last new gun. 
 Suddenly one of the jolly company called out, " You are the 
 Duke of Hesse ! " He could not deny the fact. The men 
 rose simultaneously, , cheered, and the row being heard by 
 the officer on duty, he inquired the cause ; on its being ex- 
 plained, he instantly ordered out the whole battalion, and 
 the drummers battirent aux champs, an immense mark of 
 distinction. The Prince left the barracks delighted with his 
 adventure. It is to be hoped the story of his being killed 
 is not true, as he must be a good-hearted man. 
 
 July 1st. 
 
 The first butcher's shop for the sale of horseflesh will open 
 on Monday, the 9th July. The price of this meat will be 
 about two-thirds cheaper than beef, and will, moreover, be 
 sold without bone. To inaugurate this event, M. F. Geoffiroy 
 de Saint-Hilaire, whose hobby it has long been to introduce 
 this new element into the market, will preside on Monday 
 the 9th, at six o'clock, over a splendid banquet, the tickets of 
 admission to partake of which are to cost 10 f 
 
 July 2nd. 
 
 The Figaro reveals some pseudonyms which are worth 
 remembering. I need not tell you that the greatest novelist 
 of the day signs " George Sand," whereas she was Mdlle. 
 Dupin, great-granddaughter of Marshal Saxe, and is married 
 to M. Dudevant. She chose the name " George Sand " be- 
 cause her first literary production, Rose et Blanche, was written 
 with the aid of Jules Sandeau. " Fernand Caballero " con- 
 ceals the name of a Queen's sister — no less a personage 
 than the Duchess of Montpensier. The Emperor's cousin, 
 
THEIR MAJESTIES AT THE FRANgAIS 193 
 
 Madame Rattazzi, has signed as " Camille Bernard," " Baron 
 Stack," and " Viscount d' Albens." Madame Rattazzi's father 
 was Mr. Wyse, an Irish gentleman of old family, for many 
 years English minister at Athens. He married a daughter 
 of Lucien Bonaparte, brother of the first Emperor, and 
 separated from his wife a few years after his marriage. His 
 eldest daughter married Prince de Solms, and a fortnight 
 after his death Victor Emmanuel's minister, Urbain Rattazzi. 
 As Princess de Solms her salon in Paris was celebrated as the 
 place of rendezvous for the semi-literary and artistic world 
 of Paris. Prince A. de Polignac was a constant visitor, 
 as were also Madame Ugalde, Ponsard, Alexandre Dumas 
 fils, Champfleury, etc. " Henri Desroches " and " Jacques 
 Reynaud " are the pseudonyms of Madame Dash. 
 
 July lyth. 
 
 The following absurd incident is related as authentic. 
 When their Majesties go to the Fran9ais they usually send 
 word beforehand to the Palais Royal of their intention of 
 doing so, as there is a private communication between the 
 Prince's apartments and the theatre, by which they can enter 
 their box without passing through the crowd. Last Sunday, 
 however, the usual notice was not sent, and when their 
 Majesties arrived at the Palais Royal the doors were closed, 
 and there was not a human being to receive them. The 
 Prince, be it remembered, is in Italy, and the Princess 
 Clothilde and her little boys at Meudon. However, the 
 Emperor's footman inquired for the steward of the house- 
 hold. "Out." For the Groom of the Chambers. "Out." 
 For a footman. Some were either at Meudon and the 
 rest "out." The Emperor, Empress, ladies-in-waiting and 
 suite were meanwhile sitting in the carriages, by no means 
 comprehending the delay. At last a pantry-boy was cap- 
 tured with a roll of wax taper, such as housemaids carry 
 .about on winter mornings, and the carriage doors being 
 opened, and preceded by this somewhat terrified boy, their 
 
194 A RHYME FOR LINCOLN 
 
 Majesties of France stumbled along the dark passages as 
 well as they could, laughing like school children at the 
 adventure. 
 
 August ytk. 
 
 The following good story is told of the friend of a young 
 poet who inquired whether he would go up for the Academy 
 prize to be given to the best poem on " La Mort du President 
 Lincoln." " Oh, certainly not." " It's a grand subject, how- 
 ever." "That's true, but " "What fault do you find 
 
 with it ? " " Why, how could I fish out a rhyme for Lin- 
 coln ? " — an objection which probably did not strike the forty 
 immortals. 
 
 August gth. 
 
 The juvenile portion of the Paris world, as well as a 
 goodly proportion of its older members, are looking forward 
 to next Saturday with intense curiosity. On that day the 
 Cirque Prince Imperial will be inaugurated in Rue de Malte 
 by the performances of a German troupe, which consists of 
 twelve monkeys, twenty-eight dogs, one goat, and eight 
 ponies. The ponies will be mounted by dog and monkey 
 jockeys. A carriage drawn by eight horses will be driven at 
 a furious pace by two large Mandrilla monkeys. Ten apes, 
 varying in height from four to five feet, attired in ladies' 
 habits and round hats, will ride through a quadrille, and 
 others among their tribe will rival Blondin and put Leotard 
 to the blush by their feats on the trapeze. An organ will be 
 turned by a horse, and marvellous feats of agility will be 
 executed by the goat, who outvies any living acrobat. Here 
 is a programme calculated, you must honestly admit, to f aire 
 venir Veau d la bouche, and if half the rising generation do 
 not demand admittance to the Cirque Prince Imperial next 
 Saturday, their tastes must have considerably altered since 
 my schoolboy days. 
 
HUMOURS OF THE CENSUS 195 
 
 August i^i/i. 
 
 The census is now being taken of the population of 
 France. Two solemn gentlemen in black, each armed with 
 huge registers, ink-bottles, and pens, arrive and demand the 
 age, profession, etc., etc., of every individual inhabitant. The 
 intelligence with which the printed forms are filled up is 
 remarkable, especially in country parts. The census lately 
 taken at Envermeu, near Dieppe, contains the following 
 insertion : " Louis Denis, aged three months ; no profession ; 
 bachelor." A little further on : " Marie Jouret, aged eight 
 days, idem, spinster." 
 
 August 16th. 
 
 M. Francois Ravaisson has rendered an important service 
 to history, and one which will be thoroughly appreciated by 
 the reading portion of the world in general. The title of his 
 new work alone excites interest, and few will open its pages 
 without feeling indebted to M. Ravaisson for the light he has 
 thrown on the most curious portion of French history. The 
 Archives de la Bastille are the result of many years of patient 
 research — not in France alone, but in every public library in 
 Europe, with the exception of that of St. Petersburg, which 
 contains a large collection of papers taken from the Bastille, 
 more curious, however, from their being autographs of cele- 
 brated men than from their bearing on history. M. Ravaisson 
 recalls to his readers the fact that when the Bastille was taken 
 the people threw the furniture. State documents, books, 
 registers, etc., out of the windows ; thus the latter became 
 the prey of speculators, who carried off what they could find, 
 and subsequently sold as curiosities most important State 
 records, which were speedily scattered over Europe. M. 
 Ameilhon, librarian of the Arsenal, with infinite zeal and 
 patience, gradually succeeded in purchasing a vast number of 
 these precious documents, and thus have I had the privilege 
 of perusing the only authentic papers bearing on the mys- 
 terious history of the " Masque de Fer." The vellum-covered 
 
196 PRISONERS OF THE BASTILLE 
 
 register in which his arrival at the Bastille, his illness, and 
 death are recorded is visibly stained by having lain for 
 several days in the moat which surrounded the fortress, where 
 it was accidentally picked up by a workman, who sold it for 
 a few francs. M. Ravaisson has sifted the confused mass of 
 documents thus collected, of which, naturally, he has rejected 
 a vast proportion as being devoid of interest. His Archives, 
 now published, are the result of his labours. Much of the 
 romantic terror one has imbibed from one's earliest years as 
 to the tragic sufferings endured by the victims of lettres de 
 cachet vanishes when one learns that each prisoner possessed 
 a room varying in height and size from ten to thirteen feet, 
 that the said victim was attended by servants, who brought 
 him or her breakfast, dinner, and supper — these meals con- 
 sisting of soup, entries, relev6es, dessert, etc., a bottle of Bur- 
 gundy and one of champagne (!) being the ordinary dinner 
 allowance, a third bottle of whichever wine was preferred 
 being supplied to the prisoner for his use at breakfast and 
 supper. Several victims had furthermore the advantage of 
 possessing private cellars, which they were allowed to stock 
 with the finest vintages. Du rest, Marmontel, in his Memoirs, 
 alludes with a certain tone of regret to the luxurious dinners 
 he had feasted on during his incarceration, and certainly 
 Madame de Staal, lady-in-waiting to the Duchess of Maine, 
 who was imprisoned for two years in consequence of her 
 share in the Cellamare conspiracy, appears to have had 
 a remarkably jolly time of it. M. Ravaisson proves to us 
 that the detenus were allowed to train carrier pigeons, who 
 bore love messages as well as political information to their 
 friends either in Paris or in the country. A library, stocked 
 not only with works of devotion, but likewise with chess- 
 boards, billiard-tables, games of all sorts, packs of cards, etc., 
 was among the resources of amusement allowed to the 
 prisoners. The reverse of this pleasant picture, however, is 
 the account of the torture-chamber. The Bastille execu- 
 tioners were specialistes, and only condescended to use screw- 
 boots and torture by water, in the administration of which 
 
GREAT MEN'S WINES 197 
 
 pleasant pastimes they were proficients of the highest order. 
 The documents published by M. Ravaisson on the Alibert 
 affair, revealing to the world for the first time the curious 
 intrigues which brought about the Duke of Savoy's marriage 
 with Margaret, sister of Henry II., the Lesmoul trial, etc., will 
 prove a rich treat to all students of history. 
 
 M. Hippolyte Lucas publishes to-day an historical romance, 
 of which the heroine is the celebrated Madame de Miramion, 
 whose husband, J. de Beauharnais, left her in 1645 a widow at 
 seventeen and mistress of an immense fortune. Madame de 
 Sevignd's cousin, Bussy Rabutin, organised a raid worthy of 
 the border country, and carried off the fair prize to his chiteau ; 
 the young widow, however, so steadily declined his attentions 
 that that celebrated Count was compelled to restore her to 
 liberty. Madame de Miramion spent the remainder of her 
 youth and fortune in founding religious orders, one of which 
 bore her name, and was called the Miramionnes. M. Lucas's 
 work is full of interest, and contains historical notes worth 
 perusal, 
 
 August 22nd. 
 
 We have all heard of persons' characters being traced 
 by their handwriting, but it strikes me as quite a new idea 
 to draw conclusions as to the amount of intellect with which 
 one's friends are gifted from the kind of wine they specially 
 drink. Such, however, is the new idea, and the following 
 list has been made out after no end of research of the 
 special fancies recorded of some great men. Anacreon, 
 it appears, preferred the wine of Cyprus ; Horace, Falernian ; 
 Frederick the Great drank Monzillac, which he sent for to 
 Bergerac ; the celebrated lady-killer, the Duke de Richelieu, 
 sent for Fronsac from Bordeaux; and the first Napoleon, 
 Chambertin, which, by-the-by, the English Government 
 refused to supply his table with at St. Helena. Gay and 
 gallant Henri IV. only tolerated the light wine of Juran9on, 
 whereas the mighty diplomatist, Talleyrand, preferred Gruan- 
 Larose, now so much sought for on the English side of the 
 
198 A PRINTER'S ERROR 
 
 Straits. Madame de S6vign6 patronised the white wine 
 of Limoux, and Louis XV. the sparkling vintage of Samur. 
 Marlborough only admitted to his table the light wines 
 of the Rhine, and the Duke of Wellington preferred 
 Hermitage. Montesquieu, even in his most serious works, 
 praises the vintages of Breda, grown within four miles of 
 Bordeaux. Frangois I. drank nothing but Chiverny ; and 
 Romme, champagne, of which he made the somewhat 
 blasphemous remark : " Champagne is like religion — a little 
 philosophy leads you from it, whereas a great deal brings 
 you back to it." 
 
 A most amusing coquille, or printer's error, has occurred 
 in the columns of one of the leading evening papers, which 
 has excited no small amount of merriment at the expense 
 of a man of real talent. The following paragraphs, intended 
 to have been printed separately, were by some blunder so 
 arranged that one read consecutively : " Doctor X. has been 
 appointed head physician to the Hospital de la Charitd. 
 Orders have been issued by the authorities for the immediate 
 extension of the Cemetery of Mont Parnasse. The works 
 are being executed with the utmost despatch." 
 
 August 22,rd. 
 
 M. de Quatrefages, Professor of Anthrophagy at the 
 Museum of Natural History, received some days ago a barrel 
 despatched by Dr. Muller from Australia. The dimensions 
 of the said barrel may be conceived when I inform 
 you that it contained a colossal pieuvre, compared to which 
 the monster described by Victor Hugo in the Travailleurs 
 de la Mer must have been a mere joke. Besides this curiosity 
 the barrel contained several species of fish hitherto unknown 
 in our part of the world, and some mammals recently dis- 
 covered. All these creatures floating, in a mixture of alcohol 
 and benzine, you may imagine the insupportable odour which 
 emanated from the combination of dead fish, spirits, and that 
 most pestiferous, though useful, composition, benzine. M. de 
 Quatrefages was absent in the country. His subordinates. 
 
WIVES FOR CONVICTS 199 
 
 however, despatched, without loss of time, the pieuvre to 
 M. Lacazes Duthiers; the fish, serpents, etc., to M. Damu^ril; 
 and the mammiferi to Mr. Milne Edwards. Dr. Muller has 
 contributed largely to the interest of the Jardin des Plantes, 
 which is indebted to him for the unique collection it pos- 
 sesses of Australian cranes, a species of bird extinguished by 
 the English settlers. By-the-by, I wonder is the Marquis 
 de Boissy aware of this fact ? He might bring it into his 
 next speech as a fresh instance of British barbarism. Among 
 the fish several are lilliputian in size, and are doubtless very 
 precious, as each specimen is attired in a shirt of the finest 
 cambric. The mammals look somewhat like mice turned 
 into porcupines. 
 
 August 2'jth. 
 
 The Messager du Midi gives us a strange piece of in- 
 telligence. It appears that a prison van conveyed from the 
 railway station at Toulon to the House of Detention of that 
 port twelve young women, whose ages vary from eighteen to 
 twenty-five, selected from the female prisoners of the Maison 
 Centrale at Clermont, to be embarked on board the Ceres 
 transport ship and conveyed to Cayenne, for the special pur- 
 pose of increasing the population of that convict station, and 
 thus facilitate the colonising plans of Government. These 
 twelve young women, however, are but the first detachment, 
 as sixty have been selected from the various prisons of France. 
 They are intended to be married to those convicts whose 
 good conduct and diligence have attracted the attention 
 of the inspecting officers. Each couple are to be given 
 land and the means of purchasing agricultural implements 
 and stocking their farm. The Temps justly remarks that it 
 is to be hoped these young women have given their consent 
 to the matrimonial speculation of Government. 
 
20O THE CHASE AND 
 
 August '^\st. 
 
 M. Quatrefages, the great hippophagist, must be supremely 
 happy at this moment. Horseflesh is proving a real boon 
 to the poor, and the fact is thankfully acknowledged in 
 several papers. Tickets are distributed to the indigent, 
 and rnost gratefully received, for portions of horse meat. 
 Horse soup is likewise made, and poor persons are glad 
 to obtain permission to procure a portion of it by means 
 of the said tickets. M. Quatrefages' prophecy that we 
 should all in time become converts to this new edible is 
 thus in a fair way of being realised. 
 
 September "jtk. 
 
 Last night's train from Calais had the honour of convey- 
 ing back to his native air Lamiraude, the ex-cashier of the 
 Bank of France at Poitiers, who seven months ago annexed 
 the trifling sum of 786,000 f The story of his capture is 
 worthy of record. On the robbery being discovered, 
 M. Melin, a Paris detective, was sent for to Poitiers and 
 given a carte-blanche to spend any sum he considered neces- 
 sary in the capture of Lamiraude. M. Melin returned to 
 Paris, interrogated several hundred Paris cabmen, and traced 
 a man somewhat resembling his description to the station of 
 the Northern Railway. It was clear Lamiraude had two 
 days previously gone to London, whither M. Melin went, and 
 where he discovered that after purchasing three hats in the City 
 he had embarked for New York. M. Melin chartered a steamer, 
 and reached America before his prisoner, who, on being 
 recognised by him, stated that his name was Lasiner, and 
 that he was a native of the South. " I think you are mis- 
 taken," replied the detective ; " you purchased your hat at 
 
 S 's, in the City, as you passed through London." So 
 
 saying, he took up Lamiraude's hat from the table of a 
 tavern where this strange recognition took place, and showed 
 the name of the City hatter stamped in the crown. M. 
 
CAPTURE OF LAMIRAUDE 201 
 
 Melin, with the aid of the French consul, notwithstanding 
 the extradition question, which in America is extremely 
 complicated, succeeded in having Lamiraude lodged in 
 prison. In a few days, however, with the connivance of the 
 police, Lamiraude effected his escape. M. Melin at this crisis 
 confesses he almost felt inclined to give up the chase, but 
 with undaunted energy and perseverance he recommenced 
 his task, and actually traced his bird across the frontier to La 
 Prairie, a town in Canada. When M. Melin at last effected 
 his second arrest he found his prisoner possessed of thirty-two 
 sous and a revolver. On inquiring his motive for carrying 
 firearms, Lamiraude replied that he did so to protect himself 
 from robbers. " Did you ever think of yourself? " asked the 
 detective. "That did not strike me," replied the ex-cashier. 
 Lamiraude quitted Poitiers with 480,000 f (above ;^ 18,000), 
 half of which sum he carried about tied up in a pocket- 
 handkerchief. Inconceivable to relate, he forgot this parcel 
 in the railway carriage which conveyed him to London, but, 
 perceiving his loss a few moments after quitting his seat, 
 Lamiraude returned to search for it. The packet was gone, 
 and he naturally could not claim it. While in the prison at 
 New York no less than 52,000 f. were stolen from him ; the 
 rest he spent in gambling. M. Melin spent ;£^700 in the cap- 
 ture of this worthy. 
 
 September gth. 
 
 The Empress, as you are aware, is excessively fond of 
 novel-reading, especially of sensational ones or those which 
 contain some deeds of heroic courage, of patience, and virtue. 
 We are told, for instance, that on the evening before she left 
 Paris for Biarritz the Empress was absorbed in Edmond 
 About's celebrated novel, Trente et Quarante, and wholly pre- 
 occupied with the fate of Captain Bitterlin, the most amusing 
 personage of this fiction, when of a sudden the Emperor 
 requested Her Majesty's presence. Very reluctantly, dnd not 
 without expressing some regret, did the Empress lay aside 
 the interesting volume to obey her lord and master. The 
 
202 TWO VIEWS OF A MINISTER 
 
 next morning Her Majesty left St. Cloud for Biarritz, not 
 having been able to come to the denouement of Captain 
 Bitterlin's adventures. However, as she reached Biarritz a 
 telegraphic despatch was handed to her. It came direct from 
 the Emperor, and only contained these words, " Le Capitaine 
 Bitterlin est mort ! " 
 
 September nth. 
 
 The Society for the Protection of Animals displays its 
 love for its protdges in a peculiar manner. The society offers 
 to present a horse per week to the committee for the propaga- 
 tion of horseflesh, on the plea that it prefers to kill off old 
 servants and distribute their flesh to the poor than to see 
 them ill-treated. Scarcely logic, one must admit, as there is 
 no special necessity for their being ill-treated. A propos of 
 quadrupeds, a good story is told of a gentleman to whom the 
 resignation of the late Minister of Foreign Affairs appeared 
 to give immense satisfaction. His friend inquired if M. 
 Drouyn de Lhuys had injured him in any way. "By no 
 means," was the reply ; " merely as member of the Society of 
 Acclimatation, of which he is president, I am delighted he 
 should have given up the Ministry, as he will now have time 
 to attend to us. Oh, monsieur, what splendid cross-breeds 
 we shall have now ! " 
 
 September li^th. 
 
 In one of the numbers of the Tatler Sir Richard Steele 
 gives a most charming and humourous description of persons 
 afflicted with the mania of collecting. Among the eccentric 
 characters which this class of indefatigable curiosity- seekers 
 furnishes, he quotes a certain Nicholas Gimcrack, an inveter- 
 ate entomologist, if ever there was one, who pursued this 
 mania with such fervour that he would gladly any day have 
 exchanged his great-coat for a well-grown spider. This 
 Nicholas Gimcrack, after spending a fortune in acquiring 
 thousands of insects more or less disgusting, terminated his 
 career by bequeathing to his luckless family the treasures he 
 
THE MANIA FOR COLLECTING 203 
 
 had spent his life in accumulating and pinning into innumer- 
 able frames. Nothing is easier than to find Nicholas Gim- 
 crack's representative in the present day. The mania of 
 collections has developed to such an extent that we are all 
 more or less bitten by it. One amateur spends his life 
 collecting china or antique furniture — the more worm-eaten 
 the more valuable in his eyes ; another, like Cham pfleury 
 devotes his leisure to pottery, and covers his walls, and even 
 the ceiling of his apartments, with soup tureens, salad 
 bowls, saucers, plates, etc., on which are roughly designed the 
 principal events of the first Republic. Medals, shells, 
 Chinese monsters, or stamps are the absorbing preoccupation 
 of other undetected lunatics. I know one man in Paris who 
 has an extensive library composed exclusively of works in 
 one volume and of the same folio ; but, perhaps, among the 
 manifold phases of the collecting mania none is more excus- 
 able than that of gathering autographs. A regular trade has 
 been started in this specialty. MM. Gabriel Charavay and 
 Jacques Charavay are at the head of this new line of busi- 
 ness, and publish a review and report, in which the public 
 will find facsimiles of rare and curious specimens, their prices 
 quoted, and their merits discussed. Lately a letter cited in 
 MM. Charavays' report of the 14th August, No. 2,511, was 
 put up for sale. The letter was placed in its alphabetical 
 order, signed "Eugenie." It was put up at 100 f, and 
 bought by Government. To read over the names and the 
 tariff at which signatures or letters are quoted gives a most 
 curious insight into the place held in public opinion by the 
 generals, diplomatists, poets, literary men, composers, and 
 even criminals whose handwritings are eagerly sought for by 
 amateurs. • Last month the prices ran thus : George Sand, 
 6f ; Seward, 10 f; Jefferson Davis, I5f. ; Duke of Morny, 
 4 f so c. ; Michelet, i f 75 c. ; M'Clellan, 20 f. ; Verdi, 3 f. 50 c; 
 Pr6vost-Paradol, 2f. 50 c; Champfleury, 2f. Gerard de 
 Nerval is quoted 20 f , thanks to a note attached to the letter : 
 " Correspondance amoureuse tres passionn^e." A copybook 
 of the King of Rome is quoted 20 f. Renan, the sceptic 
 
204 PREPARATIONS FOR CHOLERA 
 
 author of La Vie de Jesus, keeps up in the market, and goes 
 for 10 f A letter of Henri Latouche is to be sold for 2 f. 50 c. : 
 it contains the following curious passage : " The only 
 souvenirs of my literary life to which I look back with pride 
 are, having edited Andrd Chenier and having deterred 
 George Sand from devoting her talents to water-colour 
 drawing." A letter of Louis XVI. is quoted at 2f. 50 c, by 
 which the King grants a sum of 2,400 f. (;£^ioo) to " La Dame 
 Rousseau, cradle-rocker to the children of France." 
 
 September i6tk. 
 
 Now that cholera is really disappearing I must relate the 
 following anecdote, as it is really worth recording. A prefect 
 wrote to the mayor of a country village desiring hirt to take 
 all necessary precautions, as the epidemic had broken out in 
 the department. His worship, not a little puzzled by such 
 vague directions, meditated long as to what suitable reply he 
 could make to M. le Prdfet, and at length wrote that he and 
 his subordinates awaited the calamity de pied ferine. In- 
 quiries were subsequently instituted as to what precautionary 
 measures the worthy mayor had taken in anticipation of the 
 epidemic, and it was ascertained that he had had a series of 
 graves dug in the village cemetery in sufficient number to 
 accommodate the whole population. 
 
 I was told that L^on Gozlan had been a Jew. We all 
 believed this to be the case, but we were all wrong. Pre- 
 parations were being made for celebrating the funeral rites of 
 the Israelitish Church, two rabbis having recited Hebrew 
 prayers during the whole preceding night by the dead body 
 of our charming writer, when M. Duval, his son-in-law, in 
 searching among his papers, stumbled on a bundle of old 
 documents in which, to his amazement, he discovered an 
 extract from the parish register of the cathedral church 
 of St. Mary at Marseilles, by which it appears that L^on 
 Gozlan was born in 1803, and not in 1806, and baptised 14th 
 July, 1805 (25 Messidor aux XVI.), and furthermore had a 
 
LEON GOZLAN'S DEATH 205 
 
 M. Martin and a Madame Blom as godfather and godmother, 
 which same functionaries appear to have been strangely 
 oblivious of their duties, or Ldon Gozlan could not have 
 passed for a Jew all his life. His death has brought to 
 our recollection innumerable anecdotes illustrative of his 
 inexhaustible humour. He was one day walking about 
 Brussels when he saw his own portrait in a bookseller's 
 window. It was not a bad likeness merely ; Gozlan was as 
 dark as a Spaniard, and his hair was raven black, whereas 
 the artist's imagination had given him a rosy complexion and 
 light hair. " What picture is that ? " inquired Gozlan of the 
 librarian. " It is the portrait of Ldon Gozlan." " You think 
 so ? Well, just look at me, and for Heaven's sake be satisfied 
 with misrepresenting my looks, but do not misrepresent my 
 hair." One of Gozlan's most amiable qualities was that of 
 receiving young literary men at all times with the greatest 
 kindness. About six years ago he was living in the Rue 
 Bleue, when a young man brought him a drama taken from 
 Les Nuits du Pere Lachaise, requesting Gozlan to look over 
 it. He consented to do so, and told the budding dramatist 
 to call again in a few days, which he accordingly did. " Sir," 
 said Gozlan, " you have had the courage to undertake a work 
 I failed to attempt. The only piece I could extract from 
 Les Nuits du Pere Lachaise was " Le Coucher d'une Etoile." 
 Take my advice, and when you wish to write a dramatic 
 piece do so from your own head, and don't try to extract 
 from a work what the author has not found in it himself 
 If English copyists who supply your theatres with redactions 
 of French drama were to take this advice, it would be the 
 better for their success and for your stage." The poor 
 fellow's death was a strange example of the reality of pre- 
 sentiment as experienced by persons who have lived for 
 years in intimate communication with each other. Last Friday 
 night Madame Gozlan was aroused from sleep at four o'clock 
 by a sort of electric shock. Obeying an unaccountable im- 
 pulse she started from her bed, crossed a corridor which 
 separated her apartment from that of her husband, attempted 
 
206 A HIPPOPHAGIC BANQUET 
 
 to wake him, and to relate the strange sensation she had ex- 
 perienced. L^on Gozlan had just expired. 
 
 September iyth. 
 
 A grand hippophagic banquet, to which ladies are invited, 
 is to take place on the 30th inst. M. Lange, President of 
 the Society for the Protection of Animals, issues the invita- 
 tions, and has drawn out the bill of fare, of which the 
 following is a copy : — 
 
 CARTE DU BANQUET. 
 Potage consomm^ de cheval. 
 
 HORS-D'OEUVRE. 
 Saucisson de cheval. 
 
 RELEVE. 
 Cheval nature (bouilli). 
 
 ENTREE. 
 Cheval k la mode. 
 
 LEGUMES. 
 Flageolets sautds a fkulie de cheval. 
 
 ROTIS. 
 Filet de cheval sauce poivrade. 
 Salade i Phuile de cheval. 
 ■i litre de vin par couvert. 
 1 gloria. 
 
 Heavens ! flageolets dressed with horse oil ! Verily, 
 although I am not difficile in the eating department, still 
 I cannot help shuddering at this alarming mixture. May 
 I venture to suggest that the committee be compelled to 
 give the veracious history of the steeds we are so politely 
 invited to digest — their age, and the circumstances which led 
 to their being stewed into soup and converted into oil, which 
 latter condiment appears to be the favourite form of im- 
 bibing horse, as you may perceive in the menu that the salad 
 will likewise be dressed with horse oil ? I confess to a strong 
 prejudice in favour of the produce of the olive. 
 
A COCKATOO 207 
 
 September 2%th. 
 
 In an article published by the Constitutionnel on Count 
 Bacciochi, this paper relates the following strange circum- 
 stance. Previous to her departure for Biarritz the Empress 
 paid a parting visit to the Count. The following day she 
 sent him a reliquary, considered as most holy, which was 
 to be kept in his chamber as long as the Count survived. 
 This reliquary is said to contain a fragment of the swaddling 
 clothes of our Saviour, as well as a portion of the Virgin's 
 veil and a small particle of the shroud of St. John the 
 Baptist. The reliquary was placed next to Her Majesty's 
 bed at the moment of the birth of her son, the Prince 
 Imperial. Writing of Count Bacciochi recalls the following 
 anecdote. Our ambassadress. Lady Cowley, made him a 
 present of a cockatoo, a splendid bird, with a faint tinge of 
 rose colour on its head and breast and of yellow on the inner 
 wing and tail feathers, its eyes of the correct ash colour, and 
 of a mild and most amiable disposition. This cockatoo not 
 only chattered all day long, but listened to what was said, 
 and constantly repeated phrases he heard spoken. The 
 Count's valet was one Nicholas. The bird acquired the 
 habit of calling the servant, and also of saying "Vive 
 I'Empereur!" which he had been taught. During the 
 Crimean War the Emperor and a numerous suite happened 
 to pay a visit to his cousin. The bird, probably excited by 
 the brilliant colours of the uniforms and by the unusual stir in 
 the salon, determined to display his learning, and accordingly 
 shrieked forth his whole repertoire. In vain his master tried 
 to silence him ; talk he would. The Emperor, excessively 
 amused, went up to his cage. The cockatoo paused for a 
 moment, then eyeing him with a knowing wink, shouted, 
 " Vive I'Empereur — Nicholas ! " 
 
 An evening party of an original kind took place two days 
 ago at the Salle Valentino. Placards announcing grande 
 soiree de coiffure excited a certain amount of curiosity, which 
 
2o8 PREVOST-PARADOL ON BIGELOW 
 
 was further increased when we were informed that this soirh 
 was in fact a competitive examination of the respective 
 attainments of the hairdressers of Paris ; and thus was the 
 idea of Messieurs les Coiffeurs carried out. A party of the 
 gentler sex, bearing capillary edifices of the most varied 
 description, paraded for some time through the salle and then 
 seated themselves on benches, each taking her place beneath 
 a placard revealing the name of the hairdresser to whose 
 artistic skill she owed her coiffure. The coiffure Lamballe 
 appears to have carried off the prize. I am sorry to say I 
 was not present at this instructive soiree, therefore cannot 
 give my personal impressions. I admit my dereliction from 
 duty, and cry, " Mea culpa." 
 
 October \st. 
 
 The third hippophagic banquet took place yesterday. It 
 was specially intended for workmen, and above a hundred of 
 the working classes sat down to dinner ; as they remained 
 at table from two to six we may fairly conclude that horse 
 hot and horse cold, horse stewed and horse roast, form a most 
 attractive edible. Ladies were invited, and were present — 
 not silent spectators, however, as Madame Eugenie Poujade 
 addressed the assembly in a most eloquent speech. 
 
 October gth. 
 
 M. Prdvost-Paradol has penned in the D^bats of this 
 morning a little paragraph — or entrefilet, as we call it — the 
 translation of which I send, not merely because it is a just 
 homage paid to a person of great merit, but inasmuch as it 
 somewhat explains the reasons of Mr. Bigelow's resignation : 
 " All who have had occasion to know and appreciate him 
 will regret him deeply. Entrusted with the representation of 
 his country at a moment when that country was torn by civil 
 war, involved at a later period in the intricate negotiations 
 to which the French occupation of Mexico gave rise, Mr. 
 
A NEW JULIET 209 
 
 Bigelow has held office during a period of difficult circum- 
 stances ; and never did a diplomatic post less resemble a 
 sinecure. But Mr. Bigelow was more fitted than anyone else 
 for so delicate a situation, because besides the love of his 
 country, he possessed a perfect knowledge of our own, and 
 was equally imbued with a deep sympathy for France. 
 However, after so prolonged a residence in Europe, Mr. 
 Bigelow felt a natural wish to see his country once more, 
 transformed as it is by such mighty events. Last July Mr. 
 Bigelow requested the President to appoint a successor, and 
 not to allow the autumn to transpire without setting him at 
 liberty. This successor is now appointed. General Dix 
 acted an honourable rdle in the late civil war, and in the 
 interest of the United States, as well as in that of France, it 
 is to be hoped that he will prove to be a worthy successor of 
 the excellent and distinguished man who is about to quit 
 us." 
 
 October 12th. 
 
 Ah ! the pretty story I am going to relate, and how it will 
 charm your fair readers, and all the Romeos and Juliets of 
 this world ! Mind, I do not vouch for the veracity of the 
 story, but I have heard it related by such pretty lips, and 
 with such fervour of language, that I am almost inclined to 
 believe in its authenticity. The scene was enacted at Berlin 
 on the morning of the entrance of the victorious troops. A 
 young and distinguished officer of the Cuirassiers, who had 
 received a cut of the sabre from an Austrian Uhlan, was 
 paying a visit to his fiancee, a young lady attached to the 
 Queen's household. Her lover entered her salon in his full 
 uniform, wearing his helmet ; but on taking a seat near his 
 fair lady-love he took off his helmet and put it on a small 
 table in front of the fire, as, notwithstanding all the enthu- 
 siasm of the population, the day was excessively cold. By 
 some sudden movement, however, the young officer upset the 
 table, and the helmet rolled into the fire. There was a scream 
 and an exclamation of horror. The scream was, of course, 
 p 
 
210 MOUCHARDS 
 
 feminine ; the expression of dismay, however, was masculine, 
 caused by seeing the horsetail of the helmet catch iire and 
 burn away in an instant. To join his regiment and pass the 
 King wearing a singed helmet and one guiltless of horsetail 
 was utterly impossible, and still less was it possible to absent 
 himself on such a day. One exasperating fact was that the 
 helmet was burnt behind ; the wits among the crowd would 
 therefore imagine that he had received a shot while flying 
 from the enemy. Needless to remark that every shop in the 
 city of Berlin was closed. Suddenly Romeo's fair Juliet 
 started, seized a pair of scissors, and, in fewer seconds than it 
 takes me to write, cut off the whole of her magnificent 
 chevelure dor^e, and with marvellous ingenuity fastened it to 
 
 the scorched helmet. Thus Graf von rode at the head 
 
 of his squadron of Cuirassiers with a flowing trophy of love 
 and devotion such as one would have thought a Roman 
 woman of old alone would have parted with ; but this deed 
 was done by a fair Prussian, and in the midst of the prosaic 
 nineteenth century. 
 
 According to the twelfth paragraph of Article 475 of the 
 Penal Code I was aware that every Frenchman was compelled, 
 under pain of infraction of the law, to aid all Government 
 officers, policemen, etc., in all cases of accident, rows, or riots, 
 shipwreck, inundation, fires, and other calamities, as well as in 
 case of pillage or robbery. Every Frenchman is, moreover, 
 bound to seize a guilty party and give him up to justice. 
 All this we have all been perfectly aware of. I also knew 
 that there were a numerous body of men who gained their 
 bread by the revolting occupation of spy. Yet till now I 
 fancied these spies, or mouchards, as they are here called, 
 filled no other function. A trial which has just taken place 
 in Paris would, however, lead me to conclude that every 
 individual in this country is qualified to serve the police, what- 
 ever may be his other occupations, and to be employed by 
 Government which wishes to be kept au courant of what is 
 going on. Thus the head of a restaurant, one's private servant, 
 one's porter, etc., may be, for aught we know, in the pay of the 
 
THE EMPEROR^S TAILOR 211 
 
 police. We are, in fact, living in an atmosphere of mouchard- 
 ism. It is, however, no joke or sinecure to be a spy. Witness 
 Clercemvault, a costermonger, who, although he had means of 
 gaining his livelihood honourably, enrolled himself in that mys- 
 terious confraternity. He, having repeated what he heard, or 
 denounced what he saw, naturally made an extensive circle 
 of enemies. On the i6th of last June, between eight and nine 
 o'clock in the evening, Hentz Leperteur and the Brothers 
 Neveu, who had cause of complaint against him on account 
 of revelations he had made to the police, attracted him into 
 a lonely spot near Paris, accused him of being a spy, threw 
 themselves upon him, armed with open knives, and all but 
 murdered him. Hentz Leperteur has been sentenced to 
 twenty years' hard labour ; the Brothers Neveu got off, owing 
 to extenuating circumstances. 
 
 October 22nd. 
 
 The following anecdote of the fortunate " constructor " of 
 the celebrated redingote grise, M. Leger, tailor to the first 
 Emperor, who died yesterday, is curious. The Count de 
 R^musat was Grand Master of the Emperor's wardrobe. 
 Napoleon allotted eight hundred a year for the expenses of 
 his toilette. It will be remembered that he always wore knee- 
 breeches of white cashmere. These garments, however, he 
 was obliged to change several times in the day, as he, in the 
 hurry of writing, constantly spotted them with ink, etc. The 
 result was that Leger's bill exceeded the money that the 
 Count de Remusat had to dispose of At first Leger sent 
 the bill in once a month ; the Count made an excuse, and the 
 bill was not paid. Leger sent it in once a fortnight, then 
 twice a week, and at last daily, but with no better result. His 
 stock of patience exhausted, one day, while trying on a new 
 uniform of the Chasseurs de la Grade, Leger made a com- 
 plaint to the Emperor himself The rage and astonishment 
 of His Imperial Majesty was boundless on discovering that 
 he owed 1,200 f to his tailor. The bill was paid that day, 
 and M. de Remusat dismissed. On the Emperor appointing 
 
212 HISTORIC CLOTHING 
 
 M. de Montesquieu Fezensac to the vacant office, he said, " I 
 hope, sir, you will not expose me to the humiliation of being 
 asked by my tailor for the price of my breeches." 
 
 November nth. 
 
 The Nouvelliste of Rouen publishes a curious list of the 
 prices which certain articles of no intrinsic value have attained 
 in consequence of having been worn or possessed by historic 
 personages. The ivory chair which was presented to Gustavus 
 Wasa by the city of Lubeck was sold by auction in 1825, and 
 knocked down to a chamberlain of the King of Sweden, 
 who bid 58,000 florins (;^6,ooo) for it. The coat worn by 
 Charles XII. at the Battle of Pultowa was preserved by 
 Colonel Rosen, who followed the King to Bender. This 
 garment was afterwards sold for ;f 22,000 at Edenburg. Abbd 
 Tersau gave a fabulous price for a pair of dancing-shoes worn 
 by Louis XIV. at one of the ballets in which he himself took 
 part during the early part of his reign. When the bodies of 
 H61oise and Ab61ard were removed to the Petits Augustins, 
 an English gentleman offered ;^4,ooo for one of H^loise's teeth. 
 Yet the great philosopher Descartes's skull, put up for auction 
 at the Soarmann sale in 1820, fetched but £\; the wig of 
 Kant but ;^8, and the cane of Voltaire ;^20 ; but a waist- 
 coat of Jean Jacques Rousseau fetched 950 f. — £1% for an old 
 waistco&t is not a bad price. (I give notice that I purpose 
 disposing of one of mine during the course of the winter on 
 the above terms.) The hat worn by Napoleon at Eylau 
 brought 1,920 f. at a recent sale. 
 
 The great news in the scientific world is the arrival of an 
 enormous aerolite sent to the Academy of Science by Marshal 
 Bazaine from Mexico ; it weighs 870 kilogrammes. It was 
 sent as a present to Marshal Vaillant, who has had it placed 
 in the Museum of Natural History, where it attracts great 
 attention. It will be shown at the Great Exhibition of 1867 
 amongst other scientific curiosities. 
 
GOUNOD'S ROMEO AND JULIET 213 
 
 November 12th. 
 
 The musical world at last is destined to hear M. Gounod's 
 Romeo and Juliet, a treat which has been postponed in conse- 
 quence of the impossibility of capturing that rara avis, a 
 tenor who could undertake the part of Romeo. That problem 
 
 has now been solved. Two summers since Madame d'A 
 
 spent a few months in the vicinity of Marseilles. She heard 
 many lamentations uttered among the peasants of the neigh- 
 bourhood on the sad fate of a young villageois who had 
 drawn a mauvais numiro at the last conscription, and had 
 left to join his regiment in Paris. His place could never be 
 filled, seeing that he had the "voice of an archangel." Madame 
 
 d'A took note of his name and that of his corps, and 
 
 on her return to her residence — Avenue Gabriel — sent for the 
 young fantassin. The result of hearing him sing was her 
 giving him the money necessary to buy him out of his regi- 
 ment and her placing him under the tuition of an admirable 
 master. Her generous action has been rewarded, inasmuch 
 as her prot^g6 has this week signed his first theatrical engage- 
 ment at the rate of 30,000 f. for the ensuing season. Fifteen 
 hundred a year in exchange for barrack life and private's pay 
 (two sous per day) is not bad ! Thus has a Romeo been 
 found for Gounod's Juliet. 
 
 November 22,rd. 
 
 The negro actor, Ira Aldridge, has had an immense success 
 at Versailles in Othello — the only tragedy, unfortunately, he 
 can appear in. The theatrical performance was preceded by 
 a splendid dinner, given to the stars of the literary world at 
 the H6tel des Reservoirs — once, by-the-by, the sumptuous 
 residence of Marquise de la Pompadour. Alexandre Dumas 
 was among the last to arrive, and sat next to M. Barriere. 
 The prince of romancists was in full force, and related more 
 anecdotes during the hour devoted to dinner than an ordinary 
 man would have remembered in a month. The Versailles 
 
214 A FRENCH AMBASSADOR'S WIT 
 
 Theatre was crammed to suffocation, and Aldridge was 
 tremendously applauded by the somewhat old-fashioned 
 inhabitants of that antiquated town. His costume alone en- 
 sures the admiration of the feminine world, and if all the 
 Othellos of the present day only sported half the gold, 
 precious stones, and pearls which dazzled the Versailles 
 audience, the Cassios would indeed have remarkably little 
 chance of winning their Desdemonas' smiles. Aldridge's 
 acting is splendid. 
 
 December 6th. 
 
 Cloaks are to come back to fashion this winter. Paletots 
 are to be utterly given up, and all male bipeds who respect 
 themselves and the mandates of the Jockey Club are to 
 appear draped in the ample folds of something between 
 a Spanish cape and the old military cloak. This contem- 
 plated revival of an exploded fashion reminds one of the 
 anecdote Arnault tells so well of the French ambassador's 
 audience with the mighty Emperor Charles V. His 
 Excellency, when presented to the master of half Europe 
 and all America, looked about for a seat ; but as France was 
 in disgrace at the moment, every unoccupied chair had pur- 
 posely been abstracted. The ambassador wore a splendid 
 cloak of velvet and satin, broidered and gemmed, altogether 
 a most gorgeous affair. On perceiving the premeditated 
 impertinence, he quietly unfastened his cloak, rolled it up, 
 and sat down on it. The audience terminated, he bowed to 
 the Emperor and walked off, leaving his cloak on the floor. 
 The Ushers of the Black and White Rods, etc., rushed after 
 him with his late garment. " No," replied the French seig- 
 neur, " the ambassadors of the King my master have not the 
 habit of carrying away the seats they have made use of." 
 
 December gth. 
 
 The widowed Duchess of Malakoff has been staying at 
 Compi^gne on a visit to her Empress cousin. The following 
 anecdote was related the other day of the circumstances 
 
RICHELIEU'S HEAD 215 
 
 which led to the marriage of the fair Spanish aristocrat and 
 the soldier P^lissier. At one of the Court balls the Marshal 
 happened to be standing near a flower-stall, and, perceiving 
 Dona Valera, who had just gathered a rose, he said, " Might 
 I venture to hope, madame, that you would bestow that flower 
 on me ?" "No," was the somewhat discouraging reply ; "but 
 if it were a laurel branch I should do so." Encouraged by 
 the gracious termination of the reply, the old hero of Sebas- 
 topol took a seat next to the fair cousin of his gracieuse 
 souveraine, and commenced a siege which in three months 
 ended in the capture of the lady's hand and heart. 
 
 December i/^tk. 
 
 Among the innumerable curiosities on which we are to 
 feast our eyes at the coming Exhibition will be the skeleton 
 of a monster snake found in the mountain of the Pardo. Don 
 Sanchez (not Don Quixote's squire) has had the honour of 
 dissecting this reptile, who possessed no less than 1,045 rings 
 arranged spiral fashion. He must have been a splendid fellow- 
 traveller to have met with gliding along one of his native 
 mountain passes on a dark night. 
 
 December i6th. 
 
 I was the first to announce that Richelieu had lost his head 
 and had found it again. The ceremony of restoring the head, 
 or rather the face, of His Eminence to his tomb, which con- 
 tains the rest of his body, was performed yesterday at twelve 
 o'clock. A dense crowd thronged the Place de la Sorbonne 
 long before that hour. Precisely at midday the doors of the 
 ancient church were thrown open, and a most imposing sight 
 struck the eye. A catafalque of black velvet, at the corners 
 of which were four splendid candelabra, occupied the centre 
 of the nave, while hangings of dark crimson velvet fringed 
 with gold covered the walls of the edifice. Around the cata- 
 falque bishops and other Church dignitaries, in full vestments, 
 were seated ; beyond were ranged in order of rank the forty 
 
2i6 RICHELIEU'S HEAD AGAIN 
 
 academicians, the heads of all the colleges in France, the 
 professors of theology, etc. Among the most remarkable 
 men assembled at this curious ceremony were Monseigneurs 
 the Bishops of Silva, of La Rochelle, of Chalons, of Nancy, 
 etc., MM. Berryer and Camille Domet, and General Zamoyski. 
 The family of Richelieu was represented by the present Duke. 
 His Grace the Archbishop of Paris arrived at twelve, and 
 received the Minister of Public Instruction, attended by his 
 secretary and his chef du cabinet, on his entrance. One of 
 the University beadles bore the oaken coffer which enclosed 
 the precious relic, and handed it to Monseigneur Darboy, who 
 carried it on a gorgeous civiere to the centre of the church. 
 A cardinal's scarlet hat lay on the box. His Grace pro- 
 nounced a short address, in which he expressed the thanks 
 of the Emperor to His Excellency M. Duruy for having been 
 the means of restoring part of the remains of one of the 
 most illustrious men of France to the Church. The mass for 
 the dead was then recited, and His Grace Mgr. Darboy and 
 the Minister of Public Instruction descended into the Riche- 
 lieu family vault to witness the deposition of the coffer on 
 the Cardinal's coffin. Two slabs of black marble have been 
 placed in the wall of the vault, on which an inscription in 
 Latin records the event of yesterday. His Eminence was 
 buried at the Sorbonne on the isth December, 1662 — that is, 
 precisely 204 years ago. He must have been admirably em- 
 balmed, as his features are quite perfect, and even retain a 
 lifelike expression. 
 
 December lyth. 
 
 The most absurd story is now current as to Cardinal Riche- 
 lieu's head. It appears that the ci-devant M. Armez, who 
 presented the Government with the mask which was enclosed 
 in the Cardinal's tomb at the Sorbonne with so much pomp 
 last Saturday, is not the only person who flatters himself he 
 has the veritable and genuine article. An opposition head is 
 in the possession of another senator, M. M6rim6e, who fondly 
 dreams that his is the real head, and produces no end of old 
 
THE EMPEROR MAXIMILIAN 217 
 
 parchment in defence of his conviction. M. M^rim^e ought 
 decidedly to have arrived last Saturday at the Sorbonne with 
 the head in his possession, which ought to have been compared 
 with the one so long preserved by M. Armez. The assembled 
 bishops, ministers, and wiseacres in general, after having 
 decided the question, would then have buried whichever was 
 thought most likely to have been possessed by his high and 
 mighty Eminence Armand du Plessis de Richelieu. What if, 
 after all, the splendid pageant of Saturday was in honour of a 
 defunct gargon de cafd instead of that of the great Cardinal ? 
 
 December \%th. 
 
 La Liberie relates the following good story of genealogists 
 in general, and of Ritterstein, the German, in particular. The 
 first Emperor was literally besieged by adepts in this art, who, 
 to curry favour, sent him magnificent genealogical trees, in 
 which the origin of his family was traced up to the night of 
 time. Ritterstein spent three years in proving clearly, and 
 without any awkward gaps or missing links, that the house of 
 Buonaparte descended from Blondel, the troubadour, to whom 
 Richard Cceur de Lion owed his rescue. Napoleon laughed 
 heartily at this proof of heraldic lore, and said, " Ah, if this 
 plague were seated on the throne, genealogists would make 
 out that his ancestor was health." 
 
 La Presse gives another anecdote which conveys a pleasant 
 impression of the Emperor Maximilian. An officer was 
 taking a walking tour through the mountainous district of 
 Ischl, and having lost his way he went into a cottage to 
 inquire the road. The poor woman to whom it belonged 
 instantly desired her little boy to accompany the young man 
 to the turn of the road and show him which path he was to 
 take. This service having been faithfully performed, the 
 officer gave the child money. The boy refused, remarking 
 that military men never had money. " Ah ! " said the 
 young officer, " how do you know that ? " " Because my 
 brother is in the army, and never has any. My mother sold 
 
2i8 BANQUET TO MR. BIGELOW 
 
 her last stack of corn this very day in order to send him 
 some." The young man, touched by the story, returned to 
 the cottage, and, leaving his purse with the poor woman, 
 promised to protect her son. The officer was the Archduke 
 Maximilian. 
 
 December \^th. 
 
 The farewell banquet to Mr. Bigelow took place last night 
 at the Grand Hotel. Three hundred of the resident Ameri- 
 cans in Paris, two-thirds of whom were gentlemen and the 
 remaining third ladies, assembled on this occasion, and nothing 
 could have been more splendid than the entertainment or 
 more tasteful than the decorations of the salle. Above the 
 dais, where the President (Mr. Kellog) took his seat, was 
 suspended a portrait of Washington, framed in laurels. On 
 his right hand was Mr. Bigelow, and on his left Mrs. Bigelow. 
 General Dix, who is still residing at Versailles, had sent an 
 excuse for not being present at the banquet. The first toast 
 was proposed by the President, who, after recalling the old 
 friendship which united France to America, uttered the fol- 
 lowing words : " I am happy to be able to say that at the 
 present hour there no longer exists any cause for dissension 
 between the two countries, and that nothing prevents the 
 continuance of the traditional alliance." Mr. Bigelow, in 
 returning thanks, drew a striking contrast between the de- 
 plorable state in which he had left America when he quitted 
 its shores to assume office in France and the prosperous 
 condition of the country at the present moment : " I shall 
 find but a single flag afloat on returning to my country ; I 
 shall find three millions of enfranchised slaves and innumer- 
 able improvised soldiers, who, after having braved the horrors 
 of war, have now resumed their peaceful occupations." Mr. 
 Godwin, editor of the New York Evening Post, made a witty 
 and humorous speech when drinking the health of the ladies. 
 He made them alternately laugh and weep. Midnight struck 
 before the coffee was even called for. 
 
BISMARCK AS AN EXPLETIVE 219 
 
 December 20th. 
 
 The following incident is going the round of all the official 
 salons, and has created some scandal. It appears that a few 
 
 evenings since, at Madame de W 's first official reception, 
 
 the Prussian ambassador, M. le Comte de Goltz, happening 
 to meet one of the marshals, said to him, " Well, marshal, 
 I congratulate you on following our example," to which the 
 old soldier replied, in a tone of evident irritation, " France 
 need not follow anyone's example, and still less of a power 
 she has so often defeated. We could easily, with our rusty 
 muskets, conquer Prussia with her needle guns." The Comte, 
 somewhat amazed, said, "Well, marshal, your language is 
 not very diplomatic." " I don't care," retorted the fiery old 
 marshal, "it's the language of a soldier." The repartees 
 were becoming so angry that a personage of considerable 
 importance thought it but right to interfere, only just in time, 
 however, to prevent unpleasant consequences. 
 
 A good story is told of a Bavarian who, quarrelling the 
 other day with one of his fellow-countrymen, abused him in the 
 most violent language, and, after exhausting a very extensive 
 vocabulary of invectives, at last called him " Bismarck ! " 
 The phlegmatic German had borne all previous insults with 
 praiseworthy patience ; but on hearing himself thus apostro- 
 phised he flew into a tremendous passion, and cited his 
 enemy before the courts. He was nonsuited on the plea 
 that " Bismarck " is a name, and does not necessarily imply 
 an insult — at least, no such interpretation was to be found 
 in any of the Bavarian law precedents. This is not the first 
 time that the name of a Prime Minister has thus been 
 popularly applied as a term of contempt. Under the 
 Restoration it was a common incident to hear a cabby 
 apostrophising a sulky and restive horse, "Va done, hd, 
 Polignac ! " and during the early part of the reign of the 
 Grand Monarque "Mazarin" was equivalent to the refined 
 exclamation, " You ! " 
 
220 JOUR DE L'AN 
 
 December 21 st. 
 
 We learnt in our old schooldays il^-ichelieu had more head 
 than any naan of his time. It appears that this is not to 
 be wondered at, considering that several heads have been 
 found appertaining to him. One was buried at the Sorbonne 
 last week. M. M6rimee assures the country he possesses 
 another ; and now we are informed that at half-past nine 
 o'clock yesterday there was discovered in the Rue des 
 Boulangers, on a dust-heap, a human skull bearing the 
 following inscription : " This is the true head of Cardinal 
 Richelieu." The commissaire de police of the guar tier — having, 
 I conclude, remarkably little to do during this rainy weather 
 — is going to institute inquiries as to whence this occiput 
 is derived. 
 
 December 2'jth. 
 
 I had not the good fortune to be at my favourite haunt, 
 the H6tel Drouot, the other day, or I might have realised 
 a small sum. A painting of Ingres was sold for nineteen 
 francs. The fortunate purchaser immediately took it to the 
 great artist to know whether he was really its author. The 
 latter acknowleged having painted it in the year 1809, ^'^'^ 
 signed and dated it. 
 
 December 2Zth. 
 
 New Year's Day is the speciality of Paris. Strike the 
 Jour de I'An from the calendar, and Paris life would resemble 
 a fete without fireworks, a wedding without a breakfast, a 
 salon without a "lion," the Italiens without Patti — in fact, 
 the play of Hamlet with the part of Hamlet left out. Even 
 we old bachelors, who expect nothing and gain nothing but 
 annoyance by the return of this anniversary, are insensibly 
 drawn into the vortex of excitement and anticipation. Its 
 realisation to us begins at early dawn. From our comfort- 
 able slumbers we are aroused to the painful reality by the 
 ceaseless ringing of the bell of our apartment. Our baker's 
 
NEW YEAR'S WISHES 221 
 
 boy " souhaite la bonne ann^e a monsieur." This pious wish 
 is repeated by our laundress, re-echoed by our water-carrier, 
 by the boy who cleans our boots, by our worst enemy, the 
 concierge, and so on, till — our patience and our stock of five- 
 franc pieces being simultaneously exhausted — we seize our 
 hat and stick and hobble off as nimbly as a sharp fit of 
 gout permits us to the restaurant we patronise for breakfast. 
 In the hope of enjoying half an hour of peace we call for 
 our cutlet and bottle of pomard. The sempiternal wish for 
 our New Year accompanies the supply of our bodily wants. 
 We throw down our morning paper in disgust, and rush out 
 for a quiet stroll in our accustomed haunts. It occurs to us 
 that a visit to our coiffeur would improve our personal 
 appearance. With the first snip of the scissors the fatal words 
 fall on our wearied ears. Do what we will, remain at home 
 or out, from early morn to dewy eve, the self-same phrase 
 rings in our ears. Que voulez vous ? It is vain to struggle 
 against fate. We have twelve hours of endurance before us. 
 The boulevards, from the Bastille to the Madeleine, are 
 already odious to the Parisian, flanked as they are by wooden 
 sheds, to be presently filled with gingerbread men and 
 chocolate pipes. 
 
 An hour ago I met an officer returned but last week from 
 Mexico. I rushed up to him, and, after hurriedly congratula- 
 ting him on his return, plunged into the question of the day 
 by the inquiry, "Where is Maximilian?" "Ah," he said, 
 pointing to a big frigate in the window of the toy-shop 
 opposite which we had met, " Maxmilian ! this is what I am 
 going to give him. He is just four years old, and so grown 
 
 I hardly recognised him ; and as to Marie " Heavens ! 
 
 I felt if I did not put a speedy stop to this sort of thing I 
 should have the whole family history. " But I am asking 
 for news of the Emperor." "Ah, ah, about the Emperor. 
 Well, I hope he has by this time turned boursier." I went 
 on a few yards further, and opposite Tortoni's met the 
 
 Prefect of V . I asked him what was the general feeling 
 
 in his department as to the reorganisation in the army. 
 
222 NEW YEAR'S PRESENTS 
 
 "Parbleu!" he replied, "the people think what my boy 
 thinks. He will have nothing but a needle gun, and I have 
 just bought this one for his itrenne'.' " It's a fine gun," said 
 I hopelessly, moving on, as I had caught a glimpse of the 
 
 Baron de R . "What do you think, Baron, of the 
 
 Budget?" "Alas," was the answer, "thanks to the approach 
 of the Jour de I'An, as great a deficit, allowing for the differ- 
 ences of revenue, exists in my purse as that which M. Fould 
 ' signalises ' in the French finances " — and so on. I give it 
 up. I tell you so frankly, for such are the insane replies 
 you receive in Paris to any question bearing on any topic 
 but that of New Year's gifts. The shops are crowded, the 
 streets invaded by cabs tilting at each other in their frantic 
 efforts to get on ; the boulevards transformed into a common 
 fair. Paris is a monster bazaar, or pantomime, if you like ; 
 amusing, it is true, and one sees the show gratis, which is an 
 advantage. And dolls ! they play the prominent part in 
 the comedy. I am credibly informed that real artists model 
 their figures, modistes make their bonnets (or whatever you 
 may designate the thing which lies on the top of females' 
 heads at present), shoemakers their bottines, glovers their 
 dainty mittens, and jewellers their ornaments. The great 
 bon-bon shop in the Rue de la Paix is already surrounded 
 by a perfect mob — the dolls of the year being the City of 
 Paris dressed for the Exhibition, and the Exhibition itself. 
 The headdress of the latter is a sort of Tower of Babel ; 
 the robe of white satin bears the escutcheons of all nations 
 broidered on its ample folds ; from the waists fall the 
 oriflammes of all the people of the earth, the bracelets, 
 necklace, etc., of this marvellous lady being formed of gold 
 and silver medals. 
 
 This dreaded anniversary over, we shall be absorbed 
 by the anticipation of the Exhibition. I maintain my 
 original impression — namely, that the building itself is 
 hideous. I am told that the ventilation is faulty, that we 
 shall be stifled for want of air in certain galleries, and 
 blown along by a whirlwind in others. Whether this will 
 
PREPARATIONS FOR THE EXHIBITION 223 
 
 prove true or not I cannot pretend to foretell. There are 
 sixteen subterranean airducts of great size, and to the eye of 
 the ignorant admirably calculated for the purposes of venti- 
 lation. Beneath the three circular galleries intended for 
 articles of dress, of furniture, and of fine arts, run likewise 
 three subterranean airducts, the roofs of which are of course 
 pierced by innumerable wooden gratings. Powerful ventila- 
 tors will propel air into these subterranean passages, and 
 thence by the gratings into the palace ; whereas foul air will 
 escape through openings in the roof. The palace will 
 accommodate 25,000 persons at a time in its central part ; 
 the ventilators will supply this portion alone with 250,000 
 cubic metres of air. But it must be remembered that as each 
 nation will erect formidable wooden partitions between it 
 and its neighbours, the air thus propelled will not circulate 
 freely, whereas in open spaces there will be a superabund- 
 ance of that desirable element. Nous verrons, A line 
 of spacious sheds intended for all materials required for 
 architecture, as well as all heavy and cumbrous goods, is 
 finished. One of these sheds is a bakehouse. In another a 
 manufacturer of Mans intends erecting forty bells, whose 
 chimes are continually to sound in our ears, a single one of 
 these said bells weighing 2,500 kilos. — 5,600 lbs. English. A 
 kiosk, a chalet for ices, etc. ; a washing establishment, to be 
 directed by Madame Charles ; a crecke for stray infants, 
 on the last approved plan ; a manufactory for newly in- 
 vented dogs' cake, a ceramic garden, and I know not what 
 besides are to fill a certain number of these hangars. 
 Whether our intellects will take in the amount of new ideas 
 which we shall imbibe at every step during the coming 
 spring is a question I am not prepared to solve ; but I cer- 
 tainly do not envy the luckless wight who will come over in 
 the expectation of "doing" the Exhibition in a day, as I 
 heard gravely discussed as a probability the other day. 
 
224 PAYING CALLS 
 
 December 3 \st. 
 
 1866 makes its exit in a sea of mud. Paris this day is 
 positively detestable. The rain in torrents from above, the 
 yellow liquid from below, combined with the crowded, well- 
 nigh impassable state of the streets and boulevards, would 
 undoubtedly turn the brain of any saint in the calendar, 
 had these worthies but accompanied me this afternoon. 
 Carriages ! this day their name is legion. All the ministers 
 hold levies to-day. The Prefect of the Seine and the city 
 authorities have had a hard time of it. In the State carriages 
 belonging to the city these functionaries have been driven 
 from one ministire to another, in order to wish long lives (in 
 office), health, and happiness to all their Excellencies. Half 
 Paris, moreover, is driving about on similar errands in 
 uniform — all the staffs of the various ministkres enjoying this 
 privilege, if it please them to indulge^ in it, of breaking out in 
 blue cloth, either embroidered in gold or silver according to 
 their rank. This custom is by no means compulsory, even 
 on levie day ; but as the young and unmarried attaches like 
 to appear at court balls, they gladly avail themselves of the 
 right of sporting an official costume. Next to having to 
 provide itrennes for all belonging to you, the bore of the 
 day is having to direct countless envelopes for one's cards, 
 and despatch them by post to every individual with whom 
 you may have exchanged ideas during the past years of your 
 residence in Paris. " Sending out cards, quelle corvie! " (What 
 
 a bore !), exclaimed M. X . " But, my dear sir, if you wish 
 
 to have friends at your wedding or at your funeral, you must 
 
 keep up acquaintances," replied M. G , The argument, I 
 
 admit, is unanswerable ; and seriously I believe it to be the 
 motive of several thousand cards being exchanged to-morrow. 
 The more crowded a church is, either for a marriage or a 
 funeral, the happier the families concerned in the event feel. 
 After all, the exchange of cards has son bon cdti, as the French 
 
THE MARQUIS DE LA ROCHEJAQUELIN 225 
 
 say. A coldness has arisen between old friends ; they have not 
 met for months ; the old custom gives them an opportunity 
 of burying fancied or real slights in the tomb of the vanished 
 year, and of meeting again as jolly as ever. 
 
 January 2nd, 1867. 
 
 The Marquis de la Rochejaquelin, whose death I record, 
 represented a gallant race of heroes. His ancestor, Aymerie 
 du Vergier, died during the crusade of 1248. His family 
 arms bear two mottoes : " Si j'avance suivez moi — se je recule, 
 tuez moi — si je meurs vengez moi " ; the second, " Vendue ! 
 Bordeaux ! Vendue ! " A Marquis de la Rochejaquelin died 
 in 1802 of wounds received while fighting in St. Domingo. 
 Henri, his son, organised the insurrection of La Vendue and 
 fell mortally wounded at the head of his gallant followers in 
 1794. His heroic wife accompanied him on horseback 
 throughout the campaign, and was by his side when he 
 received his death wound. Their son Louis organised the 
 second Venddan insurrection in 1813, and in June, 1815, was 
 shot through the heart in a skirmish. The late peer who 
 expired yesterday was the eldest son of this Marquis. 
 During the July monarchy he remained true to his principles, 
 and lived in retirement. On the morning of the 2nd Decem- 
 ber {coup d'etat) the Marquis, who was deputy for Marbehan, 
 happened to be the first who presented himself at the Palace 
 of the Legislative Assembly. A cordon of infantry from the 
 Courbevoie Barracks was drawn round the building — all 
 entrance was impossible. The Marquis, after vainly ad- 
 dressing the troops, asked to see the general in command, 
 who happened to be a friend of his. M. de Rochejaquelin 
 harangued him with the eloquence for which he is well 
 known, talked about honneur, patrie, duty, etc., etc. The 
 general listened, and then said, " My dear friend, you speak 
 remarkably well, but I can only reply as did the first sentinel 
 you met — on ne passe pas ! Go home and calm yourself" 
 Q 
 
226 GAMBLING 
 
 The Marquis went home. He calmed himself, and two 
 months later was senator of the new French Empire ! 
 
 January 2nd. 
 
 Since the days of the Regency there has never been so 
 much gambling at cards as there is going on at clubs, cafh, 
 and private houses. The subject has attracted the attention 
 of the Government, and the Minister of the Interior is said to 
 be engaged in preparing a decree, which it is hoped may 
 arrest the progress of this mighty evil. Kalil Bey is one of 
 the most imperturbable of the card-players of the grand 
 monde. He loses with the same impassible countenance 
 with which he wins fabulous sums, and reminds one of the 
 celebrated Marquis de Bacqueville, who, whilst at the opera, 
 having been informed that his house was on fire, quietly 
 desired the messenger to inform his wife, who was in the 
 opposite box, as it was an affaire de manage — a household 
 affair — in fact, no concern of his. It appears that last autumn 
 
 the Countess de C , a fair and celebrated gambler, on 
 
 being presented to the Pope, received from His Holiness a 
 sharp reprimand on the subject. She solemnly promised 
 Pius IX. that she would never again sit at a gambling-table, 
 and kept her word, till a few nights ago, when, on being 
 deeply engaged in dcarti, was reminded of the pledge she had 
 taken at the Vatican. " I have not broken my word," replied 
 the fair Countess; "do you not perceive that I am standing?" 
 
 January \^th. 
 
 The H6tel Drouot was literally besieged yesterday by 
 curiosity collectors ; the object of attraction being a note-case, 
 103 millimetres long by 81 in width. Its mounting of red 
 and gold represents a wreath of laurel and lily leaves, and 
 forms the setting to a miniature on ivory of Queen Antoinette 
 on one side, and the Comtesse d'Artois (wife of Charles X.), 
 and of her two children, the Duke of AngoulSme and Duke 
 of Berry, on the other. The Queen is represented in a robe 
 
LA DIVA PATTI 227 
 
 of sky-blue satin, richly trimmed with point lace. A white 
 ostrich plume and blue ribbon forms her coiffure, and her hair 
 is powdered ; her right arm rests on the back of her chair, 
 while her left holds a scroll of music. On the table, covered 
 by a red velvet cover, is a vase of flowers, an inkstand, and 
 some books ; a harp and a green velvet curtain form the 
 background. The portraits of the Comtesse d'Artois and her 
 children are inferior in execution to that of the Queen. The 
 note-case still contains the almanac of 178 1. On one of the 
 leaves is inscribed, "Given to the Marquise de Coumont, 
 governess to the children of M. le Comte d'Artois, by Queen 
 Marie Antoinette, 15th July, 1781." As an objet d'art, the 
 casket is comparatively of no value, yet the interest attached 
 to every souvenir of the decapitated Queen is so great that it 
 was put up at 5,000 francs, and adjudged to M. Laurence de 
 Lenain, for an illustrious lady, at the enormous sum of 9,000 
 francs. 
 
 The Vogue Parisienne gives the following details of the 
 system by which La Diva Patti learns a new opera. Her 
 brother-in-law is her master. Wherever she resides a piano 
 is always placed in a room next to the private apartment, so 
 that every note played on it can he heard by her. When a 
 new partition is to be learnt by her, her brother-in-law, 
 without warning her beforehand, plays whatever air he thinks 
 likely to please her ; and, as though he were only playing for 
 his own amusement, recommences the same air three or four 
 times. Adelina's voice is soon heard in the next room, as if 
 it were echoing the motif. The professor continues, and, 
 perhaps, sings the tenor, while he plays soprano on the piano. 
 This seldom lasts many minutes. The door of the drawing- 
 room is opened by Patti — singing all the while ; she takes 
 her brother-in-law's place at the piano, and now thoroughly 
 excited, studies the partition with all the ardour of her artist 
 nature. In two days Adelina knows the music as well as the 
 libretto of the whole opera, and performs her part in it in 
 Italian within a week of having received the score, with what 
 triumphant success I need not relate. 
 
228 A MONKEY'S JEALOUSY 
 
 An extraordinary drama was acted last week — on a very- 
 different stage, however, than that of the aristocratic Italiens. 
 The scene of action was a booth at a village fair in the 
 environs of Lyons. The impressario of a mimic theatre pos- 
 sessed a huge monkey of the cyno-cephalus tribe, which 
 species are remarkable for their ferocity. The beast was kept 
 in a strong iron cage, through the bars of which, however, he 
 often succeeded in tearing the clothes of any unwary passer- 
 by. The only being who had any control over him was the 
 manager's daughter. The day after the fair the proprietors 
 of the ambulatory menagerie, having made a good thing of 
 the show, were preparing to move on to the next village, and, 
 having fed their animals, had gone to the neighbouring 
 tavern for their own dinner, when Monsieur Bertrand (the 
 cyno-cephale), whose dejeuner had by no means pleased his 
 gastronomic tastes, managed to shake open the door of his 
 prison and escape to the provision waggon, where he was 
 found regaling in the midst of plenty by the returned family. 
 His master, unfortunately, seized a whip, and threatened the 
 animal, who, before receiving a blow, flew at him, threw him 
 on his back, and tearing out his flesh, was crunching the bones 
 of his arm, when the shrieks of his wretched victim attracted 
 the whole personnel of the menagerie, but no one among them 
 dared to approach the beast. Suddenly the unfortunate man's 
 daughter was inspired with an idea. She dragged a clown 
 behind the bars of the open cage, opposite the open door, 
 and told him to kiss her. "Again — again, and louder!" 
 she cried. On the sound of this salutation, the monkey, 
 jealous, as many animals are (he could not endure any mark 
 of affection bestowed on anything but himself), howling with 
 rage, turned round, and, believing them to be in the cage, 
 dashed into it in order to fly at the clown. Needless to add, 
 the door was instantly closed and barred. The poor girl thus 
 saved her father's life ; but he has already suffered the ampu- 
 tation of his arm, and is in a dangerous state. 
 
VICTOR COUSIN 229 
 
 January i^th. 
 
 I hear that the charming biographer and last representa- 
 tive of the Jurists, Victor Cousin, died yesterday at Cannes, 
 where his delicate health compelled him to spend several 
 winters. Victor Cousin had hesitated, however, to follow his 
 usual habit, knowing that he would miss the genial society 
 of his old friend. Lord Brougham, and first went to Pau, but 
 only reached his favourite orange groves in time to inhale 
 their perfume and die. M. Cousin was of humble origin, but 
 rose by his distinguished talent and industry to the rank of 
 Councillor of State, peer of France, and Minister of Public 
 Instruction during Louis Philippe's reign. His biographies 
 of the Duchess of Longueville, Cond6's heroic sister, of 
 Madame de Lab6, of Madame d'Hautefort, etc., have thrown 
 a flood of light on the history of the seventeenth and eigh- 
 teenth centuries, while the extraordinary purity and correct- 
 ness of their style have done much towards improving the 
 literature of the present day. His rooms at the Sorbonne 
 were the only appurtenances which remained to Victor 
 Cousin of his official rank. The walls of his salon there were 
 literally covered with works, each of which any bibliophile 
 would have purchased at its weight in gold. He possessed 
 twelve editions of Plato, thirty-one of Horace, twenty-seven 
 Elzevirs, and every memoir and work published during the 
 reign of Louis XIV. In most instances these volumes had 
 belonged either to royal personages of his time (and bore 
 their escutcheons), or to Richelieu, Mazarin, and other 
 celebrities of the grand sikcle. M. Cousin was at home daily 
 between twelve and one ; at this hour M. Thiers, Monseigneur 
 Dupanloup, Pr^vost-Paradol, Taine, and Ponsard met fre- 
 quently, up to the day he quitted Paris. During the Mon- 
 archy, Comte de Montalembert, Due Pasquier, Comte Mole, 
 and Due and Prince de Broglie were among his constant 
 visitors. He died faithful to his classic studies, to his dis- 
 interested respect for the Orleanist dynasty, and to the 
 philosophy, whose time he had outlived. 
 
230 STRANGE DISAPPEARANCES 
 
 January \6th. 
 
 A certain feeling of alarm prevails in the mind of the 
 public, owing to the frequency with which disappearances 
 have of late occurred in Paris. A writer of much talent, and 
 one of the best contributors to La Presse, M. Pierre Baragnon, 
 publishes in that paper a most interesting and sensational 
 article on the subject, urging on the Government the necessity 
 of watching somewhat more carefully over the lives and 
 safety of its subjects, and requesting especially the Prefect of 
 Police to bestow upon the honourable and honest part of the 
 Paris population the same surveillance and paternal care he 
 does upon malefactors. M. Baragnon's revelations as to 
 what has been lately going on in Paris read like a novel of 
 the Middle Ages. One would really fancy in perusing this 
 paper that we were living in the good old times, when 
 Lutetia was intersected by narrow and muddy lanes, when 
 the streets were lit by lanterns, when people were in the 
 habit of being attacked by masked robbers, thrown into the 
 Seine, or plunged into oubliettes. 
 
 Among the startling facts brought forward by M. Barag- 
 non to prove that he is not exaggerating the state of things, 
 allow me to reproduce the following, which occurred during 
 
 the last few months. Madame X , twenty-three years of 
 
 age, beautiful, and strictly virtuous, arrived in Paris with an 
 elder sister, for the education of her three children. Her 
 husband, a Wealthy New York merchant, sanctioned and ap- 
 proved of this. Madame X took an apartment in the 
 
 Champs Elys^es, devoted herself to the care of her little 
 boys, attended church regularly, occasionally in company 
 with her sister, at a convent at Auteuil, and, in fact, led a 
 most exemplary life. One morning at eight o'clock she 
 summoned her maid, dressed hurriedly, appeared unusually 
 agitated, and explained to her servants that she had an early 
 
TWO MYSTERIES 231 
 
 visit to pay. Madame X did not communicate with her 
 
 sister before quitting the house, which she left, alas ! never to 
 return. On the sad tidings reaching her husband, he instantly 
 left New York, and has been in Paris for some weeks, during 
 which time he has spared neither money nor efforts to dis- 
 cover some trace of his beloved and beautiful wife. But one 
 thing is certain — that not the slightest blemish can be 
 attached to her disappearance. Her life was blameless, and 
 her attachment to her husband and children undoubted. The 
 French police, by means of the appareil Casselli, as M. Barag- 
 non justly remarks, send the facsimile of the handwriting and 
 details of the features and appearance of a common bandit 
 to the four quarters of the globe. A quoi bonf The 
 Director-General of the telegraphic lines lost his chefde cabinet 
 three months ago in a similar mysterious manner, and, 
 although that period has elapsed, neither friends nor tele- 
 graphic wires have elucidated the mystery. M. S was a 
 
 man between thirty-eight and forty, belonging to an excellent 
 family, to which he was much attached, extremely fond of 
 the study of botany, and of all home occupations. He 
 attained the position of inspector, and had every prospect 
 of rising in his profession. One afternoon at five o'clock 
 
 precisely, M. S , who appeared very much preoccupied, 
 
 entered his ofiSce, and, having summoned his secretary, said 
 to him, " My dearest friend, I am obliged to absent myself 
 for the next twenty-four hours on private business." The 
 secretary naturally replied, " Very well, sir ; what am I to 
 do ? " " Go on with the work as usual, and should the 
 Director-General send for me, say I shall return to-morrow 
 
 afternoon." M. S had received his monthly payment 
 
 of £2^ that morning, and had immediately paid a bill he 
 owed amounting to £\o. On quitting his office he had 
 walked home, desired his concierge to call a carriage, walked 
 up to his room, left some money on the chimney-piece, made 
 some slight change in his dress, and got into the cab, giving 
 directions to the driver in a low tone of voice. From that 
 hour to the present moment neither M. S , cab, or cab- 
 
232 A LADY'S TAILOR 
 
 man has been discovered. M. Baragnon expresses anxiety 
 lest the great Exhibition should attract to this city a fresh 
 influx of pickpockets and cut-throats from all quarters of the 
 globe. He naturally inquires what is to be done to remedy 
 this state of things. The whole responsibility must naturally 
 fall on police agents, and to them appertains the duty of pro- 
 tecting the inhabitants of Paris from such mysterious attacks. 
 Moreover, M. Baragnon advises every visitor to this capital 
 to conform themselves to the following rules of conduct : To 
 beware of anonymous letters, and send them at once to the 
 Commissaire of the Quartier they inhabit ; to beware of 
 mysterious rendezvous ; to walk at night in the middle of 
 any narrow street or passage their business may lead them 
 by ; and, finally, never to go out at night without a whistle, 
 which, of course, will at once attract the attention of the 
 police. 
 
 January 2^th. 
 
 I have to relate the following strange transaction between 
 Madame la Duchesse de Persigny and her seamstress, or 
 rather tailor, the celebrated M. Maugas, who is a personage 
 of European reputation, and only admits crowned heads, 
 together with dukes and a few marquises, to the honour 
 of being his customers. It appears that at the end of last 
 winter M. Maugas sent the Duchess the following bill : — 
 
 "M. A. Maugas, Robes et Manteaux de Cour, furnished 
 to Madame la Duchesse de Pefsigny. January, 1866 — Dress 
 of white silk shot with gold, trimmed with white satin, 
 chemisette and sleeves of Valenciennes, 800 f (;^36) ; 
 February — Ball dress of chestnut and silver tulle, trimmed 
 with blue and silver butterflies over silk skirt, 1,200 f. {£t^?>); 
 flounced chestnut satin, tulle and silver, and blue butterflies, 
 350 f. (;^I4) ; March — Black silk dress, trimmed with jet and 
 watered ribbon, 700 f. (;£^28) ; total, 3,050 f. 
 
 The season over, the Duchess left Paris for the country. 
 
THE DISPUTED BILL 233 
 
 M. Maugas had previously sent in his bill several times, and 
 at last wrote to the Duchess to say that on presenting himself 
 at her house he had been referred to M. Desnoyers, the 
 Duke's agent, who, to Kis infinite amazement, had offered 
 him 2,500 f (;^ioo) instead of 3,050 f. He supposed some 
 mistake had occurred. The dresses in question were certainly 
 not cheap, but they were of a style which involved consider- 
 able outlay. A fortnight later M. Maugas wrote a second 
 time to remind the Duchess that she had made no terms 
 when ordering the goods, and had merely desired that they 
 should be as perfect as possible, which her grace admitted 
 them to have been ; that, although it was by no means the 
 habit of his establishment to have recourse to the strong 
 arm of the law, if he did not receive the money due to him 
 he would not shrink from this unpleasant alternative. In 
 reply to this declaration of war a Voutrance, M. Desnoyers 
 wrote a most insolent letter to Maugas, the chief accusation 
 therein being that if his customers did not agree beforehand 
 as to the terms on which he undertook to equip them for 
 conquest, it was evident he took advantage of their confiding 
 natures to charge double what was his due. M. Desnoyers 
 may be right, but the tone of his letter was familiar and 
 sneering. The affair was brought before the Courts yester- 
 day. M. Beaulieu pleaded for Maugas ; he opened the case 
 by producing bills of every sovereign house in Europe, 
 entering into minute details as to dresses supplied to every 
 empress, queen, and princess in the Almanack de Gotha, 
 thereby proving that in comparison to the price supplied 
 to these high and mighty personages, the Duchess's attire 
 was absurdly cheap. Why, one of the queens on his books 
 had just paid 3,400 f. {£12,2) for a mere dinner dress ; 
 another, an empress, I believe, 3,800 f. ; and so on ; and 
 as to Princess Dagmar, the wife of the Caesarewitch, her 
 last dress cost 7,000 f. (;^28o). The counsel for the Duchess 
 pleaded in her defence that she had agreed to a sort of tariff", 
 by which her robes were to cost 700 f all round. The court 
 has referred the affair to the expertise of Madame La 
 
234 PRINCE NARISHKINE 
 
 Ferriere, before whom the blue butterfly and brown tulle, etc., 
 attire is to be laid, and on her decision as to its intrinsic 
 value this curious case will be decided. 
 
 January 2t,th. 
 
 Prince Narishkine is looking out for a house, but as yet he 
 has failed in his search — one of the sine qud nons he insists 
 upon being that he should have eight salons en suite. Mean- 
 while the Prince has taken a villa near the Bois de Boulogne, 
 where he was dining a few days ago with his friend and 
 
 countryman the Prince . At dessert Prince Narishkine 
 
 remarked on the beauty of the fruit basket, and asked his host 
 if he cared about it. " Not in the least," was the reply. " Will 
 you let me have it for such and such a sum?" " My plate room 
 would not be worth seeing if I parted with it, for that is the 
 best thing it contains." " I will buy the room also." " Very 
 well," replied the host. " And the hdtel besides," added 
 Prince Narishkine. " With all my heart." " And the cellar ? " 
 " Soit." "And the stables?" "Certainly." "And the 
 carriages and horses ? " " Yes." " And what will you give 
 me for all ?" " Four hundred thousand francs." " All right ; 
 done." " But on one condition," said Prince Narishkine ; 
 " that I sleep here to-night, and that you leave here after 
 dinner." The Prince replied that the clause was so spirituelle- 
 ment excentrique that he would agree to it likewise. The 
 4CX),ooo f were laid on the dessert table, partly in notes and 
 partly in gold. The recent host rang the bell, gave orders 
 to his groom of his chambers to pack up his wardrobe. 
 Prince Narishkine accompanied his friend and guest to the 
 door of a carriage which he graciously lent to him who 
 an hour before had been its possessor ; and thus Prince 
 Narishkine became the host of the Villa Ranelagh. 
 
THE HISTORY OF A TRIBUNE 235 
 
 February \st. 
 
 The tribune which has just been re-established at the Corps 
 L^gislatif is the original one, and its history is most curious. 
 It belonged formerly to the Salles des Cinq Cents ; the bas 
 reliefs with which it is adorned belong to that period, and 
 consist of two female figures, one of which represents History 
 in the act of writing, and the other Fame sounding a trumpet. 
 The double faces of Janus may be seen beneath these bas 
 relievos, one looking at the fact as typified by History, and 
 the other looking at the future, which is Fame, the whole sur- 
 mounted by Liberty. On the i8th Brumaire this tribune was 
 concealed in a cellar of the Legislative Palace ; yet care had 
 been taken to number each block of marble, of which it is 
 composed, so that when parliamentary debates again were 
 the order of the day the marble blocks were simply rearranged 
 in their primitive order. Under the July Monarchy this 
 tribune was placed in the present Legislative Chamber, where 
 it remained till 1852, when it was again taken to pieces and 
 replaced in the vaults of the palace, each piece, as formerly, 
 being carefully numbered. The blocks of marble have been 
 fifteen years again resting from the fatigue of supporting the 
 weight of eloquence which has emanated from the orators of 
 France, and now, owing to the intercession and liberal ideas 
 of M. de Walewski, are once more to emerge into the political 
 arena of the Second Empire. The tribune is reached by an 
 ascent of six steps, and it was in this tribune that the well- 
 known scene occurred within a few months of the fall of the 
 Orleanist Dynasty, when Guizot, who was then speaking on a 
 question of vital importance, uttered the following words to 
 several members who were scrambling up the steps to en- 
 deavour to interrupt his speech : " Montez, messieurs, montez ; 
 vous n'arriverez jamais jusqu'^ la hauteur de mon mepris ! " 
 
236 THE ROBBER AND THE CARDINAL 
 
 February ^th. 
 
 A curious scene occurred the other day in one of the great 
 
 salons of the Faubourg St. Germain. The Duke de G 
 
 gave a splendid concert, to which he invited His Eminence 
 the Papal Nuncio and his secretary. Both dignitaries accepted 
 the invitation, but on entering the salon were somewhat sur- 
 prised at the evident astonishment their appearance created. 
 Their surprise increased when they remarked the Duchess of 
 
 G (who, as lady of the house, advanced to receive them) 
 
 appeared extremely embarrassed. The enigma, however, was 
 quickly solved. The diva selected to entertain the noble 
 company proved to be the chanteuse of the Eldorado, Theresa. 
 Both prelates, on being made aware of this, instantly quitted 
 the Duke's house. As has been justly remarked, the circum- 
 stance is a sign of the times. The representative of the head 
 of the Church is invited to a private party, and the person 
 selected to entertain him is a woman whom even the sterner 
 sex blush to listen to. 
 
 February 6tk. 
 
 Princess Wolowski gave a grand dinner last week to a 
 party of gourmets. Conversation turned on the delicacies of 
 former days which have gone out of fashion. A veteran 
 gourmet recalled ^^pdti de rouge gorges (robin-redbreasts), of 
 which the Marquise de Cr^qui writes in her spirituel memoirs. 
 The Cardinal de Greves was so fond of robin-redbreast pie 
 that he never travelled without one. On one occasion the 
 Cardinal was waylaid by the prince of highwaymen, Cartouche, 
 who treated him with the utmost politeness, merely " annex- 
 ing" his pastoral cross and ring, ten louis, two bottles of 
 Tokay, and his robin-redbreast pdtd. Cartouche took off his 
 hat to his secretary, and said he was trop gentil to be robbed. 
 " Well," said the Cardinal, " if you let my secretary off so 
 easily you ought, at least, to give us back our pie and one 
 bottle of Tokay." " Ah ! " sighed the highwayman, " it looks 
 
SCOTCH DRESSES FROM PARIS 237 
 
 too good to give it up ; but if Your Eminence will sit down 
 and share it with us, I shall be delighted to be your host." 
 The Cardinal was scandalised, but love of robin-redbreast pdti 
 overcame his scruples, and he and his secretary accepted the 
 proffered hospitality. Princess Wolowski has promised a 
 pdti de rouge gorges to her friends at their next meeting. 
 
 February 20th. 
 
 When Her Majesty the Empress visited Nancy last autumn, 
 where embroidery or muslin is the special occupation of the 
 peasantry, she ordered several dresses to be put in hand for 
 her own use, one of which has been completed and sent to 
 the Tuileries. The design consists in a broad ribbon of open 
 work thrown carelessly around scattered lilacs, heartsease, and 
 all the symbolic flowers, the fond of the dress consisting in a 
 marvellous variety of minute flowers, which diminish in size 
 towards the upper part of the skirt. The value of this 
 chef d'ceuvre of hand labour is ;£'so. M. Horrer, from whose 
 embroidered muslin factory it has issued, considers it the best 
 specimen ever produced by French embroideresses. The 
 description of this dress reminds me of an amusing fact which 
 occurred at the time of the Emperor and Empress's visit to 
 Switzerland, when it had been the intention of Her Majesty 
 to ascend Mont Blanc. Her Majesty expressed a wish to 
 have some Scotch travelling dresses, such as she had seen 
 during her visit to the Highlands. The Minister of Foreign 
 Affairs undertook the commission, and sent the order at once 
 to the French Consul at Edinburgh, who replied that in ten 
 days the box would reach the French Embassy in London. 
 The given delay elapsed, but no tidings of the costumes 
 reached Paris. His Excellency telegraphed to the French 
 Ambassador, who in his turn telegraphed to the Consul at 
 Edinburgh, and received the following reply: "The boxes 
 have not yet arrived." " What boxes ? " was telegraphed 
 back from the French Embassy. "Why, the boxes con- 
 taining the costumes ordered from Paris." The Scotch 
 
238 AN INTERESTING AUTOGRAPH 
 
 costumes the Empress had admired had come from Paris, 
 and none such were to be had in Edinburgh, or had ever 
 been made in that capital. 
 
 February 2^th. 
 
 A curious autograph, unique of its kind, has been dis- 
 covered by M. Philarfete Chasles, Conservator of the Mazarin 
 Library, and Lecturer at the College of France. M. Chasles, 
 in searching among the treasures of this library, has been 
 fortunate enough to find a copy of Euripides of the Sixteenth 
 Century (edition Plantin), on the fly-leaf of which are in- 
 scribed the names of Marshal d'Ancre, the husband of Marie 
 de Medici's friend, who himself was murdered within the 
 walls of the Louvre, by order of Louis XIII., whilst his wife 
 was condemned to death as a sorceress. The Marshal's 
 names appear to have been Cosme Antoine Baptiste Concini ; 
 the Greek words " Kleina palaion " are written beneath the 
 names in the same ink, whilst on the reverse side of the page 
 are several passages from the works of Euripides, translated 
 into Latin, and probably the ambitious courtier applied these 
 to himself. This is the first time the Marshal's exact names 
 have been discovered. The icrou of his wife and the details 
 of her horrible death are to be found in the registers of the 
 conciergerie. 
 
 March \th. 
 
 I have just witnessed a disgraceful sight. A funeral 
 ceremony had just terminated at the Madeleine ; the colifin 
 was to be seen, surrounded by the relatives of the deceased, 
 issuing from the grand entrance, when suddenly several 
 hundred persons rushed up the broad perron, and occupied 
 the magnificent flight of steps leading to the entrance of the 
 church, in order to secure a good view of the Boeuf Gras, 
 which presently came by, preceded by the usual masques, 
 blowing squealing trumpets, shouting, grimacing, and 
 dancing ; and these carnivalesque antics cease not in the 
 presence of death. The French are generally remarkable for 
 
A BAL-COSTUME 239 
 
 the respect with which they treat the dead. The coffin of a 
 pauper, carried along on a mere hand-cart, is saluted by every 
 passer-by, whatever be his rank, and the man who does not 
 raise his hat as the dead pass is considered as a regular brute. 
 But the carnival, with its heathenish mysteries, appears to 
 deaden every natural feeling, and the people allow themselves 
 to be stultified to all sense of decency. This year the chief 
 feature of the procession consists of a lofty car, bearing a 
 colossal model of the genius of France, rising over a globe 
 of gold, and inviting the nations of the earth to the Great 
 Exhibition. The figure is remarkably well executed. The 
 car was filled by persons of both sexes, attired in the 
 costumes of Asia, Africa, and America. Twelve giants, ten 
 feet in height, representing the inhabitants of different 
 portions of Europe, follow this triumphal car. Yesterday 
 the procession paid its visit to the Tuileries, and, according 
 to ancient tradition, their Majesties and the Prince Imperial 
 appeared on the balcony of the Cour de I'Horloge, and were 
 enthusiastically cheered. Her Majesty wore a cloak of 
 Algerian gold tissue, and a bonnet of pale blue crape. 
 
 The most brilliant fite as yet given this season has been 
 the bal-costumi at the Ministere des Affaires Etrangeres. The 
 Marquise de Moustier put aside her Legitimist exclusion, 
 and did the honours to the Imperialist guests with all the 
 grace and cordiality of a grande dame of the olden times. 
 Their Majesties were present, in domino, and remained to a 
 late hour, but were not recognised by any of the guests. 
 Prince Napoleon wore a Venetian cloak, and appeared un- 
 masked. To describe the brilliant costumes of the beauty of 
 the fair debutantes, whose first appearance in the great world 
 has been postponed till this long-expected fete came off, is 
 simply impossible. There was a greater number of dominoes 
 than is usual on these occasions. The truth is, the irresistible 
 love of amusement inborn in every French woman at times 
 conquers vanity, and induces them to lay aside the tempta- 
 tion of attracting admiration by a brilliant toilet for the sake 
 of indulging in witty repartees and malicious remarks, by 
 
240 THE TRAPPIST MODEL FARM 
 
 which the freedom of a domino enables them to disturb the 
 peace of mind of their dearest friend. This somewhat cruel 
 sport is the delight of every French femme de monde, and as 
 bal-costum^s are rare events in the annals of the season, they 
 improve the occasion when it presents itself. 
 
 March 6th. 
 
 The Mois Agricole of this month contains an interesting 
 account of the Trappist Model Farm, founded by the monks 
 of Staiieli, near the village of Cheragas, in Algeria, celebrated 
 for the variety of odoriferous plants which grow wild in the 
 neighbourhood. Marshal Bugeaud granted the Trappists 
 i,2(X) hectares of land in 1843. Two years afterwards a sum 
 of 300,000 f. (;^ 1 2,000) was spent on the buildings of the mon- 
 astery, which are not yet finished, although ;^20,ooo has been 
 expended on them. The stock of animals on the farm is 
 magnificent. The Trappists have cows which yield sixteen 
 quarts of milk per day, which is an enormous quantity in 
 Algeria, where the native cows do not yield as much as a 
 goat in France. Besides milch cows, there are 50 head of 
 black cattle, 400 sheep, and as many pigs on the farm. 
 Another farm produce is 600 kilos, of honey, produced 
 annually. They require more land, however, as they have 
 not sufficient for cereal crops. There are 108 monks, of 
 which 22 belong to the choir, and 10 are priests. Twenty 
 ordinary workmen are regularly employed at the convent, 
 besides any poor infirm people, or convalescents recently 
 discharged from hospital, who may ask for a day's work. 
 None are ever refused, \yhen the Emperor visited Algeria, 
 he wished to visit Staiieli. He was received by the Superior, 
 mitre on head, at the threshold of the monastery, who invited 
 him to luncheon. During this repast the Abb6 desired that 
 the table should be served with the dishes which compose 
 the ordinary fare of the Trappist brothers — that is, vegetables 
 boiled in water and without any seasoning. " The rules of 
 our order prevent us taking any other species of food ; but 
 our monks are so much in the habit of living on these simple 
 
SOLDIER-MONKS 241 
 
 dishes that they do not perceive the want of seasoning." 
 " Have you tasted them, monseigneur ? " inquired the 
 Emperor, turning to the Bishop of Algiers, who was next to 
 him. " Yes, sire," replied his lordship, " I tasted them once, 
 and it was quite enough." The Emperor was not a little 
 surprised to hear that there were a dozen old soldiers of the 
 Garde Impdriale among the monks of Staiieli. He spoke 
 most kindly to one of them, who had been selected to be his 
 guide. " Are you pleased with your life at La Trappe ? " 
 "Very much pleased, sire" The Emperor appeared sur- 
 prised, but he was still more amused when he heard of the 
 conversation one of them had had with General Fleury, 
 who was the colonel of the regiment in which he served. 
 " What put it into your head," inquired the General, " to turn 
 Trappist ? I did not know that a regiment of Guards was a 
 preparation for the cloister. I certainly never suggested the 
 idea to you." " I beg your pardon. General, it was you." " I ! 
 How is that ? " " You taught me discipline, so that of the 
 convent did not appear too severe for me." The General 
 laughed heartily, and said he had never dreamt of being 
 master of novices. 
 
 March jth. 
 
 An amusing adventure occurred to a foreign gentleman 
 who received an invitation to the State Ball, which took place 
 last Wednesday at the Tuileries. Being a stranger, he 
 naturally inquired whether any particular dress was required 
 on these occasions, when he was informed that he must 
 appear en uniforme, which expression does not alone imply 
 military, naval, or civil costume, but likewise signifies court 
 dress. The gentleman, however, not aware of this, pro- 
 ceeded to a tailor on the Boulevards, and, seeing a splendid 
 suit of blue, magnificently embroidered with gold, thought 
 he could not do better than order a similar suit wherein 
 to make his appearance at the ball. On his arrival at the 
 palace he was much gratified by the respect with which he 
 was received, and not a little flattered by being ushered into 
 
 R 
 
242 AN UNFORTUNATE COSTUME 
 
 the presence of their Majesties by the private entrh, crowded 
 at that moment by several personages whose dress was 
 similar to his own. He remarked that several of them 
 looked at him with some surprise, and evidently inquired 
 among each other who he was ; but seeing that they all 
 looked gentlemen and persons of a certain age, he innocently 
 congratulated himself on having done the right thing. A 
 few moments, however, had scarcely elapsed when an official, 
 in a gorgeous scarlet and gold uniform, came up to him, and 
 in a somewhat peremptory tone requested him to follow him 
 into the next room. When beyond earshot of the company 
 he perceived that the said dignitary had summoned two 
 gentlemen in black, one of whom inquired his name and 
 address, and by what means he had entered the palace. 
 Nothing was easier to reply to than the said queries. " If 
 your statements be true, why disguise yourself as a senator?" 
 Writing of balls reminds one of the Duke d'Ossuna's ball at 
 
 St. Petersburg last week, of which Madame de obligingly 
 
 read a description at her reception of yesterday. The Duke 
 is the wealthiest man in Europe ; his property extends from 
 Cadiz to Trim. He is Spanish Ambassador to Russia, but 
 his salary is distributed among the poor at Madrid by his 
 agent, an ex-Minister. He wished to give a ball last week 
 at his Embassy, but nothing the Russian capital could 
 produce was considered worthy in his idea of appearing 
 at the party. The Duke telegraphed, to Paris for lOO 
 footmen, 200 mattres d'hotel, and engaged 300 moujicks to 
 work under these higher functionaries. On the ball night 
 icx) horsemen and 150 of his private guard did duty 
 outside the Embassy. This little party cost 80,000 f., of 
 which 10,000 f. were spent in roses, violets, and camellias. 
 A rival millionaire, the Marquis of Hertford, has just given 
 M. Miellet 45,000 f. (;£'i,8oo) for a clock in buhl, the works 
 of which are considered as chefs d'ceuvre of workmanship. 
 
THE PRINCP^S RIDING-MASTER 243 
 
 March nth. 
 
 It appears from the following anecdote that the Prince 
 Imperial is kept in remarkably good order by his tutors. 
 He was taking his riding lessons the other day ; the child 
 rode round the ring leaning to the off side of his pony instead 
 of towards the centre of the circle. His equerry, M. Bachon, 
 desired him to ride as usual. The Prince paid no attention. 
 " Monseigneur," said M. Bachon, " I beg of you to ride in 
 your proper position, otherwise I shall have to take you 
 off your pony." The child did not seem to hear. M. Bachon 
 went up to him, stopped the pony, and quietly lifted the 
 Prince off his saddle. Monseigneur coolly lay flat down on 
 the sand, and there he stayed. M. Bachon told him that 
 if he did not get up he would make the pony walk over him. 
 Upon this he got up, and was very obedient during the rest 
 of the lesson. However, the Emperor came into the school 
 just as the scene was nearly over. As soon as the child saw 
 
 his father — " Papa, Bachon forced me to " " What ! 
 
 You say Bachon ? " " Yes, papa ; Bachon." " Say Monsieur 
 Bachon," replied the Emperor. The child did not utter 
 another word. The Emperor, on hearing from the equerry 
 what had happened, informed his son that M. Bachon had 
 been perfectly right, and had acted in accordance with his 
 express orders. Next day the Prince was out riding, and 
 suddenly stopped his horse and said, " M. Bachon, will you 
 allow me to call you ' Bachon ' when we are alone ? " " No, 
 monseigneur ; your father forbid you to do so." " Yes, but 
 when we are quite alone nobody will know anything about 
 it." " Well, yes ; but only when we are quite alone." 
 
 March i^th. 
 
 Gratitude and generosity are certainly not the distinctive 
 features of the French character. Here is a man, a poet, 
 a romance writer, a statesman, too, who in 1848 saved the 
 
244 LAMARTINE 
 
 country from anarchy — his name Lamartine, and that name 
 known from one end of the globe to the other. Not only 
 is it synonymous with poetry of the highest order, but it 
 speaks of earnest faith, of honesty of purpose, and of un- 
 daunted courage. Lamartine is now seventy-six years of 
 age, and lives in a miserable abode in the Rue Cambac^r^s ; 
 he works day and night, with the hope of preventing his 
 rapacious creditors from seizing, acre by acre, wall by 
 wall, the antique manor of St. Point, where his ancestors 
 are buried, which estate the old man clings to with the 
 tenacity of age and old associations. To preserve this 
 remnant of the family property, the poor writer works out 
 his brains, but at seventy-six it is no longer easy to write ; 
 age has well-nigh frozen the sources of thought, which no 
 longer flow on with the clearness and rapidity of twenty 
 or even ten years ago. The Emperor asks France to give 
 the author of Jocelyn, the poet of France, the statesman who 
 in '48 assuaged the worst passions of an infuriated mob, 
 a national testimonial. Surely this is but common justice ! 
 Yet there is not a newspaper, whether city or provincial, 
 whose columns do not teem with violent invectives at this 
 act of generosity, and who do not abuse the illustrious poet 
 whom it is their good pleasure to represent as a common 
 beggar, constantly asking for alms. It is scarcely worthy 
 of a great nation thus to grudge a reward to one of its 
 greatest names. In 1848 Lamartine stood at the helm of 
 government, calm, collected, and fearless, while the angry 
 surges of a turgid ocean of revolutionists roared around 
 him. Who can read without a thrill of horror, and then 
 a glow of admiration, his encounter with the deputy 
 Lagrange? This maniac, whom the events of February, 
 1848, had literally deprived of his reason, rushed up to his 
 colleague and demanded not only proscription, but the 
 guillotine. " You shall have neither," calmly replied Lamar- 
 tine. "You refuse to concede proscription — then die!" 
 shouted the deputy, drawing a couple of loaded pistols from 
 his breast-pocket. " Your demands will not be granted, and 
 
LAMARTINFS SACRIFICES 245 
 
 you dare not fire at me," quietly responded the poet-states- 
 man, as he stared at Lagrange, who was howling like a wild 
 beast, actually tearing his clothes and the very flesh from 
 his bones in his mad excitement. I need not remind you 
 that during the nefarious year 1848 Lamartine proved 
 to the world that he had as much courage in his soul 
 as poetry in his heart. In the presence of the fatal red flag 
 and of the revolutionary mob the orator neither evinced 
 weakness nor fear. " Citizens," he exclaimed, as he addressed 
 the infuriated multitude from the balcony of the H6tel de 
 Ville, " that red flag which you are now promenading about 
 the streets of Paris has only been round the Champ de Mars, 
 dabbled in the blood of the people ; whilst the tricolour 
 standard has gone round the world carrying within its folds 
 the name, the glory, and the liberty of our country." It 
 is right to recall these noble and patriotic words at a moment 
 when France, stultified by egotism, makes such a fuss about 
 granting the paltry sum of ;^i6,ooo sterling to the aged 
 poet, patriot, and statesman. Be it furthermore remembered 
 that Lamartine sacrificed a magnificent fortune, broke up a 
 splendid establishment, and dismissed a host of family re- 
 tainers, in his devotion to his faith. On a wild and raging sea 
 of furious men he paured the oil of his wondrous eloquence, 
 until the surging elements of fratricidal war melted away 
 in peace. That Lamartine has been reckless, over-generous, 
 and a spendthrift, no one can deny ; but he was led away 
 by a good heart and a generous spirit. " I am dying of 
 hunger," wrote one day to him a gentleman who has since 
 become a great personage. " Well," replied Lamartine, "here 
 are five hundred francs ; forgive me if the sum is so trifling." 
 Dargaud, one of his most attached friends, perfectly maddened 
 by seeing him perpetually the victim of intriguing applicants, 
 one day made his appearance at the little house, Rue 
 Cambac^res, which the poet still inhabits, and said, "Give 
 me all the keys. I intend to remain here as factotum ; and 
 I shall keep the money." Next morning Dargaud went out, 
 taking the keys of the secretaire with him. During his short 
 
246 PARIS IN MUD 
 
 absence a lady, in the habit of collecting for the poor of 
 Madeleine, rang and explained the object of her visit. 
 Madame de Lamartine ordered the servants to break open 
 the secretaire, and, taking 800 f., which were there in bank- 
 notes, slipped them into the aristocratic hand of Madame 
 la QuSteuse. Her husband looked at her with a smile on 
 his lips, and played with his spaniels. That day there was 
 not a franc in the house to buy dinner with. I am told that 
 the allocation of ;£" 16,000 proposed by the Emperor will 
 meet with as much opposition in the Chambers as it has met 
 with in the Press. One deputy, alluding to M. de Lamartine's 
 line of conduct during the Revolution of 1848, went so far 
 as to say, " He is an incendiary who became a fireman in 
 order to extinguish the very fire which he himself had 
 kindled." 
 
 March 22nd. 
 
 To give an idea of the weather we have had, and of its 
 results, I need only say that the day before yesterday the 
 Emperor, who started from the Tuileries in his waggonette 
 (which he drives himself), attended by General Fleury, went 
 to the Exhibition, and found the circulation quite inter- 
 rupted by carts, waggons, a perfect sea of mud, and small 
 mountains of stones. The Emperor gave it up, and next 
 tried the Rue St. Dominique. The case was yet more 
 hopeless. The street is cut up, and reminds one of the 
 descriptions one has read of towns in a state of siege. His 
 Majesty had nothing for it but to turn his horses' heads and 
 try the Avenue de la Motte Piquet. This was rather worse 
 than the two preceding means of access. Unaccustomed to 
 allow himself to be conquered by difficulties, he drove off in 
 the direction of the Rue de Crenelle, but at the corner of 
 the Rue de la Comete, his waggonette was well-nigh upset 
 against a perfect barricade of stones, scaffolding, and every 
 sort and kind of impediment against progress. The Emperor 
 laughed heartily at his disasters; he got down (leaving his 
 
THE "RED, WHITE AND BLUE" 247 
 
 whip in the carriage), discussed the state of things with some 
 of the householders who happened to be standing at their 
 doors, listened to the complaints of the injuries they had sus- 
 tained in consequence of the carelessness of the municipal 
 authorities, and, after hearing all they had to say, got into the 
 waggonette again and drove home to the Tuileries. This 
 morning, by six o'clock, the inhabitants of the Rue de 
 Crenelle were not a little amazed to see a regiment, not of 
 soldiers, but of five hundred workmen, pickaxe and shovel in 
 hand, take possession of their street. In a few hours the 
 street was as clear as the Rue de la Paix, and in the afternoon 
 His Majesty might have been seen driving his waggonette 
 again, attended by General Fleury, along the Rue de Crenelle, 
 loudly cheered by groups of its inhabitants, as well they 
 might. There is nothing in this world like seeing after things 
 oneself, as the Emperor appears to think. His son is better, 
 and we hope the result of the last operation will complete 
 his recovery. 
 
 April 2^th. 
 
 The Exhibition of the Champ de Mars is not the only one 
 in Paris at this moment which attracts the curiosity of 
 visitors. The lilliputian ship, the Red, White and Blue is 
 now at the Pompeiian Palace, Avenue Marigny, in charge of 
 Captain John Hudson and his companion M. Franck, who 
 give most interesting details of their miraculous voyage 
 across the Atlantic in a cockle-shell of two tons and a half It 
 is an iron boat, its mast and rigging exactly the same as 
 those of a frigate, each detail being in perfect proportion. 
 When one sees the tiny boat, one can scarcely credit the fact 
 that two men in full possession of their senses could have 
 started on so mad an enterprise. It has been repaired and 
 repainted, and now presents the coquettish appearance of a 
 pleasure-boat. Captain Hudson not intending to return to 
 America in the same hazardous manner, the city of Paris will 
 probably purchase the Red, White and Blue for the Mus6e de 
 
248 PLANS OF FORTRESSES 
 
 Marine. Meanwhile, the fairy craft must be removed from 
 the Pompeiian Palace, seeing that the palace is about to be 
 transformed into a travellers' club, an establishment much 
 wanted in this gay metropolis, where English tourists especi- 
 ally miss so much the luxury of a club. The situation of 
 the Pompeiian Palace in the Champs Elysees, and therefore in 
 the centre of the English quartier, as well as the disposition 
 of the reception-rooms, make it peculiarly suitable for this 
 purpose. It is to be fitted up with the most scrupulous 
 regard to comfort and utility. 
 
 Another exhibition which attracts many visitors at present, 
 chiefly on account of the political situation of affairs, is that of 
 the plans-reliefs of all the fortified places in France, now to be 
 seen at the Hotel des Invalides. It is an awful undertaking 
 for ignoramuses such as myself to be taken in tow, as I had 
 the honour of being, by a naval officer whose sole dream in 
 life is of gabions, and bastions, and trenches, and stockades. 
 To such, the six galleries and the hundred and five plans 
 convey a foretaste of paradise. They are beautifully executed 
 and extremely picturesque. The first which attracts attention 
 is Grenoble, its citadel, the River Drac, and Mount Rachais, 
 which rises 840 metres above the Isere. Ten years were em- 
 ployed in the construction of this model, which cost a fabulous 
 sum. There is a plan next to this whose chief merit to the 
 uninitiated is that it takes to pieces, and, therefore, a child 
 present suggested the luminous idea that it would make a 
 capital toy, the said toy being the fort of the Scheld, with its 
 subterranean staircase of 1,774 steps, hollowed out of solid 
 rock. This staircase, which connects the upper and lower 
 fort, takes to pieces, and can be carried away at the good 
 pleasure of the inhabitants. The plan of Strasbourg is 
 a marvellous work, including the entire city and the sur- 
 rounding country, the citadel, the advanced works, tljie course 
 of the Rhine, the railroad, the Robertsau, the bridge of Kehl, 
 the cemetery with its lilliputian tombs and its microscopic 
 crosses. Above the city rises the cathedral, — and the copy 
 here is executed with exquisite accuracy and detail — the 
 
GOUNOD'S "ROMEO AND JULIET" 249 
 
 lacework of the double spire is a perfect chef d'ceuvre of 
 carving. If you have the strong weakness from which my 
 naval companion suffered for sieges, you can indulge your 
 fancy by studying Sebastopol, done after Marshal Niel's 
 designs ; Antwerp, likewise, with its dismantled outworks ; 
 Rome, with its Villa Garibaldi, the field works, the Trastevere, 
 and the part of the city which lies on the border of the Tiber, 
 from the Sixtine bridge to Mount Aventinus ; Constantina 
 also, with its Oriental architecture, the ravine of Rummel, its 
 cascade and its fortress, and the famous rock whence light- 
 headed wives are ruthlessly precipitated in the name of 
 morality and the Prophet. [Heavens ! if a similar rock and a 
 similar custom existed in the neighbourhood of Paris !] Corfu, 
 Luxemburg, Gibraltar, Cyprus, and Tournay, are likewise 
 here, and a plan of the whole of Switzerland, with its lakes 
 and its mountains, its valleys, its forests, and its precipices. 
 All this in carton p&ti, and about as high as the table. 
 Although an ant would cross the Lake of Geneva in two 
 minutes, and a fly would traverse the glaciers of Monte Rosa 
 and reach the Jungfrau in one, still the proportions have been 
 so accurately preserved, and all has been executed with so 
 much artistic skill, one cannot help experiencing a feeling of 
 pleasure at retracing the scene of one's varied adventures in 
 that lovely country on this model, and one begins to dream 
 again of the fair Berneoise, who kissed hands to us from the 
 upper window of the picturesque chalet, where we spent such 
 pleasant hours in our boyhood days, when every rosy-cheeked 
 milkmaid assumed to our verdant imagination the poetic form 
 of a Hebe, if not a Venus. 
 
 April 2()th. 
 
 The first night of Gounod's Romeo and Juliet at the 
 Theatre Lyrique was an immense success. Madame Car- 
 valho was in splendid voice, and received a perfect ovation. 
 The history of the composer is interesting. It is related of 
 him that as a boy at college every possible effort was made 
 
250 GOUNOD AS A BOY 
 
 to destroy his musical genius. His professor, M. Poirson, 
 was in despair. His parents intended him for the Ecole 
 Normale. On its being announced to him that he was to 
 go up for the necessary examination, the boy burst into 
 tears, and steadily refused to continue his classical studies. 
 His mother appealed to M. Poirson, and implored him to 
 recall her boy to what she considered to be his duty. The 
 stern professor accordingly sent for him, and in the same 
 tone said, "So you wish to be a musician?" "Yes, sir," 
 replied the terrified boy. "But that is not a profession." 
 " What, sir, the profession of Beethoven, of Mozart, of Gluck, 
 is not a profession?" "But," interrupted his interrogator, 
 " you must remember that Mozart at your age had already 
 ' composed music worth publishing, whereas you have only 
 scribbled notes on paper. However, here is your last chance 
 — if you really are a musician, you can set words to music." 
 The old man copied out the poem " Joseph." " A peine 
 au sortir de I'enfance." The boy rushed up to his school 
 desk, and, after studying the subject, wrote an air and 
 accompaniment, which he brought back to his professor and 
 showed to him, pale with emotion, as he felt that on his 
 judgment his future career depended. He sang it to the old 
 man, who listened in amazement, and led him to his draw- 
 ing-room, where he made him play the accompaniment 
 on a piano. Those present were enraptured by the beauty 
 of the composition, and it was at once decided that young 
 Gounod must follow the bent of the undoubted genius with 
 which he was gifted. 
 
 April lOth. 
 
 A curious concert took place yesterday evening at the 
 Petite Bourse — that is, at the opening of the Passage 
 Jouffray — where the flaneurs of the Great Bourse congre- 
 gate to discuss the news of the day. It was pouring rain, 
 therefore the crowd was considerable. Two miserable 
 Savoyards were vainly endeavouring to collect a few sous 
 
IMPROMPTU CONCERTS 251 
 
 by scraping on their villainous violins, when MM. Leonard 
 and Weniawski, who happened to be among the group of 
 newsmongers, took their instruments and played, to the 
 amazement of their audience, some of the exquisite airs 
 with which they have enlivened the musical world of Paris 
 this season. Needless to remark that a perfect shower of 
 silver fell into the caps of the poor little Savoyards, who 
 little anticipated so rich a harvest. A similar impromptu 
 concert once took place at Halle, near Leipsic. The great 
 French violinist, Seligmann, observed a blind beggar vainly 
 endeavouring to make a few groschen by his performance on 
 a cracked violin in the market-place of Halle, and with an 
 impulse of true good-nature took the instrument out of his 
 hand and quickly collected a crowd of listeners, who were 
 too happy to contribute to the old beggar's relief while 
 listening to the marvellous performance. M. Seligmann 
 returned the violin to the old man, whose only expression of 
 gratitude consisted in, " Now, sir, won't you give me some- 
 thing for having lent you my instrument ? " Such is human 
 gratitude ! 
 
 The construction of a new market-place at the corner of 
 the Place d'ltalie and the Rue Mouffetard has caused the 
 disappearance of one of the most curious and picturesque 
 establishments in Paris, styled the Cabaret a Saint Michel. 
 In the palmy days of the July Monarchy and of Vidocq's 
 rule at the Prefecture, the said cabaret was the scene of 
 many a razzia, and gave the myrmidons of the police more 
 trouble than almost any similar place of meeting in the 
 city. The interior arrangements were peculiar. In one of 
 the back rooms was a camp-bed, on which were stretched 
 those who during the course of the evening became dead 
 drunk. This room was called the Morgue. Above the door 
 was a coarse painting representing a giant conquering a 
 promiscuous-looking beast, whose type it would be difficult 
 to define, beneath an inscription, " Au grand Saint Michel." 
 Du reste, this cabaret was specially patronised by the chiffon- 
 niers of the Faubourg St. Marcel, who considered it as their 
 
252 THE CABARET A SAINT MICHEL 
 
 club, and who established a set of rules which they no more 
 attempted to break through than if they had been trained at 
 the Reform or at the Carlton to the ways and customs of 
 club life. The chiffonniers, who possessed a box in a good 
 condition, as well as a rake with a clean handle and shining 
 steel, had a salle to themselves. This was called the House 
 of Lords (Chambre du Peers). Those whose implements 
 were old and worn were only admitted to the House of 
 Commons (Chambre des Deputes), whereas the lower class, 
 who, having no box, carried away whatever they gathered 
 in a mere towel, were consigned to the Chambre des Pro- 
 letaires. However aristocratic and exclusive these rules, the 
 various classes never quarrelled or condescended to mix with 
 each other. They ate in their separate salles, their knives 
 and forks being chained to the various tables. The beverage 
 dignified by the name of wine was served in an earthen pot 
 called "le petit pere noir." The peculiar idiosyncrasy of 
 this cabaret, however, had considerably disappeared since the 
 Empire. 
 
 June i^th. 
 
 I was present at the first performance given by Madame 
 Ristori at the Theatre des Italiens when she appeared in 
 Elisabetta d' Ingkilterra, and, although it was the night of 
 the ball given at the Prussian Embassy, the house was well 
 filled. Ristori is magnificent as Queen Elisabeth — full of 
 dignity, passion, and fire. At the close of the second act, 
 when brandishing her father's sword, she contemptuously 
 throws the scabbard at the feet of Philip II.'s ambassador 
 and swears to undertake a war of extermination in Spain, 
 she was overwhelmed with thunders of applause, and 
 bouquets were showered at her feet. In the third act, 
 when she allows her temper to burst forth against Essex, 
 she made the whole house thrill under the excitement of 
 
THE FIRST NIGHT OF HERNANI 253 
 
 her anger. In the fourth act one almost shares the tortures 
 the Queen undergoes in presence of the unbending firmness 
 of Essex. The fifth act reproduces Delaroche's tableau, 
 with which we are all familiar in the gallery of Luxembourg. 
 The Queen is aged, and death is at her bedside. Ristori 
 altogether was magnificent, deck, who acted the part of 
 Essex, was much and deservedly applauded. Ristori's 
 brother will be a first-rate actor; he took a minor part, 
 and did it admirably. The house was filled by the first-class 
 critics of the day — such as Th^ophile Gautier, Hippolite 
 Lucas, Alexandre Dumas and his daughter, Emile de 
 Girardin, etc. Giacometti, the poet, who wrote Elisabetta, 
 is now engaged on a piece to be entitled Marie Antoinette, 
 especially for Madame Ristori. The subject was suggested 
 by the great tragMienne, who will study the new rdle during 
 her eight months' tour in America, and return to Paris 
 prepared to perform it. 
 
 June 21st. 
 
 Their Royal Highnesses the Duke and Duchess of Aosta 
 were present last night at the first night of Hemani, at the 
 Th^dtre Frangais, in company with Princess Clothilde. The 
 Grand Duchess Marie occupied a box opposite that of the 
 Prince. It would be impossible to exaggerate the scene 
 of excitement which the house represented on the rising 
 of the curtain. There was literally not one available spot 
 unoccupied whereon standing room could be found. Well- 
 known writers, distinguished artists, were too happy to find 
 a place in the orchestra, in the couloirs, or next to the rmnpe. 
 The crowd without was as dense as the crowd within. The 
 cafis in the neighbourhood were crammed by men connected 
 with the press, taking notes and receiving reports of the 
 impression made on the audience. Mdlle. Favart, Moubant, 
 etc., acted admirably, but never was the public in better 
 temper or more determined to be pleased. For ten minutes 
 the audience, unmindful of the etiquette which forbids the 
 
254 SAINT LOUIS' PSALTER 
 
 actors to reappear on the stage of the Frangais during 
 the course of the piece, called — nay, shouted — for the re- 
 appearance of Moubant at the end of the first act. In 
 fact, there has seldom been witnessed such a scene as 
 that of last night. The cries for Victor Hugo were as 
 enthusiastic as though we could have hoped their echoes 
 reached the ears of the poet. In 1830 his name could 
 scarcely have been repeated with more genuine enthusiasm 
 than it was last night by the audience at the Thditre Frangais. 
 The decorations and scenery for last night's representation 
 alone cost 50,000 f. (;£'2,ooo). 
 
 June 22nd. 
 
 Antiquarians will learn with pleasure that a Psalter, once 
 the property of Saint Louis, has been discovered in the 
 library of the University of Leyden. That excellent 
 monarch seems to have been rich in copies of the psalms, 
 since one Psautier in which he inscribed his royal name in 
 particularly illegible characters is to be seen in the Mus^e 
 du Souverains at the Louvre, and there is another in the 
 Imperial Library. The copy found at Leyden bears the 
 inscription : " Ce psautier est a Monseigneur Saint Loys, 
 Roy de France, au quel il aprist en enfance." 
 
 June 26th. 
 
 The death of Dr. Trousseau has revived many interesting 
 anecdotes of his early days. When but fourteen he was 
 attending a course of lectures on magnetism given in a 
 small country village, where it happened that Dr. Bretonneau 
 was recruiting his health. A workman whose sight had 
 been seriously injured by a splinter of iron having entered 
 his eye, was attended by the doctor, who, with all his skill, 
 utterly failed in extracting the small fragment embedded 
 in the mass of inflamed flesh. The boy Trousseau heard 
 of the case, and returning from a lecture on the power 
 
PAYMENT IN DIAMONDS 255 
 
 of the magnet asked leave to try its success. As the 
 experiment could not produce pain, leave was granted, and 
 in a few seconds the future prince de la science showed the 
 iron splinter attached to the head of the magnet. Dr. Breton- 
 neau, struck by the boy's intelligent application of the facts 
 revealed to him in the lecture, adopted him as his pupil, with 
 what results we all know. During the last two months Dr. 
 Trousseau pointed out daily to his class of hospital students 
 the progress of the disease which carried him off, and a few 
 days before his death inspected the tomb he had ordered 
 to be erected for himself. He said the masons had done 
 their work well ; and, after paying them, drove to an under- 
 taker's, where he arranged as to his funeral, settling the 
 amount it was to cost, remarking as he did so that relations 
 were usually overcharged, and he was determined his family 
 should only pay what was right. 
 
 August 21 St. 
 
 The Duke of Brunswick, of diamond notoriety, has a rival, 
 not only in eccentricity, but likewise in the extent of his col- 
 lection of precious stones. M. Negroin is the name of this 
 happy individual. He lately called on Me. Yves, a well-known 
 notary, and requested of him to look out for an hotel, the 
 price of which was not to exceed ;^ 16,000 sterling. Me. Yves, 
 having found an hotel which suited the great man's fancy, 
 proceeded to make out the deed of sale. On the day fixed 
 for payment the man of law was somewhat startled by re- 
 ceiving a handful of diamonds instead of the gold pieces he 
 was accustomed to. "What difference can it make?" said 
 the nabob. " Send for an expert ; he will tell you that my 
 stones are of the purest water. I will deposit for the value 
 of a million, if you wish, at the bank, in order that he may 
 select those he prefers." The verification took place, the 
 diamonds were acknowledged to be of the purest water, and 
 thus the bargain was concluded. A few days after this curious 
 transaction M. Negroin called again on Me. Yves, and begged 
 of him to purchase a country-house for him within a few 
 
2S6 A ZOUAVE QUACK 
 
 miles of Paris. There were to be gardens, hot-houses, a park, 
 etc. The price was to vary from ;^2 5,000 to ;^30,ooo sterling. 
 "Will you pay, sir, for this estate in diamonds ?" "Certainly," 
 replied M. Negroin. " I possess several millions' worth. I 
 do not wish to dispose of them just now, because there is a 
 fall in their price both in the Paris and London markets ; but 
 those who receive these stones in payment are fortunate, for 
 their value is greater than their current price." Me. Yves, 
 although tolerably accustomed to deal with eccentric cus- 
 tomers, declares he never met with so curious a specimen of 
 humanity as M. Negroin. 
 
 The great novelty of the day, and the subject of all con- 
 versation, is the miraculous gift of healing possessed by a 
 Zouave of the name of Jacob, who, by the mere exercise of 
 his will, performs daily the most extraordinary cures on 
 paralysed persons who for years have been unable to move 
 without assistance. The Zouave receives no payment for the 
 boon he confers ; he is perfectly unassuming in manner, and 
 does not attempt to explain by what means he accomplishes 
 the cures he undoubtedly effects. His regiment is quartered 
 at Versailles, but, in consequence of the difficulty the poor 
 experienced in reaching the only portion of the barrack in 
 which he was allowed to receive his patients, the Count de 
 Chateauvillain, himself a paralytic, offered him the use of 
 several rooms in his hotel, where Zouave Jacob daily 
 administers relief to thousands who flock from all parts. The 
 Count publishes in the La Petite Presse a plain statement of 
 his own experience of the efficacy of Jacob's influence. He 
 drove in his carriage, accompanied by his wife, to the manu- 
 factory of M. Du Noyet, where Jacob was engaged with 
 several poor and disabled patients. The Count, who had 
 been paralysed for years, was supported by his footman and 
 a workman, who obligingly lent him his arm from his carriage 
 to the salle, where he was allowed to take a place in the circle 
 of the sick surrounding Jacob. Persons were being trans- 
 ported on litters or carried in men's arms to his presence, 
 many being so utterly helpless as to be unable to sit upright, 
 
JACOB THE ZOUAVE 257 
 
 and only able to support themselves by leaning against each 
 other. As soon as the room was full Jacob entered and said, 
 " Let no one speak until I question him, or I shall go away." 
 Perfect silence ensued. The Zouave then went from one 
 sick person to another, telling each exactly the disease from 
 which he or she was suffering. Then to the paralytics he 
 simply said, " Rise." The Count, being of the number, arose, 
 and that without the slightest difficulty. In about twenty 
 minutes Jacob dismissed the crowd. M. de Chateauvillain 
 walked to his carriage without the slightest difficulty, and 
 when his wife wished to express her gratitude to Jacob he 
 replied that he had no time to listen, for he had other patients 
 to attend to. Medical men are themselves taken by surprise, 
 but the facts are not contradicted. 
 
 August 22nd. 
 
 The Zouave guMsseur is decidedly the lion of the day. 
 The importance attached by the public, as well as by the 
 Press, to the soi-disant cures operated by this private affords 
 a striking indication of the temper of the public appetite in 
 this country towards supernatual agency. France is a 
 Catholic nation, and cannot do without miracles. Its faith 
 would die away were it not for the weeping virgins and 
 Zouave gu^risseurs. To many the facts accomplished by 
 the said Zouave appear as a delusive farce and extravagance 
 of superstition ; but to many more I am assured it is a 
 serious and all-absorbing faith. Scores of people in Paris, 
 as well as Versailles, are actually made crazy by the miracles 
 operated by Monsieur Le Zouave. He has created the 
 greatest curiosity, and hundreds of men and women of 
 character and ability now seek opportuities to witness and 
 investigate phenomena produced by Jacob Le Zouave. If 
 this Jacob is a mere impostor, which many persons broadly 
 assert, it is nevertheless confessed by candid and careful 
 investigators that he is most successful in concealing his 
 imposture. The fact is that Jacob, disdaining the former 
 manifestations of spiritualism, which merely consisted in 
 
258 JACOB'S "CURES" 
 
 rocking, lifting, rapping, or tapping, has had the good sense 
 to turn his mind towards things of ordinary and tangible 
 utility. He does not pretend to introduce you to Socrates 
 and Solomon, to put you in communication with Voltaire or 
 Alfred de Musset, and offer to describe to you the scenery of 
 the planet Jupiter or the star of Aldebaran, but he, more 
 practical and matter of fact, undertakes to rid you of rheuma- 
 tism, gout, amaurosis, palsy, etc. For startling effects, the 
 phenomena which he produces are worthy of the age of 
 Michael Scott. I gave an account of them in one of my last 
 letters. It now remains to be known by what means or 
 influence he manages to perform such miracles. The Figaro, 
 who the other day gave a most flourishing description of 
 the prodigies accomplished by Jacob, now writes as follows : 
 " As long as the Moniteur does not insert the name of the 
 Zouave as Dean of the College of Physicians, as long as the 
 invalides still make use of crutches, I shall still persist in 
 believing that the Zouaves are more fitted to destroy than to 
 cure men. Parisians are too apt to believe in any foolishness 
 of this kind. Were we to announce that Markowski had dis- 
 covered the way to fly through the air like a swallow, and 
 that on Sunday next he intends dancing a polka at fifteen 
 million feet above the Arc de Triomphe, in the neighbour- 
 hood of the Great Bear, on that very day, and at the 
 appointed hour, forty thousand Parisians would, with their 
 telescopes, invade the Champs Elys^es." 
 
 Meanwhile the crowd of vehicles, from the coronetted 
 carriage of a peer to the cart of a costermonger, which block 
 up the entrance to the Rue de la Roquette, has so effectually 
 stopped all thoroughfare that the police have been obliged 
 to post up notices informing the public that the stances are 
 discontinued for the present. It is reported, however, that 
 Jacob is going to establish himself at the "Cirque Napoleon," 
 Boulevard du Temple. Yesterday he only arrived at the 
 Rue de la Roquette at three o'clock, yet the crowd was so 
 dense that all access to the shops in the street was utterly 
 impossible. 
 
FEUILLETONS 259 
 
 August 2,otk. 
 
 You are aware that the Situation, an anti-Prussian paper, 
 was started by M. Hollander, a name unknown in the 
 literary world, but well known in certain official circles. 
 Alexandre Dumas, one evening last spring, was engaged in 
 writing his Blancs et Blues when he was surprised by the 
 future editor, who abruptly asked the author of Monte Cristo, 
 " Are you on the side of the Austrians or the Prussians ? " 
 "On neither side," replied Dumas. "Prussians represent 
 brute force, whilst Austrians represent hereditary despotism." 
 " But," inquired M. Hollander, " if the Austrian Government 
 granted an increase of liberty, would you write a novel in 
 their defence ? " " Not only would I do so, but I would 
 glorify the Emperor. An Emperor who bestows a constitu- 
 tion on his Austrian subjects after Solferino, and on his 
 Hungarian people after Sadowa, appears to be a remarkably 
 intelligent man." "Well," said M. Hollander, "I want a 
 novel entitled Terreur Prussienne d Frankfort; will you 
 undertake it ? " " Yes, on condition that if I have ruffians 
 in the story I shall invent them myself." " Agreed. I re- 
 quire sixty feuilletons, of 400 lines each — 84,000 lines in all." 
 " But if the story only makes fifty-eight feuilletons ? " " I 
 require sixty." Dumas took out his pen, and calculated 
 sixty feuilletons at 400 lines each, 3 1 letters each line — that 
 is, 744,000 letters. " When do you require the work ? " " By 
 the fifteenth June?" "That's too soon. In the first 
 place, I have not the necessary documents." "We supply 
 them," said M. Hollander. " I grant fifteen days more, till 
 the first July, at twelve." "Agreed." It was presented 
 as the clock struck twelve on the ist July. Dumas says 
 he never wrote a work that gave him so much trouble or 
 that pleased him so much. 
 
 The farce of the Zouave guMsseur has been played out. 
 Marshal Foray is considerably the worse for the fall he got 
 
26o BAUDELAIRE'S FUNERAL 
 
 in attempting to throw away his crutches in obedience to 
 Jacob's word of command. The whole thing has proved 
 another monstrous humbug, such as was the Davenport 
 Brothers. 
 
 Whether the man believes in himself I cannot take on 
 myself to say ; but Paris has ceased to believe in him. I 
 have heard a bookbinder state that at a recent meeting of 
 the magnetisers of the Faubourg St. Honor^ to which the 
 Zouave Jacob was invited, he (the bookbinder), a true 
 Parisian, challenged this soi-disant worker of miracles, and 
 called him a charlatan ; he furthermore informed him that if 
 he was able to cure the sick and banish suffering, he was 
 willing to administer to him a remarkably well-dealt kick, 
 with the hope that he could instantly relieve himself of the 
 pain thereby inflicted. This polite offer, I need not say, was 
 declined by the Zouave. 
 
 September 2nd. 
 
 This morning, at ten o'clock, took place the funeral of 
 Charles Baudelaire, one of the most gifted writers of the 
 present generation. He dies, however, in a madhouse, for 
 this reason, perhaps : that he allowed his intellect to descend 
 into those abysses which, according to De Quincey's own 
 words, " have, like the sea, swallowed treasures without end, 
 that no diving-bell will bring up again." Baudelaire made 
 his name by his first work, Fleurs du Mai, as well as by his 
 translation of Edgar Poe's works, which he popularised, and 
 which are now well known to the great majority of the read- 
 ing world of France. Baudelaire was a dandy of the Beau 
 Brummel order ; for many years the exquisites of the Boule- 
 vard des Italiens watched his appearance among them in 
 order to ascertain what was the last new thing in ties and 
 waistcoats. This weak point of his character is difficult to 
 understand when one studies his writings, more especially his 
 analysis of the works of De Quincey, wherein he displays a 
 penetration and broad appreciation of the genius of the 
 opium-eater strangely inconsistent with his trivial devotion 
 to external circumstances. 
 
CONVICTS AT TOULON 261 
 
 September i^th. 
 
 Berezowski, who attempted the life of the Emperor, 
 arrived at Toulon on the nth. As soon as he entered the 
 precincts of the bagne, the grey-and-yellow dress of a cellular 
 prisoner was taken off, and the red jacket and green cap 
 worn by those condemned for life were put on. The un- 
 fortunate young man was then taken to the prison forge — 
 his feet were already swollen and painful from the long 
 march he had just had. A heavy chain was fastened on 
 his right leg by a massive ring ; he did not appear to suffer 
 during the operation, and quickly rose from the recumbent 
 position in which it is always performed, taking up the chain 
 in his hand, which otherwise drags on the ground. The 
 head was shaved, as is the custom, in squares — that is, one 
 square perfectly bare and on the next the hair is left about 
 half an inch long. In spite of this disfiguring process and 
 the green cap, it was remarked that young Berezowski had a 
 certain look of distinction, and even a gentle, intelligent 
 expression of countenance. One of the gaolers, who was 
 not aware that his fingers had been injured, asked him what 
 was the matter with his hand. " It was the pistol," he 
 replied ; " I was cured in three weeks by the application of 
 cold water." While his ten companions were having their 
 irons riveted on, Berezowski remained quietly in a corner of 
 the forge, and spoke to no one. He will not be chained to 
 another convict, as is usually the case, but will remain in one 
 of the convicts' rooms chained to a triangle iron, which is 
 fastened to the camp bed of the prisoners, and through which 
 a bar is slipped, thus preventing their moving beyond the 
 length of their chain. In a month, unless the wretched 
 young man first turns mad, he is to be sent to New 
 Caledonia. 
 
262 FLOURED SHEETS 
 
 September i^th. 
 
 The last gossip from the chateaux of the great world is a 
 practical joke played on the Marquis de Gallifett, husband of 
 the celebrated beauty whose many fascinations are said to 
 have captivated the heir-apparent to the throne. The 
 Marquis, some weeks since, went on a visit to a friend's 
 chateau, where a large party of ladies of rank were as- 
 sembled. On the morning after arrival he was much sur- 
 prised to discover that he was covered with flour, which had 
 been sifted over his sheets. Naturally the heat of the bed 
 had made this flour adhere to his body, and he therefore bore 
 a strong resemblance to a miller. The Marquis summoned 
 his servant, and desired him to scrape the flour off every part 
 of his body, and keep it with the utmost care. At breakfast 
 he made no remark on the strange circumstance, and re- 
 mained a week in company with his fair enemies. The 
 whole party reassembled a fortnight later at a country-house 
 in another department. M. de Gallifett, on arriving, entered 
 the drawing-room with a magnificent cake, the beauty of 
 whose decorations excited the admiration of all the ladies, 
 who immediately insisted on tasting it. It was pronounced 
 a chef doeuvre of culinary art, and possessed a peculiar 
 flavour the ladies declared was quite new to them. " That is 
 not unlikely," replied the Marquis, " as it is made of the flour 
 sifted over my sheets at the Chateau de ." 
 
 September 2'jth. 
 
 A valuable work has just appeared, and one which will 
 produce an impression on society in general. Madame la 
 Comtesse de Bassanville has entered the literary arena as 
 authoress of a Guide de CMmonial. Henceforth no luckless 
 wight need tremble lest he should commit an awkward mis- 
 take in the presence of Emperors, ministers, or other high 
 personages, if unaccustomed to the precincts of palaces, and 
 
COURT ETIQUEITE 263 
 
 compelled to seek an audience from a crowned head. He 
 has only to be armed with the volume in question, and he 
 may confidently brave all the gold-coated chamberlains in 
 Europe. The amount of genuflexions to be performed 
 before reaching the Emperor are curious to read. From the 
 salle d'attente the petitioner is summoned by the chamberlain 
 on duty, by whom he is escorted to the Emperor's salon. At 
 the door he is to make a low bow, or sweeping curtsey, as the 
 case may be ; walking a few steps further, he is to renew this 
 salutation ; advancing towards the sovereign, he is to make a 
 third, and await respectfully till he addresses him. " Oui, 
 sire," or "Non, sire," or "Madame," is the correct mode of 
 replying to their Majesties, who are invariably spoken to in 
 the third person. The three bows appear to me an awfully 
 difficult task to get through, and since this valuable work of 
 Madame la Comtesse has appeared I have resolved to 
 engage a dancing master and forthwith acquire the art of 
 genuflexions. However monkey-like these laws of etiquette 
 read, they more or less exist in every country. Unless of 
 Imperial blood, the Czar's guests stand when they are 
 admitted to the honour of seeing him condescend to eat. 
 Louis XIV. decreed that at the councils, when despatches 
 were received and opened, the ministers should remain 
 standing, however long the council might last. Till the 
 Revolution in France the ladies presented to the Queen 
 kissed the edge of her dress, while duchesses were allowed to 
 kiss the said garment at the knees. Well might Jules Noriac 
 write a book on La Bitise Humaine! The only wonder 
 is that he did not extend so suggestive a topic to several 
 volumes. 
 
 September 2gth. 
 
 Last week the following scene occurred at the Etampes 
 Station on the Orleans line. The train stops there for ten 
 minutes. As it started a gentleman jumped into a carriage 
 occupied by a lady, at whose feet lay a mastiff" of most 
 ferocious aspect. The gentleman touched his hat, and was 
 
264 A RAT RAREY 
 
 about to replace in its case an unlighted cigar he had in his 
 mouth, when the dog not only growled, but made a dash at 
 him, and the lady, whose expression of countenance bore a 
 strong resemblance to that of the dog, started from her seat, 
 seized the cigar out of the gentleman's mouth, and threw it 
 out of the window, remarking as she did so, " I dislike 
 smokers — they make me ill " ; on which the gentleman, 
 politely taking his hat off, and remarking, " I do not like 
 mastiffs — they annoy me," took the dog by the back of the 
 neck and pitched him out by the same route his cigar had 
 taken. 
 
 October 2nd. 
 
 Last Sunday was celebrated the close of the fair at St. 
 Cloud. The most popular of the shows of the season un- 
 doubtedly has been I'homme aux rats, well known to the 
 inhabitants of the Quartier Mont Parnasse, where he has 
 held his headquarters for the last thirty years. 
 
 The name of this Rarey of the rat race is Antoine Leonard. 
 If the former succeeded in breaking in the worst- tempered 
 brute ever created, Leonard in three weeks certainly accom- 
 plishes the difficult task of inculcating habits of obedience on 
 the biggest rats that ever ran. His favourite scene of action 
 are some cross alleys in the 14th and iSth Arrondissements. 
 His sole theatre is a sort of perch, which he sticks into the 
 ground, and he then takes his corps de ballet out of his pocket. 
 At his word of command the rats run up and down the perch, 
 hang on three legs, then on two, stand on their head, and in 
 fact go through a series of gymnastic exercises that would 
 put Blondin himself to the blush. His crack actor is a grey 
 rat he has had in his troupe for eleven years ; this old fellow 
 not only obeys Leonard, but is personally attached to him. 
 It is a most curious sight to see Leonard put him on the 
 ground, and then walk away. The creature runs after him 
 and invariably catches him, however many turns he may 
 make to avoid him. An Englishman offered 50 f. for him 
 about two years ago, but Leonard would not separate from 
 his old and attached friend. 
 
BLESSED WATER LOST 265 
 
 October yth. 
 
 The SiMe of this morning publishes a very interesting 
 article as regards a certain Cdsar Moreno, the following 
 details concerning whom are very curious. He is an Italian, 
 native of Piedmont, and speaks forty-two languages. He 
 was sent for by Victor Emmanuel. " As you are acquainted 
 with every known patois, you can talk to my Ethiopians," 
 said the King — the said Ethiopians having been sent over 
 by the Viceroy of Egypt with a present of Arabian horses. 
 The blacks were sent for. Moreno, to their amazement, 
 addressed them in their native idiom. "What did they say 
 to you?" inquired the King, after the negroes' departure. 
 " That your Majesty was wrong to have had them baptised, 
 because they have remained Mussulmans in heart and 
 soul. Blessed water lost, sire ! " The King laughed. From 
 his youth Moreno hated our country, and, as he was bitten by 
 the mania for travelling, he went to India, and became aide- 
 de-camp to Nana Sahib. At Cawnpore he had a duel with an 
 English officer, who laid his head open with a sabre, on which 
 Moreno levelled his revolver, and while quoting from Richard 
 III., " Despair and die ! " shot his adversary dead. After the 
 defeat of Nana Sahib, Moreno went to Singapore, where 
 some Malays tell him of an island where rivers of gold and 
 mines of diamonds are in abundance. Moreno accordingly 
 freights a steamer, and, assisted by his Malay friends, arrives 
 at this Eldorado, which is inhabited by a diminutive race of 
 blacks, who look upon him much as the Aztecs did on Cortez, 
 and he is forthwith led before their chief, whose palace is 
 formed of the interwoven branches of a palm tree. Moreno 
 makes himself so agreeable that no less than three of the 
 chief's daughters are bestowed on him as wives. Meanwhile 
 he explores the island, draws a map thereof, and, having 
 obtained his father-in-law's leave to pay a visit to his white 
 friends, he arrives at Florence, where he obtains an audience 
 
266 THE TABLE OF THE MARSHALS 
 
 of Victor Emmanuel, and urges him to fit out an expedition 
 to take possession of this auriferous land. His Majesty, 
 however, what with Garibaldi and Bismarck, has enough on 
 hand just now. Moreno, considerably disgusted, starts for 
 Paris, where he now is, awaiting the arrival of the Emperor 
 and an audience which he has solicited. Whether he will 
 obtain it is not for me to say. If he finds his proposal to 
 extend the French possessions in the East rejected by the 
 Cabinet of the Tuileries, Moreno starts for New York, where 
 he flatters himself he will form a company, in whose name he 
 will take possession of the island, dethrone his father-in-law, 
 and establish factories, whence the superabundant and much- 
 neglected wealth of this newly-discovered Eldorado will flow 
 in shiploads of gold and precious stones to the shores of 
 Europe. In conclusion, I beg to remark that Cdsar Moreno 
 is an utter stranger to me ; I do not dispute his Columbus- 
 like faculty of discovering hitherto unheard-of islands, but I 
 leave the responsibility of the preceding statements wholly 
 to Monsieur Edmond Texier, of the Sikle. 
 
 October iitk. 
 
 Tables may thank the spirits of the past for the amount of 
 public attention they have occupied within the last few years. 
 The world of strangers and enthusiasts for the first Emperor 
 rush to Malmaison on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, 
 not so much to inspect the souvenirs there collected of the 
 Empress Josephine as to look at a table styled, par excellence, 
 the table of the marshals. Austerlitz had been fought and 
 won. Napoleon's predominant ideas at that crisis were first 
 to perpetuate the remembrance of his victory, and, secondly, 
 to convince the world that the china manufactory of Sevres 
 could produce finer works than any other in the world. He 
 sent for Isabey, the great miniature painter, father of the 
 present artist, and commissioned him to paint a table, which 
 would measure nine feet in circumference, and on which 
 he himself would be pourtrayed, surrounded by Bernadotte, 
 Murat, Berthier, Lannes, Ney, Bessi^res, Duroc, Caulaincourt, 
 
LOW DRESSES 267 
 
 Marmont, Davout, Mortier, Soult, and Angereau. Isabey 
 was not in the habit of painting on china, and declined the 
 offer. The Emperor uttered but two words, but they were 
 very significant, "/^ veux'.' Isabey set to work in 1805, but, 
 unaccustomed to work on china and to calculate the change 
 effected by exposing his painting to the heat of a furnace, 
 which alters the tone of many colours, especially affecting 
 blue tints, he felt hopeless of success. In despair one day as 
 he paced his atelier, a pot of a rich blue substance caught his 
 eye. " What is that ? " he inquired of an apprentice. The 
 lad tremblingly replied that it was a compound he was trying. 
 He had used some of his master's colours to produce it, and 
 fearing discovery, had hidden the result. In a few hours 
 Isabey's marshals were done in the blue he had so long 
 sought in vain. The apprentice boy, Riancreu, is now con- 
 servator of the Sevres manufactory. The table was completed 
 in 18 10. During the period of its execution Napoleon paid 
 Isabey an annual sum of 6,000 f It was placed in the Salle 
 des Marechaux, and subsequently in the Louvre. During 
 the occupation of Paris by the allied armies Isabey saw a 
 rope placed round the Vendome Column, and heard it doomed 
 to destruction. He naturally trembled for his table. M. de 
 Serres, to rescue it from destruction, purchased it from the 
 directors of the Louvre, then glad to get rid of a Napoleonic 
 souvenir. He gave 60,000 f for it. During Louis Philippe's 
 reign he wished to sell it to the Government, but was only 
 offered 50,000 f. for it. M. de Serres died lately. His widow 
 has sent the table to the Malmaison Exhibition, and it is said 
 the Emperor intends purchasing it. 
 
 November ^th. 
 
 A good story is related of the Emperor Francis Joseph, 
 who is well known at Vienna to dislike the present exagger- 
 ated d^colleti style so fashionable among young ladies 
 
 belonging to the great world. A certain Princess X was 
 
 the star of Vienna during two successive seasons. Her 
 features were not in strict accordance with the classic line of 
 
268 L'ABBE MORIN 
 
 beauty, but en revanche, her neck and shoulders were faultless 
 — only one saw somewhat too much of them. One evening 
 at a Court ball the Princess was all but innocent of any cor- 
 sage, and the little that her dressmaker had added to her 
 skirts was not particularly useful. The lady complained of 
 cold and shivered, and as she passed the Emperor shrugged 
 her lovely shoulders completely out of the lilliputian corsage, 
 saying, " I am so cold — b-r-r-r ! " The Emperor beckoned to 
 one of the equerries-in-waiting, and gave him an order. In 
 a few seconds he reappeared with the Princess's opera cloak, 
 which the Emperor took from him and quietly placed on the 
 shoulders of the fair frileuse. 
 
 November nth. 
 
 The Moniteur de la Flotte gives intelligence which will be 
 received with sorrow by many a broken-hearted convict and 
 many a repentant criminal, whose very existence is well-nigh 
 forgotten, even in their own families. Abb6 Morin, the 
 almoner of the convict hulks at Toulon, has died. Neither 
 politician nor soldier, his mission was nobler than either, 
 namely, to bring consolation to the afflicted and hope to 
 the despairing. Admirably he fulfilled it. When first 
 appointed chaplain to the Bagne his task appeared hopeless. 
 His predecessor — a Spaniard — had brought scorn and insult 
 on his holy office. 
 
 It occurred to the Abb6 that if he could amuse his 
 wild and infidel audience instead of lecturing them he 
 might catch their attention. M. d'Exauvilliers had just 
 published a series of little books, in which grave questions 
 on morality and religion were treated in the form of 
 dialogues. The Abbd got as many copies of these as he 
 had members in his congregation. He entered the salle and 
 read aloud the introduction, which explained that in a certain 
 village the Mayor, M. Dupont, was a sceptic, MaJtre Thomas 
 an infidel, Gros Pierre a blasphemer, etc. The Abb6 asked for 
 the best readers amongst his audience. Much amazed, a dozen 
 stepped to the front as quickly as their heavy chains and 
 
THE ABBE'S METHODS 269 
 
 manacles permitted. To each he handed a pamphlet. The 
 Abb6 reserved to himself the rdle of the village curate. He 
 begged the first nearest to him to begin. The convict at 
 once tried to give the right emphasis to the part allotted 
 to him. The Abb6 read his reply. The second culprit read 
 the next remark, and so on. The men got into the spirit of the 
 book, and the spectators seated round listened with profound 
 interest to this novel scene. The subject was grave, but 
 admirably treated. Naturally the curate had the best of 
 the day, and when, in his closing address, he victoriously 
 refuted the arguments of the infidel, the blasphemer, the 
 atheist, etc., a burst of applause resounded from every side 
 of the salle. On the following Sunday the only difficulty 
 he had to combat was the anxiety of each convict to secure 
 a part. The Abb6 varied his repertoire, and from that hour 
 he conquered, not the respect only, but the affection of his 
 congregation, composed, be it remembered, of the vilest 
 criminals on the face of the earth. But his work ended 
 not within the prison walls. He rested not till he had built 
 and endowed the Convent du Bon Pasteur, wherein are 
 sheltered two hundred reclaimed women. During the last 
 years of his life Abbe Morin was Chaplain-General to the 
 Fleet, and devoted a portion of each Sunday to reading and 
 explaining to the men on board the vessels stationed at 
 Toulon a portion of God's Word, with what success officers 
 and men testified by their numerous attendance at the good 
 Abba's funeral. 
 
 November i^th. 
 
 It is almost inconceivable, and scarcely to be credited, 
 how difficult it has become for a family to find a respectable 
 apartment in a tolerably good situation in this metropolis, 
 the difficulty arising from the exactions of the landlords. 
 Many among the prosperous class refuse to let their apart- 
 ments to doctors, pasteurs, curates, or notaries, alleging as 
 a reason that professional men receive visitors of all classes 
 —^perchance even poor, shabbily dressed persons, who do 
 
270 PARISIAN LANDLORDS 
 
 not look well on the staircase. Indeed, pasteurs are par- 
 ticularly objected to, as many in Paris have the vulgar 
 habit of inviting the poorest among their congregation to 
 come to them on all occasions, and at all sorts of strange 
 
 hours. For instance, I dined lately with Pasteur G . 
 
 While at dessert he was summoned by a mere mechanic to 
 baptise his dying infant. Au premier, in the same house 
 lives a banker of great repute. That very day he gave a 
 dinner to one of the ministers. " Was it suitable," inquired 
 the landlord next morning, "that his Excellency's wife, 
 Madame la Marquise, should meet on the stairs an unwashed 
 ouvrier, leading by the hand a ragged little urchin ? " The 
 pasteur must receive his poor at more suitable times — early 
 in the morning before the great world was up. I had a 
 laugh at my excellent friend when he related the story to 
 me, as I remembered he had only secured the apartment 
 by the ruse of not mentioning his profession. But landlords 
 object even more to persons who have children. A few 
 months since a gentleman and his wife took an apartment 
 near the Champs Elysdes for the usual period of three years, 
 the lease to be renewed for six or nine years at the expiration 
 of the term. The landlord was charmed to receive them 
 as tenants, seeing that after strict inquiries he had ascertained 
 their fortune to be ample, and that they had been married ten 
 years unblessed with children. These were the tenants he 
 liked. Ten years married by the registry at the Mairie, 
 and never had a child, and the lady by no means young. 
 A few months scarcely elapsed before a horrible rumour, 
 communicated by the concierge to his cook, and by that 
 personage to his valet, who took an opportunity while laying 
 out his master's clothes to insinuate the chance of a new 
 tenant being added to those already in possession of the 
 premier. The result was instantaneous. Hastily com- 
 pleting his toilette, the infuriated landlord rushed down- 
 stairs, rang violently at the door of Monsieur F , and 
 
 demanded an immediate interview, which, being granted, 
 Monsieur F. was assailed by the most violent invectives, 
 
LOUIS BLANC 271 
 
 accused of treacherously breaking the express terms of the 
 lease, and finally threatened with a lawsuit. There are 
 landlords who furthermore stipulate that their tenants are 
 neither to keep dogs, cats, or even canaries. 
 
 December nth. 
 
 A touching anecdote was related to me of Blanc the other 
 day, which proves him not only to be endowed with genius, 
 but with a good heart. One day — this was a few days after 
 the Revolution of 1848 — he met the celebrated Chaudesaigues 
 staring vacantly at some caricature in a shop window. 
 " What are you about ? " inquired of him the author of the 
 Historic de dix ans, striking him familiarly on the shoulder. 
 Chaudesaigues turned round and looked at him. His 
 features were emaciated, his eyes sunk with suffering and 
 sickness. " I am learning how to die of hunger," replied 
 Chaudesaigues. Louis Blanc, deeply moved, took him home, 
 opened his secretary, which contained a sum of 300 f , and 
 putting 200 f into the hands of the unfortunate man, said, 
 " It is only an advance on the money I shall owe you for 
 work I am anxious you should undertake for me." Another 
 anecdote worth relating : Having heard that the son of 
 General was ill and unable to leave his bed, and with- 
 out anyone to take care of him, M. Louis Blanc instantly set 
 out to his lodgings and acted as his nurse. He spent the 
 night with his young friend. Day had scarcely dawned 
 when the ringing of the bell was heard. Louis Blanc went 
 to open the door. A man rushed in frantically with a bill, 
 demanding in the most violent language instant payment. 
 Louis Blanc returned to his friend's bedside, told him that he 
 (Louis Blanc) was obliged to quit him for a few hours, as he 
 had been sent for. He then left the house with the creditor, 
 took him home, and paid the bill, which amounted to 400 f. 
 The young invalid only knew two years later that Louis 
 Blanc had saved him from being arrested for debt. 
 
272 GUSTAVE DORE 
 
 December I'itk. 
 
 Gustave Dord has just sold the immense picture which 
 occupied so large a space in the central salon of the Annual 
 Exhibition this year to an American amateur for ;^2,200. 
 The subject, it will be remembered, is a gambling table at 
 Baden. Several of the celebrated anonymas of the day sat 
 for the portraits of this picture, which is a lifelike photo- 
 graph of the scene daily enacted at the German kursaal. 
 An Englishman in the foreground, attired in a knickerbocker 
 suit of tweed, seated across a chair, evidently more absorbed 
 by the slight figure of one of the queens of the demimonde 
 than by the Rouge et Noir going on at the table, is one of 
 the best-drawn figures in the picture. Its merit was incontest- 
 able, but there was a universal expression of regret that an 
 artist who has soared so high for the choice of his subjects 
 should have stooped so low as to attract the attention of the 
 petit crevh of the Jockey Club, or the applause of the 
 Quartier Breda. The Marquis of Hertford writes a letter in 
 the Moniteur des Arts of this morning, in which he requests 
 a story may be contradicted of his having given 80,000 f. for 
 a Titian originally sold to a huckster for thirty shillings, and 
 subsequently to a picture dealer for as many pounds — the 
 said dealer having, as the story goes, discovered its merit, 
 and sold it to the Marquis for the sum stated. Lord Hert- 
 ford begs to state that he has purchased no such picture, and 
 wishes the fact to be known, inasmuch as since the publica- 
 tion of the legend he has been assailed by offers from all 
 parts of Europe of hitherto undiscovered Titians, the price 
 of which gems, the Marquis writes, vary, odd to say, from 
 80,000 f to 100,000 f., but 80,000 f. is the usual tariff. 
 
MESSIEURS LES GAMINS 273 
 
 December igih. 
 
 The star of the hour at the Italiens is the American canta- 
 trice. Miss Harris, whose graceful manners and expressive 
 countenance, combined with a voice of marvellous flexibility 
 and sweetness, attracts immense popularity. One of her last 
 performances was in Crispino e la Comare, where, especially 
 in her upper notes, she accomplishes perfect tours de force. 
 In the duo of the second tableau of the first act Miss Harris 
 sang with M. Ciampi, and was encored at each verse, re- 
 called, and rapturously applauded. The same evening the 
 baritone, Steller, made his dibut in Lucrezia Borgia. No 
 doubt he will be in London next season, as he has proved a 
 success over here. His voice is one of the finest we have 
 heard for a very long time, and created a sensation. He has, 
 moreover, the rare merit of pronouncing the words with 
 distinctness, and acts remarkably well. 
 
 The gamins de Paris, who are accustomed to receive 
 bows from crowned heads, cannot understand why the Sultan 
 only touches his fez in return for their shouts of "Vive le 
 Sultan!" Messieurs les gamins do not consider themselves 
 treated with sufficient respect and courtesy, and this explains 
 why, when he visited the exhibition this year, they vocifer- 
 ated in his ears, "Otez done votre calotte!" Abdul Aziz 
 Khan might certainly have done so without running the 
 chance of catching cold, but as Commander of the Faithful, 
 his Ottoman Majesty could not do so without compromising 
 his dignity. Someone remarked to me that as sultans are 
 forbidden to walk on any ground but Mussulman territory, 
 he had avoided the difficulty by stuffing his boots with 
 Turkish earth. 
 
274 MESDAMES LES BLANCHISSEUSES 
 
 January \A,th, 1868. 
 One of the specialties of this capital is the fite of the 
 blanchisseuses, annually celebrated at Mi-car6me, and in- 
 tended, I conclude, to give us a tantalising idea of the 
 attractions of the washing population of Meudon, Sevres, 
 Suresnes, Asni^res, Viroflay, the one and all of these localities 
 being tenanted by washermen and washerwomen. For this 
 show they are transformed into mythological personages, 
 some representing Hercules, Jupiter, or Bacchus ; their fair 
 companions, Venus, or Hebe, or Pomona. The greater 
 number, however, are in carnival attire, and some of the 
 costumes admirable in effect, though perhaps wanting in 
 accuracy of detail. The lower classes of Paris society, in 
 fact, are metamorphosed — women wear men's clothes, and 
 walk about stick in hand ; whilst men are disguised as 
 women, some wearing widespread crinolines, others not even 
 a single petticoat. A curious sight it is, and not one calcu- 
 lated to impress a stranger with an exalted idea of French 
 morality. One of the shows of the last Mi-car^me was 
 that of two little carriages, drawn by twelve lilliputian horses, 
 and bearing along twelve tiny boys, varying in age from 
 five to six years, in the costumes of athletes. The cars 
 were inscribed with the high-sounding words, "Les terribles 
 Lutteurs du Grand Gymnase," this naturally being an 
 ambulatory advertisement to attract the Paris badaud to the 
 boxing matches at the Grand Gymnase. La boxe, by-the-by, 
 as the French designate our national sport, is becoming an 
 institution in this capital, A friend of mine took an apart- 
 ment some time ago in the Rue des Ecurier d'Artois, solely 
 on account of the retired and quiet character of that quartier. 
 " 'Tis true," he repeated to his acquaintances, " I pay a high 
 price for my apartment, but my wife is nervous and requires 
 a quiet situation, and our street is so quiet." Lo ! a fortnight 
 ago a club pour la boxe was established under his very 
 windows, and its members box away till the small hours of 
 the morning to the unmitigated disgust of the inhabitants of 
 La Rue des Ecurier d'Artois. 
 
MORAL POCKET-HANDKERCHIEFS 275 
 
 January i^^th. 
 
 The recent death of the Due de Luynes, distinguished alike 
 for his scientific attainments and unbounded munificence, will 
 be fresh in your memory. His son, a volunteer in the Ponti- 
 fical Zouaves, being prevented from resuming his regimental 
 rank by the duties inseparable from the possession of the 
 vast estates to which he succeeded on the death of his father, 
 has presented His Holiness with twelve rifled guns, wishing, 
 as he himself remarked, to be represented in the regiment. 
 The Pope, when expressing his gratitude for this noble gift 
 to M. de Luynes, inquired how he could acknowledge this act 
 of princely generosity. " By allowing me to give twelve 
 more guns in case these should not prove sufficient " — a reply 
 eminently characteristic of this Ultramontane yet chivalrous 
 race. 
 
 January igth. 
 
 I think it right to inform you that a sort of surveillance is 
 now exercised over our pocket-handkerchiefs. It is considered 
 as highly objectionable to use one of those handkerchiefs 
 adorned with the portrait of the first Emperor. At the 
 representation of " Malbrouck s'en va-t-en guerre " one of the 
 actors, L^onie, thought he would produce a comic effect by 
 sneezing in a pocket-handkerchief bearing the equestrian 
 figure of Napoleon I. No one dreamt of sedition, and the 
 present Empire did not appear the worse for the joke, when 
 one evening a country sous-pr^fet, happening to see the piece, 
 was struck with horror at recognising the well-known features 
 on the square of cambric applied to the nostrils of L^onie. 
 Fired by patriotic zeal, he returns to his prefecture, and in- 
 stantly communicates to his chief, the prefect, the horrible cir- 
 cumstance he himself has witnessed. The prefect, on hearing 
 the awful communication, believes it to be his duty to address 
 a confidential report on the subject to the Minister, to whom 
 
276 CHEMICAL HUSBAND WANTED 
 
 he reveals the dangers which the State incurs by permitting 
 such treasonable acts in the Theatre de I'Ath^n^e, Rue Scribe. 
 The Minister writes to his colleague, another excellency ; 
 that excellency summons M. Camille Doucet ; notes, prods 
 verbaux, etc., etc., are exchanged ; Ldonie, utterly unconscious 
 that his handkerchief had become an affair of State, is in- 
 formed that if he does not get another of less seditious import 
 he will probably be arrested on the stage by a company of 
 gendarmes. You will be glad to hear that the outraged feel- 
 ings of prefectorial and ministerial loyalty are appeased, as 
 L^onie has bought another handkerchief, and, having myself 
 been present at a recent representation of " Malbrouck s'en 
 va-t-en guerre," I can assert that he now uses a hand- 
 kerchief on which Croquet taming his lions is splendidly 
 printed. Who knows if this may not be symbolical of no 
 end of treachery and sedition. 
 
 January 20th. 
 
 Although it is not my habit to send you advertisements, 
 still I think the following one important, inasmuch as it may 
 prove useful to a great many people who are doubtless 
 anxious to provide themselves with wives. I translate liter- 
 ally, as I find it in a morning paper : " A young lady of 
 forty-eight, having a moderate income, but possessing a 
 patent for a new invention, wishes to marry a gentleman 
 of sixty-five well versed in chemistry." This last appears to 
 me a new requisite in the matrimonial market. 
 
 February %th. 
 
 The last fashion in the robbery line may be as interesting 
 as the " newest style " in dress, and the following episodes 
 strike me as worthy of record on account of their novelty : 
 At the last Bal de I'Op^ra a commercial agent met a masked 
 lady, as he imagined of the great world. A carriage and 
 livery servants awaited her exit. She graciously permitted 
 the admirer to accompany her to her house, but on condition 
 
THE LATEST FASHION IN ROBBERY 277 
 
 of his allowing her to blindfold him. The drive lasted about 
 an hour, at the expiration of which time the carriage stopped 
 at a house. They entered, and, ascending a staircase of 
 
 thirty steps, M. B heard a door open. On the lady 
 
 taking off the bandage from his eyes, he found himself in a 
 brilliantly lighted apartment, and in the presence of three 
 men armed with poniards and revolvers. " If you stir, you 
 are a dead man ; give us your money, and you shall be left 
 at the Pantheon." There was, of course, no alternative ; the 
 victim laid his purse on a table, and at five o'clock in the 
 morning was deposited at the Pantheon, the carriage im- 
 mediately starting off at full speed. The police vainly 
 endeavoured to trace out the affair, but no light was thrown 
 
 on the mystery till a few evenings since. M. Paul B , 
 
 a grocer, was walking home by the Rue Soufflot, when a 
 young woman suddenly fell almost at his feet, and in such 
 
 a manner that M. Paul B was obliged to support her. 
 
 She appeared to have sprained her ankle, and therefore to be 
 unable to walk. The grocer had nothing for it but to offer 
 her his arm, and assist her to her lodging. Rue Mouffetard. 
 Arrived at the parte cochere, her sufferings prevented her 
 ascending the stairs without his aid. She lived au sixikme, and 
 on reaching that storey she knocked at a door, which at 
 
 once opened, and M. Paul B was instantly seized by three 
 
 men, who enacted precisely the scene of the Bal de I'Opdra 
 robbery, with the slight difference that they obligingly in- 
 formed their victim they belonged to a society scattered 
 over Paris ; therefore, if he betrayed them to the police, his 
 life would not be safe in any quarter. This has proved 
 perfectly correct, the police having already twelve of their 
 gang in safe keeping. 
 
 February \2th. 
 
 The Duchess of Hamilton (Princess Mary of Baden) gives 
 soirees dansanies every week. At the last the absence of 
 
 Madame de was much regretted, more especially when 
 
 it became known that she was seriously ill. It appeared, 
 
278 ECCENTRIC PETITIONS 
 
 however, that the lady in question constantly believes herself 
 to be dying. Her husband is absent on a political mission, 
 and she accordingly sent him the following telegram : 
 "Return instantly. I am very ill — dying." To which M. 
 
 de replied : " Pressing business. Wait a fortnight." 
 
 Madame de has waited. 
 
 March wth. 
 
 The Senate has decidedly the monopoly of eccentric peti- 
 tions. Amongst the humorous string of those yesterday 
 laid before that austere assembly notice the following. It is 
 worthy of record, inasmuch as it is in utter contradiction to 
 that of the worthy Sieur Boutron, of Loiret. That patriot 
 expressed a wish that the Colonne Venddme should be de- 
 molished and the bronze thereof melted down into work- 
 men's tools or saucepans — I forget which ; also, that the 
 flags and trophies which adorn the Chapel of the Invalides 
 should be restored by France to their original owners — that 
 is, the nations they were respectively taken from. Now M. 
 Quicherat, a worthy " propridtaire a Paris," for so he describes 
 himself, does not share the ideas emitted by the Sieur Bou- 
 tron. In the petition he laid before the Senate yesterday he 
 on the contrary urges the necessity of erecting a monument 
 in commemoration of all the great achievements accom- 
 plished by the French army under the present reign. The 
 petitioner humbly submits to the consideration of the 
 senators his conviction that too long a period has already 
 elapsed, and that the country ought speedily to bestow on 
 "our recent victories tjie traditional consecration which 
 triumphs on the field of battle suggest to nations imbued 
 with a proper spirit of jealousy as to their national honour." 
 The place whereon to erect this monument, remarks the 
 petitioner, is already prepared. Where else should it be 
 elevated but on the very spot where the Emperor drew rein 
 on first entering Paris, when surrounded by an enthusi- 
 astic crowd, who so vociferously cheered their Sovereign? — 
 that spot is the Place d'ltalie, 13th Arrondissement. A 
 
TO THE SENATE 279 
 
 few more of the petitions which engrossed the attention 
 of that sapient assembly appear to me worth noticing. 
 Nos. 127 and 258 bear the signatures of M. Cazkes, of 
 Pouyastruc (Hautes Pyrenees), and of the Sieur Cra- 
 mohzeaux, barrister, of the Haute Vienne. These gentle- 
 men solicit the intervention of the Senate to obtain that the 
 Prince Imperial (aged twelve) be, without further delay, 
 associated with the Imperial Government under the name of 
 Napoleon IV. The petitioners remark that by the inex- 
 orable law of nature which compels sovereigns to have 
 successors, peoples and dynasties are often exposed to perils 
 and dangers ; therefore it would be a measure of the highest 
 prudence to forestall these disagreeable accidents by operat- 
 ing an association, or, as it were, establishing a continuous 
 stream of sovereign power, without awaiting moments of 
 crisis. Petition 181 is, indeed, a strange one, judging by the 
 following paragraph, which appears in the official report of 
 yesterday's debate : Le Sieur Manvergnier, of Limoges, begs 
 to call the attention of the Minister of the Interior to certain 
 observations he has made, the result of which is that he has 
 discovered the means by which every torrent of rain can be 
 turned off land bearing crops of pasture. Premising that 
 clouds are merely sea-water converted into vapour by the 
 heat of the sun, the petitioner suggests that they should be 
 condensed by means of huge fire-engines, and the water thus 
 formed turned off on the sea-coast, which, this scientific 
 luminary remarks, is usually uncultivated. Petition 191 will, 
 at all events, have the result of proving that its author, 
 M. Deiss, of Paris, is anxious to proclaim to the world at 
 large that he is a staunch Bonapartist (probably he purports 
 standing at the next elections for one of the Paris cir- 
 conscriptions). However, M. Deiss de Paris, as he styles 
 himself, humbly craves from Government that henceforth in 
 all cafis, reading-rooms, libraries, etc., where the Opposition 
 papers are taken in, the managers of the above-named 
 establishments may be compelled to take in a like number 
 of Ministerial and official journals, as in this way, sapiently 
 
28o KINGLY RELICS 
 
 remarks the petitioner, persons frequenting such establish- 
 ments will have the antidote next to the poison — le contre- 
 poison d. c6ti du poison. 
 
 March I2th. 
 
 The Secolo of Milan announces that a tailor of Milan 
 possesses the identical pair of breeches in which the first 
 Emperor fought the battle of Marengo. These necessary 
 articles of dress, being somewhat the worse for that great 
 victory, were sent to the said tailor to be patched, and further- 
 more as a pattern for a new pair. The man of shears appears 
 to have considered the inexpressibles in question as " past 
 mending," and kept them altogether. It appears that he 
 bethought himself that some hundred years hence they would 
 be considered as a relic of the young conqueror who was 
 sweeping Austrian armies before him as though they were so 
 much dust, and would be worth money, so he had their 
 identity proved and registered by a notary. Relic collectors 
 have another opportunity of buying up the old clothes of 
 defunct royalty. The old King of Bavaria preserved every 
 article he ever put on — from his boots to his hats, from his 
 shirts to his overcoats^ — from the year 1823 to the date of his 
 death ; and, moreover, with an eye to the instruction of the 
 future historian of dress, had each garment entered in a 
 register according to chronological order. He did something 
 more to the purpose, however, for his heirs, as he left 
 250 millions of money. 
 
 March loth. 
 
 The best balls of this season — naturally I do not allude to 
 official entertainments — have been given by the American 
 colony in Paris. Mrs. Gowan's receptions, Mrs. Downing's 
 and Mrs. Norton's bals-costumh have been the events of the 
 gay world. The last-named lady and Colonel Norton gave a 
 masked ball last Friday, which was unusually brilliant and 
 piquant from the fact of everyone present, including the 
 master of the revels, being masked ; and the most amusing 
 
A MASKED BALL 281 
 
 incidents were the result. The Press was represented by 
 Madame Schlieker, whose costume of black and gold was 
 illuminated by the designs of printing machines, the names 
 of various newspapers, and other symbols of the profession. 
 Mrs. Pratt, daughter of the well-known American Dr. Sims, 
 was admirably costumed as a red Indian, her skin being 
 dyed, and her magnificent black chevelure, which hung far 
 below her waist, confined by a feather coronal, and her many- 
 coloured petticoat also embroidered with feathers, the dress 
 having the merit of being authentic. The Javanaise, Mdlle. 
 Duhamel, in powder and hoop. Miss Harris, ringing the 
 silver bells of Folly, and Miss Kate Harris, in the crimson, 
 white, and gold costume of the wife of a Hungarian magyar, 
 were the fairest amongst the belles. Why Le Petit Crev6 
 Anglais should have been represented by M. de Morlot in a 
 dress of cloth of gold, fitting perfectly tight, a melon of gold 
 in guise of headgear, and immense standing-up collar, I know 
 not. The inevitable umbrella, the Briton's faithful com- 
 panion, carefully encased in shining oilsilk, hanging at his 
 side, one understood, for an Englishman and his umbrella 
 are inseparable ; but I am not aware of having exhibited 
 myself to the public, or observed my countrymen doing so, 
 in golden apparel; and since the days of railway travelling 
 the milord whose portmanteau is stuffed with banknotes has 
 become a rara avis in Paris — he is to be found doing the 
 Nile in his yacht, or fly-fishing by the banks of the Nor- 
 wegian fiord ; but nowadays the great mass of the English 
 who convert the Rue de Rivoli into a succursale of Oxford 
 Street is not encumbered by the gold that glittered on the 
 Petit Crev6's person. Oiseau Bleu was a success amongst 
 the ladies, who pronounced him, for I am oblivious of his 
 name, " charmant " ; such lovely blue wings ; and then the 
 cap of blue feathers and the birds' heads on his shoulders, 
 and his winged boots — ravissant, as a young lady confided to 
 me. The host, all but invisible beneath a huge wig, specta- 
 cled moreover, and disguised as a Breton notary, was only 
 unmasked at an early hour on Saturday morning. The 
 
282 LEMERCIER DE NEUVILLE'S 
 
 floral decorations, as usual in Paris, were most artistic — 
 twining ivy, pyramids of white camellias and violets, adorned 
 the supper-table, which did credit to the hospitality of the 
 land of the Stars and Stripes. 
 
 March 2,1st. 
 
 The Cercle des Beaux Arts, a club much resorted to by 
 some of the most talented of the literary and artistic world 
 of P^ris, is situated in the Rue de la Chaussee d'Antin. To 
 be admitted one must, as in English clubs, be presented by 
 two members, and go through the ordeal of a ballot. If 
 I mention this club, it is because I was last night at a soiree 
 given by its members, which was interesting in every detail. 
 We had not only good singing and good music, but we were 
 entertained by some of Lemercier de Neuville's humorous 
 marionettes, masks and grimaces of the most celebrated 
 personages of the day. The acting, though performed after 
 the fashion of Punch and Judy, is most witty and eminently 
 satirical. The political characters are lifelike, and unmis- 
 takable from their resemblance — the tone of voice and 
 gestures of each personage are imitated to perfection. 
 Lemercier de Neuville is not only a capital actor, but a first- 
 rate writer. Why he has turned into a montreur de marion- 
 ettes he himself has most touchingly explained in his 
 amusing work, I pupazzi. In 1863 poor, and burdened with 
 a family, he was endeavouring to gain his livelihood by his 
 pen. We all know the struggles of a young unknown 
 writer, the hopeless effort to induce editors to accept a work 
 signed by an untried name, the polite excuses and the 
 insolent rebuffs by which one is, as the French expressively 
 designate this sort of thing, ^conduit. Lemercier got a few 
 articles placed, but the " black dog " was at his door. His 
 little child was sick — dying, in fact. On his cradle lay 
 broken toys. He would awake and ask for fresh amuse- 
 ment ; some numbers of Le Boulevart, on the first pages of 
 which were Cargot's inimitable " charges," lay scattered on 
 the floor. An idea struck the father : he cut out the carica- 
 
MARIONETTES 283 
 
 tures, pasted them on some cardboard, on which he had been 
 sketching, and with some broken wire from the toys con- 
 structed a series of marionettes. The child awoke and 
 screamed with delight. De Villemessant brandished his 
 razor, Nadar sent up his balloon, Rossini tossed maccaroni 
 in his saucepan. " But why," asked the boy, " has that 
 gentleman a razor ? " " Oh, because he writes the Figaro, 
 and Figaro was a barber." The child's question suggested 
 to him that for the great majority to whom the idiosyncrasies 
 of great men are unknown " charges " ought to be accom- 
 panied by an explanation. He wrote a few verses, imitating 
 the style of each writer — satirical, of course, but easily re- 
 cognisable. Some of his artist friends, surprised by the 
 novelty and the humour of the child's show, insisted on his 
 giving a soiree. It was a success, although the audience, 
 consisting of the young litterateurs of the day, was perhaps 
 the most fastidious and the least easy to please of any in 
 Europe. Five years have elapsed, and Lemercier de Neu- 
 ville and his " pupazzi " are now as well known as any of the 
 characters he satirises. 
 
 Musical soirees and Lent are synonymous terms in Paris. 
 The Parisian woman of fashion will dance at balls given by 
 heretics, but at her own house she will entertain you with 
 music only, which is rather an expensive enjoyment just now. 
 
 Madame A gave a concert lately at her house in the 
 
 Avenue Gabriel, at which a scene from a popular partition 
 was performed. Altesse, first flutist of the Opera orchestra, 
 executed a few bars of one of the airs. When Madame 
 
 A next day asked him what she was in his debt, he 
 
 replied, " A hundred francs, madame." " What ! for eighty 
 notes ? " " Oui, madame." 
 
 To help us to endure the period of fasting mackerel have 
 benevolently allowed themselves to be caught in numbers 
 hitherto unknown in the annals of fisheries ; 9,800 baskets 
 of them arrived at the Paris market yesterday morning, and 
 remarkably fine of their kind they were. 
 
284 NILSSON 
 
 April 2(jth. 
 
 Last night — or to be more technically correct, this morning 
 — our Swedish nightingale sang for the last time, and ere this 
 reaches you she will be in London. The great world, the 
 artistic world, the musical world, proved their appreciation of 
 her genius, and their sincere regret at parting with her, by 
 crowding the vast enceinte of the Grand Opera in such numbers 
 that there was not an available spot within the salle which was 
 not occupied by some representative of the highest ranks of 
 Paris society. As early as three o'clock in the day there was no 
 possibility to obtain a ticket, whatever sum you might offer 
 for it. I shall not give an account of the libretto, which is a 
 mere musical adaptation of Shakespeare's Hamlet. Neither 
 shall I attempt to convey an idea of the magnificent mise-en- 
 scene of this opera, which for the last month has attracted the 
 whole of Paris ; my sole object is to record the tremendous 
 success achieved last night by Mdlle. Christina Nilsson. In 
 the first three acts, although her part does not call forth her 
 powers either of singing or acting, she nevertheless steals 
 upon us siren-like, magnetising her audience by the charm 
 of her voice, as well as by her own exceeding loveliness. 
 Yet, apparently, evidently unaware of those gifts, perfectly 
 childlike, and even unconscious of the effect she produces on 
 the spectators. Few artists, let it be said, would be able to 
 personify Ophelia as truly as she does. That is, suffering 
 love's pangs without once confessing them ; making a secret 
 of this love and never divulging it ; and even when in a hope- 
 less state of madness, only manifesting her devotion to 
 Hamlet by tears and sighs. When she sang an exquisite air 
 — borrowed, as I am told, from her own country — we listened 
 as though we were in the presence of real insanity, so 
 eloquently and truly did she act this difficult part. So 
 natural and unsophisticated, so full of pathos was she in this 
 admirable and touching scene, that I detected many a tear in 
 those who most frantically applauded her. In all truth it 
 
AS OPHELIA 28s 
 
 may be said that the whole of that excited audience gazed 
 upon Ophelia with all the tenderness, with all the intensity 
 of love of Hamlet himself; and had Shakespeare himself 
 been present, he too, poor fellow, would have lost his heart to 
 Ophelia-Nilsson, so exquisite was her rendering of the sim- 
 plicity, the childish delicacy, the virgin innocence, as well as 
 the sorrow and despair of his heroine, all of which were 
 expressed in notes sweet and melodious, such as belong not 
 to earth, and lead the imagination to soar to higher spheres. 
 In the song in which are depicted the wild, rambling fancies 
 of her mind, the sudden transition from gaiety to sadness is 
 so dramatically performed by the Swedish nightingale that 
 she here reveals herself as great an actress as she is an 
 unrivalled cantatrice. It was at this moment that burst forth 
 from every part of the house the most frantic applause, such 
 as in a long experience of Paris audiences I have never wit- 
 nessed, and such, indeed, as led me to believe that the madness 
 of Ophelia had proved contagious and seized upon the 
 audience. In the annals of musical history never was such 
 an ovation made to an artist. It was a scene never to be for- 
 gotten, and not easy to be described, when the crowded and 
 brilliant audience, rising simultaneously and giving vent to its 
 excitement, took leave of one endeared to them, not only by 
 her enchanting voice, but by her personal qualities and youth- 
 ful charms. To write that bouquets were flung from every 
 part of the house and literally covered the stage is sober 
 fact. Hundreds fell from the boxes, and of a size and beauty 
 that must have cost fabulous sums ; and not only was this 
 extraordinary demonstration made by the audience, but a 
 gigantic floral trophy of white lilies and lilacs was offered to 
 her by the manager, and each of the actors, actresses, dan- 
 seuses, and choristes presented her with wreaths, crowns, and 
 floral devices of every imaginable form — some in leaves of 
 gold and silver ; one garland which Ophelia held in her hand 
 for a few moments was formed of the wax blossoms of the 
 Stephanotis and the white flowers of the Gardenia, interwoven 
 with long streamers of silver ribbon. This representation 
 
286 THE "FIGARO" ON ESQUIRES 
 
 produced the unprecedented sum of 14,147 f., an amount 
 unheard of in the annals of the Grand Opera. Hamlet in 
 twenty-two nights has brought in above £^10,200 sterling. 
 
 May \2th. 
 
 There is a time-honoured saying, '"Tis never too late to 
 learn." I therefore am glad of an opportunity of conveying 
 instruction which I myself received with due deference from 
 the Figaro. It would appear that the question has been 
 put to that popular journal as to what the origin and mean- 
 ing of " esquire " added to our patronymics may be ; in fact, 
 why John Brown is addressed " John Brown, Esq." " The 
 word ' esquire,' " replies the Figaro, " in its popular accepta- 
 tion, is a title of courtesy granted to persons who conceive 
 it to be derogatory to their dignity to be addressed as ' Sir 
 John So-and-So' or 'Sir Thomas So-and-so.' However," 
 continues this erudite journal, " this distinction is going out 
 of fashion, and persons belonging to the upper classes no 
 longer indulge in the puerile vanity of adding this title to 
 their surname." I translate literally. 
 
 May \()th. 
 
 You will remember the adventure of the Prussian engineer 
 ofiScers whose good pleasure it was to spend some days in 
 the vicinity of Meudon, and in the garb of workmen to drink 
 at a cabaret by an unaccounted-for accident frequented by 
 the men employed in the manufacture of the portable 
 cannon invented by the Emperor. The story goes that 
 Marshal Niel is particularly curious as to the manufacture 
 of German beer, and, wishing to ascertain precisely the 
 amount of hops used in the breweries along the Rhine, sent 
 a party of French engineer officers to make inquiries on this 
 interesting subject. By another unaccounted-for accident 
 these officers were only interested in the manner in which 
 beer was made in fortress towns. This peculiarity struck 
 M. de Bismarck, who, to save further trouble and expense, 
 
M. DE BISMARCK'S GENEROSITY 287 
 
 has obligingly forwarded Marshal Niel plans of all the 
 Prussian-Rhenane fortresses, together with a design of the 
 best breweries in each of the Rhenane frontier cities. The 
 story strikes me as too good to be true. 
 
 June ^th. 
 
 The law which in France compels property to be equally 
 divided amongst the children at the death of the head of a 
 family constantly brings treasures of art into the public sale- 
 rooms, and long-forgotten works are thus brought to light, 
 executed by our best masters for personages of importance, 
 whose possessions, utterly swept away by successive revolu- 
 tions, are now represented by poor and unknown descendants, 
 in many cases utterly unconscious of the value of the few 
 relics of the past glories of their house they may yet have 
 preserved. Two instances have lately proved an agreeable 
 surprise to the world of art A panel was sold the other 
 day on which was painted a child of two or three years 
 lying on a mattress of white satin. From one hand gold 
 pieces are falling, whilst with the other he presses a dove 
 to his heart. Above are zephyrs and other mythological 
 personages. On close investigation it has been proved that 
 the painting is from the brush of no less a master than 
 Boucher, the panel being executed by order of Louis XV. 
 to decorate one of the apartments of the Grand Trianon, 
 the subject having been his grandson, Louis XVI., when a 
 child. The panel was subsequently presented by Queen 
 Marie Antoinette to one of her ladies. A still more 
 curious incident occurred last week at Versailles. One of 
 the brightest ornaments of the Court of Louis XVI., the 
 Countess Ghika, died, aged ninety-three, at the beginning of 
 this year. The Countess, having lost her husband as well as 
 his property by the first revolution, was granted a small 
 pension by the Bourbons on their return to power, which 
 pension was continued by successive Governments to the 
 hour of her death. Charitable persons added to this pension, 
 and one amongst them, visiting her at Versailles on one 
 
288 A STORY OF SAINTE-BEUVE 
 
 occasion, noticed a portrait of a beautiful woman in Court 
 dress, and inquired who it represented. " Me," replied the 
 ancient lady, " and the painting is by Prudhon." The lady 
 died, the few possessions were sold, and with them the 
 picture. My friend, absent at the time of the auction, re- 
 turned, to be informed that the Prudhon had been sold for 
 2 f. to a brocanteur, and, truly, at his shop -door, he dis- 
 covered the treasure, which he repurchased for lo f. : he is 
 now in possession of a picture valued at 12,000 f, it having 
 all the merit of never having passed into the hands of a 
 cleaner. Du reste, a mere sketch by Prudhon sold last week 
 at the Hdtel Drouot for 600 f. {£24). The Countess is in 
 the Court dress of the period, adorned with jewels and rich 
 lace. 
 
 June ^th. 
 
 A rather amusing incident is related to have occurred 
 during the visit Prince Napoleon paid M. de Sainte-Beuve to 
 congratulate the latter on the speech delivered by him at the 
 Senate. When the Prince called upon the senator, he was 
 received by Sophie, his well-known servant, and as M. de 
 Sainte-Beuve was dressing. His Highness entered into a con- 
 versation with the ancient dame. " M. de Sainte-Beuve," 
 observed the Prince, " must have been highly satisfied with 
 the ovation made to him by the students." " Oh yes, sir," 
 replied Sophie, who thought she was paying a compliment to 
 the Prince, " they all shouted, ' Vivent les Impdrialistes ! ' " 
 "You are mistaken," interrupted the Prince, "you did not 
 hear well ; they cried ' Vivent les materialistes ! ' not ' Vivent 
 les Imp^rialistes!'" Sophie was puzzled, and asks for 
 explanations. 
 
 June yth. 
 
 Paris is at this moment in a state of wild excitement. 
 Cabmen coolly ask 50 f. to take you to Longchamps and 
 back, a distance which on an ordinary day you certainly would 
 accomplish for 5 f. At the hour at which I write not a 
 
ON THE RACECOURSE 289 
 
 vehicle of any kind, not even a milkman's cart, is to be had 
 for any amount of love or money. I chanced to dine in an 
 aristocratic quarter of this city last night, and I undertake to 
 assert that during five hours I heard no subject alluded to 
 but the probable events of this day on the racecourse, varied 
 occasionally by feminine voices engaged in exciting each 
 other's jealousy by descriptions of the chefs d'ceuvre of 
 millinery in which the fair ones are at this moment equip- 
 ping themselves for conquest ; but, alas ! the clouds as I write 
 are lowering, and a shadow of darkness ominous to muslins 
 and laces is falling over the land. Alas for the doomed toil- 
 ettes ! The general opinion, at the pigeon-shooting yesterday 
 afternoon and at yesterday's races, amongst the French, was 
 that the Marquis of Hastings's Earl was a better horse than 
 Suzerain. Note, I attempt not to utter a prophecy, I merely 
 repeat what I heard, and likewise some bitter feeling ex- 
 pressed that the English had refused to back French horses. 
 I give these echoes sous toutes rhervh. Paris is crowded with 
 foreigners. Amongst the English who will be Resent are 
 the Marquises of Lansdowne and Hastings, the Duke of 
 Hamilton, Lord Newport, General Hastings Doyle, Lord 
 Stamford, the Duke and Duchess of Manchester, Captain 
 and Lady Mary Craven, Mr. S. Gladstone, and all the men 
 of note in the sporting world. The hotels are filled to over- 
 flowing, and the avenue of the Champs Elys6es at this hour 
 presents the appearance of one unbroken mass of equipages. 
 Ladies' tickets for the grand stand, even at 10 f , and gentle- 
 men's at 20 f., were not easy to obtain yesterday afternoon, 
 and a tremendous crowd was expected. 
 
 June Zth. 
 
 1 was not mistaken in the opinion I expressed. The Earl, 
 as I said, proved a better horse than Suzerain, and won 
 magnificently by a length. The competitors were Suzerain, 
 Blueskin (Mr. Savile's property), Vale Royal, and Count 
 Lagrange's Nelusko. The French were confident of their 
 favourite's success, and even when the two horses were 
 u 
 
290 AN ENGLISH VICTORY 
 
 standing together before the start, sneered at the idea of the 
 Marquis of Hastings winning the day. The result of the 
 race was not for one minute doubtful, the Earl, after the 
 first three-quarters of a mile, keeping well ahead, and winning 
 easily by a length. The English cheered tremendously. 
 Fordham was dragged off his horse, and the character so 
 well known on every French racecourse, Joey Jones, wearing 
 the Marquis of Hastings's colours — red and white — got into 
 the saddle, and cheered and hurrahed as long as his voice 
 lasted. But the victory was received by the French in dead 
 silence ; the great majority did not attempt to conceal their 
 annoyance. The Emperor congratulated the Marquis of 
 Hastings, but almost immediately crossed the course, the 
 Empress leaning on his arm, to his carriage, and at once 
 drove back to the Tuileries. The display of jealousy on 
 the part of the French is not commendable, inasmuch as 
 when Gladiateur was victorious in England no such feeling 
 was manifested. The scene on the course was brilliant and 
 striking, although the sun did not shine, and the ladies 
 trembled for their toilettes. The weather kept up, and the 
 afternoon belied the threatening aspect of the morning sky. 
 The Court arrived in three open carriages attelis d la Dau- 
 nwnt. The Grand Duchess Marie of Russia and the Count 
 and Countess of Flanders joined the Imperial party at the 
 grand stand, and saw the race from the Emperor's box. The 
 Empress was most becomingly dressed in blue silk, flounced 
 with Brussels lace, a fichu Marie Antoinette of the same lace, 
 and a straw bonnet wreathed with wild flowers. The beauty 
 and distinction of the youthful Countess of Flanders struck 
 everyone. She recalls her sister. Queen Stephanie of Portu- 
 gal, whose early death was so much deplored ; and report 
 says the Countess is as amiable as her sweet, intelligent 
 countenance would lead one to expect. This is by no 
 means the first time the French have been beaten on their 
 own ground. In 1863 Mr. Savile's Ranger, when 20,134 
 spectators paid for entering within the lines, and in 1866 
 the Duke of Beaufort's Ceylon, when 38,012 spectators 
 
LE GRAND PRIX 291 
 
 swelled the receipts, carried off the Derby of France. The 
 prize consists of a piece of plate presented by the Emperor 
 and of a hundred thousand francs presented partly by the 
 city of Paris and partly by the railway companies. For the 
 first time the Prince Imperial made his appearance in the 
 weighing yard. He was under the escort of his cousin, 
 Prince Achille Murat, who appears to be spending his 
 honeymoon anywhere but in Mongolia or St. Petersburg. 
 The yellow clarence of the Marchioness of Hastings, picked 
 out with pale blue, excited considerable curiosity, especially 
 as the postillion's jacket was rose-coloured. 
 
 June <jth. 
 
 The cup presented by the Emperor to the Marquis of 
 Hastings on the Earl winning Le Grand Prix is thus 
 described. It is an oxydised silver media cup of graceful 
 design, chiselled with admirable delicacy. The handles 
 are formed of horses' heads ; the cover surmounted by 
 Victory distributing palm branches. A tablet of lapis lazuli 
 is encrusted in the centre of the cup, on which is engraved, 
 " Given by the Emperor. Grand Prix, 1868." This work 
 of art stands on a block of onyx. As has been truly 
 remarked, the Earl did not beat France, the proprietor of 
 Suzerain, M. Schickler, being a Prussian pur sang. The 
 third favourite, 'tis true, belongs to the Comte de Lagrange, 
 but is of English breed. Though born in France, the 
 Comte's horses are sent to England as soon as they can 
 stand, and only sent back when perfectly trained. Their 
 grooms, jockeys, saddles, bridles, and even shoes are English. 
 La Gazette de France inquires what there is French about 
 a soi-disant French racehorse. 
 
 Number 2,867,996 gained the prize of ;^6,0CX) (150,000 f.) 
 at the lottery for the " Enfants Pauvres." A hairdresser 
 of Bressuire was the lucky man ; he at once rushed up 
 to Paris, drove straight to the Corps L^gislatif, where he 
 demanded an immediate interview with his deputy, who, 
 when at home, he has the honour of shaving, and requested 
 
292 THE EXECUTION OF THE 
 
 him to accompany him to the Bank of France, in order 
 to claim the money. M. Charles Leroux, lest he should lose 
 a vote at the coming election, immediately acceded to the 
 hairdresser's request. The incident excited much merriment 
 in the House, where the story spread like wildfire. 
 
 June 2 1 St. 
 
 La France of this morning gives us the following details 
 of Maximilian's last hours, translated from the German 
 narrative written by his physician. These details were origin- 
 ally published in La Gazette de France on last Friday, 
 the anniversary of the Prince's execution : — " At eight the 
 Emperor lay down, and I remained with him alone. 
 Towards nine Palacios made his appearance with Escobedo's 
 orders that the Emperor should be informed that the wishes 
 he had expressed as to his body would be fulfilled. The 
 Emperor read Thomas a Kempis' Imitation of Jesus Christ 
 till ten, when he put out his light. Towards half-past eleven, 
 while he slept, I was alarmed by the entrance of Dr. Riva 
 de Reji^, who informed me that Escobedo was there and 
 wished to have an interview with the Emperor. The noise 
 disturbed him, he struck a light, Escobedo entered, and the 
 doctor and I retired. The General remained but a few 
 moments, and as I returned he said, ' Escobedo came to 
 take leave of me. It was a pity. I was sleeping so well.' 
 He extinguished the light, and in about an hour, which 
 to me appeared an eternity, I heard the regular breathing 
 which indicated sleep. He awoke at half-past three ; at four 
 the confessor arrived ; at five the Emperor and the two 
 generals heard Mass, and at six breakfasted. He then for 
 a second time handed me his wedding-ring, which I had 
 returned to him on the i6th, when his execution had been 
 deferred ; repeated his farewell messages to his friends, and 
 putting a scapulary in his pocket, which the confessor had 
 given him, said, ' You will take that to my mother ' : this 
 was the last order the Emperor gave me. Colonel Palacios 
 
EMPEROR MAXIMILIAN 293 
 
 arrived at half-past six. I accompanied him as far as the 
 staircase. He pressed my hand, slightly bowed his head, 
 and smiled ; I endeavoured to follow, but my strength gave 
 away, and I could not. In half an hour the unprecedented 
 execution had taken place. At eight Colonel Palacios, 
 deeply moved, returned to the cell, and, grasping my hand, 
 said, ' Era una alma grande.' " 
 
 The Official Gazette of Vienna publishes the following 
 letter, written by a gentleman who witnessed the execution 
 of the Emperor Maximilian : — 
 
 " When, on Wednesday, at six o'clock in the morning, the 
 condemned went out from the convent of the Capucins, the 
 Emperor, crossing the threshold, turned back and said to 
 Ortega, his counsel, ' What a beautiful sky ! That day is such 
 as I wished the day of my death should be.' 
 
 " They were all of them dressed in black. Each of them 
 got in a carriage with a priest. These carriages, escorted 
 by 4,000 soldiers, took the road leading to the Surra de la 
 Campana, a hill at a little distance from the town of Quere- 
 taro. It was at one hundred steps from that point where the 
 Emperor had surrendered on the 15th. The condemned 
 alighted at the spot where they were to be executed. The 
 Emperor shook off the dust covering his clothes ; his de- 
 portment was resolute, he carried his head high. He asked 
 who were the soldiers chosen to shoot him ; he gave an ounce 
 of gold to each of them, and requested them to aim at his 
 chest. 
 
 "The young officer who was in command went to the 
 Emperor and expressed to him how much he feared that 
 the Emperor would die bearing ill-will to him, while, on the 
 contrary, he disapproved from the bottom of his heart the 
 mission he was compelled to perform. 'Muchacho ! ' (young 
 man), answered the Emperor, 'the duty of a soldier is to 
 obey. I thank you for your pity, but I request you to fulfil 
 the order given to you.' 
 
 "Then the Emperor advanced towards Miramon and 
 
294 MAXIMILIAN'S LAST WORDS 
 
 Mejia and embraced them with affection, telling them, ' We 
 shall soon meet again in the other world.' 
 
 " The Emperor, who was between them, addressed Mira- 
 mon thus : ' General, sovereigns admire brave men, and, 
 before dying, I will give you the place of honour.' Then 
 he turned to Mejia, and said to him, ' General, what has not 
 been rewarded on this earth shall be rewarded in heaven.' 
 Mejia was the most dejected among them. A few minutes 
 before he had seen his wife carrying his child in her arms, 
 her chest naked, wildly running through the streets as if a 
 prey to madness. 
 
 " The Emperor, making a few steps forward, pronounced, 
 with a clear voice and with a remarkable serenity, the 
 following words : — 
 
 " ' Mexicans ! The men of my blood and of my origin, 
 the men animated with sentiments such as mine, are de- 
 signed by Providence for founding the happiness of nations 
 or for dying as martyrs. When I came to you I had not a 
 single concealed thought. I came after having been re- 
 quested to do so by well-meaning Mexicans, by those who 
 sacrifice themselves to-day for my adopted country. On the 
 moment of departing from this world I carry away with me 
 the consolation of having done nothing but good to the 
 extent of my strength, and of not being abandoned by my 
 beloved and trusting generals. Mexicans ! May my blood 
 be the last that shall be shed ; may my unhappy adopted 
 country rise up again ! ' 
 
 "Then the Emperor moved back a few steps, advanced 
 one of his feet, raised his eyes to the sky, put his right hand 
 on his breast, and quietly waited death. 
 
 " Miramon took a paper from his pocket, slowly glanced 
 on the 4,000 soldiers as if he were still their general, and 
 said : ' Mexican soldiers ! Fellow-citizens ! You see me here 
 as a man sentenced to death for treason. At a moment when 
 life has already ceased to belong to me, when, in a few 
 minutes, I shall be no more, I declare to you all, before the 
 world, that I was never guilty of treason against my country. 
 I fought for order, and it is for that cause that I succumb 
 
A LETTER OF DUMAS' 295 
 
 now, but with honour. I have sons, but they will never be 
 touched by the calumny with which I have been infamously 
 polluted. Mexicans ! vivat Mexico ! vivat the Emperor ! ' 
 He pronounced these words with a thundering voice. All 
 hearts were moved, many eyes were filled with tears. 
 
 "Not a single inhabitant of Queretaro assisted at the 
 execution. The streets were deserted, and the houses shut. 
 The bodies were embalmed. It is reported that the Emperor 
 has bequeathed 50,000 thalers to Miramon's sons, and has 
 requested his brother, the Emperor of Austria, to treat them 
 like his own children. Mejia has recommended his son to 
 Escobedo, whom he made prisoner several times, whose life 
 he saved more than once." 
 
 June 2gth. 
 
 Alexandre Dumas has discovered a new solution for the 
 immense powers of attraction he has long possessed. The 
 veteran romancist does not attribute his popularity to his 
 talent, but to the amount of magnetic fluid with which he is 
 endowed, as you will see by the following letter addressed 
 to the editor of the Journal du Havre : — 
 
 " Sir, — Would you be kind enough to act as my interpreter 
 to the distinguished persons who were so good as to receive 
 me on my arrival at Havre, and with whom, by their simple 
 volition, I have been since yesterday ? I am more touched 
 than surprised by this sympathy which comes to me volun- 
 tarily, and gives me special importance in my own estima- 
 tion, inasmuch as it neither proceeds from what I have 
 written, or shall ever write, but simply from the magnetic 
 reciprocity which I feel and inspire. The occult and myste- 
 rious phase of this sentiment makes it very difficult for 
 me adequately to express the gratitude with which it inspires 
 me. However this may be, Havre is the city wherein I have 
 always experienced and given out the greatest amount of 
 this tender and fraternal affection. 
 
 " Accept, sir, the assurance, etc., 
 
 "Alex. Dumas." 
 
296 M. OLLIVIER'S GRIEF 
 
 M. Emile Ollivier first married a daughter of the great 
 pianist Liszt. The lady died and was buried in the enclosed 
 cemetery of St. Tropez. You enter by a great gate, closed 
 during the night to the public, but there is likewise a side 
 door, of which M. Ollivier was given the key, in order that 
 he might indulge his grief by moonlight, if it so pleased him. 
 During the elections the Mayor and M. Ollivier, not taking 
 the same view of things in general, came to open warfare, 
 and on the hustings M. le Maire got the worst of it. Now 
 access by this side door to the cemetery was a privilege his 
 worship alone could grant. Feeling himself aggrieved, he 
 had a padlock put on the door. M. Ollivier stormed and 
 wrote letters, and reported the affair in such high quarters 
 that M. le Maire had nothing for it but to have the padlock 
 taken off, and humbly restore to the deputy of the Opposi- 
 tion his right to mourn over his wife's grave. ' 
 
 July \st. 
 
 At the last meeting of the Academy of Science the 
 learned members of that body were much surprised at see- 
 ing a deal box containing an old boot placed on the table. 
 It proved by no means to be a historical article of dress, 
 but simply the boot of a poor workman, and yet it was 
 brought into this erudite assembly under no less high 
 auspices than those of M. Becquerel, whose special study is 
 electricity. The story of this wonderful boot is thus re- 
 lated : On Sunday, the 22nd ult, a violent thunderstorm 
 burst over Paris. A workman was crossing the road leading 
 from Bercy to the Jardin des Plantes, when he suddenly felt 
 an oppression on his chest, and in a few seconds was thrown 
 on his face by an irresistible force. He lost the use of his 
 senses, and in this condition was picked up and carried home. 
 On examination of his body there was no external mark of 
 violence, and there was not even a scratch visible. During 
 the two days which succeeded his fall he was unable to con- 
 trol a violent trembling. At the expiration of that period 
 
RENTS IN THE NEW AVENUES 297 
 
 he, however, revived, and it was thought that no trace 
 remained of his strange accident. This was a mistake, how- 
 ever, for his boots remained. The said boots were heavy hob- 
 nailed workman's boots, and the lightning had abstracted the 
 greater number of the nails. Two members of the Academy, 
 after listening to M. Becquerel's statement, said that this 
 phenomenon was by no means new. General Morin stated 
 that at Charenton cannon-balls piled in pyramidical heaps 
 had been suddenly projected in every direction under the 
 influence of electric fluid during the same thunderstorm. 
 Marshal Vaillant related that a few years ago, in the Bois de 
 Vincennes, a soldier was knocked down by the same fluid, 
 his shoes dragged off" his feet, and all the nails of the said 
 shoes extracted, as in the case of M. Becquerel's work- 
 man. 
 
 The following experience will convey some idea of the 
 rent demanded by the proprietors of the Haussmannic 
 edifices of which the new avenues are constructed. Having 
 been asked by a friend of mine, a physician, to look out 
 for an apartment for himself, his wife, and daughter, in a 
 respectable part of the town, I found an entresol in the 
 Avenue Haussman, which appeared to me to be likely to 
 suit my friend, till I inquired its price. " Sixteen thousand 
 francs a year," was the concierge's cool reply ; " and, 
 monsieur, we do not admit families with children. M. le 
 Propri^taire is strict on that point. Neither children nor 
 dogs. Your friend keeps carriages as a matter of course ; 
 there are stables and coachhouses." "But no nurseries?" 
 I remarked. "Ciel, au grand jamais, non," was the in- 
 dignant reply. 
 
 July i2th. 
 
 A small pamphlet appeared this morning under the follow- 
 ing title : Nero's Last Will and Testament, as dictated by 
 him on the igth January — Nero, 1 need scarcely remind you, 
 was the Emperor's favourite dog. Among the last wishes 
 expressed by this sagacious animal I find the following : — 
 
298 NERO'S LAST WILL 
 
 "The French nation having a weakness for statues, I do 
 not object to one being erected in my honour; but still I 
 wish this tribute to my memory to be done with modera- 
 tion ; therefore it will only be put up on all the public squares 
 of Paris, of the chief towns of the departments, and the most 
 important villages of the provinces. These statues shall 
 either be cast in bronze or plaster, according to the import- 
 ance of the locality. Not wishing that posterity should 
 laugh at me, I specially forbid that I should be reproduced 
 on horseback." It is all very well for Nero to issue his 
 directions as to how and where he chose to be immortalised ; 
 but if M. Ingres, the great artist of the classic school, had 
 done likewise, he would not have been wrong, as at the hour 
 I write there are no less than thirty-five specimen statues 
 exhibited at the Ecole des Beaux Arts of the great little 
 man^the one more thoroughly absurd than the other. If 
 you happen to have ever seen the great illustration of the 
 Orleanist dynasty, you will remember that neither M. Ingres's 
 figure nor general appearance was anything but favourable 
 to the sculptor's art ; consequently all true admirers of the 
 late senator-artist trust Government will select an allegorical 
 group representing Fame crowning the bust of M. Ingres. 
 Amongst the models sent up for approbation is a life-size 
 cast of the great leader of the purely classic school in the act 
 of taking snuff. 
 
 July i6tk. 
 
 A gentleman received last night the following telegram : 
 " Your mother-in-law just expired. Should this reach in 
 time start by train de plaisir at nine p.m." 
 
 July zyth. 
 
 The following anecdote, illustrative of the habits and 
 customs of our countrymen, is going the round of the 
 papers, and is gravely cited as an example of the eccentricity 
 of our Legislature. A gentleman very much afraid of fire 
 insured his house, furniture and clothes, and, in fact, his 
 
"TO MY THIRD FATHER" 299 
 
 whole possessions. Some months afterwards he claimed an 
 indemnity for a case of cigars he had smoked, on the plea 
 of the cigars having been destroyed by fire. Naturally the 
 company laughed at the demand, but the gentleman sued 
 the directors, and, according to the French version, gained 
 his lawsuit, inasmuch as his policy bore the words, " What- 
 ever goods perish by fire." The story is believed, and its 
 readers shrug their shouders, remarking, " Quelle nation 
 excentrique ! " 
 
 July z%th. 
 
 A young author, who received much kindness from 
 Alexandre Dumas, brought the latter his first volume, re- 
 marking that he would like to write a few words on the 
 flyleaf. " Pray do," said Dumas. The young author took up 
 his pen and seemed puzzled what to write. " Well," observed 
 the author oi Monte Crista, "what are you hesitating about?" 
 " I am embarrassed, for I owe you everything, and without 
 you I should not be known." " Write," said Dumas, " if you 
 like, ' a mon second pere ' " (to my second father). " I was 
 thinking of doing so." " Then why don't you write it ? " 
 said Dumas. "Why, you see, I have already written 'To 
 my second father ' on a copy I sent to my uncle at Lyons." 
 " Well, then," said Alexandre Dumas, " write ' to my third 
 father.' " 
 
 Jul)/ ^ist. 
 
 I gather the following anecdote from the same source, only 
 the scene related occurred last winter at a private party at 
 the Tuileries, and not at Fontainebleau. After dinner the 
 Court were playing a.t j'eux de sociiti. The question proposed 
 was : " How distinguish truth from a lie ? " It was the 
 Emperor's turn to reply : " Nothing more simple. Open the 
 door to both, and the lie will be sure to enter first." At this 
 moment the folding doors were thrown open, and a groom 
 of the chambers announced two of the ministers, who were 
 seen to bow to each other and each to decline accepting the 
 
300 THE COST OF A SLAP 
 
 precedence. At last the younger of the two Excellencies 
 remarked that he had but recently joined the Cabinet, and 
 that it was evident his colleague had the pas. The company, 
 meanwhile, attracted by the singular coincidence, were not 
 a little amused to perceive M. Rouher, the Minister of State, 
 enter the salon, followed by M. Pinard, and their Excellencies 
 were much puzzled by the hilarity their arrival occasioned. 
 
 August 2'^rd. 
 
 The affair which took place in the Bureaux du Pays, when 
 a cashiered naval lieutenant entered the office of that paper, 
 and, having ascertained the identity of M, de Cassagnac, 
 struck him on the face, has now been settled. For this act of 
 violence he (M. Lullier) has been sentenced to six months' 
 imprisonment and 200 f. penalty. 
 
 It is well known what it has cost M. Rochefort for having in 
 his Lanterne attacked the present dynasty. The above state- 
 ment shows what a slap administered on the cheek of a 
 political writer is valued at by French tribunals. It may now 
 be interesting to see what small importance the Correctional 
 Police attaches to a French novelist's nose. The nose I 
 am speaking of ought to excite respect, if not pity and 
 commiseration, inasmuch as it appertains to one of the most 
 productive and amusing of French novelists, Maximilian 
 Perrin. He, like Paul de Kock and Victor Ducange, has 
 in his writings celebrated les grisettes, les dames de la halle, 
 chevaliers d'industrie, robbers and highwaymen. As a sensa- 
 tional romancist he has ever had great success. The other 
 day, as he was walking up the Rue Joquelet, an immense 
 ladder fell on his head, crushing his hat, smashing his 
 spectacles and excoriating his nose to such an extent that 
 it took some time to bring together the lips of the wound. 
 Dorel, the locksmith, who was the main cause of the 
 accident, by allowing his ladder to fall upon Perrin's 
 olfactory apparatus, was sentenced to i6f. penalty as well as 
 to 25 f. damages to the said writer; 41 f. in all. This is not 
 
THE MYSTERIOUS PERSIAN 301 
 
 setting much value on the novelist's nose ; and altogether it 
 appears to me, in a pecuniary point of view, a more re- 
 productive event to have one's cheeks slapped than one's 
 nose laddered. 
 
 August ^oth. 
 
 The Persian of the Italian Opera was found yesterday 
 morning dead in his bed by his servant. He was a well- 
 known habitu^, as he sat in the corner box on the right of 
 the stage, his high-peaked astracan cap, with its little tuft of 
 white, so drawn over his face that his eyes were the only 
 feature visible, for his soft silvery beard concealed the rest 
 of his face, and his person was completely enveloped in his 
 vast robe of fine black cloth, his small, delicately shaped hands 
 crossed and hidden in the wide sleeves of this truly Eastern 
 garment. The pale features and strange look of resignation 
 of the Persian prince were familiar to us, as he daily drove 
 along the Champs Elysees to take his solitary drive in the 
 Bois. For twenty-five years the existence of this singular 
 Oriental has never varied. Every night was he to be seen 
 either at the Opera or the Italiens, and, when these were 
 closed, at the Opera Comique. The sphynx-like impassibility 
 of his countenance has never been known to change, whether 
 the audiences of which he formed an item, under the im- 
 pulse of a Patti, or a Faure, or a Grisi, or a Mario, or an 
 Alboni, or a Garcia, frantically applauded or energetically 
 hissed the idol of the hour. The same unmoved expression 
 and motionless figure remained in his loge till the curtain 
 dropped, and then stealthily glided along the corridors till he 
 reached his carriage. Prince Ismael, for so he was called, 
 contributed some articles on Oriental literature to La Revue 
 des Deux Mondes, and, on one occasion, when asked by M. 
 Garcin de Tassy, the Professor of Oriental Languages of the 
 College de France, why he was invariably clad in black, he 
 replied by a quotation from Horace. For twenty-six years he 
 occupied the same apartment in the Rue de Rivoli, opposite 
 the gardens, attended by the same servant, whose duty it 
 
304 CHAMPFLEURY 
 
 About twenty or twenty-five years ago Champfleury was 
 almost unknown to fame. Victor Hugo's attention was 
 drawn towards him by a novelette entitled Chien-Caillou, 
 and he instantly sent to the then Bohemian writer a most 
 flattering letter expressing a wish to make his acquaintance. 
 Champfleury started at once for the poet's residence, Place 
 Royale. On his arrival he was informed that there was 
 company at dinner, but nevertheless was ushered into the 
 splendid drawing-room. Without paying the slightest atten- 
 tion to the magnificence of the apartment, decorated with 
 panoplies of arms, velvet draperies, sculptured bahuis, and 
 relics of the Middle Ages, the author of Chien-Caillou, per- 
 ceiving an immense Angora cat warming its paws near 
 the fireside, lazily stretched on an Indian carpet, imitated 
 the example of his feline host. When the author of Notre 
 Dame de Paris entered the salon, accompanied by his guests, 
 he was somewhat surprised to see his visitor full-length on 
 the floor, deeply absorbed in a game of romps with old puss. 
 Victor Hugo, struck by the original nature of the new- 
 comer, instead of talking to him of his works, began a 
 conversation about cats, and the whole evening was spent in 
 relating anecdotes of the genus felis. This interview between 
 the great poet and Champfleury may, probably, have sug- 
 gested to the latter the first idea of the present volume. Les 
 Chats is a book well worth reading ; it thoroughly initiates 
 us into the ancient and modern history of cats, giving us a 
 clever apergu of the mythological r$le they played in Egypt, 
 Greece, Rome, etc., and containing numerous anecdotes illus- 
 trative of the habits, customs and manners of King Grimalkin 
 and his descendants. The work is beautifully got up, with 
 most characteristic woodcuts, copied from Egyptian and 
 Japanese designs, as well as from modern artists of every 
 country. 
 
GUSTAVE DORE 305 
 
 November 2>th. 
 
 Yesterday I paid a visit to the atelier of M. Gustave Dord. 
 The great artist had just left the bedside of the great maestro 
 Rossini, to whom he is attached by ties of the closest intimacy 
 and affection. The Rossini of painting has long been the 
 favourite of the mighty genius whose musical inspirations, 
 like the artistic productions of the younger child of genius, 
 have abordi every style — from grave to gay, from humorous 
 to sacred. That Rossini is almost beyond all hope of re- 
 covery is the painful impression of the multitude who daily 
 crowd to his house at Passy in the hope of reading a favour- 
 able bulletin. Yesterday he was in a most excited state, and 
 was not easy to approach. Marshal Vaillant, in the name of 
 the Emperor, inquires daily in person ; ambassadors, ministers, 
 the stars of the literary, artistic and scientific world inscribe 
 their names twice a day in the book of inquirers. If this be 
 indeed his last illness, the great musical genius of the age 
 will at least have had the consolation of leaving the world 
 while in the apotheosis of his fame, which even at the 
 advanced age of seventy-eight he has not outlived. My 
 special business in paying a visit to the atelier. Rue Bayard, 
 was to see the magnificent reproduction of an Alpine scene 
 which the Gaulois gave an account of. Three chefs cTceuvre, 
 however, occupied the wall opposite that, covered by a 
 gigantic canvas, on which is a splendid scene, taken from the 
 Gospel of St. John, as yet in too unfinished a state to report 
 upon. The first of the three paintings which thus greeted 
 me is a view in the Savoisien Alps — a rocky glen, bounded 
 by the snowy peaks of the Alpine ridges, a lake, in the deep, 
 blue waters of which lichen - covered rocks lie, as it were, 
 scattered ; the mist of evening rising and softening the barren 
 scdnery by the delicate hues reflected from a setting sun, form 
 a picture indeed worthy of Dord's brush. Next to this is 
 a smaller picture of the well-known Rosenlaui, the details 
 given with a precision he has hitherto set aside ; and the 
 
 X 
 
306 DEATH OF ROSSINI 
 
 third painting is of a totally different class — romance and 
 love have inspired this gem. "Le Premier Regard" is its 
 title. The scene lies in Alsace — a mountain path through 
 a wood ; a young girl scarce sixteen, on whose arm an aged 
 grandmother leans, has just passed a youth accompanying an 
 old man laden like himself, with sticks for firing. The old 
 dame, bent with age, by no means perceives that her young 
 charge has turned round to return the passing salute of the 
 stalwart young peasant. Les vieux discreetly mind their own 
 business. Their day of love-making is over, and they have 
 enough to do to get along the weary road, and keep con- 
 tinually looking on the ground for stones and other impedi- 
 ments which might cause them to stumble. The simple 
 story is told at once, and the whole is bathed in a flood of 
 golden light, which blends with the blue-green of the evening 
 sky of a summer's day. The glory of this setting sun, the 
 clear stillness of the perfumed air, by which every leaf, every 
 flower, every insect is seen as through a microscope, must be 
 seen to be judged. " Le Premier Regard " is a gem of loveli- 
 ness, and will not, I fear, long remain in France. 
 
 November \^th. 
 
 Rossini is dead, and the whole of Paris is alive to the loss 
 of this great musical composer, who began his artistic career 
 at twenty years of age by Tancredi, and ended it at thirty- 
 eight by Guillaume Tell. During those eighteen or twenty 
 years of hard work he wrote no lesS than forty operas, the 
 Barbiere di Seviglia being without exception the most 
 popular one. The annals of the world can hardly furnish a 
 more interesting example of innate genius bursting the 
 trammels of poverty, and winning itself, with resistless im- 
 pulse, a position commensurate with its worth, than does the 
 career of Gioacchino Rossini, who from being the son of a 
 poor orchestral horn -player rose to become the rival of 
 Mozart. The post-mortem examination which is now made 
 by the whole of the French press of his character, as well as 
 
LES PAPILLONS 307 
 
 of his genius, is a most touching one, inasnmuch as it unani- 
 mously recalls, without any flattery or fulsome adulation, the 
 merits of all the marvellous chefs d'aeuvre that have emanated 
 from the great maestro, as well as the kindness and generosity 
 of his heart. His last moments were most painful. Towards 
 five o'clock in the afternoon of Friday the death struggle com- 
 menced. The breathing became most difficult, and it was 
 painful to listen to. Every ten minutes glasses of iced water 
 were given to the dying man to quench his intolerable thirst, 
 for an internal burning caused him the most agonising suffer- 
 ing. He literally writhed in his bed, uttering broken sentences. 
 The last name on his lips was that of his wife, the celebrated 
 Olympe, whose hand he kissed with affection a few moments 
 before he lost his consciousness. He had composed a 
 Stabat to be executed at his own funeral. The Opera artists 
 have been for the last few days practising this mortuary 
 production, which will be performed at the burial ceremony 
 on Wednesday next. 
 
 In this cold, damp and muddy atmosphere it is a real 
 treat to be able to meet with a book which recalls the bright 
 and sunny days of spring. Such a book it has been my 
 happy lot to peruse this morning near my fireside, and as it 
 is intended for a Christmas present, I cannot do better than 
 mention it for the benefit of those who care about an in- 
 teresting and well-written French work, and who have a fancy 
 for butterflies, those tiny and fairy loiterers — 
 
 " Playing all the day in their Sunday dress," 
 
 as our poor unfortunate Clare used to say of them. Le 
 Monde des Papillons, such is the title of the work I allude to ; 
 and the greatest praise I can give of it is that it is published 
 by J. Rothschild, and written and illustrated by Maurice 
 Sand, son of the celebrated George Sand, to whose gifted pen 
 we owe also the charming preface attached to the volume. 
 The habits, customs, instincts, loves, metamorphosis, etc., of 
 butterflies are here most poetically described. Besides sixty- 
 six engravings, the book contains fifty beautiful chromo- 
 
306 DEATH OF ROSSINI 
 
 third painting is of a totally different class — romance and 
 love have inspired this gem. " Le Premier Regard " is its 
 title. The scene lies in Alsace — a mountain path through 
 a wood ; a young girl scarce sixteen, on whose arm an aged 
 grandmother leans, has just passed a youth accompanying an 
 old man laden like himself, with sticks for firing. The old 
 dame, bent with age, by no means perceives that her young 
 charge has turned round to return the passing salute of the 
 stalwart young peasant. Les vieux discreetly mind their own 
 business. Their day of love-making is over, and they have 
 enough to do to get along the weary road, and keep con- 
 tinually looking on the ground for stones and other impedi- 
 ments which might cause them to stumble. The simple 
 story is told at once, and the whole is bathed in a flood of 
 golden light, which blends with the blue-green of the evening 
 sky of a summer's day. The glory of this setting sun, the 
 clear stillness of the perfumed air, by which every leaf, every 
 flower, every insect is seen as through a microscope, must be 
 seen to be judged. " Le Premier Regard " is a gem of loveli- 
 ness, and will not, I fear, long remain in France. 
 
 November i ^th. 
 
 Rossini is dead, and the whole of Paris is alive to the loss 
 of this great musical composer, who began his artistic career 
 at twenty years of age by Tancredi, and ended it at thirty- 
 eight by Guillaume Tell. During those eighteen or twenty 
 years of hard work he wrote no lesS than forty operas, the 
 Barbiere di Seviglia being without exception the most 
 popular one. The annals of the world can hardly furnish a 
 more interesting example of innate genius bursting the 
 trammels of poverty, and winning itself, with resistless im- 
 pulse, a position commensurate with its worth, than does the 
 career of Gioacchino Rossini, who from being the son of a 
 poor orchestral horn -player rose to become the rival of 
 Mozart. The post-mortem examination which is now made 
 by the whole of the French press of his character, as well as 
 
LES PAPILLONS 307 
 
 of his genius, is a most touching one, inasmuch as it unani- 
 mously recalls, without any flattery or fulsome adulation, the 
 merits of all the marvellous chefs d'ceuvre that have emanated 
 from the great maestro, as well as the kindness and generosity 
 of his heart. His last moments were most painful. Towards 
 five o'clock in the afternoon of Friday the death struggle com- 
 menced. The breathing became most difficult, and it was 
 painful to listen to. Every ten minutes glasses of iced water 
 were given to the dying man to quench his intolerable thirst, 
 for an internal burning caused him the most agonising suffer- 
 ing. He literally writhed in his bed, uttering broken sentences. 
 The last name on his lips was that of his wife, the celebrated 
 Olympe, whose hand he kissed with affection a few moments 
 before he lost his consciousness. He had composed a 
 Stabat to be executed at his own funeral. The Opera artists 
 have been for the last few days practising this mortuary 
 production, which will be performed at the burial ceremony 
 on Wednesday next. 
 
 In this cold, damp and muddy atmosphere it is a real 
 treat to be able to meet with a book which recalls the bright 
 and sunny days of spring. Such a book it has been my 
 happy lot to peruse this morning near my fireside, and as it 
 is intended for a Christmas present, I cannot do better than 
 mention it for the benefit of those who care about an in- 
 teresting and well-written French work, and who have a fancy 
 for butterflies, those tiny and fairy loiterers — 
 
 " Playing all the day in their Sunday dress," 
 
 as our poor unfortunate Clare used to say of them. Le 
 Monde des Papillons, such is the title of the work I allude to ; 
 and the greatest praise I can give of it is that it is published 
 by J. Rothschild, and written and illustrated by Maurice 
 Sand, son of the celebrated George Sand, to whose gifted pen 
 we owe also the charming preface attached to the volume. 
 The habits, customs, instincts, loves, metamorphosis, etc., of 
 butterflies are here most poetically described. Besides sixty- 
 six engravings, the book contains fifty beautiful chromo- 
 
308 THE FUNERAL 
 
 lithographs, giving us a specimen of each European butterfly, 
 each decked with its well-known gems, emeralds and rubies, 
 and so lifelike are they executed that one almost fancies 
 they are opening and shutting their richly tinted wings in 
 the sunshine. A correspondent is generally better acquainted 
 with canards than with butterflies, but in presence of such 
 a work he almost regrets having to handle a goose-quill 
 instead of a butterfly's net. And then, what a lesson do we 
 not derive from the study of these bright yet ephemeral 
 insects ! Witness, for instance, the following allegory : " A 
 humming-bird met a butterfly, and, pleased with its beauty, 
 made an offer of perpetual friendship. ' Quite out of the 
 question,' was the reply, 'for you once spurned me and 
 called me a crawling dolt.' 'You mistake,' exclaimed the 
 bird ; ' I have entertained the highest respect for such 
 creatures as you.' ' Now perhaps that may be,' said the 
 other, 'but when you insulted me I was a caterpillar. So 
 let me give you a piece of advice — never insult the humble, 
 as they may some day become your superior.' " 
 
 And now, having ended my daily gossip by this piece of 
 morality, I have nothing to add but adieu — d. demain ! 
 
 November i6th. 
 
 Rossini's burial will be one of the most imposing cere- 
 monies of the year; the Requiem of Mozart and the Stabat 
 composed by Rossini will most likely be executed, not only 
 by the Opera artistes, but by those of all the lyric theatres. 
 Madame Alboni, who for many years had refused to sing in 
 public, has asked as a favour to be allowed to join in the 
 splendid choir of artistes which will pay a last tribute to the 
 memory of the mighty composer. This request she made 
 after having knelt by the bedside of the illustrious defunct. 
 Amongst the clauses of Rossini's will there is one clause 
 which states that, in gratitude, for the hospitality he received 
 in France, he wishes to be buried at P^re la Chaise ; by the 
 other clause he leaves to the Institute of France 6,000 f. a 
 
OF ROSSINI 309 
 
 year, to be divided in two prizes, which are to be annually 
 delivered — the first to the poet author of the best opera 
 libretto, and the second to the composer who shall have 
 written the best opera. With the exception of these two 
 legacies, the whole fortune returns to Madame Rossini, «/« 
 Olympe. 
 
 November I'ith. 
 
 A visit to the subterranean vaults of the Madeleine on a 
 gloomy day in November is anything but a lively occupation. 
 It is one which it is very difficult to obtain permission for, 
 and when one's object has been accomplished one questions 
 whether sufficient interest attaches to the spot to compensate 
 for the trouble taken to make the pilgrimage. Along narrow, 
 vaulted passages, damp and sepulchral, you proceed till you 
 reach the low and dinrtly lighted crypt, the walls of which are 
 hung with star-spangled black cloth. Here are deposited 
 the coffins of those whose funerals for various reasons have 
 been delayed beyond the time prescribed by French law, and 
 here reposes the yet unburied maestro, Gioacchino Antonio 
 Rossini, his coffin covered with black cloth, edged with silver 
 braid, and adorned with handles of massive bronze. It is of 
 a great size, and, I was told, is of tremendous weight. His 
 name and the date of his birth (1792) and of his death are the 
 only inscriptions it bears. The funeral will take place on 
 Saturday at La Trinity, because Thursday is the only day 
 when the whole church of La Madeleine can be engaged for 
 a funeral ceremony ; and, as early yesterday morning the 
 number of invitations issued in the name of Madame Rossini 
 amounted to four thousand, it will be easily understood that 
 the whole of a vast enceinte is required for the reception of 
 the immense numbers which are flocking from all parts of 
 France and even Italy to pay a last homage to the departed 
 genius. 
 
3IO STORIES OF 
 
 November igtk. 
 
 The body of Rossini has been removed to-dav from the 
 crypt of the Madeleine to the Trinit6. The Italian Govern- 
 ment offered to bury him with almost regal honours, pro- 
 vided his remains were interred in Italian ground. Madame 
 Rossini, however, declined the offer as inconsistent with the 
 clause in her husband's will. The veteran Auber is engaged 
 in superintending the practising at the Conservatoire of the 
 Prayer in Moses and the mass to be executed on Saturday. 
 The Stabat Mater of Rossini is to be performed at the 
 Opera on Saturday evening in commemoration of the great 
 maestro's death. As you are aware, Rossini was well known 
 for his bons-mots. A few days before his death he asked 
 Madame Rossini what hour it was ; and when she had 
 answered, he next inquired what was the difference between 
 her and a clock : " The clock points out the hour to me, 
 whilst you make me forget it." 
 
 Gustave Dor^, on the day of the Empress's y?^!'^, offered an 
 exquisite pen-and-ink sketch drawn on wood to the Empress, 
 and a copy of his " Purgatoire " avant la lettre to His Majesty. 
 Amongst the party who left Paris for the chateau yesterday, 
 and who will therefore be present during the visit of the 
 Prince and Princess of Wales, are the Italian ambassador, 
 the President of the Corps L^gislatif, the Minister of the 
 Interior, the Minister of Public Instruction, M. Nisard (the 
 academician), the Turkish ambassador, the Count and 
 Countess de Moltke, the Marquis of Lansdowne, Cabanel (the 
 great artist), and Ambroise Thomas (the composer of the 
 opera Hamlet). The last gossip from the Opera is that we 
 are soon to have Gounod's Faust, as the public has had 
 enough of Hamlet for the present. Toujours perdrix! 
 
ROSSINI 311 
 
 November 2/^th. 
 
 Thanks to the gracious permission of Mdlle. Christine 
 Nilsson, I extract from her scarlet- bound album the follow- 
 ing, inscribed by the great maestro on its first page; the 
 handwriting is bold and clear : — 
 
 "Vous voulez que je sois le premier k griiTonner votre 
 album. Vous exposez par ce pr6mice, le singe de Pesaro k 
 vous dire les banalit^s que toute le monde rabache du matin au 
 soir. Que vous fetes la creature la plus aimable de la terre ; 
 que vous fetes jolie comme les amours ; que vous chantez 
 comme un rossignol, etc. etc. Moi, ex-compositeur, qui n'ai 
 jamais imitfe personne, je me vois plac6 comme tous, en devoir 
 de vous rdpfeter que vous fetes adorable, rien que ca ! Banalitd 
 dont je m'honore quis qu'elle me permet de m'inscrire, votre 
 admirateur d^voud. Sans omettre la ferveur du singe de 
 Pesaro. 
 
 "G. Rossini. 
 
 " Paris, 27 Avril, 1867." 
 
 I do not give you this relic as a specimen of French com- 
 position, but as a tribute paid to the fair Ophelia of whose 
 musical genius Rossini had so high and so just an apprecia- 
 tion. We are all expecting Faust at the Grand Opera, but 
 we are not to enjoy this treat till February. As you are 
 aware, there is in Faust but one rdle worthy of a great artist, 
 and that is Marguerite. Christine Nilsson, with that extreme 
 modesty and immense generosity for which she is so well 
 known, has actually offered to yield this part to Madame 
 Carvalho, in a letter addressed to M. Perrin, the director of 
 the Opera, of which I do not give you a translation, as it 
 appears in all the evening papers. It is unnecessary to add 
 that neither the public nor M. Perrin will consent to any such 
 sacrifice. 
 
312 DORE'S DRAWING OF ROSSINI 
 
 November ^oth. 
 
 The ambassador of the United States, General Dix, a 
 great connoisseur and protector of the fine arts, paid a visit 
 this afternoon to M, Gustave Dord's atelier, to inspect a 
 magnificent drawing in black-and-blue pencil, executed by 
 the great artist, of Rossini, as he lay after death, before being 
 placed in his coffin. A ihore splendid effort of genius has 
 seldom been executed. The head lies almost buried in 
 pillows, the creases of which, formed by the weight of the 
 head, almost create a sort of aurdole. The whole of the bust 
 is displayed, as well as the hands crossed and grasping a 
 small crucifix. The features retain the expression of immense 
 concentration of thought, and, in spite of the cadaverous 
 appearance imparted to the whole body, by the marvellous 
 genius of Dor6's pencil, the likeness to the living Rossini is 
 positively startling. Dore, in this sketch, has presented him- 
 self to the artistic world in a new light, for if in " Elaine " he 
 represented the poetry of death, in this masterpiece he gives 
 the reality in its imposing majesty. A laurel crown, which 
 had been placed by a friendly hand, lies at the foot of the 
 bed. Several members of the deputation from Pesaro called 
 on M. Dor6 to view this interesting souvenir of their great 
 compatriot. So affected were they by this splendid sketch, 
 and the marvellous fidelity with which the maestrds features 
 had been delineated, that they were melted to tears. 
 
 December 2nd, 
 
 There was a regular row last night at the Italiens. The 
 peristyle of the house was from half-past seven to nine a 
 scene of confusion and uproar such as is seldom witnessed in 
 the sanctuary of the upper ten thousand. // Barbiere di 
 Seviglia was to be performed, and, of course, as usual, La 
 Diva was to have sung. At the last moment a piece of white 
 
MDLLE. NILSSON 313 
 
 paper pasted across the bill conveyed to us the disappointing 
 intelligence that Rosina was ill. Those who had in the 
 morning paid eighteen francs for their fauteuils, those who 
 had waited an hour in the queue to buy their places, and had 
 waited patiently for the mere sake of hearing her, were of 
 course frantic. Ladies in full dress had sent away their 
 carriages, and had no means of returning home. Cries of 
 " L'argent, rendez I'argent 1 " were uttered. The box-keepers, 
 considerably frightened, were willing enough to return the 
 money ; but it was a slow and difficult process, and the 
 possession of their money by no means calmed the mal- 
 contents. The house was nevertheless crowded, and loud 
 plaudits from every part of the house proved to Mdlle. Grossi 
 that, although she had never studied the role, she was con- 
 sidered fully worthy of replacing La Diva Patti. This 
 popular young artiste displayed an amount of courage for 
 which we owe her thanks. Her splendid voice was never, 
 even in Lucrezia, where she sings with such force, heard to 
 greater advantage. 
 
 The event of yesterday morning in the artistic and religious 
 world was the annual celebration of the fete of Ste. C^cile at 
 Cardinal Richelieu's favourite church of St. Eustache. By 
 nine in the morning crowds had assembled, although the 
 service only commenced at eleven, attracted by the report 
 that Mdlle. Nilsson was to sing the Gloria in Excelsis. 
 M. Ambroise Thomas, composer of Hamlet, conducted the 
 orchestra. The whole of the immense nave was filled to 
 excess, although admission was only granted by the purchase 
 of tickets, the proceeds being handed over to the fund for 
 sick and disabled artists. The Kyrie Eleison, sung by all the 
 choirs, and accompanied by the full orchestra, had a splendid 
 effect; however, the musical triumph of the day were the 
 Gloria and the Agnus Dei, sung by Mdlle. Nilsson. To 
 convey an impression of the exquisite purity, the holy fervour, 
 and the musical science displayed by this fair young votary 
 of Ste. C^cile, is simply impossible. If, as the last notes of 
 the Agnus Dei died away, we did not express our admiration 
 
314 MAZZINI 
 
 in rapturous applause, it was only because the execution of 
 the chaunt impressed us with a feeling of solemn awe, and 
 recalled to us that we were listening to her in a sacred 
 temple. The exquisite cleverness of her diction was much 
 remarked, as well as the silvery quality of her upper notes. 
 " Elle me rappelle Jenny Lind tout k fait," remarked a 
 musical critic whose written opinion is law in the musical 
 world of Paris ; but he has not the merit of being the first to 
 make the comparison. 
 
 December i,th. 
 
 Le Gaulois of this evening contains an interesting account 
 of an interview between its correspondent and Mazzini at the 
 Casa Nathan, a few yards from the Lake of Lugano. The 
 mighty patriot is by no means dead, as was reported, but 
 sufficiently well to have been able to rise from his chair to 
 receive M. X., who found him in a grey dressing-gown, faced 
 with red. He at once alluded to the report of his own death, 
 and said he had been dangerously ill of a disease of which 
 the last seizure had been the fifth he had experienced. He 
 could not continue to converse for any length of time, and 
 can only write on a book placed on his knee, as bending over 
 a table causes great pain. Unfortunately, Mazzini persists 
 in smoking Swiss cigars, fitted only for a race of Titans, 
 the result of which is most exhausting. An open cage, the 
 four inmates of which flutter in the liberty of which their 
 master i§ so ardent an apostle ; two portraits, framed in black 
 wood, of Italian patriots ; a scarlet camellia in flower on his 
 table, and a window commanding a splendid view of the lake 
 and surrounding scenery ; a few books on a shelf against the 
 wall, form the entourage of the invalid. 
 
 December 6th. 
 
 The theatrical success of the day in Paris is Miss Multon, 
 a sensational drama, the story of which was revealed to the 
 French public by & feuilleton which appeared in 1861 in La 
 
EAST LYNNE 315 
 
 Patrie, and was subsequently published by Hetzel in the form 
 of a two-volume novel, entitled Lady Isabel, translated by 
 a friend with whom I have been on the most intimate terms 
 for the last forty years from Mrs. Henry Wood's East Lynne. 
 The French public will not purchase a three-volume novel 
 unless signed by Dumas or some such well-known writer. 
 My friend therefore reduced East Lynne to the more popular 
 two-volume form. It had a tremendous success, both as a 
 feuilleton and novel. MM. Nus and Belot have waited till 
 six years have expired, and now, believing themselves clear 
 of all danger of being summoned before the courts, they 
 have pirated the idea without mentioning the name of Mrs. 
 Wood or of her French translator. The popularity of Lady 
 Isabel has not, however, died out, as it has been recalled to 
 the memory of the public by Le Nord, and to-morrow several 
 of the ^es.\x\c2X feuilletons will remind MM. Nus and Belot 
 that to them does not belong the honour of transplanting 
 East Lynne on French soil. They have altered the denoue- 
 ment, and in my humble judgment spoilt it, inasmuch as they 
 have suppressed the touching scene of the death of Lady 
 Isabel, and her recognition by her husband, Archibald 
 Carlyle, the lawyer, in her last hour, and altered this finale 
 to a sort of concession made by the husband, who, on re- 
 cognising his wife in his children's governess, turns her out of 
 the house, but agrees to allow her to revisit her children once 
 a year. The success of the piece, even though the story is 
 thus mutilated, is tremendous. Mdlle. Fargeuil's acting, as 
 the repentant and still devoted wife and mother, is beyond all 
 praise ; and, in fact. Miss Multon bids fair to have even a 
 greater success than La Dame aux Cameltas, and MM. Nus 
 and Belot, in contradiction to all poetic justice, will evidently 
 realise an enormous sum by this literary piracy. 
 
3i6 EMILE DESCHAMPS 
 
 December %ih. 
 
 From Versailles I hear, with deep regret, that Emile 
 Deschamps, the first poet of the romantic school, or, as Le 
 Public entitles him, the trumpeter of romantisme, has been 
 struck by ophthalmia, and can scarcely distinguish light from 
 darkness. This veteran poet, who, in 1830, with Alfred de 
 Vigny, transplanted the genius of Shakespeare into France, 
 and contributed, by his imitations of the principal chefs 
 (fceuvre of our immortal bard, to arouse the admiration of 
 this country for his mighty works, has of late years retired 
 into private life, and been a constant resident at Versailles. 
 I have more than once heard him relate an anecdote, hitherto 
 unpublished, which I repeat. In 1852 he was fifty-seven. 
 On the 2nd December, having slept in Paris, he happened to 
 be walking down the Champs Elysees at an early hour, 
 intending to return to Versailles by the first train. Utterly 
 unconscious of the political convulsion which had taken 
 place during the night, he was about to cross the Avenue 
 Marigny, which runs along the garden wall of the Elys6e 
 Palace, when he found himself suddenly in the midst of a 
 tremendous crowd, and pushed, driven and knocked about 
 by an excited multitude congregated outside the gates of the 
 palace. Vainly he struggled to make his way out of the 
 mob, and became seriously alarmed as to his personal safety 
 when a carriage dashed up towards the gates of the Elys6e. 
 The mob naturally made way, and Emile Deschamps, at once 
 recognising Princess Mathilde's livery, rushed after the 
 equipage, scrambled up on the footboard, and, holding on 
 behind one of the footmen, in this strange position reached 
 the perron of Elys^e Palace. He nimbly jumped down, 
 opened the door of the carriage, and, stretching out his hand 
 to Princess Mathilde, explained in a few words the expedient 
 to which he owed his safety. The Princess smiled, and 
 invited him to await her return from her interview with her 
 cousin, the Prince President, in the audience chamber. But 
 here new troubles awaited the translator of Romeo and Juliet. 
 
BERRYER TO CHAMBORD 317 
 
 That apartment was occupied by a hundred police agents 
 awaiting orders. Presently M. Deschamps remarked that 
 they began to inspect him. One or two walked round him, 
 scrutinising him from head to foot, and whispering to their 
 comrades. At last one came up, and in an imperious tone 
 said, " Who are you, and what brings you here ? " Emile 
 Deschamps related his story, which, in truth, would have 
 sounded improbable to the least suspicious, but to the head 
 of the detectives it bore coinage on the face of it. Not one 
 of the hundred present had ever read a line of poetry, and 
 to them the head of the romantic school was evidently an 
 emissary of the Republicans. Three amongst them were 
 designated to escort him to a neighbouring police office : 
 he was just starting when the folding-doors opened, and 
 Louis Napoleon appeared. "Grace," exclaimed M. Des- 
 champs, " I crave mercy." "For what?" calmly inquired the 
 Prince President, who knew him intimately. " I have not the 
 remotest idea for what ; but thfey are carrying me off to 
 prison." Louis Napoleon shook hands with him, and said, 
 " Yes, I will forgive you, but on this condition, that you will 
 share my first dinner at the Tuileries," which M. Deschamps 
 accordingly did. 
 
 The great literary curiosity of the day is the letter written 
 by the dying Berryer to the Comte de Chambord. I give 
 it verbatim. 
 
 " To the Count de Chambord, — 
 
 " O Monsigneur ! Oh, my King ! They tell me that 
 I approach my last hour. I die with the sorrow of not having 
 witnessed the triumph of your hereditary rights, consecrating 
 the establishment and development of the liberties of which 
 our countries have need. I offer these prayers to heaven for 
 your Majesty, Her Majesty the Queen, and for our beloved 
 country. In order that they may be less unworthy of accept- 
 ance, I quit this life armed with all the consolations of our 
 holy religion. Adieu, sire. May God protect you and save 
 
 France. 
 
 " Your devoted and faithful , 
 
 " Berryer." 
 
3i8 BERRYER'S LETTER 
 
 L Union gives the following details of this letter: — "We 
 have seen ^facsimile of it. Nothing can be more touching. 
 It occupies two sheets of notepaper. The writing, which at 
 the first few lines is very much altered, though perfectly 
 legible and characteristic of firmness, becomes towards the 
 conclusion as clear and vigorous as in his younger days. 
 The signature is bold and as beautifully written as though 
 it were copper-plate. In several places the ink has escaped 
 from the pen and run over some of the letters, which are, 
 however, distinct. After a certain space, a stain is visible on 
 the middle of the page. It was a big tear which fell on the 
 paper, mingled with the ink, and blotted some of the letters." 
 
 All the heart and soul of Berryer were expressed in that 
 supreme farewell. 
 
 December wth. 
 
 At a sale of books to take place at the Salle Sylvestre, so 
 well known to bibliophiles, will be put up to auction next 
 week the Logographe, published during the first revolution, 
 and interesting inasmuch as the editors of this paper had 
 a special tribune allotted to them at the Legislature ; it 
 was in this box, which measured a cube of nine feet, that 
 the King, Queen, Princess Elizabeth, and the royal children 
 were compelled to conceal themselves after the bloody attack 
 on the Tuileries of the lOth of August; it was there they 
 were given the food the republic so generously afforded 
 them, and there from nine in the morning till three on the 
 following day the whole Royal Family were shut up, till it 
 was the good pleasure of Robespierre and his associates to 
 convey them first to the Feuillants and thence to the Temple, 
 whence they issued for the guillotine, with the exception of 
 the young Dauphin, who was beaten and starved to death by 
 Simon, and of the young princes exchanged, after two years' 
 solitary confinement, for other prisoners. The sale of the 
 Logographe next week revives pleasant memories. 
 
VENETIAN PAINTINGS 319 
 
 December 20th. 
 
 Connoisseurs and artists crowded this afternoon to the 
 Hdtel Drouot, attracted thither by the private exhibition of 
 thirty of Ziem's exquisite water-colour drawings. Ziem, as 
 a painter, is as well known as Turner, whom, as a colourist, 
 he so strongly resembles ; but water-colour drawing is an art 
 which flourishes far more on English than on French soil. It 
 is an exotic, in spite of the interest Princess Mathilde takes 
 in a branch of art in which she herself excels. Hildebrandt's 
 exhibition of water-colour sketches of the four continents, 
 and I know not how many oceans, astonished French artists. 
 His drawings had great merit, but were far inferior to Ziem's. 
 Venice has ever been Ziem's favourite city. He is willing to 
 quit the City of the Doges for the Golden Horn, but re- 
 luctantly exchanges the glowing colouring of these sunny 
 lands for the grey and neutral tints of the north. Turnersque 
 in colouring are many amongst the gems which to-morrow 
 will be disputed by the Rothschilds of art collections. One 
 is charmed by the accuracy of detail which enhances the 
 value of such a drawing, for instance, as that of the " Palais 
 des Doges," of which every block of the rose and white 
 marble fagade, clear cut on the azure of the midday sky, is 
 finished with a perfection that admits of the closest inspec- 
 tion, and yet the whole is executed with the breadth of style 
 for which Ziem's paintings are so well known. He excels in 
 rendering the blue and roseate skies and the silvery light so 
 peculiar to Constantinople ; in reproducing the emerald-tinted 
 waters of the Lagune, broken into a thousand flakes, refract- 
 ing the sun's rays, cut by the track of the gondolas, in 
 which shiver the mirrored outlines of the Venetian palaces. 
 Perhaps the " Saint Simeon in Piccolo," with its green dome 
 and marble columns, seen in the early morning, is one of the 
 most lovely of the architectural drawings ; the " Barques 
 Chioggiotes Byzantines," starting on a fishing expedition, of 
 the sea pieces ; and " The Island of Philae at Sunset," of the 
 landscapes. 
 
320 THE GRIMAKISTICOPE 
 
 December 2gth. 
 
 Ziem's water-colour sketches went for high prices : the 
 " Barques Chioggiotes Byzantines " for £^0, the " View of 
 Venice by the Setting Sun " for £70, the " Pleasure Party at 
 the Doge's Palace " for 40 guineas. It must be remembered 
 that, in spite of their intrinsic beauty and intense colouring, 
 they were by no means highly finished. A water-colour 
 drawing by Eugene Lami, " L'Escalier de Marbre," the sub- 
 ject being the fite given on the Dauphin's marriage at 
 Versailles in 1755, was sold yesterday, at the H6tel Drouot, 
 for 1 60 guineas. Lami's specialty was drawing crowds with- 
 out conveying an idea of confusion. Ziem's thirty-four 
 sketches of Venice and Constantinople were sold in one 
 hour, so eager was the competition for them. The sale 
 produced 900 guineas. 
 
 January 1st, 1869. 
 
 The last number of the Continental Gazette publishes, 
 under the head of "The Fashions," as witty an article as 
 any which have emanated from the pen of Mdme. Le 
 Boeuf-Dolby. From it I extract the following paragraph : — 
 " The fashionable and drawing-room pastime of the present 
 hour is called the Grimakisticope. It is a box containing all 
 the celebrities of the day, unto the features of whom any 
 visitor can with a touch impart any expression he likes, from 
 the most awful grimaces that ever added ugliness to a 
 monkey to the sweetest ever dreamt of by the Madone des 
 Roses. Thus Prince Napoleon can be reduced to the emaciated 
 outline of a fasting monk ; M. de Bismarck can be made not 
 to wink towards France ; M. Guillaumet can have one eye 
 pinched in and the other blind ; Wagner can be had with a 
 low forehead ; M. Pasdeloup with a baggy waistcoat in front ; 
 and Messrs. Belot and Nus can appear with contrition on 
 their faces for having turned Mrs. Henry Wood's novel into 
 Miss Multon, and pretending they had never read Lady 
 
MONSIEUR AND MADAME DE FLERS 321 
 
 Isabel. All these delightful effects are undeniably novel, and 
 more sensational than whist with a dummy; but I predict 
 that no crevi seeing himself with a swelling at a friend's 
 house will encourage a Grimakisticope at his own home." 
 
 January i,th. 
 
 The paintings of M. de Flers sold at high prices at the 
 Hotel Drouot last Thursday. Some years ago de Flers lived 
 at a small country house on the borders of the Forest of 
 Fontainebleau, which he gradually turned into a small 
 curiosity shop, to the infinite annoyance of his wife. Having 
 gone for a day's shopping to Melun, she happened to 
 observe a marchand de bric-d-brac. The idea of inducing 
 him to carry off some of the accumulated rubbish, as she 
 considered her husband's antiquities, struck her; she forth- 
 with requested him to call the next morning, with a wheel- 
 barrow, at her house. On his arrival according to appoint- 
 ment, Madame de Flers showed him a lot she had selected, 
 and, after some bargaining, got rid of the inconvenient 
 lumber for 225 f. {£() sterling), much rejoicing at her hus- 
 band's temporary absence, which allowed her to strike so 
 favourable a bargain. That afternoon M. de Flers on his 
 way home, passing through the town of Melun, much struck 
 by the beauty of certain antique vases, etc., displayed in the 
 window of a marchand de brtc-d-brac, asked their possessor 
 how much he would let him have the lot for. After much 
 bargaining the man agreed to deliver them at his country 
 house for 325 f (£12, sterling), and he went home rejoicing 
 to his wife at the wonderful beauty and cheapness of some 
 purchases he had made at Melun. Madame de Flers groaned 
 in her spirit, but congratulated herself in silence on her 
 having at least made room for the new acquisition, when, lo ! 
 she raised her eyes, and beheld her friend of the morning 
 pushing along the identical wheelbarrow in which he had 
 carried off his load, the contents being the precise articles 
 she had sold for £g, which M. de Flers had repurchased a 
 few hours later for ;£"! 3. 
 
322 GUSTAVE DORE'S ENTERTAINMENT 
 
 January llth. 
 
 Last night M. Gustave Dor6 gave a splendid entertainment 
 at his private residence in the Faubourg St. Germain to a 
 large circle of distinguished personages. Among those pre- 
 sent was Mr. W. Gladstone, cousin of the Premier. The 
 hotel now in possession of the Dord family is one of those 
 spacious mansions the vast proportions of which recall the 
 days when the ancienne noblesse of France existed, and had 
 fortunes equivalent to those still held by our own great 
 families. M. Dord's dining-room is adorned by the magnifi- 
 cent cartoon of Francesco di Rimini, which attracted the atten- 
 tion of the artistic world at the Exhibition some five or six 
 seasons ago, and the great oil-painting of which hangs in his 
 atelier in the Rue Bayard. His magic power of reproducing 
 flying forms was never more strikingly displayed than in this 
 sublime composition, which by many competent judges is 
 considered the finest he has as yet put on canvas. In re- 
 cesses at each side are prints of " Peace " and " War," the 
 first of his works engraved on steel in this country, and 
 therefore preserved by his family as a souvenir of his earliest 
 efforts. Two Alpine scenes complete the decoration of this 
 apartment, and two similar tableaux likewise deck the salon. 
 After dinner we withdrew to his private atelier, lighted a 
 giorno, and there were fully able to appreciate the gem I have 
 already described, entitled " Le Premier Regard," and a still 
 later production of immense merit. The subject is a scene 
 in the Vosges country, where M. Dor6 spent most of the 
 holidays of his school life, whilst his father was ingenieur 
 des ponts et chaus^es at Strasbourg. The gloom of the dis- 
 tant forest seen by the glint of the setting sun's rays from 
 amid the clouds of coming night, the rampant vegetation, 
 the sprouting trees that have overgrown and choked all 
 traces of man's work and almost conceal the ruined castle 
 turrets — all this is given with that magic power of represent- 
 ing wild and luxuriant landscape, that massing of light and 
 
THE NEW GRAND RABBI 323 
 
 shadow, which is so specially the attribute of Dora's genius. 
 Were I to give the names of those who crowded his salons, 
 received with courteous hospitality by his mother, Madame 
 Dor4 I should simply recapitulate the best-known names in 
 Paris Society. Louis Engel performed his delicious fantasia 
 of Irish airs on the organ ; Saint-Saens — Rubinstein's rival, 
 as you are aware — executed on the piano that most intricate 
 of Beethoven's compositions, the Valse des Derviches, with the 
 rare musical science and exquisite sentiment which have won 
 for him so great a reputation, and he graciously acknowledged 
 the enthusiastic applause which greeted his execution by per- 
 forming his march in the Tannhauser. Lorenza Paghance 
 was singing a Spanish serenade as Riego himself would 
 have sung it, when the entrance of Madame Alboni diverted 
 our attention. The great cantatrice has too often been heard 
 at the Opera in London to make it necessary for me to speak 
 of the glorious tones of her splendid voice. 
 
 January i/^tk. 
 
 M. Zadoc Kohn was invested yesterday with the dignity 
 of Grand Rabbi at the Synagogue, Rue Notre Dame de 
 Nazareth, which was brilliantly illuminated for the inaugural 
 ceremony. The congregation kept their hats on, as is the 
 custom amongst Jews. M. Renan, M. Prdvost-Paradol, M. 
 Cr^mieux, the lawyer, and M. Franck, of the Institute, were 
 amongst the strangers of distinction present. The galleries 
 were crowded with ladies. M. Cohen was at the head of the 
 Israelitish Consistory. M. Halphen replaced M. Gustav de 
 Rothschild, absent in consequence of the recent death of his 
 father, and acted as vice-president of the central committee. 
 He therefore read the Emperor's decree sanctioning the 
 nomination of Zadoc Kohn. The hundredth Psalm was 
 chanted by Blum, of the Lyrique, and a French hymn was 
 sung by M. Raumbourgh, a Jewish poet, after the sermon 
 preached by M. Kohn's predecessor. The collection was 
 made whilst Rossini's Prayer in Moses was executed by 
 
324 LES CONTES DROLATIQUES 
 
 violoncellos, guitars, and harps. Suddenly a panel covered 
 with crimson velvet was withdrawn, and the tabernacle of 
 Moses was displayed, whence the Sepher (the scroll of the 
 law) was unfolded, whilst M. Ketten sang an appropriate air. 
 Blum sang during the ceremony of replacing the Sepher 
 within the tabernacle. The final Hallelujah was executed 
 whilst the rabbi, authorities, and consistory quitted the 
 synagogue. M. Zadoc Kohn has scarcely attained his 
 thirtieth year, and is the youngest Grand Rabbi elected since 
 the days of Jeremy the prophet. His great learning, vast 
 acquirements, and profound knowledge of Judaic lore have 
 been the cause of his election to this high office. 
 
 January i^th. 
 
 Judgment has been delivered in a case which has revived 
 the memory of the great romancist Balzac, in which Gustave 
 Dora's name is likewise mentioned. The litigants are the 
 publishers MM. Levy and Gamier. Madame de Balzac, 
 Russian by birth, and ignorant of business matters, on the 
 death of her husband sold her rights of proprietorship of all 
 Balzac's works to M. L6vy. In 1857 M. Dutocq applied to 
 Madame de Balzac for permission to republish the Contes 
 Drolatigues, illustrated by Gustave Dor6. Madame de Balzac 
 authorised him to do so by letter, on condition that no artist 
 but Dor6 should be allowed to illustrate her husband's work. 
 Her letter, like most compositions of her sex, is vague and 
 unbusinesslike, and therefore admits of two interpretations. 
 One party asserts that by this letter Madame de Balzac has 
 ceded to M. Dutocq all editions of the Contes Drolatiques illus- 
 trated by Dore, whilst Madame de Balzac states that she only 
 meant to cede to him the right of issuing an edition of 
 10,000 copies. In the course of the trial it appears that M. 
 Dutocq paid M. Dord ;^i,6oo for his drawings (in 1857), ^"^ 
 that the expenses of the printing, paper, engraving, etc., 
 amounted to ;£'3,200. Judgment has been delivered con- 
 firming Madame de Balzac's statement ; consequently MM. 
 
MISS SHAWS WEDDING ' 325 
 
 Gamier, who are M. Dutocq's publishers, will continue to 
 publish their octavo illustrated edition, but have no right to 
 issue the one in i2mo form, which, not being illustrated, is 
 injurious to MM. Levy's interests. 
 
 January 2<^th. 
 
 A grand wedding at the Tuileries ! Miss Shaw is going to 
 marry M. Thierry, ex-captain of the Imperial Guard and 
 treasurer of the Emperor's private charities. Miss Shaw's 
 story is well known. Before the birth of the Prince Imperial 
 the Empress requested a celebrated Court physician, much 
 consulted on such emergencies, to send over an English head 
 nurse, qualified to take charge of and direct the nursery of 
 the future heir-apparent. If my memory serves me. Dr. 
 
 L despatched not one, but sixteen equally qualified 
 
 persons. They arrived at the Tuileries, and were ushered 
 into an apartment, where they awaited Her Majesty's entrance. 
 The young Empress walked round the room addressing a 
 few gracious words to each, and in a few moments sent for 
 Miss Shaw, intimating to her fifteen companions that she 
 hoped they would remain a week in Paris, and assuring them 
 that during their stay at her expense every attention would 
 be shown to them, and accordingly they were taken to see the 
 sights, theatres, etc., and most hospitably entertained. Miss 
 Shaw has during the thirteen years which have elapsed since 
 . that morning proved fully worthy of the trust placed in her 
 by the Imperial parents. She has had the sole charge of the 
 young Prince's health, and till lately never left him day or 
 night. He was, at the age of seven, formally taken out of 
 the hands of his governess, Madame Bruat, widow of the 
 admiral, and of subgovernesses, and transferred to the care 
 of a head tutor, M. Monad ; but Miss Shaw has still 
 been retained about his person. It is but right to mention 
 that her judicious care and unwearied devotion have been 
 repaid by the utmost kindness on the part of both the 
 Emperor and Empress. Up to the age of seven Miss Shaw 
 was invariably to be seen in attendance on the Prince in his 
 
326 DOCTORING PICTURES 
 
 drives and during all outdoor exercise. Since that period 
 one of the Court broughams has been placed at her disposal, 
 and her life at the Tuileries made as easy and agreeable as 
 possible. The Prince Imperial is warmly attached to his 
 faithful nurse, and during a severe attack of scarlatina from 
 which she suffered two years ago manifested the strongest 
 affection for her. He owed the fluency with which he spoke 
 English when a very young child mainly to her — a fact 
 which has greatly facilitated his study of our language. The 
 future bride is as fair a specimen of the Saxons of Yorkshire 
 as could be found, and the respect and goodwill she has won 
 in a foreign palace does credit to her north-country origin. 
 
 February ^th. 
 
 Count de Nieuwerkque, it is rumoured, is about to resign 
 his lucrative and most agreeable post of Surintendant des 
 Beaux Arts. The immense majority of artists and true 
 connoisseurs, who have a strong objection to that most 
 ruinous of all practices, picture-cleaning, and that still more 
 barbarous one of picture-cutting, so as to fit the painting 
 under treatment into a frame of a different form to that for 
 which it was intended, will not deplore the resignation of the 
 handsome Count. In no country has the system of restoring 
 — that is of spoiling — the works of the great masters flourished 
 as in France. The " Antiope" of Correggio being thus treated, 
 has lost much of its beauty ; Guido's " Virgin," is positively 
 worn down. Poussin's " Moses Trampling on Pharoah's 
 Crown " has become, in the hands of the restorers, a daub 
 of red and black ; Claude Lorraine's " Port of Messina," a 
 masterpiece of harmony, in which the sun dazzled the be- 
 holder, has thus acquired a brick-coloured surface. Even 
 "Vernet" has been thought old enough to be destroyed. 
 However, for these and many similar mutilations M. de 
 Nieuwerkque is not responsible. He has continued a system 
 long inaugurated with regard to the national .pictures of 
 France. Three inches were cut off a chef d'ceuvre of 
 
A POISONED BONBON 327 
 
 Schidone years ago, and there is a bill extant for restoring 
 Raphael's cartoon of the School of Athens, and another for 
 cleaning and brightening up another picture by the same 
 divine artist. Du reste, there has been no partiality shown 
 to the works of the French masters. To decorate the draw- 
 ing-room ceiling of the Duchess of Nemours, Louis Philippe 
 did not hesitate to order Lesueur's fine picture, " The Fall of 
 Phaeton," to be clipped of its corners. M. de Nieuwerkque 
 has been lately attacked for the loose manner in which he 
 has lent pictures belonging to the nation to decorate the 
 official residences of the ministers and other public function- 
 aries, and even to the Cercle Imperial. 
 
 February ytk. 
 
 The story of the attempt to poison the Duke de at 
 
 the last bal de Vopira, by means of a poisoned bonbon, to be 
 offered to him by an anonyma, who refused the proffered 
 bribe of ;^8oo, is the theme of much gossip. The explana- 
 tion of this dramatic incident is the old story. M. le Comte 
 
 de , a lover of Madame la Duchesse, finding the husband 
 
 an inconvenient obstacle, determines to get rid of him, and 
 not wishing to appear before his mistress as the actual 
 murderer, endeavours to bribe another to do the work for 
 him. It is a vaudeville in action, and the bal de Pop^ra an 
 eminently appropriate scene of action : there is nothing 
 wanting in the time, place, or general tnise en schte to create 
 a capital drama. The dramatis personce — a duke, a duchess, 
 a count, and a queen of the demi vionde. The scene selected 
 for the action— the bal de I'opera. The costumes of the 
 personages are all in perfect keeping — masks and dominoes ; 
 the poisoned medium — a bonbon; but seldom in the nine- 
 teenth century have we had a similar drama enacted in real 
 life, and by persons before whom the world of flunkeyism 
 bows low, for invitations to whose soiries it has cringed and 
 intrigued, kissed the fair hand of Madame la Duchesse, and 
 been only too proud of the honour. The episode is worthy of 
 
328 VICTOR HUGO AND JULES JANIN 
 
 record, inasmuch as it is an illustration taken from life of 
 society as existing in this capital — a revival of the best days 
 of the Regency, but without the grand - seigneur tone, the 
 artistic colouring, or the generous prodigality of those days. 
 The orgies of the latter half of the nineteenth century in 
 the capital of the Gauls are the orgies of parvenus, who 
 copy from the old masters, but in gaudy, flaunting colours, 
 and neither look the gentlemen their prototypes undeniably 
 were, nor imitate their hideous immorality with the merit 
 they undeniably had of doing the thing well. 
 
 February 22nd. 
 
 Madame Victor Hugo has left in her will the pen with 
 which her illustrious husband wrote the first volume of the 
 Contemplations to Jules Janin, with the following message : — 
 "To our friend in sunshine and in shade, to the valiant 
 defender of all exiles and of all courage, I bequeath the pen 
 with which my husband wrote the first volume of the Con- 
 templations. It will be found in one of the small drawers of 
 my lemon-wood secretary, which is in my bedroom." The 
 pen with which Victor Hugo wrote Les Chatiments was given 
 by him to Camille Berru, the secretary of Ind^pendance 
 Beige, who has had it carefully placed beneath a glass and 
 preserved in his library, with a note from the author to 
 certify the fact. 
 
 February 2^th. 
 
 On Sunday next Rossini's Mass will be performed for the 
 first time at the Italiens, with the powerful aid of Madame 
 Alboni. Thus will the 77th anniversary of the great 
 composer's birth be celebrated. Meyerbeer was amongst the 
 selected circle of virtuosi invited by M. Pillet-Will to be 
 present at the performance of this Mass at his house, when, 
 at his own expense, it was performed for the first and only 
 time. The rival genius is described as having been overcome 
 with emotion and admiration. On returning home he took 
 
MEYERBEER AND ROSSINI 329 
 
 up his pen and wrote to Rossini, in Italian, the following 
 expression of his enthusiasm : — 
 
 " To Jove Rossini. 
 
 " Divine Maestro, — I cannot allow this day to close with- 
 out thanking you for the immense enjoyment which listening 
 to your last sublime creation has caused me. May Heaven 
 preserve you till your hundredth year, so that you may create 
 other chefs d'aeuvre, and may God grant to me an equal 
 number of years in order that I may be able to hear and 
 admire those fresh creations of your immortal genius. 
 
 " Your faithful admirer and old friend, 
 
 "D. G. Meyerbeer. 
 
 " March \tyth, \%(>i:' 
 
 March \st. 
 
 Lamartine died at his house at Passy at eleven o'clock last 
 night, attended by his niece, Madame de Sessia Lamartine, 
 and his nephew, M. de Montereau, as well as the other 
 members of his family. The death of the poet-statesman 
 has long been anticipated. This afternoon a photographer is 
 engaged in reproducing his features. Born the 20th October, 
 1790, at Ma5on, the poet has therefore attained his seventy- 
 ninth year. His father, captain in a regiment of Light 
 Horse, suspected of sympathising with the imprisoned Royal 
 Family, fled from Paris with his wife and infant children, 
 when his boy Alphonse was three years old, to his native 
 town of Ma^on; there, however, he was imprisoned and 
 sentenced to death. Some months elapsed. Captain Lamar- 
 tine was forgotten, and after some time the revolutionary 
 tempest lulled, and an order came for his release. He 
 immediately withdrew to the family Chateau de Milly, for 
 which the poet to the latest hours of his existence preserved 
 so deep an affection. It was in this retreat he learnt to 
 read, and the Holy Bible was the volume from which his 
 mother taught her boy his first lesson ; to this teaching in after 
 life he constantly referred as having early impressed his mind 
 
330 DEATH OF LAMARTINE 
 
 with poetic imagery and grand thoughts. The Bible was 
 illustrated, and he never forgot the scenes thus impressed on 
 his eye : his mother was a woman of lofty courage and 
 devotion, and to her holy teaching the genius of the poet 
 owed its Christian tone. To his last hour he loved to recall 
 the fact of her having procured a lodging opposite the gaol 
 where her husband lay, and she held him up at stated periods in 
 order that the father might be solaced in his gloomy cell by 
 seeing his child through the gratings of his window. Graziella 
 was his first love, and her story his first chefd'ceuvre. But in 
 our enthusiasm for his poetry we must not forget how, in the 
 zenith of his fame, he, in 1848, risked and lost a magnificent 
 fortune, and sacrificed ease, luxury, an aristocratic name, a 
 sumptuous retinue, in his devotion to his faith. Wise, prudent 
 and firm, Lamartine stood nobly against rash aggression and 
 intemperate zeal in the midst of a political whirlpool. He 
 inspired the timid with hope, the despairing with courage, 
 and the intemperate with patience ; the purity of his principles 
 and the consistency of his morality have rendered him the 
 model of a French patriot. On a wild and raging sea of 
 threatening, stormy men he threw the aid of his eloquence 
 and the help of his own faith until the troubled mass of 
 dangerous and surging elements of war melted away in 
 peace. All the papers of this evening consider his death as 
 a national affliction which ought to be commemorated by the 
 ceremonies of a public funeral, yet it was the expressed 
 desire of M. de Lamartine that his body should be conveyed 
 to Saint-Point, to be interred with the rest of his family 
 without pomp or display. The Abb6 Daguerry, curate of 
 the Madeleine, and preceptor to the Prince Imperial, was 
 sent for yesterday, at about four o'clock, in all haste, to 
 administer to the dying poet the rites of the Church. The 
 death agony set in soon after, but happily he did not 
 suffer. La France of this evening opens a public sub- 
 scription to erect, on the Place de I'Hdtel de Ville, a statue 
 to his memory, on the pedestal of which will be inscribed the 
 memorable words he addressed to the infuriated mob : — 
 
COROT 331 
 
 "The tricolour flag has gone round the world with the 
 Republic and the Empire — with our liberties and our glories 
 — whilst your red flag has only gone round the Champs de 
 Mars, dragged in the blood of the people." 
 
 La France subscribes 500 f. towards the monument. To 
 do this country justice, it is only fair to acknowledge that the , 
 Corps L6gislatif voted, three years ago, ;£^i6,ooo to M. de 
 Lamartine in acknowledgment of the public services he 
 rendered the nation. 
 
 M. Troplong is also dead ; he expired at five this morning. 
 In him the Emperor loses a steady and faithful adherent. 
 Owing to both of these deaths and to the continued in- 
 disposition of the Empress, the State concert was to have 
 been postponed ; but in order not to inconvenience the 
 artists, as well as the numerous inviUs, the Emperor has 
 decided that it shall take place. 
 
 The next twenty days are the busiest in the ateliers of 
 French artists. The 20th of this month is their Domesday. 
 The jury of the exhibition is inexorable, and admits of no 
 laggards. By special favour I was received this morning by 
 the veteran landscape-painter Corot, who, with Ingres and 
 Delacroix, may be said to have been the illustrations of the 
 Orleanist monarchy. Corot is, however, as young, as full of 
 life and energy, as in his earliest days. I found hijn palette 
 in hand, painting, in a blouse, a velvet cap scarcely covering 
 his white hair. On his easel lay a fresh triumph. "Mon 
 Catalpa ! " exclaimed the old man, his eye fired with genius 
 and with a characteristic simplicity, rejoicing in having 
 successfully reproduced his beloved tree and a bit of charming 
 landscape around his country home at Ville d'Avray. In 
 the very centre of the foreground is the grand old tree throw- 
 ing out a profusion of branches just burst into leaf; around 
 its trunk pale violets, golden cowslips, and crimson foxgloves 
 are blooming, whilst crystalline groups of grey lichen and 
 mosses, with their fibres of green and gold, cling to the old 
 bark and produce the most exquisite harmony of colour. 
 On the left stands a mansion, bosomed deep in trees, through 
 
332 COROT'S LANDSCAPES 
 
 which the sun makes its way in scattered lines, dropping 
 here and there on the roof and gables. In the foreground a 
 young peasant knits, whilst her father saws branches of fallen 
 timber. On the right the eye extends over a pleasant land- 
 scape, painted with a truth of effect bordering on illusion. 
 It is the blossoming time of the year, in all its tender beauty, 
 its beaming green, and luxuriance of light and balmy air — a 
 delicious picture, and one to my mind far more attractive 
 than either of those which excited so much enthusiasm at 
 last year's exhibition. Perhaps no artist has more excelled 
 in the art of representing cloud scenery than Corot, and in 
 this picture the fleecy wreaths floating on sky of pale blue, 
 the scattered mists of flakes of light from the far distance 
 are exquisite in truthful beauty. Corot's second picture, " La 
 Liseuse," is less in his own style, and pleased me less. " Le 
 Printemps" is a gem, and needs not the signature of Corot 
 to ensure a high price. From the great landscape-painter's 
 atelier it was but natural I should go on to that of his 
 favourite pupil, M. Oudinot; and at this season a drive to 
 Neuilly is anything but disagreeable. He has inherited all 
 the natural force and truth which characterise the productions 
 of his master, and knows like him to endow the still and 
 barren landscape with a spirit of tenderness which captivates 
 the imagination while it enchants the eye. M. Oudinot loves 
 to wander by the wild wood and foaming river, and note 
 down the varied aspects of the landscape in his compositions, 
 which are all taken from nature and sketched on the spot. 
 For the exhibition he has a setting sun, behind an oak 
 forest; through the parted branches its fierce rays gleam, 
 while the foreground of grass is lighted by its declining 
 brilliance. Oudinot's second picture is of the ruins of Madame 
 de Maintenon's chiteau at Choisy-le-roi, surrounded by splen- 
 did trees, beneath which sheep are grazing. This historic re- 
 miniscence is interesting, inasmuch as the original mansion 
 of the old devotee is fast disappearing. 
 
LAMARTINE'S DEATH 333 
 
 March 2nd. 
 
 In the Corps Legislatif yesterday the President announced 
 in the following words the death of M. Troplong : " France 
 has just lost one of its best, one of its greatest citizens," 
 whereupon M. Pelletan rose and exclaimed, " Lamartine also 
 is dead, and he also was a great citizen ! " To this M. 
 Schneider replied, "The House and France will share the 
 feelings expressed by M. Pelletan." It has been remarked 
 that Lamartine expired on the 28th of February ; that is, on 
 the twenty-first anniversary of the memorable day when he, 
 with such admirable courage, exposed his life by appearing 
 on the balcony of the Hotel de Ville, declaring to the 
 infuriated mob that as long as he lived the red flag should 
 not be the flag of France. The disease which carried him off 
 was internal paralysis. The room in which he expired in his 
 chalet at Passy, presented to him by the city of Paris, was 
 small, and furnished with but few traces of his former 
 splendour. The window looks on the surrounding gardens. 
 On reaching the top of the staircase a corridor, decorated by 
 the bust of Anne Martin, leads to his apartment. Opposite 
 the door of his room is a press with glass doors, and adorned 
 by incrustations of painted porcelain and sculptures iri wood. 
 The furniture is of brown reps. On the white marble 
 . chimneypiece is a clock of marble, and at each side of the 
 mirror a miniature — one being of his mother, and another 
 of the Virgin, sent to him from Italy. Opposite his bed 
 hangs the portrait of his beloved child Julia, and near it that 
 of his wife. His bed, like the press, is adorned by medallions 
 in porcelain, and round the twisted columns are torsades of 
 brown reps. He may truly be said to have fallen asleep in 
 death, so peaceful were his last moments. The day when 
 the Chambers voted the gift of ;£'i6,ooo to Lamartine he 
 said to his niece, "When one has creditors one must bear 
 everything ; but, remember, it is as though France had shot 
 me through the heart"; and, in truth, from that day he 
 
334 LAMARTINE AND LES VESUVIENNES 
 
 evidently declined. He imposed on his relations the promise 
 that no funeral honours should be paid to him. "Let no 
 one, at the moment when eternity and the future will at last 
 be unveiled to me, disturb my ecstasy by the noise of the 
 idle words and the miserable thoughts of the world." He 
 lies on his bed, and his countenance is described as not only 
 serene, but as a magnificent expression of unearthly peace. 
 On his breast has been laid a small crucifix which he always 
 carried about his person, and which he said had been given 
 to him by one he had loved. He had been residing at Passy 
 since the 28th of December. The house will, according to 
 the terms of the deed of gift from the city, be inherited by his 
 niece, the Countess Sessia Lamartine. The Emperor,it appears, 
 has decided that Lamartine shall have a public funeral. On 
 Monday Lamartine had been well enough to drive in to town, 
 to pay a visit to the Count de Rambuteau, after which he 
 took a turn in the Bois. He returned home, as has been his 
 habit of late, at five o'clock. To excite a smile in presence 
 of an open grave is scarcely admissible ; but as the anecdote 
 realises an incident of his political life you will forgive my 
 reprpducing it. Emile Ollivier related yesterday to a group 
 of deputies at the Corps L^gislatif that M. de Lamartine, 
 being at the Hdtel de Ville, received the announcement that 
 a deputation of Vesuviennes demanded an interview. These 
 women in type and brutality strongly resembled the famous 
 poissardes of the first revolution. The doors of his cabinet 
 were thrown open, and the apartment was presently filled by 
 these fierce-looking dames, whose dishevelled locks and un- 
 couth garb presented anything but an attractive spectacle. 
 M. de Lamartine bowed, and begged to know whether he 
 could be of any service to his visitors. "Citizen," replied 
 the foremost amongst them, standing with arms akimbo in 
 front of her comrades, "the Vesuviennes have resolved to 
 send you-a deputation to express their admiration of your con- 
 duct. There are fifty of us, and, in the name of all the 
 Vesuviennes, we, fifty in number, have come to kiss you." 
 The poet gave one glance at the forest of unkempt hair and 
 
DUMAS ON LAMARTINE 335 
 
 the rubicund cheeks of the fifty unwashed Venuses, and thus 
 replied : " Citoyennes, I thank you for the sentiments you 
 inspire me with; but allow me to remark that patriots of 
 your stamp are more than women — they are men. Men do 
 not embrace each other. We shake hands." And thus by a 
 stroke of the most subtle flattery did the author of the 
 MMitations escape the fifty kisses of the Megaras of the 
 Revolution of '48. 
 
 March 2,rd. 
 
 Le Gaulois contains an article well worth perusing, from 
 the pen of Alexandre Dumas, on the death of Lamartine. 
 It is one written more with the heart than with the brain, 
 with the soul than with the imagination. It is entirely 
 French in the construction of the ideas emitted, and would 
 not bear being clad in English garb ; but Alexandre Dumas 
 has seldom done anything in better feeling or in more appro- 
 priate language. Still one regrets to perceive the sceptical 
 tone with which the romancist concludes his last adieu to the 
 Christian poet. La LtbertS has followed the suggestion of 
 La France, and opened a subscription list in its columns for 
 a monument to the memory of M. de Lamartine, and so has 
 M. Rouher's organ, the Public. The provincial papers are 
 imitating this example, and already considerable sums are 
 being added to the subscriptions of the papers. The Journal 
 Officiel contains a decree, beginning with the usual formula : 
 " Napoleon, par la grace de Dieu et la volontd nationale," 
 considering the eminent services rendered to the country in 
 difficult times, to all whom it may concern, decrees that the 
 funeral expenses of M. de Lamartine shall be defrayed by 
 the Treasury, etc. Meanwhile, the family announce that 
 they accept with gratitude this mark of the Emperor's 
 sympathy, but that in obedience to the last wishes of the 
 illustrious dead they are compelled to have the ceremony 
 performed at Saint-Point. Consequently Government has 
 sent down orders to the Prefect of Sione-et-Loire and to 
 the commanding officer of the forces at Lyons to hold them- 
 
336 THE FUNERAL OF 
 
 selves in readiness to carry out the decree published in the 
 Moniteur. The family have notified to their friends that a 
 special train is to start this afternoon, in order that they may 
 be present at the ceremony which will take place to-morrow. 
 This morning, at ten o'clock, the mortal remains were sealed 
 in a leaden coffin ; but, previously, a scene of the most heart- 
 rending nature took place. Madame de Sessia, the poet's 
 niece, and, since the death of his daughter, the loved Julia, 
 his adopted daughter, insisted on being present during this 
 operation, which was accomplished amidst the sobs and tears 
 and bitter grief of the assembled family, the Countess being 
 specially overcome by emotion. Her uncle had of later 
 years more than once expressed a hope that he would die in 
 her presence since she had proved so great a consolation to 
 his declining years. That this much was granted is a pleasant 
 reflection. But to return to the scene described by an eye- 
 witness as replete with touching sorrow for the illustrious 
 dead. Whilst the family were thus absorbed in grief, Father 
 Hyacinthe, for whom Lamartine had a great friendship, 
 entered unexpectedly, and by a few words of Christian 
 sympathy appears to have been able to bring consolation to 
 the afflicted relatives. The coffin was then carried out of 
 the house and taken to the Lyons railway, in charge of 
 M. de Tour (nephew), M. de Montereau, and several devoted 
 friends, amongst whom were Baron de Chamborant and M. 
 de Rambuteau. 
 
 March ^h. 
 
 I must not omit to mention that the Princess Metternich's 
 birthday was celebrated by a grand dinner given by the 
 Count and Countess Pourtales. As her carriage drove up 
 to the Pourtales Mansion, Rue Trombet, a footman in the 
 livery of the family advanced to the door of her carriage 
 and followed her into the hall, entering into conversation 
 with her as she ascended the staircase. The Princess, fancy- 
 ing he was either slightly drunk or mad, thought it better to 
 pay no attention, and naturally made him no reply. As she 
 
LAMARTINE 337 
 
 was ushered by a groom of the chambers into the Countess's 
 drawing-rooms, the impertinent Jeames vanished. Before 
 she had time to recover her surprise dinner was announced. 
 As she took her seat on the right of her host, she perceived 
 to her utter amazement the identical lacquey who had almost 
 frightened her coolly taking a chair by her side. The 
 Princess turned to the Count for an explanation ; he, how- 
 ever, was preoccupied, as the Irish say, by accident on 
 purpose, and he was engaged in speaking to the lady on his 
 left. The Princess looked round once more to ascertain if 
 her eyes had not deceived her, and suddenly recognised the 
 features of one of her oldest friends, the Count de I'Aigle, 
 well known to all who have hunted with the Imperial stag- 
 hounds at Compi^gne, in the disguise of a footman. This 
 practical joke excited a merry laugh. 
 
 As announced, the State funeral of Lamartine took place 
 yesterday morning at Saint-Point. Troopswere under arms.and 
 lined the road from the terminus to the church of St. Vincent 
 as early as seven in the morning. The crowd was tremendous, 
 and a seat in the church was not to be had, unless for those 
 who had received special invitations. At the gates of the 
 town of Saint-Point M. de Chamborant, in the name of the 
 family and friends, thanked the civil and military authorities 
 for the homage they had paid to the illustrious dead. At the 
 entrance of each village through which the cortege passed 
 deputations led by the clergy advanced to pay a last tribute 
 of respect and affection to him who had been their com- 
 patriot and friend. The coffin was lowered into the vault 
 long previously prepared by M. de Lamartine himself, and 
 laid next to his mother, his wife, his daughter, and his son, 
 the latter having died in his childhood. The Academy was 
 represented by Jules Sandeau and Emile Augier, and amongst 
 the others present were Emile Ollivier, M. de la Prade, and 
 Alex. Dumas fils. The town of Magon has subscribed 
 S,ooof (.^200) towards the monument to be erected to the 
 memory of the poet. 
 
338 PROSPER MERIMEE 
 
 March \oth. 
 
 We have anecdotes en masse of Lamartine. One detail of 
 his personal habits is interesting. The original manuscripts 
 of all his works are in the possession of his family, and 
 throughout the whole of this immense collection of manu- 
 scripts scarcely an erasure or correction is to be found. This 
 is specially observable in the case of his volumes of the 
 History of the Girondins, each volume of which costs the 
 publisher £/^fX)0. In his dress he retained the old fashions of 
 his youth, and always wore the narrow coat and tight trousers 
 which were worn in the palmy days when the cut of Count 
 d'Orsay's coat was the model of all well-dressed bipeds. 
 
 March litk. 
 
 Prosper M^rimde is dead. He was not only a romancist, 
 but also a historian and a distinguished archaeologist. The 
 ThMtre de Clara Gazul was the first volume which attracted 
 notice, and, in fact, made his name. The list of his works is 
 long. The Monuments Historiques de France, the history of 
 Don Pedro of Castille, and an Episode de I'Histoire de Russie 
 are amongst the works which will remain as standard books 
 in French literature. The list of the romances which issued 
 from his pen is long, and proves the fecundity of his imagina- 
 tion ; the articles in the Revue des Deux Mondes and the 
 Revue ArchcBologique the extent of his learning. M. M^rim^e 
 was inspector-general of the ancient and historic monuments 
 of France. It was whispered, some years ago, that a mar- 
 riage was in contemplation between M. Merim^e and the 
 mother of an illustrious lady. This union was, however, 
 strongly objected to by her son-in-law, whose voice is not 
 seldom heard in the councils of Europe. M. Prosper 
 M^rim^e died at Cannes in his sixtieth year. 
 
JULES JANIN ON HECTOR BERLIOZ 339 
 
 March li^th. 
 
 The first day's sale of Rossini's snuff-boxes by no means 
 created the excitement amongst amateurs of curiosities that 
 was anticipated. Two amongst these royal gifts alone went 
 for higher than £Af There was a ring of splendid diamonds 
 which fetched 140 guineas, and another set with a table 
 diamond which went for ;^I20. At yesterday's sale the Figaro 
 states that a gentleman bid for a watch which subsequently 
 proved to be of copper; on the contrary, a pistol of 
 Louis XV., sold for being adorned by a metal of which our 
 saucepans are made, proved to be mounted in gold. 
 
 March i's,th. 
 
 The Marquise de Caux is positively the rage at St. Peters- 
 burg. Her concert for the poor brought ;^ 1,600. She walks 
 about enveloped in sables of the densest black, and conse- 
 quently of the most rare quality — on her head a bajilik, her 
 face protected by a black velvet mask — escorted by the 
 Emperor and Grandduke Vladimir. She sings three nights 
 of the week at the opera, and it is as difficult to secure places 
 as on the first day of her arrival. 
 
 If you wish for a rare literary treat, read the feuilleton of 
 Jules Janin on Hector Berlioz, written in the veteran feuille- 
 tonists best style. He relates touching anecdotes of the 
 early life of the great composer, when he, a poor medical 
 student, first conceived the melodies which he reproduced in his 
 subsequent operas. It was by immense self-denial and extra 
 work he accumulated sufficient money to purchase a ticket 
 for the parterre of that same opera house which he was 
 destined to fill by his own harmonies. He took his seat as 
 Miss Smithson was singing, with exquisite pathos, the balcony 
 scene in Romeo and Juliet. As he walked back on a wet, 
 starless night to his miserable student's room in the H6tel 
 Dieu, he swore to himself to win the charming cantatrice 
 
340 BERRYER'S COLLECTIONS 
 
 whose accents had enthralled his soul, one day or other, as 
 his wife. How she became his guiding star to fame — how 
 on the first night of his Harald amidst the applause that 
 greeted his name, his only feeling of triumph was when 
 Paganini literally fell at his feet in admiration — how he 
 struggled, conquered and suffered, Jules Janin tells, with the 
 pathos and simple charm of which he is master, but which of 
 late years he has seldom given us. The captain in the French 
 Navy, whose recent death from lightning at sea was the last 
 blow which killed Berlioz, was son of Miss Smithson. After 
 her early death Berlioz married a second time, and again 
 had the sorrow of losing a young wife. 
 
 March lyth. 
 
 The first day's sale of the late M. Berryer's library and art 
 collections produced 35,000 f ; his walking-stick was sold for 
 three guineas, and a snuff-box bearing the fleur-de-lys, 
 enamelled on gold, for twenty guineas. A sketch of Rossini, 
 bearing the inscription, in that maestro' s handwriting, "To 
 Berryer, the dearest, most faithful, and most illustrious of my 
 friends, Gioacchino Rossini," went for 100 f. His writing-table, 
 a perfect marvel of workmanship, was bought for a small 
 sum, considering its intrinsic value — namely, forty-four 
 pounds; the silver statuette of Demosthenes, presented by 
 Count de Montalembert to Berryer, seventy guineas. The 
 Carpenters' Company bought back the chef d'ceuvre they had 
 offered to their counsel in a difficult case, when he successfully 
 pleaded their cause. 
 
 March iSth. 
 
 The Tribune gives us a rare historic treat by publishing a 
 letter of Louis Philippe, in which the late King reports a 
 conversation he had held with the Prince Regent on the 
 First Emperor. The Emperor, when an exile at St. Helena, 
 requested an officer of the English Navy to convey to the 
 Prince Regent a demand on his part to be re-established on 
 the throne of France, alleging the inefficiency and instability 
 
M. DE LESSEPS 341 
 
 of the Bourbons, and declaring that his energy alone could 
 govern the country. Napoleon, wishing to explain his views 
 to the Prince Regent, demanded to be conveyed to London. 
 Time has proved that the letter, which at the time, probably, 
 was sneered at and most likely made a subject of jest, was stern 
 common-sense. The Bourbons were given a fair trial ; the 
 elder branch was found wanting, and the younger branch, in 
 the person of the recorder of the anecdote, given the helm ; 
 but, after a time, he failed to steer the ship, and the people 
 recalled the exile's representative, and have experienced that 
 his energy alone could govern the country. Time has proved 
 the inefficiency and instability of the Bourbons on three 
 thrones they occupied at the time Napoleon wrote his letter 
 from St. Helena, and France, Spain, and the two Sicilies 
 have successively confirmed his opinion. 
 
 April yth. 
 
 In a correspondence from Cairo lately published, giving 
 an account of the visit paid by the Viceroy of Egypt to 
 M. de Lesseps's town, Ismailia, the fact is mentioned of His 
 Highness having been received at the house of M. Voisin, 
 the distinguished engineer to whose talent M. de Lesseps 
 owes so much. M. Voisin gave a bal-costum^ in honour of 
 the Viceroy's visit. Having been acquainted with him since 
 his childhood, I am able to give you some interesting details 
 as to his life, and this I do with all the greater pleasure, as 
 his brilliant career is a fresh proof of the success which in- 
 evitably crowns great talent combined with dauntless perse- 
 verance. In a narrow lane, called Le Passage des Deux 
 Portes, at Versailles, may still be seen a low public-house, 
 surmounted by a signboard, on which is painted an immense 
 green pear, beneath which are the words, " A la poire verte " 
 (to the Green Pear). This tavern was frequented by work- 
 men, and kept by a respectable and intelligent widow, a 
 Norman by birth, who never up to the last hour of her 
 life gave up her costume of a Norman peasant. She had 
 two sons ; at an early age both these boys displayed remark- 
 
342 JULES JANIN ON GUTTENBERG 
 
 able intelligence, and of this fact the mother determined to 
 avail herself. By rigid economy she managed not only to 
 send them to school, but thence to college. There her boys 
 carried off every prize. The eldest, the one who last week 
 entertained the Viceroy of Egypt, won the first prize for 
 mathematics at the Sorbonne, and entered the Ecole Poly- 
 technique. His brother followed his example, and is now a 
 captain in the artillery. The engineer, appointed as Govern- 
 ment civil engineer at Boulogne, built the splendid jetty 
 which was inaugurated by the Emperor, on which occasion 
 His Majesty took off the cross attached to his own uniform 
 and bestowed it on M. Voisin. M. de Lesseps was only too 
 glad to secure the services of so distinguished and scientific 
 a man, and at once entrusted him with one of the most im- 
 portant positions as regards the creation of the Isthmus. The 
 mother of these noble sons is dead, but as long as she lived 
 her two children were more than devoted — they were proud 
 of her ; and many a time I have seen the old lady, simply 
 clad in her peasant's dress, walking on the tapis vert of the 
 Versailles Park, amidst the ancienne noblesse which congregate 
 there of a Sunday to listen to the band, with her sons in 
 uniforms at each side of her, respected and almost venerated 
 by all who knew the story of her life. 
 
 April \2th. 
 
 M. Jules Janin, the veteran critic, gives in the Debuts of 
 this morning the following delicious illustration of the 
 civilisation of the present century. Writing of Guttenberg, 
 he mentions that it occurred to the savants of Europe that 
 whilst its capitals were adorned by statues to generals and 
 marshals, not a stone had been raised to the memory of the 
 man whose invention had spread religion and learning over 
 the whole world. A statue was forthwith, though somewhat 
 late, to be erected. Europeans in general were to be invited 
 to subscribe. There were none who had not benefited by 
 the art of printing ; therefore not the poorest would refuse. 
 France subscribed eighty pounds, Italy twenty, Great Britain 
 
A LAPSE OF MEMORY 343 
 
 and Ireland five pounds, Switzerland sixteen shillings, and 
 Belgium two pounds two shillings and one penny. 
 
 April lith. 
 
 M. Brandimarto Saletti, secretary of the Municipal Council 
 of Florence, desired his head clerk last Monday to purchase 
 four lottery tickets for him, the numbers of which he knew 
 were not as yet sold, at ;f i each, and accordingly handed 
 him a hundred-franc note. The clerk, a most trustworthy 
 person, carefully folded the note and placed it in his waist- 
 coat-pocket. Meeting a friend on his way home, however, 
 he utterly forgot the commission, till next morning, as he 
 passed the lottery office, it recurred to him, but, alas ! it was 
 too late ; the numbers his employer had desired him to 
 purchase had been bought up, and the list closed. On reach- 
 ing his office he found M. Saletti absorbed in business, and 
 he determined to delay the confession of his lapse of 
 memory till after the drawing. He therefore dived into his 
 own particular office and said nothing. M. Saletti, however, 
 an inveterate lottery player, was on the alert, and at the 
 exact hour rushed to the nearest office, where the pleasant 
 spectacle greeted him of the four numbers he had selected 
 having won no less than 1,800,000 f. Wild with delight, 
 M. Saletti rushed home to tell the glad news, and the frantic 
 excitement of the family can be conceived. On his way 
 back to the Hotel de Ville he met the syndic of Florence, 
 M. Terezzi, whose congratulations were most hearty; then 
 Count Cambray-Digny, the Finance Minister, who did his 
 best to calm him, and laughingly said, "Only think of its 
 being you who thus help to empty the treasury ! " Once in 
 his own office, he rang. More dead than alive appeared his 
 head clerk. " Give me quickly the receipt," asked M. Saletti. 
 " Here, sir, are the hundred francs." " What hundred francs ? " 
 "Do what you will with me, sir; send me to the galleys or 
 the guillotine, but I forgot to buy the tickets ! " 
 
344 BANQUET TO 
 
 June 2nd. 
 
 The American colony last night gave a farewell entertain- 
 ment to their late representative, General Dix, at the Grand 
 Hotel, which surpassed in taste and magnificence any banquet 
 as yet offered to an outgoing ambassador in Paris. You are 
 familiar with the spacious dining-room and reading-room of 
 that much-patronised establishment. The latter was cleared 
 of furniture and reserved for the service. The dining-room, 
 always admirably lighted, was last night illuminated by 
 about double the number of lustres generally in use. Between 
 each recess in the richly ornamented walls was placed a 
 flourish of flags, the central one being the tricolour of 
 France, and the others the scarlet and white stripes and 
 stars of the United States. If my memory serves me, 
 perhaps six tables ran across this vast hall, whilst one was 
 placed along the head of the room. Flowers in profusion ; 
 plate of elegant, and in some instances artistic design, gave 
 distinction to the appearance of the tables, whilst around 
 them ranged a perfect galaxy of "fair women and brave 
 men," the former dressed with the splendour and lavish 
 expense which so well suits the style of American beauty. 
 There were four hundred present, and this immense number 
 of persons of high social, financial, and literary standing will 
 not surprise those who have enjoyed the cordial hospitality 
 bestowed with much genial courtesy by the General and his 
 charming daughter, Mrs. Walshe, who up to the hour of her 
 marriage presided over her father's receptions, and on her 
 return from her wedding tour resumed a position where she 
 had acquired such well-deserved popularity. The only marvel 
 was that even a larger number did not crowd 'Ca&fite d'adieu. 
 Dr. Evans and Mr. Elliot Cowdin have the merit of the 
 arrangements, which in every detail were admirable in good 
 taste and magnificence. Nothing could have been more 
 perfect ; and blas^ as we all are with these sorts of banquets, 
 we are agreed that we have seldom spent a more enjoyable 
 
GENERAL DIX 345 
 
 evening. The event of interest naturally was the General's 
 speech, which is one of the most remarkable I ever listened 
 to. Galignani gives a full report of it. This paper so often 
 cuts into its contemporaries that I consider myself justified 
 in using a pair of scissors, and thus sending you, if not the 
 entire speech, the following passages, which bear on the 
 Emperor, Empress, and the influence of Imperialism on 
 the progress of France. You will admit that a more im- 
 partial witness could scarcely be found than an ex-American 
 minister : — 
 
 " The advantages enjoyed in Paris by the American colony, 
 which has become so populous as almost to constitute a dis- 
 tinctive feature in the physiognomy of the city, can be by 
 none better appreciated than by ourselves. We are as com- 
 pletely under the protection of the Government as the 
 citizens of France, and we are required to contribute nothing 
 directly to its support. We are living without personal 
 taxation or exactions of any sort in this most magnificent 
 of modern capitals, full of objects of interest, abounding in 
 all that can gratify the taste, as well as in sources of solid 
 information ; and these treasures of art and of knowledge 
 are freely opened to our inspection and use. Nor is this all. 
 We are invited to participate most liberally — far more liberally 
 than at any other Court in Europe — in the hospitalities of the 
 palace. I have myself, during the two years and a half of 
 my service here, presented to their Imperial Majesties more 
 than three hundred of our fellow-citizens of both sexes ; and 
 a much larger number presented in former years have, during 
 the same period, shared the same courtesies. With these 
 associations of the past and of the present, the prosperity 
 of this great empire cannot be a matter of indifference to 
 us; and it speaks strongly in /avour of the illustrious 
 sovereign who for the last twenty years has held its destinies 
 in his hands, that the condition of the people, materially and 
 intellectually, has been constantly improving, and that the 
 aggregate prosperity of the country is greater perhaps at the 
 present moment than it has been at any former period. 
 
346 GENERAL DIX ON 
 
 (Cheers.) It is worthy of remark, too, that the venerable 
 leader of the Opposition in the Corps Ldgislatif, one of those 
 remarkable men who leave the impress of their opinions on 
 the age in which they live, recently declared that the Govern- 
 ment, in many essential respects, was in a course of liberal 
 progress. As you know, the debates in that body on ques- 
 tions of public policy are unrestricted; they are reported 
 with great accuracy, and promptly published in the official 
 journal and other newspaper presses ; and thus the people 
 of France are constantly advised of all that is said for or 
 against the administrative measures which concern their 
 interests. In liberal views and in that comprehensive fore- 
 cast which shapes the policy of the present to meet the 
 exigencies of the future, the Emperor seems to me to be 
 decidedly in advance of his ministers, and even of the 
 popular body chosen by universal suffi-age to aid him in his 
 legislative labours. Of her who is the sharer of his honours 
 and the companion of his toils, who in the hospital, at the 
 altar, or on the throne, is alike exemplary in the discharge 
 of her varied duties, whether incident to her position or 
 voluntarily taken upon herself, it is difficult for me to speak 
 without rising above the level of the common language of 
 eulogium. (Cheers.) But I am standing here to-day as a 
 citizen of the United States, without official relations to my 
 own Government or to any other. I have taken my leave of 
 the Imperial Family, and I know no reason why I may not 
 freely speak what I honestly think, especially as I know I 
 can say nothing that will not find a cordial response in your 
 own breasts. As in the history of the ruder sex, great 
 luminaries have from time to time risen high above the 
 horizon to break and at the same time to illustrate the 
 monotony of the general movement, so in the annals of hers 
 brilliant lights have at intervals shone forth and shed their 
 lustre upon the stately march of regal pomp and power. 
 Such was one of her royal predecessors, of whom Edmund 
 Burke said, 'There never lighted on this orb, which she 
 scarcely seemed to touch, a more delightful vision.' Such 
 
THE EMPEROR AND EMPRESS 347 
 
 was that radiant Queen of Bohemia, whose memory history 
 
 has embalmed, and to whom Sir Henry Wotton, in a moment 
 
 of poetic exaltation, compared the beauties of the skies. And 
 
 such is she of whom I am speaking. When I have seen her 
 
 taking part in that most imposing, as I think, of all imperial 
 
 pageants, the opening of the Legislative Chambers, standing 
 
 amid the assembled magistracy of Paris and of France, 
 
 surrounded by the representatives of the talent, the genius, 
 
 the learning, the literature, and the piety of this great 
 
 empire, or amid the resplendent scenes of the palace, moving 
 
 about with a gracefulness all her own, and with a simplicity 
 
 of manner which has a double charm when allied to exalted 
 
 rank and station, I confess I have more than once whispered 
 
 to myself, and I believe not always inaudibly, that beautiful 
 
 verse of the graceful and courtly Claudian, the last of the 
 
 Roman poets — 
 
 ' Divino semita gressu claruit' ; 
 
 or, rendered into our plain English and stripped of its poetic 
 hyperbole, ' the very path she treads is radiant with her un- 
 rivalled step.' (Loud applause.)" 
 
 Such eulogiums, emanating from an American statesman so 
 much respected as is General Dix by his colleagues of the 
 Corps Diplomatique, must be agreeable to the Government 
 at a moment when so many organs of the press make it a 
 point and seem to take a spiteful pleasure in upbraiding and 
 vituperating the Emperor who for eighteen years has at least 
 proved a faithful ally to England, and who has done more for 
 the education and general welfare of the working classes 
 than did any of his predecessors. 
 
INDEX OF NAMES 
 
 Abd-el-Kader, 186 
 
 Abdul Aziz Khan, 273 
 
 About, Edmond, 45, 104, 201 
 
 Aguado, Viscount d', 139 
 
 Aigle, Count de 1', 337 
 
 Alboni, Madame, 169, 308, 328 
 
 Aldridge, Ira, 313 
 
 Alexander of Hesse, Duke, 191 
 
 Aligre, Marquis d', 97 
 
 AUard, 137 
 
 AUon, 82 
 
 Altesse, 283 
 
 Althen, Jean, no 
 
 Ameilhon, 195 
 
 Ampere, 75, 77, 172 
 
 Anacreon, 197 
 
 Ancre, Marshal d', 238 
 
 Andlau, Baron d', 84 
 
 Anne of Austria, 12 
 
 Arago, 104, 106 
 
 Armez, 216 
 
 Arnault, 214 
 
 Asselineau, 191 
 
 Auber, 53, 310 
 
 Autist, Baron d', 58, 60 
 
 Aymerie du Vergier, 225 
 
 Bacciochi, Count, 207 
 
 Bachon, 243 
 
 Bacqueville, Marquis de, 226 
 
 Bagier, 39 
 
 Balzac, 324 
 
 Baraenon, Pierre, 230 
 
 Barbes, 128 
 
 Barbey d'Aur^villy, 104 
 
 Barilli, Mile., 169 
 
 Barthelemy, Madame, 1 62 
 
 Bassano, 153 
 
 — , Mile, de, 80, 156 
 
 Bassanville,MadameIaComtessede,262 
 
 Baudelaire, 190, 260 
 
 Bavaria, King of, 280 
 
 Bazaine, Marshal, 212 
 
 Beaufort, Duke of, 290 
 
 Beaulieu, 233 
 
 Beaumont, Gustave de, 178 
 Becquerel, 296 
 Bejot, 94 
 Beranger, 56 
 Berezowski, 261 
 Berlioz, Hector, 339 
 Berru, Camille, 328 
 Berryer, 112, 131, 317-18, 340 
 Bigelow, 208, 218 
 Bismarck, 113, 123, 286, 320 
 Blanc, Louis, 271 
 Blount, 139 
 
 Blarenberghe, Van, 129 
 Blum, 323 
 
 BcEuf- Dolby, Madame le, 320 
 Boissy, Marquis de, 167, 199 
 Bonaparte, Prince Joseph, 117 
 — , Lucien, 193 
 Bonheur, Mile., 1 40 
 Booth, Wilkes, 178, 180 
 Boucher, 287 
 Boudeville, 131 
 Boutron, Sieur, 288 
 Brancion, Comte de, $8 
 Bravay, 142 
 Brillat-Savarin, 10 1 
 Bretonneau, Dr., 254 
 Brougham, Lord, 31, 229 
 Bruat, Madame, 325 
 Brunswick, Duke of, 45, 255 
 Bugeaud, 240 
 Burcq, Dr., 49 
 Bussy Rabutin, 197 
 
 Cadet, 189 
 
 Cambray-Digny, Count, 343 
 
 Cargot, 282 
 
 Carpentier, M. Aristide le, 89, 186 
 
 Carrel, Armand, 130 
 
 Carter, Miss, 162 
 
 Cartouche, 51, 236 
 
 Carvalho, Madame, 249, 311 
 
 Cassagnac, 300 
 
 Castiglione, Countess de, 156 
 
 Caux, Marquis de, 139 
 
 349 
 
3SO 
 
 INDEX OF NAMES 
 
 Caux, Marquise de, 339 
 
 Caz^res, 279 
 
 Chadwick, 94 
 
 Chamborant, Baron de, 336, 367 
 
 Chambord, Comte de, 317 
 
 Chambrelent, 44 
 
 Champfleury,78, 139, 141, 190,193,203, 
 
 303 
 Charavay, Gabriel and Jacques, 203 
 Charles V., 214 
 — Xn., 212 
 
 Chasseloup-Laubat, Marquis de, i6l 
 Chateauvillain, Count de, 256 
 Chaudesaigues, 271 
 Chenier, Andre, 204 
 Chenu, 81 
 
 Chevalier, Michel, 105 
 Chevet, 11 1 
 
 Choiseul, Count de, 156 
 Ciampi, 273 
 
 Civry, Comtesse de, 45, 82, 92 
 Clercemvault, 211 
 Cobden, 71, 74 
 Colonna, Duchess, 161 
 Conneau, Jamy Louise, 1 38 
 Coquerel, Athanase, 173 
 Corot, 86, 104, 33i 
 Correggio, 326 
 Courrier, Paul, 3 
 Cousin, Victor, 32, 229 
 Couvreux, 151 
 Cowdin, Elliot, 344 
 Cowley, Lady, 207 
 — , Lord, 80 
 Cramonzeaux, Sieur, 279 
 Crequi, Marquise de, 236 
 Croquet, 276 
 Cuvillier-FIeury, 37 
 Czar, The, 263 
 
 Dackum, Admiral van, 38 
 
 Dagmar, Princess, 233 
 
 Daguerry, Abbe, 330 
 
 Damas, General de, 109 
 
 Damuferil, 199 
 
 Darboy, Mgr., 62, 216 
 
 Dargaud, 245 
 
 Darimon, Alfred, 167 
 
 Dash, Madame, 193 
 
 Daumier, 78 
 
 Davenport Brothers, 107, 109, no, 123 
 
 David, 141 
 
 Davis, Jefferson, 179, 203 
 
 Deburau, 139, 141 
 
 Degeau, 73 
 
 Deiss, 279 
 
 Delacroix, Eugene, 331 
 
 Delamarre, in, 118 
 
 Delangle, 20 
 
 Delaroche, 56, 253 
 
 Delbruck, Jules, 55 
 
 Delorme, Marion, 99 
 
 Dentu, 97 
 
 De Quincey, 190, 260 
 
 Descartes, 212 
 
 Deschamps, Emile, 316 
 
 Desjardins, 158 
 
 Desnoyers, 233 
 
 Devisme, 143 
 
 Dickens, 78 
 
 Dillon, 130 
 
 Dix, General, 209, 2i8, 312, 344 
 
 Donizetti, 139, 169 
 
 Dore, Gustave, no, 272, 305, 310, 
 
 312, 322, 324 
 Dorus Gras, Madame, 7 
 Doucet, Camille, 76, 77, 276 
 Downing, Mrs., 280 
 Dr6me, Mathieu de la, 86 
 Drouyn de Lhuys, 30, 202 
 Dubroni, 102 
 Ducange, Victor, 300 
 Duhamel, Mile., 281 
 Dumagy, Louis, 96 
 Dumas, A., 55, 114, 152, 174, 182, 186, 
 
 213, 259, 29s, 299, 335 
 Dumas, Alexandre, fils, 87, 193 
 Dupin, M., 97, 131 
 Dupont, II 
 Duruy, 49, 216 
 Dutocq, 324 
 Duval, 204 
 Duville, 153 
 
 Edwards, Milne, 199 
 
 Engel, Louis, 323 
 
 Epinay Saint-Luc, Marquis d', 115 
 
 Escobedo, 292, 295 
 
 Espenilles, Viscount d', 139 
 
 Este, Marquis d', 100 
 
 Esterhazy, Prince, 97 
 
 Etiney, M. d', 144 
 
 Eugenie, Empress, 28, 88, 93, 125, 154, 
 
 165, 193, 201, 203, 207, 237, 290 
 Euler, 106 
 Evans, Dr., 344 
 Exauvilliers, M. d', 268 
 
 Fabre, Jean, 173 
 Fargeuil, Mile., 315 
 Favart, Mile., 253 
 Favre, Jules, 112, 132, 166 
 Faure, 153 
 
 Ferri^re, Comte de la, 41 
 — , Madame la, 234 
 Feval, Paul, 76 
 
INDEX OF NAMES 
 
 3SI 
 
 Feydeau, Ernest, 177 
 
 Fitzjames, Viscount de, 139 
 
 Flandrin, Hippolyte, 57 
 
 Flahaut, Comte de, 64 
 
 Flanders, Countess of, 290 
 
 Fl^chelle, 158 
 
 Flers, M. de, 321 
 
 Fleury, General, 164, 181, 241, 246 
 
 — , Robert, 302 
 
 Foray, Marshal, 259 
 
 Fordham, 290 
 
 Fould, 222 
 
 Fourier, 107 
 
 Francis Joseph, Emperor, 267 
 
 Franck, 247 
 
 Fran9ois I., 198 
 
 Frederick the Great, 60, 197 
 
 Fresnel, 105 
 
 Fromentin, 86 
 
 Gallifett, Marquis de, 139, 262 
 
 — , Marquise de, 138, 155 
 
 Garcin de Tassy, 301 
 
 Garibaldi, 29, 37, 124 
 
 Gamier, 324 
 
 Gautier, Theophile, 85 
 
 George IV., 83 
 
 Ghika, Countess, 287 
 
 Giacometti, 253 
 
 Girard, Gustave, 126 
 
 Girardin, Emile de, 64, 72, 75, 87, 
 
 126, 167 
 Glais-Bizoin, 167 
 Gleck, 253 
 Godwin, 218 
 
 Goltr, M. le Comte de, 182, 219 
 Goncourt, MM. de, 104 
 Gounod, 136, 213, 249 
 Gowan, Mrs., 280 
 Gozlan, Leon, 204 
 Gramont Caderousse, Duke de, 120 
 Graof, 41 
 
 Green, Joseph, 303 
 Graves, Cardinal de, 236 
 Grisi, 170 
 Grossi, Mile, 313 
 Gueroult, 168 
 Guido, 326 
 Guillaumet, 320 
 
 Guizot,76, 77, 78, 105, 132, 168, 172, 235 
 Gustavus Wasa, 212 
 Guttenberg, 342 
 
 Hamilton, Duchess of, 277 
 Harris, Miss, 272, 273, 281 
 Hastings, Marquis of, 287, 290, 291 
 Haussman, 166 
 Havin, 168 
 
 Heloise and Ab^Iard, 212 
 Henri IV., 86, 197 
 Hertford, Marquis of, 242, 272 
 Higouet, General, 48 
 HohenzoUern, Princess, 157 
 Hollander, 259 
 Horace, 197 
 Horrer, 237 
 Hortense, Queen, 56 
 Hudson, Captain John, 247 
 Hufeland, Prof., 79 
 Hugo, Victor, 20, 128, 151, 175, 182, 
 186, 198, 254, 304, 328 
 
 Imperial, Prince, 80, 180, 291 
 Ingres, 220, 298, 331 
 Iron Mask, 25 
 Isabey, 104, 266 
 Ismael, Prince, 301 
 
 Jacob, the Zouave, 256 
 
 Jules, Janin, 75, 76, 143, 328, 339, 342 
 
 Jones, Joey, 290 
 
 Josephine, Empress, 11 
 
 Juilleret, 20 
 
 Kalil Bey, 226 
 Kant, 212 
 Karder, Alan, 112 
 Karr, Alphonse, i 
 Kellog, 218 
 Kleber, 107 
 Kock, Paul de, 300 
 Kohn, Zadoc, 323 
 Korsakow, Princess, 156, 162 
 
 Laboulaye, 148 
 
 Lacazes Duthiers, 199 
 
 Lacordaire, Pere, 84 
 
 Ladimir, Jules, 134 
 
 Lagrange, 244 
 
 — , Count F. de, 81, 96 
 
 Laine, Riquier, 70 
 
 Lamartine, 54, 106, 131, 133, 182, 244, 
 
 329. 333. 335. 337. 338. 
 Lamballe, Princess de, 85 
 Lambert, M. de, 138 
 Lami, Eugene, 320 
 Lamiraude, 200 
 Lange, 206 
 
 Lariboisiere, Countess, 126 
 Latouche, Henri, 204 
 Latour, Jacques, 26 
 Lebceuf, 20 
 
 Lebrun, Madam Vigee, 154 
 Leger, 211 
 
 Lemercier de Neuville, 282 
 Lenoir, Richard, 103 
 Le Notre, 51 
 
352 
 
 INDEX OF NAMES 
 
 Leonard, 250 
 
 — , Antoine, 264 
 
 L^onie, 275 
 
 Leopold, King, 22 
 
 Leperteur, Hentz, 211 
 
 Leray, Andre, 46 
 
 Leroux, Charles, 292 
 
 Lesp^s, Leo, 76 
 
 Lesseps, Baron de, 186, 341 
 
 Lesueur, 327 
 
 L^vy, Michel, 88, 115, 324 
 
 Limayrac, P., 72 
 
 Lincoln, Abraham, 179, 194 
 
 Lind, Jenny, 150 
 
 Liszt, 184, 296 
 
 Lorraine, Claude, 326 
 
 Lullier, 300 
 
 Lupin, 81 
 
 Luquet, 140 
 
 Luynes, Due de, 275 
 
 Louis XIV., 10, 212, 263 
 
 — XV., 198 
 
 — XVL, II, 204 
 
 — Philippe, 38, 56, 78, 168, 1 78, 327, 340 
 — , Saint, 254 
 
 M'Clellan, 203 
 
 Mackau, Madame de, 57 
 
 Maine, Duchess of, 196 
 
 Maison, Countess, 57 
 
 Malakoff, Duchess of, 214 
 
 Maiden, M. de, 115 
 
 Mame, 110 
 
 Manvergnier, Sieur, 279 
 
 Marceau, 107 
 
 Marie, 82 
 
 Marie Antoinette, 11, 114,227 
 
 Markowski, 258 
 
 Marmontel, 52, 196 
 
 Mars, Mile., 11 
 
 Marteilhe, 173 
 
 Mass^na, 107 
 
 Mathilde, Princess, 316, 319 
 
 Matthews, Miss, 83 
 
 Maugus, 232 
 
 Maximilian, Emperor, 217, 221, 292-5 
 
 Mazarin, 219 
 
 Mazzini, 314 
 
 Meissonier, 302 
 
 Mejia, 294, 295 
 
 Melin, 200 
 
 Mellinet, General de, 139 
 
 Merimee, 216, 220 
 
 — , Prosper, 338 
 
 M^ry, 153 
 
 Metternich, Prince and Princess de, 80, 
 
 137, 138, 146, 15s. 182. 336 
 Meyerbeer, 328, 329 
 
 Michelet, 203 
 
 Mill, Stuart, 6 
 
 Miramion, Madame de, 197 
 
 Miramon, 293-5 
 
 MoU^re, 19, 107 
 
 Monad, 325 
 
 Monnier, 181 
 
 Montalembert, Count de, 132, 340 
 
 Montesquieu, 198 
 
 Montesquiou-Fezensac, 212 
 
 Montigny, Count de, 132 
 
 Montmorency, Duke de, 95 
 
 Montpensier, Duchess de, 192 
 
 Moreno, Cesar, 265 
 
 Morin, Abbe, 268 
 
 — , General, 297 
 
 Morlot, M. de, 281 
 
 Morny, Duke de, 62, 75, 81, 108, 181, 
 
 203 
 Mouchy, Duke de, 95 
 Moustier, Marquise de, 239 
 MuUer, Dr., 198, 199 
 Murat, Prince Achille, 291 
 Murger, 190 
 Musard, 86 
 Musset, A. de, 167 
 
 Nadar, 22, 191, 283 
 
 Napoleon I., 25, 39, 60, 197, 212, 217, 
 
 275, 280 
 Napoleon IIL, 23, 155, 173, 193, 240, 
 
 246, 290, 299 
 Napoleon, Prince, 32, 102, 239, 288, 320 
 Narishkine, Prince, 234 
 Negroin, 255 
 
 Nero, the Emperor's dog, 297 
 Nerval, Gerard de, 203 
 Neveu, the Brothers, 211 
 Nieuwerkque, M. de, 140, 326 
 Nicholas, Emperor, 184 
 Niel, Marshal, 249, 286 
 Nigra, 30 
 
 Nilsson, Mile. Christina, 284, 311, 313 
 Ninon de I'Enclos, 87 
 Noriac, Jules, 186, 263 
 Norton, Mrs., 280 
 Noyet, Du, 256 
 Nus and Belot, 315, 320 
 
 Odilon-Barrot, 168 
 
 Offenbach, 3 
 
 OUivier, Emile, 167, 296, 334 
 
 Orleans, Duchess of, 168 
 
 Orsay, Count d', 120 
 
 Orsini, 166 
 
 Ortega, 293 
 
 Ossuna, Due d', 97, 242 
 
 Oudinot, 332 
 
INDEX OF NAMES 
 
 353 
 
 Paganini, 340 
 
 Paghance, Lorenza, 323 
 
 Paiva, M. de, 143 
 
 Palacios, Colonel, 292 
 
 Paradis, Abbe, 187 
 
 Paris, Aime, 59 
 
 Pasdeloup, 320 
 
 Pasteur, 36 
 
 Patti, La Diva, 139, 150, 169, 227, 
 
 312, 313 
 Peel, Sir Robert, 72 
 Pelissier, Jean, 68 
 — , Marshal, 214 
 Pelletan, 112, 333 
 P^ne, Henri de, 129 
 Pepoli, Marquis, 30 , 
 
 Pereire, 105 
 
 Perrin, Maximilian, 300 
 — , of the Opera, 311 
 Persigny, M. de, 38, 102 
 — , Mme. la Duchesse de, 232 
 Pessard, 118 
 Petitot, 302 
 . Philarfete Chasles, 238 
 Ficard, Ernest, 166 
 Pietri, Lt.-Col., 48, 50 
 Fillet- Will, 328 
 Pinard, 300 
 
 Piombino, Prince de, 97 
 Pius IX., 226 
 Plon, Henri, 23 
 Foe, Edgar A., 190 
 Poilly, Baroness de, 139 
 Poirson, 249 
 
 Folignac, Prince A. de, 193 
 Portugal, King of, 143, 1 75 
 Pompadour, Marquise de la, 213 
 Poujade, Madame Eugenie, 208 
 Fourtal^s, Count and Countess, 53, 138, 
 
 336 
 Foussin, 326 
 Pratt, Mrs., 281 
 Prefontaine, M. de, 114 
 Prevost-Paradol, 3, 75, 77. no. «72i 
 
 203, 208 
 Proudhon, 49 
 Prudhon, 140, 288 
 
 Quatrefages, M. de, SS. 198. 200 
 Quicherat, 278 
 
 Rambuteau, Count de, 334, 336 
 Raphael, 327 
 
 Rattazzi, Madame, 36, 193 
 Raumbough, 323 
 Ravaisson, rran9ois, 19S 
 Rayer, Dr., 81 
 
 Regnaud de St. Jeand'Angely, Marshal, 
 
 127 
 Remusat, Count de, 211 
 Renan, Ernest, 103, 183, 203 
 Reuben, 179 
 Reyneval, Abb^, 129 
 Riancreu, 267 
 Richard, Madame, 11 
 Richelieu, Cardinal, 58, 99, 136, 215, 
 
 216, 217, 219 
 Riego, 323 
 Rigolboche, 177 
 Ristori, Madame, 252, 253 
 Ritterstein, 217 
 Riva de Rejijl, Dr., 292 
 Robespierre, 318 
 Robin, lo8 et seq. 
 Rochefort, Count de, 130 
 Rochefoucauld, Sosth^ne de la, 99 
 Rochejaquelin, Marquis de la, 225 
 Rogeard, M., 70 
 Roll.in, General, 157 
 Rome, King of, 203 
 Roon, General von, 29 
 Rosen, Colonel, 212 
 Rossini, 50, 52, 142, 187, 283, 305 et 
 
 seq, 328, 329, 339, 340 
 Rothschilds, The, 32, 89, 130, 170 
 Rouher, 64, 67, 300, 335 
 Rousseau, 107, 212 
 Russell, Earl, 29 
 
 Said Pacha, 142 
 
 Saint Borlemont, Countess de, 135 
 
 Saint-Hilaire, F. Geoffroy de, 192 
 
 — , G. Geoffroy de, 32, 55 
 
 Sainte-Beuve, 77, 190, 288 
 
 Saintine, X. B., 47 
 
 Saint-Saens, 323 
 
 Saletti, Brandimarto, 343 
 
 Sanchez, Don, 215 
 
 Sand, George, 54, 151, 192, 203, 204 
 
 Sandeau, Jules, 77, 192 
 
 Savile, 289, 290 
 
 Savoy, Duke of, 197 
 
 Sax, Madame, 137 
 
 Saxe, Marshal de, 151 
 
 Schickler, 291 
 
 Schidone, 327 
 
 Schlieker, Madame, 28 1 
 
 Schneider, 67, 333 
 
 Seligmann, 251 
 
 Serilly, Mile, de, 144 
 
 Serres, M. de, 267 
 
 S^rurier, Marshal, 58, 60 
 
 Sevigne, Madame de, 19, 24, 198 
 
 Seward, 203 
 
 Shaw, Miss, l8l, 325 
 
354 
 
 INDEX OF NAMES 
 
 Sieyfes, Countess, 57 
 
 Simon, 3, 18 
 
 Sims, Dr., 281 
 
 Slidell, Miss, 156 
 
 Smithson, Miss, 339 
 
 Solms, Count de, 138, 193 
 
 Soulanque, Emperor, 164 
 
 Soyer, 101 
 
 Staal, Madame de, 196 
 
 Steller, 273 
 
 Stephanie, Queen of Portugal, 290 
 
 Strakosh, Maurice, 169 
 
 Strauss, 50 
 
 Surratt, 179 
 
 Susse, 165 
 
 Taglioni, 170 
 
 Talleyrand, 191 
 
 Tallien, Madame, 35 
 
 Tascher de la Pagerie, Duchess, 80, 156 
 
 Tasso, 22 
 
 Taylor, Baron, ^6 
 
 Terezzi, 343 ^ 
 
 Tersau, Abbe, 212 
 
 Texier, Edmond, 266 
 
 Thackeray, 78 
 
 Theresa, 164, 177 
 
 Thierry, 325 
 
 Thiers, 103, 112, 132, 166, 167 
 
 Thomas, Ambroise, 313 
 
 Thouvenal, 33 
 
 Tissot, 85 
 
 Torrens, Miss, 156 
 
 Touson de Jerrail, Viscount, 119 
 
 Tramhaut, Alfred, 134 
 
 Troplong, 331, 333 
 Troubetskoi, Princess, 64 
 Trousseau, Dr., 254 
 Turner, 319 
 
 Vaillant, Marshal, 212, 297, 305 
 
 Valette, Marquis de la, 62, 102 
 
 Valliere, Mile, de la, 1 1 
 
 Vallons, Oscar de, 145 
 
 Valory, M. de, 115 
 
 Verdi, 153, 203 
 
 Vernets, the, 53, S4> S6, 326 
 
 Victor Emmanuel, 24, 40, 124, 265 
 
 Vidocq, 251 
 
 Vigny, Alfred de, 76, 77, 316 
 
 Villemessant, M. de, 7, 61, 283 
 
 ViUot, F., S3 
 
 Voisin, 341 
 
 Voltaire, 212 
 
 Wagner, 320 
 
 Walewski, Count, 57, 235 
 
 Walshe, Mrs., 344 
 
 Weber, 187 
 
 Wellington, Duke of, 25, 198 
 
 Weniawski, 250 
 
 Wolowski, Princess, 236 
 
 Wood, Mrs. Henry, 315 
 
 Wyse, 193. 
 
 Yung, Eugine, 147 
 Yves, Me., 255 
 
 Ziem, 319 
 
PLYMOUTH 
 
 WILLIAM BRENDON AND SON 
 
 PRINTERS 
 

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